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| Me with Globe - 1968 - 6.25 years old |
A Sense of Doubt blog post #3861 - Taking a Break - SoD Reprint of #2025 - Hey Mom #1211
Back in 2020, I made this post that I am reprinting here because as I explain below in the original post, I needed to take a break. The pandemic had been going for months, the George Floyd murder had also taken place months before, the election was ramping up and about two months away, and I needed a break. And so this post.
I need a break again, especially after the killing of Charlie Kirk that is casting fear for many of us for the consequences of free speech. As I wrote yesterday, I don't want to risk any repercussions for my speech, even though my blog is hardly well-trafficked.
So, a break.
Though this time it's not a full on break. I have new dedication to original posts on Wednesdays (about writing) and Thursdays (letter to Dad) along with Music Monday and Comic Book Sunday (these last two can be reprints), and so I am going into a kind of low-power mode for a couple of weeks with more reprints, simple shares, and simple posts, though the original posts I mentioned will continue on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
I need to catch my breath. So I have postponed longer posts, especially those with political content, and I am taking some time to think, reflect, and watch the government and what actions it takes against its citizens in retribution for rhetoric it perceives as counter to its ideological agenda.
And, so, this reprint.
Also, it's neat to just look at these older posts even if I do not reprint them. For instance, here I ordered the book An Unkindness of Magicians to read to feed my fantasy writing because the VE Schwab book I was going to listen to on audio is not yet available. I had forgotten all about An Unkindness of Magicians, so that alone makes reprinting this post worthwhile.
Also, notice the cosplay cool cat whose picture I took waiting in line for Rose City Comic con in 2018, two years before the pandemic, holding a mask to his face.
Prophetic?
Thanks for tuning in.
PHOTO CAPTION ERROR
There was an error with the photo caption so that it read 1966 - 6.25 years old. In 1966, I was four years old. I was six in 1968. I think the year is supposed to read 1968 as another link below where the photo originally appeared indicates.
PHOTO CAPTION ERROR
There was an error with the photo caption so that it read 1966 - 6.25 years old. In 1966, I was four years old. I was six in 1968. I think the year is supposed to read 1968 as another link below where the photo originally appeared indicates.
The background is definitely Traverse City, and we did move to Schoolcraft in 1968 but probably some time in the summer. If I am really 6.25 years old in the picture, that's April, and we had not moved yet.
Link to the original post that I am reprinting below:
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #1114 - Throwback Thursday on Friday 1809.14 - Me and the Earth 1968
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #1211 (SoD #2025) - I Need to Take a Break
Hi Mom,
How are you?
You speak with heavenly beauty to me from the beyond. I hear you. Thank for staying by my side and yet not, and yet everywhere, and yet nowhere. It's as an aspect of Quantum Reality.
Was that too corny? Oh well. I don't care.
So, here's the thing.
I need to take a break.
I have been working a lot. I have been running hard. I have been making complicated and very time intensive posts with a lot of original writing, and I have been running this hard since the start of the pandemic quarantine.
And now it's time for a break, a little vacation.
I cannot really take a vacation during the pandemic. I can't really go anywhere safely, and even if I could, what about my dogs? I either take them with me, or I cannot go because I do not trust any place to properly and safely house them.
And doesn't Europe have a travel ban against people from the United States because our pandemic is so out of control?
I need some time off. I need to dial back the crazy train. I need a breather.
In my employment world, one of the two schools for which I work -- Lower Columbia College -- is on a break between quarters as we just finished summer quarter, and even though I had just one class, I put a lot of time into it. My other school is currently running, and I have two classes with it, so that's an issue. But my work load has dropped.
Further freeing occurred when the workshop I am taking ended Tuesday night, and we are about to start the Labor Day weekend, which prompted me to give all my current students extensions.
And so, I have more time free, and I would like to channel it elsewhere for a while.
Now what happens when a daily blogger takes a break?
After all, I could just stop posting for a while. No one is paying me, no one is holding a gun to my head, and unless you leave comments to disabuse me of this belief, I do not have that many avid and daily readers.
But, as I have always claimed, this blog is for me more than anything else. Sure, I think about audience a lot. I am often trying to reach my students. At other times, I have a broader view and hope by pushing the blog out there via social media with has tags that I will get more readers, at least for certain posts.
My numbers often support this "marketing."
A quick glance at my numbers shows that I reached a monthly high of 412 posts back on August 11th. I am not sure if this is related to the posts on or around that day because they do not have numbers of views that would total 412.
I tend to hover in the 40-50 page views a day on average with spikes of 126 (8/18) and 116 (8/31). My WEEKLY HODGE PODGE posts seem to be the most popular event of my week, always accumulating 30+ views with some topping out higher, such as #1978 currently at 110 views and #1963 at 83 (links below).
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1978 - "You Don't Vote For Kings!" - Weekly Hodge Podge 2007.18
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1963 - A symbol of hate? Weekly Hodge Podge for July Third
Therefore, it makes sense that even in my time off, taking a break, vacation, I should continue to produce the WEEKLY HODGE PODGE, which I had considered also taking a break from. But the HODGE PODGE does not cost me a ton of time as I read and accumulate material every morning. Plus this week's is dedicated to one of Obama's best speeches ever: A MORE PERFECT UNION.
So, to go back to the question of how a daily blogger takes a break?
EASY POSTS.
For instance, I have features called LOW POWER MODE, One Photo, and THAT ONE THING that allow me to keep my blog simple and easy to produce on a daily basis, which was the original concept for my T-shirts blog. I can even produce these easy posts in advance.
LOTS OF SHARING. I share anyway, but I can feature posts that just share other content with very little commentary from me; after all, I have 584 draft posts currently saved in my account, subtracting 95 for the weekly comic lists I accumulate and probably will never share, that leaves approximately 490-some posts that are half-finished, many of which already contain copies of material I want to share.
RESIST THE URGE OF COMPLICATIONS. I have tendency to overdo, over-commit, over-write. If I can KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID, then I can survive my time off, which I am thinking may need to last about two weeks with a return to the NEW NORMAL about September 17th.
ALSO, in the "time off," I will still be writing. I have longer blog posts that I want to devote time to finishing, and I am working on fiction in a much more dedicated way and other work stuff: two presentations to prep, classes to prep, job search, outdoor fun as summer wanes, new writer's groups.
So, that's that.
Thanks for reading.
Here we go into the sort of time off, sort of vacation, sort of low power mode.
DREAMS
ARG!!!!!!!! Trump was in my dream and so was Rebecca Watson.
Trump was my college professor. After he said something offensive in the class room when I had tuned him out and could not answer his question about house electrical amperage accurately. I said "fuck this" and prepared to leave the room and drop the class.
There was a break, and I encountered Trump in the hallway. I thought to myself that I should kiss his ass and curry his favor rather than dropping the class. I could probably get an A if I just stroked his ego constantly. I apologized for my out burst and begged his forgiveness. He appreciated my candor and HUGGED ME... yuk!
Later, I encountered Rebecca Watson (often blogged about, like HERE SoD#1880), and I was going to recommend a tacos place (in Portland?) and there was a lot of stress because I had to pick the place with the most amazing tacos AND a place where one could actually have the tacos in the pandemic (outdoor dining). Could I pick such a place?
Clearly, these dreams, especially TRUMP HUGGING ME (GAG) IS PROOF THAT I need a break.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Reflect and connect.
Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you, Mom.
I miss you so very much, Mom.
Talk to you soon, Mom.
- Days ago = 1889 days ago
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2009.03 - 10:10
NEW (written 1708.27 and 1907.04) NOTE on time: I am now in the same time zone as Google! So, when I post at 10:10 a.m. PDT to coincide with the time of your death, Mom, I am now actually posting late, so it's really 1:10 p.m. EDT. But I will continue to use the time stamp of 10:10 a.m. to remember the time of your death, Mom. I know this only matters to me, and to you, Mom. Dropped "Talk to you tomorrow, Mom" in the sign off on 1907.04. Should have done it sooner as this feature is no longer daily.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Link to the original post that I am reprinting below:
Thursday, September 3, 2020
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| Me with Globe - 1968 - 6.25 years old |
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #1211 (SoD #2025) - I Need to Take a Break
Hi Mom,How are you?
You speak with heavenly beauty to me from the beyond. I hear you. Thank for staying by my side and yet not, and yet everywhere, and yet nowhere. It's as an aspect of Quantum Reality.
Was that too corny? Oh well. I don't care.
So, here's the thing.
I need to take a break.
I have been working a lot. I have been running hard. I have been making complicated and very time intensive posts with a lot of original writing, and I have been running this hard since the start of the pandemic quarantine.
And now it's time for a break, a little vacation.
I cannot really take a vacation during the pandemic. I can't really go anywhere safely, and even if I could, what about my dogs? I either take them with me, or I cannot go because I do not trust any place to properly and safely house them.
And doesn't Europe have a travel ban against people from the United States because our pandemic is so out of control?
I need some time off. I need to dial back the crazy train. I need a breather.
In my employment world, one of the two schools for which I work -- Lower Columbia College -- is on a break between quarters as we just finished summer quarter, and even though I had just one class, I put a lot of time into it. My other school is currently running, and I have two classes with it, so that's an issue. But my work load has dropped.
Further freeing occurred when the workshop I am taking ended Tuesday night, and we are about to start the Labor Day weekend, which prompted me to give all my current students extensions.
And so, I have more time free, and I would like to channel it elsewhere for a while.
Now what happens when a daily blogger takes a break?
After all, I could just stop posting for a while. No one is paying me, no one is holding a gun to my head, and unless you leave comments to disabuse me of this belief, I do not have that many avid and daily readers.
But, as I have always claimed, this blog is for me more than anything else. Sure, I think about audience a lot. I am often trying to reach my students. At other times, I have a broader view and hope by pushing the blog out there via social media with has tags that I will get more readers, at least for certain posts.
My numbers often support this "marketing."
A quick glance at my numbers shows that I reached a monthly high of 412 posts back on August 11th. I am not sure if this is related to the posts on or around that day because they do not have numbers of views that would total 412.
I tend to hover in the 40-50 page views a day on average with spikes of 126 (8/18) and 116 (8/31). My WEEKLY HODGE PODGE posts seem to be the most popular event of my week, always accumulating 30+ views with some topping out higher, such as #1978 currently at 110 views and #1963 at 83 (links below).
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1978 - "You Don't Vote For Kings!" - Weekly Hodge Podge 2007.18
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1963 - A symbol of hate? Weekly Hodge Podge for July Third
Therefore, it makes sense that even in my time off, taking a break, vacation, I should continue to produce the WEEKLY HODGE PODGE, which I had considered also taking a break from. But the HODGE PODGE does not cost me a ton of time as I read and accumulate material every morning. Plus this week's is dedicated to one of Obama's best speeches ever: A MORE PERFECT UNION.
So, to go back to the question of how a daily blogger takes a break?
EASY POSTS.
For instance, I have features called LOW POWER MODE, One Photo, and THAT ONE THING that allow me to keep my blog simple and easy to produce on a daily basis, which was the original concept for my T-shirts blog. I can even produce these easy posts in advance.
LOTS OF SHARING. I share anyway, but I can feature posts that just share other content with very little commentary from me; after all, I have 584 draft posts currently saved in my account, subtracting 95 for the weekly comic lists I accumulate and probably will never share, that leaves approximately 490-some posts that are half-finished, many of which already contain copies of material I want to share.
RESIST THE URGE OF COMPLICATIONS. I have tendency to overdo, over-commit, over-write. If I can KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID, then I can survive my time off, which I am thinking may need to last about two weeks with a return to the NEW NORMAL about September 17th.
ALSO, in the "time off," I will still be writing. I have longer blog posts that I want to devote time to finishing, and I am working on fiction in a much more dedicated way and other work stuff: two presentations to prep, classes to prep, job search, outdoor fun as summer wanes, new writer's groups.
So, that's that.
Thanks for reading.
Here we go into the sort of time off, sort of vacation, sort of low power mode.
DREAMS
ARG!!!!!!!! Trump was in my dream and so was Rebecca Watson.
Trump was my college professor. After he said something offensive in the class room when I had tuned him out and could not answer his question about house electrical amperage accurately. I said "fuck this" and prepared to leave the room and drop the class.
There was a break, and I encountered Trump in the hallway. I thought to myself that I should kiss his ass and curry his favor rather than dropping the class. I could probably get an A if I just stroked his ego constantly. I apologized for my out burst and begged his forgiveness. He appreciated my candor and HUGGED ME... yuk!
Later, I encountered Rebecca Watson (often blogged about, like HERE SoD#1880), and I was going to recommend a tacos place (in Portland?) and there was a lot of stress because I had to pick the place with the most amazing tacos AND a place where one could actually have the tacos in the pandemic (outdoor dining). Could I pick such a place?
Clearly, these dreams, especially TRUMP HUGGING ME (GAG) IS PROOF THAT I need a break.
 |
| rose city comic con 2018 |
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Reflect and connect.
Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you, Mom.
I miss you so very much, Mom.
Talk to you soon, Mom.
- Days ago = 1889 days ago
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2009.03 - 10:10
NEW (written 1708.27 and 1907.04) NOTE on time: I am now in the same time zone as Google! So, when I post at 10:10 a.m. PDT to coincide with the time of your death, Mom, I am now actually posting late, so it's really 1:10 p.m. EDT. But I will continue to use the time stamp of 10:10 a.m. to remember the time of your death, Mom. I know this only matters to me, and to you, Mom. Dropped "Talk to you tomorrow, Mom" in the sign off on 1907.04. Should have done it sooner as this feature is no longer daily.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2509.13 - 10:19
- Days ago: MOM = 3726 days ago & DAD = 380 days ago
- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I post Hey Mom blog entries on special occasions. I post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day, and now I have a second count for Days since my Dad died on August 28, 2024. I am now in the same time zone as Google! So, when I post at 10:10 a.m. PDT to coincide with the time of Mom's death, I am now actually posting late, so it's really 1:10 p.m. EDT. But I will continue to use the time stamp of 10:10 a.m. to remember the time of her death and sometimes 13:40 EDT for the time of Dad's death. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.
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