Featured Word: Esoteric

Occasionally a random word pops into my head, and I am left wondering why my brain has brought it to my attention. This is the word that wandered through my mind last night.


Esoteric [es-uh-ter-ik]
Adjective
1. Understood by or meant for only the select few who have special knowledge or interest. 2. Belonging to the select few. 3. Private; secret; confidential.

Heart List: Bass Guitars

Who doesn't love a bass guitar? A song without a good bass groove is no song at all! (Ok, that's an exaggeration, but it's meant to illustrate my point.) Also, I think that bass players have automatic cool points just by nature of the instrument they play. My husband is teaching me how to play his bass guitar, and it's so much fun! My fingers are not as coordinated as his yet, but I enjoy it all the same. Also, I always choose to play bass on Rock Band (because that's as close as I can get to being a rock star). My husband is also introducing me to the music of bass players like Victor Wooten, and I must say it's pretty amazing! Bass guitar = awesome.

Public Corrections

Dear America,

"Irregardless" is not a word. You can either regard a situation or act regardless of it. Stop driving me crazy with your double-negatives.

Yours Truly,

Callie

Dear Would-Be Nature Buffs,

"Poisonous" and "venomous" are not synonymous. Certain frogs are poisonous because they secrete goo that will make you sick if you eat it. Certain snakes are venomous because they can bite you and inject you with toxins. Poisonous means you eat it. Venomous means they're eating you (or trying to do so). Get it?

Sincerely,

Callie

Dear...Almost Everybody,

Please show a little self-respect and stop to read what you are writing before you post it. "Loose" is not the same as "lose." "To" and "too" mean different things. "Your" is not all-powerful ("you're" is just as relevant, and more often the one you should be using). The same goes for "there" (try remembering "their" and "they're" once in a while). Also, there's a little thing called punctuation. Use it. Otherwise, it takes way too much effort to try and figure out what you're trying to say. Thank you.

Hugs and Kisses,

Callie

PS- I read over this three times just to make sure that I didn't make any of the mistakes I mentioned above. That would be embarrassing!

Heart List: Fred Astaire

This week I heart Fred Astaire the most. I mean, really, can you blame me? He's charming, sings, has a smile that melts the heart, and he is literally the best dancer in the whole world throughout all of history! AND, everybody that knew him thought the world of him. What more could anyone ask? I could watch his films over and over and over again, and never get bored. Some of my favorites include: "Easter Parade", "Royal Wedding", "Top Hat", and "Daddy Longlegs". If you have never seen a Fred Astaire movie, you have led a sadly deprived life. I love this man!

Originality

I have not been to a bookstore in quite a while, mostly because I find the desire to buy an armful of books irresistible. However, while passing some time between engagements on Saturday, my husband and I decided to wander around a nearby bookstore (only to look, I promised him). 

As I strolled through the Fiction & Literature section (which, by the way, is a stupid and useless category that needs to be split up), I began to notice several books that were continuations of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Not just one or two, mind you. There were at least a dozen. 

I understand, for example, if George Lucas wants to hire someone to write a book version of Star Wars: Phantom Menace for him; or even if someone wants to take a myth or legend such as one of King Arthur or Robin Hood, and write their own twist on it.  This is different. This is nothing more than taking somebody else’s idea and making money off of it. 

I admit that I probably wouldn’t be so outraged if I didn’t care about the original book, but I feel like all these “writers” have taken a piece of literature that I loved when I was growing up and turned it into a prostitute. 

Melodramatic? Perhaps, but that doesn’t mean I’m wrong. 

I remember days when authors created stories and wrote them in a way that swept away the imagination of the reader. Now it seems that any person who has a basic grasp of language can slap together some half-formed idea (or a prostituted version of someone else’s idea) and call it literature. 

Just because people can write doesn’t mean that they are writers. I can draw an awesome stick figure, but does that make me an artist? By today’s standards, I guess so. I know I can rant about this until I’m blue in the face, and it won’t change what is happening to modern literature. Still, it’s called creative writing, people. How about showing some creativity and originality?

Heart List: RED

My husband and I rented this movie a while back, but I was not prepared for what followed. I thought it would be another mindless action flick, and I don't mind watching gratuitous explosions every once in a while. Oh my goodness, I love this movie! It is hilarious! Right from the beginning it was too ridiculous to believe, and I had a great time watching how far they decided to push reality. So funny. The dialogue is witty, the characters are the best kind of quirky, and I'm pretty sure they used enough bullets to level a mountain. I would highly recommend it!

Pearls

Here's a little tidbit that I wrote a couple of years ago. I wasn't dating anyone at the time, and I was sick of trying to measure up to Hollywood standards of beauty, which some men feel they are entitled to have. I share it now as a sort of tribute to all the women of the world who are beautiful in their own unique way.


I've heard it said that all women are gems. They come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Some men prefer diamonds. Others prefer rubies or sapphires or emeralds. These are the women who sparkle and glint, easily catching the eye. As much as all women want to be as flashy as these jewels, some of us are pearls instead. They have a more subtle beauty; a deeper beauty that might be passed over when placed next to a topaz or opal. Pearls may not have the same glamour as other gems, but they are just as lovely and just as valuable. More than that, pearls are more difficult to come by. We can manufacture diamonds or amethysts and manipulate them to be any color we want. Pearls, however, can only be born when a painful experience is transformed into something stronger and more enduring. Pearls are the proof that good can come of any hardship. We are the pearls of the human race. Pearls of great worth, pearls of great beauty. Even if mankind should pass over us for the gems that sparkle, the Lord knows of our worth and will not leave us without the blessings of the other gems of the world.

A Sidenote...

I feel a little silly that the first Heart List post of my new blog is about doughnuts, but it cannot be helped. This is just the current post from my other Heart List. I may try to catch the rest of you up on previous posts from my private Heart List (there are over a hundred entries that I've posted over the past couple of years), but we'll see. For now, you'll all just have to think that I'm a fat foodie. (Not that there's anything wrong with foodies!)

Heart List: Doughnuts

There is a group of junk food that I can never seem to refuse. I think they are secretly super-foods that have mind powers over me. Doughnuts are kind of like that Wonder Woman of the group. They are very appealing in appearance and they have a magical lasso, from which I cannot escape. It's a funny analogy, but it's true. Every time I see a doughnut I feel a great urge to eat it. I tend to avoid the bakery section of the grocery store, because I must keep away from the magical lasso! If there were no consequences to the food I eat, I would have at least one doughnut a day. As it is, I will just stare at this picture for a while and think about my love of pastry (in general).

Introduction

Circumlocution:
n. - the use of many words where few would do; a roundabout or indirect way of speaking.


I have resisted keeping a blog for a couple of years now, but when questioned as to why, I didn't have any good reasons. Maybe I'm just lazy. There are a couple of random lists and thoughts that I've posted online for the amusement of my friends (and myself), and I've recently been encouraged to share them with a wider audience. I still have doubts that anybody will read this other than the people who already my other posts. I suppose it won't do any harm, though. Here is what you can expect from my blog entries:


Heart List:
I usually do this weekly. It's just a list of things that I love ("heart"). Obviously I love my family and friends, but I never feature people I know personally. That way there are no claims of favoritism.
Featured Words:
I love learning new words, and I enjoy sharing this love with others. I used to do this weekly, but I do it less frequently now. I suppose that I did it in this post, though. I bet most of you didn't know what circumlocution means!
Writing Excerpts:
This would be short stories or pieces of longer writing projects I'm working on. I would greatly appreciate feedback on anything I post. I always want to improve my writing, and so I am completely open to suggestion. Also, I'd like to know if something is good (I'm too critical of my own work to know if it's any good or not).
Random Thoughts:
This is a self-explanatory section. Unfortunately for all of you, I have lots of these. Some of them are worth reading, others are not. You can decide for yourself.


That's pretty much it. I'm not sure how often I will update this blog, but I'll try to do it at least once a week. I'm sure you're all looking forward with great anticipation.