Going Inkless

I've gone vegetarian, and I'm taking my family with me. Not full time.  Not vegan.  Just meatless for one day a week, and it's probably not for the reasons you're thinking.  I'm not generally a big meat eater to start with.  I have my occasional carnivorous moments, but for the most part, I prefer to keep the meat on my plate as an accent rather than  a focus.  In the past, I  have chosen to avoid meat on days when I wanted to eat lighter or simpler.  Vegetarian dishes often fit that bill.  But it's not always easy.  There's planning involved, and you have to be more aware of ingredients in prepared foods.  Picking vegetarian options at a restaurant can be tricky, and your family's not always on board with a home-cooked vegetarian dinner.  They didn't sign up for that; so, there's a little guilt involved in serving meatless meals.  When I proposed to make one day a week meat free, I expected some resistance from my husba...

     We had a big dictionary when I was a child.  It was a magnificent book full of words I hadn't learned yet, with a glossy section in the centre that displayed various bits of interesting categorical information - planets, birthstones, zodiac signs.  This hefty tome was just one of a small reference library we kept.  My parents loved books as much as I do.  The ones I remember best were the mythology, the series on plant, animal and mineral identification, and a heavily illustrated book of World War I airplanes (Snoopy's Sopwith Camel and the Red Baron's Fokker were in there.)  And of course, the set of encyclopedias was a particular treasure.  Everything you wanted to know about was in there, at least to some degree, and we used them often.  Whenever we asked Mom a question she couldn't answer, she'd take us to the encyclopedia and look it up with us.  It was like Mom's spare brain.  I suppose that habit empowered us to bec...

     Day to day, I watch the tides of interlibrary loan.  Books and media of all sorts move in and out of my department.  Other libraries' items flow in for our patrons, and our items flow out for others.  The variety is amazing.  Just this past week, we have received or sent items on a wide range of topics, including art, history, religion, science, economics, and psychology.  Materials in multiple languages have crossed my desk - English, Spanish, Polish, Mandarin Chinese, Hindi, French, and Gujarati.  In addition to the novels, movies, music and children's books of all flavors, we have facilitated access to books on subjects as diverse as woodworking, philosophy, teaching methods, and real estate.  Practical matters like nutrition, car repair and sewing were represented as were academic studies like chemistry and medicine.  Our patrons are interested in everything from computer programming to learning Korean to politics and world...

I know a beacon when I see one. Who doesn't? They're the sun-bright people doing big things in the world. They beam their light into dark corners and lead others to safe places. Beacons transform the world despite improbable odds. They inspire, and people are drawn to them like moths to...well, a big bright light. Most beacons think nothing of their solar qualities. They are who they are. They'll do what needs to be done in the ways they're most comfortable doing things - which is big, bold, inspiring. I think they succeed, at least in part, because the gods love those big daring stories as much as we do. (And maybe Fortuna is fond of flashy lights. Seen Vegas?) Beacons exist at all levels of recognition, of course. You don't have to be internationally known or even a local celebrity to be one. We can all probably think of someone we know personally who fits the bill. It seems to be a collection of personality traits or mode of behavior more than anyt...

In writing, as in most things we do, people tend to settle into patterns. We develop habits, both good and bad. The more we write, the more we start to take ownership of the language. There are grammar rules we honor above others (different for each writer, of course) and cringe at the transgressions when we see them in others' work. We form attachments to certain words or phrases and use them time and again in our writing. Yet we also get quirky with language as it becomes a familiar friend. We break rules where we choose and cobble together new words where the old ones just don't seem to fit. These choices become distinctly ours. The style and the rhythm of our words repeats unconsciously in each new story. Though the content may differ, the pattern is familiar. It's the trellis beneath the vines, a comfortable structure for ideas to grow on. Without realizing it, all of these habits gradually develop into a recognizable voice. In a similar way, most write...

"What are we having for dinner?" he asks. "I hadn't planned anything. Who are we feeding?" "It's just us tonight." "Oh, we should be able to throw something together from what we have lying around. There's leftovers from earlier in the week and some canned stuff..." "Hmm. I'm kinda hungry now. Do you want to order a pizza or go out?" "That would be OK, I guess." "OK, pizza or restaurant?" "What do you feel like?" "I asked you. What do you want?" "I don't know. What do you feel like having?" "I don't know. You want Italian or Chinese or something else?" "Anything is fine." "Fine? Not great? What do you really want?" "Seriously, anything is fine. It's all good." "But what do you want? Something has to be better than the rest. Pick a restaurant." >sigh "Well, I guess we'll want to go somepl...