Sunday, October 14, 2012

Writer's Group / October 9

Word of the Blog: Litotes (n.) - understatement, especially that in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of its contrary, as in "not bad at all"
I know it's a textbook example of what lit-crit geeks like to call litotes, a figure of speech in which an affirmative is expressed through the negation of its opposite...
    --Mark Derry, I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts

Hey World,

A little late with my after group post, but I guess sometimes (or all the time) I let things get away from me.  Well, this week I only turned in a few chapters with minimal revisions.  Nothing very exciting.  And nothing new.  I might be in a slump, putting off getting to the end of my revisions so I won't have to start writing again.  It's kind of a scary thing.  Even though I know I want to finish this novel to see if there's any future in this career path for me, it's still frightening to think I have to put myself out like there like that.  Hell, it's bad enough when I get a bad critique in group, and most of those people like me.  I imagine it'll be even worse from someone who has no inclination to spare my feelings.

Still, I have to do it.  This past week proves that (yet again) more than ever.  But, you've probably heard enough of that, and oddly enough I don't really feel like re-hashing it again.  I'm tired.  Very tired and would much rather talk about something else altogether.

So, what's to talk about...hmm...let's see...  Well, I'll say that I've really been thinking about something I've always wanted to do, but never had the guts (or money) to undertake and that's travel.  To this point in my life, and I'll let you know I'm in my very late 20s, I've never had a vacation that didn't include my family.  Every holiday and trip has been with my mother and/or grandmother.  And they're both lovely people, very funny and slightly crazy, which is where I must have gotten it from.  But, of late, this has seemed less like vacation time and more like an extended weekend where I'm re-establishing ties with loved ones.

There's nothing wrong with that, only...I'd really like to have a full-scale vacation wherein I make all the decisions and don't have to worry about anyone's feelings.  It would be wonderful to go somewhere and not have a voice telling me that I shouldn't be lazy, or that I need to try this, that, and the other.  To have no expectations of the day other than what I make them to be.  That would be great.  Of course, it would be better with a friend or someone more who was of the same mind, but we can't have everything.  My best friend is recently married and needs to save her money, and I'm single, so it looks like I'll need to vacation by myself.

Now I just have to decide what to do.  Should I start out small?  Maybe a short trip to a B&B in my state.  Or maybe expand out to a vacation spot around the country that wouldn't cost too much.  Of course, there's always a cruise.  I wouldn't have to go very far, maybe the Caribbean or some other exotic locale.  Or should I go for the full enchilada?  I've always wanted to visit Japan (don't ask me why).  Looking around on the internet there are a couple tours that would help me get around in a country so far and different from the place I call home.

If you're trying to get through your bucket list, do you start with the easiest thing and work your way up, or just dive in headfirst?  An interesting question since the point of a bucket list is to do all the things you've dreamed of doing and never had the wherewithal to get to.  Maybe I should think about it less and just do.  Isn't that the point of a bucket list anyway?  Stop thinking of what you want to do and do it while you still can.  I'm still (fairly) young and (fairly) healthy.  What better time is there than here and now?  Excitement certainly isn't going to come to me.  I've learned that very well during the course of my all to mediocre life.  I'm gonna have to go find it somehow.  Even though the thought of doing so is somewhat exhausting.  But, there I go thinking again.

I've really got to learn to stop doing that.  Otherwise, I'm never gonna get anywhere.

Until next time.

 

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