Nonsense, Drivel, and Balderdash

This past Christmas, I was lucky enough to revisit the Caribbean. Third time in its waters, third time getting there on a cruise ship. The first time I traveled there courtesy of my mom's side of the family. The second time was on my honeymoon. This third time was courtesy of my wife's folks. That side of the world offers many delights, but most of them are to be found in and around its crystal blue waters. I think my favorite day this time around was (yet another sign of my aging tastes) my day in St. Martin, which was spent lounging on a beachside cabana, sipping cold beverages, taking dips in the water, and generally forgetting all the stress that teaching middle schoolers affords me. But usually most of my favorite Caribbean moments are invariably spent under the water, not sitting across from it or sailing over it. There is something magical about putting on a pair of flippers and a mask and wading into the waves until you are submerged. The moment your head goes under, ...

I often feel guilty about neglecting my writing, and I have neglected it more than ever during this past month and a half. You may have noticed my absence from the interweb, though that is only a small sliver of my writing life. Sometimes my stretches of greatest blog silence are actually times of packed notebooks and furious scribbling. I have realized I prefer to write by hand than typing. I enjoy typing, but my brain works differently when I type. Of course, as you have probably figured out, my brain hasn't been working creatively for a while. It has been too tired. I am still tired. In fact, right now I am forcing myself to write this post. I have to and I need to, but it doesn't mean that it is hard. Most non-writer types probably don't get this, but for you literate jocks out there, think about it like doing exercise. The daily grind makes you tired, exhausts your strength, and at the end of the day all you want to do is to sit on the couch and prop up your feet. But...