Starting out

Flexing my fingers, trying to flex my brain.

When I'm trying to go to sleep (or when I'm delaying getting up in the morning) my brain sometimes just won't shut off. Most of those thoughts are random and don't bear repeating, but now and again, I wish I could just type it out.

Nathalie Goldberg and lots of others would say that I should always keep a notebook by my bed. I do. But I've gotten so far out of the habit of the physical act of writing that my hand can't keep up with my brain when there's a pen or pencil involved. I've been relying on keyboards for getting words on paper for more than 20 years and, well, writing sticks just don't do it for me anymore.

Besides, I'd end up having to type anything I actually liked all over again.

So, here this sits, a receptacle for whatever the keyboard catches as it falls out of my head.

A couple of "rules of engagement" here:

If you've stumbled over this and at some point you wish to comment on the contents, you're free to do so, but I won't tolerate uncivil posts. I think strong opinions and the freedom to express them are two crucial ingredients in a truly free society, but for me, the line is drawn at abusive commentary. If I find it, it's gone... terminated with prejudice and without apology.

I'm also really partial to the English language. Call me old-fashioned, unhip, whatever you want, but I've seen enough response posts to MySpace accounts and the like that use "texting" shorthand to know that I just can't stand that stuff. If it's worth expressing, it's worth using real, honest-to-gosh words. I can't provide and consequently don't expect perfection, but for everyones' sake, make the effort to use actual English.

(Don't misconstrue the above as some sort of Lou Dobbs-esque anti-foreigner bent. That couldn't be further from the truth. If English isn't your first language and you're trying to make a point here, well then you have made the effort. Those who only speak English but don't take the time to write it intelligibly won't get any slack, though.)

Oh, yeah... it's just a matter of taste, but it's MY taste: Don't post glitter stuff here. I don't even know for sure that you can, but I don't want to take any chances. I saw Orkut in the Google list of applications and services and a shiver went up my spine. Save your bandwidth for somebody who might like it.