Sitting Still

My life has been so filled with activity lately, I've been out of touch with most of the things and people I usually keep up with.

Bombings in Moscow

Oprah's half sister

The State of the Union

I've missed all of them.

I've missed my blogs, too, neglecting them in favor of birthday parties, meetings, and well-child checks. The children are fine. The baby turns 9 tomorrow. I like my work. But my writing and my blogs suffer.

It's true what they say: You can have it all, just not all at the same time.

Update

In case you're missing me, here's a quick update. The computer doctor called the other day and said my computer is still going through its diagnosis. It's about 60% of the way through the first test. My guess is in another 2 weeks I'll know if it can be saved or not.

On the home front, the phone guy is scheduled to come today and find out why our internet isn't working a lot of the time.

So, if you're waiting for me to write something clever or interesting, hang in there. It may happen again, just not this week.

In the meantime, I'm still making an effort to post every other day on my website. Check out my stories over at pattyslack.com if you're missing me.

A short Hiatus

Between computer problems, internet issues, and just plain busy-ness, I'm going to take a week or two off from writing on this blog. Hopefully I'll be back with all my equipment up and running before you know it.

In the meantime, be sure to drop in at pattyslack.com where I'm posting true stories about God at work in his people on a pretty regular basis.

See you back here soon!

Relaunch

I've settled on a theme for my website and have been writing over there for the past week. I've still got some glitches (like making the RSS feed function and some of the other inner workings), but it's off to a good enough start that I'd like to invite y'all to stop by.

The address is http://pattyslack.com. The topic is P.S. God's Continuing Story: everyday reminders of the creator at work.

Mostly I'll be telling stories--true stories about people I've met, fictional stories about people who learn the lessons we need to learn, lessons from my own experience and the experience of my friends, stories of faith and hope and inspiration.

Come on by and stay a while. Meanwhile, back to my regularly scheduled blog.

Last Chance

I've seen a couple of ideas for my new website, but I'm looking for more. You have all day today to give ideas (see 2 posts ago for what I'm looking for) if you want to be entered in a drawing.

I'll draw from all entries I received by midnight tonight.

I need some help... prize offered!

I recently launched my website (pattyslack.com) because that's what writers do. I imbedded a blog in it so I would have a place to write.

Problem is, what do I write on the blog? This (scribblings) is my blog for family and friends, my place to rattle on about whatever tickles my fancy. My website blog needs to be focused, though. It needs to have a purpose, a theme, a ...

Oh, who am I kidding? I'm already bored and it's MY website.

I'd love your help kicking around some ideas. What should be the central theme of my website's blog?

Here are a couple of things that have crossed my mind, but I'm open to (almost) all suggestions.

1. Write about writing (or editing)... honestly, this has been done. I don't think I can really add much to the discussion. I want to break out of the "writers write about writing" rut and do something different, something I can sink my heart into.

2. Find the central theme of all my books and write about that. (Problem is this: I have a book on a voodoo priestess, one on hoarding, one on a woman feeding the homeless, and a mystery story for young girls. I'm having trouble identifying a central theme.)

3. Finding beauty in the mundane-- stories or snippets about seeing God's hand at work in every day events

4. ???

5. Blogging my way through the Bible (or Oswald Chambers or...)

6. P.S. - God's Continuing Story, inspirational stories of God at work around the world (I love this idea, but I don't know where I'd come up with enough stories to tell)

7. Post chapters of one of my manuscripts as sample reading... not sure which one (or possibly podcasting one of my manuscripts)

8. Something about homeschool, though this has been done a lot too and doesn't have anything to do with what I write.

9. Life lessons (there's already one by that name, but I could come up with a different name, maybe make it a little humorous, a little serious a la Everything I Needed to Know...)

10. Your choice. You know me (maybe). What do you think I'd be good at sharing on an ongoing basis?

I'll randomly choose a winner (of unspecified prize) from among all those who leave a comment either here or on Facebook. Deadline is a week from today, Wednesday, August 18.

What you missed...

I had the sweetest phone call yesterday from someone who noticed I hadn't been blogging saying she missed my observations. I haven't had the umph to blog, but if I did, here's what I would have talked about.

1. Amazon's announcement that it sold more ebooks than hardcover books last quarter.

2. The lawsuit between the author and original publishers of The Shack.

3. My nephews.

4. The Vancouver Farmer's Market.

5. Perfect Timing.

So, that's what you missed.

The Sun Is Out!!!

We had our first honest to goodness warm sunny day of the year today!

I'm so happy about it, I thought the sun should come out on the old blog, too.

Hope you enjoy the new format. Maybe my brain will dry out enough for me to put some interesting thoughts together.

Hope your day is as sunny as mine!

Tomorrow or Saturday...

As of Thursday evening, the counter on my blog is at 29,965. Who will be #30,000? Will it be you?

Let me know if it is!

On Blogging

Didn't Churchill say something like this about blogging?

Never have so many had so much to say about so little to so few.

That's how I'm feeling about this blog right now, like it needs more direction, more streamlining, more purpose. What would you like to see?

Approaching a Milestone

We're approaching another milestone on this blog: 25,000.

It's a slow, steady climb. I think I've averaged 21 hits a day for the last year, it could still take a couple of weeks before we see the 25,000th visitor.

If you are visitor #25,000, drop me a line to collect your prize.

Congestion

I've been trying to post a blog from my laptop all week, a nice blog about snowflakes and warmth and good friends and gratitude.

But, alas, I think my laptop must have caught my cold and is unable to process my requests.

I know how it feels. Thoughts and words get clogged up in the sinuses behind my eyes and come out as sneezes and sniffles and indistinguishable mutterings. I'm sure I've used the phrase "death warmed over" more than once today, but I couldn't tell you the context. Every few hours, one of my nostrils clears long enough for me to remember what breathing used to be like. But the moment passes.

I bought pizza for dinner tonight and announced that I'm done cooking until I'm over my cold. No one seemed too disappointed.

So, if you're looking for a happy blog about happiness and the hope of spring, stay tuned. I'll post it as soon as me and my computer get over our colds.

Face Lift

Some people like change, and some people don't.

I think I'm one who likes change, for the most part. I like to see things get a fresh new look, especially a less cluttered look.

That's what I was going to for when I went with a friend to get my eyebrows waxed. My husband doesn't like it much. He says it looks like something's missing.

That's what I was going for when I redesigned the church bulletin. Mostly people like it, but not everyone.

That's what I'm going for today as I tear apart our home office and try to make it appear more spacious and less cluttered. (Wish me luck!)

And that's what I'm considering for my blog. Do you think it's time for a face lift?

Chances Are...

My blog visitor counter should roll over to 15,000 some time in the next week or so. If you are visitor #15,000, post a comment and I'll send you something. (Knowing me, probably a book)

I'll try to say something worth reading between now and then so you have a reason other than a MAJOR PRIZE for stopping by.

Good luck!

Genius?

These little ditties intrigue me. Is this a random assignment of the reading level needed to understand my blog? If so - and if you're a regular reader - congratulations.

Perhaps you'd like to explain it all to me some day.

Lurking

I'll admit, I'm a lurker. I belong to couple of email groups that I rarely contribute to. I read people's blogs and don't leave comments.

Not too long ago, lurkers were mal-intentioned peeping Toms who hid in the bushes of suburbia. No longer. Now we can be ultra-busy soccer moms who want to gather information or have a good read without commiting to a project.

Are you a lurker? Which cyberspots do you frequent without commiting to them? What would it take to draw you out of the bushes?

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Lori F., visitor #10,000! Because of her impeccable timing (and the fact that she managed to be the 10,000th visitor despite the fact she might be the last person in America still using dial-up internet- a dedicated reader indeed!) she has won a MAJOR PRIZE!

Actually, Lori, I'll send or bring you Karen Kingsbury's latest book, Summer (auotographed, I hope) for your personal collection.

Benign

"Your last blog entry was benign."

I lay in bed at one o'clock this morning thinking about the word. It wasn't meant as an insult, but not as a compliment either. It was just a statement to say that my last few entries have been flatter than usual. That's by design. I've been in the middle of several forums of miscommunication lately and I've been too tired to fight in the blogging arena.

Do you think the Apostle Paul ever shrunk back from saying what he thought? He was a pretty feisty communicator, yet he still begged for prayers for boldness. Even Jesus, who never backed down from a fight, who never missed an opportunity to teach, sought alone time throughout his years of ministry.

I dance a little dance on the high wire of Blog Land. I write what I think, then go back and reflect. I respond to comments or I bite my tongue. I say something heavy, then counter with something light.

Benign.

Gentle. Self-limiting. Not dangerous.

Not exactly the word a writer likes to hear.

But I have two friends this month who would have loved to hear the word come from a doctor's mouth. Instead they heard the other word.

Malignant.

Two women I've known for years and years. Two friends who face the same fight over the coming months-- the race against breast cancer. Surgery, chemo-therapy, radiation, hair loss. And despite their fear or their weariness, they won't back down. Because these women have courage. They have courage and they have husbands and family who will stand beside them every step of the way.

All I can say right now is, let's pray to the God who hears our prayers. Let's pray for Pam and Jane.

Housekeeping

I just did a little updating on my Blogroll and I plan to add more and sort them.

A lot of really nice people seem to be moving out of the Blogger.com neighborhood. How's the weather over in WordPress land?

pbththth!

I'm really bummed about switching over to blogger beta since it made me lose touch with everyone in Comment World. I cannot post or receive blogs from regular blogger. It turns out that becoming a beta-ite (betazoid?) made me lose my identity as a regular blogger.

The helpers said that eventually EVERYONE will be switched over to what is now the beta program. (You, too, will be assimilated). In the meantime, here is my solution:

1. I started a new blog in the original version of blogger so I can leave comments on your blogs. The address for the blog is http://inkconcerto.blogspot.com. I've been wanting to start a new blog anyway, to host my writings on writing. Don't feel obligated to follow that blog, but do feel free to drop by from time to time to see what's up in my writing life.

2. I'd love for you to leave comments on this blog. Until you are assimilated, though, I'll have to moderate your comments (don't be offended-- it's the only way I can get them to post). So sign in as "other" and leave your comments.

And now, back to your regularly scheduled blog.