Skip to main content

The Great American Novel...

Image
Been wanting to write a book for quite some time now.  I've always enjoyed writing.  I've always been praised for my writing.  Its always come very easy for me.  Words are fascinating and putting them together to form thoughts and ideas has enthralled me since I was little.

When I was a little boy my grandmother would read my little sister and me Dr. Seuss books.  They would make me laugh and laugh.  And she encouraged that.  She pushed my imagination.  I credit her and those early years for igniting a passion for words.

The trouble, though, is that I've been waiting all these years for an idea to come.  I've been hoping my muse will deliver a wonderful story to my brain and I'll just sit down and begin to write.  Call me crazy, but I don't think that the way it happens.  I think that the process starts on a much smaller scale and evolves into something bigger and more complex.

That being said, I've tried to use this blog as a chance to work on expressing my ideas.  I've sounded off on elections, candidates, cell phone users, anything and everything that pisses me off.  And now that a new year is approaching, I think I might need to start working on something of substance.  If nothing else, it could be a great learning experience for me.  I've never tried to write anything of any considerable length before.  And I've got a pretty good idea of what the books about.  Or, at lest I've got an idea of where to start.

I mentioned in an earlier post that I have but one Christmas wish.  And that is true.  And its such a big wish.  And I do wish it would come true.  I think I'm due up.  I've been good.  I've waited patiently.  When others were getting their wishes, I've bitten my tongue and smiled.  My sister, for instance.  Seems she gets just about everything she wants.  And now I feel like its my turn and I should get wish granted.  And, oh how happy that would make me!

In other news, I found my first ex-wife on Face Book last night.  I friended her (a term that means I sent out a request that we be friends... she has to accept... and then we can communicate).  The funny thing is that I really don't remember anything about her.  I don't remember much about our relationship.  Its quite strange, really.  I remember before and after, but for some reason our time together is hazy at best.  And I've said for a while now that I'd love to catch up with her again.  I'd love to go out to dinner with her and get to know her again.  I'd love to do all this because it might explain a little bit about how I've ended up where I am.  It might shed some light on Angie.  And from the stories I've heard from my family, I'd just like to see if what they thought about her was true.  So we'll see if she responds or not..........

Comments

Anonymous said…
Hi, just came across your blog rather randomly. Well written!!!

I, too, am reconnecting with a long lost ex through Facebook. So, did things go smoothly? Just what did your parents think about her, and did you find those things to be true?

I ask, because I found that everything I thought about my ex was spot on... even ten years later nothing much seemed to have changed. Made me feel a little better to know I wasn't so wrong after all... just wish I had listened to those around me a little sooner.
December 16, 2008 at 5:09 PM
Philip Harmon said…
First off, let me just say how surprised I am to get a comment on my blog. I was quite sure that no one read it. And not that I really mind that. I started out thinking it was going to be a big hit. But then I cozied up to the idea that it was just an outlet for me to write whatever the hell I felt like writing. And the anonymity of it made it all the much sweeter.

And thank you for your generous praise....

As far as the ex... well, that's a weird story. I really don't remember much about her. But everyone else does, and everyone else had some choice things to say. Of course, everything was after the fact. Which left me wondering what the hell actually happened. But suffice it so say, in the little bit of communication we have had since reconnecting, she strikes me as someone who I would not have had a future with.
December 16, 2008 at 10:52 PM
Post a Comment

Popular Posts

  At some point recently, the kids and I were telling each other stories. I can ’ t remember who went first, but Wyatt and Pepper each told their stories amid interruptions and corrections and suggestions. Let’s say for the sake of argument that Briar wasn’t talking yet, so it became my turn. Rather than the usual stories of kingdoms and unicorns and the garden variety stuff I usually went for, I decided to pull from my memory of past events. The kids listened in amazement, not really understanding  what I was talking about. The story was a hit. And I think I’ll share it with you now. It was the summer of 1993. I had finished my first year of college at The College of Charleston. At the end of summer, I would be transferring to NC State. I enjoyed College of Charleston very much. I loved the 9-to-1 girl-to-guy ratio. It had been a great year. But I had spent most weekends driving up and back from Raleigh to see my girlfriend Marcia. At some point during the year, I had decided...
1 comment
Read more

Thoughts on a Mix Tape

For as long as I can remember, I have loved music. I can remember getting ‘Elton John’s Greatest Hits’ and ‘Neil Diamond’s Greatest Hits’ when I was just a little guy. And I can remember constantly going to the record store to get new music. When I first started, it was all vinyl. Soon after that, there was a big change to cassette tapes. The record store looked a lot different than before. Tapes didn’t take up much room, so the layouts of our music shops changed. And then came CDs. I can remember the first CD sections were tiny, usually shoved in a corner. The first CD I ever bought was ‘Huey Lewis and the News: Sports,’ not because this was the CD I was looking for, but because there wasn’t much of a selection and that was all I could find. Kids today wouldn’t know what to do with a cassette tape. I’m sure they’d look at it like it was an alien relic. And when they discovered the tape itself could be pulled out, there’d be loose tape strewn about like toilet paper. They definitely we...
Post a Comment
Read more

More Thoughts on Bars and Restaurants

  Sometimes it's hard for me to believe that I spent 25 years of my life in the restaurant business, especially now that I’ve been out for five years. I worked at some great places. I worked with some great people. Some amazing chefs. And I had a great time. Most of the time. During my time in the business, I learned the ins and outs of a restaurant and a bar. I even took my knowledge and experience further by attending The Culinary Institute of America up in Hyde Park, NY. But that’s for another post. This post is to share some of my thoughts on the business, as well as some suggestions for how to act in a restaurant or bar. Heed my suggestions if you want, or don’t. It’s all good. But should you try a few of them out, you might just find that your experience was a little better. A little more special. A little more magical. And finally, for those of you who are reading this and are in the business or have been at some point, I hope that this post makes you smile, giggle, and nod ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Thoughts on depression

I've had depression for as long as I can remember. For most of that time I have self-medicated in one form or another. As I get older, my relationship with my mental health has matured and I find myself looking at it and dealing with it in different ways. And looking back since the days of Covid, I remember the dozen-plus friends that I've lost, though not all of them were from depression, and realize that confronting our mental health and finding a way to live with it is crucial. Through my 25 years of bartending, I came to understand what alcoholism really looks like. I saw it every night and it looked different on every person. What I came to know, to truly know and believe, is that alcoholism is not something that can be determined by filling out some government questionaire. It is an individual disease. What becomes a problem for one person does not effect the other person. I could serve one regular six doubles of Jack Daniels and feel fine with how they were. And I could ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Thoughts on My Children Growing Up

  Nine. Seven. Four. How is that possible? My kids are growing up. I can remember holding them in the hospital when they were just born. And now I'm fussing at them for raiding the refrigerator. I tell my little girls almost every day to stop growing up. They're at the perfect age right now. They're at the perfect size. The world isn't the mean, cold place that you and I live in. Santa Claus is real. Dreams can still come true. Hopes have not yet been dashed. Hearts haven't been broken. So, stop growing up, damn it! Enough already! I'm sure this is true with every generation, but it's so much different for my kids than it was for me. I'm willing to go on record, though, that Gen X's kids have a WAY different childhood than their kids are having. I'm reminded of this daily. A few days ago, Briar and I walked to the big kids' school to join them on their walk home. We met another mom who is a good friend of ours and we chatted on our walk. The ...
Post a Comment
Read more