This blog entry wants to be in the form of a letter to you. As you know, I've been struggling to write this Way for some time -- ever since signing the contract with New World Library before Christmas. Most of my finished chapters were in the BODY section, the first section of the book. But when our ed VB asked me which three chapters I'd like to tackle next, I listed the next two BODY chapters plus this one.
Way #18: "Lay a Feast for the Muses" is in the MIND section. We're calling on those nine Greek lovelies (any or all) to bless us with a big idea. To hover near and channel the ever-lovin' light of divine inspiration upon us. To sprinkle their fairy dust.
[in progress]
[obviously]
Purple is my personal muse color.
Sheila - I read your notes for this chapter in The Tome and did some Mind Mapping which I can share with you Friday when we meet. Inspiration and Creativity. "Making yourself available to the creative process" (S. Key, "50 Ways..") A few random thoughts/threads for the tapestry:
We are all creative beings. Our creations may be in vastly different forms, but we do create. Not only that, by this time in our lives we are all experts in something, even if that's "just" in our own lives. We may be "lay people" in some areas, but are experts in others.
Some of our expertise and creative skills have been dormant, while we raised kids, did marriage, had a career, whatever. Now is a good time to dust them off (e.g. my cello sitting in the corner) and revive them.
I like to refer to inspiration sources as "muse juice". What inspires you? (reader "you"). When/where/with whom/doing what are you most creative? What's your creative outlet? Work? Cooking? Gardening? Arts? Music? Dance? Writing? Crafts? We can suggest they try something new. Sources of inspiration can be from outside or inside.
The muse is us. The muse is within us. We have the power within us to "live our lives fully" (S. Key, ibid). This is the tip of another iceberg. Buddhists say we have everything we need, within ourselves, to understand life and gain all the wisdom we need.
I did a big mind map on FEAST, with the four "food groups" you talk about - earth, air, fire, water. Some highlights:
- earth - connection to nature, fruit (your ambrosia recipe), get dirty! (try something new)
- air - you breathe rarefied air (you are unique, celebrate yourself), sidebar on gas?
- fire - excitement, enthusiasm, sex, anger/emotions (say it out loud!), out of the frying pan into the f.
- water - drink it, jump in! , sink or swim (?!), Ohhhh the waters (song)
Good morning, Peg! Good morning, Sheila! What fun, after getting up DARK and early, to find your musings (MUSE-ings) woven in among my own. And to see my own musings quoted -- ibid, even! -- as if they were already published in a real, live book somewhere... well, how's that for validation?! Oh good. Validation is muy importante!
Listen! I have another Blogger question. Yesterday, when we started this weaving, and you intuitively chose my favorite color orange for my text... well, I could see how you had done it. There was a color-chart-with-T-for-text icon that I could click on. But ever since then, the only editing screen I'm finding (and using, right now for instance) has no such icon. So.... HOW DO I SELECT COLOR FOR MY TEXT? Hmm. Well, I don't know why you're not getting it. It's right up there for me. You click on the Posting tab, then on Edit Posts, and then you should get a list of the posts. Click the Edit button next to the post you want to edit, then you should get a little composition screen. Once you type your text, you can select it with the mouse, then pick a color.
Gadzooks! I am *still* such a newbie at blogging. Hang in there with it! Just takes practice. (Peg 4/4)
HI. Sheila here again. No, Blogger is not always the same for me -- not just the same as it is for you, but not even the same as it is for me. Like now, for instance, when I did all this: ...You click on the Posting tab, then on Edit Posts, and then you should get a list of the posts. Click the Edit button next to the post you want to edit, then you should get a little composition screen I find myself in a screen that's showing the html code. But the two tabs that are usually up in the right corner -- html and compose, is it? -- those are nowhere to be found. Sometimes I have a screen that looks slick and finished, sometimes one that's like bare-bones, no-frills. Sometimes it's something in between: like, the no-frills screen but with a few icons I can click on (usually for bold, italic, insert image... there's a set of quote marks for setting, I think, a block quote. But today, right now, nothing. Just this box in which I'm typing, a field above it for Title: and the stuff below about allowing new comments yes or no, and the change time & date. Then, finally, the blue and orange 'save as draft' and 'publish post' buttons. Well, now THAT's really weird. It sounds as if something "disappeared" your "Edit HTML" and "Compose" tabs. What happens if you click where they're supposed to be? Does it go back to "compose" mode?
Do you use Mozilla Firefox? Yes, I do. That's my usual browser -- and when you were here, I thought maybe that was the problem (remember, the "invite member" screen or whatever it was called looked funky that day, too). Thing is, if I close and reopen, sometimes the page's appearance is drastically changed, other times the changes are less noticeable. Anyway, I guess I've gone on long enough to say that Blogger has quite a range of appearance at my end. Sounds like a computer-specific problem. Call your SysOp!
And I remain unable to change my text's color. Hmm. Bummer. Shall I rub it in? Naw, seriously, this is a drag. Throws a major wrench in the works for our process plan.
Yesterday, I opened that first "weaving" post and there everything was, the text-color icon and everything. So I know, at least, what it is I'm looking for. Pero no esta!
OK, I'm going back to the blog post I'm working on in WORD. (THERE's how to assign different colors to my text -- compose in Word and use "Blogger for Word" to post.) Cool! I look forward to it. (Peg 4/4)
Ciao for now.
Love, S.
(Sheila 4/4)
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