* THE STOOGES?? *

 Have you ever seen such craziness?

  I am staying completely off of Facebook for about a week (or more) because no matter how this election turns out, I know there will be so much anger and hatred being posted, and I don't want to read any of it. Lots of people say, "Just keep scrolling. You don't have to read anything that you don't want to see." Sometimes that's easier said than done. 

I'm really disappointed in my country. I hope and pray that whoever "wins" will be the best president for us and that all the rioting stops!   

* I LOVE MARK TWAIN *

Mark Twain was not only an amazing writer of fictitious tales, but he was also remarkable in the way he saw the world he lived in...especially the United States and its government. He lived from 1835 to 1910, and his quotes prove that the more things change, the more they stay the same.

~~~~~~

"Reader suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself." - Mark Twain

"Facts are stubborn things, but statistics are more pliable." –Mark Twain

"There are lies, there are damn lies, and then there are statistics." - Mark Twain

"If you don't read the newspaper, you're uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you're mis-informed." –Mark Twain

"Noise proves nothing. Often a hen who has merely laid an egg cackles as if she laid an asteroid." - Mark Twain

"Politicians and diapers must be changed often, and for the same reason." - Mark Twain

"Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience. - Mark Twain

"It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt." - Mark Twain


 * I've turned off the Comment link for this because I do not want it to become a place for people with opposing opinions about today's government, to rant and rave, as many have and still are doing on Facebook. My purpose is to bring a smile to your face. *

* LIVING THE WRITER'S LIFE: CALLS FOR SUBMISSIONS & CONTESTS *

The Mark Twain House & Museum’s Inaugural "Royal Nonesuch" Humor Writing Contest for writers of all ages from all corners of the globe......THE DEADLINE HAS BEEN EXTENDED! 


Although, I didn't see it listed anywhere on the website except for these small words in the Guidelines: Ends in 4 days, 11 hours, I received an e-mail yesterday, stating that the deadline has been extended to July 14th, 2014

So, there's still time for those interested in submitting a humorous story!

~~~

 

Blue Mountain Arts is looking for greeting card poetry/prose! The earliest deadline is July 15, 2014 for their "Christmas & General Holiday" cards. Scroll down to the bottom of the Writers Guidelines page to find out about the other upcoming cards.

 

 

Blue Mountain Arts is also having its Twenty-fifth Biannual Poetry Card Contest. Deadline is December 31, 2014.

 

 

~~~

 

And of course, there's always submissions going on at NYMB...Not Your Mother's Book, which wants "....only hip, fun, modern and very-much-today type stories that will entertain our readers."

 

And at Chicken Soup for the Soul, which most people are familiar with.

 

~~~



 

 

 

A clean corner of my desk...a long time ago!

 

* Welcome to my two newest followers Sherry at The Charm of Home, and Fabby at Fabby's Living. I hope you'll both stop by often and always enjoy what you read and see! *


 

"I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by." -- Douglas Adams

 

 

"One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple." -- Jack Kerouac



* LIVING THE WRITER'S LIFE *

It's Time for Another Living the Writer's Life

 

 

Along the same theme as my Nostalgic Sundays posts being about memories, I'm also going to have frequent blog posts titled, Living the Writer's Life. They will be about....you guessed it: Writerly Things! I need to decide on a photo for it too, like the Andy Griffith dinner table for nostalgia. (What do y'all think about this one? I loved this when I used it for my blog header, but since it wasn't an "official" BlogSpot header, I had some problems with it. Any other suggestions, other than a laptop, or pen in hand kind of thing?)

 

For weeks I've mentioned Calls for Submissions and Contests that I've come across, and I'm finally getting the chance to post them. I wish I remembered where I saw each of them, so I could give credit where credit is due, but unfortunately I didn't write it down.

Click on the links below for complete contest rules and guidelines.  Good Luck!



Good Housekeeping: All About Love Contest, Deadline September 1, 2014.

http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/family/blogs-books/all-about-love-writing-contestGood Housekeeping: "All About Love" writing contest

Real Simple: Life Lessons Essay Contest, Deadline September 18, 2014

http://www.realsimple.com/work-life/life-strategies/inspiration-motivation/second-annual-life-lessons-essay-contest-00000000013682/index.html?xid=jul13

 

Mark Twain:
The Royal Nonesuch National Humor Writing Contest, Deadline June 30, 2014

https://twainhouse.submittable.com/submit/26632

 

I'll have more to share in the next few days.

 

 

"If writers stopped writing about what happened to them, then there would be a lot of empty pages." - Elaine Liner

 

Mark Twain Censorship?

When the local news was on TV last night, I wasn't really paying attention until I heard the words Mark Twain and censorship in the same sentence. That made me take notice and turn up the volume. The story reported was about the publisher New South Books.

They have decided to change a couple of words in two of Twain's books, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, and offer them in one volume, without the "n" word and the one considered hurtful to the Native Americans.

I am not a racist and was brought up to believe that all people are equal. Nobody in my family ever used the "n" word. NOBODY. Did I know that word existed? Of course I did. I grew up in the 1950's & 1960's. I knew all about the Civil Rights Movement, race riots, marches, etc. News about that and the Vietnam War was splayed on TV every day and night. Vietnam was horrible in so many ways, and I was also upset to see so much suffering and injustice in my own country.

But I don't intend on making this a huge political statement. I just think it is WRONG to change words in classic books!! Yes, we all "get it" that there are words that aren't "nice" and that most likely offend some/many people....but we can't go around changing every single word in every single book that offends people!! That's just nuts. Think about it this way....Uh oh! There are words in Gone With the Wind that need to be "updated". They might upset someone! Then there's some in Catcher in the Rye. Oh, and what about Fahrenheit 451, Catch-22, etc.

I Just Don't Get It.

"Don't let schooling interfere with your education." -- Mark Twain

“When you reread a classic, you do not see more in the book than you did before; you see more in you than there was before” -- Cliff Fadiman

** From Sweet to Sassy **

A BIG Thank-You to Ellie for awarding me this Happy 101 Sweet Friends Award! Anyone who reads her blog will surely know that she, too, is very much a Sweet Friend! Thanks for thinking of me, Ellie!

Ellie has also just inspired me to "attempt" to make an addendum to my Writing Schedule. As much as I LOVE blogging....writing my own, reading others', leaving comments, meeting newer bloggers, etc....I MUST cut out some of that blogging time and put it toward Writing Time! I hope to announce my decision sometime tomorrow.

P.S. - Posted on 10/18 @ 9:25pm

           Because of a couple of comments I've received already, I just want to make it clear that I am definitely NOT going to stop blogging! I'm just going to cut back on the amount of time I spend on it. I need to get a handle on my time management in general, in order to get all the things accomplished that I sincerely need and want to do. Hopefully, you won't even notice a change. But I'll know! I'll know that I am using all the hours in my day in a productive way....Starting tomorrow!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I really, truly prefer to not discuss politics and/or religion because we all know where those discussions lead. (You just knew there was a "but" coming, didn't you??) ...BUT, How many of you are sick and tired and disgusted and annoyed and angry at those local political commercials we're bombarded with?? WHEN did the ads stop telling us what GOOD a candidate would do for us....and turn into one that says what BAD stuff the opponent has already done, and will continue to do?? THAT'S the kind of junk that makes us apathetic. Why bother voting? Is every single politician a scoundrel of some sort? How are we to know?

I always think of those famous lines in the movie "Network" made in 1976. Just look how the following words are still true today....34 YEARS LATER:

 "I'M AS MAD AS HELL, AND I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE THIS ANYMORE! I want you to get up right now, sit up, go to your windows, open them and stick your head out and yell - 'I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore!' Things have got to change. But first, you've gotta get mad!... You've got to say, 'I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!' Then we'll figure out what to do about the depression and the inflation and the oil crisis. But first get up out of your chairs, open the window, stick your head out, and yell, and say it......"  (Spoken by Howard Beale, portrayed by Peter Finch)  

I leave you with the following quotes. All said by the remarkable, extraordinary, the genius...Mark Twain.


"Loyalty to the country always. Loyalty to the government when it deserves it."


"We have the best government that money can buy."

"Reader, suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself."