TTMM Weekly Wrap Up

After a week of travel, we took time in our absence to draft up ideas and writings for our upcoming weeks. TTMM has come back this week with some more post for your pleasure. This week we spoke about the writing muse again in “The Chase”, visited the meaning and signs to check to see if you may be arrogant in “That’s Right, I Am Better Than You”, and looked at the constant companion that haunts us in “The Lonely Prisoner”.

For some other housekeeping news, we will be trying to post at least three days a week (not including the weekly wrap up). Some weeks it will be a little more but, in the end, I would like to keep things flowing. Over the next couple weeks, we will be testing out the best days to share the post that works for the way, you the readers, are more readily accessing and visiting. I hope to see you more of you and your comments in the coming months.

I will give you a little sneak into an upcoming article. Can I trust you with a spoiler? Well, I hope that this will be safe with you. I have been in contact with Mark Tufo, the author of the Zombie Fallout series, and in preparation of his upcoming fourth book of the series, we will be doing a review. If we see interest in the article, I might be able to talk Mark into taking a time for an interview. This is a series that I have enjoyed discovering. Keep an eye out for this upcoming article.

I would also like to take a moment to say thank you to our guest contributor, Deanna C., who has been dipping her toes in writing for our blog. Most weeks, we are able to get a little glimpse into her thought and emotions that come pouring through in her writing. Please visit her Friday post and leave a comment. It is always a little thrill to hear what someone thinks of your work.

Before I go for the day, let’s visit the links for those that might have missed our post earlier in the meet.

 The Chase

That’s Right, I Am Better Than You

The Lonely Prisoner

Please welcome out guest blogger this week. Each Friday, we would like to give a chance for someone to contribute and share their writting. If you feel you have something, contact me at tripthroughmymind@gmail.com to submit your work. If you enjoy today’s post, please comment below.

Until next time…

jb

The Lonely Prisoner

By Guest Contributor: Deanna C.

And when we sleep will you shelter me in your warm and darkened grave-

”Close My Eyes Forever”… Lita Ford/Ozzy Osbourne 

Have you ever been in a room filled with people yet you feel completely alone? Often loneliness captures me. He shows me illusions of warmth and safety. He becomes my friend, confidant and lover. He wraps his arms around me as I rest my head on his chest. I feel safe and content for a time.

It isn’t always what it seems When you’re face to face with me

”Close My Eyes Forever”… Lita Ford/Ozzy Osbourne 

Suddenly his arms become more like straight jacket, preventing me from reaching out to others. His kiss which I used to crave becomes a gag, not allowing me to scream for help. He completely cuts me off from the world around me. Everyone else continues on with their lives, oblivious to my plight. They fail to notice my smile never reaches my eyes.

You’re like a dagger And stick me in the heart And taste the blood from my blade

”Close My Eyes Forever”… Lita Ford/Ozzy Osbourne

 He builds a wall around me. He encases my heart and soul in a box of stone. I am only able to watch those around me joke with friends, fall in love and LIVE their lives. I am trapped in a void of nothingness. My soul begs for freedom yet my mind cannot break the hold loneliness has on me.

 If I close my eyes forever, will it all remain unchanged. If I close my eyes will it all remain the same.

”Close My Eyes Forever”… Lita Ford/Ozzy Osbourne

My mind shuts down my emotions. I cease to feel and only exist. I’ve fought him before and nothing ever changes. He finds his way back into my life. He continually thwarts my attempts at connecting with those around me. The walls he builds are impenetrable. I pray every for someone to come save me from this evil. Yet every night when I close my eyes, my soul is still alone. It remains in the cold darkness, untouched. Only in my dreams do things change. Only in that peaceful slumber do I experience closeness, friendship and love. Only in the darkness of night am I free of the darkness that owns my soul.

See Previous Post from Deanna C.: A Dented Soul , Redneck, Hoosiers, and City Fairs

[TTMM NOTE: Please welcome out guest blogger this week. Each Friday, we would like to give a chance for someone to contribute and share their writting. If you feel you have something, contact me at tripthroughmymind@gmail.com to submit your work. If you enjoy today's post, please comment below. Until next time...jb]

That’s Right, I Am Better Than You

ar·ro·gant  [ar-uh-guh ns]

adjective: making claims or pretensions to superior importance or rights; overbearingly assuming; insolently proud

You have been witness to the characteristic, it is in your co-workers, your friends and sometimes in the blogs that you read. I, for one, know that when I look into the mirror, I do not see it but when I walk out into the world, I wear my arrogance like a badge. Those that are accused of being arrogant, justify it by stating it is self-confidence.  Now, there isn’t anything wrong with a little self-confidence but those arrogant persuasions tend to let that go a little to the extreme.  Having self-confidence is an attractive and sometimes motivating personality trait. So, let’s take a little look at signs that you may be a little arrogant.

What is the difference between confidence and arrogance?

To give an example of self-confidence, let’s look at a six year old child. When they start to learn to ride a bike, they are shy and hesitant.  Fear gets in the way of their success. However, once the training wheels are off, they lose the fear, are comfortable with their abilities and the thought of falling is far from their mind. Now, if this same child was the only six year old in the neighborhood that could ride their bike, while the others were still on training wheels, then their sense and proclamation of accomplishing something no other kid their age could manage; would be arrogance and the feeling superiority to their peers.

How do you know if you are self-confidence or arrogant? Let’s see if you fit any of the criteria below.

You might be arrogant if:

• You have a better knowledge of the sport, team, and strategies than those that have made a career, and get paid millions, to entertain people like you as you sit on the couch, screaming at the television.  I am sure that they would have won the game in question, had you been there to correct their mistakes.
• Even though you don’t have any training or experience, you know more about economics, law or government than those that you couldn’t be bothered to vote into office. As an added criterion, you are happy to share your thoughts with anyone that is anywhere near you when you have this insight into how to do it better.
• You think that because, once, you picked up an intoxicated barfly, that you are so desired that people should feel lucky you are dating them. This includes those that are willing to hand out advice to your friends about what the member of the opposite sex wants.
• It is considered beneath your station to actually take a job to pay your bills because you were once the high ranking person at your previous job. The fact that the previous job consisted of three people and one of them was the janitor really doesn’t matter to you.
• If you put out your own personal beliefs and opinion on the web on a semi-regular basis believing that someone is actually interested in what you have to say or think.  This belief extends to the novel you haven’t written, the website you haven’t launched, and marketing plan you rattle on about to anyone that will listen.

This list is only a few of the signs of arrogance that might indicate that you are one of “those” people that we are talking about behind your back. If you are one of the ranks of the arrogant, embrace your superiority as you are the only one who believes that you are better than the rest of us.

Until next time…

Jb

© 2011

 

 

 

The Chase

If I fall back into you, Don’t fight it, don’t fight it

Show me what we’ve got to lose, Don’t hide it, don’t hide it

Memories stuck in my head

All the things I should have said

If I fall back into you, Don’t fight it, don’t fight it

Don’t Fight it…10 Years

From time to time, I mention the mythical muse that I call upon to put my thoughts into words on the screen. Throughout the past year, I have written about her, sought her out, complained when she was away, and discovered her again. All relationships are planted in the fabric of our mind, growing through the stages of life and if care is given, these relationships live to a ripe old age.  My courtship with the muse is no different.

It isn’t easy to chase my alluring temptress through the mist of my mind as she plays hide and seek. In my imagination, her flowing gown disappears around each corner as I give chase; small laughter echoes in my mind. I glimpse her eyes for a moment as she looks longingly over her shoulder, a brief sparkle viewed through the veil of her blowing hair. It is a love affair that brings comfort and security as well as fear and heartbreak.  I feel that the relationship crumbles and we part ways, only to find each other at a later time.

Other moments, I am the one that walks away from her game of chase, frustration growing with no relief. I tire of her, as any lover would from the promise of pleasure, which is not delivered. Then, I remember her kiss, which brings a spark of idea, the brief moments of her warmth next to me as I search for the lines of text.  I begin, once again, my search for her. Will she run from me? Of course she will; that is her nature. I only ask that when she sees my approach, she does not fight it and falls back into our game.

 

If you come right back to me

I won’t fight it, I won’t fight it

Show me what you need from me

Don’t hide it, don’t hide it

Don’t Fight It…10 Years

Until next time…

Jb

Related Articles: Where is My Muse , I Once Was a Writer , A Writer’s Muse-ic

© 2011

Humor Strikes Back: A Need to Laugh

Looking back over the past year, there has been some moments where the writing and humor just clicked into place. It is a rarity to have  that moment where an idea comes and flows to the page. In the format of blogs,  the older writing gets lost behind the current and ideas are buried with little  hope of being discovered again. With this thought in mind, I took a few moments this week to go back and read through the early posts, finding some that made me smile, others that made me think and some that I wish were left on the draft pile.

On the day before the holiday, I thought it would be fun to look back over the past year’s humor, a way to make light of the drabness we sometimes fall into with little desire to smile. Here is my gift to you for the end of summer weekend. I hope you enjoy revisiting them as much as I have over the past week.

The Following Is A Paid Advertisement

5 Rules of Being Single

Dante’s 4 Circles of Customer Service

Life’s Little Frustrations

Cosmic Practical Jokes

See you next week.

jb

TTMM Weekly Wrap Up

Welcome to the weekly review of the TTMM.

In the final weeks of the summer, the children are back to school, the weather is trying to decide if it wants to hold on to the last vestige of the heat wave and our time becomes limited; we are looking forward to the cooling calm of autumn. I, for one, cannot wait to open the house, retire the air conditioning for the year, and let the breeze blow through to cool our thoughts.  This is the time of year where the writer in me stirs.

Lately, I have been wondering what voice I wanted to share here on TTMM. I worry that with the wide range of topics and different styles, that some may not be interested in coming back to see future posts. In the end, my struggle wasn’t resolved but I did decide to continue writing for the sake of writing. The good, the bad, and the ugly prose will be shared, as it is the journey that I am traveling, not the approval that I am seeking. However, I do appreciate the feedback and the visits to the site. Mostly, I am trying to say that I want to make sure that what I publish is honest content and not written because of what I think someone will like if it isn’t what I need to say. I just hope that what you read brings you back for more.

This week, we visited a new found enjoyment for graphic novels, books of our childhood, and our returning contributor’s experiences in coming home. Take another look at this week’s content.

Lock & Key, the Graphic Novel

Building the Foundation: A Daughter’s Love For Reading

Rednecks, Hoosiers, and City Fairs

Upcoming week:

Next week, I will be traveling out of the country. I hope to use my time wisely and write, however, my ability to post may be limited. Please have patience and know that I will continue to post as I am able. If you are interested in becoming a contributor to the site, email me at TripThroughMyMind@gmail.com for more information. I look forward to hearing from everyone.

Previous Week’s Review: TTMM Week In Review and Special Thank You

Until next time…

jb

Redneck, Hoosiers, and City Fairs

By Guest Contributor:  Deanna C.

I’ve got friends in low places

Where the whisky drowns

And the beer chases my blues away

And I’ll be ok

Friends In Low Places…Garth Brooks

 

If you grew up in the St. Louis metro area, you know which county had the rich preppy kids, the jocks, the artisans and then there’s Jefferson County.  We lovingly refer to it as Jeffco.  Now I’ve heard all the terms; hicks, hillbillies, rednecks and Hoosiers.  For the most part these names fit most residents in Jeffco. 

As I people watch tonight under the guise of working, I still see mullets (male and female).  I see men and women not ashamed to show their bellies, even when they should cover them up with vast amounts of clothing.  I see kids running amok, cigarettes dangling from the mouths of men, women and teenagers. 

What I also see are my friends, those people I haven’t seen in 20-30 years embracing me like I never left.  These people are friends who offer to help me unload my car, pass out business cards, fill my ice chest, baby-sit my kids and more. 

I moved away more than 20 years ago.  Though I have a hard time recognizing most of them, they seem to remember me easily.  Is that a good thing?  I’m not sure. 

Moving to Phoenix, thousands of miles away from everyone and everything I knew, my entire life was both terrifying and liberating.  I met many new people, made new friends and experienced new cultures.  I stepped far from the world I knew and was scared to death.  Eventually I settled into my new life. 

It was fast-paced and so different.  Block walls led to more privacy.  In 20 years, I never got to know my neighbors.  Family-oriented events just didn’t happen often.  Friday nights were not high school football and no one card about baseball until the Diamondbacks made it to the World Series. Once the Series was over, interest in the team quickly waned. 

I made friends, had fun, met and married, had two kids, but Arizona never felt like home.  I felt truly homesick for the first time when I was pregnant with my daughter.  I had been away for 10 years.  It was a small twinge but grew to be a large pain quickly.  Two and a half years after my daughter was born, we took a road trip home.  It was before Facebook and I had lost touch with everyone.  We visited my dad and took in the sights. I didn’t see my childhood friends at that time.  The visit was enough for my twinge to grow into a big pain (especially in my husband’s ass).  I began to talk in earnest to my husband about moving back.  We stayed in Arizona though for 8 more years.  He had two older children from a previous marriage and they were teens at the time.  We visited again for my high school reunion.  I missed my friends desperately now that Facebook was the rage.  My husband saw this and agreed it was time for me to come home.  We began planning our move. 

I now sit at the Pevely Festival writing.  I am interrupted by old friends saying hi.  I couldn’t be happier.  Some laugh and tell me I shouldn’t talk about being from Jeffco.  I question them on this.  I am home among the rednecks and Hoosiers.  But they are MY rednecks and Hoosiers.  They opened their arms and welcomed me back home.  And for those of you who wonder…even my neck is still a little red!

See Previous Post from Deanna C.: A Dented Soul

[TTMM NOTE: Please welcome out guest blogger this week. Each Friday, we would like to give a chance for someone to contribute and share their writting. If you feel you have something, contact me at tripthroughmymind@gmail.com to submit your work. If you enjoy today's post, please comment below. Until next time...jb]

Building the Foundation; A Daughter’s Love for Reading

There are things you hope to pass on to your children. Some of the lessons you have learned, experiences you have endured, and appreciation for things that you discovered. The challenge it to explain to them the importance of little things that may not be relevant in today’s world. Figuring out how to share with them what it was like to use your imagination to see color in a black and white television or that the screen measured smaller than the laptop on their desk. That instead of video games, we had board games and action figures. That there was a time when the only way to see a movie was to leave the house and go to the movie theater, and to watch one at home meant seeing it years after it was released with commercials on one of the five television stations. Just saying that makes me feel like we grew up in the Stone Age. So many things have changed since I as my daughter’s age. The one thing I can share with her is my love for music and reading, especially those that I are such a part of my childhood.

At the age of five, my daughter started reading the books that covered her room’s book shelves. Like her older sister, she had a natural aptitude for reading and sounding out words. As her skill level increased, she recently moved into chapter books, this was when the fun truly began. I introduced her to one of my favorites: The Boxcar Children. Some of my earliest memories of reading were of these orphaned children and how they were able to survive on their own, while living in an abandoned boxcar, until they discover the kind hearted Mr. Henry was their grandfather.  I slipped the first book in the series in with her summer reading stack not expecting it to catch her interest amongst the likes of Magic Tree House, Bunnicula, and Clarice Bean.  I was surprised when she devoured the first book and asked for the next in the series.

I shouldn’t say I was too surprised that these tales still hold interest for the beginning readers. Even with today’s the bookstore shelves filled with television based stories books, the enduring story of independent children embarking on an adventure, inspires the imagination for children who feel like adults control their every move. The author, Gertrude Chandler Warner, wanted to use children’s desire to be unsupervised to contribute to their appeal with the age group they are directed towards. An even though the series was originally created in 1924, it still holds the same appeal to children over 85 years later.

Someday, my daughter will wander over to the dark side of the book shelves to read, what we refer to the as the “bratty child books”, as I am sure she will someday move to more modern styles of pop music. At least she will have a good foundation from listening to the music of The Beatles, The Who, and Queen and reading Gertrude Chandler Warner’s The Boxcar Children.

What are some of the first book series that you remember reading as a child?

Until next time…

Jb

Related links: A Reason for Hope: To My Daughter, Will You Read To Me?

© 2011

Locke and Key, the Graphic Novel

 

Joe Hill's Eisener Award Nominated Series

It was a quaint little shop among the rest of the artsy shops up and down a five block section of town. My wife and I were enjoying some post-wedding time off and disappearing from the grind of everyday life as we explored the window dressings lining the street.  As we approached one particular boutique, we both reached for the door to explore what was  inside. The window displays showed comics and graphic novels of all designs piquing the curiosity within.  I will admit, I haven’t been a huge fan of comics or graphic novels, as they are known of late. Superheroes were never my cup of kryptonite tea. However, after watching the initial season of The Walking Dead, we wanted to see what they had. What we discovered was not our daddy’s comic book store.

The shop was laid out in a classy way, reminiscent of the specialty book store that it turned out to be. The staff was helpful in not only showing us where the collection we were searching for was located but also with recommending other series and authors that might interest us. This is when I discovered something that has been dragging me back into the city for the past few months, a series called Locke & Key.

Locke & Key is a monthly graphic novel which brings a psychological twist to the normal genre of graphic novels. Authored by Joe Hill and illustrated by Gabriel Rodriguez, it follows the Locke family as they work through the tragedy of their father’s murder and moved back to his family’s home, in Lovecraft, Massachusetts. The Locke family estate, Key House, holds many secrets that are slowly revealed through the finding of keys scattered through the New England mansion. Each key has mystical attributes that push the storyline along with new developments.

What makes Locke & Key such a great read is that the story is so character-driven that you can’t help but be drawn to each panel. The Locke children bring a life of their own to the story. Tyler is the oldest of the children who has his own baggage to carry from the events that drove them to seek the sanctuary of Key House. Kinsey seems to present a maternal feel for the youngest Locke as she struggles with her identity. Though, of all the children, Bode steals the show. His curiosity is the driving factor of the story’s progression. The innocents he brings to the developing drama, encourages you to turn the page. Joe Hill brings the character development from his novels into the shorts of the graphic realm.

I, for one, am a person that has always enjoyed the novels; the long story which brings not only the plot but characters to life in ways that only a good book seems to build. I have been known to refer to comics as literature with training wheels for those that are too unimaginative to read a “real” book. I will admit, here in public, for all to read, that I was most certainly incorrect. The story that Joe Hill and the artwork of Gabriel Rodriguez produce in Locke & Key has the suspense and page turning appeal of any of the novels that I have read.  The plot grows, the artwork is fantastic and the characters are people you want to cheer for as they struggle through the discovery of their world.

When you are in your local book store searching for something new, give the graphic novel section a browse. If you can bring yourself to jumping into that world as I did, then please, give Locke & Key a try. You won’t be disappointed.

Visit the author at: http://joehillfiction.com

For a look at the wonderful graphic novel boutique, Star Clipper, visit them at: http://www.starclipper.com

Until next time…

Jb

© 2011

 

TTMM Week In Review and Special Thank You

Oh, it’s Saturday and time for a week in review. It has been a while since I have had enough published to actually have a summary of all that you may have missed. We started the week in silence but came out from the dark mid-week. It seems we have had a frustrated rant on zombies, a discovery of the “muse blocker”, and a new guest to round our week.  For those that might have missed anything, here is a glimpse of the week. Please feel free to click on the link to catch up, think about and comment.

When a Good Idea Goes to Hell

Doing some research for a new blog project, I realize that there are some things that aren’t exactly right out there..

A Writer’s Muse-ic

Realization comes at strange times. After a long dry spell, I might have found my Muse-ic.

A Dented Soul

One of the things I like most about having this has to be the chance to meet and find people who love to write, look at things in different ways, and to share their ideas. This week is only the second time that we have had a new writer appear as a guest. I hope to hear more from her in the coming weeks and if she is so incline, by your responses, maybe we can encourage her to contribute on a weekly basis.

A Special Thank You

A little over a year ago, a fellow writer recommended moving my post to another media. I looked at a few and found a home at wordpress.com. After a little time adjusting, I have settled into my new home on the web. This week marks the one year anniversary of Trip Through My Mind. It hasn’t always been a smooth trip. Life and writer’s block, careers and families, have contributed as the source of my inspiration and to the deterrent of my availability to write. The learning process of what works and what does not, has been a journey that I hope to continue.  With over 50 post in the past year, a couple of guest contributors, and new ideas each day, I hope that next year will bring about new discovery and many new friends to join us as we explore those darker and sometimes funnier corners of our mind.

I want to take this opportunity to thank those that were here in the beginning and welcome those that have just stumbled onto this site. Writing is something that I feel I do for myself, share it is because of your support. Thank you.

Until next time…

jb

© 2011