Category: Life Story

Friday Morning FYI – 9/17/2016

Ron Delaney JrLeave a comment

Welcome to your Friday Morning FYI (it’s Saturday and there’s hockey on so WOOT! edition) – my chance to share observations/wisdom/rants in short, easily consumed form.

I have a friend who’s going to deliver a presentation on self-education with a focus on the idea if you want something, you have to motivate yourself to go get it. What a great topic! So great, I think I’ll steal it (remember, writer) for this week’s FYI:

I hear people complain about not-having enough time to do stuff all. The. Time. Forget for a moment how much time they’re wasting complaining rather than doing something productive, the sentiment is just nonsense. If you have something you want, you’ll make it a priority, simple as that. If you want it, go get it! Don’t say you don’t have time to lose weight as you wash down your cream cheese covered bagel with your iced super-giganto caramel macchiato. Don’t say you don’t have time to get a degree when you’re planning to go home and watch five hours of the Real Housewives of What-f*ck-berg. Find time, or admit that thing is not a priority. It’s OK, really. No one’s going to stone you if you don’t ‘finally’ rebuild that old car engine or take-up Tai Chi. It’ll be fine, I promise.

 

Thanks for reading,

{RDj}

Friday Morning FYI – 7/15/2016

Ron Delaney JrLeave a comment

Welcome to your Friday Morning Evening FYI – my chance to share observations/wisdom/rants in short, easily consumed form.

This week’s FYI is for the fellas. Sorry ladies, but let’s be honest, the guys need more help 🙂

Lads, go read You: A Novel by Caroline Kepnes. Seriously. Stop reading this post and go get that book. Like, now. Right now. It’s as important for the modern man to read as Fight Club. Yes, seriously.

Thanks for reading,

{RDj}

Friday Morning FYI – 5/13/2016

Ron Delaney JrLeave a comment

Welcome to your Friday Morning FYI – my chance to share observations/wisdom/rants in short, easily consumed form.

This morning, I had something to say about first impressions and marketing and standing out, but then I did something I’ve never done: I sprayed myself with ketchup from a ketchup pack. Hearing the story of how I’d opened it, forgotten I’d done that when I put it down to talk to someone, and then became an ad for one of those detergent pens, a coworker informed me it was Friday the 13th. While I don’t suffer from Paraskevidekatriaphobia (try to pronounce that, I dare you), it leads us to this week’s superstitious FYI (we’ll get to my original topic next week):

It’s Friday the 13th. Be happy if you make it through the day without getting ketchup on your shirt, or, you know, being burned at the stake.

 

Thanks for reading,

{RDj}

Friday Morning FYI – 4/8/2016

Ron Delaney JrLeave a comment

Welcome to your Friday Morning FYI – my chance to share observations/wisdom/rants in short, easily consumed form.

I’m not the sensitive type, but I notice things to which others may be sensitive. Everyday, in an attempt to entertain commuters, the PATH runs a ‘Guess the word’ (among other things) on the in-train monitors. Today’s word was eeoxpdl – explode.

Yes, explode. On a train.

Obviously the person who’d put that up didn’t think anything of it, but in recognizing the unintended impression it could make, I reflected on something I wrote yesterday. No, it didn’t contain an explosion, but it did contain Chupacabras (stick with me, here). I’d outlined a monster story for an upcoming anthology submission, where the main monsters are threatened by encroaching Chupacabras. Without delving into every scenario my mind considered (read – panicked over), I arrived at the question:

Had I written something someone might consider racist?

If you know the origin locale for Chpacabras (if not, click the link above, silly), and consider the current political climate, you can see where that thought came from. There was no racial motive involved; I’d selected Chupacabras because they’re cool and scary. That they are from non-European folklore is a bonus, or so I thought before seeing that stupid eeoxpdl.

In the end I came to the conclusion I was being a paranoid nut (like that’s new for a writer). That brings us to this week’s FYI:

Writers should just write. Forget everything else and finish your story, then listen to your beta readers, agent, and editor after. Simple.

 

Thanks for reading,

{RDj}

PS – After my initial hand-to-forehead reaction to that word scramble, I realized it might not be a person who selected it. Software may have been responsible, pulling a random term from the dictionary using some algorithm based on length, popular letters, google searches (sad), etc. *shrug*

Friday Morning FYI – 4/1/2016

Ron Delaney JrLeave a comment

Welcome to your Friday Morning FYI  (yes, I know it’s Saturday evening) – my chance to share observations/wisdom/rants in short, easily consumed form.

Man, it’s been a tough few weeks for people I care about. As I posted last week, several friends recently lost their jobs. This week, I got some rough news about two other friends. Being the nigh-insufferable know-it-all I am, I sat down to right something profound here, but all words are failing. That’s this week’s FYI:

When life has gone all pear-shaped for loved ones, we seek words to comfort or encourage or sympathize, but these words may be meaningless. Not that we shouldn’t try to help, or remind our people they’re our people and we’re there for them, just that, ultimately, without proper perspective, our effort brings no healing. So, perhaps, just listen to those who need to talk, provide understanding distance to those seeking space, and be a friend to a friend in the same way you always would.

 

Thanks for reading,

{RDj}