What's your journaling style?

Journaling is an important element on any scrapbook page, but there's no right or wrong way to tell your story. There is only your way! You can tell your story any way you like. If you need a starting place, take this fun, little quiz from Elsie Flannigan's book, 52 Scrapbooking Challenges.

1. You want to touch base with a friend. You:
A. Call
B. Send a text message
C. E-mail
D. Instant message

2.You're going out tonight. What do you wear?
A. Something trendy
B. Something casual
C. Something pretty
D. Something comfy

3. How many hours do you spend on the computer a day?
A. Less than one
B. 1-2
C. 3-4
D. 5 or more

4. You're sending a friend a birthday card. You:
A. Write 'Happy Birthday' and sign your name.
B. Write a personal note and sign your name.
C. Sign your name.
D. Slip the card into the envelope and send it off.

5. What's your favorite kind of test?
A. Short answer
B. Multiple choice
C. Essay
D. I don't like any tests

Tally up your scores and take a look at your results here.

If your quiz results were:

Mostly A's: Try writing down bits and pieces of conversations with friends, journal with favorite quotations, or do a back-and-forth journaling exercise with a friend, where you write one thing and she writes the next thing. Be on the lookout for journaling inspiration everywhere you go (think billboards, signs and magazine advertisements).

Mostly B's: Try journaling in lists or making up your own fun journaling code. Use stickers and scrapbooking embellishments. Write fill-in-the-blank journaling. Journal with just an assortment of randomly-selected words that describe a favorite photography or something you love.

Mostly C's: Try journaling like you're telling a story to a friend. Or think about journaling as a creative writing exercise. Your journaling is probably already pretty interesting to read—keep challenging yourself to make it real and keep it as fun as possible!

Mostly D's: Try creating your own journaling shorthand. Use your favorite abbreviations as often as you'd like. Think about making a little guide to these sayings that you can put in the front of your album (your grandkids, for example, might not know the LOL means laughing out loud!).

Get more fun quizzes and challenges in 52 Scrapbooking Challenges by Elsie Flannigan. ◦

What's your journaling style?

Shamaness encounter and another green drink

More journal notes written during my stay at the Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow in Eureka Springs, Arkansas: Yesterday I met a tall, thin biker-type woman, Janet, at a party on Beaver Lake who is a "missionary alternative healer," (using her words) with a "whole body ministry." She works out of Fayetteville and uses Christian prayer, massage, herbs and muscle testing in her practice. Evidently, she has helped heal a large number of people and even medical doctors recommend her to their patients with little to no hope. Janet walks with a cane as she is recovering from a accident and I helped her get up and down the boat ramp. She smokes and drinks, which doesn't seem too beatific, but nonetheless comes off as a true shamaness. She is so down home and real, I don't think she knows how much she exudes the aura of blessedness. she is one of the most unusual, loving and committed people I've met down here, and I mean unusual in the best sense.

As an afficiando of deep purple, seedy, crunchy berry smoothies, I've nonetheless been exploring a lot of green drinks on this trip. I made a great kiwi, pear, green grape and liquid lecithin smoothie before going to church at the Thorncrown Chapel this morning -- turned out really excellent. However, lunch was mediocre -- a blender soup of tomato, avocado, yogurt, lemon juice, rice vinegar and a little cayenne. It called for balsamic vinegar, which I didn't have but was probably the right choice for this recipe. Was a little too acidic this way. The gazpacho I made earlier this week was 10 times better. Ate a little cornbread and two Ak-Maks on the side. ◦

Shamaness encounter and another green drink

Spices, herbs, culinary suite at Dairy Hollow

Some journal notes from my stay last month in the culinary suite at the Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow: Took the spice/herb inventory. It’s almost 8 a.m. Drawers and racks of spices – and among the standards, some stand-outs: banana extract, brandied pepper, whiskey rub, Quebec steak seasoning, black sesame seeds, Hawaiian sea salt (red), Celtic gray salt, lavender, African bird pepper, chipotle chili pepper, and pink, green, black and rainbow peppercorns. They have all the spices for the recipes I’ve planned. I’m shocked, not. But only about a teaspoon of cinnamon left. Multiple bottles of cinnamon extract, however.

The culinary suite is exquisite. Everything was newly remodeled by Renovation Style magazine and looks very HGTV. The large living room has a cozy sitting area next to a real woodburning stone-faced fireplace. A pull-up table is also available for meals. The office includes a large desk and bookshelf along the south wall with multi-lighting options. In fact, lighting and dimming options throughout the suite are stunning, in addition to the natural skylights in the living room and bathroom.

Sage green, off-white, painted wood walls and natural stone and wood make up the décor. A large, luscious acrylic painting of two red and two white onions graces one wall, visible as you enter the front door.

I am working in the most smashing, up-to-date, impeccable full kitchen anyone can imagine; fully equipped, almost all KitchenAid appliances -- a six-burner stainless stove with hood, double oven, outdoor gas grill and sink on the adjacent deck, dishwasher and restaurant grade monster refrigerator and freezer, also blender, juicer, food processor, coffee grinder and mixer. Lots of storage space, Cuisinart cookware, glasses, dishes, gadgets, food staples from the previous colony residents. Hardly anything a cook could fall short of. Plan to take as much advantage of the kitchen as my writing schedule allows. ◦

Spices, herbs, culinary suite at Dairy Hollow

Smoothies, juices and soups from Dairy Hollow

Some journal notes/letter from my culinary suite stay at the Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow, Eureka Springs, Arkansas, last month: Spent a lot of time researching ginseng today and will try to work on a poem before I go to bed. Rosaleen brought Irish whiskey to dinner and I couldn't help but try a few nips. My typing's still o.k. so all is well, thus far.

Did some non-cooking cooking today, too. I made, get a load of this, an avocado, Bartlett pear and yogurt smoothie, with some vanilla extract and raw sugar. It turned out to be one of the best smoothies I've ever tasted. A green tea boost would make it perfect, because it was the color of green tea ice cream to begin with. My lunchtime cucumber, celery and lemon smoothie/cold soup didn't fare as well as it turned out an overly cold, sour slop.

While I was at it, I pulled out the food processor (I've never used one in my life except for my mini-Cuisinart chopper back home) and whipped up some gazpacho I plan to serve as a prelude to the colony dinner tomorrow. Cucumbers, white onions, green onions, celery, red peppers, tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, tabasco, lemon juice, some V8 low sodium, Hawaiian red salt, rainbow ground pepper. Will garnish later with limes. Tastes good so far -- letting it meld overnight.

Another concoction on the agenda: Theobrand: Food of the Gods, Montezuma II -- a blend of cocoa, cayenne pepper, vanilla, cornstarch and hot water. Thought of making it tonight so I can stay up a little later to get some work done. Is this what Montezuma drank 30 cups of a day? ◦

Smoothies, juices and soups from Dairy Hollow

Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow

I was among the fortunate 50 this year to have experienced and utterly enjoyed a writer's residency at the Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow, located in a pleasingly woodsy section on the historic loop of Eureka Springs, Arkansas. There, I spent two weeks during autumn-kissed October writing poetry, reveling in the quaint and Victorian town and the ecologically diverse terrain surrounding it, and completing valuable research for my writing with friendly, local experts and the resources at the town's authenic Carnegie Library.

Many writers' haven't yet heard about the Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow because, unlike other colonies with decades of history and a thick coat of New England ivy, WCDH was only launched four years ago in the off-the-beaten-path Ozarks. However, once there, you might feel as I did that you are in the center of something special and the rest of what's floating around in other U.S. locales might be overly-worn and too world weary.

WCDH is the only writers' colony that specifically supports culinary writers, as well as poets, novelists and short stories writers. I stayed in the exquisite culinary suite, a former bed-and-breakfast living room, office, bedroom, bath and kitchen transformed HGTV-fashion by Renovation Style magazine and KitchenAid. The fully-stocked, state-of-the-art kitchen was my workshop to experiment with many of the items that appear in my poems. When I filled out my application several months ago, I put down that I could reasonably finish eight poems during a two-week stay. In actuality, I completed 16, and still had time to take hikes, try out new recipes, make friends and have fun in this artistically-diverse town.

Besides the Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow, my recommendations for those visiting Eureka Springs: Opal Fly and the Swatters jazz/blues combo which regularly appears at Eureka Springs venues; Rogues Manor tavern, a tiny quaint bar that has a windowed view of the side of a mountain and spring, museum-style; Carnegie Library, a limestone-fronted, wood-paneled interior tiny masterpiece of a library initially funded by Andrew Carnegie; the garden next to the Crescent Hotel, where you will experience one of the best views of the breathtaking Ozark Mountains right in town; Thorncrown Chapel, a wonder of glass and wooden beams in the middle of the forest, which the American Institute of Architecture recently placed fourth on its list of top buildings of the 20th century; Fire Om Earth Studio, a fabulous place on 15 acres just outside of town where you can drop into a bellydancing or Tai Chi class for $10, or admire and purchase the owners' handmade Celtic and native-style drums, flutes and ocarinas. ◦

Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow

What If God Was One of Us?

As Alanis Morissette sings, "What if God was one of us?" I recently attended an interfaith church service in which the leader asked the same question. I don't think he asked it in a way that begged a definitive answer, or any answer for that matter, and I think most people in the church felt comfortable with that. But I didn't feel comfortable with it, because I know the song and I feel that each line of that song strongly suggests the person of Jesus Christ. Take a look:

Song: What if God was one of us?
Bible: Psalm 8:5 For you made him a little lower than the angels, crowning him with glory and honor.

Song: Just a slob like one of us.
Bible: Isaiah 53:3 He was despised, and rejected by men, a man of suffering, and acquainted with disease.

Song: Just a stranger on the bus, trying to make his way home.
Bible: Matthew 8:20 Jesus said to him, "The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head."

Song: If God had a face, what would it look like?
Bible: Isaiah 53:2 He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to Him, nothing in His appearance that we should desire him.

Song: What if God was one of us?
Bible: Phillipians 2:7 But made himself no reputation, and took upon the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men.

A small, but silly note: The copy editor in me just has to say..."What if God were one of us?"
[journal writing]
[Alanis Morissette]
[song lyrics] ◦

What If God Was One of Us?

Classical Music for Journaling

For journaling, or any other creative pursuit, the busy mind needs to be cleared and calmed. This will help allow your own special associations and brainstorming notions to flow through. Listening to classical music (or jazz, how about a little John Coltrane?) can set the stage, or your worktable, for creativity, whether it be for an hour, an evening or a weekend.

According to music experts, as mentioned in the book "How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci" the top ten greatest works from the classical canon are:
1. Bach: Mass in B Minor
2. Beethoven: Symphony #9
3. Mozart: Requiem
4. Chopin: Nocturnes
5. Brahms: German Requiem
6. Mahler: Symphony #6
7. Richard Strauss: Last Four Songs
8. Debussy: Preludes
9. Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring
10.(tie) Verdi: Aida and Puccini: La Boheme

Creative listening! ◦

Classical Music for Journaling

Journal Writing at Lake Austin Spa

My husband Carlos Cumpian and I just got back from a family trip to Texas which included the two of us making presentations and staying at the Lake Austin Spa Resort. I presented a journal writing lecture and workshop and Carlos presented Native American coyote stories, along with his drum and sweetgrass smudge accompaniment.

Besides being one of the best spas in America, Lake Austin Spa Resort is also big on hospitality and a myriad selection of activities and services. From dock activities on Lake Austin to indoor exercise classes, and from a delicious spa menu in its dining room to the spa and beauty services in a new, vast, posh complex, the resort also offers feng shui lectures, culinary demos and poker tips. We stayed in one of the spa's standard rooms, which by any other definition would be considered luxurious. Its bath area also includes two closet and dressing areas, a separate vanity, double sink and twice-curtained shower/tub area.

Some recommendations: Tom, who hosts the walks and docks on Mondays and Tuesdays offered a great orientation to kayaking before leading our small group on a 40-minute trek up and down Lake Austin (which is actually an area of the Colorado River dammed on two sides). Moving indoors, the Foam Roller techniques were easy and utterly effective, which I used to stretch and soothe my muscles. This 45-minute class expertly led by Kathy.

Kayla gave me the perfect pressure massage under the mantel of Lemongrass Ginger Pick-me-up and Carlos' achey shoulders were eased by the talents of Michael, who had his own share of shoulder issues from playing baseball. Trisha Shirey, veteran Lake Austin Spa Resort landscape artist of 22 years, has probably personally planted every green and flowery thing on the property that wasn't there when she arrived. She has a deep knowledge and appreciation of herbs and only uses organic methods throughout the properties.

Still considered part of the city of Austin, I'd truly consider Lake Austin Spa Resort part of hill country, as it is so surrounded by nature and water. ◦

Journal Writing at Lake Austin Spa

Send Yourself a Postcard

When you travel, you might traditionally send a handful of postcards to family and friends. How about sending a postcard to yourself? Use the best picture postcard you can find and write to yourself about the most interesting person you met on your trip (or on each stop in your itinerary). Most postcards cover where you went and what you saw. A postcard to yourself about an engaging, unusual or compelling person you met can capture what makes travel so interesting -- the people!

Over the years, the "postcards to yourself" can serve as a collected journal of the special people you crossed paths with in your travels, plus photos and cancelled stamps to also remind you of your journeys. ◦

Send Yourself a Postcard

Weekend at The Heartland Spa

I had the good fortune to appear as a speaker/lecturer at The Heartland Spa this past weekend. This desination spa is located about an hour and half south of Chicago in Gilman, Ill. After the spa's heart healthy dinner of asparagus and leek soup, salmon with avocado salsa, brown rice, and three-berry whole grain crepe on Saturday night, I spoke to a roomful of guests about the various forms of journal writing, including Japanese haibun and naikan.

If you want to get away from it all, The Heartland Spa is an excellent choice. Tucked deeply into the back roads of Illinois cornfields, the spa is a hidden gem of Midwestern hospitality. Its myriad massage therapists and program leaders possess solid work-ethic honed skills bolstered by great openness and humor.

There are no televisions, telephones, Internet or alcohol at The Heartland Spa. I could receive messages on my cellphone, and was able to retrieve an important one from my son, who simultaneously was getting away from it all by camping in Wisconsin at an alternative energy fair, to let me know he made it to the camp O.K. in spite of car troubles. But I could not get an outbound signal to call him, or anyone, back. Of course, in an emergency, the office phones are available.

I was able to spend two nights at the spa and woke every morning at 6:30 a.m. to bolster myself awake, freshen up and dress for the 7:15 a.m. two-mile wake-up walk. Saw a lot of corn, soybeans, ponds, oak trees and local birds, not only cardinals, swallows and meadowlarks, but also turkey vultures and hawks soaring overhead. One empty crossroads reminded me of the country path Dorothy walked with Toto to reach her Kansas farm. But we weren't in Kansas, but part of an Illinois melding of the rural with The Heartland Spa's Oz-like beauty treatments in its posh multi-story barn at end of the gray gravel road.

Gayle, former local farmer and county assessor turned massage therapist and reflexologist (with a securities license waiting in the wings) gave me an alternately deep tissue and relaxing massage, concentrating on my shoulders and back, just like I'd asked. She later presented a hands-on lecture on reflexology (demonstrating on the feet of a guest volunteer) in the cozy, booklined, wood-paneled lecture room where I staged my journal writing talk a few hours later.

Over the course of my stay, I never felt hungry. The spa serves three healthy square meals a day with lots of variety, in addition to fruit smoothies, berry cups, strawberries dipped in chocolate sauce, and air-popped popcorn snacks at strategic times of the day, with ubiquitous fresh fruit, bottled water and gatorade on hand around the clock.

By the end of the weekend I had logged four miles of hiking, several trips to the separate women's steam bath and co-ed jacuzzi and participated in physical activity classes: Qi-Gong, Pilates, a Mini-Boot Camp of aerobics, fitball and punching bag, Dynabands and Xeribands, and Yoga.

I enjoyed sitting at different tables at breakfast, lunch and dinner and actually became acquainted with nearly all of the 25 weekend guests. I heard some great stories. For example, two sisters at the spa hoped to lose some weight because a certain brand of sleeping pill had turned both not only into sleepwalkers, but also "sleep-eaters" who had slapped on pounds without remembering eating anything come morning, yet finding their beds full of empty pretzel bags and cookie crumbs. We discussed natural alternatives to sleeping pills like Valerian herb, but not before each person at the table related his or her own sleepwalker (son, daughter, husband, cousin) story. One woman's husband, who served in the Vietnam War, needed to be tied to a bush by his fellow soldiers during the night so he wouldn't sleep-wander from camp and get shot. Little did he know he could have been given a 4-F deferment if the army knew he was a sleepwalker when he was drafted, she said.
[journal writing]
[spas][Heartland Spa]
[sleepwalk][haibun] ◦

Weekend at The Heartland Spa

Predictions for 2026

There's another type of journal entry, which instead of looking back at the past or reveling in the present, contains predictions for the future. It's not a entry that uses clairvoyance or any other type of hocus-pocus, but serves as a written platform to air your own personal perspective about what might happen 20 years from today.

Why make predictions? First of all, it's for yourself. You will learn more about the values and beliefs you hold today by the predictions you make concerning tomorrow.

Another excellent reason for logging your predictions is to leave something for those who come after you. Your children and grandchildren. Your nieces and nephews. They will learn more about you and your entire family through your views and predictions. And it will just be darn interesting to see if your predictions came close, were offbase or hit the nail on the head.

But here's the key. The most important part of writing down your predictions are not really in the predictions themselves, but in the reasons WHY you believe they might take place. Answering the "why" part of any issue is the most revealing and delves the deepest into who you are and what's important to you. If you think the world will be a more ecologically balanced society in 2026, WHY? How will everyone in the world make it so? If you think there will be areas of nuclear devastation by 2026, WHY? What will make nations and their relationships with one another be different in the future than they are today...and so on.

I'd like to close my post on journaling predictions with a predition, or at least a special hope. That you will not only write down your predictions, but live to see how they work out. ◦

Predictions for 2026

You Are What You Prefer

Who are you? The complete answer, if there is one, is complex. But you can get a better insight into the stuff you're made of by journaling the activities you prefer and don't prefer. Make a record of music you listen to, movies you watch, books you read, and what you think of them. What better critic or celebrator of what transpires before you than yourself?

As the years pass, you can return to your journals and rediscover what may have been vitally important to you at one time and how that has expanded or changed. ◦

You Are What You Prefer

Reread Your Own Journal

Many times, writers don't take the time to go back through their journals. According to Brandi Reissenweber in her article "Making the Most of Your Journal," a writer might find a creative spark today in something written in his or her journal in the past. Take a second look before dismissing old entries because they didn't come to anything immediately. You may find that you connect with something after you've written it in a way that you didn't at the time you actually write it. ◦

Reread Your Own Journal

Build Bridges with a Thank You

Do I sound like Emily Post if I ask poets to extend a special thank you to their reading hosts? And by that I mean to handwrite and mail a thank-you note.

You have given a featured reading or writing workshop at a poetry venue, bar, community center, school, library or bookstore. The host invited you, made all the arrangements, and drummed up an audience. The audience took time out from their schedules to give you their attention, and maybe approach you after for some chit-chat and shop talk. Some audience members even bought your book or chapboook, if you have one. And you likely did say a warm thank you to the host and the venue, perhaps as you opened your set and again personally before you left for the evening.

That's cool, and more than enough, right? Look at it this way. In the small world of poetry, there are few rewards. Organizing a poetry reading doesn't draw big bucks for any organization. The event definitely won't make its month, and it might even break it. Any effort to promote poetry, at least in today's environment, is a labor of love and based on a love of literature. Your host isn't making any (or much) money on you. And although you took center stage, your host stood behind the scenes. He or she needs strokes, recognition, gratitude and feedback. "What really happened that night, or was it just another reading among many?," the host may ask him or herself.

During the event, you may not have much time or chance to really pay attention to the person who invited you to read. And after a day goes by, you might give more thought as to what actually happened over the course of the evening, the kind of responses you got on your work, and what you may have discovered about your performance.

In these instant messaging days, sending your host a handwritten note about how the evening went for you makes a pronounced impression. Having been a sometime organizer and editor myself, I know that poetry promoters of all stripes often get little to no feedback after the door closes or an issue is mailed out. Is anybody out there, we ask. Your thanks and opinions will stand out and reassure, even if you point out some things that might need to be improved at a venue.

Mail your note within a few days and no longer than a week after the performance and include your personal literary business card, so the organizer knows how to contact you again. I'll write another post on creating literary business cards and websites sometime soon.

Even if you have some constructive comments to make after an event, don't burn your bridges, build them. When you add your personal touch in treating your reading hosts well with a handwritten note of sincere comments, it will likely result in being invited again next time, or even being referred to other venues looking for good talent.
[poetry reading][gratitude][thank you note] ◦

Build Bridges with a Thank You

What to Wear for Your Poetry Performance

Although this blog is mainly to showcase various journaling tips and suggestions, I devote a sizeable portion of my posts to the topic of writing poetry and how to survive as a poet.

When someone reads one of your poems on the printed page, all they see of you are black words on white paper. Don't, however, adapt this same color scheme for a live stage performance. Nothing plays more neutral on stage than white (according to my stage set teacher back when) and wearing a white shirt/blouse/t-shirt on stage is about as exciting as a glass of skim milk.

Ditto black or very dark pants. What is this, a noh drama? Are you a non-entity from the waist down? I don't care if you're fat, skinny, big-breasted or flat chested. You are putting yourself, your poems, your heart and your soul out there on stage, whether at a one-poem open reading slot or a 20-minute feature. So show your colors!

I don't mean Ringling Brothers colors, Halloween costumes or Vegas glitz. But show a little style. Your style. And if your ordinary style is a white t-shirt and torn jeans, then try out your fantasy style for one night. You're having fun. Wear a hat, a scarf, some wild earrings. Make your voice, presence and poetry memorable.

One of my books, "Swimmer's Prayer" carries the aqua mosaic pattern of a swimming pool on the cover. I'll sometimes match up my outfit with the same mermaid-aqua colors to carry out the theme.

If you're a mama falling out of her bra, you might want to bypass a low-cut top, and even wear a strategically tied scarf to fall in-between your breasts. Take a tip from the female flamenco dancers. Visualize how they tie shawls in front of themselves while dancing. They want their audiences to focus on their feet, dancing and costume, not on the jiggle show. And you want the poetry crowd to look at you while you perform, not at your breasts.

Flat-chested and self-conscious? A ruffled blouse and a structured jewel-colored velvet jacket conceals and feminizes at the same time. Adding casual pants and pointy shoes can make a hip contrast.

Guys with a big gut? The jacket thing works for you, too. But don't wear a v-neck white t-shirt underneath, especially if you're hairy. Think crew-neck and color.

Dressing up doesn't mean dressing conservatively or predictably, and dressing down doesn't mean you should reserve your imagination for your poems only.[what to wear][performance poetry] ◦

What to Wear for Your Poetry Performance

Southwest Spas That Offer Journal Writing Sessions

The American Medical Association has released a study showing that keeping a journal can literally improve your physical health.

And a growing number of medical, destination and resort spas are incorporating journal writing seminars into their special event agendas.

This post explores spas in Arizona, Texas and Mexico that offer journal writing as a special feature on their calendar of events.

"It would be interesting to know how the science of journaling is connected to the body," says Nancy Linnon, who lectures on writing and health at Canyon Ranch Resort and Spa in Tucson, Arizona. "I haven’t found one person who said journaling didn’t help them."

Miraval: Life in Balance, Destination for Mind, Body & Spirit in Catalina, Arizona offers cooking demonstrations and nutrition counseling. They also provide courses on photography, journal writing and how to live a more serene life. Miraval was declared one of the top 40 spas in the United States by Conde Nast Traveler and #1 spa in the world by Travel & Leisure magazine.

Lake Austin Spa Resort and its Lake House Spa in Austin, Texas sponsors speakers who present journal writing techniques as does Rancho La Puerta in Tecate, Mexico.

[journal writing][spas][Arizona][Texas][Mexico] ◦

Southwest Spas That Offer Journal Writing Sessions

Journal Writing at a Spa

You can write in your journal anywhere just as you can live anywhere. But both are better at a spa. My husband and I spent the most fabulous weekend at the Sundara Spa in Wisconsin Dells for our 20th wedding anniversary. It was all very feng shui and more posh in a minimalist, native American way than any place I've ever stayed. It cost a few dollars, but for the special occasion that we were celebrating, it was well worth it. My husband was a little apprehensive about spending more than a few hours at a "spa," but ended up loving it and now keeps telling our friends about it. And I so inspired my sister-in-law that she is planning to spend her honeymoon there next month.

In between the stone cherry body wraps, aromatherapy massages, catching up with each other, enjoying the spa's delicious berry smoothies and natural food entrees that were arranged like artwork, the two of us were also able to volley some ideas for a creative piece I was working on. In such a relaxing atmosphere I couldn't help but direct some solid attention to having fun with a writing project -- actually a commissioned short play for children. And my fellow poet husband, whose opinion and feedback are more than valuable to me, was right next to me and very available.

If you're part of a long-time couple, you know that some weekends (and weeknights) can find the two of you often running in different directions (just to get things done) which often makes sitting down and talking "creativity" a precious commodity. A spa visit can be an opportunity to stop your crazy world and open it up (at least for awhile) to do exactly what you want to do.

Another inspiring spa is The Heartland Spa in Gilman, Illinois. It's actually a farm-like arrangement set in the middle of a cornfield, but has all the wondrous accoutrements, menus and services of a spa as well as endless yoga, aerobics and weight-training classes in spacious, well-appointed studios.

Every Saturday night, spa guests gather in the old world-style library around the fireplace hearth in leather chairs for the weekend's Heartland Institute. I have had the good fortune to present an hour-long journal writing seminar there last year and am returning in June to make an encore presentation. I'm not sure who has more fun, the guests at The Heartland Spa or being a presenter who's also treated like a welcome guest there. Midwest hospitality and friendliness at its best.

[journal writing]
[spas]
Blogarama ◦

Journal Writing at a Spa

Poor Poet's Guide to Being a Performance Poet

Technorati Profile

The Uptown Poetry Slam started in Chicago at the Green Mill Jazz Club, circa 1986, and soon became an international phenomenon. So anyone from this town who has anything to do with poetry does, or has done, performance poetry on stage. We need to set an example around here!

Otherwise, you might as well be some suburbanite sitting in a basement by yourself with a stack of envelopes and postage stamps, nursing a plastic tumbler of boxed wine.

Performing poetry doesn't mean just giving a poetry reading. It means breaking the fourth wall and leaping into the crowd with your poetry, if only figuratively.

How do you "perform" poetry or get into the "perfpo" scene? I started in church. Praying helps. But I also volunteered as a commentator and got lots of practice in front of my audience, i.e. the congregation, by presenting field-tested material, i.e. biblical passages.

Simultaneously, I also volunteered to read at least one of my own poems at every open mic reading I attended, which at one time, were legion.

I also took voice and breathing lessons at St. Nicholas Theater Company, in between serving as a volunteer there as well, though you may find this unnecessary.

Memorize at least one of your poems. A performance has to mean you lose the page. Once you get past dwelling on the words, you can move on to your oral and dramatic interpretation. The poem is then released from the mind to the body. The words go on automatic pilot and the actor or actress takes over to transform and deliver the words to the audience emotionally.

I eventually memorized 10 or more of my own poems and actually created a charm bracelet of these poems. My bracelet comprised silver charms I bought on ebay, each one symbolizing an important feature in a given poem, whether it be a sardine can, mermaid, owl, etc., which I attached to a slim bracelet, also purchased on ebay. I wore the bracelet to performances to remind myself on stage which poems I might care to perform, without the need to riffle through pages of a book or peek at an odd index card in case I went completely blank.

But the biggest breakthrough I experienced as a performance poet was to study different accents (there are tapes at the local library) and apply them to a couple of my poems. I read one poem set in Ireland with a Dublin accent. Hearing Frank McCourt read the entirety of "Angela's Ashes" on audio also helped me master some of the subtleties. For another poem, set in the south, I ply a Carolina accent. When I perform these poems, in particular, I really get outside of myself and feel as if I enter the world of the poem, in the purest and most complete sense. From the reactions I've received, I think the audience does, too. ◦

Poor Poet's Guide to Being a Performance Poet

Poor Poet's Healthy Beans, Rice, Salsa Diet

Most of the world, in contrast to the U.S., consumes a very simple diet that usually includes some form of carbohydrate such as rice or noodles and some form of bean, be it pintos or lentils. Even the bible recommends simple foods in contrast to the lush feasts of the wealthy.

Fast food, processed flours and sugars, and artifically colored or flavored foods, since their arrival in our culture, has resulted in elevated cholesterol, heart disease and cancers, and pun intended, widespread obesity.

As a poor poet, one of the best investments you can make is in a 25-pound sack of organic short-grain rice and another equal size sack of organic, dried pinto beans. Add some chunky, fresh salsa and you can make complete meals for weeks.

Easy cooking tips:
RICE -- Match two-and-a-quarter cups water with one cup of brown rice, bring to a boil, immediately reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 45 minutes.
BEANS -- Soak beans overnight in water to cover. When ready to cook, drain water to get rid of a lot of the gas and replace with fresh water in cooking pot, just enough to cover beans. Add chopped garlic and onions if you wish as well as a little salt. Bring to boil then immediately reduce heat to low, cover and cook for an hour. Keep checking to see if beans are soft enough. When they are, remove cover, mash beans, raise heat a little and continue to cook and mash until water is absorbed and beans look like "refried beans." No oil was used in the process -- mucho low-cal!
SALSA -- Chop tomatoes, onions, jalapenos, avocados, cilantro, maybe a little garlic and add lime juice, salt and whatever seasonings you prefer. A healthy pico de gallo with kick!

Like a poor poet's wealth in words, here's food that's good, healthy and cheap! ◦

Poor Poet's Healthy Beans, Rice, Salsa Diet

Be a Poet, Not a Hoarse

While this is a journal writing blog, it is poetry, poetry writing and reading poetry aloud that are my original, closest and dearest disciplines.

Have you ever tried reading at an open mic or a featured 20-minute reading with a whopping case of laryngitis?

Jitters can occasionally tighten my vocal cords, too, and make it harder to deliver without sounding hoarse or more faint. There are a few natural measures you can take to alleviate hoarseness before a reading. One of the best throat coaters and soothers is room-temperature pineapple juice. Drink it throughout the afternoon and bring a couple of cans to your reading.

Another tried-and-true voice reliever is slippery elm. There are several teas available. The smell (and taste) remind me of country straw, but it is an acquired taste that grows more pleasant the more often you drink the stuff. Unfortunately, the slippery elm lozenges available are fairly awful tasting, but work well.

Of course, drinking pure room temperature water keeps your throat hydrated. You might think a glass of wine, or maybe two, might lubricate your throat while also loosening your delivery. But, actually, liquor just might dry you out even more and you might end up slurring the words of your poems. Believe me, I know from experience. ◦

Be a Poet, Not a Hoarse

Journal Images Become Poems

One purpose your journal might serve is as depository for collections of different metaphorical images that can eventually be used in your poems. As an "investigative poet" I often write on themes that need some research. When planning a poem on garlic, for example, I combed books, magazine articles and the web for information on the background and uses of garlic, both in cooking as as one of the oldest medicines in folklore. If I found a certain informational or historical tidbit interesting, I "turned it on its head" and made a metaphorical image out of it. For example, I compared the off-white waxy nature of garlic cloves to eagle's talons.

My plan was to look at garlic every which way and create a lyrical ode in honor of one of my favorite seasonings. Before starting my venture, I was deeply inspired by Pablo Neruda's odes, and "Ode to Tomatoes" in particular, which I feature in my workshops on lyrical poetry writing.

After overwriting and gathering more images than I would ever use in one poem, I let the images speak to me and come to my assistance as I wrote my text. In the course of writing, I used only about one third of the journal images but rewrote them as I went along so they would flow naturally into the piece. And these images gave rise to new images on the fly. Sometimes only one image might stand out from your journal laundry list, but it might act as rudder for the complete poetic direction of your piece. ◦

Journal Images Become Poems

Writer's Block? Say Yes to Herbs.

Some of the greats who couldn't write without artificial stimulation, who chummed up to the bottle but ended up at the bottom of the barrel or, worse, at the bottom of the sea, are memorable: Edgar Allen Poe, William Faulkner, Jack Kerouac, Hart Crane. Others smoked opium for inspiration, or mainlined heroin to their detriment.

One way to enhance the creative experience without destroying yourself is through the use of herbs. Ancient Chinese Taoists, Ayurvedic Hindus and American Indians have taken cues from nature, experimented with various local herbs and plants, with efforts that have uncovered cures, immune builders and tonics for their peoples.

During a typical American workday, we devote eight hours of attention to an employer, then push home to attack meal planning, work out personal relationships, and address scores of household details, often leaving a spare hour or two to devote to higher pursuits such as writing. But often those precious minutes or hours are fizzled away by fatigue.

Writer's block can be more than just a mental crossroads. It can include the lack of mental and physical stamina to address the empty page. Some tried and true "tonics" to help keep you alert and energetic without side effects include Korean or Siberian ginseng, cayenne pepper, yellow dock root, licorice root and garlic. Bee pollen, a superfood rather than an herb, provides energy, amino acids, and most known vitamins and minerals, which alfalfa does nicely in these respects as well.

Of those of the above short list, the one that makes the most dramatic difference to me personally is white Korean ginseng. Ginseng doesn't "energize" you in a caffeine kind of way, but instead is an adaptogen that helps you "adapt" to stress and a busy day wihile still maintaining the energy you started out with. Everyone, however, responds to herbs differently.

Think of herbs as food, which they actually are, and realize that their effects are usually attained over a period of time, at least three to 10 days. However, I will only take ginseng for 21 days at a time during a particularly stressful and intense time, and then let it alone for six months or more.

Jeff Kronick, herbalist, said, "One dose of the right herbal formula can add as much as 300 times the nutritional energy of a perfectly balanced meal designed for a similar effect."

Herbs that are regarded to have an influence on mental capabilities include most seaweeds (dulse, kelp, spirulina), blessed thistle and gotu kola, an herb from India. In a book called "Helping Yourself with Natural Remedies," author Terry Williard describes gotu kola as "probably the best herb for memory." Fo-ti, a Chinese herb used for mental depression and memory processes, is also considered by the Chinese as a wonder herb to lengthen life. And the herb damiana, a nerve tonic and antidepressive, is also a traditional aphrodisiac.

Some people like St. John's Wort for depression, stress or mental upset. My husband, an inner-city high school teacher and fellow writer, and I both prefer the amino acid L-Tyrosine (not to be confused with L-Tryptophane).

But the best detour around writer's block is attitude. And according to some writing experts, a sense of play over duty is the way to go. Have you ever known a child who might approach a pint-size easel only to say "I can't fingerpaint today, I'm blocked." Neither have I. Using your own innate sense of curiosity and the spirit of fun and adventure as your secret creativity weapons. ◦

Writer's Block? Say Yes to Herbs.

Poor Poet's Stock Picker

"Without guidance, people fall, but with many counselors, there is deliverance." Proverbs 11:14.

My husband told me that he was surprised I wasn't a Republican, because I worked so hard for every penny I earned, between my day job, writing workshops, tutoring, and various and sundry other side creative professions I might take on.

And, in a way, I thought it might not hurt to think like a Republican after all, i.e. start investing in the stock market. But it was still important to act as a good Democrat would, i.e. invest in socially and environmentally responsible companies.

First of all, I thought of Mr. Money Bags of Monopoly fame. He invested in real estate, railroads, electric companies and waterworks. So I invested in railroads (hauls more and uses less fuel doing it than airlines and trucking companies), the electric industry (not using coal power, but solar power) and waterworks (water utilities that do good things like filter and distribute potable water). Real estate? I bought my own home instead of rented. But stock-wise I chose a cement company that received an environmental consciousness award and a builder that received a governmental contract to help rebuild New Orleans.

Along the way I listened to audiobooks about Warren Buffett's philosophies, watched Jim Cramer's Mad Money tv program, created dummy portfolios which I tracked on Yahoo Finance and Zacks.com, and read e-mails and articles from The Motley Fool.

Some of Warren Buffett's guidelines include:
-- Choose a company that is the leader in its field, or better yet, has a corner on the market (i.e. Apple Computer's iPods) Jim Cramer would concur.
-- Don't invest in companies that sell on price or discounts. Avoid airlines and auto manufacturers. Today's headlines will also reveal this.
-- Choose a company with a hefty Return on Equity. Something like 17 percent or better sounds good.
-- Choose a company that doesn't have a lot of debt and has a sizeable cash flow (I can't say any of the railroads are here, though).
-- Here's the easiest one. Use your eyes. Look at the company's chart over the last year, three years, five years. If it's on a steady upward slope, you're onto something (check out Hansen Naturals or Franklin Electric) on Yahoo Finance.

And my tip of the day: listen to the advice of many counselors, including yourself once you get the hang of it. It beats picking a stock based on the advice of just your Uncle Harry. ◦

Poor Poet's Stock Picker

Poor Poet's Budget

There are times when your watch stops and your world stops, too, because the need to buy a new battery could throw off your whole budget. This cruel world can nickel and dime you to near death. While you may have staved off the need to pinch actual pennies, there are times, however, when you might be lucky to rub two quarters together. Not to fear. It is time to transform your finances, however meagre, into a financial future crafted by your own poetry-writing hands.

No truer words were spoken when someone said you need to have money to make money. Nothing plus nothing leaves nothing. So start with a little something. If you can manage to scrounge $1,000 together (and it may not be easy), don't put it in a savings account or let it drift as a line item in your checkbook. Invest it in the stock market. Avoiding risk is for the wealthy. They need to protect the millions they spent so much time accumulating. The late poet, artist and friend Carlos Cortez once said, "No one fell out of a basement window." Meaning, if you don't have anything, you don't have anything to lose. But you do need a little something to win. More about this in a later blog about stock picking.

Meanwhile, as you build some investment-worthy cash flow, find ways to live richly without spending much money. Hover in art museums, libraries, parks, zoos, lakefronts, conservatories and churches in which others have spent millions to build and maintain. They are there for you to enjoy. Take walks, fish, swim, collect leaves, watch birds, enjoy your kids and pray for wisdom.

Keep your eye peeled for the special used car gem from the little old lady from Pasedena. I drive a 15-year-old European turbo beauty which I purchased three years ago from its original owner. She had put only around 50K miles on it and maintained it regularly. It was spotless when I bought it and it remains one of the best cars I've ever owned. But then again, I've never owned a new car.

After my husband and I lived for years paying landlords, we finally scraped together the 3 percent needed as a down payment on a house in a working class neighborhood. Family members on both sides were incredulous as to why we moved where we did. Not much later, we were both laid off from our respective jobs and the housing values in our new neighborhood began to dip downward. We, too, began to question why we had taken the plunge and stopped renting. But we didn't question for long. We both found new jobs and persevered. Fifteen years later, in addition to a few repairs and updates and a lot of love, our house is nearly paid for. A few doors down from us, a house just completed by an area builder is selling for six-and-a-half times what we paid for ours. This would have never happened had we still been renting. When it comes to real estate, buy whatever you can afford.

My husband is a poet as well. We are often seated at our own computer laptops, writing, of course. But a nice cheap date is to cook dinner at home, then cuddle side-by-side in front of one computer, surfing the web and sipping a glass of wine. We challenge each other by taking turns finding goofy websites, such as mullet.com. ◦

Poor Poet's Budget

Poor Poet's Luxe Wardrobe

Living the life of a poor poet allows neither the time, money nor ambition to stroke the draperies of the high fashion catwalks. While poem rewrites might be in abundance, it's dress once in the morning for work and it darn well better work well into the evening whether you end up at a poetry reading in a darkened basement corner or find yourself perched on the second floor of a brightly lit bookstore sipping an expresso at the picture window.

As a child, I toured the Universal Pictures lot in Los Angeles with my parents. Our group eventually moved from the sound stages to the worktables of Edith Head, the great film costume designer. We learned that Ms. Head, an Academy Award winner known for her elaborate period costume designs rich in colors and textures, would personally wear simple clothes in three colors -- black, white and camel. At the time, I thought, "What a killjoy. The woman's left nothing for herself after all her brainstorming for others."

Today, I've changed my mind about both her and her attitude. I think she was the wisest dresser and an example to us all. I look at old photographs of her and she never looks out of style, never looks dated. Her elegant simplicity is perennial.

That's because taste, fit and line are what count. Your body is the strong foundation. The black, white and camel pieces are the elegant plaster walls, hardwood floors and cushy leather sofa of any look that can be dressed up or down. Last of all, accessories are the pieces that make the look your own as do lamps, bookshelves and paintings in your home.

The key is to replace your main clothing pieces every few years or so to keep your look current. Are you wearing high waisted, pleated pants with tapered legs? You've waited too long. A lowrider, boot cut is back, but not like the hip-hugger bellbottoms of the late 60s. That's really waiting too long. Though skinny pants of another breed seems to be coming back in. Nothing actually comes back into style completely, although vintage can be fun if you know what you're doing.

Here's the short list: A few pairs of pants, in black, brown, camel and a pair of jeans is sufficient. Always wear a belt if your pants have belt-loops. A feminine skirt in black or brown. A crisp white blouse, a perfect black t-shirt, a camel sweater are staples. Want to really save money? Never buy prints, only solids. Prints get dated as fast as lightning and are harder to mix-and-match. Solids never go out of style, although colors do. The hot pink and teal of yesterday may look awkward today, but as Edith Head emphasized, black, white and camel are classics. Ditto your shoes, although I frown on white shoes. Trying to attract flying saucers?

Before you get bored with your staple wardrobe, hit the costume jewelry display and sock counter and get wild and au courant with whatever strikes your fancy. You have the neutral pallete of black, white (perhaps brown) and camel as a backdrop for your madness. You don't have to spend much money, but update your accessories annually to give your classic look the cutting edge. Sometimes scarves are in and I love when they are, because they can be tied to dramatically alter an daytime outfit or create a posh evening look. And oh yes, scarves can and should be in the latest prints.

Anyone can start with these simple, clean-lined, inexpensive pieces, but it takes a poet to use one's imagination. A poor poet knows how to wear the most basic L.L. Bean button-down oxford shirt and make it look sexy. ◦

Poor Poet's Luxe Wardrobe

Dream and Steam

We all have those special times of day or favorite locales that help inspire our writings. I am a highly visual person and get distracted by what I see. I am always craning my neck to look at different pieces of architecture, I live in a city full of architectural history. I even got so distracted that I crashed my car once, with my front end landing on someone's lawn in Oak Park.

When I'm conceptualizing, as well, it's good if I don't fender-bender my ideas or writings with distractions.

What I need more than a walk or ride down a city street to clear my head is a steam room.

Whether I visit the local Korean steam and hot tub, or visit the neighborhod gym, there a steambath invites me to lie its misty clean slate before my eyes, ready for my musings.

Today, for example, I was struggling to revise the "arc" of one of the main character's in a children's musical I'm working on. My collaborator phoned me the other night to point out that what my character actually got at the end of the play isn't necessarily what she had asked for when the curtain rose.

I wasn't sure when I would be in the mood to settle down and mull that one over. I hit the gym. And after every workout,I usually end up for a 15-minute visit to the steambath.

In a steambath, there isn't very much to do, or look at or even listen to besides the hiss of the vapors that turn on and off every few minutes. The steam's heat kept my blood moving which only seemed to fuel my thughts and open the path I was struggling to venture down. I wrote in white chalk on the white slate before me. It was invisible to either one of my brown eyes, but surely visible to my mind's eye. I made mental notes and not only came up with a series of events to revise the character's arc, but her changes brought a new motion and clarification to a couple of other characters' arcs.

That mysterious monastery shrouded in fog, that Chinese hut in the mountain clouds, that steambath where enlightment or an enlightened notion or two might swirl and and bring answers to your questions or insight to your dilemmas. The steambath. What better place to dream with your eyes open. ◦

Dream and Steam

Poor Poet's Luxe Lifestyle

Choosing the life of a poet and writer didn't generate tons of money, particularly in my early, studio apartment, years. What I didn't possess in cash resources I tried to make up for with a little creativity and a touch of style. If things were going to be simple, they might as well be simply elegant.

Strictly enforced eating rules: No matter what I drank, be it water, then-affordable cotes du rhone or gatorade, I drank from a wine glass. And no matter what I ate, I used chopsticks, be it healthy Chinese stir-fry, over-salted ramen noodles or a broiled steak. I also cooked with chopsticks since I had no cooking utensils, mixing spoons, serving forks or ladles.

As soon as I arrived home from work every day, I slipped into a Japanese kimono-style robe for the remainder of the evening, if I were staying home. If it were cold, the robe went over my sweater and skirt. I sewed my own "sofa" using a Butterick pattern, heavy canvas and bags of foam rubber purchased from the corner wholesaler.

My cheap little FM clock radio spewed soothing waves of classical music, my shelves were hefty with classics and poetry books from the library, and the walls held either inexpensive posters or original art created by friends willing to give me a sizable discount. I bathed by candlelight.

I needed no car. Work was accessible by elevated train, friends were within walking distance and family was a bus ride away. The beach was two blocks over. I attended and/or performed in poetry readings two or three times a week. I wrote sheaves of poems and consumed underground comic books as trash reading. Another trashy habit was smoking, but which has since been crushed out of my life, for good!

Thus was life in one room plus. Rents were smaller then, and my paycheck was even tinier. But those years were among the richest I can remember. ◦

Poor Poet's Luxe Lifestyle

Among the top five healthy ways

Technorati Profile

According to Julie Deardorff at the Chicago Tribune (Sunday, January 8, 2006), keeping a journal if number five among her "10 Ways to Improve Your Health in 2006." This excellent habit even beat out stopping smoking and practicing yoga.

Her comments on journaling includes, "Do the write thing. Save thousands of dollars in therapy by keeping a journal."She also cites medical doctor and proponent of alternative medicine, Deepak Chopra, who calls journaling, "one of the most important tools we have to transform our lives."

"Don't know where to start?" asks Deardorff. "Write what you eat every day (It could help you lose weight.) Write what you do. Write what you feel. Eventually, journaling will become a natural habit, a conversation with yourself." ◦

Among the top five healthy ways

Response to Letter Writing

One of my coworkers, Carlee, read my January 7 blog on "Birthday Letters to Your Children." Carlee wrote, "I really can relate to your most recent post on writing letters to your children. One of the things I most treasure is a letter my father wrote me when I went off to my freshman year at college. It was the only one he ever wrote me in which he told me how much he loved and missed me." Since that time, Carlee's father has passed away, but his letter still remains among her prized personal possessions.

In addition, Carlee said, "I like the blog a lot and will add it to the list of ones I check out regularly." ◦

Response to Letter Writing

Birthday Letters to Your Children

On today's new "Real Simple" television show on PBS, a woman spoke about the letters she received from her father at each one of her birthdays. He wrote her the first letter the day his wife delivered his daughter at the hospital. Arriving home alone, he sat down at his desk to write the type of letter that would become an annual tradition. Every year, his letters held more detail as he told his daughter what he believed in, what he valued, how he felt about what she did that year and how much he loved her.

She loved her dad and his letters. She thought things would stay the same forever, but after she reached her 14th birthday, her dad died. The woman couldn't look at the letters for years, it was too painful. But on her 21st birthday, she pulled out the box filled with them and read them one by one. She even tried writing a letter back to her father to tell him how she was doing and what his letters, all she had left of him along with her fond memories of times together, meant to her. However, she left his last letter unopened and plans to reread when her first child is born. Perhaps she will begin the tradition again with her new son or daughter.

We never know how long we may be around. Tell your children how much you love them in letters and they will always treasure them. ◦

Birthday Letters to Your Children

More Fill in the Blanks

Today picks up where yesterday left off with more fill-in-the-blanks journal entries for your personal year in review. See my January 1st post. Many thanks to Mary Schmich of The Chicago Tribine for her enlightening column...

I regret buying...
I will never regret buying...
even though with that money I could have bought...
I...way too much
I didn't...enough
...drove me crazy
Was...crazier than last year? Or was it me?
The most relaxing place I went to was...
I feel so...when I write it down.
Why did I go to...
The best thing I did for someone else was...
The best thing I did for me was...
The one thing I'd like to do again, but do it better, is... ◦

More Fill in the Blanks

Personal Year in Review

Mary Schmich at The Chicago Tribune ran a recent column (Wed. Dec. 28, 2005) about looking forward to the new year ahead by looking back and filling in the blanks concerning the last 12 months. This way, according to Schmich, "you'll realize some things about your 2005 [or any given year] you had only half registered before."

She said you'd be astonished by how much happened or changed. And how much didn't or hasn't. New year's resolutions from last year? You may laugh or sigh to notice how you life may remain its usual jumble of contradictions.

Writing might be organized. Who said life has to be?

Personal Year in Review (Fill in the blanks)
Last year, I gained...
I lost...
I stopped...
I started...
I was hugely satisfied by...
And frustrated by...
I am so embarassed that i...
Once again, I...
Once again, I did not...
The biggest physical difference between me last December and me this January is...
The biggest psychological difference...
I loved spending time...
Why did I spend even two minutes...
I should have spent more time...

And that's about the half of it. The rest of the list appears in tomorrow's blog.

Happy New Year y'all. Eat something healthy and different this week like steamed kale, which can then be sauted in a little grapeseed oil with chopped garlic and onions, and finally sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds and a little sea salt. ◦

Personal Year in Review

Thanksgiving Journal

When we think of Thanksgivings of the past, our memories can often blur into visual "bytes" of rising before sun-up, basting turkeys, cooking down cranberries into a sauce, hanging harvest decorations, watching a wave of people rush into and then out of the house, washing and drying dishes in a bright, steamy kitchen, and laughing with others, like yourself, festively dressed in fashionable high heels, but also in slightly worn-torn aprons.

But what does Thanksgiving really mean to those partaking in the meal with you? There's a special window of time during Thanksgiving when you can find out. You know that time in between the Thanksgiving meal itself and dessert, when you need to digest the first part of your meal before you can even think about cutting into the pumpkin pie? Instead of rushing off to watch the football game or get a jump on loading the dishwasher, grab your journal and instruct everyone at the table to "set a spell" to talk about the things that they are most thankful for this year. Write them down in your journal.

Or, ask everyone if they can recall their most memorable Thanksgiving (outside of this year's!) and why. You may find out some interesting anecdotes about your relatives that can help you appreciate them even more. You might even hear stories from the old-timers about those who have passed on whom you may have never met. The practical joke Great-Uncle Joe pulled 50 years ago could sound remarkably like something you, your son or your niece might pull today. More than looks often run in the family.

Sometimes Thanksgiving is the only time the whole family really gets together, and it's a day that often goes by far too swiftly. If you record some of what people say and do during Thanksgiving, you can savor the day longer and your relationships more deeply.

Forget videocams. They put people on the defensive and no one feels comfortable enough to say anything substantial in front of them. Plus, hardly anyone ever looks at them again once the camera is put away. On the other hand, people open up when you sit down at a relaxed table and chew the fat (and the Turkey bones), as you just happen to jot down a few notes in your journal all the while! ◦

Thanksgiving Journal

100 Memories Travel Journal

Hilary Liftin from Los Angeles described an interesting travel journaling tradition between her and her husband in the April 2005 issue of Real Simple magazine in an article called "Write It Down -- It's not a list. It's a lifeline." Whenever jetting back from a vacation together, Lifton and her husband pass a paper back and forth between themselves to log 100 memories from the holiday they just experienced.

In order to complete their list before touchdown back home, they have to dig up some obscure images, such as Entry number 12 from a Mojave Desert escapade: "By the pool at 29 Palms Inn, Chris briefly looked like a skinny Elvis." or Entry number 48 from another vacation in Bar Harbor, Maine: "We flew a kite until it fell in the water and a wave snapped it in two." Liftin finds that making these entries is "a way for us to preserve the random, funny, sweet little moments of our trips that would otherwise be forgotten."

Newlywed Liftin also said, "We love the tradition of our memory lists so much that if and when we have kids, we'll undoubtedly force them to participate. I can hear it now, 'Aw, Mom! Do we have to do the memory list?' In this age of digital cameras, it's nice to put more effort into remembering than the click of a button."

Note from me: However, these snippet memories can make the perfect companions scribbled next to photographs from the trip when a scrapbook or photo album is later assembled. ◦

100 Memories Travel Journal

Day of the Dead Postscript

Rituals are part of being human. And observing holidays and special occasions are rituals important to many of us. To follow your own personal, family or religious traditions can keep commercialism at bay. Taking note of what holidays mean to you in your journal or blog can be a special way of celebrating.

After you read my post "Day of the Dead Journal," this postscript serves as a journal writing follow-up. Which special people close to you have passed on this year? Or which people in the public eye, such as the pope, also went on to the next world? Every Nov. 2, reflect on these people in your journal. This way, you are actually building a Day of the Dead/Dia de los Muertos altar or ofrenda using words.

What did these people mean to you? Can you remember something they said you will never forget? Do you remember something they did that made you laugh? If a loved one could visit you for a few minutes, what would you say to them which you didn't get a chance to say while they were alive?

Look through photos of someone special who died and feel the memories the pictures evoke. Write these memories down in your journal. You may want to include those things you'd care to share with others on your blog, and leave the personal, or more intimate, feelings expressed in your private paper journal. ◦

Day of the Dead Postscript

Day of the Dead Journal

The trick-or-treaters have come and gone, and outside of seeing the little kids dress up and present their smiling faces and pumpkin buckets at my door, I have grown weary of the commercialization of Halloween. Instead of scary skeletons and ghosts, I push-pinned three Scandanavian cloths on our doors printed with images of a large gourd, a giant uncarved pumpkin and autumn leaves, respectively.

My husband and I also covered a small bookcase with a Guatamalan cloth and placed an eclectic collection of items on top to serve as a Day of the Dead altar. It is not an altar of worship, but of remembrance, prayer and meditation. According to Mexican tradition, children are honored on Nov. 1 and adults are honored on Nov. 2. The practice is reflected in the Catholic holidays of All Souls' Day and All Saints' Day.

We are honoring three special people who passed on this year. My husband's father, Ramiro, a special friend and fellow poet Carlos Cortez, and my beloved sister Darcy. A small sugar skull with blond frosting hair represents my sister. A pin with the face of Carlos Cortez sits atop a small box, and a photo of my husband's father bring his memory to mind.

We leave rock salt, a clove of garlic and a shotglass of water on the altar as symbols of food in the afterlife. We scatter petals from fall flowers across the altar which are so colorful in their reds, yellows and oranges that spirits who have passed away might see them through this small window of time. We light two votive candles each night to help us stop, remember and pray each time we pass by. ◦

Day of the Dead Journal

Writers Can't Help But Dance

I have to admit it. My life is surrounded by books and writing and plays and ever more words. Fortunately, I am married to someone who has the same caliber of bookish values as I do. Our usual night out might include dinner, followed by a poetry reading, an inexpensive, local play, a bookstore browsing session or a coffeehouse to read or write while sipping java. So it was a little unusual when we both signed up for a dance class together at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago. Or was it?

Before I was a writer, I was a dancer. I used to tear it up on the disco floor. Before that, I took ballet, tap and acrobatics for seven years. My husband, too, had studied Aztec ceremonial dancing and knows a lot of other tribal steps.

So last weekend, we revisited and explored our dancer selves once again, and set a new foot forward into the dance mode, tripping the light fantastic, starting with Mexican Folkloric dancing. We moved our feet quickly to follow the pattern of the teacher's staccato dance steps, which seemed to be landing in a combination of dance locales -- reminiscent of Irish stepdancing, tap and flamenco.

While I danced, I remembered how years ago, a poet friend Effie created a literary magazine called "Salome," entirely devoted to dance. I had contributed a number of dance poems and also helped her edit others' submissions. Effie took all sorts of dance classes as both afficianado and researcher, and reviewed the performances of any dance troupe that came through town. She invited me to a few of the modern dance classes, to participate, and to a vast number of performances, to perform as spectator. At one venue we frequented, MoMing Dance Theater, my then future husband worked in its artist-in-residence program. We met for real years later.

But back to the Mexican Zapateado class. We danced solo. We danced as a pair. We danced in a circle with all the others. We danced in a line dance. There was guitar, clapping, our feet stamping, a singer shreiking calls and songs, a loud din of energy and mindless release and memory. Afterward, we were exhausted but invigorated. The possibilities of where these out-of-mind and into-body experiences could take us seemed endless. But one look at the syllabus and we learned that in weeks to come our feet would venture to the middle of Amazon country in a traditional Indian dance, to Northeast Brazil, home of the farro, and finish off doing the samba like it's carnivale.

But come on, shouldn't you be sitting alone in your room writing in your journal? For the most part, that sounds pretty good to me. But there arrives a time to come hear the music play. Because writers can't help but dance. And dancers can't help but write. ◦

Writers Can't Help But Dance

Vacation Journal Keepsakes

Creating Keepsakes Magazine sent me an e-mail filled with free journaling tips. The tips cover journaling and scrapbooking ideas, and as far as I'm concerned, embrace the photographer's or artist's journal or blogsite, which intersect the visual with the written.

According to Creating Keepsakes: Gone are the days of journaling with nondescript accounts like: "It was fun." We now journal about our life experiences in the same voice we'd use to tell stories to a close friend over a cup of java. Thanks to an increase in e-mail, message boards and blog communications, we are now driven to write about everyday experiences—and that's what tells the story of our lives.

Although a great photograph can tell a story, the written word completes the tale. That's why journaling is so important! Not only is journaling a powerful part of the page's meaning, but a vital feature of its design as well. How it's written, presented, attached and included can help polish your page and take your words from meaningful to truly memorable.

Before leaving on vacation, create a short list for yourself of questions to answer at the end of each day, such as: "What was my favorite thing about today?" or "What was something new I tried today?" This way, when you scrapbook those vacation pages, you'll be able to remember exactly how you felt. ◦

Vacation Journal Keepsakes

Journal Writing Blogosphere

Technorati Profile

Journal Writing Tips with a Twist became a member of technorati.com and BlogPulse.com today. By doing so, I was able to "claim" the blog. I learned through a special webcast that the above were suggested blog directories worth a visit. After visiting, I determined that these sites are much more, as well as design-conscious and user friendly.

BlogPulse.com is a search engine that also analyzes and reports on daily activity in the blogosphere. It features links to the top blog posts, top blogs, and top news stories. I was able to submit my blog to this site.

technorati.com seems a little more radical, hip and casual, and features top searches of the hour, most popular books, most popular movies and the 100 top blogs. I "claimed" my blog through them, "pinging" a link to their search engine, and hope to find out in the coming weeks what that may mean in increased hits and more outreach to journal writers, teachers, librarians, and program directors.

I also visited a blog directory site called instapundit.com, which seemed clunky looking, heavy on politics, exuding an insider's clubby atmosphere, and didn't have a place to submit your blog.

[journal writing][blogosphere] ◦

Journal Writing Blogosphere

Theater in the Court

Julia Cameron, in her "The Artist's Way" recommends making a two-hour artist's date with yourself every once in a while. The purpose? To open your horizons to experiences and people who might inspire new writings. And these inspirations can lead to creative writing projects or serve as juicy fodder for your journal. Not ready to spend cash on a "date"? You don't have to. One special outing might be a visit to your local state or county court. Slip into a courtroom and listen to the proceedings of a criminal or civil case. A strange and exciting new world and all its characters may be laid before you to take note of in your journal.

And if you happen to be on jury duty and are going through the selection process before a judge and panel of lawyers, take journal notes on your fellow jurors as they answer the judge's questions. Those mild-mannered, newspaper-reading suburbanites you first glimpsed in the waiting room may reveal personal details about their lives that will make your head spin and journal pages ignite.

Librettist and playwright James Lapine makes weekly visits to his local family court in between projects and finds it "The best theater in town," according to an article in The Wall Street 1ournal. ◦

Theater in the Court

E-mail Journal

In a hurry? Who isn't? Create an e-mail journal. If you regularly communicate with friends and family through e-mail, those messages contain a hefty portion of information, thoughts and feelings that often go into a conventional journal.

Save all your e-mails as drafts before you send them along to loved ones through cyberspace. Once a week or once a month, print off your e-mails, three-hole punch them and place them in a binder. At the end of the year, you'll have a hardcopy journal of the places you visited, the people you've met, goals conquered, discoveries made and the heartbreaks and happiness that have accompanied you along the way.

Rather not deal with all the paper and storage? Cut-and-paste those e-mails into a Word file and keep them in a special sub-folder on your computer or portable disc drive. Again, you can group the pieces by week, by month, or just thread the whole thing together in one continuous document.

You can do the same thing with the e-mail responses you receive from others. Remember when people packed away stacks of letters in a cedar chest? This is a modern turn on a similar idea. ◦

E-mail Journal

Blog Update

A recent story in the Detroit Free Press reported that nearly 6 percent of U.S. adults have created blogs (short for Weblogs) and 16 percent of them read blogs. This 2005 data was gathered by the Pew Internet and American Life Project.

A blog is a personal journal published on the Internet where people can write about any subject, including their personal live and jobs.

"Journal Writing Tips with a Twist" mixes a few personal stories in between educational tips on journal writing. The emphasis, however, is strongly placed on tips over the personal.

Some bloggers seem compelled to even venture beyond revealing personal information, by offering inside secrets about or potential products being developed at their places of employment, unflattering portraits of their bosses, or blasts against coworkers.

In more than one instance, such frankness has cost the blogger his or her job. Caution may be the byword when walking a fine line between free speech and slander or peddling proprietary company information for free. ◦

Blog Update

True Person of No Rank

Zen philosophy describes a "true person of no rank." I put my faith in Christianity, but I hold much admiration for Zen points of view of the world and of creativity. Deep inside each of us is a "true person of no rank," and we can approach our journal writing as such. Those of high rank and with many credentials need to remember that, as blessed as they are, they put on pants (or pantyhose) one leg at a time like the rest of us. Such a person is, deep down, a "true person of no rank." On the other hand, a person who has little schooling and a humble track record may feel unqualified to write anything worthwhile. But who isn't more qualified to expound on life than a "true person," and especially a "true person of no rank." By ignoring our rank or pecking order and focusing on our true personhood, we can look more closely at the world, pay attention to its beautiful detail and bring our observant meditations to life on our journal pages. ◦

True Person of No Rank

Poetry Leaves a Legacy

Journal entries are not the only way to record memoirs. Leave a family legacy for your children and children's children through poetry. It's more creative, more engaging and leaves behind a work of art that exemplifies your family for generations to come. Lord willing.

Here's an example. In my book of Chicago poems, "Swimmer's Prayer," I wrote a poem about my stepfather John. He worked for city government and oversaw operations regarding the Chicago River and bridgetender units. He was the one who came up with the method of dying the Chicago River green for St. Patrick's Day in the early 1960s. Since then, Chicago bears an emerald river every St. Patrick's Day and several others cities have adopted the custom using the same water-soluble non-toxic dye stepdaddy John got his hands on way back when.

The story is certainly one that family members can pass along, but they can also refer to "The Leprechaun from Blue Island Avenue," which tells the story through poetry. Here's an excerpt:
"Who else could it have been
to send out the speedboats
like crazed blenders
into the Chicago River
dumping bags of orange crystals
that exploded into its other,
churning up a new wardrobe
for the clang, clang,
workingman's river,
until now, clad in railroad overalls,
the river that found itself
wearing one, long Leprechaun sleeve
in time for the parade."
(Missing Spoke Press, 1999)

By the way, although stepdaddy John was a leprechaun at heart, he stood six feet tall. ◦

Poetry Leaves a Legacy

Practice Naikan While Journaling

Naikan (pronounced nye-kahn) is a Japanese practice that blends meditation and gratitude. The word means "inner observation," made up of nai (inner or inside) and kan (observation). Naikan creates awareness by helping you remember the significant people in your life.

In the book, "Wabi Sabi Simple," author Richard Powell suggests taking your journal to a quiet room and sitting comfortably with no distractions, preferably in a corner behind a screen. Write down the names of one to five people who mean a lot to you, whether relatives, friends, teachers or coworkers. Then ask yourself three questions concerning each person:
1. What have I received from _________?
2. What have I given this person?
3. What troubles, difficulties or worries have I caused this person?

Write down concrete examples, such as "My mother always made lunch for me for school and told me she loved me as I left the house in the morning." General statements such as "My mother was nice to me" doesn't work. Try to put yourself in the other person's shoes and try to feel what he or she has felt.

Through your meditations and writing, what you find important about your relationship to this person will become more clear. When the time is right, express to each person on your list your gratitude for the specific things that they have given you.
[naikan][wabi-sabi] ◦

Practice Naikan While Journaling

Travel Journal Shortcuts

One of the best times to start a journal is during a special trip or vacation. And when teamed with photos and drawings, the same journal entries will take on added power to fortify an artist's journal or scrapbook.

How do you start a travel journal, especially if you have never journaled before? Take a shortcut. This means writing short, brief phrases that describe the people, places and things you encounter on your journey, instead of trying to tackle long sentences and hefty paragraphs. And because you're on-the-go, you may not have time for anything more than short, pithy descriptions. Think postcard writing, but even more brief!

Here are a few examples, cited in "Creative Utopia," a book on maximizing your creativity by graphic designer Theo Stephan Williams. In her chapter on "Keeping a Journal," she includes a few of her own personal photos from a trip to Provence in France.

Describing her hotel Les Antiquities:
-- beautiful English flower garden
-- cherubs over bed
-- funny mustachioed check-in man
-- butt-shaped minitub

Describing Dominique, a photographer she met:
-- quick smile, slight space between front teeth
-- has supreme eye for lighting
-- Skecher shoes
-- worried about his health
-- fun, excited about his work

Refer later to your brief comments to write in greater length after you get back to your hotel room. Or you might try your hand at creating a poem or haiku based on one or more of your phrases. Or even take your snippets as is and use the words as borders for your photos in a scrapbook, writing with a colored or calligraphy pen along all four sides. Everytime you look at the photos and read the words, memories from your trip will come flooding back. ◦

Travel Journal Shortcuts

Active Versus Passive Voice

When you read your journal, you want to hear yourself speaking and not some narrator without a face or point of view. You want to feel part of the action instead of being some passive bystander. How can you make your journal more personal? Use the active voice!

In the passive voice, you're not really sure who commits the action. You only know the receiver of the action. An example:
“The car was hurled against the building.”
Something dramatic happened to the car and a building, but we have no idea how or why. Boring sentence.
Active voice:
“The tornado hurled the car against the building.”
Tells how car and building met. We can visualize what happened. Tornado caused the action.

Passive voice often uses forms of the verb “to be," is, am, are, was, were, be, being, become, becoming, also appear, seems, seems like, looks like.

Instead, use stronger and more active verbs.

Another example-
“Regina was saddened by the news.”
Instead “The news saddened Regina.”

Or “Tony was injured by the falling rock.”
Instead, “The falling rock injured Tony.” ◦

Active Versus Passive Voice

Japanese Pillow Books

In male-dominated medieval Japan, the ladies of the court kept journal-style books under their bed pillows, used as an outlet to express themselves. These pillow books contained court gossip, as well as the ladies' innermost secrets, hopes and dreams.

In lieu of crying into their pillows, they slipped their identities under them. Writing what they really felt was at least one effective way these women could keep a handle on who they were in this "be-seen-and-not-be-heard" society.[pillow books] ◦

Japanese Pillow Books

Words Paint a Picture

Another way to approach journal writing is through the use of "captured moments." We all have envelopes, boxes or albums filled with photos tucked into the bottom of drawers or the back of shelves in our homes. But even closer to home, far within the recesses of our minds, lies a repository of visual snapshots that greatly outnumber even the holdings of Getty Images.

Whether the images are memories, seeing the present with your mind's eye, or imagining the future, you can capture these visual captured moments on paper. One thousand words can indeed paint a picture. But your picture, just in the telling of it, will charge the atmosphere with far greater emotion and meaning than most static pictures ever can.

Dialogues, which were covered in previous posts, are good psychological tools for working on relationships and other personal issues. On the other hand, captured moments are excellent devices to use in preserving memories.[captured moments] ◦

Words Paint a Picture

Let Wabi-Sabi Happen in Your Journal

Wabi-sabi, the quintessential Japanese aesthetic, can be applied to journaling and is, in fact, an integral part of true journaling, whether we realize it or not. Wabi-sabi is the beauty of things imperfect, impermanent and incomplete. It is a beauty of things modest, humble and unconventional.

Published writing is usually rewritten, edited and polished writing, set in symmetrical fonts and printed in uniform order and quality.

Journaling, most often, is composed of our raw thoughts or emotions, scribbled down in an unsteady hand on a commuter train or a dimly-lit kitchen. Perhaps the pages are occasionally smudged with ink or stained by drops of coffee. Entries may be heartfelt and passionate, but can simultaneously be random, incomplete, unconventional and bold, without need to please an audience.

In the long run, the journaling process may add up to a complete picture or an epiphany of revelation, but tracing any single journal's pages, one-by -one, can render a modest journey, the humbleness of following a foggy path with no promise of reaching a clearing.

Most distilled, the Wabi-Sabi of journaling embraces a sense of faith -- in yourself, in life, and in the promise of a future.[wabi-sabi] ◦

Let Wabi-Sabi Happen in Your Journal

Remembering Carlos Cortez

Poet, artist, Wobbly and journal writer extraordinare Carlos Cortez quietly passed away yesterday evening in his Chicago home. He used to own a large leatherbound journal/artist's notebook filled with journal jottings, haikus and pen-and-ink drawings that he lugged through Greece, Germany and his criss-cross excursions by train across America. He died at age 81, but Carlos' elder years were some of his best, with a prolific outpouring of linocuts, classes, tours of Pilsen murals and two retrospectives at the Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum, fueled by his unlimited capacity for generosity and humor, even while ailing.[Carlos Cortez][Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum] ◦

Remembering Carlos Cortez

Scrapbooking Haibun

Scrapbooking is highly visual type of journaling. And somewhere between the visual scrapbook and the literal journal lies the artist's journal -- which goes back to Leonardo da Vinci.

Haibun is a Japanese form of journaling popular with poets from Basho to Jack Kerouac. Each journal entry is followed by a 5-7-5 haiku poem, which summarizes or crystalizes the moment.

Haibun can also be applied to scrapbooks. I created a scrapbook for my son's high school senior prom. Besides photos from before, during and after the prom, I included ticket stubs, names of friends who rode in the 20-person limo they all pitched in to rent, and a matchbook from the hotel where the prom was held.

My son had the usual adolescent stops and starts while planning for the prom. He looked dashing when he tried on his tuxedo rental, but the sleeves hovered two inches above his wrists. Within a day the tailor lengthened them and all seemed well, when my son received a call that his date had taken ill and couldn't go to the prom. He nearly resigned himself to attending "stag," when our pretty next door neighbor girl agreed -- the night before prom -- to be my son's date. She was a sophomore from another high school, but her mother was pleased to let her go if I would pick up the couple right after the prom. The girl had school the next day! She already owned a gorgeous blue semi-formal dress which just so happened to match the blue-ribboned corsage my son had ordered for the one at home with a fever. If his former date could only see how lovely the neighbor girl looked next to my son, her temperature would really boil!

Photos in place, I wrote this haiku in the corner of the last page of the prom scrapbook:
Girl next door said yes,
She wore blue in the limo,
You both danced all night.

[haibun][5-7-5 haiku][senior prom] ◦

Scrapbooking Haibun

Dialogue with Societies

As the holidays approach, we're surrounded by a whirl of activity, but more important and if we're lucky, we find ourselves warmly surrounded by friends and family. But perhaps, the holidays might instead open old wounds and unhealed hurts we've experienced with other people, making it awkward to be together. Perhaps the holidays are a time we renew our faith or, on the other hand, wonder how others can be so fervent. What better time to take a look at "that part of myself that is there before I am." Ira Progoff, author of the precedent-setting "Intensive Journal Workshop" made that statement in regard to his Dialogue with Societies concept.

Dialogue with Societies is one of Ira Progoff's six main variations of dialogue a person can experience with a journal. Using Dialogue with Societies means choosing your race, tribe, religion, ethnic group, socio-economic class, neighborhood or extended family as dialogue partner and musing, discussing, arguing or debating how these larger-than-self influences affect you and what role you play in their midst.

As with all dialogues, you take turns on paper. You write -- and the society writes back. What role do you play in a society and how does a particular society embrace or not embrace you. Do you fit in? Do you want to fit in? What type of dreams do you have that involve numbers of people? Can you be part of a society without being part of a crowd? How has a society changed over the years? Is it for the better or for the worse? Can you feel deep faith and be part of a religion without attending a church? Or can you be an active member of a church and feel cut off from your religion? Are the roots of your society in another part of the world, in another decade, or even in another century? These are all questions that can be applied to your journaling exploration of societies. [Intensive Journal Workshop][Ira Progoff] ◦

Dialogue with Societies

Dialogue with Persons

This is the third in a series of posts about using dialogue as a journaling device. Ira Progoff, the father of modern journaling, cited six main types of dialogues in his groundbreaking volume, "Intensive Journal Workshop," published in 1966. Dialogue with Persons is one of these six main types.

By a dialogue, I mean choosing a dialogue partner and writing back and forth between yourself and your "partner." In a Dialogue with Persons, your dialogue could be with a person of the past, present or future, a person living, passed on or not yet born. And you don't need to know the person to have a dialogue. This is not channeling or any other hocus-pocus, but a way for you to cut through preconceived notions to what you may discover is the deeper truth about a person, persons and especially about yourself. Think of it as a letter that can't be delivered, but somehow it is, and somehow you get a letter in return.

For example, you might choose to dialogue with a person you really admire, who may possibly serve as a role model for you, and perhaps you have never had the opportunity to meet. You may initially feel that you can never measure up to the talent or accomplishment of this person. But through your dialogue, you may discover that your partner tells you how hard he or she had to work, how long of a wait and how high of a climb it took to leave an impression. Perhaps it really did. Perhaps it really didn't. But this dialogue may at best give you insight into what you feel you must do yourself to progress to the next level of your life and your personhood! [Intensive Journal Workshop][Ira Progoff] ◦

Dialogue with Persons

Dialogue with Creative Work

I have a day job, but I don't necessarily want to dialogue with it. I may argue with it a good portion of the eight hours I punch in, but I have other avocations that make more appealing partners. One is musical theater writing. I'm currently working on a children's musical and besides dialoging with my actual composer/collaborator friend, which is the most satisfying, my journal serves as an ideal stage to work out the answers to what drives the piece in the first place.

Some of the questions I pose consist of "What does the main character want?" and "What is the musical about?" When I ask what it's about, I don't mean the plot. The plot is what happens, scene by scene. Instead, I mean what deeper meaning is the piece trying to bring out? If it's about belonging, does the character discover that he or she can belong or that it may be impossible to really belong. If it's about connection, what might a character do to continually reinforce disconnection before finding a path to connecting with other people.

If working on a play or musical, you might have a journaled dialogue with your character asking directly what he or she wants, believes, avoids or regrets. You may not only find out your answer, but also find ways to smooth any bumpy parts of the script your characters trip on or redirect their steps when they wander away from where they and your piece are ultimately headed. [Intensive Journal Workshop][Ira Progoff] ◦

Dialogue with Creative Work

Dialogue with the Body

Your body's wisdom can speak to you through metaphor. Writing dialogues in your journal can help faciliate the life lessons your body may be trying to teach you. Dialogue with the body is one of the six main types of journaling dialogues described in Ira Progoff's seminal book on modern journal writing, "Intensive Journal Workshop," first published in 1966.

First, choose a dialogue partner, whether it be a body part or organ, illness, injury or surgery, allergy, your sexuality; a body subpersonality such as thin self, fat self, addiction or habit; foods or nutrition; or pain, which always seems to be an important messenger.

Dialogue in writing, back and forth, with your dialogue partner. You will be writing both roles, of course! Your dialogue can be in the form of a thoughtful and direct "letter" or "instant messaging" back-and-forth dialogue if you thrive on fast-paced banter. If you feel like you're making it up, you're right. You are making it up, but it is a part of you. Don't be afraid of the unexpected or ideas that seem to come out of nowhere.

Having a dialogue with the body can be a form of healing visualization. Whether your dialogue partner is anything from an allergy to dust, a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer or the ache of a twisted ankle to an addiction to chocolate, the fear of hair loss or compulsion to wear too much makeup, your two-way dialogues can help you sort out the real from the imagined, the old you from the newer you, and help you decide what can be changed and how to go about it, or what may be inevitable and how best to face it. [Intensive Journal Workshop][Ira Progoff] ◦

Dialogue with the Body

Haibun Beatnik Style

Jack Kerouac was one of the Beat poets of the West Coast (although he was originally from Massachusetts) in the 1950s. Inspired by the Japanese haiku poets and haibun writers, such as Buson, he tried his own hand at haibun, which is a journal entry followed by a haiku poem. The following excerpt is from Kerouac's book "Desolation Angels."

"the wind, the wind--
And there's my poor endeavoring human desk at which I sit so often during the day, facing south, the papers and pencils and the coffee cup with sprigs of alpine fir and a weird orchid of the heights wiltable in one day -- my Beechnut gum, my tobacco pouch, dusts, pitiful pulp magazines I have to read, view south to all those snowy majesties -- The waiting is long.

On Starvation Ridge
Little sticks
Are trying to grow."

[haibun][beatnik][Jack Kerouac][haiku][Desolation Angels] ◦

Haibun Beatnik Style