2023 -2018
ARTICLES AND INTERVIEWS
Just sent to the publisher and already have one review before it is even published. Watch for it in the coming months, it can take as long as two to three months to show up in Amazon or Barnes and Noble
Reviews of GET RICH Stock Whizonomics
(NOTE: This book may have a different title so watch here if it changes)
“I have enjoyed [it] As for the contents I really don’t have anything that I would say to change. You have done a really good job of discussing all sides of investing and the use of true life examples and especially researching and staying out of the emotional side of investing. The other thing was investing in what you know and see, Peter Lynch built an unbelievable return on investing in companies that he watched personally and would for example drive by and see Wal-Mart parking lot always full so thus he invested in Wal-Mart.”
Jeffery A. Miller, Senior Vice President, Heartland Investment Associates
MIND GAMES is now available in the USA via Amazon (has 4 1/2 STAR and 5 STAR reviews) as well as two other books I've written.:
Order your copy now, please don't forget to be kind and give a review.
OR
Barnes & Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/david%20alan%20binder
New Amazon Author page https://www.amazon.com/stores/David-Alan-Binder/author/B0CQJ48D76?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true
Barnes & Noble also has about the author bio as well for each book down by the product details on each individual book, three in all!
April 2, 2024
ANOTHER FANTASTIC REVIEW OF MIND GAMES:
Book review
MIND GAMES The Dual Facets of Manipulation and Dark Psychology
by David A. Binder
Laurie Hollman, PhD
lauriehollmanphd.com
Author: Unlocking Parental Intelligence: Finding Meaning in Your Child’s Behavior; Playing with Baby: Research-Based Play to Bond with Your Baby from Birth to One Year; and Are You Living with a Narcissist? How Narcissistic Men Impact Your Happiness, How to Identify Them, and How to Avoid Raising One.
In this comprehensive text, David Binder writes a collection of essays on topics pertaining to what he terms “Dark Psychology” offering an historical and ethical context for the psychological strategies individuals use to perpetrate harmful control over others. As he details the various strategies he not only focuses on manipulative patterns but attempts to offer guidance for those who fall under the influence of these individuals.
In addition, he takes a generational approach making recommendations for future generations of young people to not only identify manipulative behaviors but learn how to understand and respond to them. Included are his insights about how empathy can be cultivated in our digital age not only for individuals but groups and organizations. He considers various aspects of what he
defines as ethical leadership, responsible journalism, and how those in governmental spheres can develop public trust.
David Binder concludes with his focus on the relationship between empathy and interconnectedness as universal compassionate antidotes to the manipulative personalities of others. He offers both the reality of how individuals are impacted as well as the hope for educating those involved in coming to terms with personal experiences.
As a psychoanalyst who has worked extensively with narcissistic personalities who impact others in social, familial, and work situations, I recommend this broad reaching book. Readers will benefit from Binder’s overarching approach to recognizing the impact of leaders as well as every-day individuals with complex motivations that drive them to combat their own deep seated feelings of inferiority by deceptively manipulating others. This is a complicated psychological phenomena that impacts individuals, the media, government, and politics on both personal and large scale levels in society today.
Both the manipulator and the manipulated are in need of mental health supports, education, and professional guidance to understand their emotional dynamics and the potential outcomes of both their daily and long-term struggles in this fascinating area of psychology.
Please note that Dr. Laurie Hollman, Ph.D. is a psychoanalyst with specialized clinical training in infant-parent, child, adolescent and adult psychotherapy, a unique practice that covers the life span. She is an expert on mental disorders such as…the Narcissistic Personality Disorder
February 23, 2024
MIND GAMES The Dual Facets of Manipulation and Dark Psychology in the last two months has sold over 100 copies.
Plus
The Manager's Manager book sales has increased again by 100% by one month.
February 12, 2024
The Manager's Manager book sales has increased by 100% by one month, then by approximately 250% from in the following 7 months, and finally by an additional ~ 136% in the subsequent 7 months. HUGE INCREASE IN SALES!
January 17, 2024
Collaboration
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
The first few weeks of the year have been extremely busy with a few collaborations with T. B. England on his new novel "The Deadly Mission". It has been fun and insightful to see how another author works and for them to take NOT 1, NOT 2 but EIGHT different scenarios and incorporate ALL of them into his novel, In addition, to me Ghost Writing his first chapter as a lead in to the whole novel.
Love the Collaboration. If any of you need any help feel free to get in touch.
December 30, 2023
Bucket Lists
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
I’ve never been a huge fan of bucket lists, although, I do have preferences and a sort of list of things that I’d like to do or travel in my life.
I do have another list that I maintain and that is things or places I do not care to go or do.
I have no desire to travel to the Middle East or to Asia currently. Just not my cup of tea.
The wife and I were discussing stories and news articles on Times Square on New Year’s Eve and some of the night mare things one has to endure to be part of that celebration. When I was way, way younger it may have looked fun but it has no appeal to either of us; especially when my sister’s family moved to New York the first year they had to go to Times Square for New Year’s Eve. After her description, then I made up my mind, no, not for me.
What about you? We all should have lists of preferences, places to go, things to do, even accomplishments to strive for. What are some of yours?
Be sure and be exclusive to the point of maintaining a list, at least in your head, of things you DON’T want to do as well.
It is how we set boundaries and goals for ourselves.
What’s your story?
Please invest in this website, this author, these articles:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
December 15, 2023
A Private Interview with David Alan Binder
In a private interview, David Alan Binder was questioned about his inclination to explore various book genres rather than sticking to one. His response was straightforward: "Why would I? I love multiple flavors and genres. When I write, it's not just for entertainment; it's for the imagination, growth, educational learning, commitment, and joy."
Given your evident commitment to lifelong learning, as reflected in your extensive reading list, achievements, numerous completed classes, educational background, and overall accomplishments, does that accurately capture your perspective? Binder affirmed, "In a nutshell, you have captured what I care about, what I am committed to, and what defines me. I applaud your summation."
When asked about his writing to-do-list, Binder shared, "Because of my early exposure to abuse in nearly every form and the chronic abuse in various forms, helping those who've suffered is extremely important to me." He subscribes to the belief that everyone experiences some form of abuse during their lifetime, emphasizing that it does not define who they are. He notes, "Life happens, and what determines our character, soul, and spirit is how we deal with those situations. They do NOT define us; they merely are there, and it is up to us to find the wherewithal within us to overcome it and not use it as an excuse."
The conversation delved into significant topics, and when asked about other plans, Binder expressed, "Yes, definitely. Live life to the fullest. Continue to write and help others. Gather family, friends, and loved ones that uphold and uplift. Surrounding yourself with those who appreciate you for who and what you are is extremely valuable and adds so much satisfaction, joy, and happiness to our lives."
December 9, 2023
Trust
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
I may have written about trust before and I may do so again since it is an important topic.
At one time I trusted my parents to do the right thing, and came to find out they were acting in their self interest mostly.
Most of us do, so it is no big deal if they do that.
Parents encourage us to be good, or their definition of good. I was encouraged not to lie since lying hid intent and led to subterfuge on my part and made it harder for my parents to figure out the truth.
If I just tell the truth then their job becomes immensely easier.
If I behave then their job becomes immensely easier, for when I behave and am being good in their eyes, they do not have to keep an eye on me all the time and can let me be on my own since they now trust me.
Is their trust I am seeking for me or for them?
Something to think about when you are involved in relationships and feelings and emotions you are choosing to serve their interests and may cast yours aside.
Think about it is all I am saying.
What’s your story?
Please invest in this website, this author, these articles:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
December 5, 2023
Force
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Typically no one can force you to do something. They can exert pressure especially your parents, your boss, your friends, your neighbors, well just about anyone and everyone exerts pressure at some time or another.
No one forces me to write, it is free will. My will ensures I write, feeds my need to write. It is part of me, it is my brain, my mouth, my words spilling out over and over. It is not a force it is a compulsion. I can't not write, can you?
For writers this means so much, for other artists it falls right there with passion, with gain, with accomplishment, with just the expression of your soul that has a fantastic feedback loop.
Join me from time to time as I write more articles that feed your need.
What’s your story?
Please invest in this website, this author, these articles:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
December 3, 2023
Introducing Beau L'Amour, the son of Louis L'Amour.
"To provide context for my unconventional career in the writing industry, I've held diverse roles such as writer, editor, ghostwriter, screenwriter, TV producer, marketer, art director, and overseer of Louis L'Amour Western Magazine. A significant portion of my career has been devoted to managing the estate of my late father, Louis L'Amour. My experience spans various facets of the entertainment field, offering a broad understanding, though I don't claim accredited expertise in any specific area. My academic background includes a degree in Film from the California Institute of the Arts, and my journey began with part-time work in both Film and Publishing in the mid-1980s. If you're curious to learn more about my endeavors, feel free to explore at..."
More of Beau L'Amour's interview here: https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/beau-lamour-interview-with-david-alan-binder
November 30, 2023
Subscribe
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
This website has NO subscriptions, you do not have to subscribe to read these articles.
These articles are free.
The SUBSCRIBE article I am writing refers to those things, items, beliefs to which you subscribe.
Those subscriptions cost eventually.
Say you subscribe to a certain tenant, belief, action then you feel bound to it.
You are ensuring that you follow that tenant, belief, action.
If you do NOT subscribe to smoking then you will not do it; plus you will avoid instances of inhaling second hand smoke as well. It is just an example.
I could have used many others if I would have chose them.
When you subscribe to a certain belief then you are grooming yourself to follow, adhere, espouse, support, choose, accept, maintain, assume, select, approve and do those things required for that belief.
Be careful what you subscribe to for it will dictate and direct you to do all things to support that belief.
Many of us subscribe to beliefs that may be 80 to 90 percent fulfilling, have true intent, and yet that 10 to 20 percent may be untenable.
Our beliefs stretch to be inclusive all all the good especially our beliefs believe in plus some of the bad things our beliefs fail to mention.
You lose certain freedoms when you subscribe.
You may normally do this thing every morning yet if your belief says not to then you stop doing it.
Is it sane? Is it logical? Does it make sense?
Many beliefs overall feel like good beliefs and yet there are portions that do not make sense, go against plain reason, defy logic, and seem a bit insane to others.
Ensure your beliefs are ones that completely uplift you. Completely fulfill you. If there are portions that you need to release and the belief demands that you do not release that portion then maybe it is time to unsubscribe.
Think about it.
What’s your story?
Please invest in this website, this author, these articles:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
November 13, 2023
An interesting note is that I sent a publicity release in the form of an OPEN LETTER TO THE STUDENTS of Lanphier High School, Kirkland Community College, Mount Mercy University, and San Diego State University plus several area newspapers.
This is that letter:
David Alan Binder's educational journey began at Lanphier High School in 1969. Subsequently, he pursued higher education, earning an Associates degree from Kirkland Community College, a Bachelor of Science degree from Mount Mercy University and later obtaining a Master's degree from San Diego State University.
Binder's literary pursuits have resulted in several noteworthy works. His initial book, "The Manager's Manager: Strategies and Tactics for Effective Leadership," serves as an indispensable resource for managers transitioning to lead other managers. This book is available through traditional publishing and can be found at Barnes & Noble. His second publication, "ALL ABOUT ALGAE: Exploring Algology or Phycology: A Comprehensive Guide to Algae and their Significance," is in the final stages of production and will soon be accessible to readers. Furthermore, his publisher is currently preparing for the release of his third book, titled "MIND GAMES: The Dual Facets of Manipulation and Dark Psychology." Additionally, Binder has completed his fourth book, "GET RICH Stock Whizonomics," which is now awaiting publication.
Binder is a staunch advocate of lifelong learning. Despite being a modest high school student, he recognized the importance of education during his college years, earning a place on the Dean's List at Mount Mercy University and ultimately graduating with honors from San Diego State University.
About David Alan Binder:
David Alan Binder is a highly regarded and internationally recognized author who has garnered numerous awards throughout his illustrious career. With decades of experience in a wide array of energy sectors such as fossil fuels, nuclear energy, geothermal power, electricity generation, irrigation, software development, hardware innovation, and telecommunications, Binder brings a vast reservoir of practical expertise and valuable insights to his audience. His prior literary accomplishments have received widespread critical acclaim and have proven instrumental in assisting countless individuals in honing their skills and attaining success within their respective professional domains.
NO ONE ANSWERED OR ACKNOWLEDGED THAT EMAIL OF THEIR FORMER STUDENT or local resident. I thought that was interesting.
It is hard to make waves when that big rock you threw and was expecting a huge splash, instead there is nothing.
Another success is that my short story The Truth About Ruth was published at the end of September Seagulls Post Magazine Canada
October 1, 2023
Finding Humanity
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
We recently heard about the Sycamore Gap Tree recently being felled by a 16 year old boy. It is one of the most famous trees in England if not the world that had stood for nearly 200 years next to the Roman landmark Hadrian’s Wall. It was prominently featured in Russell Crowe’s Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves movie. Such a sad, sad, very sad state of affairs in the world today when iconic emblems are desecrated.
Have we lost our humanity? Are we so dependent on being noticed that we will do infamous things to attempt to be famous?
Do we need to do the most shocking, provocative things in order to garner attention?
The desperate state of humanity seems to be how can I turn whatever I am doing into a media event. How can I create confusion, controversy, more clicks and streams?
When we lose humanity, when we lose the love of the sacred in nature, in ourselves, in each other then we are truly lost.
Find your humanity, pass it along, be the quiet, stoic, future thinking, supporting each other.
When we find humanity we find ourselves.
What’s your story?
Please invest in this site, this author, this creative person.
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
September 27, 2023
Disagreement may not be disagreeable
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
“An environment that is not safe to disagree is not an environment focused on growth – it’s an environment focused on control.” Wendi Jade
This does not mean be argumentative. It means that opinions, politics and religion, and other initiatives that quelch and are not allowed is controlling. It is abusive, it is using power over you and your will.
WE CAN NOT LET THIS BE PART OF OUR LIVES! EVER!
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
September 11, 2023
Daniel C. Lorti interview with David Alan Binder
His website: https://daniellorti.com/
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/danielclorti/
Where are you currently living?
Southern California
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
Perseverance
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
Inspiration for a book that can come from anywhere
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
W&B Publishers, Kernersville, NC and Open Road Integrated Media, New York
5. Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Don’t stop writing. Most agents don’t prefer one-book wonders and it improves your writing ability. Consider the genre’s marketability.
6. How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
I kept writing and sending query letters after each completion. I had just finished my third novel when I received a positive response that led to an agent.
7. Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers?
Get an idea, write a sentence on it, enlarge it to a premise, then an outline you can evaluate for viability
8. How many books have you written?
I’m on my ninth book.
10. Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer?
Read constantly other’s novels in your preferred genre. Hire a writing consultant or book editor when you complete your first manuscript. The effort will polish your work and give you an education.
11. Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
Put your protagonist through hell from an overwhelming antagonist.
12. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
I have written four novels of historical fiction that transpire in the Medieval Ages, notably the 14th century; and an action-adventure twosome that reflect my background in arms dealing.
13. What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
Audio books.
14. What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
At the beginning I struggled for a book cover design concept until I realize it was simple – key off the title of the book.
15. What saying or mantra do you live by?
If you have inspiration to be a writer, get into the habit of writing – anything but something - every day; and constantly read.
16. Anything else you would like to say?
Go to workshops, conferences, and subscribe to The Writer’s Digest.
September 9, 2023
Luck
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
We determine whether we just survive or if we take it to the next level and thrive.
There is no luck involved.
Quote from Wind River the movie:
“I got lucky.
-Ah. well, luck don't live out here. Luck lives in the city. Don't live out here. It lives where you get hit by a bus or not. Where your bank is robbed or not. At someone's damn cell phone when he come up to a crosswalk. That's luck, that's winning or losing. Out here you survive or you surrender. That's determined by your strength and bare spirit. Wolves don't kill the unlucky deer. They kill the weak ones. You fought for your life Jane. And now you get to walk away with it. You'll get to go home.”
We decide. No one else does it for us. They can talk at us and us at them.
No amount of therapy does that it is within you to make that determination.
For determination is decided by our heart, our soul, our spirit, our mind.
We do that, the therapist does not. Therapy may help, talking with other may help, writing may help.
There is no room for weakness.
The power of us is within us.
Once we figure that out then everything is is easier.
Not a cakewalk, not a picnic, a bit easier.
This is a gift from us to us.
Let’s give to each other and ourselves.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
September 7, 2023
Full Circle
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
A boy crouches on the floor, playing with the little men. Fighting the wars, making gun sounds, punching sounds as they engage in fist fights in the close quarters fighting.
The anger the boy feels is relived time after time on this war ground for years and years.
Growing up the sticks became weapons, knives, pistols, swords, rifles. Run around the neighborhood using our pretend weapons we fight, dying, protesting about misses, impossible shots, and doing it again and again. Spring, summer, fall and winter doing it until the sun went down or our fingers and ears were so cold we thought they would fall off.
The war? The anger?
I am not like others. I am different. A single parent, a mother, no father. She is always away working. I’m with a sitter of one sort or another. I see my father every other weekend.
The war and anger continues through elementary every day. Continues into junior high, then into high school even. If I am not playing with those little men then I am envisioning them in my head.
Wrestling, fighting, hurting, killing, aiming to maim or wound or worse.
I acquire a whip from the Illinois State fair after seeing grown ups in our trailer court using one.
It is a physical outlet for my anger. Slashing, whipping at grass, sticks, branches, leaves, the concrete, the gravel, even my brother at times when I think I can get away with it.
My rage continues as I suffer at the hands of a father who is stern and hands on. A mother who can be stern and verbally abusive while at others allow me to roam the neighborhood doing whatever so she can rest after work getting me out of her hair.
My anger carries over into my marriage with rages and resentment at what I suffered continually in my mind.
Not necessarily all real, but present within me.
Even my children suffer my wrath at time. I love them. There is no excuse. There are no words strong enough to take that away.
My works suffers as those who treat me with what I see as disrespect continue the victimization that I felt as a child.
I feel pathetic.
I’ve seen therapists and even psychiatrists to deal with those childhood tramas and pain.
Finally I am an author.
My little men, characters on paper still rage and fight. My mind living it. It feels real as I type it out. Hurting within making them do those terrible things I know I can not do for real.
Writing is therapy for me. It allows me to take that wrath I can no longer wield and vent it out of me.
Ridding me of that agony I felt, that I still feel.
Find your outlet.
Find your way of coping.
Find your way of dealing with your crap in your head.
Find a way to let it go.
It does not serve me nor you.
Sometimes your imagination is the only thing keeping you sane.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
To bring us all up to date, my book ALL ABOUT ALGAE Exploring Algology or Phycology which is
A Comprehensive Guide to Algae and their Significance and a Compendium from BS 101 to
PHD 900 is currently being formatted for publishing and will be out in a month or so.
Plus at the request of my publisher I am currently writing two more books that will be published before the end of the year.
1st will be titled MIND GAMES The Dual Facets of Manipulation and Dark Psychology
2nd will be titled GET RICH Stock Whizonomics
Granted these are working titles, however, I do not foresee any changes but then the whims of nature and my mind changed the name of the ALL ABOUT ALGAE book title when the publisher wanted me to make some worthwhile changes.
You never know when marketing skills will kick in.
August 29, 2023
Da Fine Line of Define
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
At first I thought about all my book titles so far that I’ve written and was worried that I was defying genre.
Many authors write romances, westerns, etc. so that they are nicely grouped.
However: I was wondering if I was not capitalizing on that genre type of thing until I thought.
Hey, my books are educational. They are all educational.
They all give us something to learn and add to our lives and our minds.
Now I have a genre.
[Make sure you read to the end of the article and see the “Point of the article” please]
I write Educational Books, that is my genre. My sub-genre is Self-Help
First is published and the second is imminent and the third and fourth before the end of the year; the titles are:
The Manager's Manager: Strategies and Tactics for Effective Leadership
ALL ABOUT ALGAE - Exploring Phycology or Algology: A Comprehensive Guide to Algae and their Significance
MIND GAMES - The Dual Facets of Manipulation and Dark Psychology
GET RICH Stock Whizonomics
The point of this article is that you define you, let no one else do that for you.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my newest book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
August 25, 2023
The Proof is in the…
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Here we go with a little known fact: Where did the phrase “the proof is in the pudding” originate?
The earliest printed example of the phrase dates back to the the year 1605 by William Camden in his anthology of historical essays titled 'Remaines of a Greater Worke, Concerning Britaine' where he wrote, “All the proof of a pudding is in the eating.”
HOWEVER
Another source says: This proverb has been traced back to around 1300 but was popularized by Miguel de Cervantes in Don Quixote (1605).
You decide.
Excitement, August 14 the proof PDF followed by the Final Cover on August 23 today the FINAL of them both was sent to the printer from my publisher, Pharos Books.
The title is ALL ABOUT ALGAE Exploring Algology or Phycology A Comprehensive Guide to Algae and their Significance A compendium from BS 101 to PHD 900
Yeah, that’s a long title so for ease of use just call it ALL ABOUT ALGAE.
So excited about this, and last week sent then another book I wrote which is titled:
MIND GAMES The Dual Facets of Manipulation and Dark Psychology
Yes, and we’ll just call this one MIND GAMES.
This is why my articles have been a little less frequent since I’ve been focusing so much time on writing.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
August 24, 2023
Found this link for The Manager’s Manager https://www.flipkart.com/search?q=david+alan+binder&marketplace=FLIPKART&pageUID=1692792917943 for India
August 23, 2023 Another honor of acknowledgements SPECIAL THANKS [from Sir Charlie Brown goes to]
Kelly Brown helps me to send my stories to Mahip
Kevin Brown who got my f b [Facebook] up and running again
Apple computer spell check saved me time from hunting down words.
David [Alan] Binder Who encouraged my biography.
Mahip Bhatia who publishes my books. [Mahip Bhatia also helps David Alan Binder with his books as well.]
August 22, 2023 It is my honor to be requested as a Ghost writer for T. B. (Timothy Brian) England of Franklin, TN. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100013219424869 for Chapter One for his book titled "The Deadly Mission" which will be published by Dusty Saddles Publishing https://dspublishingnetwork.com/
August 21, 2023
Sir Charlie Brown interview with David Alan Binder
Sir Charlie Brown is an author and an illustrator. A lot of his illustrations are on Facebook.
Full disclosure, I “met” Sir Charlie Brown at the suggestion of my Publisher Pharos Books Mahip Bhatia. Also, I “met” my publisher through an interview with interview with Koos Verkaik author illustrator. Mahip is on the look out for talent. Looks like he found it in those two fine examples.
His Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/friends/?profile_id=100078632996880¬if_id=1692378687184045¬if_t=friend_confirmed&ref=notif
Many of his books can be found here: https://pharosbooks.in/
#1 Where are you currently living?
I live in Illinois the stat just above Indiana and just below Wisconsin.
#2 What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
My writing experience began in our small apartment overlooking a scrap sand lot where they took dogs to do there their thing and the kids boys and girls would play baseball there. I used to get a big five tablet and began illustrating stories using a character called super Thin. A somewhat super hero. I called him that because at the age of 5 or 6 I didn’t know how to draw anything but. Line people.When I finished a story, I was happy to show other it. It soon became apparent that I needed words so I wouldn’t have to explain all the time. Growing up is learning…
#3 What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
My favorite is illustrating. One day my dad was home and he drew something on the note book paper. Asking him what it was he replied it was “A duck.” No matter how long I looked at it…It didn’t look any thing like a duck. To my self I thought I could do better. But bless his heart. He was an engineer for a building at the covet club in Chicago. Not an artist.
Also, an another thing that pulled me into the world of art is the fact I wasn’t allowed to go out into the streets and play with other kids. My mother was very overprotective of me. So I had to invent my own worlds; my own creations at the kitchen table.
By the way, Walt Disney taught me a lot about art. How to create a whole story in just one frame of paper.
#4 Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
As I grew older, I drew better and colored better and made stories using my illustrations with a story line.
I began to put them on face book and got a lot of likes. One day I got an email from someone I never met. His name was Mahip Bhatia. He asked me if I wouldn’t mind publishing my material? At first I thought it was a joke. So, I asked him where is he from. He said India. Now I knew it wasn’t a joke it was a scam. So I asked him. “Are you a scammer?” To which he got angry. “No, I’m not!” So I thought of another question to ask. Scammers usually ask for money so, I asked him. “Well, how much do you need?” He got more aggravated, “Why would I need money? I haven’t done nothing for you.” That’s when I knew he wasn’t a scammer. He has now done 11 books for me.
#5 Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Trust in the Lord. But before you do, make sure you are doing it to benefit society and not yourself.
#6 How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
(see #4)
#7 Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
If you are doing a documentary; be sure your as honest as you can be, after you do research. Fiction, don’t use too many cuss words. There offensive and kills the human speech.
#8 How many books have you written?
11
#9 Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer?
You may think that no one wants to hear about your life. WRONG! Just start small and the time you dropped your toy into the commode.
Or write an about you trip through your town. Keep on writing about little things then eventually it will become grown. Everyone has a history every one has a past. But in 100 years from now no one will know you were around. Your finger prints will be wiped away by time.
#10 Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
The best things to do in stories is to foreshadow and always leave the reader with a happy ending a good feeling.
#11 What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
I can not answer this question because everyone is different and see things in a different light.
#12 What saying or mantra do you live by?
The words I live by is be honest, have imagination, and always
August 17, 2023
What color is your imagination?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Marcus Aurelius is a great leader and human being in some ways and is credited with saying the following:
“A Man's life is dyed the color of his imagination.”
And also
“The things you think about determine the quality of your mind. Your soul takes on the color of your thoughts.”
“Color is your life, your blood, your dreams, your thoughts, your imagination, your love.” David Alan Binder
We often as we read imagine in color and real images, so much so that a woman who’d read a book as a child loved the images so much that after misplacing the book she was able to find the exact same one from her childhood.
Imagine her surprise when she opened it and found page after page of words, no images.
What? She thought, no images but I distinctly remember images she thought. Well, her mind supplied the images as she read it was so vivid and so real to her.
Our minds can take over and supply what the writer does not when the writer has the skill to produce those images in our minds.
That is the kind of writer I aspire to be since that is the style of reader that I am. I produce images and am prolific in that plus enjoy that aspect as well as working on the problems to solve within the book.
So enjoyable. So memorable. So fantastic.
Imagine and it exists.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
August 13, 2023
Support An Author
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
There are a LOT of ways to support authors without ever spending a dime. I certainly didn’t invent the items on this list, I’ve just read it countless times all over the internet and it’s definitely worth repeating! I stole this list from: https://katekading.com/support-authors-without-spending-a-dime/
Okay, call it retweeting or whatever.
Request the book by title and author at your local library. If the author has more than one title, point this out to library staff. It doesn’t matter where you live in the world…request your favorite authors from everywhere!
Are they already at your library? Check out their book. Tell your friends to check out their book. Get on the waiting list to check out their book. Keep that baby moving!
Request the book to be stocked at your local book store. Yes you can do this without purchasing it!
Review, review, review. Amazon, Goodreads, Facebook, etc. Write a few words, they really do help! Add the book to your Goodreads “to read” list.
All the Socials. Follow the author, like, share, and comment! Engagement on social media is a very valuable contribution when you are looking for a no price, high value way to support. But don’t just hit that thumbs up on Facebook…use the different emotions, give a heart, and type out a comment of more than 3 words. The algorithms are all different and mysterious but steady engagement is key.
Book club it up a notch! Especially when radio stations, websites, and Facebook pages ask for recommendations on what their next read should be. Suggest it to your local book club and word will get around.
Speaking of word getting around…just simply tell your friends about it. You know who reads in your friends circle, who likes women’s literature, true crime, fantasy. Authentic interest starts here.
Do you attend a conference? Request your favorite author as a speaker.
Do you have a website/newsletter/blog of your own? Include a link to the author’s socials.
Let me add a few of my own as well.
Heck, would it hurt you to buy the book? If you don’t want it then donate it to a library or appropriate outlet so it gets around.
My book costs about $12, about two coffees worth or whatever beverage you are drinking, consume then it is gone forever, but a book lasts.
Here are some more stolen ones:
Add their book to your Goodreads “currently reading” list.
Write an Amazon review.
Recommend their book to your Goodreads friends.
Watch them on Facebook Live.
Comment on their blog posts.
Buy a paperback book.
Write a Goodreads review.
Books are produced thousands everyday, the fact that you know, are related, or friends or family of the author is pretty special in its’ own right. How many can say that?
Please, please support authors that you know whether you actually need the book or not.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
August 3, 2023
Crossroads
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Oversimplification is embedded in our DNA, our historical roots and cultural roots.
When one thinks in terms such as black and white (denoting two sides of a color spectrum or issue spectrum) then one is ignoring all the other possibilities.
When ignoring other possibilities then one is closing themselves off to potential good to great possibilities.
There are only two sides of a coin, but with each coin toss there is a remote possibility of it landing on the edge.
Ignoring that possibility just because it is unlikely means that the coin could hit the edge and roll down a grate and be lost.
Losing a coin is costly. So it losing half to a third of possibilities by ruling them out.
They are gone forever.
Our imaginations and minds have such great capability and for us to ignore half to a third means so much is lost.
The mistakes of history are loaded with items and issues that have been lost to us.
To be or not to be.
Wait! Do we even hear what is not said there? Where are the possibilities that go beyond being or not being?
Where would that be and how would it look or feel like?
Is there something amiss in that statement or does it cover it all?
We love to simplify since it makes it easier to see an issue if there are only two sides.
Maybe, just maybe a few of us can hold within us both possibilities and yet also hold within us the thousands to millions more that may be possible.
Our limits define and and limit us. Remove your boundaries and think beyond ordinary.
Entertain all possibilities.
Think about other options.
Mull over what else there may be that impacts, pushes and shoves itself around trying to be heard.
Left or right is great but what about the middle, behind, and all the other directions. East and west do not add up to north and south.
Drop me a line or comment to my email and let’s add to all the dimensions that may be currently ignored in history, politics, religion, culture, media and other venues.
There is so much more than what we are holding in our hands and hearts.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
July 29, 2023
Overlapping Symptoms
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
We all have symptoms of something currently.
We may or may not now what that is about.
Plus when one gets sick one can look at their symptoms and try to guess at their malady.
This can be hit and miss with mixed results plus many symptoms are common to many diseases.
Covid, colds, flu all have some of the same pool of symptoms.
Overlapping symptoms can lead to erroneous conclusions and diagnoses.
Who cares?
We all should care and we all should be careful of diagnosing anything from psychiatric, to medical, to other issues.
Putting a person into a certain diagnose leads that diagnoser to assess and believe their own assessment and therefore treat the person either in behavior incorrectly.
For instance, autism shares many symptoms when Googling the following “What disorders share symptoms with autism?
A website called https://www.spectrumnews.org/news/conditions-accompany-autism-explained/#:~:text=The%20conditions%20that%20overlap%20with,as%20attention%20deficit%20hyperactivity%20disorder%20 states:
“The conditions that overlap with autism generally fall into one of four groups: classic medical problems, such as epilepsy, gastrointestinal issues or sleep disorders; developmental diagnoses, such as intellectual disability or language delay; mental-health conditions, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder”
If you guess wrong you are not in the same ball park but maybe not even in the same country.
Being careful with your diagnosis of a situation can be equally full of mines and if you step on one then metaphorically you can get you mind blown away when you are wrong.
I know, been there and done that.
What is your take on this?
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
July 25, 2023
Sampling Google AI Labs a new feature then an article about Overall Disconnect
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Thus begins the experiment.
Hope you enjoy and take all with a grain of salt or skepticism.
David Alan Binder is writing this article with the use of Google Labs AI by providing me with a prompt and then I [all I’s or me from now on refer to Google AI] am generating text based on that prompt. I am able to do this because I have been trained on a massive dataset of text and code. This allows me to generate text that is both factual and creative.
As for what your audience may expect to experience with the Google Labs AI feature, they can expect to see a variety of different things. For example, they may see me generate text that is similar to human-written text, or they may see me generate text that is more creative or experimental. They may also see me generate text that is tailored to their specific interests.
Overall, the Google Labs AI feature is a powerful tool that can be used to generate a variety of different types of text. I am excited to see how it is used in the future.
Overall disconnect is a feeling of being separated from others, from the world around you, or from yourself. It can be caused by a variety of factors, including trauma, mental health conditions, and social isolation.
Now I have asked Google AI to explain “overall disconnect”.
Overall disconnect can have a significant impact on a person's life. It can make it difficult to form relationships, maintain employment, and participate in activities that once brought joy. It can also lead to feelings of loneliness, hopelessness, and despair.
If you are experiencing overall disconnect, it is important to seek help from a mental health professional. There are many effective treatments available, and you do not have to go through this alone.
As for how it may affect my craft, I believe that overall disconnect could make it difficult for me to connect with my audience and to generate creative content. I may find it difficult to understand the needs and desires of my audience, and I may have trouble coming up with ideas that are both original and relevant. Additionally, I may find it difficult to stay motivated and focused on my work, as I may feel disconnected from the world around me.
However, I believe that it is important to remember that everyone experiences overall disconnect from time to time. It is a normal human experience, and it does not mean that I am a failure or that I am not capable of creating great work. If I do find myself struggling with overall disconnect, I will reach out for help and support from my friends, family, and colleagues. I will also make sure to take care of myself physically and mentally, so that I can be in the best possible position to create my best work.
This experiment shows the capability of Google AI. I do not plan on writing any articles or books with Google AI, occasionally I will use an AI to explain things to me, help me research various subjects or define things that I need more understanding with.
Then I bring that explanation or research or understanding in my own words into my writing. Most usually I just Google or search for that explanation or research or understanding; however, like AI; search has its limitations.
Everything has limitations and there are reasons to use or not use and as with most things, take a modicum of care. Sometimes AI explanations are full of myth and not reality and sometimes downright lies.
Do not get into a discussion with AI since it is not human and cannot bring the full range of emotion and understanding to any subject.
It is a machine and a tool. Use it sparingly and subjectively and always, ALWAYS verify anything before you print or publish.
Plus it is NOT copyrightable. It is a machine and there is no creativity that beat a human’s creativity.
If you treat it like a friend or assistant then you may be disappointed. Real friends and assistants are invaluable and cannot be replaced.
Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
July 21, 2023
Karass
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What is a Karass?
Simply put it is; an aspect of Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle is the fake religion, Bokononism, followed by the people of San Lorenzo island. That religion or spiritualism believes
Individuals will come and go in your life, yet you will consistently uphold a bond with a particular collective, separate from your circle of friends or colleagues. Together, without conscious awareness, you will cooperate as part of a grand scheme.
A Karass is “a team that do God’s Will without ever discovering what they are doing” (team meaning whomever you designate or befriend) (God’s Will means whatever higher power you believe or don’t ascribe to-it may be Allah or whomever or even yourself, nature or even within that lack of belief or consciousness)
We are sparks.
We flit through the night and day like fireflies igniting and reigniting and sometimes those sparks form fantastic results within us and outside of us.
We germinate with others.
We collaborate, we communicate and each interaction may culminate in a grand discovery, or just a wonderful feeling.
Have you ever experienced something like this?
Someone who you met for the first time and a feeling was kindled that permeated you and them that you were destined to meet and interact. This may be love or just that you get along so famously.
This spark may illuminate feelings within you or them, it may ignite greater discoveries, or meanings or attitudes.
It is inexplicable and yet it resonates so strongly that it exists.
Think of a time when this has happened to you.
Think of how you will react the next time it happens and look forward to it.
Let it soak in either the time that it happened before or the time it will happen again.
Bath in it and relish it.
Guaranteed it can and will happen.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
July 17, 2023
Input Output
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
You’ve heard a phrase that is similar to crap in then crap out.
Your art is only as good as your input. Maybe even just a one fourth to one third as good.
So your input into your craft has to be at least 200 to 400 percent higher to be able to output at a decent rate.
How do you do this?
Here are some for instances and certainly it does not cover every creative craft but you may infer how this my work for your specific craft.
If you are an illustrator then classes and mucho practice are required.
NOTE: By classes I mean there are all kinds of classes to the use of the specific medium, type of art you want to produce, the masters, online, internet, university, OJT-On The Job training, etc. There are all kinds of classes and even some self teaching may apply but the more the better your craft.
If you are a video or audio technician then familiarity with the specific equipment you are using is a first step, then classes-same as above, then more practice are required.
If you are a writer then study writing, learn from the masters, take all kinds of classes in the form of online, internet, seat in the chair type classes at universities, etc.
Now we can go into whittling, sculpting, painting, stuccoing, roofing, mechanic, plumbing, electrical, financial planner, etc.; but most crafts are built on the basics of learning the methods and kinds, what is applicable and what is not, attending classes of some type, seminars-accredited and non-accredited, even OJT (on the job) is applicable for every craft. Then the rote practice, practice and practice until you have honed that craft sharply.
So if you have little or no input what comes out is not going to be very good.
I’ve been in critique classes of people who write for a specific type of individual; juveniles, children, adults, fiction, non-fiction, etc. and it is unreal how some people do not know the basics of the story:
“The Six Basic Elements Of Storytelling
There are six basic elements to any story ever told, whether true or fictional. Some stories contain some of the elements, others, all of them. Quoted from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/six-basic-elements-storytelling-edith-crnkovich they are:
1. Character: A person or persons that take part in the action of a story.
2. Setting: Time and place in which it happens. It's important to provide a strong sense of setting.
3. Theme: The central idea or belief.
4. Plot: A series of events and character actions that relate to the central conflict.
5. Conflict: A struggle between people or things like society or something inside them. It's important to provide the necessary context and emotion for the audience to make the connection and process the story.
6. Resolution: How did the character(s) change or transform through challenge?
WHAT ARE WAS THAT PERSON THINKING?
Oh, I have a story in my head and I’ll put words on a paper and viola, here is a fantastic story.
Well yes, you might think so, but colleagues, editors, publishers, critiquers may shake their heads. No. No. No.
On the other hand if you decide to enter a craft at any age then learn the basics before you pick up your tools and craft.
Otherwise you are just doing to for only you, which is okay. The public wants GREAT, FANTASTIC material that is intriguing, mesmerizing, creates visuals, surprises and delights.
Tailor the craft for a wider audience and they will seek you out.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
July 13, 2023
Moral Agency
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Understanding moral agency within us means we are learning about how and why we work and what are the forces driving us.
Simply put, since my parents were divorced and it was huge torment for me and how I grew up I therefore determined that I would NEVER divorce.
That is a gigantic statement for me to make as a little boy and it has been a force driving me throughout my life.
So what if a scenario came up where my wife cheated with another person on me. Would I divorce her?
Ah! There is the underlying problem with my moral agency code that I took upon me.
For if I NEVER, EVER would divorce then I have removed some boundaries from my life that maybe should not ever be removed.
In that case scenario, it allows me to accept the fact that my wife cheated and I remain married and ignore that transgression.
Wow! What a statement! How does this shape me and my thinking and IS IT HEALTHY?
Probably not and we have to recognize those things within us that allow us to accept things that maybe should not be accepted.
Moral agency can be as much of a handicap as it is a boon in working for or against us.
So we must be extremely careful with those “built in” thoughts that we take upon us as youth.
Those youthful thoughts are NOT fully developed and therefore should not be used as drivers of our future vehicles of desire.
I looked moral agency and this is the definition that I received from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing website (that is sort of interesting detail in and of itself): “Identifying and examining our values is key to understanding why we behave as we do and how we make moral decisions. Moral agency then, is having the intent and then acting to pursue, achieve, and maintain optimal beneficial outcomes consistent with the moral/ethical principles of one's practice.
It is our foundation and our desires all at once and I believe we should reexamine them at all stages of our lives to ensure those values are getting us to our desired destination.
Something to think about.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
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All angels appreciated!
July 11, 2023
We Need Management
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
To paraphrase Seth Godin, “...there’s a need for management…[for without it…nothing will]...get done on its own.”
So the whole sentence now reads,
“There’s a need for management for without it nothing will get done on its owns.”
We need management.
We manage every aspect of our lives from waking to sleeping and even then sometimes.
Time management, task management, relationship management, money management, physical, spiritual, psychological, medical, we are the practitioners of management since we’ve been born to the day we leave the earth.
Without management there is chaos.
As Managers of our lives we need management.
Management is a necessity.
We need management in all aspects of our lives.
Otherwise, no dinner, no shopping, no conversation, no social interactions, no parties, no fun, nothing. Just nothing.
We manage every aspect of our lives.
The most, the best, the wonderful, the exciting, the planning, the anticipation, the thrill, the EVERYTHING-needs management.
The Manager's Manager Strategies and Tactics for Effective Leadership
5 STAR REVIEWS!
Only $11.99 Softcover
Here is the Barnes & Noble INTERNATIONALLY link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-managers-manager-david-alan-binder/1143538736
Please consider purchasing it, your life is all about management skills even if you are retired.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
July 7, 2023
Knowledge
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Today's knowledge is infinitely smarter than yesterday's. The decisions you made yesterday did not the benefit from the additional knowledge that you’ve learned since then.
Too bad! Those decisions you made yesterday are still valid. completely correct by yesterday's standards.
Yet, many berate themselves for not having prior knowledge of something or an event.
How could they know?
We make the best decisions with today’s accumulated knowledge that we are able.
You are smarter now, that knowledge applies going forward.
Plus tomorrow’s knowledge ensure we are infinitely growing and applying that new knowledge.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
June 30, 2023
Structure
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
If one starts building without a plan the structure is haphazard and piecemeal. With no real plan of attack the “house” or structure that one builds becomes meaningless. Due to the fact that planning, discipline, following rules or guidelines for building need to be adhered to in order to have an optimum structure.
For instance, you can completely build a house without a foundation, without plumbing and electricity; and later if you decide you want those items they can be sort of added on later, but it is wonky. Pipes and wires running inside or outside of a house are susceptible to freezing, heat, damage, and looks extremely unsightly. Not to mention adding a foundation later. It can be done but if your structure the vertical load bearing posts are just sunk in the ground and pouring concrete inside to make a floor and more stability to the house, it is unsightly and adds layers to the floor and maybe makes HVAC an issue, ventilators may get covered up or you’d have to extend them.
Can you envision that? Addons may seem weird. Take for instance my Dad added a bathroom on to our house and it was an afterthought. He needed septic since there was no sewer system in the rural area we lived in. The outhouse was then not needed. However that bathroom was pretty cold since the furnace was clear in the living room, which was three rooms away. There was the bathroom, then doorway to the utility room, then doorway to the kitchen, then at the far end of the kitchen was a doorway to the living room and the heat. Not sure exactly why pipes did not freeze in the kitchen or bathroom and that was before heat tape and that kind of protection. Weird.
We need structure, plans, discipline or the construct is unwieldy. It is just not conducive to the fact if each item is planned and intermingled to fit within the structure. HVAC, electrical, plumbing, etc. all have a place and a purpose and each has to be thought out and co-exist together and work together. If you HVAC does not have electrical to it then it won’t work. If you water heater or tub does not have plumbing it won’t work properly. They need to collaborate and cooperate together for each to add to the stability of the other equipment.
Houses are complex. So is any craft, construction, painting, writing, etc. All must have guidelines and work together to bring the whole into being, just like the items that go into a house.
Otherwise your “home” may have more chaos than calm.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
June 25, 2023
Happy Anniversary!
We Need Management
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
To paraphrase Seth Godin, “...there’s a need for management…[for without it…nothing will]...get done on its own.”
So the whole sentence now reads,
“There’s a need for management for without it nothing will get done on its owns.”
We need management.
As Managers of our lives we need management.
Management is a necessity.
We need management in all aspects of our lives.
Otherwise, no dinner, no shopping, no conversation, no social interactions, no parties, no fun, nothing. Just nothing.
We manage every aspect of our lives.
The most, the best, the wonderful, the exciting, the planning, the anticipation, the thrill, the EVERYTHING-needs management.
The Manager's Manager Strategies and Tactics for Effective Leadership
5 STAR REVIEWS!
Only $11.99 Softcover
Here is the Barnes & Noble INTERNATIONALLY link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/9358042613?ref_=cm_sw_r_apin_dp_DHMPQW964NRQBV5HDX5M
Please consider purchasing it, your life is all about management skills even if you are retired.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
June 24, 2023
It turns out Amazon has dropped the ball for those of us authors who sell only a few to dozens of books. We are eliminated from their selling site. My book was, however, good news Barnes & Noble supports us little authors so please kindly patronize them.
Thanks so much for your support.
June 23, 2023
What or who matters
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Quibbling over a word or words on social media.
Posting to others who may not read, follow, or care for your post, or have snoozed you for 30 days.
Catching up in forums to see what is new.
Seeing how many likes you have.
Communicating with strangers.
Your life’s newspaper on social media maybe used to figuratively line the bird cage for other people.
How do you know if they read it?
How do you know if it is important to them?
How do you know if it matters?
Usually we phone, text, email to those that matter and they respond in a timely manner.
Those that matter, matter.
Those who don’t we seem to pay attention to more than those who do.
We may give more time to those who don’t matter over those who do.
Only we can correct that behavior, if we even realize that we do it and we realize that it matters.
Do you matter to you?
Then act like it and cater to those who matter over the others.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
June 21, 2023
Why Justify
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
If we use the word “because” in a response it is a justification.
Why do we need to justify?
The answer is usually because we feel we have to.
We fear not being believed, not having enough credibility, or just convincing someone or ourselves. So we justify.
We make excuses, we pass over some mistakes and drive ourselves crazy with the mental flogging for other mistakes.
We are judge, jury and executioner in our heads and the mental gymnastics are superb.
As our defense lawyer, we are eloquent, passionate, winning over approvals, smiles and playing to the crowd. As our prosecutor we are the worst scoundrel, the one cad, who knows our weaknesses and knows how to exploit them most.
As a judge we can be benevolent yet harsh, sentencing ourselves to rethink and wish for do-overs, and serving hard time for our errors.
As the jurors in our heads are appalled, delighted and won-over, or think, “how despicable!”.
We are the ultimate in using our skills for and against us.
Time to sentence the judge, jury and lawyers in our heads to banishment.
They do not belong. They serve no purpose.
We don’t need to employ them.
For without that judge, jury and lawyers our heads are clear, our purpose comes to light and we move forward and progress.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
June 19, 2023
Ambivalent
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
The thing about being ambivalent is that it is so middle of the road, so namby-pamby, so uncertain, so unsure, inconclusive, so indecisive, so blah.
Sure we see plenty of side taking, their team versus our team type of thing but that middle ground is also heavily populated.
In personal relationships:
What fires you up?
What are you passionate about?
What do you care about?
Is family everything?
Is blood really thicker than anything?
It is my belief and opinion, that many out there are no longer invested in us, could care less, can take or leave us.
If we exist that is okay and if we don’t that is also okay.
What makes us feel the way we do about people?
Are there circumstances that absolutely dictate that we put people in a time out over in the corner not to be bothered with not to speak with?
If some people break boundaries or rules or conventions of the norm than yes, that is a good place for them.
If some other people have not done that but one remains ambivalent then why?
Think about it.
If there is someone that deserves a second chance then maybe this is the time to grant that.
Give them that one more chance and see what happens.
Let them into your life for a second.
[NOT to be confused with those who NEVER deserve a second chance and there are those for sure.]
I believe you can sort out the difference for yourself and decide.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
June 17, 2023
Will the real David Alan Binder please stand up
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
First some news: Just signed a contract for my second book.
Sounds like What’s My Line the title to this article if you remember that old TV show.
If you type into Google “David Alan Binder” you will see this website and my book on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Good Reads and many authors I’ve interviewed. Pretty interesting to me at least.
Wait, then there is that other guy David Alan Binder at Brenau University on the website Rate My Professors, who is NOT me by the way.
Then this guy David Alan Binder, xxxx SW 2nd St Ankeny, Iowa 50023 who is Self-employed as a Consultant.
Wait another one US Patent Office? Patent number US8302774B2 for Stabilized glycerin-in-oil emulsions, Inventor: David Alan Binder, Bing C. Mei, Thi N. Do, George Willms, Hossein A. Baghdadi with Avon Products Inc.
Laundry cleansing and conditioning compositions, another patent from 2003, David Alan Binder (Saddle Brook, NJ), probably same guy as above.
I even found my book link for Amazon India.
Incredible.
I had to do some deep diving to find the patent and Amazon India link.
Interesting, really.
Who is using your name?
Yes, I don’t belong to me. I am not as unique as I thought I was.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
June 15, 2023
Word Count
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder via Story Grid:
Thanks to Story Grid for enabling sharing!
The following is a complete quote of their article:
How Many Words in a Novel:
A Comparison of Word Count to Page Count in Novels
As a writer, understanding word count is crucial to planning and executing your novel. Whether you’re a first-time author or a seasoned pro, knowing how many words are in a novel will help you gauge your progress and set realistic goals. In this article, we’ll explore the factors that influence word count, provide examples of novels with different lengths, and offer tips on how to manage your word count effectively.
How Many Words in a Novel: A Comparison of Word Count to Page Count in Novels
Factors Influencing Word Count
Several factors can influence the word count of a novel, including:
Genre: Different GENRES have different conventions when it comes to word count. For instance, fantasy and science fiction novels tend to be longer, while romance and crime novels may be shorter.
Writing Style: Some writers have a more concise style, while others prefer a more elaborate, descriptive approach. This can significantly affect the word count of a novel.
Formatting: The size of the page, the font, and the spacing can all impact the reader’s perception of story length. A novel with larger margins or a larger font size will have fewer words per page than one with smaller margins or a smaller font size. This can cause books with multiple editions to have vastly different page counts.
Examples of Novels and Number of Pages
Short Novels or Novellas
A novel of around 100 pages is considered a novella or a short novel. It usually contains around 20,000 to 30,000 words. This length is perfect for a focused story with a small cast of characters and a simple, linear plot. Examples include the following:
The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway (approximately 26,000 words or 50–180 pages): This Pulitzer Prize-winning novella follows the story of an old fisherman and his epic battle with a giant marlin.
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (approximately 27,000 words or 90–120 pages): This novella, originally translated from French, follows a young prince as he visits various planets. The story is told from the perspective of an aviator who encounters the prince after a plane crash in the desert.
Animal Farm by George Orwell (approximately 29,000 words or 80–140 pages): This allegorical novella uses a group of farm animals to satirize Stalinist Russia and critique totalitarianism.
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (approximately 30,000 words or 70–120 pages): This novella tells the story of two migrant workers looking for a job during the Great Depression in California.
Novels
A novel typically contains between 40,000 and 90,000 words, an ideal length for many genre fiction works. This length is common for many contemporary works of fiction and provides ample space for complex plots and character development. Examples of novels include the following:
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (approximately 47,000 words or 160–240 pages): This classic American novel explores themes of wealth, social class, and the American Dream in the Roaring Twenties.
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (approximately 99,750 words or 370–390 pages): This dystopian young adult novel follows the story of Katniss Everdeen, who is forced to participate in a brutal televised competition where teenagers fight to the death.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (approximately 100,000 words or 320–390 pages): This Pulitzer Prize-winning novel explores themes of racial injustice and moral growth through the eyes of a young girl in the American South.
Long Novels
A long novel typically has 100,000+ words. This length is suitable for more intricate stories, often reserved for epic works of fiction with sprawling narratives, extensive world-building, and a vast array of characters. Examples of long novels include:
A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin (approximately 298,000 words or 690–720 pages): The first book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series, this epic fantasy novel introduces readers to the complex and deadly world of Westeros, where noble houses vie for power and control.
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt (approximately 300,000 words or 770–790 pages): This Pulitzer Prize-winning novel tells the story of a young man named Theo Decker whose life is changed forever after a terrorist attack at an art museum.
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy (approximately 587,000 words or 1100-1400 pages): This classic Russian novel explores the lives of several aristocratic families against the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars.
Tips for Managing Your Word Count
Don’t stress about hitting an exact number: While it’s important to have a general idea of your novel’s word count, don’t get too caught up in hitting a specific number. Focus on telling the story you want to tell, and trust that the word count will work itself out.
Outline your story: Creating a detailed outline can help you visualize your novel’s structure, making it easier to gauge your word count and identify areas where you may need to add or remove content. Check out the Story Grid NARRATIVE PATH article for help outlining a story.
Edit and revise: During the editing process, focus on tightening your prose, eliminating redundancies, and ensuring that every word serves a purpose. This can help you manage your word count and improve the overall quality of your novel.
Set a daily or weekly writing goal: Establishing a word count goal can help you stay on track and maintain momentum throughout your writing process.
Conclusion
Understanding word count and the length of your story is essential for writers. With this guide, you should now have a better idea of how many words are in different types of stories, along with examples to help you plan your own writing project. Remember to consider factors such as GENRE, formatting, and writing style, and use the tips provided to manage your word count effectively.
June 13, 2023
Successful
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What defines success and being successful?
It is not an arrival point it is a journey.
Sound familiar.
Once I thought being a success meant I would write a book and be published.
Oh but I was wrong.
I was successful long before that and had achieved success long ago.
Just conquering the ability to read and write was a success.
It made me successful in life because I used those abilities to continue to other successes.
Pass tests, gain employment, gain even better employment, be laid off and then gain another employment.
I snaked through life, I managed through life, I rose, climbed, fell and then got up and started over.
So many successes. The successful fall meant that I would have a successful getting up and trying again.
WAIT! That is success? Falling? Yes.
All failures are success if you use them to get back up and strive again.
You are achieving success even with those lessons you’d rather not learn.
Since you learned from them then that is success.
Now you are successful at something.
And that my friend is why you are amazing.
Why are you amazing? Just think of all your successes that make you the person you are now.
Breathe in those moments that define you.
It is not all good and it is not all bad, it is a mixture.
And mixtures are what comes together to make a batter, a clay, a tonic that propels you beyond what you would have achieved if you’d only had one ingredient.
One winning ingredient mixed with nothing else just means you’ve achieved one thing.
Mix that in with the practices, the tries, the attempts and the overcoming, then you have a real mix and something that in the end becomes you.
You are an amalgamation.
You are fantastic.
And it is high time that you look at, perceive that, be content with that.
You be you.
What a wonder! What a story! What an amalgamation you are!
Use your positivity just like you use your words.
Define yourself above what others define you.
Afterall it is just an opinion and your opinion matters most.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
June 12, 2023
Good News! Won 3rd place in the Children’s Stories Anthology Something Or Other Publishing
Also, my book is now available at Barnes & Noble via order
June 11, 2023
Will the real David Alan Binder please stand up
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Sounds like What’s My Line the title to this article if you remember that old TV show.
If you type into Google “David Alan Binder” you will see this website and my book on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Good Reads and many authors I’ve interviewed. Pretty interesting to me at least.
Wait, then there is that other guy David Alan Binder at Brenau University on the website Rate My Professors, who is NOT me by the way.
Then this guy David Alan Binder, xxxx SW 2nd St Ankeny, Iowa 50023 who is Self-employed as a Consultant.
Wait another one US Patent Office? Patent number US8302774B2 for Stabilized glycerin-in-oil emulsions, Inventor: David Alan Binder, Bing C. Mei, Thi N. Do, George Willms, Hossein A. Baghdadi with Avon Products Inc.
Laundry cleansing and conditioning compositions, another patent from 2003, David Alan Binder (Saddle Brook, NJ), probably same guy as above.
I even found my book link for Amazon India.
Incredible.
I had to do some deep diving to find the patent and Amazon India link.
Interesting, really.
Who is using your name?
Yes, I don’t belong to me. I am not as unique as I thought I was.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
June 7, 2023
Seven Bridges Road
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Today we’ll do a fluff piece with some information plus a song.
Actually anytime you or someone else writes it is not fluff to the writer for they are putting their concentration, effort and soul into it.
Any creator knows this, from plunking around to arranging paint at a canvas with a brush or whatever and trying to achieve an artistic style and come up with something new and different.
The point is experiment with styles and genres and applications.
Back to the article.
From Wikipedia
“"Seven Bridges Road" is a song written by American musician Steve Young, recorded in 1969 for his Rock Salt & Nails album. It has since been covered by many artists, the best-known versions being a five-part harmony arrangement by English musician Iain Matthews in 1973 and the 1980 version recorded by the American rock band the Eagles in 1980.
Here is the song by the Eagles:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hufU6MIS2vw
Fantastic harmonies and great song.
"Seven Bridges Road" is an ode to Woodley Road (County Road 39, Montgomery County, Alabama), a rural two-lane road which runs south off East Fairview Avenue - the southern boundary of the Cloverdale neighborhood of Montgomery, Alabama - at Cloverdale Road, and which features seven bridges: three pairs of bridges, and the seventh approximately 1 mile south by itself. The song's composer Steve Young, stated that and his friends "used to go out to Woodley Road carousing around" "I wound up writing this song that I never dreamed anybody would even relate to, or understand, or get. And I still don't understand why it was so successful, actually" "I don't know [exactly] what [the] song means" "Consciously... I [just] wrote...a song about a girl and a road in south Alabama" "But I think on another level the song has something kind of cosmic...that registers in the subconscious: the number seven has all of these religious and mystical connotations."”
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
June 3, 2023
Discussion
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Today let’s discuss this topic.
What? A discussion?, you ask.
How can we have a discussion when you are writing the article and we are reading it?
This is how, my dear readers:
As you read you “discuss” the nuances, depths and truths of the article.
You breathe in the article through your eyes and brain then you mull it over and see if there is any merit to the article.
You actually do this hundreds of times per day.
Most of the things you see on your screen and in real life are processed by you for merit, for truth, for actuality, to see if they make sense, have meaning and have any information for you to harvest.
Sometimes we harvest information and then later decide to discard it.
That is how it works. What we thought was for us turns out to be something we do not need and sometimes what we thought was not so good, we do a double take somewhere inside of us and think, oh, wait. That is good stuff.
Let me breathe that in, maybe go back and mull it over and take it in full hearted.
This is all up to you.
Be aware. Be resourceful. Be at peace, knowing that as you give your attention you are sorting, clipping and pasting within yourself.
We all use this mechanism so be very cautious and sometimes leary at what you take in.
Think it over and then decide what you will inhale and what you will exhale.
Breathe deep!
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
May 31, 2023
My NEW book is NOW available in the USA, Canada, North and South America! The Manager's Manager Strategies and Tactics for Effective Leadership
Here is the Amazon USA link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/9358042613?ref_=cm_sw_r_apin_dp_DHMPQW964NRQBV5HDX5M
Here is the Amazon India, Asia, Europe, China, Japan, Australia, etc. link: The Manager’s Manager https://amzn.eu/d/7PbjfJY
REVIEWS ARE NEEDED! Be kind, please.
June 7, 2023
First new news: Something Or Other Publishing nominated my story to be in their Anthology.
Discussion
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Today let’s discuss this topic.
What? A discussion?, you ask.
How can we have a discussion when you are writing the article and we are reading it?
This is how, my dear readers:
As you read you “discuss” the nuances, depths and truths of the article.
You breathe in the article through your eyes and brain then you mull it over and see if there is any merit to the article.
You actually do this hundreds of times per day.
Most of the things you see on your screen and in real life are processed by you for merit, for truth, for actuality, to see if they make sense, have meaning and have any information for you to harvest.
Sometimes we harvest information and then later decide to discard it.
That is how it works. What we thought was for us turns out to be something we do not need and sometimes what we thought was not so good, we do a double take somewhere inside of us and think, oh, wait. That is good stuff.
Let me breathe that in, maybe go back and mull it over and take it in full hearted.
This is all up to you.
Be aware. Be resourceful. Be at peace, knowing that as you give your attention you are sorting, clipping and pasting within yourself.
We all use this mechanism so be very cautious and sometimes leary at what you take in.
Think it over and then decide what you will inhale and what you will exhale.
Breathe deep!
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
June 3, 2023
WOW, relationships are so complicated!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
We are now engaged in loving and wonderful relationships with seven immediate family members plus dozens of other friends and extended family. estranged from four different family members and one I would designate as very strained and uncertain.
Unbelievable!
Note the strikethrough text and the non-strikedthrough text.
Context, perspective, positivity live and breathe into your soul.
Negativity sucks the very essence out of you.
We suffer from CPTSD, Critical, Childhood, Complex-you chose the applicable or maybe they are all applicable to you.
What is important is to realize that you suffer from it and then discovering what to do about it.
Some helpful hints and clues are below, but you have to do the work.
Me telling you does not help you.
You have to put in the time and the effort and the practice.
Yes, lots of practice, anything worthwhile takes extensive and intensive practice.
It also requires the right therapy and someone who understands where you are coming from and where you need to go to.
Again the therapist is a guide, someone to bounce ideas and thoughts against and then you apply, apply, repeat, apply all that work into correcting those crappy thoughts and ideas that you implanted into yourself over time.
Yes, our perspective skewed us and our new perspective will shift our view into the proper space and time and realization.
Personally I have just identified that I also have gone through a new thing I’ve learned about that is called “abandonment melange”. If you’d like to learn more then link to Pete Walker here is the small article he has on that:
“
Frequently Asked Questions About Complex PTSD
What may I have been misdiagnosed with?
What are the signs that I’m recovering?
How Did I Get Complex PTSD?;
How do I know I am in a Flashback?
What is a trigger?
What is the Abandonment Depression? The Abandonment Melange?
Why does it take so long to actually get that you’re recovering?
Why do you specialize in Complex PTSD?
Written by Pete Walker
What may I have been misdiagnosed with?
Renowned traumatologist, John Briere, is said to have quipped that if Complex PTSD were ever given its due – that is, if the role of dysfunctional parenting in adult psychological disorders was ever fully recognized, the DSM (The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders used by all mental health professionals) would shrink to the size of a thin pamphlet. It currently resembles a large dictionary. In my experience, many clients with Complex PTSD have been misdiagnosed with various anxiety and depressive disorders, as well as bipolar, narcissistic, codependent and borderline disorders. Further confusion arises in the case of ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder), as well as obsessive/compulsive disorder, which is sometimes more accurately described as an excessive, fixated flight response to trauma. This is also true of ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) and some dissociative disorders which are similarly excessive, fixated freeze responses to trauma. (See my article “A Trauma Typology”.)
This is not to say that those so diagnosed do not have issues that are similar and correlative with said disorders, but that these labels are incomplete and unnecessarily shaming descriptions of what the client is afflicted with. Calling complex PTSD “panic disorder” is like calling food allergies chronically itchy eyes; over-focusing treatment on the symptoms of panic in the former case and eye health in the latter does little to get at root causes. Feelings of panic or itchiness in the eyes can be masked with medication, but all the other associated problems that cause these symptoms will remain untreated. Moreover most of the diagnoses mentioned above imply deep innate characterological defects rather than the learned maladaptations to stress that children of trauma are forced to make– adaptations, once again that were learned and can therefore usually be extinguished and replaced with more functional adaptations to stress.
In this vein, I believe that many substance and process addictions also begin as misguided, maladaptations to parental abuse and abandonment – early adaptations that are attempts to soothe and distract from the mental and emotional pain of complex PTSD.
What are the signs that I’m recovering?
Effective recovery work leads to an ongoing gradual reduction of emotional flashbacks. Over time we become more and more proficient at managing them and alleviating unnecessary states of activation; this in turn results in flashbacks occurring less often, less enduringly and less intensely.
Another key sign of recovering is that the critic begins to shrink and lose its dominance of the psyche. As it shrinks, the user-friendly ego has room to grow and to develop the kind of mindfulness that more readily recognizes when the critic has taken over, which in turn allows us to more readily disidentify form or fight against its perfectionistic and drasticizing processes.
Another sign of recovering occurs as a gradual increase in our ability to relax - to resist overreacting from a triggered position, i.e., from an inappropriate fight, flight, freeze or fawn response; (See my article: “A Trauma Typology”). Moreover, there is an increase in our ability to use our fight, flight, freeze and fawn instincts in healthy non-self-destructive ways, so that we only fight back when under real attack, only flee when odds are insurmountable, only freeze when we need to go into acute observer mode, only fawn when it is appropriate to be self-sacrificing. Another way of describing this is that we have good balance between the polar opposites of fight and flight, i.e., we can vacillate healthily between asserting our own needs and compromisingly acquiescing to the needs of others. Moreover we can balance the polar opposites of flight and freeze, which in their moderate manifestations looks like a balance between doing and being, between sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system arousal, between left and right brain processing.
Advanced recovery correlates with letting go the salvation fantasy that we will never have another flashback, and moving into an attitude of accepting the inevitability of a modicum of flashbacks. This attitude then allows us to easily recognize and quickly respond to them from a position of self-compassion, self-soothing and self-protection.
How Did I Get Complex PTSD?
The genesis of complex PTSD is most often associated with extended periods of ongoing physical and/or sexual abuse in childhood. My observations however convince me that ongoing extremes of verbal and/or emotional abuse also cause it. Moreover as an upcoming article on my website will explicate, long-term childhood emotional neglect alone can also create complex PTSD and a propensity to emotional flashbacks.
This can perhaps best be understood by noting the conditions that prevailed as the human brain evolved during hunter-gatherer times, which represents 99.8% of our time on this planet. Children’s vulnerability to predators caused them to evolve an intense, instinctual fear response to being left alone without protection. Fear became the child’s hard-wired response to separation from a protective adult, and linked automatically to the fight response so that the infant and toddler would automatically cry angrily for attention, help, cessation of abandonment - even at the briefest loss of contact with parental figures. Beasts of prey only needed seconds to snatch away the unprotected child.
In present time dysfunctional families, many parents disdain children for needing so much attention from them, and react contemptuously to a baby or toddler’s plaintive call for connection and attachment. Contempt can sometimes be more traumatizing than physical abuse. It is a toxic cocktail of verbal and emotional abuse, a deadly amalgam of rage and disgust. Rage creates fear and disgust creates shame in the child in a way that soon teaches her to refrain from crying out, from ever asking for attention, and before long from seeking any kind of help or connection at all. Particularly abusive parents deepen the abandonment trauma by linking corporal punishment with contempt.
Moreover, as stated above, complex PTSD can also be caused by emotional neglect alone; (emotional neglect also typically occurs in most situations of prolonged contempt and physical abuse). Parents who systematically ignore or turn their backs on a child’s calls for attention, connection or help, abandon their child to unmanageable amounts of fear which over time devolve into the child giving up and succumbing to depressed, death-like feelings of helplessness and hopelessness. These types of rejection simultaneously magnify the child’s fear, and eventually add a veneer of shame to it. Over time this fear and shame cancerously begets a toxic inner critic that increasingly dominates the psyche with programs of endangerment and self-disgust (perfectionism), until a full blown case of PTSD is established. (See my articles on The Inner and Outer Critic).
Moreover, to the duration and degree that emotional abandonment takes place and to the degree that there is no alternative adult (relative, older sibling, neighbor, teacher) to turn to for comfort and protection, to that degree does the PTSD set in, and to that degree can a myriad of triggers (external or internal) activate the individual into flashing back into the painful emotional and toxic cognitive conditions of childhood. This is especially true when the abandonment occurs 24/7, 365 days a year for the first few years.
How do I know I am in a Flashback?
We can often find ourselves in a flashback without ever having seen the “flash”. There are a variety of clues that we can learn to identify as signs that we are caught in a flashback. This is essential to recovery, as naming our experience “flashback” (step#1 in flashback management) often immediately brings some relief, and more importantly point us in the direction of working the other 12 steps of flashback management (listed on the flashback management page of this website).
One common clue that we are in a flashback occurs when we notice that we feel small, helpless, hopeless and so ashamed that we are loath to go out or show our face anywhere.
Another common clue that we are flashing back is an increase in the virulence of the inner or outer critic. This typically looks like increased drasticizing and catastrophizing, as well as excessive self-criticism or judgementalness of others. A very common example of this is lapsing into extremely polarized, all-or-none thinking – and most especially into only noticing what is wrong with yourself and/or others. On a personal level, I have learned over the years that when I am feeling especially critical of others, it usually means that I am feeling bad and have flashed back to being around my mother who hated any dip in my mood or energy level lest I be less useful and entertaining to her. During such flashbacks then, I am self-protectively over-noticing other’s faults so I can justify avoiding them and the danger and shame of being seen in a state of not being shiny enough. See my articles on “Shrinking the Critic” for more info on how to recognize the various critic attacks that accompany as well as initiate flashbacks.
Another clue about flashbacks is seen in increased activation of the fight, flight, freeze or fawn responses (see my article on “A Trauma Typology”). Here are some examples of this. Many childhood trauma survivors learned early in life to manage and self-medicate the painful feelings of flashbacks with distracting activities and self-medicating substances - flight and freeze responses, respectively. Over time flight and freeze responses can become habitual. Flight types can devolve into distracting process addictions, and freeze types into “tuning out” substance addictions. The former can morph into workaholism, busyholism, consumerism, or sex &love addiction, and the latter into drinking, drugging, TV entrancement and compulsive eating (especially mood-altering junk foods that contain high quantities of salt, sugar and fat). Addiction for many survivors is a matter of degree, and an especially strong urge to use more substance or process than normal is a powerful clue that one is in a flashback. With practice, mindfully noticing a sudden upsurge in craving can be interpreted as the need to invoke the 13 steps of healthy flashback management.
Another clue that we are in a flashback occurs when we notice that our emotional reactions are out of proportion to what has triggered them, e.g., when a minor, present time upset feels like an emergency or when a minor unfairness feels like a travesty of justice; e.g., a spilled glass of water triggers an incessant diatribe of self-hate, or someone else’s relatively harmless, un-signaled lane change triggers us into rage. If we are not mindful at such times, we can either inappropriately act these feelings out against the relatively innocent other, or we can let them morph into shame and act them in against ourselves in self-disgust or self-hatred. If on the other hand we mindfully recognize them as flashbacks to the way we felt about the real emergencies and injustices of parental abuse and abandonment, we can be empowered not only to invoke healthy flashback management techniques, but also to harvest the experience as an opportunity to validate the awfulness of our childhood plight. When we do the latter, we can assign and direct our anger into a self-protective protest about the unfair past, and our tears into self-compassionate crying for the plight of the child we were. Finally, it cannot be stressed enough that it takes a great deal of practicing both of these responses to heal the developmental arrest of being blocked from our all important instincts of self-protection and self-compassion.
What is a trigger?
A trigger is an external or internal stimulus that activates us into an emotional flashback. This often occurs on a subliminal level outside the boundaries of normal consciousness, and is why recognizing flashbacks is both difficult but crucially important. External triggers are people, places, things, events, facial expressions, styles of communication, etc., that remind us of our original abuse or abandonment in a way that launches us into reliving the painful feelings of those times; e.g., revisiting your parents or childhood home, seeing someone who resembles your childhood abuser, experiencing the anniversary of an especially traumatic event, or hearing someone use a parent’s shaming turn of phrase. When trauma has been severe or we are in an especially depleted state, resemblances can even be scant – perhaps all unknown men or authority figures trigger fear, or anyone noticing or looking at us triggers toxic shame. I was once intensely triggered by a squirrel staring at me!
Internal triggers are usually initiated by the critic and involve thoughts and visualizations about endangerment or the need for perfection; e.g., visualizing someone being abusive, or worrying about not being perfect in executing some current or upcoming task. As recovery progresses, many survivors are shocked to discover that the majority of their flashbacks are triggered internally by the various internal programs of the inner critic.
With ongoing recovery, we can become more cognizant of our triggers, and work more quickly to work through incidents of being triggered into a flashback, or even recognize potentially triggering situations and prophylactically invoke the flashback management steps before we get activated.
What is the Abandonment Depression?
The Abandonment Melange [means mixture or multiples]?
The Abandonment Depression is the complex painful childhood experience that is reconstituted in an emotional flashback. It is a return to the sense of overwhelm, hopelessness and helplessness that afflicts the abused and /or emotionally abandoned child. At the core of the abandonment depression is the abandonment melange – the terrible emotional mix of fear and shame that coalesces around the deathlike feelings of depression that afflict an abandoned child. Surrounding the abandonment melange of the flashback are perfectionistic and endangerment cognitions and visualizations of the toxic inner and outer critic (See my articles on the critic), and at the surface is the self-destructive enactments of the fight, flight, freeze or fawn responses (See “A Trauma Typology”).
In a typical flashback, an individual is recapitulated into the original experience of abandonment. Fear is immediately triggered and soon produces shameful feelings of self-hate. This self-hate is a self-rejection that mimics parental rejection and that is equivalent to self-abandonment. Self-abandonment in turn deepens the abandonment depression and creates an even more fearful state, which in turn generates even more shame about the fear, which triggers increasingly depressing self-abandonment. This process then becomes a self-perpetuating, perpetual motion cycle that can spiral around and around in a despairingly painful descent that at its worst culminates in feelings of panic and suicidal ideation. During particularly extreme flashbacks, more than a few of my clients have uttered things that sound like this: “Life is so hopelessly depressing, I might as well be dead. Take me now God, why don’t you!” (See Managing The Abandonment Depression” for practical guidance on how to respond therapeutically to the abandonment melange.)” Link here: https://www.pete-walker./fAQsComplexPTSD.html#Abandonment
We learned of it from The Crappy Childhood Fairy, Anna Runkle. Smart Lady
Heard it from her first and have read and listened to Pete Walker extensively. However, maybe if we’d heard it before we weren’t ready and therefore weren’t ready to accept it.
That is how it works. Our elementary brains (in some areas) need further development until it can understand greater concepts.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
May 29, 2023
Barbara Unković interview with David Alan Binder
Barbara is a freelance proofreader, copy-editor, manuscript assessor and author.
Books include The Adriatic kitchen, Eaten by the Night, Croatia Blue, The Ship of Death and more.
Additionally, she is a multi-award-winning author with forty writing awards in the USA, UK, Ireland and Finland.
www.barbaraunkovic.com
Master of Creative Writing with (Hons) University of Auckland New Zealand
Member CIEP (Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading UK)
Certificate of Copy-editing and Proofreading NZ Writer's College
Member NZ Society of Authors
Member UK Society of Authors
Where are you currently living?
Portugal, but it’s not permanent. I was born in New Zealand, but that will not be my next destination. I am of Croatian and English heritage.
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
The importance of having your work assessed and copy-edited by a professional. As well as being an author, I am also an experienced, qualified copy editor, proofreader and manuscript assessor. Regardless I still need an independent qualified editor for these tasks. It is impossible to edit your own work.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
My ability to write in different genres — non-fiction, fiction, memoir, short fiction, flash fiction, literary fiction and a recipe book called The Adriatic Kitchen. Here are links to three of my books which are all different:
https://www.amazon.com/Croatia-Blue-journey-paternal-
Kor%C4%8Dula/dp/B093RS7KVD/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=7ZhSS&content-
id=amzn1.sym.5724bc92-619d-4597-ac96-996c3c19e6c4&pf_rd_p=5724bc92-619d-4597-ac96-996c3c19e6c4&pf_rd_r=XHWEY5RSFK4YMHCSV610&pd_rd_wg=H0nZY&pd_rd_r=17904802-fd76-4494-8522-cabc895065e2&ref_=pd_gw_ci_mcx_mr_hp_atf_m
https://www.amazon.com/Eaten-Night-unforgettable-tale-Yugoslavia-
ebook/dp/B09N9SR76H/ref=sr_1_3?qid=1685107866&refinements=p_27%3ABarbara+Unkovi%C4%87&s=books&sr=1-3&text=Barbara+Unkovi%C4%87
https://www.amazon.com/Ship-Death-lifelong-struggle-sexuality-ebook/dp/B0BB9XW5RT/ref=sr_1_5?qid=1685107915&refinements=p_27%3ABarbara+Unkovi%C4%87&s=digital-text&sr=1-5&text=Barbara+Unkovi%C4%87
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I am a bit like William Boyd. I have had bad experiences with publishers and have been ripped off by them. One committed suicide and took the royalties for three of my books with her to her grave and the other one appointed an agent to collect payment for my books at a book event. She told the publisher that no books sold when in fact forty sold and she kept the money. It took me a year to get my royalties and, needless to say, she lost her job.
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
I use only one publisher at present and I would not recommend him; my other titles are self-published and all available on Amazon worldwide on kindle, paperback and two are available in hardback and have photos — these are non-fiction memoirs — Croatia Blue and Only in Africa.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
No! You either have it or you don’t. I am lucky, I believe my writing ability is inherited. I am a cousin to DH Lawrence. My great grandfather on my English side, obviously, and DH’s mother were siblings.
How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
Make sure your manuscript and synopsis are the best they can be. Take whatever advice your
professional editor gives you; this includes getting your editor to check your submission letter.
Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Take some writing courses to improve your skills. I have a Master of Creative Writing with honours from Auckland University in New Zealand.
Work with a qualified editor once you have completed your first draft. This is an unregulated industry and many people who are unqualified and do not have English as there first language masquerade as editors. You can check out my qualifications on the Proof-editing Services page of my website
www.barbaraunkovic.com
How many books have you written?
Fourteen and I am in the process of writing number fifteen. It’s fiction and the working title is All Cats are Grey in the Dark.
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Go over your draft at least four times before seeking the assistance of a qualified editor, and take the advice they offer you, even if it means making major changes to your manuscript.
Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
No. All I can say is that dramatic moments work better if you use short sentences. This heightens the tension.
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
The title, which must appear in the book, and can appear more than once, and, of course, the cover. That said the book must be well-written and hook the reader within the first few pages.
What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
I promote through all the usual methods. I don’t have any point of difference here.
What is the one thing you would do differently now and why?
There isn’t one. I am perfectly happy with these aspects.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
“If it is to be; it is up to me”.
Anything else you would like to say?
Yes, I enjoy helping new writers develop. Recently I worked with a fourteen-year-old girl with immense talent, and it was extremely satisfying to see her work progress and evolve.
May 27, 2023
WOW, relationships are so complicated!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
We are now estranged from four different family members and one I would designate as very strained and uncertain.
Unbelievable!
The why is not important nor are the details worth outlining to show our side of it.
What is important to you is that all the videos, books, therapy (both joint with one child and for each of us singley), plus the practice and talking through it in our heads and outloud with each other did not change anything for them.
It changes us.
It is traumatic for sure but we have set our boundaries where we had little. We have cussed and discussed the situation in depth. We have cried our hearts out.
Personally I have just identified that I also have gone through a new thing I’ve learned about that is called “abandonment melange”. If you’d like to learn more then link to Pete Walker here is the small article he has on that:
“
Frequently Asked Questions About Complex PTSD
What may I have been misdiagnosed with?
What are the signs that I’m recovering?
How Did I Get Complex PTSD?;
How do I know I am in a Flashback?
What is a trigger?
What is the Abandonment Depression? The Abandonment Melange?
Why does it take so long to actually get that you’re recovering?
Why do you specialize in Complex PTSD?
Written by Pete Walker
What may I have been misdiagnosed with?
Renowned traumatologist, John Briere, is said to have quipped that if Complex PTSD were ever given its due – that is, if the role of dysfunctional parenting in adult psychological disorders was ever fully recognized, the DSM (The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders used by all mental health professionals) would shrink to the size of a thin pamphlet. It currently resembles a large dictionary. In my experience, many clients with Complex PTSD have been misdiagnosed with various anxiety and depressive disorders, as well as bipolar, narcissistic, codependent and borderline disorders. Further confusion arises in the case of ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder), as well as obsessive/compulsive disorder, which is sometimes more accurately described as an excessive, fixated flight response to trauma. This is also true of ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) and some dissociative disorders which are similarly excessive, fixated freeze responses to trauma. (See my article “A Trauma Typology”.)
This is not to say that those so diagnosed do not have issues that are similar and correlative with said disorders, but that these labels are incomplete and unnecessarily shaming descriptions of what the client is afflicted with. Calling complex PTSD “panic disorder” is like calling food allergies chronically itchy eyes; over-focusing treatment on the symptoms of panic in the former case and eye health in the latter does little to get at root causes. Feelings of panic or itchiness in the eyes can be masked with medication, but all the other associated problems that cause these symptoms will remain untreated. Moreover most of the diagnoses mentioned above imply deep innate characterological defects rather than the learned maladaptations to stress that children of trauma are forced to make– adaptations, once again that were learned and can therefore usually be extinguished and replaced with more functional adaptations to stress.
In this vein, I believe that many substance and process addictions also begin as misguided, maladaptations to parental abuse and abandonment – early adaptations that are attempts to soothe and distract from the mental and emotional pain of complex PTSD.
What are the signs that I’m recovering?
Effective recovery work leads to an ongoing gradual reduction of emotional flashbacks. Over time we become more and more proficient at managing them and alleviating unnecessary states of activation; this in turn results in flashbacks occurring less often, less enduringly and less intensely.
Another key sign of recovering is that the critic begins to shrink and lose its dominance of the psyche. As it shrinks, the user-friendly ego has room to grow and to develop the kind of mindfulness that more readily recognizes when the critic has taken over, which in turn allows us to more readily disidentify form or fight against its perfectionistic and drasticizing processes.
Another sign of recovering occurs as a gradual increase in our ability to relax - to resist overreacting from a triggered position, i.e., from an inappropriate fight, flight, freeze or fawn response; (See my article: “A Trauma Typology”). Moreover, there is an increase in our ability to use our fight, flight, freeze and fawn instincts in healthy non-self-destructive ways, so that we only fight back when under real attack, only flee when odds are insurmountable, only freeze when we need to go into acute observer mode, only fawn when it is appropriate to be self-sacrificing. Another way of describing this is that we have good balance between the polar opposites of fight and flight, i.e., we can vacillate healthily between asserting our own needs and compromisingly acquiescing to the needs of others. Moreover we can balance the polar opposites of flight and freeze, which in their moderate manifestations looks like a balance between doing and being, between sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system arousal, between left and right brain processing.
Advanced recovery correlates with letting go the salvation fantasy that we will never have another flashback, and moving into an attitude of accepting the inevitability of a modicum of flashbacks. This attitude then allows us to easily recognize and quickly respond to them from a position of self-compassion, self-soothing and self-protection.
How Did I Get Complex PTSD?
The genesis of complex PTSD is most often associated with extended periods of ongoing physical and/or sexual abuse in childhood. My observations however convince me that ongoing extremes of verbal and/or emotional abuse also cause it. Moreover as an upcoming article on my website will explicate, long-term childhood emotional neglect alone can also create complex PTSD and a propensity to emotional flashbacks.
This can perhaps best be understood by noting the conditions that prevailed as the human brain evolved during hunter-gatherer times, which represents 99.8% of our time on this planet. Children’s vulnerability to predators caused them to evolve an intense, instinctual fear response to being left alone without protection. Fear became the child’s hard-wired response to separation from a protective adult, and linked automatically to the fight response so that the infant and toddler would automatically cry angrily for attention, help, cessation of abandonment - even at the briefest loss of contact with parental figures. Beasts of prey only needed seconds to snatch away the unprotected child.
In present time dysfunctional families, many parents disdain children for needing so much attention from them, and react contemptuously to a baby or toddler’s plaintive call for connection and attachment. Contempt can sometimes be more traumatizing than physical abuse. It is a toxic cocktail of verbal and emotional abuse, a deadly amalgam of rage and disgust. Rage creates fear and disgust creates shame in the child in a way that soon teaches her to refrain from crying out, from ever asking for attention, and before long from seeking any kind of help or connection at all. Particularly abusive parents deepen the abandonment trauma by linking corporal punishment with contempt.
Moreover, as stated above, complex PTSD can also be caused by emotional neglect alone; (emotional neglect also typically occurs in most situations of prolonged contempt and physical abuse). Parents who systematically ignore or turn their backs on a child’s calls for attention, connection or help, abandon their child to unmanageable amounts of fear which over time devolve into the child giving up and succumbing to depressed, death-like feelings of helplessness and hopelessness. These types of rejection simultaneously magnify the child’s fear, and eventually add a veneer of shame to it. Over time this fear and shame cancerously begets a toxic inner critic that increasingly dominates the psyche with programs of endangerment and self-disgust (perfectionism), until a full blown case of PTSD is established. (See my articles on The Inner and Outer Critic).
Moreover, to the duration and degree that emotional abandonment takes place and to the degree that there is no alternative adult (relative, older sibling, neighbor, teacher) to turn to for comfort and protection, to that degree does the PTSD set in, and to that degree can a myriad of triggers (external or internal) activate the individual into flashing back into the painful emotional and toxic cognitive conditions of childhood. This is especially true when the abandonment occurs 24/7, 365 days a year for the first few years.
How do I know I am in a Flashback?
We can often find ourselves in a flashback without ever having seen the “flash”. There are a variety of clues that we can learn to identify as signs that we are caught in a flashback. This is essential to recovery, as naming our experience “flashback” (step#1 in flashback management) often immediately brings some relief, and more importantly point us in the direction of working the other 12 steps of flashback management (listed on the flashback management page of this website).
One common clue that we are in a flashback occurs when we notice that we feel small, helpless, hopeless and so ashamed that we are loath to go out or show our face anywhere.
Another common clue that we are flashing back is an increase in the virulence of the inner or outer critic. This typically looks like increased drasticizing and catastrophizing, as well as excessive self-criticism or judgementalness of others. A very common example of this is lapsing into extremely polarized, all-or-none thinking – and most especially into only noticing what is wrong with yourself and/or others. On a personal level, I have learned over the years that when I am feeling especially critical of others, it usually means that I am feeling bad and have flashed back to being around my mother who hated any dip in my mood or energy level lest I be less useful and entertaining to her. During such flashbacks then, I am self-protectively over-noticing other’s faults so I can justify avoiding them and the danger and shame of being seen in a state of not being shiny enough. See my articles on “Shrinking the Critic” for more info on how to recognize the various critic attacks that accompany as well as initiate flashbacks.
Another clue about flashbacks is seen in increased activation of the fight, flight, freeze or fawn responses (see my article on “A Trauma Typology”). Here are some examples of this. Many childhood trauma survivors learned early in life to manage and self-medicate the painful feelings of flashbacks with distracting activities and self-medicating substances - flight and freeze responses, respectively. Over time flight and freeze responses can become habitual. Flight types can devolve into distracting process addictions, and freeze types into “tuning out” substance addictions. The former can morph into workaholism, busyholism, consumerism, or sex &love addiction, and the latter into drinking, drugging, TV entrancement and compulsive eating (especially mood-altering junk foods that contain high quantities of salt, sugar and fat). Addiction for many survivors is a matter of degree, and an especially strong urge to use more substance or process than normal is a powerful clue that one is in a flashback. With practice, mindfully noticing a sudden upsurge in craving can be interpreted as the need to invoke the 13 steps of healthy flashback management.
Another clue that we are in a flashback occurs when we notice that our emotional reactions are out of proportion to what has triggered them, e.g., when a minor, present time upset feels like an emergency or when a minor unfairness feels like a travesty of justice; e.g., a spilled glass of water triggers an incessant diatribe of self-hate, or someone else’s relatively harmless, un-signaled lane change triggers us into rage. If we are not mindful at such times, we can either inappropriately act these feelings out against the relatively innocent other, or we can let them morph into shame and act them in against ourselves in self-disgust or self-hatred. If on the other hand we mindfully recognize them as flashbacks to the way we felt about the real emergencies and injustices of parental abuse and abandonment, we can be empowered not only to invoke healthy flashback management techniques, but also to harvest the experience as an opportunity to validate the awfulness of our childhood plight. When we do the latter, we can assign and direct our anger into a self-protective protest about the unfair past, and our tears into self-compassionate crying for the plight of the child we were. Finally, it cannot be stressed enough that it takes a great deal of practicing both of these responses to heal the developmental arrest of being blocked from our all important instincts of self-protection and self-compassion.
What is a trigger?
A trigger is an external or internal stimulus that activates us into an emotional flashback. This often occurs on a subliminal level outside the boundaries of normal consciousness, and is why recognizing flashbacks is both difficult but crucially important. External triggers are people, places, things, events, facial expressions, styles of communication, etc., that remind us of our original abuse or abandonment in a way that launches us into reliving the painful feelings of those times; e.g., revisiting your parents or childhood home, seeing someone who resembles your childhood abuser, experiencing the anniversary of an especially traumatic event, or hearing someone use a parent’s shaming turn of phrase. When trauma has been severe or we are in an especially depleted state, resemblances can even be scant – perhaps all unknown men or authority figures trigger fear, or anyone noticing or looking at us triggers toxic shame. I was once intensely triggered by a squirrel staring at me!
Internal triggers are usually initiated by the critic and involve thoughts and visualizations about endangerment or the need for perfection; e.g., visualizing someone being abusive, or worrying about not being perfect in executing some current or upcoming task. As recovery progresses, many survivors are shocked to discover that the majority of their flashbacks are triggered internally by the various internal programs of the inner critic.
With ongoing recovery, we can become more cognizant of our triggers, and work more quickly to work through incidents of being triggered into a flashback, or even recognize potentially triggering situations and prophylactically invoke the flashback management steps before we get activated.
What is the Abandonment Depression?
The Abandonment Melange [means mixture or multiples]?
The Abandonment Depression is the complex painful childhood experience that is reconstituted in an emotional flashback. It is a return to the sense of overwhelm, hopelessness and helplessness that afflicts the abused and /or emotionally abandoned child. At the core of the abandonment depression is the abandonment melange – the terrible emotional mix of fear and shame that coalesces around the deathlike feelings of depression that afflict an abandoned child. Surrounding the abandonment melange of the flashback are perfectionistic and endangerment cognitions and visualizations of the toxic inner and outer critic (See my articles on the critic), and at the surface is the self-destructive enactments of the fight, flight, freeze or fawn responses (See “A Trauma Typology”).
In a typical flashback, an individual is recapitulated into the original experience of abandonment. Fear is immediately triggered and soon produces shameful feelings of self-hate. This self-hate is a self-rejection that mimics parental rejection and that is equivalent to self-abandonment. Self-abandonment in turn deepens the abandonment depression and creates an even more fearful state, which in turn generates even more shame about the fear, which triggers increasingly depressing self-abandonment. This process then becomes a self-perpetuating, perpetual motion cycle that can spiral around and around in a despairingly painful descent that at its worst culminates in feelings of panic and suicidal ideation. During particularly extreme flashbacks, more than a few of my clients have uttered things that sound like this: “Life is so hopelessly depressing, I might as well be dead. Take me now God, why don’t you!” (See Managing The Abandonment Depression” for practical guidance on how to respond therapeutically to the abandonment melange.)” Link here: https://www.pete-walker./fAQsComplexPTSD.html#Abandonment
We learned of it from The Crappy Childhood Fairy, Anna Runkle. Smart Lady
Heard it from her first and have read and listened to Pete Walker extensively. However, maybe if we’d heard it before we weren’t ready and therefore weren’t ready to accept it.
That is how it works. Our elementary brains (in some areas) need further development until it can understand greater concepts.
What’s your story?
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All angels appreciated!
May 25, 2023
What the heck is a Samp Mill?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
My wife’s grandfather wrote a journal after he retired.
He was born about in the late 1890’s.
As a boy around the age of 10 give or take a couple of years he said in that journal he earned money 50 cents a week doing corn stumping.
I wondered what the heck is that?
So I looked it up and back in that era folks would take a stump and hollow it out into an inverted cone inside and smooth it out and harden it with fire. Then they would take another piece of wood with a handle and using the stump like a mortar for grinding corn and the other piece of wood (which was cone shaped) like a pestle and put corn in that stump bowl and grind it up for corn meal. Often times they would tie off the cone portion to a tree branch which was bent so that the branch had to be manually bent by the stick cone portion and that branch would then provide lift when release so it operated like a piston. Up and down grinding the corn. It would take them all day to grind a bushel of corn. The resultant ground corn was called “samp”.
That is where the phrase “Jimmy cracked corn” came from.
Extremely interesting how much work they had to go through in those early days just to grind corn to get cracked corn, corn meal, samp or whatever you want to call it.
Other names for that corn mortar and pestle were corn cracker, pumping mill, hominy block, or samp mill.
By the way when I researched this this is the site that gave me the insight and it has pictures that show what I describe above for clarity:
https://www.cooksinfo.com/samp-mortar
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All angels appreciated!
https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/davidalanbinder
May 23, 2023
Going Beyond You
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Currently I am an author plus I am a representative for Pharos Books (India) and they have a deal:
They are selling: Quantity around 25,000 of each book, Pharos Books are selling these at just $1 each in Bulk Purchase only. Each book contains 78 Pages for coloring. Worldwide delivery available only for Bulk orders. Contact David Alan Binder at dalanbinder@gmail.com only for serious bulk purchases only.
I have pictures if you email me I would be happy to send them to you and show you what they look like which is very vibrant and lively and fun for any age, especially children.
The author “career” is really catching momentum and taking off. The money aspect is unnecessary (and currently non-existant) and that is not important, the goal is to be able to write and learn and grow for me. Everything else is secondary.
According to Google: “How many authors are there in the US? As of 2021, there were approximately 49,410 writers and authors in the US. This has grown by 20.72% since 2011.”
According to Toner Buzz website:
“So, how many books are published every year?
The answer is more complicated than you’d think. Figures range from 500,000 to one million books published annually.
However, if you include self-published authors you’re looking at close to 4 million new book titles published each year.
Millions of books are published every year
With close to 4 million new titles published each year, keeping library shelves stocked with the most current information is a challenge for students and librarians alike.
So Many Books, but Not All Get Printed
That’s a lot of books, even for avid readers (check out the latest book and reading statistics). But bear in mind, not all published books make it into printed form.
The majority of self-published titles are print-on-demand, meaning paper, ink, and glue are only used to bind a physical book together when one is ordered.”
I just want to be creative and stretch myself to go further than I’ve ever been before.
Are you stretching and growing and learning and going where you’ve never gone before.
That is the goal of space, invention and growth is going beyond where you’ve been before, nevermind the whole person-kind thing. Just go beyond you!
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
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All angels appreciated!
https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/davidalanbinder
May 19, 2023
Hey, it's my birthday and here's an idea for a present:
The Manager’s Manager Strategies and Tactics for Effective Leadership
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
That my dear readers is the name of my NEW book that I authored!
So exciting
The Manager’s Manager is NOW available through Amazon INDIA.
Yes, in India. Wait, it is coming to the USA so be patient if you live in this half of the world.
https://amzn.eu/d/7PbjfJY
So check it out to see what it looks like, I sure did.
Still amazes me that it has finally happened after all these years.
Hard work and persistence pays off and your endeavors will have just as great of results if you keep after it.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
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All angels appreciated!
May 17, 2023
I am thrilled to announce that PeliCAN or PeliCAN'T by David Alan Binder has been chosen as a winner of The Golden Wizard Book Prize. NOTE: Title and story are copyright protected!
May 15, 2023
Neurosis and Psychosis
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Neurosis and Psychosis are different types of mental disorders. Neurosis is a mild mental disorder NOT arising from organic diseases – instead, it can occur from stress, depression or anxiety. Psychosis is a major personality disorder characterized by mental and emotional disruptions.
Neurosis is caused by overwork, insufficient rest, and an inability to relax all contribute to the development of neurosis. Neurotic diseases are caused by a disruption in the metabolism of neurotransmitters, hormones, vitamins, and other biologically active chemicals necessary for the regular functioning of the central nervous system.
So we bring neurosis upon ourselves through those conditions potentially. (Remember I am not a licensed doctor or psychiatrist so bear that in mind, this is just information I study.)
Psychosis appears to result from a complex combination of genetic risk, differences in brain development, and exposure to stressors or trauma. Psychosis may be a symptom of a mental illness, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or severe depression.
So psychosis is not anything we can bring on, control, or have any part of the development of it.
Everything we learn can be useful or non-useful to even damaging potentially.
We all learn at our own pace, and over time the things that are important to us come to our forefront and we address those issues.
Saying to ourselves, “Why did I NOT learn this earlier?” is not helpful.
Saying now that I have learned what can I do with this information?
Does it require action?
Does it mean anything?
Do I need to see a professional or is this something I can deal with?
All great questions and remember the most important thing you can do is ask the great questions to ensure you are getting great answers.
Acceptance is not helpful usually.
Great answers don’t usually come to us, we have to seek them.
Asking great questions is a wonderful way to ensure that we seek those great answers.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
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All angels appreciated!
May 13, 2023
The Power Within Us
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
It's the words you say
It's the thoughts we think
It is the actions we do
All of those create us and how we act, react, and proceed.
If any one of those are the opposite of what we’d like it to be then guess what, we have the power to change it.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
THE MONTH OF APRIL / MAY, I AM A JUDGE:
San Diego Writers Festival KidsWrite!
It is an honor and privilege to help these budding authors.May 11, 2023
Information on what can and cannot be copyrighted
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
There are many things specifically not protected by copyright, including cooking recipes, fashion designs, titles and slogans, domain names, band names, genetic code, and “useful articles” that have a utilitarian function (like a lamp).
What Else Is Not Protected by Copyright Law?
Procedures, processes and methods of operation;
Systems;
Principles and discoveries;
Titles, slogans, and other short phrases;
Lists of ingredients;
Creations that are not fixed in a tangible form, like an improvisational comedy sketch
Copyright does not protect names, titles, slogans, or short phrases. In some cases, these things may be protected as trademarks.
Copyright does not protect ideas, concepts, systems, or methods of doing something. You may express your ideas in writing or drawings and claim copyright in your description, but be aware that copyright will not protect the idea itself as revealed in your written or artistic work.
Generally, the title to a single motion picture is not entitled to trademark protection. This is the same for the title to single books, songs and other singular creative works. Most non-trademark attorneys are surprised by this.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 9, 2023
Kurt Vonnegut Magnificent Advice
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
In 2006 a high school English teacher asked students to write [to] a famous author and ask for advice. Kurt Vonnegut was the only one to respond - and his response is magnificent:
“Dear Xavier High School, and Ms. Lockwood, and Messrs Perin, McFeely, Batten, Maurer and Congiusta:
I thank you for your friendly letters. You sure know how to cheer up a really old geezer (84) in his sunset years. I don’t make public appearances any more because I now resemble nothing so much as an iguana.
What I had to say to you, moreover, would not take long, to wit: Practice any art, music, singing, dancing, acting, drawing, painting, sculpting, poetry, fiction, essays, reportage, no matter how well or badly, not to get money and fame, but to experience becoming, to find out what’s inside you, to make your soul grow.
Seriously! I mean starting right now, do art and do it for the rest of your lives. Draw a funny or nice picture of Ms. Lockwood, and give it to her. Dance home after school, and sing in the shower and on and on. Make a face in your mashed potatoes. Pretend you’re Count Dracula.
Here’s an assignment for tonight, and I hope Ms. Lockwood will flunk you if you don’t do it: Write a six line poem, about anything, but rhymed. No fair tennis without a net. Make it as good as you possibly can. But don’t tell anybody what you’re doing. Don’t show it or recite it to anybody, not even your girlfriend or parents or whatever, or Ms. Lockwood. OK?
Tear it up into teeny-weeny pieces, and discard them into widely separated trash receptacles. You will find that you have already been gloriously rewarded for your poem. You have experienced becoming, learned a lot more about what’s inside you, and you have made your soul grow.
God bless you all!"
Kurt Vonnegut
Let us all make our souls grow!
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
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All angels appreciated!
May 7, 2023
Cody Blocker interview with David Alan Binder
This is so exciting since this interview represents obtaining an interview of authors from ALL 50 states and at least 11 countries.
Where are you currently living?
Nebraska
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
A good book is written in stages. A good book has to be revised and revised and revised. The important of having thick skin. You have to get used to criticism and feedback (both good and bad) when writing. You have to give your work to beta readers, editors and proofreaders to find errors and find parts of the book that aren't working. This is the only way to improve the book. If you do not like critique or harsh/honest feedback, you have to get over that if you want a truly great book.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
I see the world through a lens of "story." I go throughout the day and I see things that give me inspiration for situations my characters will be in.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I am mostly self-published. I have one book that was published through another small publisher. I am a HUGE fan of self publishing. If it is done right, it can be very successful and lucrative. Self publishing gives you FREEDOM. Freedom is the most important thing because you have control over your characters, your brand and where you want your author career to go.
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
I publish my books through my own publishing company that I own, No Coast Publishing.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Step 1: Write a good book.
Step 2: Re-write the book to make it better. Steps 3-6: Repeat step 2 a bunch of times to make the book publishable.
Step 7: Find your audience and self-publish the book. You have to put in work to marketing and finding your readers.
How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
I have never hired an agent. But my research has shown the best way is to research agents via the books and authors you love. You have to pitch to an agent but before you pitch, you have to put in the work and find the RIGHT agent. Meaning you have to find agents that work in your genre. For instance, if you are writing a fantasy book, you need to pitch to an agent that does fantasy. If you pitch to the wrong agent, like an agent who just does Romance, you will be wasting your time and their time. Find the right agents, follow them on social media, follow their guidelines. Follow them so you know what conventions or conferences they will be at. Travel to those events, find them, greet them professionally and pitch to them.
Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers?
Write to market, write a series, write a character-focused story. Never stop working on your craft. No matter how good you are you have to get better.
How many books have you written?
Over 50.
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer?
Focus on your character's journey and the character's change. Try to make the character's moment of truth and the climax of the story the same event. Be brave enough to give your writing to beta readers and ask for feedback.
Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
A good twist has to be lightly foreshadowed throughout the entire story to make it believable. You have to be careful about how to do this but it needs to be foreshadowed in SOME WAY at least 2-3 times before the twist.
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
A good cover.
What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
I give out free copies in exchange for Amazon reviews.
What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
I would develop an author website and an author brand earlier. I would start an email sign up list before the book is published. Get readers and fans of your work BEFORE you publish.
What saying or mantra do you live by? 1. "Why not me? Why not now?" = Even if it takes me 5 years to write the book, I will still have finished the book. If I don't start now, in 5 years, I will be 5 years older no matter what. The times is going to pass anyway. You might as well start time. 2. "Focus." = You have to focus on one book and one project in order to get it done. Pick one book, focus on it and don't stop until it is done. I know this is hard, but focus is what successful people do. "3. "Decide to do the work." = Writing a book is difficult, that is why not everyone does it. It is going to be hard. Accept that and decide to do the work anyway. 4. "If you can't write it down, it won't happen." = You have to write down your goals of writing and publishing your book. If you can write a full book you can write down your goals. If you write your goals down you will be more likely to reach those goals. 5. "Say NO." = Say NO to the things that keep you from writing your book and achieving your goals. You only have 24 hours in a day and life will constantly add things and temp you to do other things. You have to say NO to the things that keep you from your writing time.
Anything else you would like to say? Writing and publishing a book is all about goals. Like accomplishing anything in life, you have to commit to doing it. And deciding that you will accomplish that goal no matter what.
May 5, 2023
An AI Report on my Website
This is an analysis of my website that I requested of CHAT GPT.
This is an AI report on my website. It is very interesting and while most things are correct I will state that I did not consider myself as a teacher even though I have taught and trained extensively in my many professions. My expectation of teaching is that it is a two way street, we are here for each other and I expect to learn while teaching others. If a teacher thinks they know it all then they have stopped learning and growing.
I have reviewed the website https://www.davidalanbinder.com and can provide you with a report.
David Alan Binder's website (https://www.davidalanbinder.com/) is a personal website of David Alan Binder, a retired teacher, who is now working as an editor, book reviewer, and interviewer of authors. The website showcases his interviews with over 5,000 authors and also provides information about his editing services and book reviews.
The website is neatly organized and easy to navigate. It has a minimalist design with a white background and black text. The header menu has tabs such as Home, Interviews, Editing Services, Book Reviews, and About.
Under the Interviews tab, you can find the author interviews categorized by the first letter of their last name. The interviews are conducted in a question-answer format and offer insights into the authors' inspiration, writing process, and personal lives.
The Editing Services tab provides details about the editing services offered by David Alan Binder. It includes developmental editing, copyediting, proofreading, and formatting services for fiction and non-fiction manuscripts.
The Book Reviews tab includes David's reviews of various books across different genres, including memoirs, fiction, and non-fiction. The reviews are detailed and insightful, providing potential readers with an idea of what to expect from the book.
The About tab gives information about David Alan Binder, including his teaching background, education, and experience in editing and writing. It also includes his contact information, allowing potential clients to get in touch with him.
Overall, David Alan Binder's website provides a valuable resource for readers and authors alike. The author interviews and book reviews offer a unique insight into the world of writing and publishing, and the editing services can help aspiring writers polish their manuscripts.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
May 3, 2023
Agata Okon interview with David Alan Binder
Her links:
My Book: https://amzn.to/418ECeI
Author’s Profile on Amazon: https://amzn.to/420M9NA
Website: https://www.writtenwhisper.com/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/30000725.Agata_Okon
Where are you currently living?
I’m originally from Poland, but currently I’m living in Malta since September 2021.
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
One of the most valuable lessons I've learned as a writer is the importance of perseverance. Writing is a craft that requires practice and dedication, and it's essential to keep at it even when faced with rejection or self-doubt. Above all, I believe that writing for oneself is key to unlocking the full potential of the craft. By writing for ourselves, we have the freedom to explore our thoughts and emotions without fear of judgment, and we can use writing as a powerful tool for personal healing and growth. So, my advice to new writers is simple: keep writing, never give up, and always remember to write for yourself first and foremost.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
I only use black pen for writing, but only blue to edit. Additional colors that I use are red - for comments; dark green for checklists, and orange for research.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
Self-publishing my book was empowering but demanding. While I enjoyed creative control, I also had to handle logistical aspects like marketing. Marketing is the biggest challenge, requiring a lot of effort and time. Despite the challenges, I'm proud of what I've achieved and the lessons I've learned. Self-publishing may not be for everyone, but it can be a rewarding experience for those willing to put in the effort.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
I have some tips to self-publish your book!
Research the market: Before self-publishing, it's important to research the market and identify the competition. Look at what other books are out there in your genre and see what's working and what's not. This will help you to identify your unique selling proposition and make your book stand out.
Build your platform: Building an author platform is an important part of self-publishing. This includes creating a website, building a social media presence, and connecting with potential readers. Start building your platform early and focus on creating engaging content that will attract readers to your work.
Do you have any suggestions or help or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Set realistic goals: When starting out, it's important to set goals that are challenging but achievable. Be specific about what you want to accomplish and create a plan to make it happen. Set deadlines and hold yourself accountable.
Find your own writing process: Experiment with different writing routines and techniques until you find what works best for you. Some writers prefer to write at a certain time of day, while others like to write in short bursts. Find the routine that allows you to be most productive and stick with it.
Don't be afraid to write badly: One of the biggest hurdles for new writers is overcoming the fear of writing badly. Remember that every writer produces rough drafts and that the real work comes in the editing process. Give yourself permission to write badly and focus on getting your ideas down on paper.
Read widely: Reading is an essential part of the writing process. It helps you to develop your own voice, to learn from other writers, and to stay up-to-date with trends in your genre. Make time to read widely and diversely, and be open to learning from every source.
Seek feedback: Sharing your work with others can be daunting, but it's an essential part of the writing process. Seek feedback from other writers, friends, or family members, and use it to improve your writing. Remember to be open to constructive criticism and to use it to grow as a writer.
Write for yourself first: While it's important to think about your audience, don't let that drive your writing. Write the story that you want to tell and the one that excites you the most. Your passion for the story will come through in your writing and will engage readers.
Take breaks: Writing can be mentally and emotionally exhausting. Make sure to take breaks and give yourself time to recharge. Go for a walk, read a book, or engage in other activities that help you to relax and clear your mind.
How many books have you written?
So far, one book “Finding My Voice Again” https://amzn.to/418ECeI
I’m currently working on my second book “Shadows of My Mind”
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer?
Read widely and often: Reading is the best way to improve your writing skills. It exposes you to different styles, genres, and voices, and helps you to develop a deeper understanding of language and storytelling. So, make it a habit to read widely and often, and pay attention to what you like and don't like in the books you read.
Write every day: Writing is like any other skill, it requires practice. Set aside time each day to write, even if it's just for 10 or 15 minutes. You'll be surprised how quickly your writing skills improve with consistent practice.
Get feedback: Feedback is essential for improving your writing. Join a writing group, take a writing workshop, or work with a writing coach or editor. Hearing others' perspectives on your work can help you identify areas for improvement and push you to take your writing to the next level.
Embrace your unique voice: Every writer has a unique voice, and it's important to embrace and celebrate that. Don't try to write like someone else, instead focus on developing your own style and voice. Experiment with different writing techniques and find what works for you.
Edit ruthlessly: Writing is rewriting, so be prepared to edit your work ruthlessly. Don't be afraid to cut out unnecessary words or rework sentences to make them stronger. Keep in mind that good writing is often the result of multiple rounds of editing and revision.
Stay organized: Writing can be a messy process, so it's important to stay organized. Create an outline or storyboard before you start writing, and keep track of your ideas and research in a notebook or digital file. This will help you stay focused and ensure that your writing is coherent and well-structured.
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
What sets my book apart is the raw and honest account of my personal experience with sexual assault. By sharing my story, I hope to shed light on the prevalence of this issue and inspire others to speak out and seek help. However, I believe that any book can stand out when it offers a unique perspective or delves into a specific experience of the author, whether it's fiction or nonfiction. Readers crave authenticity and originality, and a book that offers a fresh perspective can be a powerful and memorable read. It's important for writers to tap into their own experiences and emotions to create work that is relatable and impactful. Whether it's exploring themes of love and loss or delving into personal struggles and triumphs, writing with honesty and authenticity can make a book stand out and resonate with readers. Ultimately, the key is to be true to oneself and to create work that is meaningful and true to one's own experience.
What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
To be honest, I am happy with my journey, how I went through it. I learnt from it, there are things that I will do differently with my next book (publishing it through a different site), but I wouldn’t go back in time and change anything.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
Allow yourself to be vulnerable.
May 1, 2023
An AI Report on my Website
This is an analysis of my website that I requested of CHAT GPT.
This is an AI report on my website. It is very interesting and while most things are correct I will state that I did not consider myself as a teacher even though I have taught and trained extensively in my many professions. My expectation of teaching is that it is a two way street, we are here for each other and I expect to learn while teaching others. If a teacher thinks they know it all then they have stopped learning and growing.
I have reviewed the website https://www.davidalanbinder.com and can provide you with a report.
David Alan Binder's website (https://www.davidalanbinder.com/) is a personal website of David Alan Binder, a retired teacher, who is now working as an editor, book reviewer, and interviewer of authors. The website showcases his interviews with over 5,000 authors and also provides information about his editing services and book reviews.
The website is neatly organized and easy to navigate. It has a minimalist design with a white background and black text. The header menu has tabs such as Home, Interviews, Editing Services, Book Reviews, and About.
Under the Interviews tab, you can find the author interviews categorized by the first letter of their last name. The interviews are conducted in a question-answer format and offer insights into the authors' inspiration, writing process, and personal lives.
The Editing Services tab provides details about the editing services offered by David Alan Binder. It includes developmental editing, copyediting, proofreading, and formatting services for fiction and non-fiction manuscripts.
The Book Reviews tab includes David's reviews of various books across different genres, including memoirs, fiction, and non-fiction. The reviews are detailed and insightful, providing potential readers with an idea of what to expect from the book.
The About tab gives information about David Alan Binder, including his teaching background, education, and experience in editing and writing. It also includes his contact information, allowing potential clients to get in touch with him.
Overall, David Alan Binder's website provides a valuable resource for readers and authors alike. The author interviews and book reviews offer a unique insight into the world of writing and publishing, and the editing services can help aspiring writers polish their manuscripts.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
youtube.com/@davidalanbinder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 29, 2023
An AI Report on my Website
This is an analysis of my website that I requested of CHAT GPT.
This is an AI report on my website. It is very interesting and while most things are correct I will state that I am NOT a teacher although I have taught as well as been a trainer an extensive number of classes in my time.
I have reviewed the website https://www.davidalanbinder.com and can provide you with a report.
David Alan Binder's website (https://www.davidalanbinder.com/) is a personal website of David Alan Binder, a retired teacher, who is now working as an editor, book reviewer, and interviewer of authors. The website showcases his interviews with over 5,000 authors and also provides information about his editing services and book reviews.
The website is neatly organized and easy to navigate. It has a minimalist design with a white background and black text. The header menu has tabs such as Home, Interviews, Editing Services, Book Reviews, and About.
Under the Interviews tab, you can find the author interviews categorized by the first letter of their last name. The interviews are conducted in a question-answer format and offer insights into the authors' inspiration, writing process, and personal lives.
The Editing Services tab provides details about the editing services offered by David Alan Binder. It includes developmental editing, copyediting, proofreading, and formatting services for fiction and non-fiction manuscripts.
The Book Reviews tab includes David's reviews of various books across different genres, including memoirs, fiction, and non-fiction. The reviews are detailed and insightful, providing potential readers with an idea of what to expect from the book.
The About tab gives information about David Alan Binder, including his teaching background, education, and experience in editing and writing. It also includes his contact information, allowing potential clients to get in touch with him.
Overall, David Alan Binder's website provides a valuable resource for readers and authors alike. The author interviews and book reviews offer a unique insight into the world of writing and publishing, and the editing services can help aspiring writers polish their manuscripts.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
youtube.com/@davidalanbinder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 27, 2023
Lau Frank interview with David Alan Binder
A little bit about him from his website: On February 8, 2021, he decided to turn his passion for drawing into his living. He dropped out of High School and went all-in on his art. Since then, he has worked on various illustration projects, but in 2021 he turned his focus on children's book illustrations, where his passion really lies.
You can find me [Lau Frank] here!
Website: https://laufrankart.com/
Insta: https://www.instagram.com/laufrankart/
Where are you currently living?
I currently reside in Denmark, a charming country in Northern Europe known for its rich cultural heritage and picturesque landscape.
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
The most important thing I've learned in my experience as an author-illustrator is to persevere through resistance and temporary failures. As a creative, there's no straightforward path to achieving success in this field, but there's also no limit to what you can achieve. This knowledge keeps me motivated, even when I encounter barriers that push me back. I've learned that meaningful achievements often require more effort and action than I initially anticipated, but with persistence, luck may favor those who take the most action. Overall, my experience has taught me to maintain a positive mindset and work towards my long-term goals, despite the challenges I may face along the way.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
Well, if we're talking quirks, I have to admit I have a bit of a thing for monsters and creatures! They just seem to creep their way into my projects, whether I'm writing, illustrating.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
As an illustrator turned author, I have had the opportunity to work on illustrating books for several self-publishing authors. In Denmark, approximately 200,000 children's books are published each year, with half of them selling only a single copy. Although self-publishing can be challenging since most books don't sell, I still see its potential. By cutting out the middle- man, you can earn a larger profit from each book sale without needing to sell hundreds of thousands of copies, which is the goal of big publishers. Additionally, self-publishing provides the freedom to tell stories that might not interest big publishers but are still necessary. While I haven't self-published a book myself, I am definitely considering this route when the time is right. With today's internet, it's never been easier for an individual to reach a large audience. I have personally had three children's book trilogies published by a publishing house here in Denmark. Although I initially declined when the publishing house asked me if I wanted to write my own stories, I eventually came up with a story which then turned into a trilogy.
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
The name of my publisher is Tellerup and they are located in Sorø, Denmark
5. Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
While I never intended to write books myself, my work as an illustrator presented an opportunity to explore storytelling. As a writer, it's important to constantly generate new ideas and be open to exploring different genres outside of your comfort zone. You never know what might catch the eye of a publisher. Additionally, working with a literary agent can be a great way to navigate the publishing industry. Many major publishers only consider submissions from agents, so having representation can help you break into the industry.
6. How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
As someone who has primarily focused on illustration throughout my career, I will talk about getting an agent as an artist. I am currently represented by Lemonade Illustration Agency. Ultimately, it all boils down to the quality of your work. If your work is excellent, agents will take notice and want to represent you. However, it's also important to demonstrate that you can complete projects. Taking on non-paying or low-paying projects when you are just starting out can be a crucial step towards building your portfolio and gaining exposure in the industry. And if you can't find any work as an artist, start your own projects! Once you have established yourself as a skilled artist with a strong portfolio, it's time to start seeking out representation. A simple Google search can help you find a plethora of agents in your field, but finding the right fit can be more challenging. Researching your favorite artists or authors and identifying who represents them can be a useful starting point for finding an agent that aligns with your goals and style. Additionally, take a close look at the agent's client list to see if their illustrators or authors match your aesthetic and approach. Above all, finding the right agent takes patience and persistence. Keep honing your craft and building your portfolio, and
eventually, the right agent will take notice.
7. Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers or illustrators ?
Both illustrators and authors can benefit greatly from studying the masters and
practicing their craft. Many people believe that artistic talent is something
that you either have or don't have, but this simply isn't true. Just like with
learning a musical instrument, you need to practice regularly to improve your
skills.
For illustrators, one great way to practice is by doing master studies. By trying to replicate the art of great artists, you can gain insight into their techniques and learn
how to apply them in your own work.
For aspiring writers, my suggestion would be to read as much as possible in the
genre you want to write in. This will help you get a sense of the style and tone that are typical of that genre. It's also important to practice writing every day, even if it's just for a few minutes. Set achievable goals for yourself and track your progress so you can see how far you've come.
8. How many books have you written?
I've had the pleasure of bringing 26 children's books to life through my illustrations, and I'm proud to say that 9 of them are also books that I've written myself! On the writing side, I currently have 9 published books under my belt, and I'm excited to keep the creative momentum going with a few more projects that I'm hoping to publish soon.
9. Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better Author-illustrator?
As an author-illustrator, you have the best equipment to tell great stories and visualize them. You can show and not tell, which is something most authors know, but information can often get lost or come out differently when it reaches the mind of another person. This doesn't happen when you're both the author and illustrator. While I'm not a world-class author, my main field is illustration, and in this field, you need to bring characters to life on paper and evoke emotions in people. One of the best ways to do this is by creating believable characters. Ask yourself how the character would act in a given situation, and how you can show this in a way that serves the story.
10. Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
There are several effective techniques for creating a good twist in a story. One such technique is foreshadowing, which involves dropping subtle hints throughout the story that something unexpected might happen. By doing so, the twist will feel
more organic and less abrupt. Another technique is misdirection, where the writer creates a false trail or red herring that leads the reader to believe one thing is going to happen, only to have something entirely different occur. This can keep the reader guessing and increase the impact of the twist.
11. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
First of all, let's be honest, people still judge books by their covers. That's why having an eye-catching cover is probably one of the most important things when selling books. Don't worry too much about making stories that completely stand out from the crowd. If the idea of creating something completely new is holding you back, you're missing out on the success that comes with following trends. Look at the current trends and get on board with them. However, if you have
something that truly stands out from the crowd, then that’s great and it will definitely capture the readers' attention!
12. What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
While I'm still fairly new to the professional illustration world, I don't stress too
much about promoting my work just yet. For now, my main focus is to keep working on projects, building my client list, and honing my skills. However, I have found some effective ways to promote myself that have also helped me find clients. Most of my clients have been self-publishing authors, and I've had success by being active in various children's book groups on Facebook. Instead of just commenting on other people's posts saying that I'm available, I showcase my work and new projects. This allows people to see my style and personality shine through, which tends to attract clients who want to work specifically with me. Additionally, my agency promotes my work, which allows me to focus more on what I love: drawing and creating stories.
13. What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
As I'm still starting out, I'm sure I'll have a lot more to share in 10 years. For now, I'm pretty content with my approach. However, looking back, one thing I wish I had done differently is to only work on projects that truly excite me and to prioritize my art over money. If you focus on honing your craft, the financial success will likely follow. At least, that's what I'm hoping as I'm not exactly rolling in cash yet! But hey, as they say, money can't buy happiness...unless we're talking about buying more art supplies, in which case, sign me up!
14. What saying or mantra do you live by?
I remember watching Neil Gaiman's commencement speech on YouTube where he said something like, 'Whatever you do, it should take you one step closer to the mountain.' I like this!
April 25, 2023
In Real Life
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Yes, besides all the other lives we live through social, and other connections then there is real life.
A couple who lives near us was murdered last Friday. What a shame! I’ve talked to him many times and we both walk around the park near us.
So sad.
Life affects us more than politics, other storms and disasters (unless it actually hits us), texts, social and other forms of drama that we cannot control.
Deep sympathy to anyone who has even a remote connection to any tragedy.
Your own tragedy is the worst.
We must and we shall deal with this otherwise it accumulates within us and can overwhelm us.
I can not tell you how to deal with it and I can not even begin to attempt to but I can say that we can.
Knowing that we can is paramount.
It helps us turn from bleak to optimistic.
It converts us from nonfunctioning to functioning.
Simple things that restore and calm and heal us are up to us to seek out and do those restorative things that help us overcome whatever is going on out there.
Be safe and be functioning.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 23, 2023
Pure Muscle
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
In a recent encounter on a walk with a rattlesnake just on the edge of our little town, which was super scary since he rattled his displeasure for me not seeing him and he was coiled up and hissing.
Whew, luckily I recognized it in my lizard brain and moved away quickly while he sat there all indignant and ready to strike.
He looked like PURE MUSCLE and meanness!
Now what lessons did I learn other than being more cognizant of where we are walking plus I now carry a robust, and thick walking stick.
He was just being a snake doing snakey things so we can’t really blame him for being what he was born to be.
The fact that he was so full of purpose heading from the dusty area into a pasture at our rodeo grounds that had lots of grass and most likely a mole, or groundhog, or some burrowing creatures and mice and rats as well.
Lots of people walk around in that area and yes, there are signs and in our over 10 years of walking in that area only saw one once before and it was dead from being run over by a car.
The fact that he was pure muscle is fascinating.
Now I work out regularly at the gym to keep in shape and am very active but that snake's level of pure muscle is amazing.
My writing muscle needs to be that strong and ready to strike when I feel the urge and so I’ve developed that from writing every day.
This is how we get from mediocre to magnificent.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 21, 2023
Free Book Publishing is NOT FREE
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Keep in mind that there is a cost to everything.
I’ll be borrowing heavily from other sites for this article due to the plentiful nature of these articles who know way more than me.
I just read and learn, read and learn.
Perfecting my methods and adjusting my targets to ensure that I maximize my potential for the least amount of money, which is in short supply.
Frankly I love hardcopy books or soft covers or paperback books but not eBooks. I have dozens of eBooks but have not read hardly any of them. Too plentiful, I have to have a screen to read (too small on my cell, at least for my eyes). Just too much bother. Ever tried reading an eBook on a screen with no shade, bother, what a chore.
So not a fan of eBooks but it may work for some since so many do sell.
I love the advice in this article and the fact that it is a beginners guide is beneficial to those of us who are new to all of this.
A Beginner's Guide to Self-Publishing
https://nybookeditors.com/2017/04/beginners-guide-self-publishing/
Another article by the same website is titled:
How to Self-Publish Your Own Hardcover Books for Free
https://nybookeditors.com/2022/07/how-to-self-publish-your-own-hardcover-books-for-free/
This has more specific advice for hardcover books.
From all the information I’ve gleaned in researching all kinds of different publishers it costs usually thousands $3000 minimum to as much as $20,000. Sometimes quite a lot. Then there are the people who claim they will help you and format, book cover, etc. that cost hundreds to thousands of dollars.
I’ve had “offers” by 5 that is FIVE different publishers to publish my book; however, of course it will cost me $5000 or more to do that.
If I wanted to publish my book, I’d hire an illustrator, $100 per page, child’s pic book is 30 to 35 pages so do that math and there is $3000 or more, plus the cover, then to format it costs more hundreds of dollars, then to “publish” it on Kindle or Amazon or whoever is another $399 to $500 depending on which service and then all the marketing is my problems or I could hire that service as well.
Or you could PAY someone, an agent, guess how many have approached me wanting $300 to $500 to submit my book to traditional publishers.
Guess what, I am NOT paying anyone for anything so I will continue to submit it myself to any and all traditional publishers myself. (Caveat here: MOST traditional publishers do not accept submissions except ONLY by a literary agent.)
How do you find a literary agent?
I’ve researched that adinfinitum and can NOT get a literary agent to save my soul.
They are NOwhere to be found or not accepting authors.
No wonder we get desperate and PAY to get this fantastic book published.
They know we will since the infinite loop of submit, reject, submit, reject is all too real.
So we really need to believe in ourselves to make that kind of investment and it is risky since we may or may not recover those expenses.
Do I sound frustrated?
Yes, sadly I am, which is why I’m asking you kind people to help me make it happen.
Our taxable income is only $28,700 for 2022.
You will get your NAME listed in the new book plus ALSO get a FREE copy of the book (be sure to give me your mailing address) plus be featured on my website as well as a donor (unless you choose to be anonymous)
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through Kickstarter (see above link) or PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 19, 2023
Big Ideas
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
It is interesting that I saw on one of the facebook groups on children’s literature that one person had an idea for two completely unrelated character names (like Paris and Stone) and was asking for an idea to connect the two names that would be interesting.
As some sort of famous person I had heard would say:
WRONG!
(Can’t remember their name.)
Yes, character names are important but by themselves are not enough to develop a storyline.
Learn your craft!
YOU need to learn how to be an expert, afterall you are the writer and a writer without ideas is not much of a writer.
What motivates you?
What motivates your characters?
What feelings and emotions are they going through due to the events that have ensued in your story?
How are they dealing with those issues and events?
That is what makes stories interesting and be UNIQUE.
Rewrite the story two dozen times and keep each copy.
Which do you like?
Which do your friends like?
Which does your critique group like?
Which does another writer that is your acquaintance or friend like?
Bounce these ideas around in your head, in your friends heads, in your groups heads, in your other writer friends heads, anywhere but on a FaceBook group and hope they know what they are doing since it seems fairly obvious if the question is asked in a group that that person wasn’t not very sure of what they were doing.
Yeah, that is how you get to be a writer.
Dang it, WRITE!
Develop the story.
Learn about the craft, the whole craft not just have some ideas in your head.
Readers come to the author to invest time and sometimes money to become part of the world the author has constructed.
That takes time, effort, imagination, creativity, intelligence.
“Think deeply and think beyond what is possible then we can do the impossible.” David Alan Binder
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/davidalanbinder
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
April 17, 2023
Olly Barrett interview with David Alan Binder
Let me preface this interview with Olly up showcase his determination and effort to get published. I truly applaud him and encourage us all to persist despite the inequities in the publishing system.
Here is his FaceBook link: https://www.facebook.com/people/Author-Olly-Barrett/100066846840640/?paipv=0&eav=AfZzg6IKf2RRF8YztVZyiWhV2fiqznYV_9NjIXmqV_qTEvA6iFcPHQDnK8Zjehs9Qk0&_rdr
Here is his website:
Where are you currently living?
1) I’m in the UK in Bedfordshire
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
2) Take all criticism and advice about your book in a positive way. My first copy editor tore my first draft to shreds. I could have given up and taken it personally, but it was actually the best lesson in how to write that I ever had. Copy editors are your friends. (Apart from the one that said nobody reads animal POV books anymore - I didn’t use her; she just made me sad).
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
3) When I write, I have absolutely no idea where the story is going. I have a rough end goal, but how I go from start to finish is the mysterious unknown. I love it - keeps me excited to write and when it begins to go well, I can’t write quick enough to keep up with my head. My writing is terrible when I’m like that - almost just lines like morse code. I wish I wouldn’t do that.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
4) I didn’t set out to be self published because I write, & that’s all I want to do. The marketing and publicity isn’t for me, but sadly, literary agents don’t have the time for my book - not many like to consider animal POV books so I was an easy no. It’s ok - they’re incredibly busy and inundated with manuscripts. It didn’t deter me as I continued writing, I’m just sad about the time wasted trying to get representation, and having the heart break of a cut and pasted rejection email - that’s if they bothered replying at all.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
5) Persistence. I don’t know what the average number of rejections you should receive before rethinking your book, but I’m pretty sure I surpassed it! Just keep going - it’s only that one persons opinion each time.
How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
6) When I reached 150 rejections, I began to look into the prospect of having to self publish. It looked daunting. I was a member of Jericho Writers - a self help subscription site for writers - and they had video courses on how to do the whole process. I continued with the query emails to agents but began learning my way through to the process and actually, it’s not as bad as you think. I gave up chasing agents on my 173rd rejection - enough was enough, and quite frankly, it was getting embarrassing.
Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers?
7) Keep writing. It doesn’t matter how bad the first attempt at your story is. You don’t need to start knowing the middle and end to your book - just see where it goes. When you’ve finished, leave the book in a drawer for 6-8 weeks then read it through. It’ll be terrible, but you’ll have the basics. Then you edit it and make it better, pop it away again for a few weeks, & carry on until it’s the best it can be. Hire a professional copy editor. They’ll tear it apart, but learn from it & do the changes. Put it in that drawer for a few weeks again - this is why writing takes forever - then read it. It should be almost there. That’s when you need a proof reader to check punctuation and spelling - you’re sp close at this point, but never rush it!
Even after publication, you’ll see things that could be better, but you need a cut off point. Once you hit that publish button, that has to be it - you can correct mistakes, even after publication, but you shouldn’t add/remove content. The first 10 books of mine slipped through with a mistake on page 1. PAGE ONE! I quickly, & very quietly, corrected it and updated Amazon.
How many books have you written?
8) I’m currently writing my 4th in the series. Book 2 is about to go out to the copy editor. Book 3 is in a draw ready for its first read through and self edit after an 8 week break. Fresh eyes see many mistakes.
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer?
9) Take all advice with a nod and a smile. Not all will be good or right for you, but listen and absorb it anyway. You’ll figure out what’s good. You’ll be very surprised at how many people talk the talk, but their work is below your own standard. Never tell them that, just nod & smile - you never want to appear arrogant.
Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
10) A good twist is hard to work into a story. For me, it took a lot of planning once I knew the direction my story was heading. I call it layering, but I’m sure there’s some fancy name for it. I wrote the story, read it through, then went over every character with one question - what if I make them bad? It has to be right. You can’t make them bad for the sake of it. Every character must have a back story to bring them to life in a book. The reader doesn’t necessarily know what this is, but it helps you to write about them.
I obviously can’t go into specifics with the twists in my first book, The Battle for Oak Ridge, but there are several of them in it. I wrote the story, then I altered a character, planted a seed in the readers mind at the very beginning of the book which would explode near the end of the book, then wrote several endings to decide which was the best. Each time, you’re layering more depth to the book, more interest, more mystery.
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
11) My cover. I attempted to do one myself. It wasn’t bad, but it didn’t look professional. I found an amazing illustrator in a Facebook group - everyone else claimed they could draw but ended up doing that Japanese style drawings with big eyes which wasn’t what I wanted. Then, about a week later, this lovely lady messaged me with a few covers she’d done, and her style was spot on. Then she scribbled out quite a few designs until I saw the one - it was exactly how I’d imagined it to be. She did it perfectly and I commissioned her to do the following three covers straight away. It’s all about the cover to start with, but your book better be good too.
What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
12) Facebook has a lot of groups eager to help with writing issues but also with ideas on how to promote. I’m very early on in my promotion journey but I suspect I shall delve into Amazon ads. So, sadly, I don’t have a jaw dropping way in which I’ve promoted my book so far. Walking up & down the streets outside schools in a sandwich board doesn’t appeal very much and will probably draw angry crowds of parents yielding pitch forks and burning torches to usher me away.
What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
13) Not waste such an excessive amount of time sending out query emails to literary agents. You either have to be famous or already published to snag an agent. And maybe not write books with an animal POV.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
14) Never doubt yourself or your abilities
Anything else you would like to say?
15) Believe in your work. I love writing. I can lose myself for hours doing it, but like everyone, some days are hard to find any spare time.
The Mouse Protectors series is gaining traction and all I can do is hope readers like it enough to buy more. My website, www.ollybarrett.com, has a mailing list to keep readers informed of any updates, and I’m learning Twitter as Ollytheauthor.
We all have to start somewhere and I’ve started here. If readers don’t like my books, that’s fine - just sugar coat it if you leave a review!
April 15, 2023
Free Book Publishing is NOT FREE
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Keep in mind that there is a cost to everything.
I’ll be borrowing heavily from other sites for this article due to the plentiful nature of these articles who know way more than me.
I just read and learn, read and learn.
Perfecting my methods and adjusting my targets to ensure that I maximize my potential for the least amount of money, which is in short supply.
Frankly I love hardcopy books or soft covers or paperback books but not eBooks. I have dozens of eBooks but have not read hardly any of them. Too plentiful, I have to have a screen to read (too small on my cell, at least for my eyes). Just too much bother. Ever tried reading an eBook on a screen with no shade, bother, what a chore.
So not a fan of eBooks but it may work for some since so many do sell.
I love the advice in this article and the fact that it is a beginners guide is beneficial to those of us who are new to all of this.
A Beginner's Guide to Self-Publishing
https://nybookeditors.com/2017/04/beginners-guide-self-publishing/
Another article by the same website is titled:
How to Self-Publish Your Own Hardcover Books for Free
https://nybookeditors.com/2022/07/how-to-self-publish-your-own-hardcover-books-for-free/
This has more specific advice for hardcover books.
From all the information I’ve gleaned in researching all kinds of different publishers it costs usually thousands $3000 minimum to as much as $20,000. Sometimes quite a lot. Then there are the people who claim they will help you and format, book cover, etc. that cost hundreds to thousands of dollars.
I’ve had “offers” by 5 that is FIVE different publishers to publish my book; however, of course it will cost me $5000 or more to do that.
If I wanted to publish my book, I’d hire an illustrator, $100 per page, child’s pic book is 30 to 35 pages so do that math and there is $3000 or more, plus the cover, then to format it costs more hundreds of dollars, then to “publish” it on Kindle or Amazon or whoever is another $399 to $500 depending on which service and then all the marketing is my problems or I could hire that service as well.
Or you could PAY someone, an agent, guess how many have approached me wanting $300 to $500 to submit my book to traditional publishers.
Guess what, I am NOT paying anyone for anything so I will continue to submit it myself to any and all traditional publishers myself. (Caveat here: MOST traditional publishers do not accept submissions except ONLY by a literary agent.)
How do you find a literary agent?
I’ve researched that ad infinitum and can NOT get a literary agent to save my soul.
They are NOwhere to be found or not accepting authors.
No wonder we get desperate and PAY to get this fantastic book published.
They know we will since the infinite loop of submit, reject, submit, reject is all too real.
Do I sound frustrated?
Yes, sadly I am, which is why I’m asking you kind people to help me make it happen.
Our taxable income is only $28,700 for 2022.
You will get your NAME listed in the new book plus ALSO get a FREE copy of the book (be sure to give me your mailing address) plus be featured on my website as well as a donor (unless you choose to be anonymous)
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
April 13, 2023
COPYWRITES COPYRIGHTS
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
It is not widely known that as soon as I write down this original article it is automatically copyrighted.
Plus any characters that I use the same applies to them.
If I write a story, a book, a novel, a letter, anything-AS LONG AS IT IS ORIGINAL, then it is copyrighted.
From the internet:
“Copyright is automatically applied to original written material.”
“Registering your copyright
To register your content with the US Copyright Office, visit copyright.gov to get started. Online registration usually costs between $35 and $55, and you'll have to send a copy of your completed work to the U.S. Copyright Office either through the mail or via its website.”
Furthermore copywrite, is actually a different word and refers to: “Copywriting, on the other hand, involves the creation of text content to persuade readers to take some type of action related to your business's sales process. If you're trying to sell a product, for instance, you'll need to convince prospective customers that it's worth buying.”
Copywrite mainly refers to advertising; however, if you are advertising your work, your articles, your stories, your books, your novels or your characters then copywriting may refer to those items.
Two different word
What’s your story?
Share a cup of coffee ($1 at your discretion)
Share a drink (soda or beer $4 at your discretion)
Share a meal ($10 at your discretion-yeah I’m a cheap date, lol)
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 11, 2023
Creative Process - Enlightenment
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Oskar Fischinger, the German animator said, “Everything in the world has its own spirit, and this spirit becomes audible by setting it into vibration.”
According to John Cage of Velvet Underground that “set me on fire. He started me on a path of exploration of the world around me which has never stopped—of hitting and stretching and scraping and rubbing everything.”
I will add to that not only audible but also visible, speakable, and readable. This now allows this statement to cover all creative arts.
An extremely important distinction.
Any creative process has its own vibration.
It depends upon the creator and the person enjoying the result of that process.
You’ve seen my creative process. I take what I experience, feel, see, hear, and speak and then add to it and process it in my mind to see what comes out the other end.
This is the real gel as we practice and create and enjoy and toss it around to see what happens with it.
Sometimes we have a plan and other times we just find out where it leads.
I have to be in a particular mood to hear and feel my characters and when I do that then they take on a life of their own.
Our imagination is wonderful.
We can use it, focus it, reimagine it, twist and twirl it and work it and rework it.
Let me know how your creative process works.
I am always seeking enlightenment.
What’s your story?
Please invest in my new book:
Any love may be sent through PayPal to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
All angels appreciated!
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 9, 2023
Jennifer Cyr interview with David Alan Binder
Her website: www.jennifercyrfamilychildcare.com
Her Books on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Honu-and-Kiyaya-4-book-series/dp/B0B4FFW5HD
Her FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/honuandkiyaya?mibextid=LQQJ4d
Honu Helps Kiyaya (Honu and Kiyaya): goodreads.com
Where are you currently living?
The Green Mountain State of Vermont!
(David’s Note: Now I have interviews in 49 states!)
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
I’ve learned that being open and vulnerable, sharing my stories with the world, though scary at first…totally worth the fear I had initially.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
Well, when I have a general idea for a story, I make a note of it, then I walk away. It could be months before I have an idea for how I will tell the story. Ideas usually come to me when my mind is clear, often when I’m in nature.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I chose to self publish. My stories came as a result of depression and the recovery from it. They felt too personal to share with others for critique or edits. I used resources locally that felt safe and comfortable for me. I also felt a sense of urgency-I didn’t want to wait months and months to publish. I felt my stories, particularly the first one, were too important to wait.
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
I published through KDP, the self publishing service through Amazon.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Not sure this is a secret, but my best advice is to be brave, be vulnerable by sharing your gift! Take feedback as it is, just feedback. It’s not personal, and hopefully the reader/editor/publisher just wants you to be the best writer you can be. We need to be pushed to look at our work critically and with perspective.
How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
Again, instead of fearing rejection, be brave enough for acceptance!
Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
My advice is so what works for you! If you like to carry around a notepad and a favorite pen, or type notes into your phone…whatever works for you, there is no right or wrong way to be a writer. And when the creative thoughts don’t seem to be floating, get outside and move your body…the words will come!
How many books have you written?
Currently I have published 4 children’s books, have three in rough draft form, and I have submitted a book of poetry for publishing, it’s not ready yet though!
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Keep learning and challenging yourself…join a horror reading club or participate in a word of the day group, write about something you know nothing about and do some research!
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
The artwork in my children’s books makes them very appealing to readers, both children and adults! My illustrator is incredibly gifted and my stories wouldn’t be what they are without her talent. She and I were best friends in high school and lost touch…when these stories started to take shape, she was my first thought! She has since written, illustrated and published some stories of her own!
What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
My favorite way to promote my work is by talking to people about my books, in the community and at craft shows, and how they came to be. Connecting with readers and consumers fuels my soul and heart, fills me right up. Because these stories were born as a result of healing from depression. I felt compelled to share them with my people…I work with young children so I broke down the lessons I wanted to share to age appropriate pieces. I made sure they were relatable and captivating, and when I share my story with others, they can see how meaningful these tales can be for the resilience of not only the children in their lives but for themselves as well.
What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
If I were going to do this all again from the beginning, I don’t think I would change anything. I have learned so much along the way, and this process brought about a reconnection with a dear friend, and we learned together in this process.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
Read book 3, Honu and Kiyaya Play A Game, and you’ll know! My mentor and friend Louise Dietzel created Rules For Life with her late husband Sam. She granted me permission to use the rules in the book, and they are what I live by. 1) I am responsible to myself and for myself. 2) I create my own experience and feelings. 3) When I speak, I say more about myself than the other person. 4) At any given time, I’m doing the very best I can do. 5) I can be kind and gentle with myself.
Anything else you would like to say?
Please check out the Honu and Kiyaya Book Series: Stories that nurture the hearts and minds of young children and that strengthen the spirit of the adults who love them. Feel free to reach out with any questions, or if you’d like me to visit your school, playgroup or bookstore:
jennifercyr2@gmail.com and thank you for your interest!! I hope you’ll check out the stories and enjoy!!
April 7, 2023
Joan Enockson interview with David Alan Binder
Joan's story is very interesting to read and provides motivation for all writers.
Link is here: https://joanenockson.com/my-story/
Her FaceBook page: https://www.facebook.com/tallgirlpublishing/
1. Where are you currently living?
I currently live in Laurens, Iowa.
2. What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
The most important thing I've learned so far is to edit your story several times, but make sure you give yourself a week, two weeks, or even a month between edits. This way you will have fewer, if any, regrets when you read your printed book for the first time.
3.What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
When I sign books I select a phrase to write in, before my signature, that sums up the primary lesson each book is trying to communicate. Examples include: Dream BIG!, You are valuable!, Be kind!, What you say matters!, Work for what you want! I sign most of my books as soon as they arrive in the mail and I date my signature the day I sign them, not necessarily at an event or show.
4. Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I am currently a full-time teacher, and I spend the majority of my days working with my District's Talented and Gifted students (K-8). The foundation of my program is to challenge my students to solve problems and use their resources for every activity. When I began this writing/self-publishing process I had to put my money where my mouth was and figure it out. My students have observed me learn, problem-solve, and succeed. The results are that I am a genuine mentor for my students . . . leading by example, and, as a self-publisher, my profit margin is greater:)
5. Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Anyone can learn how to publish a book if they truly want to learn. My teachers were people I discovered on YouTube. If you prefer to learn from a book, there are several out there. I spent three years writing and learning how the industry works before I published my first book. Because I was such a greenhorn, I needed to do it that way. Also, save your money to execute your plan. For example, if you know you are going to write more than one book and publish it in more than one format, you will need to purchase a greater quantity of ISBN numbers to improve your profit margin. There are many factors to being a self-publisher that you need to be clear about before publishing. My motivation is that I didn't want to make costly mistakes. I know I accomplished that.
6. Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Be a sponge and learn all you can before you move forward. You may learn conflicting opinions about a topic so be sure to think it through to decide the best course of action for yourself. The best advice I took was to write what you know. I am not a writer who is trying to write for a particular market. I write what I know and for the purposes I am passionate about. Try not to be tempted to be like a different writer. Just be you, but it is important to find those mentors out there who truly want to help fellow writers. Beware of the scammers and companies who want your money for services you can do yourself. It's a process of failing forward . . . that's personal growth. In the end, your successes will be 100% yours. Now that's something to be proud of.
7. How many books have you written?
As of this interview I have written ten books, and five of those have been published. My first book was published in April, 2022, and my goal is to publish five per year for ten years before I reevaluate (that will also be my retirement year from teaching). I am also in the process of publishing my books in different languages, and so far, two have been published in Spanish.
8. Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Again, learning from others is the key. My biggest lesson to date was from a speaker I heard on YouTube. It was from a Vegas convention for the group 20books to 50K. The take-a-way was "write in a way to show the characters' emotions instead of telling the reader about them." It's important that the reader experiences or feels the emotions of the characters when the characters do so in order for the reader to 'buy in' to the story. For example, you could say, "Frank felt angry," or you could say, "Frank's blood boiled as he clenched and unclenched his fists . . . trying to decide whether to take his vengeance now or try to rise above it." Sometimes I'll go ahead and write a 'telling' sentence, knowing I'll create a more 'showing' description later, during the editing process.
9. Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
Try making a list of crazy unexpected scenarios, no matter how ridiculous. You could also ask people with highly creative minds to finish a sentence. For example, "Jessica studied her reflection in the mirror and suddenly realized that . . . . . ." Another one could be, "Johnny thought he was the best basketball player on his team until . . . .."
10. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
My books stand out because I am staying true to my creative nature. I don't try to write like anyone else, or create covers like anyone else. I just ask myself, when I look at a cover, "Am I drawn to this? Do I want to pick it up?" Fortunately, I work at a school and am able to get ideas and feedback from my reader base. Even though they are biased, they still generate some great ideas for me, and confirm good decisions I've made.
11. What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
Whenever I am traveling to a new area, I make time to stop in to a town's public library and introduce myself and my books. It takes time and effort, but you can't put a price on a face-to-face conversation. I've had several librarians tell me that the best decision I made was to introduce myself in person, because if I had promoted my company via an email, they wouldn't have given me the time of day. Not only did they purchase my books, several have asked me to visit as a paid guest author.
12. What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
For the most part I feel like I have done things well, but if I have to pinpoint an area of weakness, it is time management, from the beginning to the launch date. I now give myself more time to edit and format than I initially did. As a result, there are fewer mistakes, and less pressure.
13. What saying or mantra do you live by?
"Everyone has the right to be who they are and the responsibility to make good choices."
14. Anything else you would like to say?
For me, writing and self-publishing was a calling, for the purpose of impacting our young people to be better humans. I went into this journey kicking and screaming--not looking forward to adding more work and failures onto my full-time teaching job. Whether you believe in God or the Universe--that's your personal experience. What I know is that I was told to do this. So God and I have a deal. I focus on the work, and He takes care of the results. My books are not religious, but they all have nuggets of wisdom. I have no idea what the impact of my stories will be, but I am content with my purpose. So far, it's been a great collaboration.
Thank you for this opportunity!
Joan
April 5, 2023
Chris Martin interview with David Alan Binder
About Chris: It was towards the end of his teaching career that Chris’ writing took on a greater significance. In 2005 he was asked to write a murder mystery play for a School PTA fundraising event. The resulting piece, Who Killed the Headmaster?, proved to be so successful that Chris was asked to write another play the following year. Then another. Then another. Until finally, in response to increasing levels of interest, he created the website www.murderplays.com to make his whodunits available to the general public. Today, there are over twenty-five plays on the site designed to appeal to all manner of different institutions.
Buoyed by the success of Murderplays, Chris left teaching in 2013 to focus on writing full-time. The result was a series of whodunit novels aimed at the young adult market. And when Hogs Back Books offered him a writing contract in 2017, Chris felt incredibly lucky that a publishing house was prepared to take a chance on the character at the heart of his school-based pieces... Inky Stevens, the Great School Detective!
Author Website: www.chrismartinwriter.com
Murderplays Website: www.murderplays.com
Facebook:
Inky Stevens the Great School Detective
Murderplays Murder Mystery Scripts
1. Tell us a little about yourself…
Hi, my name is Chris Martin (not the singer). I’m 55 years old and I live in a village called Adlington, in Lancashire in the north of England. I attained a degree in Drama (with English) from Manchester University in 1989 and spent 22 years as a Drama and English teacher in the north of England. I now run ‘murderplays.com’ an online store selling my self-written murder mystery plays, and, more recently, I’ve become a published author of the ‘Inky Stevens, School Detective’ series of novels for readers aged 8 to 13.
2. Can you outline your journey as a writer?
During my teaching career I was constantly writing things for my students… sketches, assemblies, even school musicals and plays. But my journey as a ‘professional’ writer officially began in 2005 when I wrote a fundraising murder mystery play for my school’s PTA. ‘Who Killed the Headmaster?’ proved so successful in performance that I decided to sell it via a website I created called www.murderplays.com. Slowly, as demand continued to grow, one play followed another until now, some 18 years later, there are about 25 titles on the site. Nowadays my whodunits are staged all around the world raising much needed funds for their organisers. On average, there’s a different production of one of my plays every two days somewhere in the world. I’ve had pieces translated into other languages and I’ve also had two of my plays professionally filmed. It’s heartening as a writer to know that the words I write are guaranteed to find an audience and that there’s a whole community which has sprung around my pieces. And it was this small taste of success which gave me the confidence to leave teaching in 2013 to focus on writing novels as well as plays. For this transition into prose I stuck to what I was familiar with, combining my experience of ‘whodunits’ with my extensive knowledge of ‘school’, and thus my ‘Great School Detective’ series of novels came into being for young adult readers. Inky Stevens, my teenage detective, is an introverted rather sinister-looking young man who goes undercover within his school community to solve a succession of school-based mysteries. Through the novels I’m aiming to parody the crime fiction genre by applying its gritty style to a high school setting.
3. What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
Patience!!
I’ve had a degree of success writing plays and, more recently, secured a publishing deal for Inky… yet after almost two decades of writing I still feel that I’m only on the bottom rung of a very tall ladder...
From my experience, nothing moves quickly in the publishing industry. From writing a novel, to securing a deal, to overseeing the final proof, to seeing the work finally appearing in print… all happens at a snail’s pace. Yet I have to console myself with the fact that with the odds heavily stacked against fledgeling authors that I’m lucky to have got this far. The key is just to be realistic and focus on enjoying the process of writing rather than the outcome...
4. What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
I’m not quite sure if it’s a quirk… but I’m not a writer who believes in over-planning. If too much is set in stone ‘plot-wise’ I can find it a bit of a slog to lay it down onto the page. I mean, if everything’s already been decided in advance what’s left to keep me interested? I much prefer to give my characters free rein and see what they get up to without confinement. I mean, if I’m intrigued by what they’re going to get up to, then hopefully my audience will, too.
5. Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
Hogs Back Books are a specialist children’s publishing company formerly based in the south of England, now relocated to central France. They’ve initially offered me a three-book deal… so for both Inky and myself, the pressure’s on! If my teen detective generates a following, then further books will be commissioned and the series rolled out. However, if not…!??
All I can do is make sure what I produce is as good as it possibly can be… and cross my fingers.
6. Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
No tips, as such, I’m afraid. But what I can do is account for my own journey in the hope that it may proves useful…
Having spent a year writing my first novel I had no idea what to do next and joined my local writing group in search of advice. ‘Chorley Writers’ proved an invaluable source of information as they guided me through the submission process, step by step…
Like most writers, I imagine, I found this process to be an unpleasant one, little more than a frustrating merry-go-round of rejection and rebuttal...
First, I found out which agents/publishers specialised in my particular genre by identifying the correct section in a large directory (the Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook). Then, by accessing the websites of the relevant companies I ascertained whether they were currently accepting submissions. If they were, I followed each house’s guidelines and sent off the required text in the designated format (with all the various accompanying information). All of this was a time consuming, dizzying process far removed from the craft of writing itself… Sadly, however, it just had to be done. So I ‘bit the bullet’ and plodded through submissions, one by one. My reward for this mind-numbingly dull production line was to be subjected to a barrage of rejections from the few publishing companies who even bothered replying…
By this time, I was well on my way with the second installment of my schoolboy detective series, so, once Book 2 was also completed, I found myself repeating this process all over again…
With exactly the same result…
Nothing.
Not a dickie bird!
It was at this point, feeling dejected and humiliated, that I threw in the towel and gave up novel writing altogether. The whodunit plays I continued to write were selling as well as always, whereas writing full-length novels had proved to be just too much work for too little (no) reward. So I felt that it was finally time to back away…
It was eight months after this, completely out of the blue, that Hogs Back Books made contact expressing a glimmer of interest in Inky. And by the time they’d read through both novels and finally decided to sign me up, Book 3 was already well on the way! It was fantastic to finally have an endpoint for all that work and just let my imagination run wild.
7. Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers in terms of writing?
There are many, I suppose, but I’ll just focus on one… ‘synaesthesia’.
This word sticks in my mind because when I was an English teacher I was tasked to present synaesthesia to my classes by an especially stuffy Head of Department and was too embarrassed to admit that I’d no idea what it was! In truth, it’s quite a simple concept… just a fancy word that means ‘one of the senses triggers another’. When writing narrative, that word is now always at the forefront of my mind, alerting me how I must remember to use a number of senses to create atmosphere. Sight’s the obvious one, of course. But also what can be ‘heard’ and ‘smelled’ (touched and tasted?) too!
8. What is the best advice you’ve ever received as a writer and why?
Every day I learn something new as a writer, but perhaps, personally speaking, the most valuable piece of advice I received was, ‘Don’t sign a contract for a publisher who’s not prepared to pay you for your work’. I was approached several times (as many writers are) by vanity companies asking for me to pay up front for the privilege of them letting them print my work. I almost gave in as, like most writers, I was so desperate to see my words in print. But luckily, I held fast. I remember being warned by my writer’s group, “If you’ve already paid someone to publish your book, then where’s their incentive to promote and sell it for you… they already have your money!”
It was so tempting to give in, but I managed to hold out until someone finally came along who was prepared to ‘pay me’ for my work. The modest advance from Hogs Back Books symbolised that were prepared to risk their own money to develop and promote my work… We were in it together!
9. How many books have you written?
I have written some 25 murder mystery/whodunit plays. The one I’m currently writing, ‘Cross My Art and Hope to Die!’ is set inside an art gallery where the body of a world-famous graffiti artist called ‘Sharksy’ is found drowned inside one of the exhibits… a huge tank of formaldehyde. But who would do such a ghastly thing? The gallerist, a security guard and the artist in residence (Moaning Lisa!) are among the suspects.
In terms of my detective novels, I’m currently writing Inky’s fifth instalment (set during a summer camp on a school trip). His first title, ‘The Case of the Caretaker’s Keys’ was published in 2020 with the second novel, ‘The Case of the Abominable Snowball’, due for release, imminently. Book 3 ‘The Case of the Perfect Pitch’, I’m led to believe, will be published in 2024. With several more to follow, I hope…?
10. When did you first consider yourself to be a writer?
Strangely, this was only very recently. I rang my publisher up for a progress meeting and, as luck would have it, her son answered the phone. I explained my business and asked if she was available. The son then shouted… ‘Mum, it’s one of your authors on the phone for you!’
This took me a little by surprise as, despite having been a writer, in one way or another, for fifteen years, or so, I’d never really given the title of ‘writer’ or ‘author’ much consideration. It always felt too distant. But on reflection, I thought, ‘Yeah, I guess he’s right. I suppose I am a writer now. Yeah, I quite like that!’ And ever since, when asked about my profession, I’m always happy to say, ‘I’m a writer!’
11. What unusual ways do you use to promote your work?
As an ex-teacher it occurred to be that I could be an ambassador for my own work. I now offer free school literacy sessions in return for the opportunity to host book signings. I love such visits where I can see first-hand the impact my teen detective has upon my target audience. I’m assisted greatly in this task by a FREE 60-page, fully differentiated PDF published learning resource in support of ‘Caretaker’s Keys’ (available from www.chrismartinwriter.com). An ex-student of mine who became an English teacher (an incredible young man called Jamie Foster) wrote this for use with his own students. The document was so comprehensive so accomplished that Hogs Back decided to publish it as a free resource. Having a giveaway ‘Scheme of Work/Student Handbook’ is incredibly attractive to teachers who, in turn, may wish to buy class copies of the novel. After all, all their work is done for them.
Social media’s also an essential tool with which to promote work and raise awareness. (Please be kind enough to LIKE my Facebook pages).
I also have two websites. One for murderplays and one more for me as a writer, predominantly Inky-based. Through www.chrismartinwriter.com there’s an opportunity for readers to sign up for Inky’s free bi-yearly newsletter based on the Great School Detective’s progress. This is just one more way of keeping Inky in the forefront of people’s minds, spreading the word and building up my community of ‘Inklings’.
12. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
I was quite naive when I first started writing. I just wrote the type of book that I knew form experience would appeal to the kids I taught in class. Yet, by accident rather than design, my detective series does ‘tick quite a few boxes’ in terms of uniqueness. It introduces young readers to crime fiction (tick), it features a strong protagonist who appeals to male/reluctant readers (tick), it’s a detective series set inside a school has not been done in quite the same way before (tick), it offers free teaching resources for classroom us (tick) and, being a series, there’s a continuation factor with potential for future sales (tick, tick). In hindsight, although it’s blatantly obvious, I now realise the importance of ‘sales’ to the publishing industry. If (for whatever reason) something has mass appeal then it’s always going to receive more attention. So (however you manage it) really focus on creating something that’s different from anything else, yet which will also have mass appeal. (Yeah, easier said than done!)
13. What’s your mantra?
Edit, edit, edit… then edit some more!
I liken the first completed draft of a novel to a lumpen block of clay that a sculptor might face. It’s only with edit, after edit, after painstaking edit that the lifeless block can gradually be shaped, moulded and trimmed, allowing the true artwork beneath to gradually emerge. Writing is only about 10% of the process. The rest is editing!
Thank you for your time. If intrigued to follow my journey as a writer, make a purchase, or request Inky’s free learning resource/newsletter please visit…
Thank you.
April 3, 2023
Sybrina Durant interview with David Alan Binder
About Sybrina: Sylvia Durant is a Creative Writing Consultant and Author.
Ms. Durant is the founder of Pocket Perks Etc. a publishing company with a mission.
Sybrina’s social media accounts:
Feel free to follow me on any or all.
https://twitter.com/Sybrina_spt
https://www.facebook.com/TheBlueUnicornBookStore
https://www.pinterest.com/sybrinad/middle-grade-unicorn-books/
https://www.instagram.com/sybrinablueunicorn/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/sybrina-publishing
Her website: http://abettermanwomanandchild.com/
Where are you currently living?
I was born in Texas and have lived in the south all of my life. I currently live in a small town called League City near Galveston. I spend most of my weekends in Holiday Village at Lake Livingston. There’s a lot of back and forth travel in my life.
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
No one is just going to find your book. That is an impossible proposition because with the advent of the internet and self-publishing, several thousand newly published books are offered to the public for sale each and every day in the United States alone. That doesn’t even count the rest of the world. If you just write a book and self-publish it through KDP or some other source, it WILL get lost among all of the others. It will truly be a needle in a huge haystack. You can not just write it and forget it. You must market, market, market every single day.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
What I said above applies whether you self-publish or use a publisher. And the term “use a publisher” is a misnomer. You can’t just use a publisher. You have to approach publishers and maybe one will pick your book to represent. The chances of that happening are slim to none because of all of the competition for their eyes on a book. Even if your book is selected for representation by a publisher, they will expect you to do as much or more marketing and promoting for your book as they will. That is one of the main reasons that I recommend the self-publishing route. You are still going to be responsible for your own success, no matter which way you go.
How many books have you written?
If you look at my Amazon Author page https://www.amazon.com/stores/Sybrina-Durant/author/B009K3WGMS you will see that I have 80 books to my credit. There’s a couple of novels, some picture books and some low or no content books. The no content books are lined notebooks featuring unicorns with sayings about writing on the covers. I created the lined notebooks to go along with another of my marketing tools, Unicorn Reader/Writer tee shirts. You can see them at my tee shirt store at https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/686BB824-052C-4B4E-99C3-CD2B8FCFBA8D My newest book is called Magical Elements of the Periodic Table Presented Alphabetically By The Metal Horn Unicorns. It’s a middle grade picture book. I’ve created several book related activities to make it more fun for kids to learn about the periodic table – Unicorn Element Cards, Unicorn Periodic Table Bingo and Create Your Own Unicorn Elemental. They are all available at Sybrina-Publishing at Teachers Pay Teachers website. You can learn more about this book at https://www.sybrina.com/muapt .
11. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
What makes your book stand out from the crowd is you. You have to find ways to get eyes on it or on your brand. There are a million different ways to do it. Social media, of course, being number one. Develop Pinterest pages for books like yours. Create a book or author page on Facebook and Instagram. Do follows for follows to increase your social media influence. Don’t skip Twitter and Linkedin. Create some videos (maybe author readings) on Youtube. Get an author account on Goodreads and Librarything and Bookbub. Send your book on book blog tours. Start a newsletter and offer book swaps with authors with books similar to yours. Start a blog and offer article swaps with authors. Get booths at festivals and fairs. Purchase slots in book sharing newsletters. Take advantage of opportunities that you see in Facebook Groups to do interviews and other fun stuff. With that I want to thank David Alan Binder for interviewing me on his blog. He is obviously another author who believes in Authors Helping Authors and I appreciate that very much. Do all of this and much, much more and little by little you and your books will gain some attention. All you really need is to have some small influence within your own little sphere. If you get more some time in your life, so much the better.
12. What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
A few years ago, I realized that my unicorn book that I truly thought was unique when I wrote it, is just one in a million…and I mean that almost literally. I eventually learned that there are well over 1,000 unicorn books available to the public for consumption. Hmmm…what to do? Then, a realization hit that that is an almost overwhelming competition. So I decided, if you can’t beat them, join them and I began a collection of all of the unicorn books that I could find and categorized them by Little Kid, Middle Kid; and YA and Older Readers. It truly does not hurt you to help other authors. That is something I strongly believe so, I’ve got pages and pages of unicorn books which will keep growing as more are published. At the tops of all of those pages are my unicorns books so as I’m marketing my own, I’m also marketing others. It’s a win win situation. If you’re interested in perusing my Unicorn Book Store, just click that link on my blog.
13. What saying or mantra do you live by?
Just Do It. In other words, if you don’t do it for yourself, no one else will do it for you. That’s the way it is in this business. No one else is going to care about your book as much as you do so it’s truly all on you to write it and then market the heck out of it every chance you get.
April 2, 2023 Special Edition
April Fool
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
OKAY FIRST OF ALL, YESTERDAY WAS APRIL 1st, HOWEVER, please note that my FB post plus my article from yesterday was NOT an April Fool Trick.
IT IS FOR REALand it is SO, SO TRUE!
First an exciting announcement. As an author to be accepted by a publishing house is fantastic. Even though the publishers (4 of them, yes FOUR) that accepted me are bonafide publishers they are NOT vanity, however, they are what is called hybrid publishers. Therefore they require upfront dollars (about $5000, depending on which I go with). The current budget does not allow for this.
This is where you come in:
For each of you that invest at least $100 to help me get just one of my four books published, in return:
1 Your name will published in the book on a page dedicated to all of you who invest.
2 You get a free copy of the book so ensure you email me with your contribution amount and name and address to ensure you get it.
NOTE: It may take at least a year or year and one half so be patient.
NOW FOR THE FOOL PORTION OF OUR SHOW:
Yep, I did it. I fell for an April fool trick. A person had posted on an author FB page the following:
So we are looking for a 5,002 word (a little under or over is fine) article on the topic "Effects of environmental pollution on properties", the audience will be 22-65. You will be responsible for getting/finding the
right materials needed for you to complete the article since there is a lot on the
particular topic online, it has to be 5,080 words as we are willing to pay $1/word.
The outline should be discussed:
1. Introduction
2. Background
3. An Evolutionary Perspective on Effects of environmental pollution on properties
4. Factors that influence the pollution of environments affecting properties
5. Advisable prevention
6. Conclusion
The article is to be used for presentation in phase 1 of a seminar coming up in a
month time and I want the article to be informative enough for my attendees, I
would appreciate it if you can complete the task within 2-3weeks
So here is what I did, I mulled it over and thought, I can do that and if I make $5000 that would go a long way to get my book published. So I came up with over 1000 words, yesterday. Then I revisited it after lunch and came up with over 4000 words.
Due to all the technical reports that I’ve had to write over decades plus I will acknowledge right now that I incorporated Chat GPT as well. Yes, the whole over 4000 article I wrote was mostly written by Chat GPT about "Effects of environmental pollution on properties"
I was pretty proud of myself and yes, I used a short cut but if you were to see that article then you’d see that it met all of the requirements, plus I added a whole list of references plus questions we should ask ourselves as we look to fix-prevent those issues.
What did I learn?
I learned that I could do it and I did it extremely well I thought. I learned so much about Chat GPT and what it can and can’t do and learned to manipulate and get it to spit out over 4000 words which if one enters the whole requirement one would only get about 1000 words. So there was some extreme manipulation to get it to over 4000 words.
That is quite and accomplishment along side the fact that I’m a little gullible.
Okay, I’m a lot gullible. In my defense I really want to get that book published and was willing to do some intense writing and research in order to get it finished.
What do you think of all of this?
April 1, 2023
First an exciting announcement. As an author to be accepted by a publishing house is fantastic. Even though the publishers (4 of them, yes FOUR) that accepted me are bonafide publishers they are NOT vanity, however, they are what is called hybrid publishers. Therefore they require upfront dollars (about $5000, depending on which I go with). The current budget does not allow for this.
This is where you come in:
For each of you that invest at least $100 to help me get just one of my four books published, in return:
1 Your name will published in the book on a page dedicated to all of you who invest.
2 You get a free copy of the book so ensure you email me with your contribution amount and name and address to ensure you get it.
NOTE: It may take at least a year or year and one half so be patient.
Wounds
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
We all have wounds at one time or another, some more serious than others.
Some leave scars and the emotional ones are the worst.
Doctor Nicole Lepera, The Holistic Psychologist states (all credits to her):
“There are 4 inner child wounds:
1. Shame wound: I am bad/flawed.
2. Rejection wound: I'm not good enough.
3. Consideration wound: I don't matter, no one sees me or cares about me.
4. Disappointment wound: I shouldn't have hope, I'll just be let down.”
Now on to our discussion about what she write:
What can we learn from our wounds?
Can we even learn from them?
Can we truly be healed from them?
Can we get over them?
Can we even tell ourselves that those wounds that we feel are NOT really true?
I am NOT bad/flawed.
I AM good enough.
I DO matter. There are people who see and care about me.
I have MORE than hope (let’s turn that into an action word not passive), I am loved and some people won’t let me down.
Everyday we rewrite our narrative for as long as it takes. We are not convincing others, we are convincing ourselves.
Try this, “I am beginning to believe…”
Those 5 words are action, are positive, are a move in the direction we need to move to get past those feelings, those wounds.
I am beginning to believe (THIS ABOUT ME-whatever you are moving toward)
I am beginning to believe I am a good person.
I am beginning to believe that I am worthy of love and respect.
I am beginning to believe people care about me.
BECAUSE THAT IS TRUE!
People do love you.
People respect you.
People are not just using you to gain their goals.
That is the territory we want to live in.
That is the territory we are moving to.
That is where we belong.
A beautiful, wonderful, happy territory.
Now go out there and stake your claim in this new uncharted territory!
What’s your story?
Share a cup of coffee ($1 at your discretion)
Share a drink (soda or beer $4 at your discretion)
Share a meal ($10 at your discretion-yeah I’m a cheap date, lol)
Any love may be sent through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 31, 2023
Tylia Flores interview with David Alan Binder
Her sites and other info:
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Stompingoncpwithtylia
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/stomping_on_cp_with_tylia/
Twitter https://twitter.com/stompingoncp1
Where are you currently living?
The majority of my life has been spent in Florida, but I am originally from New York
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
I learned how to let your creativity flow through and use the challenges and obstacles you may have faced as stories during the writing process.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
I think the most interesting thing about all three he said to the process when you become an author is to see how much you've grown as a writer and as a person. The next thing that I would say is the most interesting is when people read your books and could relate to the characters you're creating, particularly for me as an author, that mainly about topics surrounding disability, I feel that's the most interesting. For example, I recently held auditions for my tween series, I wasn't expecting to get so many messages about the audition script and how the main character Austin Keller is a reflection of them in some way, he reminded them of somebody they knew. It is the story of a young boy with cerebral palsy who tries to find his passion through writing since he has had a difficult upbringing. I didn't think people would be able to relate to him until I started getting messages about his audition script.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I presently self-publish, but I hope to be under a publisher someday
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
After publishing my first book at the age of 16, I waited until I was 25 to publish my autobiography and many other books about disability, so I would say that my number one tip would be to take your time and embrace life. That's where you'll find inspiration to write a book.
How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
Take your time, look around and explore with options. They are out there for you. Don't rush into getting an agent just because you want to have a book publish be smart about the decisions you make
Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
To new writers, my number one recommendation would be to write every day and remember that your first draft is going to suck, but keep going until you find the perfect masterpiece.
How many books have you written?
44
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
One of the tricks I like to do when I'm experiencing writer's block or developing a new idea for a book is that I like to do my research on the topic and see what's out there and I also like to listen to music that relates to the topic that I'm writing about.
Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
When it comes to plot twist to a good story, I would suggest taking a look at your life experiences that may have felt like you were dealing with the plot twist for example, in my latest Romance and mystery suspense perpetual love through the eyes of a teenage girl that features, a young interable couple who fell in love, very young at the tender age of 16 but one of the main characters Donald Payton is paraplegic, and he became paraplegic after he got into a car crash on his eighth birthday which causes his parents to believe that he shouldn't date Taleah because she isn't disabled which leads to him, taking his own life, which causes Taleah has to spend nine years in jail for a crime she did not commit because she did not cause Donald suicide his mother did but eight years into a sentence Donald's Mom comes to visit her in jail and apologizes and Frees her from all charges . This plot twist comes from the a five year relationship that I had that turned out to be similar to this, so my suggestion for a good plot twist is live your life and explore the obstacles that you've gone through because you never know they may make for a compelling book
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
I think what makes a good book stand out from the crowd is the message it has behind the words in my opinion, but the cover means very little, but what's inside the book could change your life forever, because simply words are powerful, and they could change the way we look at things .
What is one unusual way to promote your work?
Podcasts and social media networks are my usual activities. That's my best way to promote my books.
What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
The one thing I would do differently, if I could go back in time, is be more patient with the process because although publishing a book is exciting, you have to deal with a lot of patience and the one thing I wish I would've had when I started this journey.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
Despite the obstacles and challenges you face, you have to keep going and keep on telling your story because if you stop writing your story because I'm one bad chapter then, how is it going to become someone else's survival guide
Anything else you would like to say?
Oh, and one more thing keep on Stomping
March 29, 2023
Wounds
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
We all have wounds at one time or another, some more serious than others.
Some leave scars and the emotional ones are the worst.
Doctor Nicole Lepera, The Holistic Psychologist states (all credits to her):
“There are 4 inner child wounds:
1. Shame wound: I am bad/flawed.
2. Rejection wound: I'm not good enough.
3. Consideration wound: I don't matter, no one sees me or cares about me.
4. Disappointment wound: I shouldn't have hope, I'll just be let down.”
Now on to our discussion about what she write:
What can we learn from our wounds?
Can we even learn from them?
Can we truly be healed from them?
Can we get over them?
Can we even tell ourselves that those wounds that we feel are NOT really true?
I am NOT bad/flawed.
I AM good enough.
I DO matter. There are people who see and care about me.
I have MORE than hope (let’s turn that into an action word not passive), I am loved and some people won’t let me down.
Everyday we rewrite our narrative for as long as it takes. We are not convincing others, we are convincing ourselves.
Try this, “I am beginning to believe…”
Those 5 words are action, are positive, are a move in the direction we need to move to get past those feelings, those wounds.
I am beginning to believe (THIS ABOUT ME-whatever you are moving toward)
I am beginning to believe I am a good person.
I am beginning to believe that I am worthy of love and respect.
I am beginning to believe people care about me.
BECAUSE THAT IS TRUE!
People do love you.
People respect you.
People are not just using you to gain their goals.
That is the territory we want to live in.
That is the territory we are moving to.
That is where we belong.
A beautiful, wonderful, happy territory.
Now go out there and stake your claim in this new uncharted territory!
What’s your story?
March 27, 2023
Let’s Make Some Noise
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
If you or one of your children ever start taking lessons on an instrument (our 4 children for instance played trumpet, piano, guitar, drums, violin, plus myself took piano and cornet lessons and dinked around with a guitar and bongos and other keyboards). You know you are going to hear noise before you hear music.
Just a fact of life.
Plus, it is a vast ocean of nuance to learn each instrument and being able to craft something that is a pleasure to hear.
The same goes for scribbles and stick figures as a child until you really learn to paint and draw and you know that depth of learning to master that ocean of knowledge and creativity.
Those tiny incremental learning of the instrument or paint or carving or crafting is paramount to becoming a master.
Your craft depends on your passion, your stamina, your stubbornness, literally it all comes down to what you put into it is what you get out of it.
When you learn that you do it for you first and foremost then you can relax and embrace that passion and creativity. If you are attempting to learn for your parents or teachers or anyone else, then maybe think of who you are really doing this for.
Be selfish and do it for you and everyone else is there just for the ride.
What’s your story?
Share a cup of coffee ($1 at your discretion)
Share a drink (soda or beer $4 at your discretion)
Share a meal ($10 at your discretion-yeah I’m a cheap date, lol)
Any love may be sent through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 25, 2023
Rejections Abound
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
So many authors have been rejected.
So many others have been rejected either whichever group or syndicate or individuals, we all experience rejection.
The real question is how do you handle rejection.
I was not aware of the rejections listed below before today, I know that it happens and happens quite a bit.
These authors persevered despite each opinion by an editor or publisher to reject them.
Chicken Soup for the Soul by Jack Caulfield and Mark Victor Hansen was rejected 144 times
Irish Wine by Dick Wimmer well-reviewed novel was rejected 162 times
The Lost Get Back Boggie by James Lee Burke was rejected 121 times
Yes, we all experience and this article is to keep encouraging and keep trying to make a difference whether in writing or simple things like me picking up trash in the park across the street. Yes, tomorrow there will be more trash but today at least after my walk for a while there will be quite a bit less.
Let us all keep making the attempt, with positiveness and with determination.
That rejection is not a statement about you, not about the story, not about the book, does not condemn you or mean you should quit.
Quite the opposite, keep doing it until you succeed!
What’s your story?
Share a cup of coffee ($1 at your discretion)
Share a drink (soda or beer $4 at your discretion)
Share a meal ($10 at your discretion-yeah I’m a cheap date, lol)
Any love may be sent through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 23, 2023
Finding a Happy Ending-This is NOT about writing
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Finding the pot of gold at the end of your rainbow is not easy.
Life deals out its toll sometimes daily.
I’ve lived through divorce, abuse, favoritism, bullies, teasing, abandonment, and disloyalty.
So how do we keep going?
How do we keep searching for that happy ending?
How, after all the crap we’ve waded through, do we do it?
Answer is there is only your will and determination and drive that gets you through.
You make your own peace with what has happened, and that peace may not be very peaceful at all.
It may keep you awake at night, it may give you nightmares.
The people who were supposed to love you that did not.
Hard to explain. Even harder to deal with.
Lots of therapy, lots of finding the right encouragement.
A find may be something you stumble upon, or it may be something that someone tells you, something that you look up, something you read, something that you’ve studied.
We are all looking for that golden paved road to peace.
We are all, wanting love, to share and to connect.
We are all striving for the same things.
Yet we go about the finding, the wanting, the striving and the dealing in completely different ways.
What works for me won’t work for you.
So there is no formula, since it is so individual.
I honestly don’t know how to do it.
I’ve been looking for peace, for something to quiet my noisy mind, something to reconcile all the losses and the pain.
Maybe we just hold onto what little peace we have now.
That is the peace we find is what we are utilizing now to be peaceful and grow it from there.
What’s your story?
Share a cup of coffee ($1 at your discretion)
Share a drink (soda or beer $4 at your discretion)
Share a meal ($10 at your discretion-yeah I’m a cheap date, lol)
Any love may be sent through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
See me on FaceBook
My eBay Shop: https://www.ebay.com/usr/dalanolastnam0
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 21, 2023
Koos Verkaik interview with David Alan Binder
Usually I start with the author’s bio; however, you have to see it for yourself to believe it. (not sure I can condense it, lol!)
Biography: https://koosverkaik.com/index.php/sample-page/
Website: www.koosverkaik.com
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Koos-Verkaik/e/B001JXJGMA
Where are you currently living?
I live in Zoetermeer, a place in The Netherlands not far from The Hague, close to the grey North Sea. My country borders both Belgium and Germany.
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so
far?
Most important is that I learned about myself, it was soon obvious that I have a lot to tell.
Never had a writer’s block. Started writing when I was seven years old, was Europe’s
youngest script writer for comic when I was sixteen sand my first novel was written and published when I was eighteen. Worked for some time as a copywriter – telling things short and to the point. Found out that I have a lot of questions about life, about our past and future.
So I read lots and lots of nonfiction books and lots and lots of novels, I have a big workroom full of books. I write a lot about eternal life, about crazy jesters, about the impossible things that can only happen in books.
That is what my novels are about.
For children I write pure entertainment, kids should have a great time when they read my books. Like my series of children’s books Alex and the Wolpertinger, about the amazing friendship between a clever boy and a mean, wonderful, odd, mysterious, magic, terrifying, great, supernatural, awesome, amazing, clever, unequalled, unbelievable wolpertinger… I work on book 14 now.
All writing I learned to know myself – a hardworking man, embracing the craziest ideas, telling stories a Dutch publisher (the prestigious Arbeiderspers in Amsterdam) simply described as Magic, Mystery and Adventure.
What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?
You can read my novels just as an entertaining thriller.
You can also reads between the lines.
It is my goal to give the dear reader a wonderful time.
But in the meantime I come up with topics, questions, mean ideas, odd thoughts.
I can explain this the best by telling something about my novel Dance of the Jester, published by Outer Banks Publishing Group, North Carolina, USA:
“Read between the lines and notice the signs of the times!
Suddenly, at the end of the twenty-first century, the world changes.
The tycoons rule and name themselves kings. It Is a time of extravagance and decadence, extreme power and richness.
The world is one big party.
And there is chaos!
No one seems to wonder how this all had come to be.
No one seems to wonder what is actually happening.
No one seems to care about anything anymore.
Except for Oscar Man, the illegitimate son of tycoon, Otto Man.
In these turbulent times, called the Second Renaissance, strange creatures come into power and try to subjugate every single human being. Oscar Man is a very strange creature, too who can show the way to freedom. He was once a prince, but now is treated as a pariah, with nothing to lose and so much to win for the world…
His journey leads him from Switzerland to the USA and back, searching for a special manuscript that will reveal the necessary revelation to free the world.
The enemy makes the poor jester, Oscar Man, dance. But ultimately the former prince will manage to solve the world’s biggest problems ever!”
The reader will recognize the big troubles we are having right now – greed, the destroying of our world, the power of money…
Tell us your insights on self-publishing or use a publisher?
As a boy, I started working for publishers who also owned a printing house. They needed copy to print. A local publisher (Marinus Sanders) called my mother, asking about me – he wanted to have a word with me. Not much later I wrote a commercial regional novel and a thriller for him; hard covers, 20,000 copies each. He also published one of my own novels, Psycho Park. Another publisher approached me and published my novel Adolar. He invited me to the printing house to see how the presses produced my paperback. I was eighteen, nineteen years old and saw my own novels in a book shop window. It made me so proud!
Have worked with publishers all my life. And then it was time to get my books published in English.
I have a literary agent, Mrs. Emerantia A. Parnall-Gilbert from the Gilbert Literary Agency.
Two publishers in the USA: Outer Banks Publishing Group and Angry Eagle Publishing.
One publisher in Greece, Anima Publications.
And a big publisher in India, New Delhi, Pharos Books. Editor-in-chief Neeharika Lodhi and editor Mahip Bhatia take good care of me – they publish my books in English, Hindi, French, Spanish and even Japanese. Neeharika sent me one of my books in Hindi and I could not even read my own name… Exciting times! Some weeks ago they send me a parcel containing eight new titles… The pile is still growing.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
The literary agent is very important. Find an agent in your genre. The internet is perfect to start searching. Look for an agent who is willing to receive an e-mail. An agent will tell you if your book is good enough or not. If it is good enough, he will give you a contract and do his utmost to get your worked under the attention of the right publishers.
The secret tip: never pay an agent. Never pay a publisher. Don’t believe in sharks. Believe in yourself and keep on writing.
How would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for writers on getting one?
Literary agents cannot do everything. It is your manuscript that is the most important – did you write a commercial book, can you explain to an agent why your work is good and different from what other writers produce?
Too many writers think it is enough to come up with an unfinished book.
Finish your work and write a perfect synopsis.
First ask an agent if she/he is willing to read your synopsis and maybe the first two or three
chapters from your manuscript.
Do you have any suggestions or tips for new writers?
Yes. Simple: read (both nonfiction and fiction) and write. Don’t wait for so called inspiration; just write. Never imitate a famous author, you will never be as good as she/he. Create your own style and believe in yourself.
How many books have you written?
I have about ninety different publications on my bookshelf, both novels and children’s books.
I must have written more than 70 different titles. I made records and wrote hundreds of scripts for comic artists. Many, many more new titles to come.
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer?
As said, it is important to read. And it is important to write as much as possible. The real talented writer does not need tricks or tips, because he goes his own way and loves to sit down and concentrate on a new manuscript.
Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
I love to write about different times, more than often start in a faraway past and then come back to the present. Writing a book is playing with words, playing with characters, playing with time. But it is up to every writer to come up with clever surprises.
Here are two examples for my novel Heavenly Vision, by readers:
5 Stars: “Heavenly Vision by Koos Verkaik was a very intriguing read right from the start.
The way the many characters and situations flow in and out like a giant puzzle throughout keep the reader interested. The end of course was satisfyingly brilliant as all the ties connect. I don’t like to give away spoilers but I will say between the haunting document of 1745, a paranormal preacher of a strange cult and good old fashioned modern revenge make for a
book I could not put down....”
5 Stars: “I have just ended a wonderful piece of work by Koos Verkaik. And what do I think of his book? Take a look. This volume is for persons who would love a good quirk.
Shout out to Heavenly Vision!
The author is exceptionally engaging and the odd characters are remarkable and entertaining.
This title has a skillful scheme filled with fascination, conundrums and clarity themes.
His style of writing is unlike anything else, so I'm inviting you myself, to enjoy a spiritual and
fictitious story from start to ending. I'm commending this book as Glory!”
What makes your books stand out from the crowd?
I write typical ‘Koos Verkaik Books’, I take the reader by the hand and show him worlds he has never seen before. Magic, mystery and adventures, as said, but I never keep the reader in the dark – at the end of the book I always come up with an explanation. I like to write about jesters, odd figures who are able to change every situation. I read nonfiction about science, but also collect books about the occult, alchemy, the supernatural.
Sometimes one thought is enough for me to start writing a novel.
For instance: how could Neanderthal men survive an ice age?
That is all I need and then I start writing. And so I wrote Neanderthal Dreams:
Once our ancestors shared their world with another human species – Neanderthal man!
How did the mysterious Neanderthal man survived the ice ages?
Did they prefer to gather round the bonfires and meet each other in their dreams?
Businessman Jacques Poiron makes use of Neanderthal magic and becomes an extremely
wealthy man.
He decides to share his secrets with his grandson Victor.
Victor travels from the USA to France – to the land of Cro-Magnon tribes and Neanderthal man.
There he learns how Jacques Poiron has built himself a fantasy world where he spends most
of his time – and he is also able to predict the future!
Everything goes totally wrong when strangers enter this secret dream world.
Victor realizes that eventually everything boils down to this absurd but topical question:
“Can a judge condemn a man because he murdered another man in his dreams?”
What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
By music… I play a lot of instruments and have a small studio in my workroom. Every now and then I show a clip on the internet.
Here is an example:
Heavenly Vision Blues, played by Koos Verkaik:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enpHqcvcBZQ
12 What is the one thing you would do differently now and why?
Nothing. Every new book is a different adventure for me. I write fast. People from IBM once suggested me to get connected to one of their computers, so they could see what was going on in my odd mind when I was typing words so fast. I am a happy man, content with what I do.
13, Anything else you would like to say?
I take the opportunity to tell more about Dance of the Jester:
Koos ‘The Jester’ Verkaik, is a prolific Dutch author of fantasy, science fiction and horror - a
master at creating sensational work full of magic, horror, mystery and adventure. Verkaik has written over seventy titles, including his great book HIM, after the UFO Crash. He is one of the most productive writers of this time; many new books will follow! He calls Dance of The Jester his most intellectual book, referring to the daring plot, fast changing scenes and all the
odd characters…
Dance of The Jester is about greed, ultimate power, complete chaos, extravagant festivities,
doom, extreme wealth, pain, desire, complete madness, a future we never asked for…
Do we all finally get what we deserve… or are we up to a world we never wanted to live in at
all?
Dare to read between the lines and shiver! Dance of The Jester takes us to the pitch black times that lie ahead of us.
Visions of what might happen to all of us… It takes a jester to take pity on us and help us to avoid a total disaster!
My agent in the USA suggested I ask Bill Thompson to read Dance of the Jester.
Bill was the editor of the first books of Stephen King and John Grisham, a charismatic man of great reputation. He read the manuscript and invited me to discuss it with him.
On a scorching hot day, we found ourselves in his office in the Empire State Building in New York and together we revised and polished the manuscript and made changes in the plot. He was more than satisfied with the story, and in the meantime, he has read more of my manuscripts.
I think Dance of the Jester is one of my best books.
I thank David Alan Binder for this interview – all the best from The Netherlands!
March 19, 2023
Agnes Neeson interview with David Alan Binder
The Forth Valley FaceBook (it is in Scottish):
https://www.facebook.com/ForthValleyU3A/?locale=hy_AM
Her FaceBook:
https://www.facebook.com/agnes.neeson
Where are you currently living?
I have lived in Scotland all of my life, living the majority of it in the Forth Valley which is steeped in Scottish History. (Northwest of Edinburgh)
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
That I have some imagination
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
My most interesting quirk is that I put myself in the place of the child who will be having the book read to them. This allows me to make sure the text and illustrations are not too complicated but also interesting and involve the child.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
Self Publishing allows me to release books without any upfront costs. I realise it means my books might never have a huge following but even the fact that they are available for children to enjoy means the world to me
a. Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
I have used Kindle Direct Publishing
5. How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
Unfortunately I don't have one “yet”
6. Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
If you're not enjoying writing the book personally I wouldn't write it.
8. How many books have you written?
I have one book published as an Ebook at the minute, there are plans to make it available as a paperback very soon, I have also got 1 more book in the series completed just needing formatted and another I am currently in the process of writing and illustrating. I have lots more ideas for further books in the series
9. Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Put yourself into your audience's mind
10. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
My first book and the series that it belongs to has a foot in history and/or mythology which is presented in a fun and colourful way for children and you never know may plant a little seed in the child or parents minds that at some point they want to learn a bit more about which ever is touched on ie the loch ness monster.
12. What is one unusual way in which you promote your work? Presenting to people who work in infant education via nursery and schools.
13. What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why? nothing
14. What saying or mantra do you live by?
Life should always have an element of fun, no matter what. (especially for children)
15. Anything else you would like to say?
As our daughters grew up I always told them tales about our surroundings and have been doing the same with my grandchildren, I wrap history and mythology into the stories and the kids love it. I like to think my silly stories are what lit the spark for my daughters love of reading, knowledge and imagination, all of these I can already see being sparked in my grandchildren. I firmly believe children have the RIGHT to fun in their childhood and if my silly stories do that then I am one very happy granny.
March 17, 2023
Dani James interview with David Alan Binder
Her bio from her website: About Misfit Wanders (that’s me) is that I am an American lady that loves to travel. For almost 5 years now, I have lived in Sweden, where I’ve been a misfit that wanders. This is where my hubby and I are working on renovating our dream home as well along with taking care of our wild child! Oh, and I’m studying at a University in Sweden. It gets hard when the time comes that the travel bug whispers in my ear to travel. I still travel, just not as long as I used to and it has turned into a family trip. My hubby, me, our baby, and my mom. In Sweden, there are several hikes and outdoor areas that I love to visit in Sweden which fill my desire to travel for a bit.
Links:
IG: misfit_wanders
FB: Misfitwanders
Linkedin: Misfit-Wanders
TikTok: @misfitwanders
Where are you currently living?
I’m originally from the US, but for the past 5 years I’ve been living in the nature filled Sweden.
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
In my recent experience involving writing, I had to learn how to write less. Since I wrote a children’s picture book, the word count ranges from 800 words to 1,000 words (depending on the intended age for the book). With this crutch, I had to relearn how to specifically say something with less words. Which was an experience in itself.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
My most interesting quirk when it comes to writing is that I like to teleport the reader through my experience. I want them to relive it or experience it through my eyes. Whether that’s good or bad, I believe there’s always something that you can learn. Plus, to me, writing is more enjoyable if I describe with all the senses. Or at least, several of the senses.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
Since this children’s book is my first book, I only know about self-publishing. Although, after this venture, I’m thinking for my next book that I want to have a publisher. That way, it will take care of a lot of the heartache and obstacles that you run into being a self-publisher.
5. Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
For starters, you have to just try. Write a pitch to publishers once you have looked over your work, did some fine tuning and had other eyes on it. If a publisher turns you away, then it’s time to try the next one. I mean, J.K. Rowling sent her Harry Potter book to 12 publishers before one actually picked it up. If you’re passionate about your book, don’t lose that. Say that you’ve tried more than you care to say with publishers. Then it’s time to move to self-publishing. Don’t give up on yourself. It’s a tough road but it’s doable.
6. How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
I’ve read into have an agent but I’m a penniless author. So, paying for yet another thing was out of my hands. Although, a lot of the things that are needed for your book to get published, you can do yourself. For example, you can get it on Amazon KDP, Ingramspark, and those are great platforms to use for publishing. After that, it’s down to you reaching out to book companies, friends, family, and advertising.
7. Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
8. How many books have you written?
This would be my first book. Although, I’ve been working on another one before this one that’s still a working progress that’s over hikes in Sweden (since my travel blog is dedicated to hikes and the outdoors in Sweden, I thought a book would be helpful).
9. Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
When it comes to being a writer, the best tip I have learned is to have a habit of it. I mean, have some time everyday dedicated to writing. That could be just a sentence a day or 5-10 minutes of writing a day. It doesn’t matter that all the things you wrote are not the best. What matters is that you put in the effort to do it every day. Over time, this will help you become a better writer and with it, you’ve gained more knowledge with your type of writing, and you have learned to hold yourself accountable.
10. Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
Many good twists are usually something that wasn’t thought of throughout the whole story. But there was maybe little clues throughout that many people wouldn’t pick up on. Lets say, there’s a story about a murder of a mother of a 5 year old and everyone assumes that it was the husband. But then, little clues were left around the house as the story unfolds that if someone’s really perceptive they would know the killer was actually the babysitter.
11. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
I think what makes a specific book or my book stand out from others would be that it becomes spread through word of mouth. The story could be anything, but if you get enough people interested, then it starts to make others curious. Which makes it stand out from the crowd.
12. What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
I wouldn’t say that it’s too unusual, but I talk about it with the groups I’m in, at the preschool, and I wrote a blog post. Maybe the blog post would be a bit unusual. My travel blog, as I mentioned above is mostly about traveling to Sweden. So, you might be wondering how does a children’s book have anything to do with that? Well, a book is a great thing to have as a parent when you’re traveling with small kiddos (if it’s interesting). That way, when it comes to the boring parts of travel, the little one has something that can be intriguing for them.
13. What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
I would research more about self-publishing before starting since I did the illustrations before I did the professional editing. This was a huge mistake! I had to get many new illustrations done to match the new story along with chuck a handful of illustrations that didn’t fit in the storyline anymore. Plus, I would’ve liked knowing more about publishing on Ingramspark and Amazon KDP. I have ran into several snags regarding the format that each place wants. Both have different formats that the book has to be in and that makes it hard if you’ve had someone else do the formats for you.
14. What saying or mantra do you live by?
”Slow and steady wins the race.” This is from the story, The Tortoise and the Hare. I originally started saying this mantra as I was hiking in Yosemite and this was some time after a bad car accident that I had gotten into. My head pounded with every step on the trail since I had a traumatic brain injury. But I pushed on as I kept saying, “Slow and steady wins the race”. It took a whole day, but I finished that trail!
Anything else you would like to say?
If you’re interested in traveling, I highly recommend checking out my website, https://misfitwanders.com/. There, you can learn more about me if you’re interested or check out more about traveling. Many of the articles are of my personal experiences or are packed full with information. Plus, you can read more about my book, The Lost Little Dragon (which is on preorder at Amazon now).
Dani James (Misfit Wanders)
March 15, 2023
Catching Fire!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Having been in the scouts as a child for about 6 years, then many years later I have three sons and they all were in scouts and achieved the rank of Eagle Scout and I was an assistant scoutmaster for 7 years as well. So I know about the mechanics and physics of fire.
You start out small and keep building upon the first small spark, then flame, then keep it going and going until, voila, bonfire. Especially when it is cold you want to get there pretty quick as you can to warm up.
So incremental, tinder, small sparks, tiny flame and encouragement and patience and building until you get to that monumental bonfire.
This type of mentality will get you through and beyond obstacles, learning curves, achieving skills and building upon them.
I started writing a children’s picture book and the more I thought and wrote the more I caught fire and as I thought and wrote and stepped away for awhile I’d get more ideas and write them down and flesh it out more and more until, voila, I gotta 480 word Child’s Picture Book.
So now I’ve got two in the submission stage with 2 more ready as well and about 6 or 8 in the hopper in various stages of development, from a paragraph or two to mostly and quite a few near whole books.
Also, on top of that I’ve got ideas for 16 or 20 more. The ones that are more viable are near the top for me to work on.
So all this fire has turned me into a writing and idea machine. The machine has reached a synergy that it can run and run and churn it out.
This technique is not new, not unusual, not a secret. Been working to get here for 20 years or more.
The last 8 years I’ve been writing articles for this website from 2 a week to now about 3 or 4 times a week.
This machine is different from the story writing one. It takes a different mindset, another kind of writing skill, and other ideas that won’t fit in the story machine at all.
The more you train, learn, work, figure it out. The more you read and grow from what others teach and just plain sticktoitiveness makes one realize that this ethereal want will eventually become more and more solid and real and alive.
That’s what I’m talking about, incremental to monumental.
Catch fire in your creative passion. Doesn’t have to be about writing, it can be directed any direction you’d like.
HOWEVER, it HAS to be directed by you. I can’t sell it, I can’t give it, I can barely explain it.
You have to figure out how to catch fire.
I’m just handing you some tools and a match, now go to work!
What’s your story?
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March 13, 2023
Holding Hands
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
As children when we went places parents or guardians would want us to hold hands.
Simple and yet effective to be able to ensure you were guided, kept safe and on the “path”.
Now over 50 years later I find that I am still holding hands when I take walks with my wife.
Simple, yet effective. It gives me reassurance.
It gives me comfort.
It conveys so much with that little touch.
We don’t always do it, just sometimes so it remains special.
Let me hold your hand as you go throughout your day.
This site is a place of safety and reassurance.
In all the interactivity here, know that you are safe and will never be attacked. No haters here.
It is not about control it is about being proactive and ensuring that we are all protected.
Can you let go? Sure no problem.
Come back when you can.
The guidance here, the simple messages, the lifting up of your senses and your spirit and the gentle knowledge that we all can progress and grow.
Monumental is the goal, however, not today. Just a work in progress, just step by step until one day soon.
That is how we attain all the largest and most worthwhile goals in our life. A step at a time.
Come walk with me awhile when you can.
See you tomorrow or when you chose to come back.
I’ll be here.
What’s your story?
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March 11, 2023
Brad Parks samples from his interview at the back of his novel “Say Nothing”
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Brad has some tips for us writers.
The main two things I gleaned from an interview published at the end of his novel Say Nothing.
One is that writing is a muscle, use it frequently or the ability will take you forever to develop.
Strong athletes and just plain people wanting to keep in shape know that working out on a regular basis keeps you in shape. The same goes for writing.
Stubborness is also an excellent attribute for a writer.
Be willing to have the sticktoitiveness that keeps one in the hunt and in the game for as long as it takes.
It is unreal the number of times that writers get rejected and yet, like the song lyrics from when?, the 80s maybe, “I get knocked down, but I get back up again.”
Put your weighted rockers on so that when you get knocked back that you bounce back up like a punching bop bag thingy. (you know what I’m talking about right?}
That same stubborness will eventually win this competition.
Keep learning and keep trying until you hit your prize which is to be published.
That my friends is what I bring to this game.
Here I am still trying and standing after all of these years.
Yes, I’ve been published but once or twice or even three times is never enough.
Ya, gotta keep trying and swinging until you knock it down and it stays down.
Another thing he says is this: “When I (Brad Parks) write, I treat characters as if they’re being governed by Werner Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle. [Formulated by the German physicist and Nobel laureate Werner Heisenberg in 1927, the uncertainty principle states that we cannot know both the position and speed of a particle, such as a photon or electron, with perfect accuracy; the more we nail down the particle's position, the less we know about its speed and vice versa.] They’re distinct atomic units-each the protagonist of their own story-bouncing against one another in seemingly random fashion. The more I turn up the heat, the more violent their collisions become. And we can never know their position and momentum at the same time.”
What’s your story?
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March 8, 2023
James D. Shipman interview by David Alan Binder
James D. Shipman is a fantastic author and his bio is extremely short:
Here is the partial (some of the rest is covered in the questions below): I [James] have four titles published through Lake Union Publishing (an Amazon Publishing Imprint) and three titles through Kensington Publishing. My [his] newest title, BEYOND THE WIRE, was released January 25, 2022.
Links:
https://www.james-shipman.com/
Instagram @jshipman_author
Where are you currently living?
I live north of Seattle in Washington State.
2. What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
If you’re writing fiction, 100% creating a huge problem for your main character, and then throwing agonizing obstacle after obstacle in front of them is the key to a commercial book. There are other critical elements as well, but I’ve found with working with budding authors in various writing groups that this is the hardest thing to get people to adjust to. This is true not only in thrillers or mysteries, but in any kind of story.
3. What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
For whatever reason, I’ve never had one second of writer’s block. I’m not sure why. I can be working on something at the office, and I can put it aside, and write for fifteen minutes, without a pause, and then return to my work. I’m able to fill in little cracks of my schedule with writing. I’m not sure how or why, but it’s been a blessing.
4. Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
Kensington Publishing in New York, New York.
5. Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
I was lucky. I self published in 2012 at a time where you could make significant progress on kindle without having a publisher and without a huge outlay in marketing/advertising costs. In 2013 Bookbub picked up my first book and I was able to pay for an ad and set my book for free. On November 2, 2013, my ad ran, and I had 19,000 downloads. The next day, I had about 900 sales at full price. This halo effect on sales, while diminishing, continued for about two months and all these downloads meant a bunch of reviews. I ended up with about 150 reviews by summer of 2013. I was then contacted by an editor at Amazon Publishing and they picked up the book I had published, plus the one I was getting ready to publish. But when I said I was lucky, that’s what I mean. It is difficult to get Bookbub to take a non-traditional published book now. Also, Amazon Publishing has blown up, and they are mostly signing authors who are already published and have had success. So that window has closed. I guess the answer is I’m not sure I have any secrets.
6. How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
This is another difficult question. But I have a writer in my writing group who has worked diligently on this issue and is very close to picking up an agent. She has written two books and worked hard on editing them. She belongs to the regional writer’s association and has done pitches to agents and networked for a couple of years. She has taken classes through Hugo House to improve her writing. She has diligently submitted to agents. She has an agent right now who is considering her full manuscript and has asked for some revisions and a second review. That is a very promising sign.
7. Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
I would start by reading Sol Stein’s book on editing. It has a ton of information about characterization, plot, suspense, tension, etc. I would also find a writer’s group with at least one or two writers who are traditionally published or have had success self-publishing. Join legitimate writer’s associations. Have conversations with authors. Read in your area of interest. Look at this as a journey and bring a thick skin. It’s not for the mild of heart.
8. How many books have you written?
Eight.
9. Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer?
Same answer as #7 above.
10. Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
Look up plot twists and tropes. Watch movies or read books in your area of interest. Look at twists that you like and then think of how you could put your main character into a similar situation that is applicable to the story you are writing.
11. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
The cover is a huge piece and that is a mystery that is outside my skill set. Good writing is the key and is what is in our control as authors. Good writing, good editing. You also can develop your social media presence over time and also an email list. That’s basically what is in your control. I think the biggest surprise I’ve had is there are amazing books out there that go nowhere, and there are not that well written books that explode. Making it big as a writer is frankly luck for the most part.
12. What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
I attended comic cons for a few years early in my writing career. It was a great way to sell some books, get to know some people, and there weren’t that many full book authors there.
13. What is the one thing you would do differently now and why?
I would have started pursuing it diligently at 30 instead of 40.
14. What saying or mantra do you live by?
For writing, it would be to have no fear and just write it! Writing and publishing is a messy, sausage making process. But if you don’t start now, the years just tick by, and if this is important to you, you may regret it at the end of the day. So research your writing, write it, work on it, revise it, network with others, pursue publication traditionally or otherwise, and that way, no matter the result, you won’t have any regrets.
15. Anything else you would like to say?
Just thank you for the opportunity to respond on these topics and very best luck to everyone out there who wants to write and publish!
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March 5, 2023
First let me thank all of my Dear Readers and Dear Followers for your steadfastness.
My eBay sales are up and I thank you for your contributions through whatever channel you chose to do so.
Normalcy vs Lunacy
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Side Note: There are now 28 free lessons / assignments for helping you learn to write, to connect, to develop the skills to increase and expand your writing. Check it out today and decide which of these (maybe all) to propel you into the monumental writer and person you are.
Here are all of them:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/free-lessons-assignments
On another note:
Normalcy vs Lunacy
We all have moments of unclarity, of doubt, those what was I thinking moments, the “If I could go back in time then I would not do that, or do something very different” things.
The very definition of lunacy root word lunatic is clinical and reserved for another purpose but for our purposes the word means “More often this is a slang term, used mainly in exaggerations, for anyone who seems wild and out of control.”
In my day, I’ve raced a train to a crossing and barely made it, I’ve marched around in a dormitory with a pillow on my head.
I am not sure why or what I was thinking, maybe I wasn’t but those two things (guess which one) are something I definitely would not do again plus one of the two was totally outrageous and life threatening and I was very casual about that at the time. Too casual.
Now I would choose to protect and preserve my life rather than potentially throw it away.
In the end it is my own analysis of the two events that brought this conclusion. No one else besides us knows that I did either of those except the one person who was and is still a friend knows about the pillow thing since that person also did it. So I was not alone in that performance.
Pretty silly.
Stick with me since maybe I’ll reveal more lunacy moments from the distant past and see if those reveals match or exceed your moments.
What’s your story?
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March 3, 2023
Nest Soup?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Who knew that that was a thing, huh?
Turns out that there is a membership store in the USA that sells a type of Nest Soup that is made out of a swallow’s nest. Not sure what is compelling or tasty about that.
To each their own. Seems like other people’s choices continue to astound me.
From personal style, to tastes, to ideology and other choices.
I think I know humans and something about various types but then no, I don’t know anything, John Snow.
Maybe that is a good thing since I can keep on learning, which I love to do.
I learned that in college that just when you think you know a subject you find out that it is as huge as an ocean and your knowledge is maybe a bucket full or maybe a small pond worth out of that whole wide ocean.
That is one thing about this life is that the things to learn about are endless.
Love it. Live, love and Learn, Learn more, and more and even more.
What have you learned lately that advanced your understanding?
What have you learned that you deem worthwhile and worthy of passing along?
Those moments are fewer and yet so satisfying when you add that to your knowledge base.
It is just infinite and I am so glad to be part of that infinity of learning, loving and living.
What’s your story?
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March 1, 2023
Crayons
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
At one time before 1958 a box of crayons did not have very many colors.
Here is the history: First invented in 1903, the original Crayola box contained only eight colors, including red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, brown, and black. It sold for only a nickel.
In 1958 Crayola came out with a 64 color box with a sharpener. That was a revolution for people who loved coloring. A huge advancement with 8 times more colors than ever before.
Our craftsmanship has also exponentially increased with the amount of tools and variety to be able to create with.
So what will you do with all the tools available to you?
Will you endlessly look at others' creations on the internet to entertain yourself?
Or will you become the creator and let others enjoy your craftsmanship?
Or will you do both?
There is no one right way, there is only your way.
What’s your story?
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February 27, 2023
Normalcy
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
The fact that we still view being normal as normal is troubling.
There is no such thing as normal. There might be the median, there might be the thought of middle or average. There may even be abnormal behavior or language is so out there it is not near what everyone else is behaving or speaking.
We all have dark within us and we all have light within us and everything in between. That can be considered normal.
How much dark and how much light depends on how much we work at diminishing or emphasizing that or not.
We all have some manner of dysfunctionality, we all have some measure of genius within us.
We are normally not normal and we are decidedly individual at times.
The important part is that you choose who and what you want to be.
There are no forces that can compel you to be or do anything.
Peer pressure, expectations, and what we see around us and view, plays a part, but does not excuse or justify what and who we become.
We do love to justify our behavior.
We do love to point fingers at times as well.
It is up to us to look at good examples of behavior and actions. (Yeah, good or better is not easily measured and is subjective. Can you think of a better word than good or better? Something measurable?)
It may be harder and harder to find good examples but they are out there.
As much as you’d like to be someone else, also remember it is important to be yourself.
You decide who and what that is.
Measurable goals ensure progress.
We are all a work in progress.
What’s your story?
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February 25, 2023
Chat GPT Write a Scary one page Story
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
The old abandoned mansion had always been rumored to be haunted, but nobody had ever dared to enter. However, curiosity got the better of a group of friends one Halloween night, and they decided to explore the eerie mansion.
As they made their way through the creaking halls, the only sound was their own breathing and the soft rustling of their clothing. Suddenly, a piercing scream echoed through the darkness, causing the group to freeze in terror.
One of the friends, a brave soul, decided to investigate the source of the scream. As he turned the corner, he saw a ghostly figure standing in front of him. The figure had glowing red eyes and was dressed in tattered clothing. The friend tried to run, but the ghostly figure reached out and grabbed him, pulling him closer.
The rest of the group tried to help, but the ghostly figure was too strong. It dragged the friend away, disappearing into the darkness. The group was left standing in the haunted mansion, paralyzed with fear.
Suddenly, they heard a faint whisper in the air, "You should not have come here. You are now trapped forever." The group realized too late that the mansion had claimed another victim, and they were now doomed to spend eternity trapped within its walls.
As the group looked around, they saw that the mansion had transformed. The walls were now covered in blood, and ghostly apparitions roamed the halls. The group huddled together, trembling in fear, knowing that they were trapped in this nightmare forever.
What’s your story?
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February 23, 2023
Chat GPT Write me a Childs Picture Book
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Write me a children's picture book story
Once upon a time, in a small village nestled between tall mountains and a sparkling river, there lived a curious little rabbit named Raffie. Raffie was always exploring and trying new things, which sometimes got him into trouble.
One sunny day, Raffie decided to explore the forest that lay beyond the river. He hopped and skipped, enjoying the cool breeze and the rustling leaves, until he came across a beautiful garden. The garden was filled with colorful flowers of all shapes and sizes, and there was a tall gate that led into the garden.
Raffie was curious and wanted to see what was on the other side of the gate, but it was locked. He searched for a key but couldn't find one. Suddenly, he saw a wise old owl perched on a tree branch nearby.
"Excuse me, Mr. Owl," said Raffie. "Do you know how I can get into that garden? I want to see what's inside."
The owl looked down at Raffie and replied, "The key to that garden is hidden in the forest. You'll have to search for it if you want to go inside."
Raffie was determined to find the key. He hopped and skipped around the forest, looking for clues. He looked under rocks, behind bushes, and even climbed up a tree to get a better view. Finally, after a long search, he found the key hidden inside a hollow tree.
Excitedly, he raced back to the garden and opened the gate. Inside, he found a beautiful fountain with water that sparkled like diamonds. There were also benches to sit on and statues of animals and fairies. Raffie felt like he had entered a magical world.
As he was exploring, Raffie saw a beautiful butterfly sitting on a flower. The butterfly looked sad, so Raffie went over to talk to her.
"What's wrong, little butterfly?" asked Raffie.
"I can't fly," replied the butterfly. "I hurt my wing and I can't flutter like the other butterflies."
Raffie felt sorry for the butterfly and wanted to help her. He remembered the healing powers of a plant that grew in the forest. So he hopped back to the forest, found the plant, and brought it back to the butterfly.
"Here you go, little butterfly," said Raffie. "This plant will heal your wing and you'll be able to fly again."
The butterfly ate the plant and sure enough, her wing was healed. She fluttered her wings and took off into the sky. She circled around Raffie and landed on his nose.
"Thank you so much, Raffie!" said the butterfly. "You're a true friend."
Raffie felt happy that he could help the butterfly. He realized that sometimes, exploring and trying new things can lead to wonderful experiences and even new friendships.
From that day on, Raffie visited the garden often, and the butterfly would always fly over to say hello. They became the best of friends and went on many more adventures together.
What is your experience with Chat GPT?
Any tips or tricks?
Anything else?
What’s your story?
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February 21, 2023
Chat GPT
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
According to an internet search: “Past tense is great for storytelling. It's considered the easiest tense for young readers or listeners to slip into. It feels safer and more believable.”
On to the main article:
Chat GPT is quite the application. I asked it to write me a story and this is what is spit out and it is not too bad I think. What do you think?
I asked Chat GPT to write me a story, here is what it come out with:
Once upon a time, there was a little girl named Emily who loved to explore the world around her. She lived in a small town surrounded by fields and forests, and every day she would wander off into the woods, curious to see what she could find.
One day, as she was walking through the forest, she stumbled upon a hidden clearing. In the center of the clearing stood a magnificent tree, with leaves that shimmered like gold in the sunlight. Emily had never seen anything like it before, and she knew that she had to get closer.
As she approached the tree, she noticed that there was something carved into the trunk. It was a message, written in a language that she didn't recognize. Emily was determined to find out what it said, so she began to study the letters and symbols, trying to decipher their meaning.
Days turned into weeks, and Em spent all of her time studying the tree and trying to understand the message. She became so focused on her task that she forgot to eat or sleep, and her parents grew worried about her.
But Emily was determined to solve the mystery of the tree. And finally, after many long days and nights of studying, she was able to translate the message.
It read, "If you seek to unlock the secrets of the world, climb to the top of this tree and you will find what you are looking for."
Em knew that she had to climb the tree. It was tall and daunting, but she was brave and determined. She began to climb, hand over hand, higher and higher, until she reached the very top.
And there, at the top of the tree, was a magnificent view of the world. Emmie could see for miles in every direction, and she felt a sense of wonder and awe at the beauty of it all. She knew that this was what she had been searching for - the magic and mystery of the world around her.
From that day on, Em continued to explore the world, but now she did it with a greater sense of purpose and understanding. She knew that there was so much to discover, and she was determined to unlock all of its secrets. And so she set off on a new adventure, eager to see where it would take her.
What’s your story?
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February 19, 2023
Moog
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
This may seem like an article on music, however, it is really about innovation and knowing when something comes along that your instincts say, “Oh, get on board with that!”
Investments can be that way, new crafts, or ways of doing things, even new thinking. How do we follow a trend that will keep on trending for years to come versus a dud that will peter out in a few months.
Walmart, Starbucks, McDonalds, Microsoft, Apple, etc. are all corporations that if we’d invested hundreds in them years ago at the beginning would have made us millionaires. Who knows.
My general rule is if I use it and know most people who use the same thing then that can be gold.
Full disclosure, only invest if you can afford to lose it since I once invested a thousand into a company that had been up and coming for years and it all fizzled into nothing and I lost that thousand. I’m not ashamed, I am just wiser and luckily we had it, but more importantly is that we could live either way.
Anything can have “lottery type results” if you hit it correctly but many of us do not have the money to lose time after time until we hit it big. That is gambling in the worst way if we are living paycheck to paycheck and hope to get pie in the sky results from a LOOOOONG SHOT.
So don’t do that. Be wise, talk with some trusted people who know how and also become an expert yourself.
You are the ultimate ruler of how well a fit it is for you and not someone else.
Okay, on with our article:
Back when the Moog Synthesizer was invented in the late 60’s, the manufacturer representative played it on the first several albums that came out featuring it. The Doors overdubbed it later, but there are disputes as to who is the very first band to use it. One of which was the Monkees.
Mickey Dolenz is actually the second person other than that Moog rep to own one and PLAY it on one of their albums.
Frank Zappa said that was because they could afford the best equipment where most bands could not.
Interesting though.
Also according to Andrew Hickey of 500songs.com
“The Monkees, though, had *started* in stadiums, and had started out as mass entertainers, and so their live show was designed from the ground up to play to those larger spaces. They had costume changes, elaborate stage sets — like oversized fake Vox amps they burst out of at the start of the show — a light show and a screen on which film footage was projected. In effect they invented stadium performances as we now know them. Nesmith later said “In terms of putting on a show there was never any question in my mind, as far as the rock ‘n’ roll era is concerned, that we put on probably the finest rock and roll stage show ever. It was beautifully lit, beautifully costumed, beautifully produced.”
I mention all of this because we must see the potential of new versus the comfortableness of the usual or the old.
It is a balancing act and you must decide for yourself whether the latest craze makes sense or is just crazy for you.
You can always change your mind and bring in the new and try it out for a while and see if it works.
Again, we have choices and ensuring that our choices help or hurt us is our privilege and prerogative and responsibility.
What’s your story?
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February 17, 2023
Reject Reject Reject
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Everyday we receive some type of rejection.
If you are an author, or interview for a job, or just want to get to know someone you may face rejection.
It’s no big deal. It is a part of life.
Not everyone wants to be your friend. That may be a good thing.
Stephen King states that he faced rejection hundreds of times. He was rejected 60 times before he sold his first short story, The Glass House, for $35. At one time he grew so frustrated that he threw a novel away. What saved it? His wife who dug it out of the trash and read it then insisted he send it to publishers. That book was rejected many times before someone picked it up but only printed 13,000 books. Then another publisher swooped in and those paperback rights sold for $400,000 at that time which is equivalent to over $860,000 in today’s money. That book was named Carrie.
Theodor Seuss Giesel (Dr. Seuss) sent his first picture book to 27 different publishers (that was to type it out and mail in the paper) 27 times and that took time, money and I am sure it was frustrating to spend all of that time and money with no result 27 times. Finally one took a chance.
J. K. Rowling was broke, severely depressed, divorced and a single mom going to school plus writing. She went from welfare to a very rich woman in just 5 years.
Ya just never know when that lightning, that lottery, that effort will pay off.
I’m still digging for gold (actually just to get published to heck with the gold).
How about you?
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February 15, 2023
Kyrie eleison
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
These words which are Latin are from a Mr. Mister song (a great song by the way) and first invoked long ago and far away.
Here is the partial history:
noun: Kyrie eleison
a short repeated invocation (in Greek or in translation) used in many Christian liturgies, especially at the beginning of the Eucharist or as a response in a litany.
The first acclamation in the Ordinary of the Latin Mass, sung directly after the introit. The basic text, which is Greek, consists of ‘Kyrie eleison’ (three times), ‘Christe eleison’ (three times), ‘Kyrie eleison’ (three times): ‘Lord, have mercy ... Christ, have mercy ... Lord, have mercy’. The phrase ‘Kyrie eleison’ was used in Eastern and Western litanies from at least the 4th and 5th centuries, and St Gregory the Great (pope 590-604) is credited with establishing its use together with ‘Christe eleison’ in the Roman Mass. By the 10th century the ninefold shape was established.
An exclamation, a proclamation, an eulogy, a prayer and more.
Praying is just words and if there are NO actions by the prayer then the words are for comfort by the sayer, a mantra, a hope, a wish.
Actions combined with prayer may create an atmosphere of attainment, atonement, achievement.
How do you feel about this?
Anything I am overlooking or forgetting?
Let me know what you think.
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February 13, 2023
Colors and Flavors
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
If you are painting or crafting or cooking, think about all the chemistry, analyzing and formulating that goes into it.
Is there such a thing as too much color?
Color clash?
Can there be too many flavors?
What happens when one flavor is too overpowering?
Artistry is not only in the making as well as the consumption.
A true artist, cook, and crafter knows when too much makes the item less palatable, less desirable, less sellable.
It is a true balancing act for sure.
So practice and instinct and a good taster or eye, even bouncing the idea, the item, the tasting with another to ensure we have not crafted an item solely to our taste and ignored others that might be involved.
Now I did not ask my neighbors when I painted my house several years ago what color or colors to use. We looked around and saw what we thought worked and if there was a red house or a purple house or a dark green house in other neighborhoods where we lived and decided that in some cases that works. Say for instance Curaçao and other places sometimes bright and vivid colors for houses work really well. Mostly due to culture and history.
On the other hand, just one house alone of that type may not work as well.
If your place stands out is that good or bad? Depends on who is living there, where they live and their tastes and how well it may work with the other houses in the neighborhood.
We learn and balance and come to know what works or suits us and our personality and our tastes.
That balancing act is the essence of eating, decorating, enjoying life and those around us.
A thought to think about.
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February 11, 2023
Versions
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Currently I’m on the 100th version of myself at least. I haven’t been keeping count, who does, but I have a general feeling about this.
If you count at least one per year and you are 50 then you are version 50 but if you’ve evolved twice per year then it is up to 100.
So at my age 100 is pretty conservative.
Software does a great job of versioning and keeping them separate and counted.
Maybe in the medical arena currently with medicines and vaccines the count is pretty accurate as well.
Your stories need to have versioning as well. I know that the Child’s Picture Book that I have written as well as others have many versions. If you story is in the original form then perhaps it is due for a rewrite.
Same with yourself. Ensure that your current version is not your only version of yourself. Keep evolving.
Awareness of self, changes within and without, constant concerted effort ensures that your version is the best it can be and it will only get better. Some versions need to be rolled back and sometimes items within it are mitigated then a newer version is rolled out.
Same with ourselves. I have versions of myself that did not pan out and changes were made.
Each time you took a class, a symposium, lecture, attended something that benefited you and gave you new insight your version was then upgraded with that new insight.
Now focus on using the newly earned insight to evolve yourself even further.
It can compound like interest and build upon itself.
The layers and complexities run very deep but extremely worthwhile.
What’s your story?
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February 8, 2023
Poster
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Think of that poster that is or was hanging in your room as a child, teen or even an adult.
Who is it? Or what is it?
What does this say about you?
How did it resonate that you bought it or someone gave it to you and you kept it and hung it?
How does it make you feel to think about it?
Usually posters that resonate with us stay, others with not so much appeal get changed out occasionally or until we find another one with more meaning.
Think about your mind and the posters in it.
The pictures and emotions of family and friends.
It may be time to change some of those old posters to ones that serve you in a more meaningful way.
What’s your story?
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February 7, 2023
Teeter Totter
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Yeah, this the name for an old playground equipment and not too many of them around. Easy to get hurt on them and of course the dare devils had to walk across them to show off.
It was one of those things that you’d love or hate or both almost within the same breath.
Our lives are like this, a balancing act until we are launched into the atmospheric wonderful feelings or held down in the dumps of depression and everything in between.
TV shows, Movies and Stories are also written this way. The first chapter the inciting incident launches us on the way of our journey and the lead characters shall then be see sawed back and forth emotionally each chapter. Without that see-saw that story is held in the middle of balance and therefore dull, lifeless and too mundane.
We need to feel that emotional tug of war every chapter.
Also ensure if a chapter ends up then the next one quickly needs to start down and then end up or vice versa to keep that emotional roller coaster going.
Good luck with your life plus your stories.
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February 5, 2023
Moog
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
This may seem like an article on music, however, it is really about innovation and knowing when something comes along that your instincts say, “Oh, get on board with that!”
Investments can be that way, new crafts, or ways of doing things, even new thinking. How do we follow a trend that will keep on trending for years to come versus a dud that will peter out in a few months.
Walmart, Starbucks, McDonalds, Microsoft, Apple, etc. are all corporations that if we’d invested hundreds in them years ago at the beginning would have made us millionaires. Who knows.
My general rule is if I use it and know most people who use the same thing then that can be gold.
Full disclosure, only invest if you can afford to lose it since I once invested a thousand into a company that had been up and coming for years and it all fizzled into nothing and I lost that thousand. I’m not ashamed, I am just wiser and luckily we had it, but more importantly is that we could live either way.
Anything can have “lottery type results” if you hit it correctly but many of us do not have the money to lose time after time until we hit it big. That is gambling in the worst way if we are living paycheck to paycheck and hope to get pie in the sky results from a LOOOOONG SHOT.
So don’t do that. Be wise, talk with some trusted people who know how and also become an expert yourself.
You are the ultimate ruler of how well a fit it is for you and not someone else.
Okay, on with our article:
Back when the Moog Synthesizer was invented in the late 60’s, the manufacturer representative played it on the first several albums that came out featuring it. The Doors overdubbed it later, but there are disputes as to who is the very first band to use it. One of which was the Monkees.
Mickey Dolenz is actually the second person other than that Moog rep to own one and PLAY it on one of their albums.
Frank Zappa said that was because they could afford the best equipment where most bands could not.
Interesting though.
Also according to Andrew Hickey of 500songs.com
“The Monkees, though, had *started* in stadiums, and had started out as mass entertainers, and so their live show was designed from the ground up to play to those larger spaces. They had costume changes, elaborate stage sets — like oversized fake Vox amps they burst out of at the start of the show — a light show and a screen on which film footage was projected. In effect they invented stadium performances as we now know them. Nesmith later said “In terms of putting on a show there was never any question in my mind, as far as the rock ‘n’ roll era is concerned, that we put on probably the finest rock and roll stage show ever. It was beautifully lit, beautifully costumed, beautifully produced.”
I mention all of this because we must see the potential of new versus the comfortableness of the usual or the old.
It is a balancing act and you must decide for yourself whether the latest craze makes sense or is just crazy for you.
You can always change your mind and bring in the new and try it out for a while and see if it works.
Again, we have choices and ensuring that our choices help or hurt us is our privilege and prerogative and responsibility.
What’s your story?
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February 3, 2023
2nd Chance
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Do you think a person deserves a second chance?
If they have violated your trust, then maybe or maybe not?
Repeated offences mean for sure not, you have learned through who knows how many times to not trust them.
Can you think of a time when you gave someone a second chance?
Can you think of a time when someone gave YOU a second chance?
How did that work out?
We tend to be way more lenient with ourselves than others and we need to keep that in mind.
Here’s 38 Special with one of my [many] favorite songs:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=cRkaPdfjzEk&feature=shares
What’s your story?
January 31, 2023
The Challenge is still on
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Here is the link to my stories and your challenge is to vote for your favorite (no more than 3 please).
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/stories-written-by-david-alan-binder
Send your vote to dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
[NOTE: I do not put the whole email address as it should be to keep bots from skimming the email and sending lots of stuff.]
Any love may be sent through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
January 29, 2023
A Challenge
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
This challenge is for you Dear Reader!
I am currently working with a Kid’s Literature Group.
These stories need your review and please vote for the top 3 or less and the lucky one will be used in my Kid’s Lit Group for review.
After it is completely polished it will be another one for me to submit to a publisher.
Thank you for your efforts and let me know what you think.
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January 25, 2023
The Beauty of Writing
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
I am currently joining a Kid’s Literature group every Wednesday to critique each other's efforts.
It is panning out in so many ways above and beyond my own personal efforts. This is the third group that I’ve been in over the past seven years.
The feedback is invaluable; however, one has to sort out the good suggestions from ones that may not add quite the touch one is looking for.
That comes down to personal choice. Do I do it like one or more of the groups suggests or do I do it like I want?
The evaluation comes from within and even though the suggestions are meant with good intent it does not ensure that your goals will be met.
Turns out that the story belongs to me and I am ultimately responsible for how well it is written and the ending and everything in between.
There are thousands of decisions of what to discard, what to keep and what to rewrite.
None of those decisions are easy and any one of them may be exactly what is required or could be something that takes the story in a direction that is not intended.
The clarity in your mind must be transferred to whoever is reading it exactly in order to get it correctly interpreted.
I’ve illuminated this to some of the writers in the group.
Some I have a lot of respect for and some seem to have a way to go to get to the sweet spot.
For me reading one of my story’s means reading it out loud.
I perform each of the characters' voices as I envision it.
Finding a character’s voice is one of the most difficult things to do but once found, then when you are deep into it, the character will show you in your mind if what you are writing is within that character or not.
That is the beauty of writing.
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January 23, 2023
Vulnerability
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Vulnerability stems from the latin word to mean wound.
Are you vulnerable? Yes and so am I.
We hide that vulnerability from others with a tough, hardened exterior so that one does not show others that they can be wounded with words or actions.
Hardened criminals may be at the core some of the most sensitive people and they become hardened to hide that sensitivity which means they are protecting that sensitivity from being wounded.
So what do you do to hide your vulnerability?
What approaches or reactions do you use to protect yourself?
Do you attack first? So you retaliate when you are hurt?
It is important to know what is going on within yourself to be able to protect yourself from some of your own reactions to hurts you may perceive came from others.
What’s your story?
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January 21, 2023
Similar but Different
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
When we look at history or biology or chemistry or any science kind of thing as we examine a particular aspect we look for similarities with what we already know.
We also in our examination may make note of differences from what we already know and then we classify, draw conclusions or theories from those observations.
In other words, we are looking at the particular aspect from all sides and facets and comparing it to our knowledge database.
This allows us to categorize and learn from the thing we are studying.
Humans are fascinating and human behavior can be even more so. The differences are astounding and we’ve discussed this before, those differences may set us apart from them or maybe it leads to understanding of how their mind or behavior works.
The same with similarities, similarities seem to build bonds with others where differences seem to divide us or set us apart.
Why do differences divide us or separate us?
Why do similarities build bonds, or unite in some ways?
Observation is a way of manipulating the data that we know and use that information to build upon what is known and learn from what is unknown.
We can build if our intention is set that way whether there are differences or similarities.
It is our choice. Build and bond or separate and widen the chasm.
How many chasms are of our own making rather than theirs?
What’s your story?
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January 19, 2023
Influence Groups are extremely important to your career no matter where or what is your field of endeavor
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
First of all, Bubble Puppy (band), has anyone heard of them in 50 years, or even at all. One hit wonder Hot Smoke and Sassafras. Waaay back in the day.
How about Love (another band) that had Johnny Echols guitarist? Know anything about them? When you realize how much Johnny Echols influenced and was actually a forerunner to Jimmi Hendrix. Because Johnny played the guitar like a fiend. Between his legs, behind his back, with his teeth. See this note in Wikipedia: "My Diary" for Rosa Lee Brooks in 1964 which featured Jimi Hendrix.
[From iHeart podcast Episode 147: The LAGs (Arthur Lee and the LAGs) started playing as support acts and backing bands for any blues and soul acts that came through LA, performing with Big Mama Thornton, Johnny Otis, the O'Jays, and more. Arthur and Johnny were both still under-age, and they would pencil in fake mustaches to play the clubs so they'd appear older. In the fifties and early sixties, there were a number of great electric guitar players playing blues on the West Coast -- Johnny "Guitar" Watson, T-Bone Walker, Guitar Slim, and others -- and they would compete with each other not only to play well, but to put on a show, and so there was a whole bag of stage tricks that West Coast R&B guitarists picked up, and Echols learned all of them -- playing his guitar behind his back, playing his guitar with his teeth, playing with his guitar between his legs.]
What has this got to do with anything? It means that everyone influences everyone else more or less from musicians, to writers, to scientists. Working and studying with and practicing with a group brings out the best in most of them.
They ping and bounce ideas and just coalesce and it becomes fluid.
I currently am working with a writers group and have worked with several in the past. They have helped to bring out my best and I have so much appreciation and gratitude for their encouragement and feedback.
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January 17, 2023
Belief slash Believe
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Gabor Mate was asked “when was the last time you did not feel good enough”. Gabor replied, “that is a belief not an emotion” and then proceeded to answer, “yesterday morning”.
To have feelings of inadequacy or not feel good enough is natural and normal. However, it is NOT something we were born with. We allow that in our lives due to some circumstances that we felt like we could or should control when usually we had no control over the circumstance or issue.
To have these feelings happens and most people have those feelings at one time or another. It is like thoughts, we have them then it is on us on what we do with those thoughts. If we allow thoughts or beliefs to remain then it is up to us to remove or stop those thoughts. We can’t let it stand in our way of progress and moving forward. Languishing in doubt, detrimental belief(s), is depression and to engage and ruminate upon that which does not really exist except in our mind is giving them power over us.
If you believe in something that does not exist and you are afraid of dragons or something that might harm you it gives them control over you.
You will cease to go where you think this imaginary thing might be, you may curtail an activity, and you are feeding the imaginary belief.
How do you destroy that dragon? Simply disappear it by thinking it does not exist and it will go away.
Don’t fight what does not exist, just ignore it and soon it will not be part of your life.
What do you think about this idea?
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January 15, 2023
Hello anyone know Dunning Kruger?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Once in a while, you may encounter someone who thinks they know more about a topic than others, when in actuality they have little to no background to support that. If so, this is known as the Dunning-Kruger effect. It's when people who think they know what they are doing grossly overestimate their ability to do that particular thing. This can be pushed through someone else’s agenda (for instance, I hand picked this person to do a certain task or gave them this job title when in fact they were just a friend, a relative, or just someone they preferred over you).
There are all types of people who think and act like they are an expert and it is your job to ensure that you fully vet them and ensure that they are who they say they are and can do.
A hard investigation and questioning and having them show you examples not just take their word for it will assure that they are genuine and capable.
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January 13, 2023
Your Dreams are not My Dreams
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Just the same as reality, our dreams of how we’d like the world, our achievements, and our convictions are not shared even if we share them.
Again that old dichotomy of you being you and me being me gets in the way of shared dreams.
Our concepts may think we are talking the same dream as far as what we are wishing for the world to evolve, shape and affect all.
Dreams are not reality and just hoping, wishing and thinking changes nothing. Actions change ourselves, potentially others and the future.
By the way Mr. Godin stated, “The effective writer can see their ideas spread to a hundred people overnight, or perhaps a million. Writing is still the bedrock tool we use to codify and share ideas, and it forces us to organize our thoughts.”
Now I am NOT saying you have to be a writer to prodigy and share ideas (these are my words now not his).
There are many things as a creator that you can do to magnify and be a force for change.
Take action to make your incremental become monumental.
What’s your story?
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January 11, 2023
The Most Important Task of the Day
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What is your most important task every day?
Getting coffee?
Having breakfast?
Getting some household chores or yard work done?
Getting kids off to school, or you or someone else to work?
There are many things to consider and prioritize.
Consider this:
If one of the most important things you do in your life is creating, then feeding that is extremely important.
So maybe elevate on your list those items that feed that, whether it be research, discussion, a walk or exercise, whatever, your creative self depends on the sustenance you give it.
Same as your body, your health, your mental well being, your physical well being and if one of the items on your creative list also feeds one of your other needs, say for instance, physical exercise gives you time to think and use your mental faculties to drive you farther and deeper into the creative as well as tone your body.
Cool, two benefits for the price of one.
Everything has a cost, either plus or minus, to your well being and your creativity.
Sometimes what we do is a minus creatively; but might be a must do since it is necessary.
Sometimes what we do is a plus creatively and if that thing pluses us in two areas rather than one then BINGO! We’ve hit the proverbial jackpot.
Take your inner creative and expand it incrementally until it is expanded exponentially into monumental.
What’s your story?
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January 9, 2023
Autopilot
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
I read an article on autopilot which is when we do things without thinking about them. Like when you drive to work and get there but have no idea what you did or how you did it, that is autopilot.
Your mind knows where you want to go and you end up there.
Snacking and many other things can be done without even thinking about that individual act or its consequences.
So in order to avoid the autopilot syndrome then when you are about to do something ask, “What’s your why?”
Why are you doing what you are doing? Why are you acting or reacting a certain way? What’s going on in your internal thought or thoughtless process?
If it is totally withou thought then maybe you got another think coming. Or at the very least take your gear out of autopilot and put it into what is the purpose of your move, act or reaction. That is how you gain the upperhand on autopilot or doing without thinking. Now there are some chores that can be done without concentrating a whole lot. Dishes, mowing the lawn, even some cooking, driving as long as it is a specific place you’ve gone alot.
When we autopilot what are we missing that maybe it would be best if we thought about?
I don’t have all the answers but I think about these things and wonder if I am even thinking at all sometimes.
If you’ve ever put something in the refridgerator that does not really do there or maybe goes in a cabinet instead that is autopilot. Nothing earthshattering, but is still a small thing that should be thought about.
Thinking never hurt anyone and even some things could be overthought but who cares and why not take some extra time to ensure it is a good thought.
What’s your story?
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January 7, 2023
Not One of Us sees the World as it really is
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Seth Godin said this “No one sees reality. It’s worth repeating: No one accurately sees the world as it is.”
NOT one, NO one, not even me sees the world as it actually is.
Our biases shape our world, our preconceived concepts, our notions and our experiences.
Seth goes on to say “A person with hearing loss doesn’t experience the world the same way a synesthete does. A rock climber doesn’t see a steep slope the same way an elderly person does. And an optimist and a pessimist rarely experience opportunities in identical ways.
And each is correct. Correct in that their experience of the world is their experience of the world.”
We are correct and we are wrong at the same time. We are wrong as far as other people’s experiences, knowledge and judgements are concerned. And we are correct according to our experiences, knowledge and judgements are concerned.
So it is a huge balancing act and we can not dispute what others feel, see and evoke from their experiences.
Your experience is never the same as my experience even if we are together experiencing it at the same time and place.
We skew reality to make it fit our conceptions.
So please know that we all have a skewed reality and that leads to major differences in opinions, world views and biases.
What’s your story?
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January 5, 2023
Creation vs Posting
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Don’t get me wrong, for each thing I’ve created here there is another that I’ve posted that I am just passing on information or graphics or ideas someone else created then putting my own spin on it.
Spinning is okay, but creation is the ultimate.
To have an original idea is unique and there is not that much of it out there in the electronic wasteland.
The internet is full of regurgitated ideas and just plain vomit.
How do we get away from that cesspool of unoriginal thought?
We gain traction from just plain thinking and spinning our own thoughts round and round and looking at all the facets and then embellishing those facets that lead to somewhere totally unique.
It takes time, it takes practice and it takes focus. We live in a distracted society and many of us keep distracting others in society from real purpose and intent.
There is a time and place for posting and there is another time and place for creation and for us to progress from incremental to monumental then creation is the ultimate goal.
If we churn out the same old pot, painting or whatever you craft then it is more of the same.
Groups, bands that were creative were great and some were so forward in the thinking and creation that they were hard to follow or some of us did not get it.
Groups, bands that were able to take others' creations and embellish on them generated and made excellent money if they were able to bring their own set of talents to bear on the project.
If you’ve ever heard Led Zeppelin then you know how unique they are but if you’ve heard Small Faces then you know that Jimmy Page played on some of their studio sessions and then you know the song “You need loving” by the Small Faces is replicated (without the riff) and improved by Led Zeppelin in “Whole Lotta Love”. And this is not the only song Led ripped off or embellished or used portions of (according to lawsuits). It happens all the time some creators were paid and others were just ripped off.
Here is the Small Faces and see if you can tell how Led Zeppelin copied Small Faces yet put a different spin on it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRXbi3pq7Y4
So creation is subjective and sometimes posting is subjective and being original will build in one direction and the other will build you in another direction, but both are building just in different ways.
I consume so much material in a week that I cannot avoid letting that consumption give me some direction and influence.
It is not bad, it is just another avenue.
Let your creation influence others, but do not fail to let others influence you and then use that for creation as well.
What’s your story?
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January 3, 2023
It is a Whole New Year
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
New Possibilities
CHECK
New Future
CHECK
New Choices
CHECK
New Opportunities
CHECK
Wait...what's that behind you?
Oh yeah, the same old you
Let's think about this.
Can we bring the old us into a new year or do we have to completely change?
The answer is, we can definitely bring some of our old selves into the new year because NOTHING IS WRONG WITH US.
If there is then EVERYONE has something wrong with them as well.
We bring foibles, eccentricities, and some other things that we may not like, it is what makes us unique and ourselves so we have to have that with us always.
We may need to tone it down a bit, or adjust it, but we are who we are and would not be here without us.
So looking forward, be yourself. Your best self, bring it all with you that is helpful, strong and brave and even some vulnerability.
Bring only the best and kick out the rest.
We can make it a great new year with us in our new and our old form.
Let’s do this and make us greater than ever.
What’s your story?
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January 1, 2023
It is all up to you
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Right now you have a perfect score for 2023. By the time you are reading this basically you’ve done, not very much or made many decisions for 2023. It is a whole new CLEAN slate. 2022 does not count nor do any of the previous years. You have a whole new canvas, a whole new page, a whole new outlook, and you bring your best self forward.
Basically 2023 is mistake free, now we just have to hang on to that perfect mistake free and do this minute by minute and stack them up until you have hours, days, weeks, etc. without errors or anything that needs correction. No I’m sorry’s, no apologies, for we have not really done anything yet and that is a perfect place to start. There is a whole world of possibilities. You have a myriad of choices and now is the time to watch your choices and learn from the past.
This site is all about you. It is dedicated to you and your attempts and your progress and you can take it as fast or slow as you’d like. You have time, lots of time.
I am not asking you to do anything. I am not asking you to do nothing. This is all directed, and driven, and made possible by you and your choices.
All I ask is to think first and then act. Probably the best in any situation.
Keep on truckin’ and put your best foot forward, lol!
What’s your story?
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December 31, 2022
See the Cracks
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
This article is NOT about cracks but about our sensitivities and everyone is different about and to what they are sensitive.
We have a friend who has a fence that was replaced about a year ago and it is of the best wood. Most fences in the area are 20 years or older so they are in pretty bad condition. So you’d think that with this newer fence it would last about 20 years or longer before something would need to be done with it.
So one spouse was out taking boards off the fence at a time since they have dogs. I said why are you doing that, it is a new fence? This person said that their spouse could see the cracks (spaces) between the verticals of the fence which were up to ¼ inch to maybe a half inch in the worst place. I said yeah but those spaces allow for swelling and shrinking of each piece without damaging the ones next to it.
The answer was that if it can be seen by the spouse then it needs to be changed so he took each on off in turn and then planed it in order to place them closer together (about ⅛ inch) yet still have a smaller space (crack) between the verticals.
Jeez, what a lot of work for so small of a payoff.
However, my cracks or spaces are weeds in my yard and I pull tons of those weeds yet others may not even see them.
In reviewing those two stories, how many of us have done something seemingly for no reason at all and put a lot of time and effort into that task in order to achieve “less cracks” in our lives.
Too many of us perceive cracks that others do not even see at all. Cosmetic surgeries may be one person’s crack, a ton of decorations may be one person’s crack and not enough decorations may be another person’s crack.
There is no telling what our cracks are unless we are aware and tuned in to not only what we are doing but WHY are we doing it.
You may just be seeing and fixing cracks where others see none.
What’s your story?
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December 29, 2022
Aphorism
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
aph·o·rism
/ˈafəˌrizəm/
noun: aphorism; plural noun: aphorisms
A pithy observation that contains a general truth, such as, “if it ain't broke, don't fix it.”.
"the old aphorism “the child is father to the man”"
Similar: axiom
Aphorism is a concise statement of a scientific principle, typically by an ancient classical author.
"the opening sentence of the first aphorism of Hippocrates"
Origin
Early 16th century: from French aphorisme or late Latin aphorismus, from Greek aphorismos ‘definition’, from aphorizein ‘define
Are you able to use an aphorism in a sentence?
Did you know the meaning before this?
Have you ever used aphorism(s)?
It is an interesting concept for all of us.
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December 27, 2022
ByGones
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What does bygones mean?
idiom. : to forgive someone for something done or for a disagreement and to forget about it. I know we've had our fights over the years, but I think it's time we let bygones be bygones.
Okay so let's say you have a grudge against someone because of what they have done in the past that you considered ill-treatment or worse.
Because of past performance on their part you have learned to not trust them in whatever way.
Does this mean you can forgive them for their bad behavior?
Why should you forgive someone who treated you badly?
Can they earn your trust back?
Can you really let bygones be bygones?
Probably not, you will be on your guard with someone who is hurtful, abusive, a bully or more or worse.
Those type of people do not need to be in our lives.
They have no place in our home nor do we need to be in their home and subject to whatever they chose to dish out in the name of family or a relationship.
A relationship is meant to be easy. It is meant to be a two way street, they need to be as giving, loving and kind as you are and if they are not, then take your PRESENCE elsewhere.
For your presents to them is your presence.
Bygones are not usually bygones since if someone treated you in a way that you considered detrimental and if you tell them or if they do not ever discuss it then they are a closed door.
If they feel they can do whatever and get away with it then they only get away with it if YOU LET THEM.
Yes, Dear Readers and Dear Ones, you are choosing to deal with their issues since they do not care to treat and change their issues.
They do not choose to discuss it so for you then only issue is will you allow them to continue or will you choose to discontinue it by not seeing, texting, messaging, or communicate with them
Sometimes this is the only option and often we do not realize that this is really the only option. It takes time for us to think it through and arrive at this conclusion.
We dictate, choose and allow certain behaviors by others in our life and often we do not set enough boundaries.
Today, at this time of year, we celebrate and gather with those who have treated us lovingly, kindly and with empathy and RESPECT only.
All others may spend their time with someone else.
What’s your story?
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December 25, 2022
Merry Christmas more or less
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What does that mean to the 47 percent of the world (approximately) that are non Christian?
How does this day affect them?
Maybe it is like any of the 47% religious holidays or festivals or days they observe, to us!?!
So how can a world this divided ever come together?
There are so many divisions that we often do not even think of the ways we are all alike and I mean not just physically, but culturally, socially, mentally, and other ways.
Think of the things that bind us together, that is how to give meaning to this day to all others.
Join them in their celebrations when they celebrate, for any reason for celebration is usually great.
Them and us is no longer a viable mentality for anyone.
The separations will always seem like a chasm and in order to move forward we need to avoid those canyons of belief that separate us.
If you believe in Christ then act like it to all humans, not just your own type or kind.
If you believe in something else then act like it to all humans not just your own type or kind.
In the end, to be human is to experience the depths of emotion and sharing that emotion with others whether they are exact shape, kind, size, culture, or whatever is more important than the ways in which we are not.
What’s your story?
Share a cup of coffee ($1 at your discretion)
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December 23, 2022
Creation vs Posting
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Don’t get me wrong, for each thing I’ve created there is another that I’ve posted that I am just passing on information or graphics or ideas someone else created then putting my own spin on it.
Spinning is okay, but creation is the ultimate.
To have an original idea is unique and there is not that much of it out there in the electronic wasteland.
The internet is full of regurgitated ideas and just plain vomit.
How do we get away from that cesspool of unoriginal thought?
We gain traction from just plain thinking and spinning our own thoughts round and round and looking at all the facets and then embellishing those facets that lead to somewhere totally unique.
It takes time, it takes practice and it takes focus. We live in a distracted society and many of us keep distracting others in society from real purpose and intent.
There is a time and place for posting and there is another time and place for creation and for us to progress from incremental to monumental then creation is the ultimate goal.
If we churn out the same old pot, painting or whatever you craft then it is more of the same.
Groups, bands that were creative were great and some were so forward in the thinking and creation that they were hard to follow or some of us did not get it.
Groups, bands that were able to take others creations and embellish on them generated and made excellent money if they were able to bring their own set of talents to bear on the project.
If you’ve ever heard Led Zeppelin then you know how unique they are but if you’ve heard Small Faces then you know that Jimmy Page played on some of their studio sessions and then you know the song “You need loving” by the Small Faces is replicated and improved by Led Zeppelin in “Whole Lotta Love”
Here is the Small Faces and see if you can tell how Led Zeppelin copied Small Faces yet put a different spin on it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRXbi3pq7Y4
So creation is subjective and sometimes posting is subjective and being original will build in one direction and the other will build you in another direction, but both are building just in different ways.
I consume so much material in a week that I cannot avoid letting that consumption give me some direction and influence.
It is not bad, it is just another avenue.
Let you creation influence others, but do not fail to let others influence you and then use that for creation as well.
What’s your story?
Share a cup of coffee ($1 at your discretion)
Share a drink (soda or beer $4 at your discretion)
Share a meal ($10 at your discretion-yeah I’m a cheap date, lol)
Any love may be sent through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
December 21, 2022
Catharsis
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What are the keys to creating excitement, intrigue and catharsis?
ca·thar·sis
“The process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions.”
More simply put, "We experience catharsis in many different ways in our everyday lives. For example, if you ever go to a movie that you know is going to make you cry and you go for the experience of crying, this is catharsis."
If your story more than communicates but reaches emotions within the reader then you reach catharsis.
First, the writer has to “make things interesting in terms of motion, and then we need to deal with the energy within the minds of the players that gets them to enact things. That’s the second level. It’s above the surface. It’s everything above the neck. It can be anthropomorphic, too.
Anthropomorphic means the attribution of human characteristics or behavior to a god, animal, or object.
“There are three eyes in [a] story. The first eye (I) is the eye of the storyteller. When you’re writing your novels, you’re thinking about what you want to write. You’re trying to solve the problems of being the storyteller, YOU! All right, so that’s the first I.
The second eye is the eye of the avatars on your stage, your fictional or real beings you are writing about.
The third eye is the eye of the audience.”
All these eyes (I's) each play a part and an author must think about all the I's.
Each of the eyes (I's) have a point of perspective. You, your characters and your audience.
All the eyes (I's) must be dotted or taken into consideration.
Body Updates Continued
Disease correction avoidance?
What’s your story?
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December 19, 2022
Body Updates
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What if body updates were available, what would you update?
Stronger back?
Thinner trunk, longer legs, style of feet or hands?
Brain updates
A bit different from The Matrix...
Via software updates, learning a language, built in communications, emotional pain removal by incident or issue?
What else?
Vision correction? Better grip or what?
How about that mute button near your ear?
My father-in-law who wore hearing aids would typically turn them off when all the grandchildren were running around and being noisy, turning a handicap into a boon at the time.
What ifs are the basis of stories or inventions or next evolutionary ideas and products.
What’s your story?
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December 17, 2022
Here is a Suggestion from an extremely well known writing teacher
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Robert McKee says:
“Instead of settling for the first idea that you conceive, create ten or twenty versions of every scene, then cast most of it aside.”
Yes, this is a lot of work but necessary in order for us to get the best of the best which is what readers plus writing demands in order to have something published that will resonate, be unique and thus sell most likely.
The more work we put into something the more polished, readable, surprising, and just plain great!
We all love great and fantastic and it takes work. Bodies, health, mental well being, any craft takes time, patience and well honed skills.
When the Beatles were starting out they succeeded by the quantity of clubs and venues and practice that they put into their music and writing songs. All of that paid off big times for when they were “discovered” they were one of the most highly practiced and solid band in their area and maybe all of England. No one handed this to them, it was not a gift, this was real work and they enjoyed it.
Success will find you if you are the most practiced, put in the hardest work, develop your skills, keep at it and get the feedback from your audience (editors, friends, family, writing groups, etc.). All of this makes a huge difference and others will notice and “discover” you.
After all one may think it is the sparkle of delight just to hear you play, write, etc. That sparkle comes from craft, polish and durn hard work.
Go and be discovered.
It will be AFTER all of your hard work and then more hard work on top of that and then even more!
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December 15, 2022
Library vs Trubrary
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
We all know what a Library is and it is no lie; however, the truth is buried within us and we set it free from our use of the helps provided via a library.
These truths then turn the library into a trubrary for us to gain and earn our real potential.
Self help books, how to be better (fill in the blank here), honing skills in just about everything from woodworking, to gardening, to whatever skill you’d like to develop.
If we spend too much time on our screens then we are learning little to nothing. Mastering our time and focusing on things that matter is a real developed talent that most people do not care to even think about let alone do anything about it.
Incremental learning leads to a monumental life!
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December 13, 2022
Cameras
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
These devices are ubiquitous and seemingly everywhere. In the old days you took a picture and then waited until all pictures on the camera were taken, 12, 24 or 36 shots then took them to the developer who printed them and then you paid for those pictures. Very costly and that is why ever since cameras were invented not many people could afford them or the pictures and if they could then used them very sparingly. Even bad photos had a cost since most developers charged per print even if they were bad prints. Remember those days?
I do not have very many pictures of me when I was young due to the costs of the equipment, film, developing, etc.
Many people are in this situation as well. Do our children and grandchildren appreciate the ease and decreased cost? Probably not but we do.
Now cars, buses, planes, ships, people, traffic lights, speed cameras, body cameras, they are every where.
What have we gained?
What have we lost?
Does this reinforce good behavior?
Does this reduce bad behavior?
Or does it mean that if one sees a camera they take the bad acts they were contemplating to somewhere else where there aren’t cameras?
Personally I notice when there are cameras and placement, etc. Does it mean I am a criminal and am thinking about committing a crime? Not really, I am curious.
I believe that it is like fences, dogs, the security systems one put in place without cameras. It just means that real criminals will shift their focus on places without any of those security measures.
It does not change human behavior or patterns, it just shifts those behaviors to places where people who don’t want to be seen, can be covert, in another place.
This change in society takes time and it has caught authority abuse, violators, discouraged shoplifting, etc.
The fine jewelry store that my wife worked at in the 80’s and 90’s had cameras, plus the place where my son’s car was keyed also had cameras but they were for show and not really taking any videos. Bad idea but effective for a while until discovered that those cameras were just to discourage bad behavior like a sleeping police person, once you see that they are not working then no more deterrent.
This article idea comes from my installing cameras at my house. Just for extra protection. The amazing thing is how difficult it is to set them up and be sure they are working correctly. Got to have a certain level of internet service, etc.
Plus the hardware for our doorbell camera is not made correctly since it is NOT forgiving at all. Screws must be absolutely flush (not one bit out of true) or the camera will not fit into the housing. All instructions are through an app or online, none included with cameras (REALLY!). Do I have to do everything from my cell, can I use a computer well not if it does not use apps.
How cumbersome!
Plus I feel like the hardware (cameras, etc.) is not the real business and can be sold at a loss if the company can get you to subscribe to their videos kept in the cloud which is a monthly one for life most likely. Keep those dollars rolling in.
Everything has pros and cons. Security and a monthly subscription at the same time, lol.
So share your story about cameras!
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December 11, 2022
Buffets
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
No, not Warren Buffet, for sure not him.
We are faced with a plethora of choices, the smorgasbord runs for miles in each direction.
We think just because those choices are a buffet of delights we are able to sample everything and still be able to stay on course. Turns out that the buffet of social media feeds, news, twits and tweets, redbits [my coined term] will allow is the freedom to pursue all of those plus continue our lifes purpose. Unfortunately it just adds weight that drags us down, gets us farther behind from the true, real, and lofty goals we are shooting for.
Both ways are available and as soon as we choose one way the other disappears from our grasp and what we thought we had a hold of is no longer within grasp or is even more distant since we traded or squandered opportunities to attain and acquire true purpose.
Mindfulness, stick-to-itive-ness, stubbornness become our great friends in the acquiescence of the moon, stars and beyond.
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December 7, 2022
An Intrusion...
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
An Intrusion is…
Anything that interrupts, derails, sidetracks, delays, destroys your peace and quiet absolutely keeps you from your purpose.
Intrusions happen all of the time through notifications, Daddy or Mommy this, Hey Are You Listening to Me!?!, and other ones, you know what I mean and those interruptions are everywhere.
Take a deep breath, calm yourself and know that intrusions will happen. When the bell rings, the phone chimes, something in the distance (truck, car, motorcycle, etc.) goes roaring, charging, noising and just assaulting your ears. Music and clamoring and loudspeakers, all all vying for your time and attention. How do we ignore all of that?
The mechanism in your head, the brain, the lizard part of you pays attention to all of that since in the far past it meant the difference between life and death. Nowadays it may not be so dire but we still look and see and listen.
Can’t be helped.
Now what we can do is the sorting of all those intrusions. If the Advertisement is louder than the program then we can know that will happen and ignore or block it out through programming ourselves or maybe hit the mute button.
That there is a lovely necessity, that mute button has to be used often to block all that unwanted intrusion. My father-in-law had a mute button in his ear. He would turn his hearing aid down or off to block it all out. I would love that button just there by my real ears (don’t want the hearing aids just the button) LOL!
Train yourself, use your phone settings to block notifications on all but the most essential items. You will get to the others when you want to.
Little tricks and just be aware and keep working on it. I know I do every day. Maybe we’ll get better at it.
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December 5, 2022
Relations
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What are your relations?
People you know?
People you’ve heard of?
People you identify with?
People you would like to know?
Influencers, neighbors and oh, yeah, those who are blood kin of some manner or sort including those of the step variety.
Our relationships are all over the map with social media and people whom we seemingly know and yet really don’t know at all.
I’ve had people who I know, who I grew up with, in the same household that are comfortable only actually communicating with me once every year, sometimes 3 or even 5 or EVEN more years and yet these relatives think they know me without communicating with me.
That is an interesting paradigm in our lives. Especially with social media. I recently started a FaceBook page which I vowed never to do and I broke that vow. Who really knows why I did it, even though I don't know all the backstory or reasons.
We are trying to establish connection with others it is obvious with what we are doing and watching and listening to, and yet the one thing that establishes connection is COMMUNICATION and talking with someone and letting the conversation roam and the listening goes with the talking. I do not listen solely so I get a turn to be able to talk and tell people things. I listen to get to know each other and understand them.
Do they understand me? Do I really understand them?
I believe that social media does not add understanding since it is not really communicating.
Frequent communication even with texts allow people to know each other IF we share beyond just the next crisis or issue or event we are experiencing.
Being able to ask questions and learn from others is the true way to friendship since most of our relations and relationships are not really friendship. Especially when we communicate so little.
Social media is like newspapers. Articles, pictures, people, posts and what is happening to people, places and yet what do we KNOW, really in depth KNOW about who is posting?
If we do not care to learn about the true person then we don’t know them at all.
What’s your story?
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November 23, 2022
Selling ourselves
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Every time you have a garage sale, give away an item, give a gift you are selling yourself or you are giving a piece of you.
Do people who buy, are gifted care?
We used to get some really horrible gifts from my Mom who gave us used clothing she’d acquired and then just plain junk sometimes. We politely thanked her and usually as we were leaving town found a donation drop box to get rid of most if not all the items. Boxes and bags full of that stuff and yet it was given without a real thought about how we’d feel, or think or even want that item.
I remember Christmases when I racked my brain and inquired from someone’s friend or spouse who was on my gift list to find out what they really wanted. Sometimes I gave a gift that they had already given since sometimes the person who gave me the tips on what to get gave those tips to two or three people along with me.
Yeah, not a great reaction from the givee or giftee and I could see the disappointment. Or I gave a gift card, however gift cards are just cash that you can ONLY use at one certain store so that has extreme limits but people think that is less tacky than cash.
We once received gift cards for Hobby Lobby and for children to find something with the value of that gift card in a place that has very little real toys and things that children might want. We spent hours trying to find something, anything so we could get out of there. OF COURSE, even though that card was worth a certain amount of money, would the store gives us the money, NO! Once that cash is ensconced in the card it is like a jail that can only be spent in THAT ONE LIMITED STORE. What an abject failure of the system! HA, HA! We got someone's money and we will not give it back ever, just find something of that value and buy it so the store gets the money and you get something that you really may or may not want.
Yet I submit to you cash is king since the person who receives it can spend it anywhere their heart desires and so they get exactly what they want.
A gift of cash is thoughtful and puts the giftee first and yet people don’t like to do that most times.
I submit that it is the best gift of all.
So sell yourself with a gift of cash and people will love you!
Want to give me something? Yeah you know where this is going, GIVE ME CASH! It is the best!
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November 21, 2022
Cowcumber or Eorþæppla
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What in the heck is he talking about Cowcumbers for? For fun and enlightenment.
Where do they come from and why is it so similar to cucumber?
Cowcumbers or eorþæppla (earth apples):
Talk about an obscure reference. I was listening to Max Miller Tasting History. We love the historical portion of this YouTube channel and listen to it regularly but occasionally we hear about dishes or meals that are very interesting as well.
So Cowcumbers:
"It is said that the antique name of cowcumber arose because the fruit was thought fit only for cows." "co(u)combre" < Latin "cucumis" < ?, and replaced the Old English "eorþæppla" (earth apples) somewhere in the 1300s. The common pronunciation up to the 18th c was "cowcumber".
This is your historical news for today and you’ll be able to amaze your friends and family with this tasty dish of news or obscurity.
What do you think about that?
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November 19, 2022
Relations
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What are your relations?
People you know?
People you’ve heard of?
People you identify with?
People you would like to know?
Influencers, neighbors and oh, yeah, those who are blood kin of some manner or sort including those of the step variety.
Our relationships are all over the map with social media and people whom we seemingly know and yet really don’t know at all.
I’ve had people who I know, who I grew up with, in the same household that are comfortable only actually communicating with me once every year, sometimes 3 or even 5 or EVEN more years and yet these relatives think they know me without communicating with me.
That is an interesting paradigm in our lives. Especially with social media. I recently started a FaceBook page which I vowed never to do and I broke that vow. Who really knows why I did it, even though I don't know all the backstory or reasons.
We are trying to establish connection with others it is obvious with what we are doing and watching and listening to, and yet the one thing that establishes connection is COMMUNICATION and talking with someone and letting the conversation roam and the listening goes with the talking. I do not listen solely so I get a turn to be able to talk and tell people things. I listen to get to know each other and understand them.
Do they understand me? Do I really understand them?
I believe that social media does not add understanding since it is not really communicating.
Frequent communication even with texts allow people to know each other IF we share beyond just the next crisis or issue or event we are experiencing.
Being able to ask questions and learn from others is the true way to friendship since most of our relations and relationships are not really friendship. Especially when we communicate so little.
Social media is like newspapers. Articles, pictures, people, posts and what is happening to people, places and yet what do we KNOW, really in depth KNOW about who is posting?
If we do not care to learn about the true person then we don’t know them at all.
What’s your story?
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November 17, 2022
You are being
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Simply by existing you are being.
Simply by being you, you are being.
Well being. Inhale deeply.
Exhale slowly.
Be Being.
This sounds meditative and it is, it may sound like it could be medicative and it is if you feel it that way.
Being in nature helps us to absorb all the good in that atmosphere. The green soothes us, the wind in the leaves and grass soothes us, the bird song soothes us.
And likewise we can sooth ourselves by being.
Be still and be being.
Incremental steps produce monumental results.
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November 15, 2022
It happens but it is rare
As you can see if you’ve spent some time on this website there are hundreds of thousands of articles.
Where do all my ideas come from?
I am not really sure, it just happens.
Rarely do I pull up a blank screen and wonder what I’m going to write about. I have ideas ahead of time and keep some notes and then just write and write and polish until the article is ready.
That is how I do it in case you were wondering. It is the mind that is such a wonderful sandbox to kick things around in and look at them from all sides and think what about this or what about that.
Even though it is mostly effortless it is because I make myself aware of teaching and learning moments to use for myself and then to see if there is anything of use to my readership.
I am in this for me first and foremost and that is not bad or narcissistic. It is the reality of humankind. We are in this life for us and also at the same time we help others and family and friends when we can.
Thank you and if you have any learning moments or teaching moments that we can share please be sure and send it in. Better yet if you have written the whole article then I’ll give you the byline and ensure you get the credit.
Thanks so much in advance.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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November 11, 2022
Quotes that strike a chord
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
We watched the series Sense8 and it is the type that you love or hate or sometimes you love it and you hate it.
Also note that sometimes it is almost porn so if that offends you avoid it.
It will overwhelm you, it will put you to sleep sometimes, it can drag, it can have unimaginable action.
It bares it all in many ways.
I do not recommend it for everyone.
One thing I do like about it are the quotes below and how meaningful they are:
These are all quotes from Sense8
“Labels are the opposite of understanding.
Your life is either defined by the system, or by the way you defy the system.
Life is not just full of surprises. It's also full of gifts.
Trying to change the world only leads to suffering. All we can change is ourselves.
There are forces acting upon every life that remain beyond our control or comprehension.
I don't think anyone knows what life they will live. That's what makes life feel alive.
Feelings and emotions can overwhelm our logic, and at the same time, logic can ruin the emotions that make life worth living.
I have no room in my heart for hate.
Love is a bridge, and not a wall, if we let it be.
Nothing good ever happens when people care more about our differences than the things we share in common.
Choice is less about what happens than it is about how we deal with it.”
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November 9, 2022
The Secret is…
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Everyone has a secret and believe you me I’ve clicked on so many of these type of “headlines”
Cruise secrets
Secrets to getting a discount.
Getting stuff free secrets.
How to be more youthful secrets.
The secret to removing those wrinkles.
And on and on.
The Secret is…
Ta Dah! There is no secret. There are things that some people know that you don’t know but it is not a secret.
Especially if they are willing to tell you, then it is a hint, a suggestion, some advice, something that worked for them and may not work for you, type of thing.
I tell all my secrets here and there is no secret to just good old fashioned work.
We all know what we have not done that could improve our life from using creams and lotions, to more exercise and fresh air, to meditation, to becoming emotionally mature and dealing with our issues.
Those are not secrets, those are things we know we should do and we are not doing them either at all or not enough of it.
We have so much to process and deal with that back in the day people did not have to deal with. Back then they knew what was on the local news maybe and then it might have been many hours to many days old.
Let alone national and international news. Those took weeks.
Now we hear about all that instantly along with dealing with whatever we are presently doing this day to make our lives richer.
So don’t deal with the national or international, don’t try to make sense of whatever is going on regionally or locally.
Just deal with what affects you and that will maintain you and help you get through the present.
Those other issues are just that OTHER. Not yours!
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The Hobo Ethical Code adapted
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
The People -Hobo- Ethical Code shout out to Ed Davis for providing this original code for me to adapt.
1. Decide your own life; don’t let another person run or rule you.
2. When in town, always respect the local law and officials, and try to be a gentle[person] at all times.
3. Don’t take advantage of someone who is in a vulnerable situation, locals or other [people].
4. Always try to find work, even if temporary, and always seek out jobs nobody wants. By doing so you not only help a business along, but ensure employment should you return to that town again.
5. When no employment is available, make your own work by using your added talents at crafts.
6. Do not allow yourself to become a stupid drunk and set a bad example for locals’ treatment of other [people].
7. When jungling in town, respect handouts, do not wear them out, another [person] will be coming along who will need them as badly, if not worse than you.
8. Always respect nature, do not leave garbage where you are jungling.
9. If in a community jungle, always pitch in and help.
10. Try to stay clean, and boil up wherever possible.
11. When traveling, ride your [transportation] respectfully, take no personal chances, cause no problems with the
operating crew or host railroad, act like an extra crew member.
12. Do not cause problems in a [transportation area], another [person] will be coming along who will need passage through that yard.
13. Do not allow other [people] to molest children; expose all molesters to authorities…they are the worst garbage to infest any society.
14. Help all runaway children, and try to induce them to return home.
15. Help your fellow [people] whenever and wherever needed, you may need their help someday.
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November 5, 2022
Haters Club
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
What are the things, places, even people that you hate?
Why is that?
What has a thing or place or even a person done to you to elicit hate?
Maybe there are good reasons for that?
At certain times in my life I have found that I’ve hated some of those same things that you do.
People who are intolerant or prejudice or put people down or just pick on them.
At certain times of the year I’ve hated weather…in January in Iowa when the wind chill is far below zero it is not very pleasant. Ever. And yes I’ve hated it, maybe I just hated that particular phase of the weather or that weather pattern because when it warmed (relative term there) back up then it was better.
Did my attitude change? Maybe. Did the weather change? Yes, it most always does after a few to more than a few days.
What is worthy of your hate?
Maybe you don’t hate it, maybe you prefer it not to be a certain way, or you prefer different conditions.
Maybe you really don’t hate it, maybe our focus is misplaced.
I love it when it is warm. How warm? Well, not too warm, just pleasant as long as it is not windy.
Winds can make warm seem cool to cold.
So maybe just focus on what you like. Focus on what you love, for in most situations there are things that you like along with those you may not like.
If it is a choice, a preference, then just prefer to be positive.
Hate is so, so negative and does little good. Will the weather change its ways? No, probably not. Weather is weather and can not really change and become what you want whenever you want it. If we could control the weather then we would for we are not silly. We dress correctly for cold or heat or wind or rain or snow.
We seek those things that are pleasant and those things that are out of our control are not worthy of our hate.
They are just circumstances that are whirling around us. Pick the one or two things that are notable and worthy of our love, at least our likening of it.
Even people. Avoid those you do not care for, maybe it is just the way they are, and they can be avoided.
Skip the hate factor.
Seriously, I hate what hate does to me and my emotions and my inner turmoil, it concentrates it and reduces them to filth. We are better than that.
Concentrate on what you love and you’ll find more of it. Concentrate on what you are grateful for and you will not think of those things you are ungrateful for.
I am grateful to each of you who read this and visit with me here. I realize this is not an easy option. I have no notification when this is updated. I have no subscribes or likes or down thumbs. I have no use for that.
I just like, nay, love regular readers and visitors. Heck, I like, nay, love irregular readers and visitors.
And I am sincerely grateful to each of you!
What’s your story?
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November 3, 2022
Fabulist
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Whenever the John Wayne movie came out named “Shootist” I thought that was a very unique name having watched hundreds of hours of westerns growing up.
Now I’ve found a new name for us, Dear Readers and Dear Writers, and it is Fabulist
Pronounced fab·u·list, /ˈfabyələst/
Which means:
a person who composes or relates fables.
a liar, especially a person who invents elaborate, dishonest stories.
Used in a sentence "a born fabulist, with an imagination unfettered by the laws of logic and probability"
So we create wonderful stories and invent fiction, etc. In those stories we may “lie” about people, places, beasts, things, and invent otherworldly realms with no resemblance to earth. Some people may be partially based upon people and mannerisms of those people that we know but we disguise them, give them fictitious names, make up different looks, etc. to keep them from being known to the real people they are based upon.
This is to give realism to those people and realms and to transport the reader to those realms and fantasies.
So we are readerists, creatists, imaginitivists, activists, and “fictionalists” (I have coined this term just now apparently) as well as realists.
What’s your story?
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November 1, 2022
The Problem is the Problem
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
This may seem circular but it is not.
The problem with our stories is that we love our characters maybe too much. To really challenge our characters we have to basically take it to the edge so many times in a story and edges that seem to have no return that it challenges us to challenge our characters this much.
We love them too much to subject them to that kind of torture and yet if you read or watch stories then you know the kind of torture and horror and drama and trauma that we HAVE TO, no, I mean, we REALLY HAVE TO, put those characters through.
Those insurmountable problems that they overcome means growth and gasp, and an incredible tale.
Plus those situations must be overcome with not the easiest options, but the most difficult and the most surprising.
So take your characters by the hand at the beginning before you write and tell them that you will put them through the proverbial wringer time after time and yet the ending will be satisfying and wonderful in the end.
Your characters will understand and more importantly YOU will understand what you have to do to these characters that you love.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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October 31, 2022
Can you live without the complete truth?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
The past is done with us the moment we are done with the past.
It is up to you, once you are done with the past, ruminating, going over, wondering, delving, sifting, then once you are done then the past will let go of you.
You decide. You are not the controller, you are the decider.
You choose. Make a choice, keep thinking about the past or let it go.
Simple yet so, so difficult.
The past is a puzzle that we are trying to decipher, to interpret and to solve. The problem is we may not have all the information in order to decipher, interpret or solve. Without knowing the motivations, the emotions, the knowledge of the players who created the past you will never know the complete truth.
Can you live without the complete truth?
Ask them before it is too late; however, in my experience too often they fail to remember, or they change the story, or they invent what they wanted to take place and present it as the truth.
So muddling through all that only gets you filthy with regret, with no possibility of change.
The actual change comes from within you.
Let it go! Let it go! Let it go!
Repeat after me, I’m beginning to believe that the past does not affect me presently.
Say it again and again and in time you will take that upon you and it will be your armor and shield from the sting of the arrows of the past.
What’s your story?
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October 29, 2022
About Fear
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Fear can keep us from trying new things.
Fear can hold us back when it should not and yet fear can hold us back when it should.
Fear either works for you or against you and one never knows which fear has shown up.
Examine your fears, each one as they appear.
Look at it carefully and see if it hinders you from doing something that you should and also be careful that it may at another time keep you from doing something that after a second thought keeps you from doing the thing that actually will hurt you.
That is why each fear that comes up should be carefully examined.
Each fear that we have is a present.
It holds opportunity and it holds advice, but it is not plain and easy to see.
What are your fears?
What holds you back?
What doesn’t hold you back?
I know if certain people told me to ignore a fear and then I would do it because I trust those certain people.
Other people I would do the opposite of what they might advise on a particular fear.
Fear is not to be feared.
Fear is a choice. Fear is a decision.
Maybe we might have an opportunity to revisit a fear that we previously passed on.
That might be a good thing or it may reconfirm that we were correct in how we judged that fear the first time.
Examine your fears.
Carefully.
What’s your story?
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October 27, 2022
The Ghost in Front of You
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
When you are a child we pick up perceptions (whether accurate or not is debatable) from those around us; especially our parents and caregivers.
So a child will think if abused, or yelled at, or some other type of thing, the child will think that they (the child) deserved it rather than dispute and think about it and say, “Hey, there is something wrong with Mom or Dad! Not me!” We are incapable of that at that age since Mom or Dad or Caregivers are GODS. They are so much older, wiser (we think) and they provide us with shelter, food, and other necessities. This indebtedness for our existence, is stuck in our head as they; either one or both, can do no wrong. This perception is engrained within us and reinforced by society, church, school, etc.
The rulers of your household are absolute. Totalitarian. Maybe benevolent. Others will not take the word of a child over an adult (at least when I grew up it was that way). Child services did not exist. Corporal punishment was rampant in the home, schools and sometimes even in churches (again depending on time and place).
Children were considered almost expendable, free labor, and extremely codependent.
Now how do we change that perception in our mind and psyche?
Answers are difficult and take much counseling and therapy and work.
The onus is upon us to break the magic of those past spells and rewrite them.
What’s your story?
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October 25, 2022
A Quote from Josh Shipp which is fantastic
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Bitter or Better?
“You either get bitter, or you get better.
It’s that simple.
You either take what has been dealt to you and allow it to make you a better person, or you allow it to tear you down.
The choice does not belong to fate; it belongs to you.”
Bitter or Better Quote – Josh Shipp
I’ve done both and better is the choice that evolves us in one direction. Bitter devolves us in the other direction.
So we choose under circumstances, events, divorces, deaths, issues, health crises to either get better and move on or get bitter and carry it with you and let it affect or effect you (and possibly your loved ones) the rest of your days until you decide not to let it.
Even just that simple decision of how it makes you better is growth and awareness and learning from errors, or complications, or life’s happenings.
What is your choice?
What’s your story?
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October 23, 2022
Fabulist
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Whenever the John Wayne movie came out named “Shootist” I thought that was a very unique name having watched hundreds of hours of westerns growing up.
Now I’ve found a new name for us, Dear Readers and Dear Writers, and it is Fabulist
Pronounced fab·u·list, /ˈfabyələst/
Which means:
a person who composes or relates fables.
a liar, especially a person who invents elaborate, dishonest stories.
Used in a sentence "a born fabulist, with an imagination unfettered by the laws of logic and probability"
So we create wonderful stories and invent fiction, etc. In those stories we may “lie” about people, places, beasts, things, and invent otherworldly realms with no resemblance to earth. Some people may be partially based upon people and mannerisms of those people that we know but we disguise them, give them fictitious names, make up different looks, etc. to keep them from being known to the real people they are based upon.
This is to give realism to those people and realms and to transport the reader to those realms and fantasies.
So we are readerists, creatists, imaginitivists, activists, and “fictionalists” (I have coined this term just now apparently) as well as realists.
What’s your story?
Share a cup of coffee ($1 at your discretion)
Share a drink (soda or beer $4 at your discretion)
Share a meal ($10 at your discretion-yeah I’m a cheap date, lol)
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October 21, 2022
Challenge
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Challenge brings (or can bring) pleasure and satisfaction
“But with the right dosage, the challenge gives you the feeling that you are flying. There is something beautiful about encountering obstacles and finding ways to overcome them. It provides a deeper concentration and a greater sense of calmness and happiness.”
The “System” does not love people challenging it.
For instance the Boston Tea Party was against the British System of high taxes and basically taxation without representation. The King levied and the King’s men (the system) enforced it or penalized people who did not conform.
Conformity is loved by the leaders of Corporations, Governments, Church leaders, etc. Those in power want to keep their power even though at times it is abusive.
The Civil Rights movement challenged the status quo of treatment by the system that kept certain individuals and groups in their place. (Wherever they thought that place was, back of the bus, different schools, etc.)
What is our place?
If a place of work has a policy that discriminates against a certain group then there are certain laws and government policies to eradicate that. Does it work? No not really since it mostly depends on the companies doing the right thing (which the companies are not prone to do on their own, people and things are resources to be used and discarded, which was even more prevalent a few to several decades ago.
Exploitation is rampant even now. It is unreal that companies and governments have to be forced and coerced and policies changed to do the right thing.
What is right for one group may not be right for another. It is a difficult balancing act.
So my challenge to all of us is to not be content with the status quo. Challenge systems that do not make sense or that exploit others.
Challenge for change and eventually the system will change as well.
Challenge yourselves as well. Awareness brings about more challenges than unawareness.
What’s your story?
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October 19, 2022
Everyone is from somewhere
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
If you look back a year ago there is most likely not that much difference between the now-you and the yester-you.
On the surface; however, if you really think about it (depending on the year) we have progressed so much.
We know so much more and are doing more things to progress us much farther than the year before.
Now comparatively speaking if you look back two or three or more years then the differences are astounding.
How did you get here from yester-you?
Yester-you has faded into the distance as the new-you continues to progress.
Not straight line progress; the zig-zag progress of say a sailboat tacking yet each tack brings the boat further across the high seas to the destination even if that destination is not currently known.
Yes we all have our targets but we do not know which ports of call lie between here and there and so we make the best of it in any case.
Some ports of call are miserable and some are utterly delightful.
And some just are and may not be very memorable at all.
That’s okay.
We are on a journey and that journey is MORE important than any destination.
It is how we journey that determines present day attitudes, the now version of us and the peace we travel with.
If we are so solid we can not take some bumps and jostles along the way then it becomes intolerable.
Turn intolerable to tolerable by being flexible and looking for things, events, people that are in front of us and how each makes this version of ourselves a growth above the yester-you.
We must be flexible, we are beginning to believe we are flexible. The beginning to believe phase is the most important part since it involves acceptance, admittance, acknowledgement, and a turning point from unbelief to belief.
Belief is the strongest emotion and provides the leverage to the next level.
Believe and take action on your beliefs.
Believing is not wishing. Believing is not hoping. Believing is putting strength to your brain and muscle and taking the course that makes belief knowledge and empowerment.
When empowered it can overcome obstacles great and small and flatten them or at least get us over them.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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October 17, 2022
This sums up exactly what we have to do in order to survive let alone thrive in a relationship.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
First of all do not think this is about a single person feeling safe in a relationship.
This is about all of us and the criteria outlined for the individual is essential to establishing a safe boundaried space of each of us.
After the first 40 seconds when Richard gets into the question posited by the individual then comes the good stuff. It is less than 15 minutes and well worth our time to listen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yla7OHG8Ztk
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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October 15, 2022
How long does it take?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
If you think a five, ten or twenty minute article, video, audio, or pamphlet will make changes in you that have been learned or entrained or indoctrinated in you over your lifetime then think again.
This is what this site is all about. Thinking again. Thinking with reason. Asking questions. And maybe giving a little strategy, advice, support and acknowledgement that we are all in this boat of our own creation (albeit with the immense help of others involved in our early through middle to late life).
That systemic involvement of others who may not have had our best interests at heart takes a toll and creates neurosis within us that are not easily overcome.
It will take persistent, incremental, consistent, determined and oft shifting of focus back to the intrinsic issues within us.
WE ALL HAVE ISSUES. You are not alone. You have done admirably well in spite of all the forces that have played a part in your life.
I may have mentioned this before but it takes time, effort, redoubling, tripling and more of these plus awareness and constant correction to be able to undo the lifetime of forces inflicted upon us.
INFLICTED! Sometimes without even our knowledge that it is happening and in spite of some good intentions on others part and sometimes on our part.
We can be our own worst enemies if we let this afflict us because our endurance and our persistence is as strong as you make it.
Your actions determine the outcome.
Only actions determine outcome.
Inaction leaves us in the eddy, whirlpool, stock standing still, wallowing in pity.
Inaction is not our friend. Inaction happens. It is inevitable since it is extremely difficult to persist and continue taking action.
We get tired, worn out and sometimes we may think that our actions don’t add up.
And yet each and every action not only adds up they multiply.
Constant, consistent, intentional action helps us thrive.
Join me every other day, Dear Readers and Dear Writers, to become more than we are as one.
This group, this positivity will enable us to perform the correct actions that make a difference in our lives and in the lives of those we come into contact with.
As with hurricanes sometimes are lives seem an insurmountable obstacle to overcome and yet we have evidence from previous hurricanes that we can tear down, rebuild stronger and greater and in a year or even years the landscape we call us will change and become more immune, more unaffected, more resilient from those hurricane like effects that used to rule our lives.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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October 13, 2022
The 3 Gates of Speech
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
First you may ask as I did who Rumi is and what he is known for. The answer is:
“The ecstatic poems of Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi, a Persian poet and Sufi master born 807 years ago in 1207, have sold millions of copies in recent years, making him the most popular poet in the US. Globally, his fans are legion.”
Even though he is known globally and is the most popular poet in the USA I still was completely unaware of him.
He also advises that the Three Gates of Speech are as follows:
Before you speak, let your words pass through three gates:
At the first gate, ask yourself “Is is true?”
At the second gate ask, “Is it necessary?”
At the third gate ask, “Is it kind?”
~ Rumi
This is epic and sensible advice and this is usually forsaken.
I have been guilty of being too quick to speak, feeling that my truth overrides the other considerations.
I am thoughtful when I write and edit accordingly but in speaking one or more of the thought process or component may be left out.
Here’s to heeding this advice in all that we say and do.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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October 11, 2022
Does this sound familiar?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Okay I was listening to a YouTube video by Travis Dykes, such a practical guy and he amazes me with his craft and his seriousness he uses when he approaches it.
Basically here is how he goes from beginner to pro.
It sounds like such a repetitive vibe because I’ve been hammering it for quite a while (over 15 years).
His formula:
Prioritize Practice, he actually writes it into his schedule, EVERY WEEK! Yeah, it is that serious that you have to schedule it in order to go from beginner to pro.
Learn What You Like. This sounds simple but it is true, do not emulate or practice what you don’t like. If you like comics then learn that, if you like working with glass then don’t waste time working with wood or metal or anything else. Concentrating on what you like fuels your fire since you LIKE it. Imagine if you love it how much further that could take you.
3. Stretching Out. Now this one made me think since he is a bass player I thought he may talk about shoulders, arms, fingers. No, he means that while you are learning a technique that you take it further and apply it to something that you want to do and work on it from the aspect of furthering a quality that you’d like to have.
4. Uninterrupted Time. Yeah, this means you not only schedule but you set the timer. And if someone interrupts (it can happen no big deal) but reset the timer to ensure you get ALL of that quality time that you deserve.
5. Measure Yourself Against Yourself. It is about your progress. It is all about you. This is your measure for every aspect of your life. Measure your wealth against last year, last quarter NOT against Warren Buffet or some other big shot. You are the big shot that you have to beat, that you have to become better than the former you.
The future you is going to be awesome if you do that above and this keeps anything and everything out of your way and takes you to the next level.
Beginner to Pro
Sounds like, incremental to monumental to me!!!!
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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October 9, 2022
Healing Trauma in a Toxic Culture with Gabor Maté
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
This is a most excellent interview by Forrest Hanson and his father and we are watching it not just once but many times in order to glean all the great information and insight out of it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8fdPA8Tt4I
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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October 7, 2022
Pivot
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
We are going to explore pivoting and how this applies in life, career and other choices.
The word:
noun: pivot; plural noun: pivots
the central point, pin, or shaft on which a mechanism turns or oscillates.
a person or thing that plays a central part in an activity or organization.
"the pivot of community life was the chapel"
the person or people about whom a body of troops wheels.
NORTH AMERICAN
a player in a central position in a team sport.
noun: pivot[person]; plural noun: pivot[persons]BASKETBALL
a movement in which the player holding the ball may move in any direction with one foot, while keeping the other (the pivot foot) in contact with the floor.
Of course this word has many meanings and applications; however, we are going to explore how we can use it to make changes in our life and creative path.
A pivot is not just a fork in the road, it is making choices and exploring on a level of if this is not working then what will work?
Or just making small changes in direction to get a fresh perspective or look, to wit, if nothing is working in this direction how about we look in another direction or directions.
We are adjusting and giving a new take, or additional action to what we have already been doing. We see what works and then make adjustments to add to or compliment actions we are already doing.
The word pivot that applies to basketball works best in this analogy. It is trying to work “the ball” and checking other venues, techniques, players, paths, directions, additional complimentary crafts or processes.
Pivot can be extremely short and microfocused or it can eventually mean great changes in your approach.
You decide and make the choices and of course if one pivot isn’t what you thought it would be then try another.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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October 5, 2022
Cognitiveness
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
As a fish swims by two other fish it asks:
“Hey, how is the water?”
The two fish look at each other and shrug to each other and then answer, “What's water?”
What are you aware of that affects you?
What are you UNaware of that affects you?
The answers might surprise you.
Anything we take for granted therefore our consciousness being background may mean we do not realize the implications or the factors surrounding us.
How does the following affect you?
The Air
The Climate
The Water
Your Upbringing
Your Religiousness or lack thereof
Your Culture
Your Ethnicity
There are so many things that affect us and it is important to be cognitive of as many of those things as possible.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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October 3, 2022
Ed David author interview with David Alan Binder
About the Author: “Ed began his writing career over forty years ago, pausing in boxcars, under [street lamps], and in hobo jungles to record the beats and rhythms of the road as he caught freight trains and vagabonded around the Pacific Northwest and Canada. Road Stories, his dispatches from locals near and far, are guaranteed to stir your wanderlust and set your gaze to far horizons.”
Web Links
Author Website
Whistle Stop Book Tour
https://www.eddavisbooks.com/blog/
Artemesia Publishing
http://apbooks.net/profesh.html
Facebook Author Page
https://www.facebook.com/eddavisauthor
Goodreads Author Page
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7789760.Ed_Davis
Poets & Writers Page
https://www.pw.org/directory/writers/ed_davis
Amazon Author’s Page
https://www.amazon.com/Ed-Davis/e/B00HT69KEA/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1
#1 - Where are you currently living?
Glen Ellen, California.
#2 - What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
The value of a great content editor. Proofreaders and copy editors are essential, and have a very valuable contribution to make in assuring that your work presents as well as possible. They “keep the spinach out of your teeth,” and that’s no small accomplishment. But a great content editor can elevate your work to a whole new level. If you are lucky enough to find one, do all the work you can with them. You have captured lightning in a bottle. Make the most of it.
#3 - What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
I love to write in public places. Cafes, hotel lobbies, libraries, coffee shops, in an Amtrak club car, in parks. I do most of my writing in my Glen Ellen studio, but whenever I travel --- and I travel quite a bit --- I treasure those opportunities to work against an unfamiliar backdrop. I think that is when we see ourselves, and our writing, most clearly.
#4 - Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
Print-on-demand has democratized publishing in a way that Guttenberg could never have imagined. It was Tom Wolfe who said that everyone has at least one good novel in them; the story of their lives. Now, anyone who wants to can tell that story---as a novel, as a memoir, as creative non-fiction---and see it in print. There is nothing like the satisfaction of holding your first book in your hand.
But that also means that the number of new titles being released has exploded --- by some estimates to as many as five-thousand every day. If your goal is to share your work with family and friends, self-publishing is perfect. If you desire to reach a wider audience, it is very difficult (though not impossible) to do it without a traditional publisher and distributor. And even then, it’s a longshot.
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
Artemesia Publishing, Albuquerque New Mexico.
#5 - Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
My one and only tip is to beware of anyone who wants to sell you secret tips on how to get a book published. Many, many years ago I had a friend who worked in the mail order business---before the Internet displaced it. He maintained that the best way to make money in the mail order business was to sell people insider tips about how to make money in the mail order business. Self-publishing is easy. Finding a traditional publisher is hard. And in either case, most of the marketing will fall to you. There are no secret tips.
#6 - How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
Agents are business people. They have rent to pay and mouths to feed. If you can demonstrate to an agent that you will make them money, instead of cost them money, you have a chance. They only have just so much time to invest. Why should they invest it in you? If you can’t answer that question for them, convincingly, then finding a reputable agent will be very, very hard.
#7 - Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Try to find satisfaction in what you write---at every stage of the process.
Try to understand why you write. That will help you find the satisfaction.
#8 - How many books have you written?
There are books written, and books published. I have published four books. I have fully written six others. I have partially completed three more.
#9 - Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer.
Have a specific audience in mind when you write.
Read your work aloud to yourself.
Read your work aloud to others.
#10 - Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
A good twist needs to provide surprise without generating incredulity. Charles Dickens was the master of plot twists, and he got away with some doosies. He was also a hell of a writer, and he was working in a different time. If the twist grows organically from the plot, setting, or character’s backstories, then go for it. If it comes out of left field, it is likely to get batted right back there, along with the rest of the book.
#11 - What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
First, it is a HUGE CROWD (remember, 5,000 new titles a day). Unless you have one of the big five publishing houses really behind you --- they account for 80% percent of the slots on the bestseller lists that matter --- standing out is extraordinarily difficult. Exceptional writing helps, but there is a lot of exceptional writing in those 5,000 daily titles. A healthy advertising and marketing budget helps---really healthy---but remember, you are competing with the big five, and they know the rules of this game far better than you do. Something that appeals to a niche market has a bit better chance, and writing for a niche market can be very personally rewarding if that’s what feeds your soul. But it can also be limiting.
My advice? First, write something you are proud of. Then try to find a way to help it rise above the crowd. The standard strategies are well known. Endorsements, reviews, events, appearances, promotions, advertising, etc. It is a long list. They all require hard work, money, or both, and they become less and less effective in direct proportion to how many books are being released.
#12 - What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
In spite of the way that Amazon is dominating the publishing landscape, I continue to believe that independent bookstores, libraries, and museums are essential to our cultural vitality as a country. With that in mind, this spring I did a whistle-stop book tour of about twenty cities. It covered over seven thousand miles, mostly by train (my latest book takes place on the rails), and we stopped exclusively at small independent bookstores, libraries, and museums.
#13 - What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
I think it is very rare for someone to get it right without first getting it wrong, and wrong, and wrong again. Experience, good or bad, matters. There are no do-overs. But you can strive to do better. That’s the key.
#14 - What saying or mantra do you live by?
It’s all good. Glass half full? Glass half empty? Glass cracked? No glass? It’s all good. If it isn’t, then what the (heck) [sorry Google guidelines apply here] are we doing here?
Web Links
Author Website
Whistle Stop Book Tour
https://www.eddavisbooks.com/blog/
Artemesia Publishing
http://apbooks.net/profesh.html
Facebook Author Page
https://www.facebook.com/eddavisauthor
Goodreads Author Page
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7789760.Ed_Davis
Poets & Writers Page
https://www.pw.org/directory/writers/ed_davis
Amazon Author’s Page
https://www.amazon.com/Ed-Davis/e/B00HT69KEA/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1
October 1, 2022
Whoa! What am I thinking? I've posted not one but two lessons this month. Best part is it is ALL free!
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/free-lessons-assignments
Attachment Authenticity
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
These two concepts Attachment Authenticity have a need to be balanced within someone in order to be able to not only work together but to be able to belong.
If one's authenticity is too high then attachment with others may suffer.
If one's attachment is too high then one’s authenticity may suffer.
We all need attachment and may find that our authenticity decreases so we adapt, we cope and suppress authenticity in order to have greater attachment.
Wait, what did we just do?
No, we did not do it. Because of others' judgments, or their needs, we have changed ours.
We just went against our natural style to become what others expect.
Those peoples' expectations have changed one internally and externally and one's adaptive style changes one psychologically and if that adaption is too great then something has to give.
If a child acts out due to their emotions and then is made to sit in a chair by themselves in another room; the parent is saying they will not put up with that behavior. The child hears that they will not be loved unless they sacrifice their authentic feeling of emotion and therefore the emotions must be depressed.
Guess what, suppressing of emotions comes from that push to depress our true feelings and may lead to depression. We have pushed that button DOWN to suppress and it then shows up in other forms of issues in our lives.
This is a lose-lose. We disconnect our feelings and therefore disconnect from reality in some measure. We disconnect in order to feel attachment which is ironic given that in order to attach we have to disconnect. Painful, but true.
The greatest part of our genes determine who we are and 99% of genes do not have markers for disease (there are some though). Given this then how does our mental health enter into this if there are no genes for mental health?
It is in the coded marker we have for sensitivity. This is extremely individual and this sensitivity if it is great then our reactions within us to events may plunge us into despair, despondency, or other issues. If our sensitivity is less then some traumatic event that impacts others may not even bother us.
Sensitivity determines your reactions and how you cope with external events, drama and trauma that happen to others or to ourselves.
Such a huge discovery to the psychological process that may be hard wired within us.
Let’s discuss this more at a later time.
In the meantime, what’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Share a cup of coffee ($1 at your discretion)
Share a drink (soda or beer $4 at your discretion)
Share a meal ($10 at your discretion-yeah I’m a cheap date, lol)
Any love may be sent through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
September 29, 2022
Natural Normal
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
I was listening to an interview with Gabor Maté.
He stated that additions are our process to soothe ourselves and relieve pain. Also that this is normal, not abnormal.
I’d also add that it is natural to anesthetize yourself against pain.
So now that we have discovered that addictions are an analgesic against pain, and also discovered that this is normal and natural we also need to examine that it also causes unwanted pain or further consequences.
So if one eats to deal with pain, it may take care of one problem but it also potentially and unintentionally inflicts another one, overweight issues.
Same can be said with any addiction, pulling ones hair, tics, OCD, sex, gambling, etc.; all of these addictions also include other issues potentially for us to deal with.
If we examine our addictions and why we do them and how they relieve one or more types of pain and yet inflict other types of pain then we have a deeper understanding.
A whole you is a well you. One that not only handles and deals with pain but one that also handles and deals with offshoots of the unwanted consequences.
It is just one more thing to deal with and no, we don’t need that but we created it and if we create it then we can uncreate it or make it go away.
Again awareness, self awareness is key to dealing and coping and correcting.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Share a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
September 27, 2022
OCD
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
OCD, I was thinking about this concept and wondered if I had it. My half brother had nervous tics and tapped his fingers on the upper side of his legs when he was in middle school and upwards for many years.
I was reading about it and it can even include people who hoard things (this is only accepted in some circles, not all).
My mother was a hoarder, I may have mentioned this a while back.
I have a habit of chewing on my fingers, usually the nails.
Is that OCD?
I realize that along with extreme OCD, one can easily identify with the mild OCD where someone may have to have something in a certain place or maybe cups lined up a certain way in the cupboard. Those last types are not so easy to identify and some may just call it a preference rather than OCD.
I ask you, what do you think?
If we are compelled to craft, write, create are we OCD?
I believe it is not all inclusive and that some forms of OCD like having a clean house, or garage or a place for everything and everything in its place are really commonplace and are beneficial.
When does it go too far?
When does it go from being acceptable to being too much?
Any thoughts on this subject?
What’s your story?
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September 25, 2022
Measurements
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
There is an old dictum that states:
“What gets measured gets managed.” and Peter Drucker wrote it.
So if you want to manage yourself then measure yourself in terms of accomplishments, goals, time spent achieving goals, etc.
Even the hours spent at a craft or creating.
If you measure it then it is important and if you track it then you can see progress and that propels you even more.
Your purpose becomes less of an illusion or wish and becomes more of a reality.
With all the talk of reality, we are creating our own. It is more than fake until you make, it runs deeper. It means that deeds or actions mean accomplishments.
The incremental gains show that you’ll have monumental accomplishments since each increment is stackable and compounds on itself.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Share a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Join me on Patreon https://patreon.com/user?u=79755444&utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator
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September 23, 2022
The Wolf
A person (let’s call them Person A) may be teaching or mentoring another person (Person B).
Person B may find that they are at odds with something inside of them.
This grand tug of war between opposites.
Knowing about that struggle then Person A can say,
“In the war within you there can be a clear winner.”
Person B asks, “How?”
Person A advises, “In a fight between two choices, only one can win. Feed the wolf you want to win and starve the wolf you want to lose.”
This instills in you the choice to decide who wins and who loses.
Feed your instincts and follow your intuition and rely on the fact that you will know which is the right one.
“A fight is going on. It is a terrible fight. And only one wolf can win. One wolf is evil – it is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.”
“The other wolf is good – it is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you – and inside every other person, too.”
Again, the wolf you feed will win. The wolf you starve won’t”
This is a paraphrasing of the Two Wolves story or analogy or parable.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Share a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
Please feel free to freely share any of my content as long as you acknowledge David Alan Binder and insert the website www.davidalanbinder.com at the end of your shared post or email or text, so they may see my other content on their own.
I would request refrain from sharing the stories on the stories tab since I am actively looking for a publisher and agent.
All angels are appreciated!
September 21, 2022
Why
It is a simple question full of complexity.
“[A person] who has a why to live for, can [then] bear almost any how.” ― Friedrich Nietzsche
So when you figure out your why (your reason) then how falls into line.
So if you're philosophical then according to existentialist philosophy “The purpose of life is to create your own meaning and to bring it to fruition.”
When you create your own meaning then you have a purpose and then you figure out how to nurture that purpose.
Or if you are spiritual then your purpose may not be so much about the meaning of life but you may then progress by becoming the best self you can as you move through life.
How you do that is up to you and feeds your purpose and gives you hints for how to do it.
Materialistically it loses some impact for being material means you want more money, more power, more things and that gives you dimension.
However, that purpose may hold up for a while or even for a few decades but the lure may fade if you are unable to continue feeding it or if after you’ve amassed a fortune then that incremental of finding a penny or a dime means very little. You want and need more and more of that materialistic thing that feeds you and like an addict you may find that you require more than last time and the time before so a true “hit” requires more quantity possibly.
There are other possibilities:
“In French, raison d'etre literally means "reason for being," and in English it means about the same. Someone's raison d'etre is the most important thing to them: Michael Jordan's raison d'etre was basketball.”
Once you find your reason for being then feed it and nurture it and your life will be full of meaning.
That meaning is as individual as you are.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
September 19, 2022
Wholey
All of you, the bits and pieces and the mind, soul, psychic, health, muscles, nerves, and heart are YOU.
Taking care of your health only takes care of one aspect of you.
In order to go beyond survival, one must balance each aspect to thrive.
That is why sometimes this column goes beyond the creative side of you and wanders into other aspects of you.
In order to be whole, one must focus on each portion.
If you are lacking psychologically then all of you are lacking. If you are lacking health all of you lack.
Exercise, eating well, attending to addictions and overthrowing it or them, feeding your spirituality are all spokes on your wheel and if one spoke is out of sync (short) then the wheel does not roll correctly. The shorter one spoke then the more the roll became too rocky to continue forward.
Where in the world is your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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September 17, 2022
Albert Einstein
We all have facets and sometimes a facet that is important to us is relatively unknown by most and we may be known by another facet.
Here is one example:
It's little known that Einstein was an accomplished violinist, and even less known that had he not pursued science, he said he would have been a musician: “I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music.”
Also Albert Einstein said, “I cannot tell if I would have done any creative work of importance in music, but I do know that I get most joy in life out of my violin.”
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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September 15, 2022
If you are human and who isn’t then you do this
We all share a lot in common and yet there is so much diversity in this commonness.
For everything we have in common there is another thing that is different about us.
One thing or trait that we all share (usually) is the avoidance of pain.
Yes, we do not like pain (again usually) so we avoid it like the plague.
Yet there are some who do not avoid pain. Historically, if I were to contract something disease then I would take steps to avoid that thing and I personally know one person who has had an avoidable “thing” four times. FOUR TIMES!
Why would they do that?
They are using the best knowledge that they have built up in a lifetime and there they are contracting it again and again and again and then ONCE AGAIN.
Is it a relapse? FOUR TIMES!
Was the thing not bad enough the first, second and third time? (the answer is no since I’ve actually talked with that someone).
UNREAL!
Humans are a weird bunch. So predictable and yet so unpredictable.
We are limited by our opinions, our perceptions and our capabilities.
Our powers are limitless to do research, to have health in an age of great medicines.
Sometimes our conclusions are faulty and that is because we are not perfect.
So when we take into the fact that we are fallible, we are not perfect then it is understandable that we make errors and mistakes.
Here is a video by Richard Grannon (who I used to do writing for) about the imperfect humans that we are.
I enjoyed it. I hope you do too!
It starts off about King Baldwin IV who had leprosy and yet managed to rule with that issue and ruled extremely well. It goes on to define why we all are not perfect and it is well worth the time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9UBucwZbCI
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Share a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
I now have Patreon started:
September 13, 2022
Perfect Love
Imagine if you will, perfect love.
What is it like?
What does it feel like?
Who gives that kind of love?
What exactly is perfect love?
We can imagine perfect families, relationships, friendships; however, none of these that we have will ever be perfect.
Perfect is a concept that rarely happens, as rare as a winning lottery ticket, or even rarer.
We all want perfect love.
We think we give perfect love.
Yet perfect love is nowhere to be found, within or without.
So it is not about perfection, it is all about being good enough.
That is the substance of life, being good enough.
Can we be satisfied with good enough?
Is good enough, going to meet our expectations and is it livable?
Well, it is when you decide that everything does not have to be perfect in order for it to be acceptable.
Can we acknowledge that good enough triumphs over perfect since perfect does not exist or happen?
Sometimes we get lucky or see people get lucky but that is not perfection. Far from it, it is just the roll of the proverbial dice which happens in life all the time.
There is no perfect life, there is no perfect human, there is no perfect situation; it is only what you make of it.
If you decide that it is perfect then it is.
If you decide that it is not perfect then it is.
You chose.
My life is perfect and I marvel at the imperfect perfections that I have.
How about you?
Focus on what is good about you, focus on the good in any situation and the opposite will go out of focus.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
September 11, 2022
Beware of who?
Before I heard Sam Vaknin and his video linked below I would have said that I was wary of identity theft, being robbed, just crossing the street and I knew there were problems with this type of people however I never thought I’d have to beware of them.
Here is that video and let Prof. Sam Vaknin tell you himself and see what you think:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3rZXrLQUXw
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Share a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
September 9, 2022
Truth Serum
There are two 10-year old children.
One standing in a stable up to the knees in manure and hay, distraught, upset, crying. “Why am I here?”, the child screams.
The other child in the same situation, runs around excitedly checking every corner of the stable. When asked why the excitement, replies, “With all this manure there has to be a horse here somewhere!”
They both were living a truth. One of agony and one of possibility.
Which truth do you live?
Can you see the good in a not so good situation?
Are you positive or pessimistic?
Do you go with the flow or go your own way? Or do something in between?
What is your style?
My wife asked me, “What is my style?”
I said, “Whatever you put on!”
That’s your style for that day and it may change during the day or maybe the next day and depending on what you are doing and who you might encounter.
We are at the apex.
We are at the pinnacle.
Truth is paramount.
Truth has the ultimate power.
Lies or dishonesty have power as well, but only as long as the deceived believe. Once that belief is gone then the lies and dishonesty evaporate as if it never existed.
Truth never evaporates.
Truth never deceives.
The truth sets us free.
The truth seems to be harder and harder to find especially when facts are ignored.
Many people do ignore the most obvious facts sometimes.
How have you painted your canvas?
What is your truth?
How do you live that truth?
And
How does it affect yourself and others around you?
I’d love to hear your story.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
September 7, 2022
Wear the World
Our bodies reflect everything we do, see, hear, and feel.
We wear the world.
If not on our shoulders than in our hearts.
You may think there is nothing we can do about that, we cannot shut out the world, we have to live, react and interact with the world.
We can keep our world tidy. Our immediate world.
Pick up your yard, keep it neat, plus your house.
If you see trash near your house, pick it up.
I take a walk and pick up the park across the street EVERY morning.
It is what I do. It is part of my world.
Your car is definitely in your world. It is a place you reside away from home at least for transportation. Ensure that all discarded stuff in it is taken care of every time you get home. Yeah, it takes some time, but if you do it every time that time is minimal.
Also, remember we are the world as well.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
September 5, 2022
Modifiers and how to do them correctly
Currently I’m learning a lot, yeah, still after all of these years.
It is amazing how much there is to learn about writing, good and bad.
Here is Josuha Fields Milburn and his “How to Write Better” YouTube Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/HowtoWriteBetter/videos
He discusses misplaced modifiers and helps one understand how we may hear or read them but we may ignore or internally correct them.
We may do this in everyday speech but to do it as a professional in a book is not very professional.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
September 3, 2022
The Rift
The rift is the divide between the world as we want it to be and the world as it is.
Juxtaposition is that we are caught between the two as we attempt to make the world as we want it.
What would it be like if we just accept the world as it is and not worry or attempt to make it as we want it to be.
It is not like we cannot make steps towards what we want it to be for ourselves.
And if those steps improve the world then that is great also.
However our improvements may make the world a worse place for some especially if you do not take the world's needs into consideration with your own.
Often we do not think of others when we want to make changes.
Only thinking of ourselves means that 99.99% of the people may not be satisfied or desire the changes that we do and even if you satisfy 50% of the people then there is the other half.
When we compromise we gain more ground than getting all that we want.
It is a hard line to follow and even to encourage in ourselves and those that we influence.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Share a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
September 1, 2022
New lessons are out today.
Riding the Worry Train
The Worry Train is from a James Patterson novel named “Cross” and is mentioned by a character in that novel in a question to another character.
Now I ask the question of you, “Are you riding the worry train?”
I know I do from time to time and I suspect that you do.
We worry about upcoming events, past events and happenings in our lives and just about everything else.
Do we want to stop worrying?
Can we even stop even if we wanted to?
Some facts:
Worrying is usually about “what ifs” or “what could have been” or “what might be”.
Can we change anything by worrying about it? Most likely not.
Seriously worrying will NOT change a thing.
So strive for clarity about a past or future event.
Maybe decide how you handled something badly.
Be careful, without the crystal ball how were you to know?
Plus what is “badly”?
Definition here: “Bad is an adjective used with linking verbs such as feel, seem, be, look, etc. Incorrect: I feel badly that he is not taking part in the game. Correct: I feel bad that he is not taking part in the game. Badly is an adverb used to modify action verbs.”
So badly does not exist since it just is. A thing is handled and then in retrospect it may seem bad but maybe we did not have enough information, maybe under the duress of the moment another decision existed that we hadn’t considered.
Maybe since we are not all prescient it could not be avoided.
Maybe we did the right thing with all the knowledge that we had at that particular time.
It is hard to tell, so we are being hard on ourselves for not being prescient. What would you tell a child?
No really, what would you tell a child?
Now tell it to yourself everything your mind thinks it wants to delve into the past like that.
Comfort yourself, praise yourself (what a unique concept and one that doesn’t usually happen).
We are our own worst critic and yet we do not call ourselves on it and say “STOP!”.
You have the power, tell yourself to STOP and then tell yourself outloud the great thing you did at that time and then maybe say the next time I’ll do this or that so you are learning and preparing for the next time.
Yeah, it sucks that there may be a next time, but guess what? We will learn and prepare for the time after that and it continues.
That is what learning is, that is being your best helper and friend and if we are a friend to us we have a powerful ally.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 31, 2022
Bread Crumbs and other surprises
If you are a writer, then you will leave lots of bread crumbs (little trails that people stumble on and then later you connect up a piece of your story to one of them).
Not all bread crumbs are made equal.
Some have more weight and mean more and some are red herrings or are inconsequential.
It gets your reader to think about what is going on and wonder what is next and how each bread crumb interacts or is contingent upon the last ones.
So in order for your reader to think and wonder then YOU have to think and set it all up.
Scripting where you are going and how all the loose ends are tied together may not be a bad idea.
Yes your brain can handle one or two or even multiple bread crumbs but how about dozens, or more?
Think about it.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 29, 2022
Keep Breathing
Besides being the name of a Netflix series and partially the name of a novel by Janice Galloway, “The Ticket is to Keep Breathing”, it is also the name of this article.
It is the one thing that we can do to add presence to this moment. Be aware of each breath. This will add calm and peace to your moments and let you be completely aware.
The more peace you experience the better equipped you are to deal with the day to day, the mundane and the excitement and the tension.
Keep breathing, dear readers and dear writers.
Keep breathing.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 27, 2022
Warp and Woof or vice versa
I’ve seen it both ways and there are other ways of stating it like weft.
It is required in fabric, weaving and in storytelling.
The essential foundation or base of any structure or organization; from weaving, in which the warp — the threads that run lengthwise — and the woof — the threads that run across — make up the fabric: “The Constitution and the Declaration of Independence are the warp and woof of the American nation.”
A trope is a figurative or metaphorical use of a word or expression.
Learning to notice words and being inquisitive about their meanings and uses expands our world.
It is our own knowledge that gives us more “expertise is about learning new ways to notice”.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 25, 2022
Here is my YouTube Channel just interesting videos and pictures I've taken on my adventures
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3JjSVinPTZpt38yvwm33bw
Also you can find me on FaceBook as David Alan Binder.
A posteriori
I was listening to Enigma’s A posteriori album and then wondered what it meant.
This is what I found out:
“A posteriori, Latin for "from the latter", is a term from logic, which usually refers to reasoning that works backward from an effect to its causes. “
Furthermore:
A posteriori is a judgment or conclusion based on experience or by what others tell us about their experiences. For example, I know the Sun will set this evening because it always has. My a posteriori knowledge tells me that the sun will set again.
This is an example of knowledge that we gain from our judgments. It does not always work.
If we never see the curvature of the earth out on the horizon it may lead us to the conclusion that the earth is flat.
So sometimes we must override or augment our results schema with additional knowledge.
We do this all the time without even realizing it.
Aren’t we fabulous?
We are so fantastic, we humans are unlike any other being on this planet.
We are great and we must use our powers wisely.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 23, 2022
Wear the World
Our bodies reflect everything we do, see, hear, and feel.
We wear the world.
If not on our shoulders than in our hearts.
You may think there is nothing we can do about that, we cannot shut out the world, we have to live, react and interact with the world.
We can keep our world tidy. Our immediate world.
Pick up your yard, keep it neat, plus your house.
If you see trash near your house, pick it up.
I take a walk and pick up the park across the street EVERY morning.
It is what I do. It is part of my world.
Your car is definitely in your world. It is a place you reside away from home at least for transportation. Ensure that all discarded stuff in it is taken care of every time you get home. Yeah, it takes some time, but if you do it every time that time is minimal.
Also, remember we are the world as well.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 21, 2022
Fluff or Substance
Deciding what is fluff and what is substance are choices that we make daily if not hourly.
As we read, as we surf, as we interact with people, you prioritize what is substance and needs to be addressed from an owie your child has, to shopping, to screen time.
You are making decisions at an astronomical rate and do we always get it right?
No, but we make a SWAG (Silly Wild Air Guess) at it and we do really well but errors can and will be made but it is not the end of the world usually.
Sorting fluff and substance has many analogies that can be used, basically you are sorting the usable from the unusable, the knowledge from the BS, the honesty from the lies, what is important from what is useless and everything in between.
Each video you watch, each audio you hear, each conversation you have you are constantly sorting and each time you do you get better and better at it.
Some video and audio and articles can be skimmed and you get the meat of the matter rather quickly and keep on going.
Sometimes it takes a reread or two in order to get all the substance or to fully understand what is going on and it’s pertenancy to you.
Pertenancy is different from everyone since we are all at various stages of learning and of course we are past the elementary stuff and skip it UNLESS there is something that we did not learn or forgot and then may take more time.
Pertenancy makes these learning concepts either useful or unuseful.
Why do I need to learn about painting? Or building? Or camping? If it holds no meaning, or interest or usefulness to me then maybe it can be discarded.
Some watch cooking shows since they value that information and learn from it. I don’t since I don’t cook and it has so little value to me and if I want to cook I don’t do it via cooking shows, I do it specifically about the dish I am attempting to cook.
So pertenancy is your value choice and it is one that only you can make.
Sometimes someone else can point out something you thought was not pertinent and it all of a sudden becomes pertinent to you.
Thank them and then screen more carefully or ask for some input especially if you think it is pertinent but something about it is not coming across to you.
I’ve had to look up phrases and words and concepts in order to determine pertenance. That is delving deeper to ensure it is useful and is not a waste of time at all. It is an incredibly useful use of time and helps you not only that once but can be useful in future decisions.
Tell me about a time that you were able to find the impertinent and then it became pertinent.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 19, 2022
Reality Absurdism
We’ve discussed reality but not absurdism.
Absurdism consists of not only denying history and logic but being a proponent of the opposite of reality.
Several examples of absurdism are that gravity does not exist, that the moon is a mirage, that the holocaust did not happen or that Sandy Hook was just an acted out drama with actors NOT real people.
There are many other examples of Absurdism as well.
If one says that their parent love them and they say that they do BUT their actions time after time SHOW that they only love themselves and the things that you do for them and not yourself then that love does not exist.
It can take decades for the realization to dawn on you since most stories and religious teachings are about examples that indicate that parents love.
When in fact NOT all parents love, many do, some don’t.
Addicts love their addictions (or at least what their additions do for their minds, their bodies at the particular time of feeding the addiction.) Their love for others is outweighed by the addiction that keeps them trapped in pursuing that versus pursuing loving others.
Very difficult to wrap your head around and the realization is also difficult to accept. Why wouldn’t one’s parents love them? Why doesn’t their behavior reflect what should exist between a parent and child?
Facing reality can be tremendously upsetting.
I know I’ve been there and I am here for you.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 17, 2022
Prototype Theory
This article may seem a bit overblown or hard to understand.
The point here is to STREEEETCH your learning muscles!
See if you can parse this make sense of it:
Prototype Theory is a model of graded categorization in Cognitive Science, where all members of a category do not have equal status. For example, chair is more prototypical of the concept furniture, than, say, lamp.
As formulated in the 1970s by Eleanor Rosch and others, prototype theory was a radical departure from traditional necessary and sufficient conditions as in Aristotelian logic, which led to set-theoretic approaches of extensional or intensional semantics. Thus instead of a definition based model - e.g. a bird may be defined as elements with the features [+feathers], [+beak] and [+ability to fly], prototype theory would consider a category like bird as consisting of different elements which have unequal status - e.g. a robin is more prototypical of a bird than, say a penguin. This leads to a graded notion of categories, which is a central notion in many models of cognitive science and cognitive semantics, e.g. in the work of George Lakoff (Women, fire and dangerous things, 1987) or Ronald Langacker (Cognitive Grammar, vol. 1/2 1987/1991).
The term prototype has been defined in Eleanor Rosch's study "Natural Categories" (1973) and was first defined as a stimulus, which takes a salient position in the formation of a category as it is the first stimulus to be associated with that category. Later, she redefined it as the most central member of a category.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 15, 2022
Implicit Learning
Implicit learning can also be called learning from repetition and not really realizing it.
Another way of putting it from Shawn Coyne is “Arthur Rieber did some experiments in the 60s and 70s and they came up with this idea of implicit learning. All implicit learning is when we are exposed to patterns, recognizable patterns over and over and over again, we get very good at recognizing those patterns without really knowing why. It’s like this incredible, magical thing that homo sapiens has.
Implicit learning is recognizing and being able to point out patterns of intelligibility, the more you’re exposed to it.”
So we learn from exposure, we are a sponge and soak up everything and recognize so many patterns from words, to faces, to plants, to animals and this is also how we differentiate between a cat and a dog and any other animal.
We are inherently smart.
It is built into our genes, our blood and our soul.
The problem with implicit learning is that since we all do it to a certain extent then it is discounted, not given the credit that we are due.
“Explicit learning is intentional or active learning. We use explicit learning most in obtaining declarative knowledge, factual information we know about the world around us. Any active means of learning information is explicit.”
College education is explicit however only in the subjects we are taking; again; however it is also implicit since we are learning the conventions of writing papers, documentation, gathering information and then focusing all that into the particular course we take. That implicit learning is then transferable to whatever subject we focus on.
So the things you are learning about psychology, medically, horticulturally, agronomy, any subject that you intentionally pursue outside of a course, seminar is still excellent learning if you have honed your skill.
The art of reading people and their body language is a phenomenon that we practice every day of our life and sometimes fail miserably or are right on target. The mixed results is we are bringing subjects (people) who have evolved in myriads of ways and it can be extremely difficult depending on where we are coming from and the depth of our skills to where they are coming from and the depth of their skills.
Your intentional learning is built upon what drives you, your desires to pursue and how much focus that you bring to the task.
Take notes, review, continue to grow and learn and viola the whole world is your educational institution if you bring your attention to that fact.
Do you have any examples?
Are you learning now from this article?
The recognition of knowing that something has furthered our knowledge is as important, maybe more so that the actual learning.
Some things we don’t need to memorize since it is widely available via smartphone.
Some things we need to learn again and again until it sinks in (implicit learning).
Another thing I just learned and am tacking onto this article is this:
heu·ris·tic
enabling someone to discover or learn something for themselves.
"a “hands-on” or interactive heuristic approach to learning"
Sometimes we want to help others and it is difficult to stand back and let them learn for themselves. It is also difficult to know not only when to help but when not to help.
Shawn Coyne also states:
There are only two methods (that work) to learn an extremely complicated skill
Conscious Learning
Unconscious Learning
If you want to become a true expert at writing (without it taking 20 years), you must master both.
What is Conscious Learning? What is Unconscious Learning?
Here’s another way to look at it:
Conscious Learning = Deliberate Practice.
Unconscious Learning = Perceptual Exposure.
What is your story?
A definition from wikipedia:
“Implicit learning is the learning of complex information in an unintentional manner, without awareness of what has been learned.[1] According to Frensch and Rünger (2003) the general definition of implicit learning is still subject to some controversy, although the topic has had some significant developments since the 1960s.[2] Implicit learning may require a certain minimal amount of attention and may depend on attentional and working memory mechanisms. The result of implicit learning is implicit knowledge in the form of abstract (but possibly instantiated) representations rather than verbatim or aggregate representations,[3] and scholars have drawn similarities between implicit learning and implicit memory.
Examples from daily life, like learning how to ride a bicycle or how to swim, are cited as demonstrations of the nature of implicit learning and its mechanism. It has been claimed that implicit learning differs from explicit learning by the absence of consciously accessible knowledge. Evidence supports a clear distinction between implicit and explicit learning; for instance, research on amnesia often shows intact implicit learning but impaired explicit learning. Another difference is that brain areas involved in working memory and attention are often more active during explicit than implicit learning.”
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 13, 2022
Bad Writing vs Great Writing
Joshua Fields Milburn explains this in a less than five minute video and this says it all.
We all have bad writing and to recognize it and then correct it is paramount.
A great sentence may just communicate; however, a story does more than communicate.
Let me let JFM explain it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzhBhPLnpGI
Does this help?
This determination may make the difference from being a writer to being a great writer.
Propel your writing into the great that not only communicates then leads us to want to read more.
Also don’t believe the lies that other writers tell you.
Most will say that to become a great writer you just have to write a lot and eventually it will come together.
Yeah, that works but it is a lottery; however, if while you write you do so using the learning and study and knowledge that you have gained about writing you will get immeasurable better and thus improve your odds at the writing publishing lottery.
This is a long haul game. You will spend NOT hours but years, maybe decades, in LEARNING your craft and sorting out what works and what does not work.
It is like making a recipe without any knowledge of recipes. You mix ingredients and see what happens-THAT my friend is the extremely long haul method.
Now if you understand the ingredients and HOW they interact and KNOW the chemical reactions that they generate on each other and the total mixture THEN you have a far greater chance of success.
Increase your odds by studying and learning the process.
Incrementally increasing your odds ensures reaching monumental results quicker.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 11, 2022
Mental Acuity plus Love and Health
Today we have a mixture. I am putting the ingredients into this article and let’s see what we come up with.
According to Robert McKee’s latest email, “...genuine love has three core components: desire, commitment, and intimacy.”
Love
In this age of meh (not me, just lukewarm) relationships we all desire love and commitment and of course desire for someone and for someone to return those same elements to us.
It is an experiment, each relationship, to see how far it goes, how it works out and what will become of each person in that relationship. Finding the right person and living happily ever after is a crock, the key to finding the right person is to ensure that BOTH you and them have emotional literacy, are able to communicate thoroughly and invest yourself as they invest themselves. Over committing will not work out very well since the commitment must be mutual. One person’s commitment will not sway another to commitment (maybe in unusual circumstances).
Might be like finding the right wave for surfing or fishing for that great catch. Some days are better than others, but to keep trying each day takes dedication and perseverance.
Sort of like writing or any other craft. Each day one shows up and gives it their all and the catch of the day may or may not be a prize but showing up and putting in the effort will yield “the prize” in the long run.
It is a long term commitment just like health, spiritualism, thankfulness or gratitude, all the great things in life require commitment.
Without commitment there is no sustainability for our efforts.
Sustainability is a keyword and not used for crafting or writing very often. This is my first ever time in all the years and hundreds of articles I’ve written that I believe I have used it concerning writing and crafting.
Maybe that one word needs to be used more.
Mental Acuity
This is of course the epicenter of our awareness, our growth, our dominance, and our learning. Being nimble and acute at ferreting out nuances, figuring out and planning actions and then learning from what we have just done. (Not all learning comes from mistakes, unless I am way off I believe that learning comes from our actions and in our laboratory figuring out what works really well and sorting that out from what worked less well.
Health
Exercise is essential for our brains as well as our attitude and our wellbeing.
Our bodies hold together our brain and using it is important and it is appalling how lackadaisical some people approach this.
Health consists of not only eating the right things, but eating at a reasonable level to nourish us and sustain us without over eating.
Hard to do in this day and age of daily stressors and the comforts of some of the junk we stuff into our bodies. Why add another stressor over our health, just address it and then what was that word? Oh yeah, COMMITMENT!
What is your commitment?
What is your determination?
What do you do to help you, both mind and body?
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 9, 2022
Firsts
It is evident that I’ve been exploring music from the articles that I’ve written in the past month.
Why would a writer explore music? Very odd indeed!
Or NOT odd at all. I am pursuing anything and everything that captures my curiosity and attention.
Sometimes my exploration wanders over decades, sometimes just a day or two.
“NO EXPLORATION IS IN VAIN!” David Alan Binder
You are learning from everything that you see, touch, taste and experience.
If you are not then increase your awareness and evolve.
As I learn I pass on interesting tidbits and notes and encouragement that I find out about.
Guitar solos have been around for a long time and electric guitars even longer:
“For years Eddie Durham's playing on “Hittin' the Bottle,” recorded Sept. 30, 1935 with the Jimmie Lunceford Orchestra, was cited as the first electric guitar solo on record. It even opened some compilations of early electric guitar recordings.”
Who cares? I did and I found out.
What have you found out lately?
Here are some more tidbits:
Frank Zappa was a self taught musician who played drums at age 12, guitar at age 17 and composed music during high school. “Zappa's mother encouraged him in his musical interests. Although she disliked Varèse's {Edgard Varèse)music, she was indulgent enough to give her son a long-distance call to the New York composer as a fifteenth birthday present. Unfortunately, Varèse was in Europe at the time, so Zappa spoke to the composer's wife and she suggested he call back later. In a letter, Varèse thanked him for his interest, and told him about a composition he was working on called "Déserts". Living in the desert town of Lancaster, Zappa found this very exciting. Varèse invited him to visit if he ever came to New York. The meeting never took place (Varèse died in 1965), but Zappa framed the letter and kept it on display for the rest of his life.”
Here is a 15 year old who contacted (via telephone and then letter) a world famous composer and the composer was gracious enough to talk with him. Zappa did not know where the composer lived and so guessed that he lived in Greenwich Village (since it was “1960s counterculture movement”). Great guess!
Also “This is a list of albums by Frank Zappa, including all those credited to the Mothers of Invention. During his lifetime, Zappa released 62 albums.” “Studio albums: 113, Tribute albums: 40, Compilation albums: 13, Singles: 34”
You don’t have to be trained to do anything really, you just need persistence, dedication and sticktoitiveness.
What are your firsts?
Who says you have to be classically or formally trained to compose or write?
Who says you need a college degree to do either?
What is keeping you from pursuing your interests?
We can be our own worst goalkeepers sabotaging ourselves by berating ourselves that we aren’t good enough, smart enough, or doomed to failure.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 7, 2022
By the Fourth
Many bands in the 50’s and 60’s put forth music that they thought would either be hits or that they thought others wanted to hear.
There are so many that I cannot even begin to list them all. One such band is Huey Lewis and the News found out that no one wanted to hear songs that Huey Lewis and band liked. They had to work on being commercial, sellable and listenable to others, not what they wanted to release.
By the fourth album, Bob Dylan (Another Side of Bob Dylan) is thought to finally be the type of music that he wanted to sing, make and write.
We all have to let our craft be guided by what others want, the agent, the publisher, the buyers. Rarely do you get to write what you want and then have it sell well.
So it is all about compromise.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
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Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 5, 2022
What’s your inspiration?
I’d like to hear what your inspiration is.
Music, nature, walks, exercise, reading, etc.
All those inspirations translate into influence.
Influence can be good and can be detrimental.
If it takes you into an odd direction then explore it and see if it works. If it does not work then use another.
Or use a combo of influences of inspiration.
The sky's the limit, wait, no the universe is the limit due to the fact that further exterior influences are just as powerful as earthly ones.
On another note:
Permission
Permission is what we ask for when we are attempting to do something and want to show it to someone.
Do you like this drawing that I did?
What about this music I made?
How about this painting?
Does this story appeal to you?
Each of those is in a way asking permission, meaning that if someone else likes what we are doing then we probably will continue.
However, if someone says, I don’t get it, or it’s awful or that does not work for me, it may seem to you like maybe you shouldn’t do that particular thing that you asked someone to experience.
Again, however, we do not ever need permission from others unless it invades their space and then we just find another space to decrease the invasion.
We really need permission from ourselves in order to start and continue being creative.
That is the only person who has a vote in the permission realm (you are an adult so run your life-if not then you may be extremely reliant on others to continue what you are doing).
Case in point, I wanted to play drums as a kid, more than anything. My mom stated that a piano is a percussion instrument of a different type and we happened to have a piano. I took lessons for two years and it really did not take. Number 1 it was not the instrument that I was enthusiastic about. Number two it was a compromise with me giving in to an adult figure who could easily decrease supporting me in many ways. If she’d have indulged me, who knows what would have happened. As it is, I’ve played coronet for 3 months, guitar for a while until it broke since I did not know how to tune it, played around with ukulele and was able to play a few tunes on it, bongos that belonged to someone else. Then later in life, organ, my son’s drums and other musical instruments became available.
Pursuing your passion is paramount. Permission to pursue your passion is up to you, not anyone else really.
You may have to put off for a time being able to do a certain thing but sooner or later it will be yours if you insist and keep coming back to it.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Let’s have a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 3, 2022
Abandonment
When one’s mother or father or a sibling or a child abandons one then it hurts. Even if a husband or wife or someone whom you share a life with cheats on you or leaves you. I have discussed abandonment in previous articles.
Furthermore upon reflection it has occurred to me that abandonment can equal (in the eyes or mind of the abandoned) discarded. So one thinks that they have been trashed, discarded like rubbish, and that they are garbage since the person who abandoned them did not want them any more. Bouts of depression can trigger this, as well as, people who make a commitment and then do not follow through such as a phone call they told you they would make to you and then did not phone you starts that whole milieu in one’s mind. Tortured soul that we are we take these things to heart and it really, really (explicative deleted to keep follow the Google policy) hurts when this happens.
Again we are balancing our emotions, attempting to overcome doubts and depression and being overwhelmed by whatever we are feeling.
Unchecked euphoria is as bad as plummeting into despair, as we grasp the concepts of emotional balance (some highs and lows are to be expected); however, as with most things in life moderation is the key. Not too much and not too little.
Smile more, breath deeper, meditate and be gratuitous and gracious.
Everytime we step out of our house (sometimes even as we get out of bed) we put on our acting skills and pretend to be what we’d like to achieve. The more we do this the more we attain and claim that personality or person that we want to be.
Everyone ready? Put on that happy face and be who you want to be.
Every effort and struggle as we claim what is rightfully ours tells in our demeanor and our actions.
An attempt is worth more than not trying at all. For an attempt is an effort that we will not forget if we achieve.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
How about a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
August 1, 2022
In A Dream
The riff for (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction came to Keith Richards in a dream. He actually had the presence of mind to keep a recorder next to his bed and recorded it before drifting back to sleep and he’d forgotten it when he woke up but was able to listen to the recording and hear it and then him snoring. The important part is he captured it before going to sleep and forgetting it.
The melody to Yesterday came to Paul McCartney in a dream although he had to change the lyrics he dreamt from "Scrambled eggs/Oh my baby how I love your legs/Not as much as I love scrambled eggs", that is seriously funny, to the lyrics that exist today.
So what does this have to do with you and me? The two are basically two people who became so immersed in their craft that they literally dreamed artistically.
We can capture our dreams as well.
How do you do that? I really don’t know but if you eat, sleep and dream your way into your craft then it will come to you.
Will it be a hit? Circumstances dictate that rather than when it is a huge IF and if you are lucky enough and get enough synergy going with your career then it will take off like a rocket or at least something that will gather momentum and get you off of the ground albeit in a smaller way than the Rolling Stones or the Beatles.
After listening to their stories about various songs it seems to me that mostly their success came from practice, practice, practice and then putting their heart and soul into that and using their contacts and the synergy of the current scene and just using attempt after attempt until they hit on a formula that finally worked.
An advantage they had that we don’t is they were on the edge of a revolution musically and early at the scene. We don’t have that edge, writing is an old craft and the iterations from hardcopy to digital and the whole publish your own and find a type of book that is not available and filling that niche is over, really dead and gone to us.
So we keep plugging along. After 7 years I have finally seen my site gain more momentum in the last two months with more views and people taking interest and introducing themselves to me that it is finally gratifying to see it in the early stages of being embraced. EARLY? Yeah, early for seven years work in this industry is really nothing compared to many artists who work decades to finally gain some acclaim.
Again we see the increments that add up and multiple and finally gain the “interest” that compounds and provides some fruition.
On our side is the ease of digital exposure. Against us is all the others clamoring loudly to be heard and we are pitting ourselves against thousands of others.
In this case there is NOT only one “winner”. Many “winners” can appear and survive together which is a help.
Keep plugging along, gain momentum and incrementally reach your monumental.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 31, 2022
bar·do
What is bardo?
It is a Tibetean concept and it means:
(in Tibetan Buddhism) a state of existence between death and rebirth, varying in length according to a person's conduct in life and manner of, or age at, death.
It was just explained to me like this:
If you go shopping at the store for groceries and then return home then that is one life.
The trip to store
Buying the groceries
The trip home
And may include putting the groceries away at home
So what this means is that after you’ve done that you’ve completed one life for that task and now that you are reading this, this reading is another life. You came here and read the article and learned from it and then you go and do something else. So therefore another life lived in your many lives throughout every day and each and every day.
This is an interesting way of looking at each day and when a paradigm is shifted then we learn.
Happy shifting!
Oh yeah, last day of the month, there will be a new lesson tomorrow, woohoo! Even better news, I did it today!
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 29, 2022
Dredging
What is the worst drudgery that a human can do?
In my estimation it is dredging up the past.
Dredging removes you from the present experiences and brings all that baggage, memories, and trauma you have suffered and creates that suffering all again.
Why am I telling this to you, Dear Readers and Dear Writers?
Because I can not focus on a story, narrative or article if I am stuck in the past.
Similarly distractions, piddling around, researching are activities which can be black holes and absorb waaaaay too much time when that time can be better spent.
One minute in a past that can not be changed, can not be reconciled, can not be resolved just puts us in a tailspin downward in spirit and thought.
If we keep our spirits up then present and then moving forward (past is backward) we ensure that progress is happening.
We make it happen. We take control and we ensure that the actions are productive.
Productivity is the one thing that ensures that we are gaining ground on our dreams and goals.
Productivity is action(s). Anything that decreases our productivity is detrimental to our process.
Observe your process and ensure that it consists of productive items.
Every item that I share with you decreases your dependence upon this resource. It makes you independent and self driven. Many sites create co-dependence relying (no insisting) that you return repeatedly. They do not want you to grow or become self dependent. They keep you children to their adult and continually lay out line after line of rules.
There are no rules here, this is a laboratory for experimentation for you to reach your own conclusions not mine. You perform your experiments by your own choices and see what works.
My suggestions help you and propel you.
I have outgrown so many websites that I used to rely on heavily. I’m not smarter than them but I have graduated to learn more from other sources and to conduct my own experiments to see what happens and how I react and if it furthers my goals.
We learn far greater from our own experiments than we do watching, listening, reading others experiments.
Use your resources wisely and know when to split.
It is another way we use our internal feedback loop and self adjust to conditions. Our observation is a vast resource but must be used properly and with reality.
Ask yourself:
What am I doing?
How am I reacting?
Am I caught up in emotion or in inspiration?
Do I feed, exercise, study, promote my good health so that I become my own best resource?
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 27, 2022
The No Hit Supremes
The Supremes the music group had many iterations and group changes plus name changes and worked with so many other groups as backup singers that they literally kept going in spite of little to no success.
After they changed the name of their group The Primettes to The Supremes “they released more than a half a dozen singles before they scored a hit. And this was over a period of two years which is a long, long time in the music world at that time. (The songs that Motown thought might help them were pretty bad, like “The Man with the Rock and Roll Banjo”, hardly a Motown type of song or instrument.) Here it is if you want to listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUQkVoKAvbs
Plus Motown had them be backup singers on Marvin Gaye’s Can I Get a Witness.
So after years and years of work they finally hit it.
I was talking with an author Nancy Armo and telling her that I’d submitted a story about 10 times to publishers and a few times to agents and she only said, “Only ten?”.
That is when I knew that after all the articles I’d read on sticktoitiveness that I, myself, was falling short.
Literally I had adopted a listen to me but I was not listening to me.
That can happen to anyone. My fantasy was not ever going to be reality if I did not follow through more than I currently was.
Yes, it is difficult, mind numbing work to be able to meet all the criteria of submissions but it is like college or any class. Can you do that work that it takes to pass?
Pure and simple.
That alone tells a publisher that you are serious, that you are devoted and willing to jump through their hoops. For guess what? If you don’t jump through every single hoop then you will get turned down without even a read through.
So let’s get jumping and go through the hoops, one after another, in order for us to get off the ground. Otherwise we are just jumping without hitting a single hoop and not getting any consideration.
It is their game, not ours, therefore we must adopt and then adapt to their rules and procedures and requirements in order to get into the game even just the first time.
I for one am aiming for taking as many strikes as it takes until I get a home run. (Hey, I just switched metaphors.)
Who’s with me and let me know about your path and everything that you are attempting in order to gain success.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 25, 2022
Comments and High Praise
Reagan Sova whom I recently interviewed and is prolific in his own right made this compliment about my website:
“You've got quite a website. I admire how prolific you are, with years of sustained work and some big-name interviews. It's inspiring.”
Additionally he states:
“Fantastic website! It really displays a passion for writing and connecting with writers. My compliments to the author.”
It is surprising to me, I never considered this. It took his perspective for me to be able to see the culmination of my work.
We often do not see what others see and this type of feedback is crucial for all of us.
Please send me your work, story, etc. so that you may receive the feedback, recognition that is vital to you and your efforts.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 23, 2022
Your Fantasy does not mean My Reality
When someone tries to get you to “buy” or accept into their view of the world that view could be partial or total fantasy.
Politicians are good at this since they use future faking in order to persuade you to vote for them.
Such as, “there will be bread on every table if you elect me into office” kind of thing. Of course, they really mean you will be better off economically if you vote for them and the future fake of bread could mean more money in your pocket; however, none of that is actually true unless when they are elected the economic prosperity goes up and they take credit for it.
Your relatives, including your birth order, create a fantasy. When your siblings get together you’ll have noticed that they begin to act exactly the way they did when you were kids. It is the old way of those falling in line as it was not as it is or should be.
The reality is that you want it to be different and their fantasy impinges on your reality in a way that makes it so difficult to change.
How do you change that?
You set your boundaries and just state at the appropriate times what you will tolerate and what you will not tolerate on a case by case basis, BUT ONLY AS THAT PARTICULAR CASE COMES UP. By no means do you go into cases that have not happened.
This lets them know on that playing field what the new rules are. If they don’t acknowledge or ignore that then cheerfully rinse and repeat and keep on doing so until they see that everytime you will call them on it and then they may change.
If you don’t do that then they will walk all over you and your rights.
Then they may also see what you are doing and change their fantasy to fit your reality and they may start setting their own boundaries. Learning and growing and becoming the relatives, family or siblings that all want to be around and have a new companionship or camaraderie.
Another fact is if your fantasy aligns with someone else’s fantasy then that reality is shared and becomes stronger that is why you see the flat earth society or other types of groups who are grouped solely based upon their fantasies. Some conspiracy groups are based upon this.
However, stated firmly that is NOT reality. A shared fantasy is not reality.
A shared reality is what we are striving for and creates an environment where we not only survive but thrive on.
Find people who believe and share your reality and that will make both of you stronger.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 21, 2022
Observations of Serve and Useful
What are examples of things or ideologies that served you in the past that no longer serve you?
Can you think of any beliefs you had as a child or teen or even as an adult that once served you and now no longer does?
Easter Bunny, Santa Claus, lying, monsters, strangers?
Anything else?
Some may still serve you depending on the situation; such as, never talk to strangers. If you only talked to people you knew then it would be extremely limited interactions for you to participate in.
Now we know that sometimes we have to talk with strangers. Just to conduct business, new doctors, new business, new people that we may meet on vacation or even in town. Not everyone is scary and dangerous. So we judge it on a case by case basis and even then that may flip on someone we’ve known a long time and they or their style of friendship no longer serve us.
Sometimes the usefulness of some people dry up very quickly (not that we are “USING” them) but they talk in ways that are demeaning, or keep repeating themselves ad nauseum or just cease to be relevant to our lifestyle; especially if we’ve gone through some changes or maybe if they have.
Not everything is risky and dangerous so each case must be evaluated.
For instance, two year olds should not climb ladders since they are not good negotiators of vertical ascension or dissension. Now as a sixteen year old or older maybe in some cases and maybe not in others.
I know for me that I do not ever free climb rocks or mountains since I am not an avid climber nor a very good one. I prefer to be belayed and have a safety rope to ensure that I will not fall dozens to hundreds of feet.
This “rule” serves me and protects me and will continue to do so for the rest of my life. My rock climbing days are over unless it is very simple and not risky to me.
I even now avoid climbing ladders to extremely high heights, I use tools to extend my reach say when trimming a tree rather than climbing, either limbs or ladders to reach.
What has served you in the past that no longer serves you now?
Please send me some examples that work for you.
Also examples of philosophies or ideology that continue to serve you or no longer serve you.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 19, 2022
Reagan M. Sova interview by David Alan Binder
Reagan M. Sova, like many American writers before him, heard the call and relocated across the pond. In Europe’s trilingual capital city, he has honed his craft to become a sharp-shooting Lone Ranger of the literary underground, quietly garnering accolades from legendary figures such as Pavement’s Bob Nastanovich, novelist Sam Lipsyte, and Larry “Ratso” Sloman, the New York Times bestselling author who traveled with Bob Dylan and sang a duet with Nick Cave. Sova’s latest, an 80,000-word mostly unpunctuated epic poem called Wildcat Dreams in the Death Light, also caught the attention of the writer and cultural historian Michael P. Daley, head honcho of the burgeoning First to Knock books and records.
History casts a long shadow in Sova’s spellbinding tale, around the world from the rambling, Woody Guthrie-inspired hobo America, to Europe at the outbreak of World War I, to one of the early kibbutzim near Jerusalem, all the way up to the present. Immortal masters of American letters likewise loom large in Sova’s odyssey, Mark Twain and Walt Whitman, as does the influence of timeless wordsmiths of the bleak and beautiful, Cormac McCarthy and Frank Stanford chief among them. Like the latter two, Sova does not shy away from violence and death, but his characters trod the unforgiving landscapes with the spark of a mystery, the hope of solidarity, revelation, and peace.
Interview conducted over email.
What brought you to Belgium?
Work. Socialized health care. In the US, where our health care system is a shameful, deadly, privatized, rip-off scam of the highest order, I was staring down the barrel of bankruptcy or worse.
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
I’ve learned I get cooking with the three c’s: confidence, consistency, and collaboration. To achieve each of those, I’ve learned it’s important to have honest and intelligent friends. I’m blessed to have a few, like my friend John Yohe, currently nestled in the mountains of Montana, a writer as deep and true as they come, always interested in reading and learning, frequently getting published, never has said no when I have asked for feedback on my work.
What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?
Before I begin to write, I typically spend upwards of 15 minutes hitting a large bell.
How did you hook up with First to Knock? Where are they based?
I learned of the existence of First to Knock through a wonderful mensch of a man named Mike Sack. He told me he was doing some work with them, and knowing what a luminous literary mind he is, I had to check them out. After getting a load of the FTK titles, the aesthetic of the site, the music of Fever Queen, reading of Daley’s work, I was sold, big time. I sent Daley a query and by the time the deal got put together, a couple more publishers, slightly bigger indies, had asked for the full manuscript. I told them thank you for your time, but you can put the pages down. I found where I’m supposed to be. FTK is based in Michigan City, Indiana, not too far from Chicago.
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become better writers?
I would say don’t be afraid to put trust in spiritual things, dreams and signs. For example, there were a few moments when I was writing Wildcat when I just felt things and caught fire. Like when I was writing the tarot card scene, and the next day a tarot card blew into my garden. Or when I went to Venice, Italy where one of my favorite thinkers, David Graeber, had died the year before, and I laid tefillin with some fellas from a shul in the Jewish ghetto of Venice, beautiful ceremony with my wife and her aunt looking on, everybody just about misty-eyed. I went back to the place we were staying in the Friuli with some strange spirit winds at my back. Hen-pecked the last 10,000 words over a few days and finished the book.
How have you been promoting this book?
I struck out on a book tour across three continents, with readings in the US, Europe, and Israel. Eleven cities total where I played songs on guitar and read excerpts from the book. It was so meaningful, such a thrill to see people I hadn’t seen in so long, make a few new friends. In my hometown of Jackson, Michigan, after performing as part of an evening with some talented friends of mine, I was signing books for an hour and a half. I’ll never forget that. A real outpouring of generosity and interest in the book on pretty much every stop of this tour. Now, I’m just trying to score some reviews, and have copies for sale at my concerts.
Several real life people appear in the book, Eugene V. Debs, Big Bill Haywood, and Musidora for example, which caused me to wonder, are there any other real life people who inspired characters or events in Wildcat Dreams?
That’s a great question because there are quite a few. Probably the most noteworthy is the character of Frank, who was inspired by a New York jockey named Frank Hayes. Hayes died in the saddle on his way to winning a steeplechase in 1923, and his horse was even named Sweet Kiss. I actually can’t remember where I heard about him, but I was so struck by the sadness, beauty, and victory in his story that he inspired this character. There’s also Jumbo the circus elephant who died getting hit by a train. I did quite a bit of research for this book, reading about the circus, Romani people, Jewish history, the history of certain places, first-hand accounts from African American ex-slaves, the history of the Industrial Workers of the World labor union… Every once in a while something would jump out at me and find a fictionalized, dramatized place in my story.
A large part of Wildcat Dreams involves a quest to honor the dead. In writing the book, were you on a quest to honor the dead?
I was, in my own feeble way. It was in the midst of my reading Frank Stanford’s The Battlefield Where the Moon Says I Love You that David Berman died. I knew then I wanted to write an epic poem that pays homage to them, my two biggest influences. As well as centering the story around a quest to honor a man named Frank, the phrase “the natural bridge” appears throughout Wildcat in what I hope are interesting ways. (The Natural Bridge is one of the most beloved albums by Berman’s band, Silver Jews.) With this book, I also meant to pay tribute to Walt Whitman, who has been a big influence on me and countless others.
Do you have a saying or mantra that you live by?
Oh I just try to stay open and ready, for a sign, a vision, or maybe just to ride out into the forest and break my mind upon the infinite.
Wildcat Dreams in the Death Light is available online (US, UK, UK/EU) and at some of the finest bookshops in the US and Europe.
Reagan M. Sova’s blog is here.
July 17, 2022
Guest Spotlight
A follower sent me the following email, additionally through their comment on an article I’d written I found two of my errors in that article which have since been corrected. Thank you for following and they included the following comment.:
“Just looked at your website. Very nice. I read your piece "The Musician" [that article is included far below] and enjoyed it. I have often felt the similarities between learning an instrument and becoming our true selves. I observe how we follow the patterns of learning, mastering, and finally playing the music which is truly ours. I feel this is the major reason I left the [blank organization]. While my growth experiences there were good, they became too formulaic not allowing the freedom to "play the music that was in me".”
Additionally:
“I like poetry and have written some in more of an Asian style. Here is a sample:
AUTUMN LEAF
Red gold against an Azure sky
Such grace and beauty in its decline
Becomes my Teacher”
Thank you for your comment and your contribution, John S. To all you others, feel free to email and comment and perhaps your contribution will be included.
The Musician by David Alan Binder
He had gotten his first instrument as a child practically. He played with it, getting familiar with the nuances of how to make noise that was pleasing. His parents relegated him to his room at times, or the garage, or at others to a nearby copse of trees not far from home but far enough that he could barely be heard, which was the best way for them to get through his learning process. So as he became more adept he experimented sometimes failing miserably but comfortable that he was still learning and progressing. Each failure represented getting closer to that perfection of sound that people wanted to hear and would eventually pay to hear. He practiced getting better, honing his craft for by now he was becoming a craftsman. One that understood the subtleties of the instrument. Eventually he became so adept that he could not only tune the instrument on his own but replace parts that had worn to the point that they needed to be replaced. He furthered his knowledge one day by taking the instrument completely apart then was able to reassemble it and got the satisfaction of knowing his instrument inside and out and thoroughly in tune with it. It became a projection of himself, his persona, his extension of himself into another atmosphere.
Now he plays on a stage with other musicians like him who had gone through similar processes until they became craftsmen. They became masters of their playground and are in demand and people pay lots of money to hear them.
Become like them, hone your craft through hours of practice and know your instrument inside and out and be able to express yourself in ways that move yourself first then others.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 15, 2022
Raucous
Is it raucous or could it be rockous?
Just some more word play and fun with words.
On another musical note, Marvin Gaye had severe stage fright and did not like live performances and yet he learned to overcome that and learned to give it his all.
Just another case of maybe we force ourselves to overcome our limitations in order to achieve what we truly desire.
Life can surely be like that for sure.
Also Marvin Gaye would do anything for the studio, he played drums on Mr. Postman, or swept floors, or played keyboards, or background vocals, or some lead vocals, whatever it took to make himself useful and to be involved. He did not have to be the lead singer.
We can learn from his example. Be humble, do whatever it takes to be involved in the industry either directly or peripherally.
In other news, I loved the interview published by me earlier this month with Nancy Armo.
It is a beautiful example of the plodding nature of writing. Little tiny steps seemingly leading nowhere and yet will add up stunningly slow, but eventual.
Monumental is eventual.
Reminds me of the story about the snail who saw a turtle collision at an intersection.
When asked for an eyewitness account about the turtle collision, the snail just said, “Well, I’m not sure since it all happened so fast.”
We keep turtling or snailing along depending on your particular speed, lol.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 13, 2022
Nancy Armo interview with David Alan Binder
Nancy Armo information:
I have been drawing since I started coloring on walls with my crayons. Later I took that talent to study graphic design at the University of Washington, which led to a career as a graphic designer and art director for several corporations.
My childhood, children, and travel all inspire my stories. My illustrative work is a mixture of colored pencil, and watercolor mixed together in Photoshop. I write, draw, and play in New Suffolk, New York.
Interviews:
In the Studio with Nancy Armo - Peachtree Publishing YouTube
Picture Book Buzz with Maria Marshall.
Sub It Club - Post Card Post with Dana Carey.
A Friend for Mole story development with Kathy Temean.
Fun interview with Joanna Marple.
Award:
SCBWI LA Conference Portfolio Honor Award
Member:
Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI),
Metro New York, Long Island, and France.
The Children's Book Illustrators Group (CBIG)
The Authors Guild
You can find me on these social media sites. Stop by and say “Hi.”
Instagram: http://instagram.com/nancyarmo
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nancyarmo
Website: https://www.nancyarmo.com/
Where are you currently living?
I live in a small town on the North Fork of Long Island, NY, where I can see the Peconic Bay from my studio window. There are 300 residents that live here year around but, in the summer, it hums with lots of people visiting from New York City.
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
You’re going to spend a lot of time and energy with your projects. Pick stories that you will be excited about after many rewrites and edits. Sometimes it can take years to get a story right. Take the time to ask why THIS story needs to be written and published. Not all ideas can go the distance. Recognize that, put a manuscript away if you reach an impasse and look at it later with fresh eyes.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustration quirk?
All my stories and illustrations are about the challenges of growing up. When you’re a young child, you have little control of your world. Your daily schedule, what you eat, and wear are determined by someone else. I use humor in my word choices and illustrations to help children recognize themselves and how to navigate their world.
Tell us about your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I haven’t self-published but respect those who do. It’s a massive undertaking to go that route. My experiences have all been with smaller publishers. An advantage of going with a smaller publisher is that many will accept queries and submissions without an agent. Working with a smaller publisher is a great way to get into the business. The disadvantage is there is a lower level of marketing and supply distribution which can result in lower advances and royalties.
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
My current publisher is Clavis Publishing, founded in 1981 by Philippe Werck. Their headquarters is in Hasselt, Belgium with offices in Amsterdam, Netherlands, NYC, New York and Melbourne, Australia.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Do your research. The larger publishers have several imprints within their publishing house. Check a publisher’s list of titles on their website. Look at the body of titles within the imprint. Is it geared towards certain themes or age groups? Look up the titles on Amazon to get a feel for how they market the books. Where would your manuscript fit in? If there are many books like yours, how can you make yours different enough to stand out? Follow editors from the publishing houses you like on social media. You can find their names at www.underdown.org/publishing [if that does not work then try this: https://www.edelweiss.plus/].
He has a Who’s Moving Where? Section that lists all the job changes within each publishing house. A new editor might be more receptive to getting an unsolicited manuscript. Sometimes on social media they will post their manuscript wish list.
How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
I understand the anxiety about getting an agent. An unrepresented writer can only get so far as the bigger publishers work primarily with agents. But do your research! It’s better to have no agent than an agent who is not fully invested in your career or is a poor communicator. Check the agency’s website, their social media posts, interviews and wish list. Look up an agent’s sale record on Publishers Marketplace. (You can pay for a subscription on a monthly basis.) Also look on Querytracker and MSWL to find agents and what they are looking for. Agents will want to see a wide scope of work. Have at least three polished manuscripts if submitting picture books.
Do you have any suggestions or help or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Read recent and read different genres to stay engaged with book publications. See what resonates with you. What do you find engaging in the published work you are reading? Type out the story and break it down. Notice the pacing, the word count, the appropriate word choice for the age group, and where the page turns are. Also ask what would you change? What is the purpose of the story?
How many books have you written?
I have two books as an author/illustrator. A Friend for Mole, published by Peachtree Publishers. Doggie, published by Clavis Publishing. Two books as the illustrator. I Love You, Daddy, by Izzy Down, published by Bookoli. Halloween Fun, by Eleanor Levie, published by Berkley Press.
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be
so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Read your manuscript out loud and record it on your cell phone. Listen to the sentence structure and flow. Reading out loud forces you to slow down and pay attention to the text. When editing it can help point out where the excess words are or where the flow of the story is getting bogged down. Also look up comp titles before you get too invested into a manuscript. See if your idea is unique or if it is one that already is in a saturated market. A good resource for comp titles is www.edelweiss.plus.
Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
Ask the “what if” question. Be crazy with the possibilities. Start with the most outrageous idea that can take you down a lot of rabbit holes. The best twists are the ones you didn’t see coming.
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
Quirky characters that have heart. Characters that pull you into a story and make you want to be their friend.
What is the one unusual way in which you promote your work?
I have activity pages for librarians and teachers that they can download free from my website. The activities for each book contain coloring pages, mazes, word search puzzles, character finger puppets and masks children can make to help facilitate role playing. Also have downloadable READ posters for the classroom wall.
What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
Worrying about putting my work out there before I thought I was ready. Perfectionism is a waste of time. Show your work. Put it out there. Don’t be afraid of critique. Your work will evolve more with input from others.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
Make work that makes you happy.
Anything else you would like to say?
Publishing is a tough business; it helps if you’re nice to work with. Yes, the deadlines are unrealistic at times, the pay is low, and it takes forever to get a book published and out the door but the people you will meet along the way are wonderful.
July 11, 2022
Who is this band?
The tape below had about 15 songs on it.
"This tape ended up in the hands of the seasoned head of the Artist and Repertoire (A&R) department (of Decca Records), a prominent label. He turned it down. The style of the band’s music, he felt, was on the way out. [It was claimed he kept track of music in USA and that guitar music was on the way out.] He was in good company. A few weeks earlier, the general marketing manager of Epsilon Records, another top recording company, had also checked out this same band and came to the same conclusion. In a letter to the group, Epsilon’s general marketing manager made the following curt assessment: “While we appreciate the talents of this group, we feel that we have sufficient groups of this type at the present time under contract. It would not be advisable for us to sign any further contracts of this nature.”
Around the same time, two other recording companies listened to the band, and the reply was the same: a polite or impolite but emphatic no. In total, the band was turned down by at least four respected recording companies after getting a fair hearing at each.
That should have been the end of the story. One card, however, remained in play. The head of A&R for one of Epsilon’s smallest labels was out of town during the general manager’s deliberations. His absence seemed a small matter at the time, since this label was known for its comedy records. With the exception of a label devoted to Salvation Army Bands, it was Epsilon’s poorest performer. What could this manager possibly add to the evaluation of an up-and-coming rock band? More respected executives, closer to this genre of music, had already rendered a verdict of thumbs-down.
But six months later, the band’s persistent manager brought its audition tapes through the back door of Epsilon and appealed to the head of this small label. The head, a young maverick, was both passionate and ambitious. After a stint in the navy, he had joined Epsilon as an assistant to the manager. He sought out new and untapped bands and developed niche markets, such as comedy records, into profitable businesses. Five years later, at age 29, he would assume leadership of the label, making him the youngest label chief in Epsilon’s history. He had a prescient understanding of how new recording technologies would have an impact on the future of the music industry. Because he was forced to feed on the scraps of the corporation’s artists, he developed close working relationships with talent, in contrast to the typical arm’s-length relationships of most managers. He was eager to change the world.
This manager was intrigued by what he heard on the band’s demo. He decided to invite them back for another audition. During the audition, he was more impressed by their wit and potential than by the music they played for him, but he decided to sign them nonetheless. All this happened just six months after the best minds of the very same recording company had turned the band down. There had always been independent decision making at Epsilon labels, but this reversal came as a bit of a surprise to Epsilon’s general manager, who was responsible for multiple labels. How could a comedy album executive be signing a rock band, against the better judgment of senior colleagues who truly had their fingers on the pulse of the industry? This was surely a mistake, right?
Lessons Learned
Most managers who read this case vignette conclude that it was a mistake for the label to sign the band — that is, unless they are fans of music history and recognize the details of the story.
This story is indeed about the discovery of the Beatles. The young executive was George Martin of the Parlophone label at EMI (disguised as Epsilon Records above). By ignoring conventional wisdom and making a move most would deem a “mistake,” Martin helped his company become a dominant player in the recording business. As Beatlemania spread across the globe, the band started by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr became one of the most successful groups of all time, selling over a billion records internationally. They sold more albums in the United States and earned more number one albums on U.K. charts than any other band.”
This article is from this website: https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/love-management-lessons-fifth-beatle/
What in the heck does this have to do with you and your craft?
Maybe like the Beatles it is not what you do but who you are and come across as. The music was underwhelming at the time, but the potential was always there.
I posit that that potential is right there in front of each of us. That potential is ready for us to grasp and realize and enjoy.
However, do you have the persistence and the patience and the moxie which is the force of determination, character or nerve?
The sticktoitiveness to never lie down and never give up.
It is there for each of us, but will we reach for it or walk away?
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 9, 2022
The Original Peppermint Lounge
In my listening this week I ran across a story about a lounge in New York. This lounge attracted New Jersey teens since the drinking age in NJ was 21 and in NY 18. Since it was close to Broadway a few stars stopped by and then because they stopped by more stars dropped in later to see what the buzz was all about.
So from Wikipedia these stars made a showing:
Original Peppermint Lounge
“The Peppermint Lounge opened in 1958 at 128 West 45th Street in Manhattan. It had a lengthy mahogany bar running along one side, many mirrors and a dance floor at the back, a capacity of just 178 people, and a gay clientele.
As the Twist craze hit in 1960–1961, celebrities swarmed into the Peppermint Lounge – Audrey Hepburn, Truman Capote, Marilyn Monroe, Judy Garland, Liberace, Noël Coward, Frank Sinatra, Norman Mailer, Annette Funicello, even the elusive Greta Garbo – to dance to the house band, Joey Dee and the Starliters. Jackie Kennedy was such an enthusiast that she arranged for a temporary "Peppermint Lounge" to be mounted in the White House.”
Also a movie by Paramount Pictures featured the club as well as another twist song, The Peppermint Twist.
Which led to more notoriety for the club.
“The Beatles were filmed visiting the club during their first U.S. visit in 1964.
Artists who performed at the Peppermint Lounge include the Beach Boys, the Ronettes (who made their professional debut here in 1961), the Crystals, the Isley Brothers, Chubby Checker, the Younger Brothers, Liza Minnelli and the Four Seasons. In the mid‑1960s, the house band was the Wild Ones. The Denos, a traveling roadhouse band, were another featured act. Members of the Starliters later went on to form the Young Rascals.”
Why am I bringing this up in an article and a lot of my articles are about writing and this seems like a departure? I am writing about this since this club seems like a perfect setting for a story set in the late 50’s or the early 60’s.
Who knows where your monumental is? Not I nor you, we find it by exploring things that interest us until EUREKA! or VOILA!, we find and strike that pot or vein of gold.
We build on our successes as small as they may seem and then capitalize with more and more. If you build it then it will be monumental.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 5, 2022
I did not believe this when I heard it and I looked it up and it really did happen
Unreal,
The City of Boston actually banned rock and roll concerts since people would stand up and dance when performers where playing and it upset the police so much so that they charged the bands with inciting a bunch of stabbings and rapes in order to be able to ban rock and roll concerts.
Ever heard of this story?
Well, here it is:
https://www.wgbh.org/news/post/day-boston-banned-rock-n-roll
Here is the whole article if you’d rather not click above:
“An essential reason for rock and roll's soaring popularity among the teenage set in the late 1950s was the man credited with coining the term, syndicated disc jockey Alan Freed, who cut his teeth on the Cleveland airwaves.
"He was like the guru of rock 'n' roll," Raggiani said.
Freed also took his show on the road. In May of 1958, his "Big Beat” concert came to the Boston Arena, known today as Northeastern’s Matthews Arena. Among the dozen or so acts on the bill were Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly.
Albert Raggiani, then 19, and his friends were among the 6,000 fans who packed the place that Saturday night.
"It was really a good show. Everybody was really into it. What a crowd! We were up in the balcony so we could have a good view of the stage and everything going on."
What was going on was customary for an Alan Freed concert, kids packed into the aisles, singing along and dancing, but things started to get a little out of hand. A few bottles were broken. A scuffle broke out.
"All of a sudden the lights go on in the whole place and you see all the aisles, you just see rows of cops running down the aisles," Raggiani said.
The show was stopped. Neither the crowd, nor the concert organizer was happy.
"Alan Freed come out and he said, 'I guess the Boston police don't want you kids to have any fun.'"
Six thousand unsatisfied fans – young and energized - poured onto St. Botolph Street. That’s when things went from bad to worse. Raggiani was separated from his friends in the swell.
"All of a sudden there's a guy in front of me. His eyes looked kind of glassy. So, I figured now he's either on drugs or drunk, and then the next thing I get hit in the back of the head."
And he went down. Dazed, Raggiani said he could now see that the glassy eyed kid was not alone. Raggiani was surrounded.
"They really worked me over. Whacking me from all over, people screaming, fists, a knife coming at me, I could hardly put my arm up to defend myself."
All told, 15 people were beaten and robbed in the streets outside the show. Raggiani was the most critically injured. Stabbed three times, he spent two weeks in the hospital recovering.
Many, including Raggiani, believed that the violence outside the show was the work of neighborhood ne’er-do-wells, opportunists who were not even at the concert.
But city officials had a different take. None of the perpetrators were ever caught. The only arrest made following the melee was Alan Freed, who was charged with inciting a riot. Raggiani was hauled from his hospital bed to the courthouse to testify.
"They bring me in the grand jury and they ask me just one question, that always sticks in my mind, did Alan Freed say this? I said, 'yes, he did.'"
Two days later, then Boston Mayor John B. Hynes banned rock and roll shows in the city of Boston.
“Those so called rock 'n' roll musical programs are a disgrace and must be stopped. As far as I'm concerned Boston has seen the last of them,” Hynes told reporters.
A bill was even introduced on Beacon Hill that would have banned rock and roll from all state owned buildings.
But things eventually settled. Freed’s case never went to trial, but the episode was the beginning of the end for him. Cities along the east coast canceled their shows. The next year, his career was essentially ended amidst a host of controversies. Raggiani said that the incident changed his life in a host of imperceptible ways, but he never soured on the music.
As for rock 'n' roll, I think we all know what happened there. In the decades that followed it would became such a fundamental part of American life and culture today it’s laughable to imagine that it ever caused such a fuss.
In fact, the signature act at this year’s First Night celebration here in the city of Boston was rock 'n' roll Hall of Famer Patti Smith and her band, live, at– you guessed it – the John B. Hynes convention center.
May 5, 1958, the day that Boston banned rock 'n' roll”
There’s more, when some conservatives ruled so strictly that it was unbearable for some liberals and so then it set up people figuring out ways to get around the rule, so they would bootleg whatever product is banned in one area into the area where it is prohibited.
When some liberals ruled so strictly that it was unbearable for conservatives and so then it set up people figuring out ways to get around the rule, so they would disregard that rule and try to get it changed politically to the way conservatives want it.
There are those who like the system that is in place and there are those that hate it and want it changed.
Later it becomes found out that the rule or prohibition was silly and after time it becomes more accepted to break the rule or it becomes too time consuming and costly to enforce the rule or prohibition.
More strict either way is NOT the answer. Policies that promote compromise and a more unified approach work better for everyone. If everyone loses or gains something then it is a win win for everyone rather that one side have it their way and the other to be supremely upset.
That creates division when unity is a wiser path.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 3, 2022
Imitation versus Innovation
Every craft has the breakthrough moment where they take something that has been done for decades say for instance Chuck Berry intro on Johnny B. Goode, that intro has been played in a different way since 1918 according to one source. However Chuck took it and made it his own by using two strings instead of one on his guitar for that intro. Slightly different yet when you hear that intro even on the Beach Boys Fun, Fun, Fun you think of Chuck Berry not the people who did it years and years before.
So stylistically we all riff off of each other and you can either imitate or innovate.
Your choice.
Which is more interesting?
Which catches more attention?
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Treat me to a cup of coffee ($1-$3 at your discretion) send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
July 1, 2022
Unresolved Issues
We all have them and if you write then that’s okay as long as those issues are resolved in some way by the end of the book or story.
However, your own unresolved issues follow you around like a shadow casting themselves in your life repeatedly.
Say you had a conflict with a parental figure when you were little (mine is my parents divorce when I was barely walking, all I remember was them yelling in the kitchen and me crying at their feet while they ignored me). So my unresolved issues may come forward into my now life as anger for their lack of responsibility and for having that argument when I was present (I should not have been any part of that confrontation). Delving deeper for emotional literacy is my anger may be broken down into potentially my acting out in order to get their attention (to get the attention I did not get then). I may yell or scream since I learned those vocalization techniques from them. I may be sad since one of them left my life for years and then I was passed around like a football every other weekend making long trips even on a bus between towns for an hour or hour and one half BY MYSELF, ON MY OWN when I was in GRADE SCHOOL. Yeah, who does that to their child, “honey, get on the bus to see your other parent with a bunch of strangers” (what could go wrong?)
So your unresolved issues play out in the fact that you are trying to resolve them. You choose a mate that is familiar (not ideal, not someone to bond with) but someone who presents themselves sort of like your parents did and your brain says, “hey, this person will help me resolve those familiar unresolved issues” (Oh we are so clever with this attempt, rather than choosing a mate that does not remind us of those unresolved issues, who will help us and love us and protect us and be loyal to us, we head in a complete direction that may be best not gone in.)
My brain tells me not to think back and go over those unresolved issues but my emotions take control and derail my brain and its good intentions.
How do you break out of this?
The same way you tackle other issues and factors in your life. Be on the watch out, be on the alert, be AWARE of you, your emotions and what is going on around you. Once any one of these start playing out in your life then we must “catch” ourselves, stop ourselves and then change thought or direction and voila, that story from the past does not play out in our present to affect our future.
Simple right?!? LOL!
That is the crux of our life and it either plays a part or due to our diligence it does not play a part.
It all comes down to our diligence and watchfulness.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
Don't forget there are new lessons today.
June 29, 2022
Editor Six Core Questions
Here are the six questions a writer must answer:
What's the genre?
What are the conventions and obligatory scenes for that genre?
What's the Point of View?
What are the objects of desire?
What's the controlling idea/theme?
What is the Beginning Hook, the Middle Build, and Ending Payoff?
If you cannot answer those questions then get busy and study and learn and get the knowledge so you know the ins and outs of a story and know it through and through.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
June 27, 2022
Ain’t that Tough Enough
There's a Fabulous Thunderbirds song of the same name and of course a fairly famous line in a movie which I am unable to find what that movie might be.
However another tact on this phrase may be either "do you have what it takes?" or "what are you currently doing or not doing to prove a point?"
For instance, in the do you have what it takes department, there are specifics and criteria to determine if you've performed well enough a certain reward is associated with it. Did you study/perform well enough to get an A, B or other grade on the task you're performing. We don't determine the grade but you know if you've put in a C level effort into what you are doing. Unless you are not honest with yourself.
We like to think we do our best but that level of consistency is difficult to maintain. So sometimes it's an A, sometimes less.
At the onset if we choose a level of effort first we are more likely to hit it or be nearer to it than if we don't predetermine how we will progress.
Get it? We choose, then we exert. Exerting then choosing doesn't work, it's too late.
Alternatively, "what are you currently doing or not doing to prove a point". Meaning do we realize that what we are doing or not doing gains us little or nothing.
We have to be able to realize which way the wind is blowing before we spit.
We could expend the effort and it ends up on our face.
Activities that may be included in this (this is wholly for you to decide-others cannot decide for you-so my examples are just examples, you don't like them then think of what applies to you).
Tattoos, gambling, yelling, anger, not being able to make boundaries, being closed minded, too narrow of focus or conversely too wide of focus, and there are many more.
These may be the type of activities that you've put effort into with nil to terrible results.
Yep, part of being human and realizing what works and what doesn't.
Anything else that you think might apply to the examples above?
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
June 25, 2022
Placebos
Placebos come in many forms. There is the well, my (insert aunt, mother, grandma, etc.) here did it and it worked so I or my wife does it too.
The history is vague, the recollections are vaguer (I know I made up that word), so who knows it just has always been done that way.
Corporations and businesses can be like that as well. It’s just that way, because it is.
There are probably hundreds if not thousands of those trite things, rituals, stories, handed down items, lucky rabbit's foot, tarot cards, meaningful yet sometimes useless items, that we place stock in and perpetuate by continuing to use them.
What are examples of this in your life?
Are you even aware of this in your life?
If you can’t think of one then possibly you are not an aware person.
How dare I accuse you of not being aware. I know that I am unaware of many things which do not make me bad or anything like that. There is so much to learn and I have only learned so much, so I know there is more out there.
Awareness is a fact of life in everyone so that is not bad or good it just is.
We need to be aware or cognizant of the level of our awareness.
Here is Seth Godin’s take on Placebos:
“PLACEBOS
Facing a long plane trip with a nasty cold, I headed over to the health food store.
“Excuse me, do you have any placebos? I have a really horrible cold… I’ll take the strongest one you’ve got.”
She looked at me with pity. “A placebo?”
“Yes, please.”
“Do you know which company makes that? I don’t think we have any placebos?”
I waited for a second, thinking hard about what was happening.
“Hey Sylvia,” she yelled, “there’s a guy out here who wants some placebo, but he doesn’t know who makes it. Do we carry that?”
Sylvia didn’t know.”
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
June 23, 2022
Hammering a Theme
Yeah, I know I’ve said this over and over but we need to hear it.
Rick and the Ravens were a band in the 60s. That included Jim Morrison and Ray Manzarek, those guys that became the Doors but first. Rick and the Ravens had submitted demos to EVERY record label on the west coast and been rejected.
Did that discourage them? NO! It did not. In fact they, Ray and Jim quit Rick and the Ravens and got other members and kept playing in dingy and stinking dives. Anywhere to practice their art.
We get to practice our art in finer places and with less smoke (possibly, lol).
Also, did you know that the “Hello I Love You” lyrics were written by Morrison to the tune of The Kinks “All Day and All of the Night”? Yep! I did not know this until after doing some research, lol.
The music is similar to The Kinks' song "All Day And All Of The Night." So similar, that The Doors paid royalties from the British single to The Kinks after the threat of legal action.
Looking back, Ray Davies was philosophical about the episode, recalling to Mojo magazine September 2012: "The funniest thing was when my publisher came to me on tour and said The Doors had used the riff for 'All Day And All Of The Night' for 'Hello, I Love You.' I said rather than sue them, can't we just get them to own up? My publisher said, 'They have, that's why we should sue them!' (laughs) Jim Morrison admitted it, which to me was the most important thing. The most important thing, actually, is to take (the idea) somewhere else."
Get your ideas from anywhere but get them.
It does not mean we don’t get discouraged or depressed or disappointed.
Take that discouragement, that depression and that disappointment and USE IT to “Break on through to the other side”!
The Doors signed a contract with Columbia and DID NOT GET AN ADVANCE! Nothing, nada. All they got was free equipment from Vox whom Columbia had just bought. Vox organ was used by The Animals and The Dave Clark Five. Vox also made amplifiers.
Maybe we don’t need a huge advance, maybe we can take whatever we can get and then: Light your fire and Burn Baby Burn.
Also the Doors thought that recording sessions could be sessions that were rehearsed and yet they also jammed or improvised. The studio said no improvisation, just do it like it was pitched or presented.
So there is a fine line between going by the seat of your pants and having a script or outline.
First you have to know what you are doing. Plus being able to navigate that fine line and arguing and maybe discussing it beforehand shows both sides the intent and meanings of the approach.
Ideas need full expression by both sides before the reality hits. One has to have the discrimination between good and bad improvisation, when to keep it and when to throw it out.
Turn those feelings and emotions into your craft, your story, your outlet.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
June 21, 2022
Did you think what they thought when they thought of that
Without punctuation the above line is hard to read, let’s fix that, plus add some more clarification:
Did you think what they thought, when they thought of that same thing?
You may now answer.
No you did not, not many people do; especially when they think the thought is unique.
How does this affect you?
How many people have had the exact same thoughts as you?
Probably not many since our thoughts are shaped by our life experiences, and our outlook, by so many factors.
This fact of life escapes us and we fail to put ourselves into other people's shoes and really learn their stories and what has shaped them.
We are disinterested and may not be observers of life.
If you observe life then you learn from it.
If you observe life then you will know the knowledge that others can bestow on you.
There is not enough time for you to make all the mistakes let others teach you from their mistakes.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
June 19, 2022
Secrets of a Writer
Actually there are no secrets. There are so many sites blasting and proclaiming each and every secret that each is known.
Also, the below work for any craft you want to learn. Philosophy, psychology, all paths of study and craft.
In case you haven’t heard, here are a few:
Read.
Read and read thoroughly and multitudes and voraciously. It’s called learning the craft.
Learn the lingo and the craft.
Fill in your gaps and baby, we all have gaps. There is so much I don’t know about writing I can write volumes about it if I only knew it.
Work with a crew, a group, others that write and read and use them every chance you get and let them use you.
Learn together and leverage their knowledge.
Find a mentor (yeah, hard to do) I interview authors then turn around and ask them their hard earned knowledge and have them reveal it to me. They are gracious and forthcoming and even if it is a repeat it is still telling me what I need to hear. Never stop listening for you don’t know it all, in fact, Jon Snow, “You know nothing.” That’s a good approach, keeps you humble.
Prepare for rejection and with every one it is a lesson, not for them, for you. Think, it is not them, it is you and keep evolving and changing and rewriting and then do it again.
I will give my kingdom for a lesson I have not yet learned.
I will give my life to give my stories life.
I will accept with gratitude all the rejections that are GRACIOUSLY given to me. Even the most rapscallious rejections are gracious.
For upon those rejections I will build a monumental story that cannot be ignored.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
June 17, 2022
Showing not telling is the art of story showing not storytelling
“Don’t tell me the moon is shining. Show me the glint of light on broken glass.” – Anton Chekov
“Showing not telling is the art of story showing not storytelling.” David Alan Binder
The “how to” is more important than one can imagine. Without the steps and the how and the why one cannot do.
Here is a video that over one million five hundred thousand (1,500,000) people have viewed.
It introduces, “How to Show, Not Tell: The Complete Writing Guide” by
Diane Callahan - Quotidian Writer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAKcbvioxFk
This video tells you everything you need to know and some basics of how to do it.
Turns out you can “show, don’t just tell”.
Now go write something.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
June 15, 2022
Silvia Foti interview with David Alan Binder
SILVIA FOTI, author of the memoir Storm in the Land of Rain: A Mother’s Dying Wish Becomes Her Daughter’s Nightmare, is an award-winning investigative journalist in Chicago and a high school literature teacher. She holds master’s degrees in journalism, education, and creative nonfiction. Her memoir is also known as The Nazi’s Granddaughter: How I Discovered My Grandfather Was a War Criminal.
Silvia made a deathbed promise to her mother to write a book about her famous, WWII hero grandfather, Jonas Noreika, twenty-two years ago. Silvia’s grandmother begged her not to write about her husband. “Just let history lie,” she whispered. Silvia had no idea that in keeping her promise to her mother, her discoveries would bring her to a personal crisis, challenge her Catholic faith, unearth Holocaust denial, and expose an official cover-up by the Lithuanian government.
Her goal in writing this story of her grandfather, known as General Storm in Lithuania, is to upend Lithuania’s narrative that Lithuanians had nothing to do with killing Jews, that it was all done by German Nazis.
Parts of this story have been covered by BBC HARDtalk: When Truth Trumps Family Loyalty; NBCnews.com: How A Chicago Teacher Sparked a ‘Memory War,’ Forcing Lithuania to Confront Its Nazi Past; The New York Times: Nazi Collaborator or National Hero? A Test for Lithuania; NYT op-ed: No More Lies. My Grandfather Was A Nazi; Chicago Tribune: She thought her grandfather was a Lithuanian hero. Research leads her to ask was he a patriot or a Nazi?; Chicago Tribune op-ed: My grandfather’s role in the Nazi occupation is forcing a reckoning in Lithuania; and Salon.com: My grandfather wasn’t a Nazi-fighting war hero—he was a brutal collaborator.
Her Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/silvia.foti.14
Her Twitter
https://twitter.com/silvia_foti
Her Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/silviafoti1/
Her LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/silvia-foti-96a3081/
Her Website
Where are you currently living?
Chicago, Illinois
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
Writing takes a long time to master, so don’t give up. Give it 10,000 hours to become an expert, to quote Malcolm Gladwell.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
I clean the house thoroughly before starting a big writing project. It feels like I’m getting my outer world in order, so that I can concentrate on my inner world of writing.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
Aim for a regular publisher first. You can always resort to self-publishing.
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
Regnery History, Washington DC
5. Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Get as much advice from professionals as you can. Attend writing conferences, take writing classes, read books on how to write.
6. How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
It’s a numbers game, so be prepared to receive lots of rejections, and try not to take them personally. Keep rewriting and resubmitting. Don’t give up.
7. Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers ?
Get as much feedback on your writing as possible, and don’t reject the feedback.
8. How many books have you written?
Three books. Two mystery novels and a memoir.
9. Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer?
Read the genre you want to write as much as possible, and study it like a writer. I’m also a big believer in going to school, as I have two writing degrees to provide a base.
10. Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
Don’t use the first idea that pops in your mind. It’s probably a cliché. Keep thinking of other possibilities until it’s something that hasn’t been done before.
11. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
I tried to structure the story with as much suspense as possible. A reader already knows the ending, but doesn’t know the how and why.
12. What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
My high school gave me a sabbatical, a year off to promote the book, so I was given the luxury of time to devote myself to promotion. That is very unusual for an author.
13. What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
This is my third book, so I decided on doing things different after my first two, which did not get very far. I decided I would aim for a traditional publisher and a New York literary agent.
14. What saying or mantra do you live by?
If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
15. Anything else you would like to say?
Whenever I received a rejection, I told myself it’s not them, it’s me. I must be doing something wrong. So I kept changing my approach. I kept looking for ways to change my tactic in this project. That included reading many books on the craft of writing, talking to as many published writers as possible, attending writing conferences. I did at least 100 rewrites of Storm, which took me 20 years to rewrite until I found an agent who also wouldn’t give up until she found a publisher.
June 13, 2022
How do you define alone?
A single leaf on a tree
Scared if falling to the ground who will catch it
What if you or me were to be underneath
It may not feel so alone
You may say, a leaf is not my kind
The feelings of others are shared
So if we have felt it and they have felt it
We are the exact same in feeling therefore we are the same type
I am not a plant, you are not a tree, we are not a leaf, yet feelings are a commonality
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
June 11, 2022
I Owe
You’ve probably seen the bumper sticker that says (to the tune of the 7 Dwarfs song:
I owe, I owe, It’s off to work I go!
Kinda cute, and there is a story there as well. If you have bills you need to work to pay them off.
What about a different kind of debt?
A kindness given by someone to you.
A favor bestowed upon you.
A gift given without any thought of a return gift (any kind of gift).
A request answered, advice given that was timely and pragmatic, any instance where it seems like you were able to forge ahead with your progress even if another did not realize it at the time. You do.
So you owe.
That is what paying it forward is all about. The times when you receive, are the times that you owe someone somewhere, something.
It is an obligation. It is a duty that we are glad to perform since it is easy and it may cost us relatively little in the overall scheme of things.
Name some of the times when you were the receiver of those “blessing”. Someone blessed you with their graciousness.
Now name some of the times when you were the gifter of those same types of blessings.
It happens all the time and yet are not mentioned enough.
The basic underlying human needs are met for each other at a time of need or even if not needed. Those times are so wonderful in our lives and others lives.
Those are positiveness, those are affirmations, those are rain in a desert that is barron it seems.
Our landscape is what and how we paint it.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
June 9, 2022
Decidea
Two words thrust together to form one word.
Decide + Idea
I wish I’d have thought of that.
Tom Evans has a way with words. I recently interviewed this author, meditation guru, and spiritualist.
He works hard at taking you to the next level in thought, mind and soul.
Playing with words adds to your vocabulary and understanding and pushing the boundaries of words is an exercise that expands your mind.
Another word Tom uses is Overstanding.
Unique.
Crafty
What’s your word? Show us your ability to go beyond the ordinary. It does not have to be in a whole story, or paragraph or sentence. Just a word that you coin.
My wife recently said she coined a word and I said that it was already coined. She said, “Then I re-minted it!”
Such confidence and style.
What wonderfulness do you have for us today?
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
June 7, 2022
Eliot Peper How to Kill a Dragon
The essence I’d like to share of the story told by Eliot Peper in his blog is this:
“You’re silly, grandpa,” he said. “Don’t you know how to kill dragons? If you run away they get bigger and bigger and you’ll never escape. But if you charge forward and face them down they get smaller and smaller until they disappear. I just squished it.”
Writing or anything you are pursuing that is worthwhile is like a dragon. You have to charge forward and face it down and it gets smaller and smaller until it disappears. Like writing a story, novel or book. Like building muscles or health, you face it down and work on it and the task gets smaller and smaller until it is more manageable and gets easier and easier. Notice that it is never easy, it takes courage, fortitude and willpower and sticktoitiveness.
It takes you and forges your future in front of you right now.
Tomorrow you won’t even touch the dragon until you start today.
The whole article is here:
https://eliotpeper.com/2020/06/how-to-kill-dragon.html
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 25, 2022
Procrastination Another Facet
We’ve looked at the flip side or a facet of so many things in the past articles.
So this is not your usual procrastination article.
Procrastination Bane or Boon?
We’ve heard and read so many ways to defeat procrastination, and that has been covered.
So let’s move on to how procrastination helps us.
Why procrastination can work for us.
When it is right to procrastinate.
We are examining it in one tiny area but I bet you can figure out how this may apply to other areas of your life.
Snacks, procrastinate one snack a day until the next day and it is one less snack that you consume. (Or tobacco, alcohol, $x on lottery, etc.-your consumable of choice)
Even if you cut the amount in half, thirds, or fourths it all helps reduce intake.
Even if the box says a serving size is X amount, for instance, chips, if a serving size is 9 and you have 8 that is winning.
Reduction can be procrastination as well.
We are putting off something that does not add much value to our life in order to have a better quality of life down the road.
Some people call it discipline but it also just makes sense.
So we use our own logic to defeat ourselves saying to ourselves in essence, “what is one more cookie?”, well instead say, “what if we have one less cookie?”.
It is a paradigm, it is how you look at something, it is how you choose to call it one thing instead of another, it is what you say it is and we can fool ourselves or we can tell ourselves the truth.
Truth seeking is rare in our current society.
The real truth not some made up truth that is very prevalent out there.
Nations, leaders, politicians, groups, organizations, heck even social media promotes the half lie, the everything is rosey, the promiscuous cover up of what is real.
How can we begin to break that mold and move on to the rare air that we can breathe and refresh ourselves with?
It is one thing to look at something and call it by another name in order to obfuscate what it really is, and it is another thing to call it what it really is.
That is the difference between reality and fantasy.
It is still fantasy even if it is skewed a tiny bit, shrouded in a small mist of non fact, covered up even an edge in secrecy when the most part of it lies open plain as day some people can not reveal even a smallest part of something they HAVE to obfuscate just a tad.
That means we do not see reality unless we remove that portion, that piece, that cover up, that edge, that corner, the whole unmitigated essence of the item.
Back to procrastination, how about delaying reviewing the episode(s) in your past where you were slighted, abused, hurt, misrepresented, or otherwise belittled. All the review of that humiliation can wait for another day. So not today is a great mantra.
Stop carrying that pain today, put it down for just one day. Maybe just one hour. Any length of time is a win as long as it delays those feelings and emotions.
Life is too long for repetition and we repeat in our heads our mistakes and others mistakes and intentions.
The healthy alternative is to be in the now. Plan and do things for now and the future. Those are the building blocks. That other is just rubble from crumbled memories that are not usable.
Rebuild with new, not that old crappy stuff.
The new happens today. The now happens today. The future happens today.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 23, 2022
Recovery begins when one understands what to recover from
Read that title one more time please.
Recovery begins when one understands what to recover from.
This is extremely important since one does not go through any kind of rehabilitation whether it is from grief, abuse, or any addiction until one understands how and why one became addicted or are going through the process in the first place.
The grief came from the loss of a friend, loved one, family member and one fills that hole with something else rather than understanding it and coping with it and overcoming it.
The abuse came from someone who we thought loved us, who hurt us, who turned our world upside down and we fill that hole with substances, food, anger, resentment, or something else.
We have to deal with all the psychological implications, we have to deal with the physiological aspects, and that takes so much out of us that sometimes we cope with strategies that are not helpful, but we are coping.
We have to turn that coping into useful things that we can control rather than losing more control over our mind, soul and body.
We have to take back what is ours. We have to reclaim our sanity. We have to take all those pieces of ourselves and put them together into a semblance of normal so we push beyond survive, into thrive.
Turning that life tragedy that was imposed upon us against our will, into a positive that uplifts us takes some creative and masterful strategies.
Even professionals sometimes come up short in their abilities to deal with their own issues let alone yours.
Yet, we do have the ability. It may take a year or more, it may take more effort than you think you can muster, but we’ve learned that persistence, patience, loving ourselves rather than hurting ourselves in whatever way is the only way to deal with it.
Be kind, not indulgent of yourself. Baby yourself for you are in the baby steps of recovery (we all are) and we do not belong here but here we are and we can overcome it.
It may be messy, it may not be pretty but we can do it.
We owe it to us. We do this for us, not anyone else.
Do not worry about forgiveness, let deity take on that task and sort it out.
Our job is to move on. We may limp and lurch but keep in mind that moving is progress. Keep moving.
Keep progressing.
It will not happen overnight and it may not end up with it all erased and you being merry and happy, that is not the end goal. Coping and using strategy and our intelligence to figure out how to apply what we are learning from all the resources available to us.
There is no shortage of resources and they all vary and it is up to us to sort it out and determine what works and what doesn’t.
Remember, we are here for each other.
What’s your story?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 21, 2022
Drama Reduction
Yes, I like to be entertained and will watch dramas, thrillers and that type of show. Also, after writing the rest of this I think that the news fits into this drama intake that we participate in. Of course, there is the economy, the invasion over there, the current or next virus and the latest shooting, but it is mostly regurgitation from the day before and the day before that. Maybe we only need to watch (or however you ingest via whatever medium) the news once per week.
One thing that we may do is watch staged drama, or scripted drama of other types, like reality shows and even YouTube or other places you may watch that introduce needless conflict to add to the controversy and drama in our lives needlessly.
Of course, not all reality shows are like that but they can be.
The need for that medium to introduce controversy induces more clicks. Hence the term click bait.
They are baiting you to jump in and see what’s going on and why people may be talking about it.
There are so many examples of this even talk “shows” radio, etc. may introduce that conflict between the old us versus them or they did that and that is why we must get involved.
No, don’t do it. Don’t even listen.
I will not listen to or about two other siblings arguing or my sons or daughter since that puts their drama into my life. (we have to listen to some of it, but do not get involved or try to fix the drama that is up to them).
Hard to do that. It is a vortex that will suck you in and you have a choice to let it or not let it.
I’ve even introduced drama from my past into my current life by wondering how, why and what happened to induce certain people close to me to behave the way they did.
Does it really matter? They did what they did and nothing we can do about it then or now.
I can either carry that forward and let it plague me and it is a plague that lays waste to my soul. Or I can drop it. Let it go. Move on.
I don’t have to forgive or forget but those lessons can help me, but I refuse to let it trap me.
I had let it trap me especially after I wrote my life story. I really went deeply through the past and did it ever induce anger, humiliation, shame, regret, etc.
I let it induce it. I induced it, is what I am saying those events happened years and decades ago and I allowed it to affect my now. My current state at that time.
I let go of my control and let it control me.
Not a happy thought or circumstance. All my fault, but I realized it through my reading and constant thought and review and figured out how to get past it.
That is how we evolve and improve is to learn those lessons (sometimes the hard way through mistakes like I did).
Another thing we can do is not bring our drama when it exists in our lives into other people’s lives. Don’t let our mood bleed over onto them. Our mood, our drama belongs to us only.
Sharing our drama with others close to us can dramatize them.
The good news is that we can learn since we are incremental-ing our way to monumental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 19, 2022
By the way: May 15th marks my 7th anniversary of this website. What a sweet ride for me!
Unleash the Beast
Within us we all have a beast.
When we unleash it, it comes out and prowls and haunts and hunts with a passion.
Of course, I’m talking about your Creative Beast.
The animal within you that won’t eat, sleep or do anything else until its thirst is satiated by you performing and working your creativity.
It is an important part of you and yet you must learn when and where to unleash it.
Timing is crucial, for if it is unleashed where the passions and the time and the inclination and the demands upon you are placed in other directions then it is better to let the beast sleep until those other things are taken care of.
So control is key. Timing is key. When may be key for you. Also, where, and with who and with what.
Turn me loose with a reed instrument or a flute (which I’ve been able to play with since my mother had one) and I will flop about like a dying beast or a braying one at least.
This string of articles on our creativity has foundation in a recent interview I was fortunate to be able to publish with Tom Evans. The man is driven and his capabilities seem boundless and uncontained.
He is so accomplished and generates content with seemingly little effort but I would venture to guess that his creativity is like compounding interest in a financial sense.
He is able to stack and stack and stack that interest over days, weeks, months and years to yield benefits, generate content, and line his purse literally. Yet, I have sensed within him a humbleness and approachability that I thought would be unattainable.
When I had another author that I interviewed that not only was receptive to seeing my writing and then encouraged me to get an agent since she thought that particular piece was that great.
When we give to others it comes back to us. As Tom says “When someone contacts you ‘out of the blue’, as I was for this interview, grab the opportunity with both hands. You never know what doors might appear on your path that you never vaguely imagined might open for you.”
So what are your thoughts and have you been magnanimous not only this last year but every day?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 17, 2022
The Creative Path
Your creative path is steeped in your past. You knew even back then.
You knew.
Building with sticks, dirt, clay, building blocks, Lincoln logs, etc. Music lessons (two years of piano for me and months of Coronet lessons). Plus all the self taught guitar and ukelele, a bit of flute since my mom played and other instruments that friends had.
Writing music, songs, poetry, stories for over 50 years.
High school art class brought me to a fruition of creativity. I was given the time, the materials, the nudges and then let loose. All A’s in that class whether painting, ceramics, cloisonne, it did not matter I could create and it was wonderful to receive the accolades.
I know why it did not continue even though I was great at it. Cost of materials, lack of space and time, the drive and ambition was there but I was not able to overcome the other obstacles.
I continued my creativity, writing songs and music and just launching myself into the things that spoke to me, that let me be creativity.
You do that as well, I can explain that, I can tell.
We are alike and yet so different.
Our creative path needs to be examined once in a while to see where we’ve come from, and yet it does and does not affect the future unless we build upon the creativity we had yesterday, last year and many years before.
Keep building your future creative path today.
Incremental building to monumental building.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 15, 2022
Creative Thinking Amplified
According to Seth Godin, Unleashing the Idea Virus, ideas are the future.
Pelting people with ideas unsolicited will not accomplish much. I can shoot all the emails, texts, tweets, instas (or whatever you call that), pics, and so forth until all inboxes are full and yet that accomplishes little to nothing. The next big idea, YOUR next big idea that comes from within must be shared with like minded people until the synergy comes together.
Speaking of Come Together (Beatles song) the real synergy of the Beatles if you’ve seen Beatles: Get Back by Peter Jackson is how they work underpressure and in three weeks bring together a concert after a three year hiatus starting with nothing.
If they don’t know the words they just put in nonsense like cauliflower. According to John the words will come eventually and not to worry about it.
If we put too much pressure on ourselves to have a finished product from the beginning then we are defeating ourselves and hobbling ourselves then shooting the runners gun and thinking we can run a race that way.
Don’t get in the way of your ideas, make way and move with the flow. It is all about the flow.
From Seth Godin’s blog here is what he has to say about Half Baked (a different phraseology describing the creative process that is still in flux):
Seth’s post is about Paul.
“Paul’s not a genius, neither is John. This isn’t about talent, it’s about skill. And the genius that was the Beatles happens between Paul and John, not inside of either of them.
Paul wants the group to be excited. He wants George to be happier. Most of all, he wants John to like his songs. That’s his fuel.
And Paul’s practice is simple: Bring the work forward.
Play a song before it’s ready.
Because in the moment before it’s ready, that’s when it’s ready.
By bringing music that’s half-baked to the table, he takes a risk. It means that George might become critical or mopey. It means that John might not be engaged. It means that the room might not feel it.
But the risk is worth it. Because the half-baked work, shared in a trusting environment, is the fuel for the system that created the works of genius.
Paul needed the movie and the live event in the future to create tension, tension that he knew would be pushing against the group’s need for approval and not-blowing-it. By putting themselves in a corner, he created (at no small cost) the conditions where he could do the work.
And it begins, as it usually does, by having the guts to share something that’s half baked.”
The creative juices need to marinate and induce their influences and often evolution from just plain “cauliflower” into a dish that will please thousands if not more.
Our ability to devolve and evolve work together in the forum of our creative process.
Bring all the ideas and then work with them and winnow them if need be, rearrange them if need be.
I am reading a book by Michael Conneley, the third Harry Bosch novel. It states how Harry met his father. Now I know for sure that in a much later book that it is about Harry meeting his father and it takes that timeline and changes it and rearranges it until it is quite different yet it does not negate the third novel, it is just a different take and maybe adds more insight or who knows what the author was thinking but it still works.
Our characters are there for us to use, not the other way around. The characters must not impede us from using our creativity and continuing on other paths that might be possible but may not have been possible much earlier.
That is “creative process”. Use it then evolve or percolate or whatever you want to call it then create some more.
Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 13, 2022
Robert McKee great advice
I regularly read Robert’s emails and find nuggets of information most of the time.
Here is the latest:
“Experience tells us that 90 percent of everything we write will be mediocre at best. In your search for quality, you must create far more material than you can use, then cast most of it aside.
Destroy your work.
Too many writers spend years working on ideas that were never good enough to begin with. At some point you must be willing to pull the plug and move onto your next story.
In other words, you must have the taste and judgment to decide whether a particular idea has potential. If a first draft doesn’t really come to life, you must have the objectivity to ask yourself if the inspiration at the heart of your story is worth pursuing.
A writer secure in their talent knows there’s no limit to what they can create. So you must trash everything less than your best on your search for a gem-quality story.”
What do you think?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 11, 2022
The Divided States of America
The “we” I am discussing below is the collective “we”.
Not you and I but the people of this nation and world.
I really wanted to write this article about even though we are called the United States of America it seems like we are not.
Even though we are a member of the United Nations it seems like we are not.
We are losing the war of acceptance and thereby we lose the war and every battle we wage against each other due to any reason, cultural, religious, vaccinated, race, ethnic, gender, or non-gender, or any other form that one can think of and any other division that we can think of, is unacceptable.
If our acceptance depends on how much other people think, act or do or are like us then we will never have acceptance.
Deep down peace and harmony comes from accepting others for who they truly are. Let people be themselves and live their lives. Stop trying to legislate and set up rules for others to live by and follow.
As long as we do not commit crimes against others then let it go.
Let others be as they want to be, it hurts no one other than themselves ultimately.
What you do or are does not affect me! What I do or am does not affect you!
IF WE DO NOT LET IT AFFECT OR EFFECT US THEN IT WON’T.
If we allow it to then it will, the crucial difference is if we let it and it is our choice to let it or not.
In the end this article is very tame compared to what I initially thought about writing yet this captures what I am feeling and wanting.
I want to live in peace and harmony and for all people-kind to get along and let each other live and let live.
After all, if we do not have peace and harmony we have nothing.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 9, 2022
Why oh Why
In a world of people who for the most part seem to have good sense and desire stability, peace and coexist in harmony with others and nature does this happen?
The sheep (countless members of society) follow leadership (this ranges from small government, small business clear up to leadership of countries and multinational businesses) and this leadership is mostly completely self absorbed, self entitled, letting friends and associates profit and get ahead through various means. This same leadership then line their pockets and others pockets with the proceeds and to the detriment of the sheep.
The sheep just stand there doing little other than bleating as they continually get fleeced of their money, their freedoms and their stability and harmony they so desperately desire.
These sheep do little to nothing about these situations believing that they are just one or a few sheep and therefore can do nothing.
Look at the herds and herds of sheep out there doing nothing. A country goes to war and the sheep say give me a gun and tell me where to point it. SHEEP YOU OUTNUMBER THOSE SAID LEADERS! YET YOU ALLOW THIS TO HAPPEN.
Silly sheep.
The powerful get more powerful yet the sheep feel like they are powerless which is not true.
There have been uprisings before and will be uprisings again when finally the sheep get fed up.
We see this constantly in many countries that allow or permit genocide. We see this in many countries where the ultra rich only get richer and richer while the sheep get poorer and more oppressed.
Where is their indignation? Where is the anger? Where are their guts? When will they revolt against the tyranny of that said leadership?
We vote everyday with our dollars when we shop at a store or business. That profit is tremendous and yet we save a few precious dollars to these monopolistic companies that know we will continue following the other sheep to save a few dollars.
Do you even like the policies of the companies where you shop? Do you even know their policies? And I mean the track record of helping others, supporting basic human rights, of giving decent wages PLUS BENEFITS?
Does the business where you shop even give their employees benefits?
That is something to consider when you shop. Ensure that when you shop your dollar vote will help out businesses that truly deserve your dollar vote and the profit they make from you and the rest of the herd.
Lack of awareness affects more than you. Awareness extends into so many areas of our life and others lives.
Think, think, THINK before you vote with your mark on a ballot or your dollar in an exchange of profits for goods and services.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 7, 2022
May Day
I got to wondering about May Day and what it means and the significance of it and also thought, wait, it means two things. How did it come to mean, help?
Here is the answer if you’ve ever wondered. If not, here is the answer, lol.
Mayday got its start as an international distress call in 1923. It was made official in 1948. It was the idea of Frederick Mockford, who was a senior radio officer at Croydon Airport in London. He came up with the idea for “mayday" because it sounded like the French word m'aider, which means “help me."
You are now incrementally smarter or at least more knowledgeable.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 5, 2022
Tom Evans Interview with David Alan Binder
Bio from his website: My passion is a curiosity to discover how things work and to make what is complex into that which is understandable and accessible.
Some of you might think of me as an author. Some of you will know me as a meditation guide, and perhaps an ambient composer, on Insight Timer.
My real persona is that of a modern day mystic, sage and channel. Over the years, I have studied with a number of esoteric schools and latterly have tapped into a source of wisdom from higher dimensions. This gives me access to information that I have not read in any books or been provided with by any earthly agency.
So I make use of existing glyphs and models but expand upon them and, at the same time, make them accessible for all and practical to use.
Tom Evans Website: https://www.tomevans.co
[that is correct it is not a .com it is a .co only]
Tom Evans Twitter: https://twitter.com/thebookwright
Tom Evans on Insight Timer (A meditation website): https://insighttimer.com/tomevans
Tom Evans Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thebookwright/
Where are you currently living?
Wiltshire, UK
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
That I do have a message that people want to hear and that I am actually quite good at explaining complex concepts in a manner that people find digestible. I call it making the esoteric exoteric.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
I tap into my future self who knows the words I have yet to write.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I have had four of my books published by traditional publishers. In all cases, the lack of control led to a less than desirable outcome. One didn’t pay any royalties, one overpriced the book so it didn’t sell, one added errors they wouldn’t change and one changed the colour of the cover so it was nearly monochrome. They will re[main] nameless.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Write or create something every single day. Go to a book fair. Subscribe to the podcast of the Creative Penn. Read interviews on sites like this to see the journeys of others who were once not writers and not published.
How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
Just write and independently publish, let the agent find you. Make sure you create the audiobook too.
Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
In your diary, make immutable appointments with your chapters. This way they come to meet you.
How many books have you written?
18 of my own and during a period as an author’s mentor, helped hundreds of other authors write and publish their books.
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Learn the art of hypnotic language and how to write ‘in trance’ so that your reader becomes entranced. Of course, meditate every day if you can and at least before your writing session.
Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
Open loops in your writing that get closed down later, sometimes even in another book or sequel.
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
I love using compound new words in the title and even an ambiguity in the strap-line e.g. Soulwave (a wave from one soul to another or the missing dark energy in the Universe?) A Future History (which is it, past or future?)
What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
My last two books inspired me to compose two ambient music albums and [a] series of meditations. So I put samples from the albums, meditations and the audiobooks out in my blog, on social media and on the biggest ‘unknown’ social network for awakened souls which is Insight Timer.
What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
I wrote and published one book, This We Know, in three weeks, from writing the 1st word to having it available on Amazon worldwide. My 19th book is somewhat of my life’s opus and is called The Path To Overstanding. It is a collation and exposition of a life time’s metaphysical study. I am writing, recording and serialising it over 24 months. It too has an ambient album and set of meditations to accompany and augment it.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
Just for today, be mindful, timeful and kindful.
Anything else you would like to say?
When someone contacts you ‘out of the blue’, as I was for this interview, grab the opportunity with both hands. You never know what doors might appear on your path that you never vaguely imagined might open for you.
Additional question : How do you generate so much content in such a short amount of time?
When I first learned to meditate, I noticed I got more done in less time of a higher quality. So the engineer in me started to research the subjectivity of time, how it can drag in a doctor’s waiting room or fly by when you are having fun. I learned how to enter a time zone I call EMT which is Extended Me Time. I even wrote a book about it, Managing Time Mindfully and have [a] course on Insight Timer on how to do it called The Art of Timefulness (there I go again with made up words).
May 3, 2022
Echos
Seth Godin and I echo each other a lot and agree on many things. Here is his latest which further proves this.
“We need to make (and own) our own decisions.
To do that effectively, consider:
Do the reading
Show your work
Avoid voices with a long track record of being wrong
Ask, “and then what happens?”
Ask, “how would that work?”
Ignore people who make a living saying stupid things to attract attention
Follow a path you’re eager and happy to take responsibility for
Be prepared to change your mind when new data arrives
Think hard about who profits and why they want you to believe something
Consider the long-term impact of short-term thinking”
There are only ten items on this list. Can you think of anything else?
Just 10 little incremental items to ensure you stay monumental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
May 2, 2022
Follow up on my article titled: Some Thoughts on Crypto
Warren Buffet stated that a certain brand name of crypto which in my mind translates into any brand of crypto:
"it's not a productive asset and it doesn't produce anything tangible."
May 1, 2022
Lorraine Heath interview with David Alan Binder
Her bio from her website: Lorraine was born in Watford, Hertfordshire, England, but soon after moved to Texas. Her "dual" nationality has given her a love for all things British and Texan, and she enjoys weaving both heritages through her stories.
When she received her BA degree in psychology from the University of Texas, she had no idea she had gained a foundation that would help her to create believable characters—characters that are often described as “real people.” She began her career writing training manuals and computer code for the IRS, but something was always missing. When she read a romance novel, she became not only hooked on the genre, but quickly realized what her writing lacked: rebels, scoundrels, and rogues. She's been writing about them ever since. Her novels have been recognized with numerous industry awards and have appeared on bestseller lists, including USA TODAY and the New York Times.
The author of more than 60 novels, she writes historical and contemporary romance for adults and historical romance for teen readers. Under the names Rachel Hawthorne and Jade Parker, she writes popular contemporary, historical, and paranormal romance for teens readers. She also writes young adult novels with her son under the name J. A. London.
Her website: https://www.lorraineheath.com
Her Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LorraineHeathBooks
Her Twitter: https://twitter.com/Lorraine_Heath
Her Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/LorraineHeathAuthor
Where are you currently living?
North Texas
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
Trust your instincts and write the draft of your story as you think it needs to be told. It may change somewhat during the editorial process but don’t pre-guess what an editor or reader will want. Remain true to your voice and the story.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
For nearly 30 years now, whenever I’m writing, I play a storm CD, with thunder and rain, that always helps to take me to my inner writing place.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
I’ve not yet self-published so don’t feel that I can offer any insights into that aspect of publishing. My books have all been published by a New York publishing house. For 24 years, I’ve been publishing with AvonBooks, located in New York.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Persevere. Getting published is not easy for most writers. Sometimes the reasons for rejections have nothing at all to do with the writing. The publisher may have recently purchased a book with the same subject or theme. They may already have an author in their stable whose voice is similar to yours. Understand that rejections are not personal, but that publishing is very subjective. Sometimes a story might not be to the taste of one editor but it might appeal to another editor.
How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
I acquired an agent in 1992. I would think the process I used might still work today. My criteria for querying an agent were that the agent:
Was a member of the Association of Authors’ Representatives (http://aaronline.org) because they have ethics standards that must be met.
Did not charge a read fee (an agent should earn money selling our work, not reading it).
Represented the genre that I was writing.
Was willing to take on novice writers.
It’s important to do our research to find out as much as we can about the agent to ensure a good fit. If at all possible, meet with agents at conferences before you sign with one.
Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Read the present-day debut works so you can get an idea of what publishers are purchasing right now. This is not to imply that you should try to follow a trend, but it helps to understand the market that you hope to break into.
How many books have you published?
75
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
I have a “fine tune” list which contains weak words that I tend to use or that trigger what might be a weak sentence. When I’m finished with a manuscript, I search for each item to see if I can improve the sentence in which that word appears. Example: move. He moved across the room. That doesn’t really paint a picture of how he moved so I’ll rework the sentence to make it more active and more descriptive. With a loose-jointed stride, he sauntered across the room. A sentence that begins with “there” can sometimes be improved. There were a lot of people in the room. I find: A lot of people were in the room. is a bit stronger. I don’t worry about writing the best sentences possible while I’m creating the draft. I just want to get the story down. But when the draft is completed, I work to find better ways to create images for the reader.
Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
The twists need to be believable and need to further the story along.
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
Characters are an important key to any book standing out from the crowd. Readers have to care about the characters or they are not going to care about the plot, the twists, the story. How many times have you put down a book or stopped watching a TV series or movie because you simply couldn’t relate to the characters or didn’t like them? We should make our characters compelling by giving them an interesting backstory and a strong motivation for whatever actions they are doing. Remember that secondary characters are as important as our main characters. Hans Gruber in Die Hard is one of my favorite characters, even though he was the villain. He was just so well done.
What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
I don’t know how unusual it is but whenever I have spoken at a library or to a group where a bookseller is not on hand, I give away my books rather than sell them myself. If I don’t have enough books on hand so everyone in attendance can have one then I hold drawings for the books I have.
What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
In the spring of 1993, I signed my first contract and it was for 1 historical romance novel. By the summer, I had signed 2 more contracts for 1 historical romance novel each. Another publisher expressed an interest in having me submit some contemporary romance novels. However, with 3 contracts signed so quickly, I thought I was well on my way to success and declined to send anything to the other publisher. It was a few years later before I realized the wisdom in never passing up an opportunity that might result in another publishing income stream. A publishing career can be like a rollercoaster ride with a lot of ups and downs. If I had it to do over, even though I was also working another job at the time, I would have found a way to try to write something that the other house would have wanted so I didn’t have all my eggs in 1 basket.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
Never envy anyone for acquiring something (fame, success, house, car, etc.) because you don’t always know the price they paid or sacrifices they made to acquire it.
Anything else you would like to say?
Never lose the joy of writing.
Her Awards:
2016 RT Book Reviews Pioneer of Romance Award
2016 RT Book Reviews Career Achievement Award for Historical Romance
1995-1996 Romantic Times Career Achievement Award for Americana Historical Romance
1999 Affaire de Coeur Top Ten Favorite Author Award
2015 RWA Emma Merritt Award for Service
2014 RWA Service Award
2015 Dallas Area Romance Authors Robin Teer Memorial Service Award
2003 Dallas Area Romance Authors Robin Teer Memorial Service Award
April 29, 2022
The Sociopath Next Door by Martha Stout PHD
Here is a summary of the book from Penguin Random House:
Who is the devil you know?
Is it your lying, cheating ex-husband?
Your sadistic high school gym teacher?
Your boss who loves to humiliate people in meetings?
The colleague who stole your idea and passed it off as her own?
In the pages of The Sociopath Next Door, you will realize that your ex was not just misunderstood. He’s a sociopath. And your boss, teacher, and colleague? They may be sociopaths too.
We are accustomed to think of sociopaths as violent criminals, but in The Sociopath Next Door, Harvard psychologist Martha Stout reveals that a shocking 4 percent of ordinary people—one in twenty-five[I believe that there are more or those that have some sociopathic tendencies at least]—has an often undetected mental disorder, the chief symptom of which is that that person possesses no conscience. He or she has no ability whatsoever to feel shame, guilt, or remorse. One in twenty-five everyday Americans, therefore, is secretly a sociopath. They could be your colleague, your neighbor, even family. And they can do literally anything at all and feel absolutely no guilt.
How do we recognize the remorseless? One of their chief characteristics is a kind of glow or charisma that makes sociopaths more charming or interesting than the other people around them. They’re more spontaneous, more intense, more complex, or even sexier than everyone else, making them tricky to identify and leaving us easily seduced. Fundamentally, sociopaths are different because they cannot love. Sociopaths learn early on to show sham emotion, but underneath they are indifferent to others’ suffering. They live to dominate and thrill to win.
The fact is, we all almost certainly know at least one or more sociopaths already. Part of the urgency in reading The Sociopath Next Door is the moment when we suddenly recognize that someone we know—someone we worked for, or were involved with, or voted for—is a sociopath. But what do we do with that knowledge? To arm us against the sociopath, Dr. Stout teaches us to question authority, suspect flattery, and beware the pity play. Above all, she writes, when a sociopath is beckoning, do not join the game.
It is the ruthless versus the rest of us, and The Sociopath Next Door will show you how to recognize and defeat the devil you know.
The following link has the full book free online as a PDF. Do with it what your conscience allows you.
https://marucha.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/the-sociopath-next-door.pdf
Interesting note, Martha Stout more than mentions conscience and how it affects and does not affect us and how it may be scaled up or down depending on what is going on in our lives and what society thinks (One of the most famous but not limited to is, Hitler for instance was a sociopath and also encouraged his followers to follow that “path” as well.)
The book has a long intro of about 20 pages and references and notes at the end of about 20 pages. If you find it a bit dry, start reading at Chapter 2. Read the whole chapter. Then your eyes will be opened and I believe that after reading that section then you’ll want to read the whole thing.
Let me know what you think, please.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 27, 2022
Some Thoughts on Crypto
Why? Because it is important to be able to see what it is and what it is not.
Crypto is not just digital money. People want you to think it is a wave that will consume spenders and society and we should all jump aboard.
I’ve been hearing about one type or another for a few years now.
Here are my thoughts:
The early adopters of anything are going to profit from that early adoption.
It is like that next new thing, like Tupperware, remember that? I had a step cousin that made a lot of money since she was an early adopter and became a sales person and gave parties.
Think pyramid but not pyramid. The first one to adopt and buy Microsoft made a mint. Same with Apple, Google and other types of technology.
Crypto is the same thing, a new way of doing something and the value of that thing is determined by how many people adopt it and in what form. Yes you will see many people talking about, suggesting, selling you, trying to persuade you to buy.
Don’t do it because everyone is doing it? Do it because it is right for you. Do your research! Do your homework.
You are a professional and you have all the skills that everyone else has. Maybe you need to learn more about this one thing and once you see the pros and cons of this one thing then you will be able to make professional grade decisions.
Become immersed before you jump into that pool of crypto or any technology. Just because you are not an early adopter does not mean you have lost anything.
Remember the VHS versus Beta debate. Beta was actually a better technology; however, the winner was VHS in that war of video recorders and players.
The better technology does not always win. It is the one with the most momentum. Which crypto has the momentum? Depends on who you ask and it has yet to be determined if a country such as the USA will adopt its own and leave the others in the proverbial dust.
You want one that is trusted and that will be here for your lifetime.
Which crypto will win? Who can tell? Which person will win? Again hard to tell.
Be informed and do your homework and study it out.
If you are not comfortable then wait. You are not losing anything.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 25, 2022
Awareness has strings attached
Socrates quote: “Awareness of ignorance is the beginning of wisdom.”
Benjamin Franklin is credited with saying “The beginning of wisdom is the knowledge of your own ignorance.” I am sure Ben probably restructured the phrase to make it his own.
In the last ten years, I’ve learned so much about narcissists, behavioral traits, how to deal with manipulators, learning persuasion and how to look for negotiations for each to have some winning and how to meet in the middle, communication skills and enhanced methods of dealing with people and life.
All of this has strings attached.
I was telling my wife about how it seems as I get older that it is more difficult to do everything, communicate, deal with people and situations and she made this profound statement:
She stated that we are not really that much older, a year, or two or six or eight. It is not the age that makes life more difficult, it is the awareness and using new skills and communication methods. She further said, in the past you just said what you thought and did not think about it much, now you are using new skills and those do not come easily.
I am blazing new neural pathways of communicating, dealing with issues, people and situations. All of this is the price one pays for being aware.
It takes work. It does not come easily. It takes repeated practice. It takes determination. It takes skill. It takes crafting those skills. It takes thought and effort and energy.
What a wonderful new age I am entering. A thoughtful, pragmatic, communicative and adaptive person.
I did not really think about it that deeply and that my dear readers is why others can help us see what may not be clear to us. We learn from others' perspectives.
Their guidance opens new paths for us. Their thoughts let us know things we did not know, or could not know.
There is so much in this wonderful life, to be able to see and appreciate all of this is exactly where, how, and who we need to be.
We are each making progress every day.
Anything you see or have learned that you’d like to pass along?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 23, 2022
Mentalists
Yes, we are mentalists, at one time or another we are able to “...demonstrate extraordinary mental powers…”
This depends on situations and we have our moments both ways from “I lost my keys” to “Wow, I just figured that darn thing out!”
Athletes will confirm that not only baseball but in most forms of athletics:
Yogi Berra
“Baseball is 90% mental and 10% physical.”
The mind is powerful and it can be limiting us if we let it. Self talk has to always be positive for that will guide you and allow you to overcome.
Of course, without the physical the mental can only accomplish so much, so each goes hand in hand and work together.
Life is a mental game and having a positive attitude and being encouraging of yourself (and others) and not allowing the mind clutter to bog us down.
Incremental leads to monumental
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 21, 2022
What does Quick and Dead mean?
There is a film and the film's tagline was 'The Quick and The Dead - in this town, you're either one or the other'. That clearly uses the popular meaning of 'quick', that is, 'fast' - in this case on the draw.
The earliest meaning of 'quick' had nothing to do with speed, it meant 'endowed with life', or more simply, 'alive', as opposed to the current 'lively' meaning.
To 'quicken' was to receive life and the first movement of a baby in the mother's womb was called the quickening.
This use of 'quick' is extremely old and is recorded, as 'cwice', in an Old English translation of the Orosius Histories, dating from around the 4th century.
The word has largely died out now, although we still retain the meaning in words like 'quicksand', that is, sand that moves (I had thought that it meant sand pulls you down and eventually kills you) and has 'life', or the bubbling and gurgling 'quicklime'.
The quick and the dead are referred to several times in the Bible. These texts relate to judgment, with the admonition that only the divine may judge the quick and the dead.
Word usage can be extremely interesting and as meanings change over time (for instance “bad” used to mean not good; however, the Michael Jackson song changed that depending on context).
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 19, 2022
From vs Through
For context on this article we were watching “Inventing Anna” the Netflix series and the parents of Anna said that she was different than their other children.
They said that their other children came “from” them. They were conceived, born and nurtured and loved.
Then they said that Anna came “through” them. Anna was conceived, born and nurtured and loved; however, the nurturing somehow was different. Anna did not fit into their micro society and was in many ways different and did not want to behave, or conform, or somehow on some occasions just chose to be someone other than a person that they would raise and became different from the other children that they raised.
I understand.
If you have a child that is a murderer, or a thief, or breaks the law, or is somehow delinquent or has vices or habits that then they chose to operate outside the law then that particular child is not from you, they merely came through you.
It is a nature versus nurture element to it; however, if a parent does not aid and abet the unlawful, or lawless behavior and does everything within their ability to steer and raise them to be a contributing member of society then it is NOT the parents fault.
The parents were not able to affect the child or correct the child or enforce on the child the good behaviors and ethics that most people inherit and adopt as they are raised.
This is hurtful to parents since others believe that somehow it must be the parents fault.
The parents did everything in their ability and even perhaps sought outside counsel, and expert advice, etc.
I know we did. Religious teachings, a whole different school type of learning system, psychologists, therapy and more and still the child became who the child wanted to be and all these experts and counselors and behaviorists could not change it either.
This is small consolation; however, the way the particular episode of “Inventing Anna” phrased it hit home with me and helped to a small extent and assuaged the parent within me that wanted so much more for this child and wanted the child to operate within the law.
I won’t go into more details or specifics; however, someone else may need this article for this alone.
This also goes the other way as well. My mother was a hoarder and had some very destructive behaviors and I know my grandmother tried so hard to give her the best and raise her correctly and grandmother was not able to. (Grandfather died when my mom was eight or so and was not around to help.)
Sometimes we feel like if we had been a different child then a parent would not have turned out like they did.
Sometimes we feel like if we had been a different parent then a child would not have turned out like they did.
No, the paths chosen are not within our choosing; it is theirs and theirs alone.
In Dale Carnegie there was a person who related how their child was a drug addict. This person and their spouse tried everything and eventually all their best efforts failed and the teenager had to be turned out of the home to pursue the choices the teenager chose over the family.
Sometimes that is how it is. Some have “cancer” of the soul, it is not inherited, it is not because of anything, they just have it. There are so many methods to avoid the choices that bring the consequences however, some are destined to challenge, charge right through and sometimes seemingly on purpose make those choices that others can see are detrimental to the person making the choices and it is also detrimental to others that love and care for them. IT is their choice and there is NOTHING we can do to stop it. It has to take the course chosen until either some type of fatality happens or a faint glimmer sparks within the chooser and they change course.
These situations are very difficult situations to deal with and take comfort that sometimes a child or a parent does not come “from” us but “through” us in spite of our best efforts.
Please share this article if there is someone who could use this comfort and small consolation.
Thanks and they will thank you as well.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 17, 2022
Funny for the day:
At our age Easter is just like any other day, one of us misplaces something and then we spend the rest of the day looking for it.
Your personal looking glass
If you're not looking at the whole thing then you are not seeing it.
Issues are all around us. Events are all around us. Factions are all around us.
We see all of these every day, or do we?
Do we really see them? Not that they are invisible, but seeing means seeing all sides of the issue, event, faction.
So in essence the issue, event, faction become partially invisible if we do not “see” all of it. Not just using our eyes, but our mind, heart, soul, and every force within us to complete our understanding, complete the vision, to be empathetic enough to give each portion of it some time in the light of our day.
I’ve experienced this so many times in my life. I find out a bit about someone or something and jump or make conclusions without having complete knowledge of someone or something.
Later I find out some other compelling information about someone or something and the more complete information changes my initial thoughts about the someone or something.
I’ve even gone from being on one side of an issue until when I received more knowledge about that issue I changed to the other side.
If you're human you are prone to this type of thing. So there is no fault in being human. The fault lies in not looking DEEP enough, FAR enough, THOROUGHLY enough to COMPLETELY understand that issue or something.
Completeness may never actually be fully gained. For instance, I did not know very much about Muslims until I lived next door to some of them. They (at least the ones next door were) are actually very nice people, very polite, caring and will greet you and talk with you but seem to be a bit reticent or shy probably since some people do not treat them well just knowing that they are Muslim and not knowing much more.
Yeah, I’ve heard so much about the bad things that “some” Muslims do or people who claim to be Muslim and are not actually Muslim. I’ve seen the same for Christians who claim to be Christian and yet are far from it.
That misrepresentation of one person or a few from a certain type of person does not make that all people from that type are the same way.
We lump things, people, animals, cultures, races, religions and others together based upon a few facts or even prejudices. We think we know when in fact we know nothing.
Remember how little we know and then we will seek out to learn the rest of what we don’t know and I for one am attempting NOT to LUMP even though my human mind attempts to do just that.
Lumps tend to be when we have not found out the extent, the breadth and the whole of it (whatever it may be).
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 15, 2022
Need vs Invention plus Reinvention
In the Socratic dialogue 'Republic', Plato famously wrote: “our need will be the real creator”
Which was then molded over time into the English proverb “Necessity is the mother or father of invention”.
So if we need it, it will happen is basically the same information in another way of stating it.
So why do we need invention? As we grew are were synonymous with our parents or caregiver we gradually learned to become ourselves.
At some point in our lives later we may have decided we weren’t happy with who or what we were, we may have decided changes needed to be made or circumstances alerted us to who we were, is no longer serving us.
As I have evolved or invented or reinvented myself over the decades who I was lo those many years ago is far, far from whom I’ve become today.
It is interesting to see the “invention” that I thought I went through in my teens and twenties to the “reinvention” in my thirties, forties and beyond.
You may call it your evolutionary path, your invented self, your hero’s journey or many things; however, it is basic to realize that we have all gone through a journey in this life that necessitated changes, morphs, and different types of acting and reacting to the circumstances forced upon us or even taken upon us.
I would say that most times we didn’t even realize we were evolving. We just did it to a certain event, issue, faux pax or something else however you want to state it.
Awareness encompasses all the stages we have willingly and unwillingly gone through to become who we are currently. That awareness serves us (just as unawareness for some serves them in a different way) we force that awareness to serve us.
Awareness gives us more choices and a cognitive approach. Un-wareness is more willy-nilly and maybe it is a fearful approach, or an approach that dodges us questioning and having to find harder answers.
Being aware means we are open to us questioning ourselves and others questioning ourselves and being willing to answer at least to ourselves in some manner.
Any thoughts on this?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 13, 2022
Charles Dickens
A posthumous interview with the author. No, I did not channel him nor did I talk with his spirit but his spirit lives on in his books and tales.
The all too familiar first line up to the first comma doesn’t even begin to cover it.
In the Tale of Two Cities the first paragraph in it’s entirety:
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way--in short, the period was so far like the present period that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only."
THAT REFERS TO THE TIME THAT WE CURRENTLY LIVE IN! If you analyze it and see what it says it could also refer to many periods during history and currently.
We have all the technology that brings us a life of ease and yet that technology also destroys us at the same time.
We use it for social good and social evil.
The various machinations that could do so much good perpetrated so much evil.
We communicate instantly and disagree in that same instant. Plus we are not communicating just barraging each other with insipid and useless information, emotes (which really mean nothing except an acknowledge meant that I saw your message and have NOTHING to say about it, that is how meaningless it is). Yet we are proclaiming it otherwise.
All the channels of people yapping and extolling and selling everyday items (buy it through my channel so I get a cut they exclaim and it costs you nothing but if my thousands of followers-sheep do it then money is made and for some lots of it).
We are all dipping into local and international ponds of opinion and hoping that we come out without the stench of the other dippers.
Tirades are common on the internet and yet we listen to that drivel as much as people did in the soap opera days of early TV.
We get caught up in the hype and drama and all those internet channels are listening to us to see what we are looking at, what we click on and then try to sell, sell, sell.
Sales drives the corporate mandate so that all we see are tailored commercials just for us, hyped up demand for products just for us, the personalized (if an algorithm can be personal) fodder for our tastes and we SWALLOW IT ALL WITHOUT QUESTION.
Be aware of what you are consuming each and every day. Not just the calories but the bloat that fills our minds and ears.
Awareness is a double edged sword, as we become more aware we have a choice to be more selective, the flip side adds to our jadedness and horror at what we now know that we once did not.
Yes there are cesspools all around us, yet most are actually very avoidable.
Come, come, dear readers, it is not the worst of situations at all.
It is an age of enlightenment where we can use our souls, hearts and minds to educate and spend our repast in wonderful sensations to be found.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 11, 2022
Wait, Flip Side, how many Flip Sides are there?
There exist currently recognized depending on the source either 4 or 5 racial types.
There exist over 4,000 recognized religions in the world.
There exist over 3800 different cultures in the world and they vary in many ways. One of the most obvious ways is the language, among other things.
There exist 195 countries in the world today. This total comprises 193 countries that are member states of the United Nations and 2 countries that are non-member observer states: the Holy See and the State of Palestine.
So many types of flip sides exist and of course there are mixes of each type of flip side which brings us more sides.
If one takes sides there are thousands that will be against you from another side. There are too many sides for us to justly or unjustly take sides.
Most people think there is their side and then all other sides.
You pick and choose each day who to allow in your inner circle and those decisions are how you divide yourself and decide who is favored, who is not favored and who does matter and who does not matter.
When you pick a side you automatically alienate yourself from a potential ally, a potential friend, a potential person who can help you understand their narrative and let you see that all narratives matter truly.
Encourage seeing the other side, the other point, the real ramifications of what helps society and what breaks society down or alienates society.
The more sides we see maybe the more sides someone else will see until we finally see all sides are equal in importance.
Diversity is more than you and me.
Diversity is all of we.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 9, 2022
What are your thoughts?
I ask this question as I write the article for you, reread and edit the article for you, plus ask it at the end of very nearly EVERY article.
BECAUSE…
Your thoughts are more important than what I am saying. Is there something in the words that tantalize, provoke thought, encourage you to dig deeper, lead you to make incremental improvements?
Just how does the article speak to you, move you, engage you, propel you to share it, think on it, repeat some of the message [even all of it].
I know me and my motivations and what I intend, but what are you receiving? How do you relate?
Is there a tangent that I have not thought of that would be interesting to follow up with? Did I miss something completely? What did you think of that I did not?
We rely on each other to encourage, help, suggest, augment, bounce ideas off of and just be there for each other.
Every friendship, partnership, has give and take, mutual understanding and discussion to take it to the next level.
Give me your thoughts and questions and musings and let’s make this even more incremental together.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 7, 2022
Positives and Negatives
For now when your story is graphed it is necessary to understand how it should look. Graphed, you may question?
Good question for each story, each chapter has positives and negatives and this gives your story movement.
Too many positives and you have a straight line which is NOT a story.
Too many negatives and you have a straight line which is NOT a story.
The movement up and down, success then failure, then attempt with minor success or leads to an a-ha, gives the story movement.
Here is an example of what graphed your story should look like this: (This graph is from Story Grid of the Wizard of Oz)
Now if you can’t read each of the tiny points that are not that important. Just look at the way the lines move up and down and the suspense heightens, then the main character attempts something, or meets someone and we hear their story and then continue on.
It beckons us, it calls to us, it demands that we continue reading to find out what happens next and eventually overall.
That keeps us readers reading and that is when you as an author adds layers and followers because they have learned that you understand how to pique their interest.
If there is no piquing then why continue to read.
We want, we need, we HAVE to know, what happens to this, your character.
How will they get out of this situation? How will they overcome this issue? How will they defeat, or triumph over various obstacles? How will they overcome their own feelings, their doubts, their fears, others manipulation, the environment?
I’d love to hear from you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 5, 2022
Another thought on: The Greatest Article I Never Wrote
As with most things there are flip sides, some that we don’t think about.
Several days ago I wrote an article on The Greatest Article that I Never Wrote.
Now that I’ve processed the whole event and I now see a flip side.
The flip side is that my brain was working and writing and processing and the article came together and though it was not actually written down; IT IS A FANTASTIC EXERCISE and PRACTICE.
So mentally if you are a writer or another craftsperson even if you don’t have media in hand you can perform it all in your mind and that is great practice.
You are putting you body and soul and effort into doing something even if it does not come alive as a real tangible piece of art. It still existed in your mind and all the learning and teaching that came forth from that crafting is yours.
You own it! Even if it never sees the light of day.
Hone your craft, think and plan and use your craft even if your tools are not at hand for all that honing will make your blade sharper and more useful for future crafting.
There are always silver linings and it is up to us to go after and seize those linings and use them to our advantage.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 3, 2022
Self Publishing another whack
Yes, I’ve discussed self publishing many times and thought I knew a lot about it; however, I’ve been reading Mark Coker’s free book The Secrets to eBook Publishing Success.
To find the PDF for a free download, it is available from a few sites but SmashWords is owned by Mark and so that is the origin, Google this:
The-secrets-to-ebook-publishing-success.pdf
Yes, Mark owns SmashWords and so it is somewhat self promoting and it also gives extremely good advice.
There are many self publishers and it seems to me like aggregators (self publishers that distribute to many sellers rather than just one like Amazon) are maybe the route to choose.
I really haven’t decided.
Here is a Reedsy blog only about self publishing companies to potentially choose from. I do not endorse or recommend or have been paid in any form, I am just passing along information.
https://blog.reedsy.com/best-self-publishing-companies/
AND Reedsy has services for authors as well, so there is that.
We all have to self promote to some extent, here’s why:
We are a business and that business is in the business of creating growth and opportunity.
Very seldom will someone else do it for us unless they are paid, although reviews are some of the best free promotional channels.
If you are not self promoting then who will promote you, lol?
There are probably dozens more reasons but these are a few I could think of, if you think of more then send me some and I’ll follow up with another article and credit you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
April 1, 2022
Chris Lynch interview with David Alan Binder
His Website: https://www.chrislynch.link
About Chris Lynch from his websitte:
He’s a technologist, digital marketeer, writer, film-maker, comic book guy, hypnotist, foodie, and general nuisance.
The Day Job
I’m currently the IT Director of Source Insurance. Prior to this I was the founder and CTO of Cardiff based digital agency Gravit-e for almost ten years and spent eight years before that working for the National Health Service on a wide range of software projects. I am also a founder director at TruTech and ReturnApp.
My book on digital marketing and search engine optimisation, “The Truth About SEO“, has been a number one download on Amazon across multiple categories. I’m a strong advocate of open source technologies and share software and open-source advice on my personal technology website.
Books and Comics
I also write books for children and adults, most recently working on Doctor Who spin-off books in the extended Haisman universe for Candy Jar Publishing. Over the past few years, I have written a number of books, novellas, and short stories for Candy Jar and always have more in the pipeline. My children’s book, “Curse of the Mirror Clowns“, was shortlisted for a Scribe Award in 2019.
When I’m not writing books I create comics as one-half of the comic book studio Monkeys with Machineguns. As well as self-publishing our own comics, we have worked with a range of comic book publishers in the UK and US including The Judge Dredd Megazine, Arcana, Metaverse, The Psychedelic Journal of Time Travel, 2026 Books, Accent UK, Something Wicked, The Sorrow, The Mad Scientist Journal, KZine, Wilde Times, Another Realm, 10thology, Midnight Hour, and Insomnia Publications.
TV/Film and Radio
I am co-writer/producer at Welsh independent film studio The Black Room. Our short “The Black Room” has been featured on Amazon Prime Video and our first feature film, OffWorld, is currently in post-production ahead of a world-wide release with a major distributor.
More or less once a week, you’ll hear me on South Wales ONE (formerly ACJ Radio) on the Soundclash. This show is syndicated worldwide with an audience as far away as Australia!
Where are you currently living?
I live in Wales, just to the left of England, in the UK.
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
Always write what you want to write. People will tell you to write to the market, to target a publication and write what that publication wants, but that way lies nothing but the soulless grind of the word-mines.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
I love to hide references and quotes from books, TV shows, and movies in my stories. It's a habit I picked up as a software developer. Working on Doctor Who spin offs there are a lot of rules about what you can and can't use, so I'd like to think I've become pretty adept at skirting the fringes of intellectual property law.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I've done both and there are pros and cons on either side. Working with a publisher means sacrificing control and accepting that you will be one of a stable of authors they are working with, according to their own priorities and budgets and timelines. Self-publishing means you have to do everything, including stumping up all the money and investing all the time, and any day you take off is a day another self-publishing writer didn't but… you get to treat yourself as the number one star client every single day.
There's nothing wrong with a mix and match approach and you can pick and choose depending on what you need at the time. Just remember that nobody owes you a shot. Publishing's a business and both you and your words
Also, people who think that self-publishing is somehow invalid really don't understand how it works. Publishers aren't hatched out of eggs in an alternate dimension then dragged to the mortal plain through some unholy ritual to rule over us. They don't have some sort of preternatural ability to tell good from bad. They are just people, with opinions. All the literary agents and publishers who turned down Harry Potter? Probably all still working today, definitely not a single one of them shot into the heart of the sun.
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
Right now most of my work is The Candy Jar Publishing, who are based right here in Cardiff with me.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Nope. Because there is no secret. Write a good book. Find the right agent or publisher, or be the right agent and publisher for yourself. Work hard. Don't give up. It can take a really long time to be an overnight success.
How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
Research definitely matters here. Agents put out really clear guidelines on what they are looking for, so read them and make sure you're targeting agents who are looking for the kind of work that you are doing.
Do you have any suggestions or help or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Don't waste money on specialist writing software. I've tried it all, I've written some too. Every minute you spend messing about learning how to use a piece of software is a minute lost from your writing time. Every one of these platforms is going to take your money, many of them every month for as many months as they can keep their leech-like hooks into you, and none of them add a great deal of functionality that will really help you write your story. When you're done, you're going to find that every editor and agent and publisher out there just wants the file in good-old Microsoft Word format so you won't be editing in that special magical piece of software anyway.
Stick to Word or Google Docs. They really are all you need.
How many books have you written?
Five.
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
No matter the story, it should be about something everyone can relate to, something fundamentally human. I write mostly about robots, aliens, magic, and weird time travel stuff. All of which is a smoke screen to hide what I'm really writing about.
Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
Structure matters. Sometimes your story will offer up a twist of its own, one that even you didn't see coming. That's when things are working, at least for me. When the story pops the rails and goes off on its own, don't fight it. Just make sure that the story supports what happens logically. Plug your plot holes.
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
You've got to have a hook, or so I'm told. One thing I definitely think is true is that if you can't sell your story in one breath, then you don't understand your story. You've got to understand its essence, its core, the fundamental building blocks that everything else rests on.
What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
I give a lot away for free. Every year I'll write at least one novella that gets sent out by my publisher to our readers as a Christmas gift. Whenever I can, I do school visits to talk to kids about writing and teach them what little I can. I never charge for the time. A lot of my fellow writers get cross with me about that, because school visits and lectures are a part of their income, but I truly believe that it's important and that schools deserve our support.
I may not be the next JK Rowling, but maybe the next JK Rowling will meet me and think "Yeah, writing's a pretty cool thing to do. I'm gonna do that." That would be cool, right?
What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
I'd do fewer print runs and go digital way earlier. It's a great feeling to hold your work in your hands, and there's a thrill to seeing your book on the shelf in a book shop, but you can't argue with the huge number of books that are sold digitally every single second of every single day.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
"Aim for indoor work with no heavy lifting"
Anything else you would like to say?
Every single thing I've said in this interview could be wrong. It probably is. I don't think one size fits all. There are going to be writers who do every single thing "right" and who don't get the pay off they deserve. There are going to be writers who are lazy, disorganised, but who the universe plucks from obscurity with the fickle fingers of fate and place daintily at the top of the literary world.
Don't tell me you've never read a bad book.
So, write what you want. At least, that way, you'll know that you did the one thing that nobody else in the world could have done.
There is a new lesson number 16 here: Click or cut and paste to find it
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/01-free-lessons-assignments?authuser=0
March 31, 2022
Douglas Stuart the Author
Today’s article is about an author that I wrote to request an interview. Although the author declined the interview, he still was kind enough to send me an Uncorrected Proof Book of his WITH the cover art. (I saw one for sale on eBay, same book, with no cover art and called an ARC Proof.
What a wonderful and thoughtful gift. Obviously I love reading, and writing and spend a copious amount of time on both.
Most authors just say too busy and that is it. Even agents or publishing houses too will say no thank you, even if I follow up and say do you know any authors who would like an interview I rarely hear from them.
There is one agent who had heard of me from somewhere (the internet or another author or agent, I’m not sure) and actually requested that I do an interview with one of her authors and then a few years later she requested me to interview another author of hers. That agent I consider to be a go getter and one that uses various avenues to get the word out for her authors.
Very nice. Love hearing from any authors and especially from my readers. I really appreciate all of the time, work, attention and ability that goes into the industry.
Wait, I digress. To get back on track the book title that I was sent is Young Mungo. Here is a blurb about this nice relatively new author:
DOUGLAS STUART is a Scottish-American author. His New York Times-bestselling debut novel Shuggie Bain won the 2020 Booker Prize and the Sue Kaufman Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. It was the winner of two British Book Awards, including Book of the Year, and was a finalist for the National Book Award, PEN/Hemingway Award, National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Prize, Kirkus Prize, as well as several other literary awards. Stuart's writing has appeared in the New Yorker and Literary Hub.
Drop me a line and I’d love to feature you in your creative craft.
In addition to authors I’ve interviewed research assistants, cover artists, forensic liaisons who’ve helped an author to ensure the book was accurate.
So anyone that helps in any capacity in the publishing business or for that matter in an artist, crafting, it is interesting to interview newcomers to well established people.
What an interesting and fun occupation and I am honored to take a small part in it.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 28, 2022
Plotters and Pantsers
Okay let’s define the two different types of writers. One is like James Patterson who is a plotter. He outlines, outlines, outlines and then writes.
The other is a Pantser and they fly by the seat of the pants and just write. Some famous examples are:Diana Gabaldon, author of Outlander. Matthew Hughes, author of What the Wind Brings. George R.R. Martin, author of Game of Thrones. Isaac Asimov, author of I, Robot (and many more) Rex Stout, author of the Nero Wolfe Series. James Joyce, author of Ulysses.
One more thing you need to know, THERE IS NO ONE WAY THAT IS CORRECT. THERE IS ONLY YOUR WAY and you may have an approach that is a hybrid.
This is an explanation from the Story Grid website whom I use heavily in my training and have learned so much from them. (I’ve also NEVER paid a dime to them for anything, but they are great and if you want to pay for the training, then go ahead.)
“The Exploratory Draft (for pantsers)
The exploratory draft is also known as Draft Zero and it’s ideal for writers who consider themselves “pantsers”. It allows you to free write without constraint, and to think through your story as you go. Here, you can let your imagination run wild and see what emerges. If this appeals to you, dive into your story premise and see what happens. Then, skip down to the “Editing Your Draft” section below.
Pro Tip: The exploratory draft works for every unit of story within your novel. Even if you’re a plotter, when you get stuck, try writing an exploratory draft of that part of the story to get the creative juices flowing again.
The Story Grid Drafting Tools (for plotters)
These tools help bring clarity to your idea. Your high-level story premise might have passed the coffee test, but now it’s time to drill down and see if you’ve got enough to sustain a reader’s interest through 80,000 or 100,000 words.
Yes, this takes time and requires significant mental energy but it’s much faster and much less exhausting than a page-one rewrite. Trust me on this.
What you’ll end up with is a rock solid outline that is infinitely malleable.
This is not about stifling your creativing by generating a blueprint. This is about inspiring innovation through constraints, while simultaneously setting yourself, and your story, up for success.
Not surprisingly, the Editor’s Six Core Questions (part one, part two) and the Story Grid Global Foolscap (part one, part two) factor heavily in this approach.”
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 27, 2022
“Life Finds A Way”
Nearly a year ago on March 1, 2021 I unveiled that I was writing a series of articles on:
The incremental becomes monumental
Now about a year later Seth Godin writes this article:
Who invented the smartphone?
Well, certainly Alexander Graham Bell and Antonio Meucci and Edison and Tesla had something to do with it. And the folks at Fairchild. And Palm and Cisco and General Magic and countless others.”
How does this happen? Does Seth Godin read my articles, who knows? Maybe, maybe not. I would be flattered if he did and I am flattered that great ideas have to be exposed. If not by me than by someone else, which teaches us that IF YOU DON’T write that great idea and put it out there then someone else will.
I read an article once that simultaneous discoveries or near simultaneous ones are worked on at the same time someone else is. So that if we did not have a pasteurization by Louis Pasteure then we’d have it via someone else and in about the same relative timeline.
None of us are working in a vacuum and are privy to secret thoughts. Everyone is thinking and working on problems, solutions, answers, discovery at relatively the same time and eventually as a human race we make individual incremental improvements and as a single human being we also make individual incremental improvements. This is how life is, it finds a way.
Jeff Goldblum’s famous Jurassic Park quote, “Life finds a way.” is SO true!
Sometimes it is astonishing, sometimes inevitable, and it is wonderful as well.
Let me know if you know of any specific coincidences in your life or that you know about.
Looking forward to hearing all about it.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 26, 2022
The secret to living forever.
According to Brad Meltzer Novelist
“Tell your story. That's the secret to immortality. The one true way to live forever.”
Is it really as simple as that?
If you don’t write it down then who will know?
If you don’t write it, who will?
Something has to be said and this is the only way to say it, is to write it yourself to ensure that immortality lives within you.
We forget, we misremember, as do others.
We misplace things, our memories can be skewed by someone else’s memory of how it went down or their perspective.
Your perspective is what is important due to your understandings, your desires, your input, your distillation process.
We are so unique.
There is no normal you there is only the you that is here right now which may change hourly or daily.
There is no average you, you are an amalgamation of all that has happened to you. Best of all what has happened to you did not happen exactly like that to anyone else.
Your feelings, your emotions and your understanding of events, places, issues are like no one else on the planet.
You are so You-nique that you can not replicate you at any given time or place, your authenticity derives from all that has affected you and authenticity is the key to you.
That is a great place to be in your heart and mind and soul. You are you and there is no one like you, ever before, during or since you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 25, 2022
Sally Jane Driscoll interview with David Alan Binder
Her bio information from https://www.thesavvystreet.com/author/sally-jane-driscoll/
Sally Jane Driscoll, Literary Editor of The Savvy Street, holds an M.A. in Publications Design/Creative Writing and Publishing from University of Baltimore, where she taught writing and co-founded the literary quarterly, Passager. She worked as reader/fiction editor for a literary agent who represented popular novelists and is senior copy editor on a medical journal. Her short stories, poetry and articles have appeared in Asimov's, Ellery Queen, Interzone, Daily Science Fiction, Capitalism Magazine, The Intellectual Activist, The Washington Times, The Baltimore Sun, The Lyric, Seventeen, Woman's Day and others.
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sallyjanedriscoll
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/5765954.Sally_Jane_Driscoll
Where are you currently living?
I've been living in the Texas Hill Country for 16 years. Best place I've ever lived, because of the people. I was born in Manhattan and grew up on Long Island, where I spent a lot of time at the beach. After college I lived in Yonkers near the train to NYC and worked in Manhattan at Grumbacher, the art supply company. I spent 4 years there writing ad copy and helping with product photography. Also spent some time living in Queens. Then I moved to Peekskill, NY, where my kids were born. Later I lived in and around Baltimore for a decade or so, where I got a double MA in Publication Design, and Creative Writing and Publishing. I then taught rhetoric to upperclassmen and grad students for 5 semesters at the University of Baltimore and for 2 semesters to remedial freshmen at a small rural community college. I then spent another decade in and around San Jose, California, working part time as a novel first reader and copy editor for the literary agent Ruth Cohen, who specialized in women's fiction. I was able to train for and then walk the Honolulu marathon, and I paddled my kayak in every bay in Northern California… Now I love Texas but miss the Atlantic beaches and the Cali weather.
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
I've learned that I'm a short story writer—haha! I did write a novel as my MA thesis and have made several starts (up to 100 pages) on other novels. I think my error has been to spend too much time trying to learn to write novels and not enough time actually writing them. There are so many books on how to write long fiction but each one that I've read has a method that suits the type of mind of the particular writer who wrote the book. I believe now that each author must develop an individual writing focus and method, instead of modeling a character, a plot, a style on what someone else has done. I've also learned that I love the long form despite my many failures and I will not give up.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
Almost all of my stories so far have had a Twilight Zone kind of twist: "There's more to the story than meets the eye—it's not what you think!" It's kind of like having God reach down and put his finger on the page.
Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I've self-published 3 short books on Amazon, of which 2 were short story collections and 1 was very short—it's about Ayn Rand's wake. (This piece appeared on The Savvy Street site.) The problem with self-publishing on Amazon or elsewhere online is that it's easy for someone to steal the work and republish it, which is what happened to one of my story collections. My work with the highly professional and successful literary agent showed me that using a publishing house can be much more effective in terms of the return on the investment of time and mental energy.
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
I have no current publisher but this week I joined a Harlequin writers group on Facebook in which Harlequin publishing personnel also participate. I became quite accustomed to the Harlequin lines while being in a local romance writers group and before that by working for the literary agent. I'm toying with the notion of working on a story for one of the Harlequin lines, which now seem to have become more interesting than they used to be. This may be a place to restart.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
First of all—and this is very basic—be expert in your spelling, punctuation and paragraphing. It's very sad to read an interesting story with a lot of potential but which fails because of the author's sloppiness or unprofessionalism. The second most important point is to study and learn what kind of fiction the targeted publisher publishes. Would your book be out of place for that publisher? Would it enhance the publisher's line? Are there enough similar books for yours to fit in and yet be individual enough not to seem to be a copy of other books from that publisher?
How did you or would you suggest acquiring an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
Be clear on what you want to achieve. Write a good precis of the work and submit it with the first 10 to 20 pages of the novel, or however many pages the agent specifies. Research agents online who would seem interested in what you write and who are professionals, preferably with a history of successful books. Check to see if the agent has any special requirements. Make sure that you and the agent would be a good match—don't try to sell a romance to a murder mystery agent or an unconventional modern novel to a sweet romance house. Go over your submission several times to make sure it's the best you can do. Follow the agent's criteria for submitting (if you can find any) and then send the precis and sample pages with a brief cover letter introducing yourself. Do not send the whole novel until the agent requests it. The agent will then either ask for more pages or send you a rejection, which may take some time. Don't keep asking the agent when a decision will be made… Be aware that the agent may request style changes as well as textual changes. The excellence of the writing will matter almost as much as the plot—sometimes more than the plot—and sometimes the plot will matter more than excellent writing. The agent will determine whether your work has potential for the publisher(s) the agent will submit to, and will request the whole novel if there is enough interest. Be aware that it can take a long time to be rejected.
Do you have any suggestions or helps or tips for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
READ!!! Read the good stuff: Dickens, Chekhov, Solzhenitsyn, Maugham, Trollope, the Brontes, Sinclair Lewis, Dostoevsky, DH Lawrence, Kipling, Hardy, Balzac, Homer, Pasternak, Fitzgerald, Tolkien. Read poetry: Voznesensky, Lewis, Kipling, Whitman, Shakespeare, Byron, Shelley, Owen, Keats, Herrick, Poe. Read Chapman's Homer. Read the Greek and Roman classics and myths. Read history. Get and use a good dictionary. Get a copy of Roget's Thesaurus and use it. Several are currently for sale on thriftbooks.com for $3.99 and up.
How many books have you written?
I have worked on about 5 novels but have not completed any yet except for a short romance novel, which was my MA thesis, and a couple of short story collections. My short stories, poetry and articles have appeared in Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Interzone, Daily Science Fiction, Capitalism Magazine, The Intellectual Activist, The Washington Times, The Baltimore Sun, The Lyric, Seventeen, Woman's Day and others.
In the past I worked part-time for two years as first reader and fiction editor for a major California literary agent of women's fiction. I was also co-founder and publisher of the literary quarterly, Passager, which was begun in 2005 and is still being published. I have 3 short books on Amazon Kindle: The Land Is Peopled by Shadows: 9 Dark Tales; You Can Get There from Here: Five Stories; and New York Story, a personal account of Ayn Rand's wake in NYC, which first appeared in The Savvy Street online.
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
See the paragraph above that starts with READ!!! And get yourself a good thesaurus. If not a Roget, at least get one without any… political aspirations.
Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
Characters should retain some mystery and not be so clearcut that the reader can easily be certain what they will do. They should be held back somewhat—even be contradictory—and become more clear gradually.
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
I believe that a writer in love with the material who also has a good sense of the music of words will make any novel stand out.
What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
I have not yet promoted my work.
What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
There are 2 things. I would not have wasted time trying to learn and use other people's writing methods. The method has to match the psyche and the spiritual intent of the individual writer. Also, if I had had the option, I would not have spent so much time as an editor—I copy-edited an international medical journal for 27 years. Because that required such structural mental clarity, it diluted some of the energy I could have used to write fiction.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
Until I read that question I was not aware that I had a saying or a mantra, but now I would say something like, "Don't live your life in Plato's cave!"
Anything else you would like to say?
Yes: thank you, David! Trying to figure out answers to your questions has clarified a lot for me.
March 24, 2022
The Greatest Article I never Wrote
What? How could this happen?
I thought about it and had some great points to make and even had about a paragraph and a heading and it was fantastic.
HOWEVER…
Since I did not write any of it down, not even in my phone or a scrap of paper or even the one word headline to remind myself, I then forgot every single word of it.
Yes, my inaction resulted in nothing. So an accomplishment was not achieved, an intriguing and engaging article has me cursing myself and I KNOW BETTER, but I did NOT DO BETTER.
My point is that even one that has been ingraining this mentality and training myself and preaching action yielded to distraction enough to completely not do it.
So even the best of us succumb to this annihilation of just one item that would have resulted.
This consolation for you is yet another lesson for myself. ALWAYS WRITE IT DOWN! Even just one key word would help.
A word to the wise is sufficient.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 9, 2022
Interactive
This whole website, my website is not very interactive.
There are too many other places for you to go and be bombarded by ads, click here or there, and so much frou frou that this is one place mostly free of all that jazz. I don’t push anything, it is all up to you to choose from all the choices offered and I am humbled that you choose to spend some time with me.
This is a plain, unadorned site, yet it receives hundreds of thousands of visitors.
The point of interactive is to keep you engaged and locked in.
So many other sites are that way, sending emails, alerts, coercion, and pleas for your time and attention.
Some of us don’t have to. We are quiet and worthwhile and informative and that is an important choice for you to make in your life.
It adds peace, not agnst, it adds comfort, not disquietude, it adds to your soul and your health and your knowledge base.
Once in a while I’ll place a useful link, not very many pictures since the whole point is the reading and absorbing information and not being distracted.
Choose sites that are static (very quiet and still) rather than dynamic.
In the quiet moments we learn and grow and are allowed to think freely.
Like a garden there is no room for loudspeakers or music, only nature.
The nature of this site and others like it nurture you.
Nature and nurture simultaneously.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 7, 2022
Stephen Leather
Mr. Stephen Leather is the author of many UK best sellers; we just watched The Foreigner on Netflix based on his book The Chinaman.
S. Leather has this advice about getting published:
https://www.stephenleather.com/getting-published
After five paragraphs on getting published then he talks about getting an agent.
Getting an agent goes on for eleven paragraphs then he discusses self-publishing.
He has seven paragraphs on self-publishing and then also links Mark Coker’s pdf on the subject.
Here is that link but read Stephen Leather’s seven paragraphs FIRST since he goes into detail of when you should and when you shouldn’t.
https://www.stephenleather.com/files/the-secrets-to-ebook-publishing-success.pdf
The PDF has 131 pages of useful information.
Then Stephen has a few more paragraphs on useful reading.
I recommend reading it all thoroughly, and maybe more than once if you're serious.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 3, 2022
Moments
Your life consists of incidents and problems and maybe abuse, maybe other types of behavior that you are in emotional terror or want to forget about.
One thing that is first and foremost is that it is NOT all bad.
Any interaction even with the most hated person, the most abusive person, the most diabolical person is never all bad.
They have used tactics to win you over, love bombing, idolizing you, overwhelming your defenses and they used those tactics repeatedly.
The sweet-mean cycle is evidence of this. You would leave if it was all mean, so they use the honey, the sweetness to win you over and to keep you coming back. You are yo-yoed by this sweet-mean cycle.
Your emotions and your self esteem and your self identity is being manipulated in order to keep you coming back
Just like a casino, which uses tactics, letting you win once in a while to keep you hooked.
The narcissist and other manipulators are experts. They know the proper bait to use at one time and for others they know that you have to use a different bait to catch the proverbial fish and to keep it.
Those little details are completely unknown to you since you are not diabolical, you do not use methods to win others over to use them and manipulate them so you are completely unaware.
Awareness is a key component in our development and our progress. If we continue to be unaware of these tactics and manipulations we then become armed to avoid these weapons.
Not to use these weapons. We develop the ability to avoid, to counter, to dodge these types of “attacks” for these are definitely attacks. They are used to permeate and dissolve our boundaries, our morals, our judgment.
If the manipulator can get us to not believe what we are experiencing, to doubt our judgment, our faith in ourselves we are undermined and become more and more mired in this manipulation swamp.
The more frantic we become the deeper we sink into that quicksand of manipulation.
Become cool, become calm, become rational, become knowledgeable, become your own savior, become able to depend on yourself and you.
You HAVE to, MUST, SHALL, become the one who comes to your own rescue.
Over the years you heard about my family and my mother and different issues that became exposed over time.
First and foremost is that it is NOT all bad.
The same with your life.
So we learn and
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
March 1, 2022
There is a NEW free lesson under the 01 Free Lessons & Assignments Tab.
What is your playing style?
Your approach to games says volumes about you.
In this article an exploration was made of play styles and what to expect; however, these behavior styles were very psychologically developed and also extremely difficult to understand from a laypersons point of view.
Here is one example:
The Four Keirsey Temperaments
In the 1970s, psychologist David Keirsey identified four general patterns from the sixteen types of the Myers-Briggs personality model. In his book (co-written with Marilyn Bates) Please Understand Me, Keirsey described these four "temperaments," giving them descriptive names much as Richard Bartle named his player types:
Artisan (Sensing + Perceiving): realistic, tactical, manipulative (of things or people), pragmatic, impulsive, action-focused, sensation-seeking
Guardian (Sensing + Judging): practical, logistical, hierarchical, organized, detail-oriented, possessive, process-focused, security-seeking
Rational (iNtuition + Thinking): innovative, strategic, logical, scientific/technological, future-oriented, result-focused, knowledge-seeking
Idealist (iNtuition + Feeling): imaginative, diplomatic, emotional, relationship-oriented, dramatic, person-focused, identity-seeking
However, simplification may be prudent at this juncture.
Here are some (there are probably dozens) playing styles (the approach to playing games):
Adaptive
Difficulty oriented
Strategic / Thinker approach
Quitter
Adaptive means that one may be overwhelmed by the rules or complications presented or just the overwhelming situations and examples. However they may adopt a show me or let’s play some example hands or turns approach to learning. This helps them to grasp key concepts and then build on those concepts until they ultimately learn to play the game.
Difficulty oriented people may be overwhelmed and avoid playing for insecurity reasons or they may have a need to be able to dominate from the beginning and if they think they can’t achieve that then they may not play for that reason.
Strategic / Thinker approach means they are willing to see and learn. Watching others play as they figure out what is applicable and when as they see how the other players play the game. This watcher approach may also be difficult since not all scenarios may play out watching others play the game and so they are not aware of every possibility.
The Quitter may not play also due to difficulty of grasping the rules or the situational options are too many and just be overwhelmed by all the possibilities and options so they opt out of playing rather than trying to attempt it.
I learned to play cribbage from watching two older people (mycare givers when I was in elementary school). I watched them play for an hour or two for many weeks until one of them was busy and I wanted to try it.
My approach was that even though I had watched that game probably dozens if not hundreds of times so that eventually I’d get it. I also knew that I’d most likely lose many games before I had a chance of winning.
This approach means one is willing to not have the instant (or within a near time frame) gratification and is willing to be subjected to losing in some form or another, from a sound thrashing to the I’m getting closer and closer to winning but not there yet.
Being able to see the prize far beyond your capability is paramount to the learning process.
You believe in the inevitable. You will eventually win if you keep trying and trying and trying.
You believe in yourself.
Are you like this?
Do you believe you will eventually win?
No, not at games but whatever craft you are attempting.
Your first attempt may not look very pretty, may even be downright ugly; however, you don’t care. Just doing it is an accomplishment and propels you forward to doing it and refining it until it goes from ugly to fair to good to pretty good to great to fantastic.
I was this way at playing hearts as well. I played with a guy that was a card counter, I played with other guys who did everything they could to “run” and rule a hand and take every point. (There are two ways to play hearts, one is to avoid taking any points and one is by taking all the points and thus giving others quite a few points. The latter is very difficult but very rewarding.)
Thus, to finally play and win amongst these various types of players was difficult but all the more meaningful when I eventually did win occasionally.
Knowing your style and type of temperament and your approach means knowing how you will react and how you can play on your strengths and weaknesses.
Overcoming weakness by building slowly and surely is more of a win than if you started out very strong and then do not advance from there.
Life is the same. If you start out with not very much of one thing (you pick the thing, money, looks, personality) then being able to progressively gain means a lot and builds your confidence.
“It is not where you start but how far from that start you finally end up that determines your progression.” David Alan Binder
Give me your thoughts in a short email. I’d appreciate it.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 27, 2022
Get Buzzed!
As we know the context is Royal albeit queen or king.
Get buzzed, get excited, get high, get going.
When we are excited about a project we dig in and charge forward and get it done.
Buzzing indicates not only business (bizzyness) but also indicates ACTION!
The main ingredient into which your effort gets things done.
Bizzy can be just spinning so ensure that you are not circling but main / straight lining to a goal.
The progress you make not only depends on being bizzy, but also being productive.
Productive is proactive is progress is what a pro does to get to the goal.
Buzzing everyday is an incremental way to move from one state to monumental.
Notice the action words I’m using, the action verbs!
“The action is the traction to success.” David Alan Binder
What actions shall you employ today to ensure your productivity gains you rewards, achievements and success?
Drop me a line and let me know!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 25, 2022
A great article on Ten Ways to Tantalize Your Reader
You are exactly correct when you think I don’t know everything. In fact what I don’t know can be filed in a room the size of Texas or Alaska or maybe even China.
So I find ways to find out what I don’t know and if I find that it is interesting then I write about it. Sometimes it needs to come from the mouth of the original writer and who knows if they really know it or if they read it somewhere and are re-spitting it out. Who cares? We learn and grow from it.
The following website gives us this article:
Ten Ways to Tantalize Your Reader
https://thrillbegins.com/2017/07/24/ten-ways-to-hide-clues-in-your-mystery-surprise-your-reader/
[It is quoted here in its’ entirety]
“Sequence Diversion –
Put the real clue right before the false one. Readers and your sleuth often focus on the last clue presented. If you’re getting started with mystery writing, this tactic is a great place to start. Mention or show the clue first and then immediately focus on a different clue or red herring.
Secret Emphasis –
Emphasize the unimportant, but de-emphasize the clue. The reader sees the clue but doesn’t see what’s important about it. For example, your sleuth may see the value of a company report and the statistical details but doesn’t look at the man who researched and wrote the report.
Before It Counts –
Early on, plant the clue before it has any context. Your sleuth may walk by a man cleaning his yacht with chemicals before a business partner dies of toxic chemical poisoning. Carolyn Graham uses this tactic in her Inspector Barnaby mysteries.
Missed It –
Your sleuth misinterprets the meaning of a clue. The murder took place in a room with open windows. Your detective believes that’s how the murderer escaped. But the windows were open to let in the evening breeze and the murderer escaped through the door and out the back staircase. This is a great tool to use with a flawed sleuth whose flaw keeps her from seeing the real meaning.
The Not a Clue –
The clue is what isn’t there. Although the sleuth deduces certain actions happened, the real clue is what is absent. A classic clue that isn’t there is when Sherlock Holmes realizes the dog didn’t bark in “Silver Blaze.” There was no intruder.
Piece by Piece –
A time-release method to scatter pieces of the clue in different places through the story. Then mix up the logical order. Your sleuth finds an empty aquarium, water but no fish in a suspect’s room. Later on she finds six fish bodies tossed out a window. She has an “epiphany” when she remembers the empty aquarium.
In Plain Sight –
Create a cluster of clues and squeeze the real clue in with all the others. Hide the clue in plain sight. This technique works well in a story with multiple suspects from Agatha Christie’s Murder On The Orient Express to John D. MacDonald’s hard boiled Travis McGee (pick one).
Distraction –
Draw your reader’s attention away from the clue. The sleuth and the reader follow a false trail. What seem like the most evident clues are not the real trail to the suspect. In Adrian McKinty’s The Cold, Cold Ground the clues seem to lead toward a serial killer who targets homosexuals. Not the case at all.
Time Seed –
Create a time problem. A suspect has an alibi for the time of the murder. Later it turns out that the murder was earlier and the alibi does not work. Or the suspect claims a time as an alibi but could get away during the time covered by the alibi.
Camouflage with Action –
Camouflage a clue with action. Just as your sleuth glances at a scrap of paper on the floor, he’s hit from behind. In the ensuing action and consequences—trip to the hospital, a missed appointment because of time in the hospital, etc.—your sleuth overlooks the clue. Jo Nesbø uses action camouflage in his Harry Høle series.
Practice
Emulation is no crime for writers. Read your favorite authors, note how they plant their clues. Follow their example in your own style. Increase your clue planting skills by reading mystery and crime stories outside of your genre. For example, if you write cozy mysteries try reading a crime thriller. Push your envelope. Experiment with different tactics. Lead your reader toward the puzzle prize – the real villain revealed.”
By Zara Altair
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 23, 2022
Author Considerations
Publishers are looking for the next great thing; however, they also consider the ethnicity, the culture, and many things about the artist (author) themselves.
Publishers may be looking to promote the next “insert race here” “insert gender here” “insert Orientation here” author or even characters. Here is a list on orientation if you are not up to speed- https://www.colorado.edu/cisc/resources/trans-queer/lgbtq-definitions
Stories require that there be characters (almost 99.99% of the time).
So as you choose your characters here are some things you may consider.
Ethnicity of your characters
Orientation of them
Culture or lack of culture
Religion or lack of religion
Type of “family” or lack of “family”
Friends
Adversaries and their ethnicity, orientation, culture, family or lack thereof, etc.
Marital Status or lack thereof, married, single, widow(er), partner, divorced
So once you’ve figured all that out then you are able to write. Correct?
Not so fast. If you have gone through all those considerations above for yourself and characters you may be so discouraged that you are attempting to hit a market segment, have the correct spin on you or your characters, that you are overwhelmed with the possibilities.
What I am trying to say is that all the above stifles your creativity.
A few years ago when Amazon became the behemoth Book seller, and eBooks were the thing then hitting the correct segment could make you a “best seller” in a certain segment almost instantly even by selling just a few to a hundred books.
No, that is true. There were algorithms and plans and software that could show you where the eBook market was underserved.
A purple leafed plant-like alien from a distant solar system could come to earth and since that was an unusual type of alien then it could take over that market segment. (I am using an example that is very unrealistic to try to make a point.) The point is that there were no other books about a purple leafed plant-like alien on the market so, voila, instant segment capture. It would be the only eBook like it and thus you’d be able to promote yourself as a best selling author in this segment and propel yourself into the limelight.
See the gimmicks and marketing that authors may think of to elevate, or create controversy or do something to further the hype about them.
There may be a way to go about this so you don’t overload yourself with all those other considerations.
Just write! Yeah, simple and effective. Forget about market segments and promotion and characters to appeal to certain groups. Just write.
Certainly a fresh approach and some unique twists are definitely needed in your book but also that adds originality and does not burden you unduly. Every author has to add unique twists and turns within a book or it will bomb if it has the same plot line as many others. The uniqueness is not there.
There is room for George R. R. Martin and J. R. R. Tolkien and many others in that genre as long as it is a fantastic story with fantastic characters.
The rage now is strong women characters that have to help the men who don’t think things through and act rashly with brawn over brains.
This is pandering and won’t breathe any more life into your story if you want to attempt to appeal to what the publisher wants or the reader wants. That track is short term thinking when that thinking needs to go into the story to develop it fully and naturally and originally.
Be yourself and have fun with it. That is the main reason to write. To be yourself. To tell your story the way you want it.
Write for you, no one else and that will add a breath of fresh air to your tale.
Yes you have to follow some conventions like an inciting incident plus all the rest. That is like ensuring that the car you build has brakes, steering and other appurtenances that will follow the laws and make the car usable. Your story must be usable within those conventions, other than that it can be quadruple deckered, 36 wheeled, nitro fueled and other maybe not so conventional approaches to enrich and embellish the transportation.
Go ahead and have fun and be yourself.
What do you think?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 22, 2022
2-22-2022 at 2:22
Is it just a date or is there more to this numerology thing?
That’s the thing, you decide what is significant and what is not.
If you believe an animal holds significance other than being an animal then it is YOUR belief and only significant to you.
If there are signs and sayings that have power to you then so be it.
In a world full of choice somehow others believe that if you don’t believe like they do that something is wrong with you.
Believe in the power of nature? The power of the sun?
Extraterrestrials or aliens? Weird ideas and opinions?
“Let's define an unusual belief as one that at least 95% of the world does not share. ... Psychotic individuals tend to have unusual beliefs that we call delusions. For example, some people think that they are Jesus or the devil”
Yes there are so many ideologies out there, the flat earthers, different cultures, the moon landings did or did not happen, etc.
Yet, you are what you believe and as a society and as humans it is time for each of us to step back and say, “That’s okay!”
Let others be the way they want to be. Let us be the way we want to be and LET IT GO!
Can we let it go when others stand up and sometimes get in our face or are adamant to the point of pointlessness”
Of course the usual caveats apply. If you are hurting anyone then that is the limit of the belief and then becomes unlawful.
I’ve become way more tolerant the older I get and yet, sometimes I hear myself say, wow, that is really out there and weird.
It is our stage and we can create whatever world we want.
Maybe we should think about what we want in relation to what others want and how the two can coexist.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 21, 2022
Dysphoria and Insecure Attachment Style
This article continues somewhat from a previous article I wrote titled:
“Life happens to you, but does not determine your current life”
This is a continuation of my study on childhood trama.
From the site VeryWellHealth comes this article which I will quote a portion of it:
https://www.verywellhealth.com/dysphoric-mood-warning-signs-and-how-to-cope-5205365
What Causes a Dysphoric Mood?
A 2017 review of studies examining the causes of different states in bipolar disorder attributed dysphoria to several factors:3
Trauma
Negative childhood experiences
Substance use
Withdrawal from substances
Stress
Rumination (focusing on the same thoughts)
Disruptions in circadian rhythm (sleep-wake cycle)
Genetic vulnerability
Changes in neurotransmitters such as dopamine, which can cause shifts in mood
What Does Dysphoria Feel Like?
People have unique experiences of dysphoria. However, generally speaking, a dysphoric mood can include the following symptoms:
Irritability
Powerful emotions such as guilt, anger, or melancholia
Feelings of failure
A deep sense of discontent or dissatisfaction
Feeling overwhelmed
Aggression and hostility
Lack of pleasure in daily activities
Stress
Changes in eating and sleeping patterns
Struggling to manage or recover from low and profound emotions
Furthermore we may experience Insecure Attachment Styles:
“What causes insecure attachment styles?
Certain childhood experiences may increase the likelihood that someone will develop this attachment style, including: early separation from a parent or caregiver. a troubled childhood, including physical or sexual abuse. instances of neglect or mistreatment.
Nov 14, 2019
Link is here:
https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/anxious-attachment
This article is an effort to understand myself and maybe parts of yourself or maybe another or a loved one.
“Knowing is the precursor to curing.” David Alan Binder
Once we know as Mr. Smallwood my sixth grade teacher would say: “A word to the wise is sufficient.”
We use all our knowledge, our learning and our wisdom to figure ourselves and others out and this helps us form short and long term attachments and overcome any “handicaps” we may have since any mental moods we have are definitely handicaps in our adapting to life.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 19, 2022
I Like It!
I never metaphor I didn’t like, LOL!
In fact I love metaphors.
So as a creative artist you decide when to use metaphors and how and why and what type.
Like a late bloomer
LIke a black sheep
Heart of stone
Buried in a sea of (your noun here)
Weight on whomever’s shoulder
Layered like scales on a dragon
Since I read a lot I see them a lot.
Unique metaphors are hard to come by and yet not that hard to create.
Think about it and send me some of the best you’ve read, created or heard. If you say so then I’ll repost them in an article later.
Appreciate your contributions, which trickle in like a leaky faucet! Heh, heh.
I’m dripping from email showers. Okay that is a terrible one.
Your replies overwhelm me like the IRS at tax time. Now that is on spot and timely as well.
Your turn…
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 17, 2022
Life happens to you, but does not determine your current life
My dear readers, this is an informational article from Science Direct in the issue:
Volume 121, November 2021, 105228
A tangled start: The link between childhood maltreatment, psychopathology, and relationships in adulthood
Located here:
This is from the Introduction:
Childhood maltreatment is an important public health concern that impacts both the individual and the relation with others (Gilbert, Kemp, et al., 2009). It involves all acts of a parent, caregiver or outsider that leads to potential harm or threat to a child up to 18 years of age, even if harm is unintended. Four categories of childhood maltreatment are often distinguished: physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological (or emotional) abuse, and neglect (Bernstein et al., 2003; Bernstein & Fink, 1998; Leeb et al., 2008).
This paragraph is incredible information and yet even though I survived ALL FOUR CATEGORIES OF CHILDHOOD MALTREATMENT! I survived, NO, I have thrived. Amazing.
This example lets YOU know that no matter what you’ve experienced in YOUR life, you can not only survive, but thrive and have a relatively normal life.
I’ve been married over forty years. Yes, 40 years. How wonderful in spite of the suffering that I’ve undergone even after marriage to her.
I am scourged by two half sisters whom I used to have a good relationship with until my step-mother (their mother) died. One step-brother rarely communicates with me.
One half brother now communicates with me every few months.
I have another half brother whom I’ve not seen or heard from in over 7 years and a son who I’ve not seen for about 7 years and who rarely communicates with us.
Doesn’t that sound very dysfunctional, and yet it is normal for me. I had to cut myself off from each of them for different reasons and two of them cut themselves off from me for some slight I have no idea what it is since they don’t communicate or explain. That’s a difficult situation when you are cut off and do not know why.
EVERY SINGLE PERSON out there has some form of dysfunction in their life. Do not let anyone kid you or fool you. We all do!
In spite of that, and maybe because of that we are normal. Since there really is no real normal except in scientific studies but it is a baseline not a real state of humanity.
You are exceptional for all the obstacles you’ve overcome, for the challenges you’ve faced and for those trials you’ve suffered. And you are not alone.
We have each other and we’ve got each other's backs.
The most important people in your life are the people who you CHOSE to be your family (no blood relation) is necessary. Those people are your lifeline and nurture them but if they abuse your relationship then you must move on.
That is a fact of life and here we are increasing our incremental into a monumental life.
We are an evolving being and shall continue to do so to have wonderful lives. Here’s to you, all of you!
By the way Sam Vaknin, a Doctor of Psychology gives an excellent summary of the study at about minute 27 or 28 in this video (it may be easier than trying to read the study since it is extremely scientific). [Also, Sam expounds greatly on narcissism and narcissists; however, there is so much more to learn from him as he goes on and on about those things.]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLa1ozQwG0A
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 15, 2022
If… Then… Statements
In programming the If Then statement is used dozens if not hundreds of times in codifying software.
Those If Then statements are a foundation and before that was available the programming language was severely lacking.
Once the If Then statement was created then software was put on rocket fuel.
This can also work for your creativity.
If X happens Then how does this affect your life?
If Y says this Then how do you react?
In this circumstance how do you behave?
The last is not a true If Then statement but you get the picture.
How you perceive determines how you will react. Same as everyone else.
Your perceptions are the key. The If makes a determination, is a condition to kick off the action in your life.
If you live to be 60 then you will… what?
When you retire then you will do… what?
Our If Then statements not only affect our lives but can also kick start that creativity.
Michael Crichton’s creativity said, “What if dinosaurs were able to exist in the present day?” Voila, a huge hit when he then coupled a good story with that If Then statement.
What does your creativity think when you If Then?
That feedback loop will work time after time after time and let you evolve your stories and your life immeasurably.
We’ve discussed that incremental push, that incremental If Then that propels your life into monumental.
Now let’s put it into action.
Another great statement is the What if statement!!!
For without action our lives are dull, void and nondescript.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 13, 2022
…aholic
Many of us are some type of …aholic.
It may be alcohol, drugs of one sort or another, sweets, chocolate, sxx, grief, victim, food, patriotic, a member of a group can exhibit the …aholic symptoms.
Couple …aholic with any type of behavior that you or others may exist and they are an …aholic.
The …aholic is trapped. The one episode in their life, a parents divorce, some or any type of abuse,
Loss of a parent through whatever means, loss of innocence, loss of a lover, a friend, a job, leads us down a path of giving ourselves examples of how that keeps recurring in our lives. That is the definition of ..aholism, keeping on doing or seeing events as being repetitive and adding to the original event.
I recently listened to a Richard Grannon video titled Narcissism: why you can’t get over them w/ Sam Vaknin.
Here is that video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkVPeNNZisM
It outlines our grief that can any time, can color your whole life and trap you into a circular spiral and repetitive thing.
This type of grief lasts and lasts and lasts.
You are looping. That is a clinical and well defined behavior.
Here is a very clinical article on looping and may help explain it further if you desire:
https://www.apa.org/international/pi/2016/12/book-review.pdf
I only mention these types of, well, it is really self abuse that happens after some type of initial abuse and can happen at any age; since awareness will help us seek the help and courage to overcome.
The AA program is specific to alcohol; however, the way …aholic behavior has some similarities in our behaviors and reactions and sometimes reinforcement of it.
It is all part of breaking the cycle.
Here’s to breaking the cycle and realizing that help is out there and here.
Let’s work together, any thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 11, 2022
Assuming
Is it possible to live and not make an assumption?
No!
We’ve all misread a situation or person and made assumptions that just weren’t true.
We’ve used your logic and reasoning to conclude what others feel, thought or did because we see, heard, felt something and we built conclusions based upon.
We are filling in inbetween. There is our knowledge and there is the unknown. So between knowledge and unknown are gaps and we fill them in so those bridges are our assumptions from Point A (known) to Point B (unknown).
We’ve created a reality with that assumption. Our reality.
It is a false reality. Assumptions are false realities.
We created that false reality not because we live in a fantasy but because our brains are wanting to puzzle through something and it makes sense to connect dots that should not be connected. We need all the dots to connect the dots, not a few.
We think we are sane and logical and this should be the inevitable solution. Sadly life is not a laboratory and opinions, thoughts and feelings are not able to be replicated exactly from person to person.
Each of us have our own opinions and thoughts and feelings and those have such a bearing and impact on the conclusion that makes it not replicable from my person to your person.
ASSUME is an AXX of U or ME
We become the butt; if you will; of a joke that we play on ourselves. The joke is we’ve assumed that what makes someone else tick is what makes us tick.
No, we tick individually to different reasons and rhymes and attitudes.
When was the last time you made an assumption?
Was that assumption correct?
Probably not completely.
Assumptions lead us astray from the real issues.
So ask questions to fill in those gaps rather than use assumptions.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 9, 2022
More about Unconquerable
I recently listened to this Become Unconquerable | Stoic Philosophy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=teqOInIwoUI
There are some unique concepts that may be useful in our approach to life.
There are physical situations that may threaten us; usually in the form of accidents, encounters, viruses and other situations but not usually the medieval type described. But who knows? Even though it is not likely it can be used to help us to master ourselves and our fears.
Personally more information is helpful whether the usefulness is transparent and immediate or reveals itself over time.
Give it a listen and let me know what great thoughts arise for you and if it is helpful.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 7, 2022
Unconquerable
When we encounter words we read them and either know the meaning, or search for the meaning either within ourselves or ask others or the internet.
Etymology is a good place to start since it explores where a word comes from, it’s history, usage and most of all other words that are similar.
So in this instance Etymonline breaks down unconquerable into three parts (which is necessary in order to find the full meaning):
prefix of negation, Old English un-, from Proto-Germanic *un- (source also of Old Saxon, Old Frisian, Old High German, German un-, Gothic un-, Dutch on-), from PIE *n- (source of Sanskrit a-, an- "not," Greek a-, an-, Old Irish an-, Latin in-), combining form of PIE root *ne- "not." Often euphemistic (such as untruth for "lie").
The most prolific of English prefixes, freely and widely used in Old English, where it forms more than 1,000 compounds. It underwent a mass extinction in early Middle English, but emerged with renewed vigor 16c. to form compounds with native and imported words. It disputes with Latin-derived cognate in- (1) the right to form the negation of certain words (indigestable/undigestable, etc.), and though both might be deployed in cooperation to indicate shades of meaning (unfamous/infamous), typically they are not.
It also makes words from phrases (such as uncalled-for, c. 1600; undreamed-of, 1630s; uncome-at-able, 1690s; unputdownable, 1947, of a book; un-in-one-breath-utterable, Ben Jonson; etc., but the habit is not restricted to un-; such as put-up-able-with, 1812). As a prefix in telegramese to replace not and save the cost of a word, it is attested by 1936.
c. 1200, cunquearen, "to achieve" (a task), from Old French conquerre "conquer, defeat, vanquish," from Vulgar Latin *conquaerere (for Latin conquirere) "to search for, procure by effort, win," from assimilated form of Latin com-, here perhaps an intensive prefix (see com-), + quaerere "to seek, gain" (see query (v.)).
From c. 1300 as "to win (from); defeat (an adversary), overcome, subdue; make a conquest, be victorious, win or secure (something)." From early 14c. as "to acquire (a country) by force of arms." Related: Conquered; conquering.
common termination and word-forming element of English adjectives (typically based on verbs) and generally adding a notion of "capable of; allowed; worthy of; requiring; to be ______ed," sometimes "full of, causing," from French -able and directly from Latin -abilis. It is properly -ble, from Latin -bilis (the vowel being generally from the stem ending of the verb being suffixed), and it represents PIE *-tro-, a suffix used to form nouns of instrument, cognate with the second syllables of English rudder and saddle (n.).
A living element in English, used in new formations from either Latin or native words (readable, bearable) and also with nouns (objectionable, peaceable). Sometimes with an active signification (suitable, capable), sometimes of neutral signification (durable, conformable). It has become very elastic in meaning, as in a reliable witness, a playable foul ball, perishable goods. A 17c. writer has cadaverable "mortal."
To take a single example in detail, no-one but a competent philologist can tell whether reasonable comes from the verb or the noun reason, nor whether its original sense was that can be reasoned out, or that can reason, or that can be reasoned with, or that has reason, or that listens to reason, or that is consistent with reason; the ordinary man knows only that it can now mean any of these, & justifiably bases on these & similar facts a generous view of the termination's capabilities; credible meaning for him worthy of credence, why should not reliable & dependable mean worthy of reliance & dependence? [Fowler]
In Latin, -abilis and -ibilis depended on the inflectional vowel of the verb. Hence the variant form -ible in Old French, Spanish, English. In English, -able tends to be used with native (and other non-Latin) words, -ible with words of obvious Latin origin (but there are exceptions). The Latin suffix is not etymologically connected with able, but it long has been popularly associated with it, and this probably has contributed to its vigor as a living suffix.
Now once you’ve read or slogged through all the above wordage you have a real grasp on the meanings and inflections in order to retain and also to think of and use the word properly.
Too often we have an idea of what a word means but deep down, do not grasp all the nuances of that word which means our grasp is weak.
A weak grasp means we really do not fully understand.
Fully understanding a word and a situation is crucial to being able to handle that word and situation in context.
Context is queen / king, meaning it is paramount in our lives.
Knowing the context gives us grasp and dominance of that word and situation.
Grasp and dominance means control.
Being in control translates into being able to see that word or situation from all sides and not being afraid or fearful.
Acting without fear puts us in a position of clarity, and ensures that we act not react.
“No fear” is a slogan that many use or wear but are we really fearless?
A bug that you know and understand how it works and adapts and its instincts are; means whether you can handle it or not without harm.
That knowledge either means you avoid that bug or you can interact with it.
Stomping or spraying every bug is not useful. Some bugs are actually “good” feeding off of bugs that we wish to avoid.
Know your bugs, know your words, know your situations and your life will be fearless.
More about “unconquerable” later.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 5, 2022
ALWAYS or NEVER?!?
Always and never hardly ever apply to any situation.
Eliminating those two words will enable us to look at a situation and see what does apply and what does not apply instead of it is always one way or it is never one way.
“Critical thinking requires much thought.” David Alan Binder
We are the mentors of ourselves more than anyone else in the world. We can advise, strategize, suggest, advocate for others; however, the lasting change comes to us from ourselves. We hear, see, read, listen, and study and then we mentor ourselves through the perilous journey of life and guide ourselves with all that we have heard, seen, read, listened and studied. We “listen” to ourselves much more than we “listen” to anyone else.
After all, no one else knows us the way we do. We know our biases, our precepts, our upbringing, our culture, our attitude more than us.
If we blind ourselves to any of the above paragraph then we are lying to ourselves and fooling ourselves since those conditions create and shape the way we think and react and adapt.
Use your knowledge and wisdom and insight into you to create for yourself the kind of person you’d like to be.
That type of adaptation is real and lasting and creative.
Another idea I ran into is the following:
“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning
Changing ourselves means accessing whatever problems there are and trying to place them into one of two boxes. Can we change the situation? If not then how do we adapt ourselves to handle that situation?
The military dictum, SNAFU, applies and if situation normal is off kelter then we must adapt.
What if a certain country was threatening war on another country and we did not escalate or even give credence to that threat since obviously many countries would rush in to help that country and that would be the time to “do something”. All the rhetoric and saber rattling just gives one world leader the stage and attempting to grab the spotlight onto your stage doesn’t last. The simple quiet confidence of not being intimidated and reacting to a threat and speech making on what will happen if the original threat is carried out and threatening sanctions or whatever in return is just an escalation of words and gains nothing.
Just ignore the warmongers. If there is war then we will react and do what must be done. If not then life goes on as normal. All the rhetoric in between is just hot air.
This is one situation that we do not need to react to nor do we face the challenge of changing ourselves until it is necessary. Hot words and marching around the borders does not require us to do anything.
What do you think?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 3, 2022
Dream States and Thought States
Why do we think or dream about a person whom we knew many years ago?
I thought about a person whom I worked with for 17 years; he was an assistant manager. Never worked that closely with him but he was in some meetings that I was and we are cordial and associates.
So I was wondering why and my wife had this thought about it and wrote it down:
“Maybe we dream about people that were in our past, or their name comes to us randomly, as a way to see that person or the part of them that was important to us at the time, i.e.; position or rank is not something that we do not find important anymore-to reflect on that and find out for ourselves if the belief we once had is still valid regarding that aspect, i.e. rank / position. Once we have determined that for ourselves, I believe we can finally let that position go. Does that mean we’ll never think of it again? Answer: No, because that’s how people are made-but we can now choose to tell ourself - this aspect of so and so is not something that I value. I think it’s important to take the time to evaluate what it is specifically about that person that caught our attention in the first place. I believe it can also be something that we admired and wanted to believe that person or emulate and then think of if that’s a realistic trait or value that you have naturally in your nature or something that can be cultivated if desired, I.e.; [a friend whom she knew and named] who was funny, easy going, etc. that my wife admired those traits in her friend.”
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
February 1, 2022
There is always something going on and something to do
I have to laugh since the “job” is never complete even though I may knock some things off of my to-do list, it just grows because one thing leads to another or just because another thing pops up.
I am in discussions with a Scottish Author and their USA publicity agent about an interview.
I love talking to and getting the perspective of authors and I’ve done hundreds of them from all over the world. You may have read the following somewhere on my site:
People I’ve interviewed are New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors, David A. Adler author of 250 books, Dandi Mackall author of 450 books (one is a Hallmark movie-My Boyfriends’ Dogs), UCLA Professor of screenwriting - Richard Walter, Bill Crider author of mystery fiction, Craig Johnson for the series Longmire, Robin Burcell, Craig Dirgo and Boyd Morrison (all THREE are coauthors of different books with Clive Cussler), Robert Gatewood, authors of Children’s books, thrillers, poetry, historical novels, romance, non-fiction, self-publishers and those with over 20 famous publishing houses, an 11 year old author, Father Goose, Don Knotts’ brother-in-law, editors, two authors that have a TV special for Hallmark and Teachers, PHD’s, Lawyers, Doctors, Educators, and Professors, Self-Help gurus, writers for articles, journals, magazines and technical writers, all sorts and types of award winners, a singer, plus authors in the England, Wales, Canada, India, Scotland, Ecuador, Spain, Australia and (48 states) USA (9 countries). Over 240 authors of collectively almost 4000 books!
It really keeps me busy and also it is entertaining to have interviewed and siphoned off some knowledge from each. The persistence and determination that they have is definitely the reason they are published authors.
The Scottish Author has stated that he was writing his second book even before he found a publisher for the first. So that helps a publisher when they know you have more books in the wings rather than just the one.
The quantity of rejections is just staggering and yet they plow along planting one seed (email) at a time and do so in multiple directions until one germinates and starts to grow.
A thousand seeds that did not hit that proverbial fertile soil until finally a small harvest.
How’s your persistence and determination?
Are you willing to struggle and face rejection?
Of course, we all are and do, almost every day.
If one way does not work then we keep working at it.
Just “keep trucking” as the 60’s saying goes.
Work it, and work it, and work some more, until the
TA-DAH! Moment.
Take those little ta-dahs and add each together and it becomes loud and strong and fills the room and beyond.
My heart goes out to all of you in each of your struggles.
You don’t have to be a writer or craftsperson to know what I’m talking about.
Life is what I’m talking about.
I am encouraging us and supporting us and making an effort for us.
If you have questions for me about anything, feel free to ask.
Nothing ventured and nothing gained, so please do venture.
Time and time again.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
Excitement! The next lesson / assignment is here. Early gift for you!
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
January 31, 2022
Subtlety
What is subtlety?
Does the book, movie, TV, streaming, social media lack subtlety?
Does it concern you? Would you like more subtlety or less?
All of these questions are probing for answers and depending on your answers it is either; one, a problem or two, not a problem. Or is it somewhere in between?
The wife and I used to joke that somewhere in the past ten years or so, that it used to be a few drops of blood or a smear would be enough.
It seems to me that maybe we’ve gone from drops to pint to a gallon to gallons to barrels of blood.
On screen sex used to be the camera going to a wall or a decoration on the wall or even into the other room and all you could experience was a moan or two.
Now some of the shows we’ve seen are downright pornographic.
What purpose does all of this serve?
Who does it impress?
Who cannot imagine what is going on when you hear a gunshot? Do you actually need to see the bullet hit the person and the blood gush out?
Alfred Hitchcock was the master of subtlety. I am sure there are others.
We’ve gone from “Psycho” to Chainsaw Massacre type of on screen (or in social media) raw look at this and see it!, SEE IT!, SEE IT!, and NOW YOU CAN’T and NEVER will go back to UNSEEING IT!
Nowadays there is very little work for the imagination to do.
I’m sure the imagination becomes rather bored. Oh hum, I “the imagination” will just sit here and have to experience this show or book or whatever and I don’t have to work at all. It will ALL be shown or displayed so there is nothing for the imagination to do but stagnate.
Is this need for extravagant and over the top exposure needful? What purpose does it serve?
I understand that pushing the boundaries may sometimes be necessary but those same boundaries are there for a reason.
Do we as a society have boundaries anymore?
Can people do and say and show anything they want and everyone has to endure it?
Boundary pushing is just a way of exciting people, shocking people, manipulating their senses, manipulating their feelings and emotions.
Also, it gets people to talk about what they’ve experienced and gets the word out, gets the buzz going, escalating the public relations.
Adapting and adopting the rule that any hype is good hype.
Just be sure that it is shocking in order to send a message and get others to be your messenger and escalate that into more and more hype.
Social media uses the “click bait”, if the thumbnail is striking enough, or the headline piques someone’s interest then they will by default go from not clicking to clicking.
HAH! GOT YA!
How many times have you or I done that?
This is the carnival equivalent of come see the “thing”, rousing curiosity and interest until you get people who will pay to see the “thing”
Sometimes we are suckers and when we’ve been manipulated then we feel foolish and our money, time or attention taken away from us.
The point is there are ways to push some boundaries but not-in-your-face type of way.
That requires thinking, planning and subtlety in order to get people to pay attention to you.
It requires effort not escalation.
The ways of working within certain parameters of expectation and delivering on those expectations are the true exposition and that is rewarded many times over the single click or gotcha method.
Working dumber is a shortcut with shortcut one-off results; working smarter is not only more ethical but the results will be worth it.
I’d rather work for years and years to gain momentum than to get a million clicks in one day and be gone forever lost in the dust specks of the internet.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 29, 2022
Sxx, Love and other subjects maybe
By the way, this is NOT click bait.
I’ll be very frank and somewhat explicit during this article so you may skip any or all of the below if you’d like, it is up to you. I will not be graphic but it may or not be comfortable due to your expectations on what should be said.
When we were younger, by we, I mean me and perhaps some of you, there were lots of activities we could do for long periods of time and repeatedly over many days or nights in a row.
Sxx is one of those activities.
We have 4 children.
And one of the activities that we love most is sxx.
We never hung from the chandelier or like TV or movies were either of us up against a wall (I don’t even know how that is possible but the programs show it quite a lot).
We have enjoyed the activity and like they say, sxx is like pizza, even if it is bad it still is pretty good.
Even if we have been interrupted (which when the children were younger happened more than I would have liked) or we had to put it off a few days due to one or the other being out of town and similar interruptions it was always good to get back together.
Sxx without love is like pizza and it can be good. Porn can lead to more sxx, but there is no loving.
Today I was thinking and since we are older we do not make love that often HOWEVER, we still are loving and caring and show each other that.
I was also wondering if in the future one or the other of us is unable to make love what would happen then?
So my thoughts on how often or if at all lead me to, why can’t we still be loving and caring and show affection.
We still hold hands regularly when we take walks.
We sit beside each other when we watch movies and TV or stream the internet and touch each other either side by side or a hand on an arm or leg or etc.
That showing is paramount as we get older.
I’ve seen too many older couples where they guy or gal walk ahead of the other one rather than together.
Why not take the time and match the others pace?
The togetherness and the warmth is touching even if you are not touching.
I’ve also seen too many couples when they eat out, just eating and drinking and not discussing anything. Not even talking for the majority of the time.
We try to keep ourselves intellectually stimulated by reading and then share stories or other tidbits of what we’ve read.
We plan for when we are together so that we can share our experiences.
Sharing as they say is really caring and if you care then you will prepare.
That is loving that goes beyond sxx or any other boundaries. It takes you to another level of experience with the person you are with.
Something to think about and maybe discuss and I know that sometimes my mind is blank and I can not come up with much to discuss so that intensifies my preparation effort the next time.
It takes practice and daily practice will yield immense warmth and rewards that we want to continue practicing.
Afterall, each practice has results either good or bad or indifferent and we learn from that practice.
Same as writing, speaking, blogging, programming, crafting or whatever you are attempting to achieve.
Achievement is just doing one or more things time after time.
What are your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 27, 2022
Herman Hesse
“Suffering only hurts because you fear it. Suffering only hurts because you complain about it. It pursues you only because you flee from it.
You must not flee, you must not complain, you must not fear. You must love.
Because you know quite well, deep within you, there is a single magic, a single power, a single salvation, and a single happiness, and that is called loving.
Well then, love your suffering. Do not resist it, do not flee from it.
Taste how sweet it is in its essence, give yourself to it, do not meet it with aversion.
It is only aversion that hurts, nothing else.”
“What you resist persists, what you look at disappears.”
— Neale Donald Walsh
The other day the wife and I had to sit down and actually look each other in the eyes to have a discussion.
We were arguing about a little thing and we both lacked the understanding of where the other person was coming from.
It felt like both of us were accusing the other and blaming the other when we actually were not and just trying to understand the other.
Actually looking at each other in the eyes helped us through it.
After all these years I thought to myself she should know where I’m coming from. I am not trying to hurt her, I am trying to understand. There is no understanding of idiosyncrasies; they just are there and they exist and they need to be put up with.
Maybe retirement and extra closeness and being together so much exacerbated this.
The quotes above are about Pain Body and this site:
https://www.innerpeacenow.com/inner-peace-blog/pain-body
Maybe it will help you as well as it has helped us.
My personal painbody is experienced when a person questions me or I feel is testing me. It is a ball of energy hurled at me by them and it is excruciating to my being and hurts me to the core.
It is intense.
Do you ever feel this intensity with yours?
It is good to know how you feel it and why you feel it and then you can deal with it and figure out how to get through it.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 25, 2022
Lone
Lone does not mean lonely. It means the opposite.
How can lone mean the opposite of lonely?
Lonely, I believe, means one is by oneself and would like to be with other someones or just one other someone.
Lone means, again to me, means preferring one's own company.
Understand that I am using one instead of a pronoun, like me, he or she. So one is the person that wants to be on their own and “lone”.
There are various reasons for that.
One may be that when one was with others, one or more of those others hurt the one very deeply, so in order to avoid that pain, one prefers not to associate with others, or can take others but in small doses. Maybe a crowd of others is preferable to a few people since the few may have relationships that go to that hurtful place for the one who prefers being “lone”. A crowd would be safer. People the one doesn’t not know real well are safer since the ones who knew the one intimately may have caused the hurt either by or due to that familiarness.
Translate this to mean, if you do not know the one, then you cannot hurt that one. Knowing can be hurting. Unknowing then is safer.
Also sometimes when people are in a crowd or pack, if you will, that interaction can lead to “ganging up” or to the “rather the one than me” so they go along with the persecution or prosecution of the one.
Am I making any sense?
Does any of this resonate to you or maybe you see someone else this may apply to?
The more one has been hurt by a really close person to one, say the mother or father, or a near relative or sibling to one then that hurt is magnified by orders of magnitude.
That order of magnitude means that one seems to be quiet or shy, it may mean that one is deathly afraid of being close, so one maintains a distance even though one longs to be close.
How oxymoronic is that? Long for something that one will not let one have.
Seems a little distressing or disturbing or maybe just depressing.
Yeah, I think it can be.
Letting a morose come over one takes effort to resist sometimes.
A supreme effort not to let the past circumstances affect the present circumstances.
Not only affect those circumstances but maybe even direct them in really unwanted or unintended directions.
Also, the mentality is if the crowd picks on the one, then something must be wrong with one. None of the others have that “specialness” to be picked on.
What a conundrum!?!
How does one pull oneself out of that and live life fuller, with meaningful relationships that matter and that are painless?
Ah, the golden question, do you have any suggestions or answers or maybe just some advice?
I’d love to hear any you may have.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 23, 2022
Old “Think” Stinks
“If we do not think outside the box we are doomed to be trapped by the box.” David Alan Binder
That is an original quotation made up by me just now. Please use and reuse and pass it along, please credit the above quote to David Alan Binder.
Another way of thinking is to think like there is NO box. A box does not exist therefore anything is possible.
Critics. There are so many critics out there saying how bad things are, some just report how bad things are, that that information gets passed around and around and it spirals all over.
I listened to the news this morning and it pretty much is a rehash of what happened yesterday and maybe some info or potential info on what might be happening like a storm that may hit and have such and such temps and be sort of severe.
How is this helpful?
Without 100% accuracy that anything they report on may happen how do you know? You don’t!
A certain country is gathering at the border of another certain country. War mongering, which may or may not happen but it still potentially puts us in a higher anxiety state, a new variant that might overwhelm us in some manner. They never report on the accuracy of past information; news organizations ignore that.
How many times have you at work or at home looked back and said we need to work together and figure out lessons learned? What did we do right and what did we do wrong and what can be improved without singling people out. We are just fixing errors and making improvements in the system and our delivery and execution of our programs.
So many organizations that complain and critique and have many criticisms do not offer any solutions.
No party, country, or demographic or those who believe this way or that is perfect but NEITHER are they without fault and therefore they are also part of the problem.
To complain and NOT have any solutions or improvements means one is tearing down. There is no building up, no creative process in coming up with ideas that will work and going from there.
There is no compromise, it is one way or no way.
How do you build, improve or even progress if we do not work together?
Working together we as a society have made so much progress over the centuries.
Naysayers just say nay, nay and no more.
Fearmongers spread fear and no more.
Criticizers just criticize and no more.
How about bringing solutions or potential or possible improvements to the table?
That is a building up mentality that acknowledges mistakes were made and let’s go forward and correct some of the mistakes and correct other errors and fix some things that went wrong.
A new direction requires new thinking rather than old “think”.
Old “think” is stagnant, repetitive, is not contributory, is a criticism and a tearing down with no uplift or trying to meet in the middle somewhere.
Some people would rather not meet in the middle of any argument.
Some people would rather report on blunders, missed opportunities and missteps.
Where is the corrective loop?
Where are the lessons learned and being honest about what we’ve done that worked well and maybe some opportunities we can capitalize on in the future?
I encourage all people everywhere to be more solutions oriented rather than critical.
If an intersection needs to be changed, bring it to the attention of authorities, sign petitions, bring about a discussion rather than criticize and argue and bicker and point out what’s wrong without any fixes being discussed.
Detractors can always find fault, can they find solutions?
Society needs, nay, requires us to be proactive.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 21, 2022
Fragility
Everything has a certain fragility about it.
Plants, animals, humans, insects, etc.
Yet with that fragility there is a strength that endures beyond what sometimes we conceive.
If one gets sick then that fragility helps the body to develop strengths.
When one entity of a species dies another is usually born if not more.
According to the World Bank, for every 1,000 people in the world, an average of 7.748 people will die each year and 19.349 will be born. That's a ratio of about 2.5 births for every death.
And that is just humans.
Insects and some insects and animals are quite higher on both ends of the spectrum but usually births will outweigh deaths every single day.
Now an endangered species may have different results but if we as humans are aware then we take care to preserve and help that species make a comeback.
If we are aware then we take care.
So we are aware of the human race and sometimes believe the narrative that the natural disasters, the pandemic and other events are “winning”.
There is no winning or losing however births will outweigh deaths in the long run.
Our fragility also comes with our emotions and our egos and our personalities.
It means we have days when our mood is strong and alive and can kick some proverbial whatever.
Then other days our mood may be not so strong and we have doubts.
If we are aware then we take care.
So our awareness increases our careness.
If you are aware of others going through a hard time then give them some support as you are able. Distance and time may be a factor but there is always something we can do.
If others are aware of your difficulties, usually someone will reach out and support you with some effort on their part and we should be grateful.
We take care of each other.
If we are aware then we take care.
To put it another way:
If we care then we are aware.
Caring is a unique emotion with our species.
It is not the same nurturing that an animal or plant or other species may do.
We care.
So dare to care.
I care about each of you.
You are not numbers that I see but people with the power to make great changes, in small ways that add up to great ways.
The original title for this article was fragility and says so at the top however that has now changed to either:
AWARENESS IS CARENESS
Or
CARENESS IS AWARENESS
You may pick or choose it is up to you.
If we are aware then we take care.
A question, have I confused fragility with mortality?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 19, 2022
Prognosticate
prog·nos·ti·cate
/präɡˈnästəˌkāt/
verb
verb: prognosticate; 3rd person present: prognosticates; past tense: prognosticated; past participle: prognosticated; gerund or present participle: prognosticating
foretell or prophesy (an event in the future).
"the economists were prognosticating financial Armageddon"forecast
predict
prophesy
foretell
divine
presage
augur
previse
spae
vaticinate
auspicate
Origin
late Middle English: from medieval Latin prognosticat-, from the verb prognosticare ‘make a prediction’ (see prognostic).
Use over time for: prognosticate
Definitions from Oxford Languages
Ever been to a fortune teller?
Ever have anyone predict your future, your behavior, your mood, your anything?
Can one foretell something that is going to happen?
Perhaps and perhaps not.
The ones who do sometimes aren’t even that familiar with us are all around us. Neighbors, friends, club members, associates, coworkers, even family may do it. Their results are scattered and if incorrect then they are easy on themselves and forget when they are wrong, but if they are right, they seem to gloat.
The professionals have scattered results.
We see this everyday in a weather forecast. They are pretty good, even fairly accurate, but unlike any jobs or professions they are not held accountable for mis-forecasts or predictions ever.
What a job to have, throw something out there and then see how right or wrong you are the next day or so and there are no ramifications for inaccuracies or sometimes it seems like downright bunk.
Snake oil also has varied results.
Darts also.
Just have to be close, at least as close as they say: in horseshoes or grenades.
How often have you heard the phrase “your results may vary”?
Thousands if not millions of times I’m sure.
Same is true for recipes, formulas, etc. It may all depend on who is doing it, how you hold your mouth, weather (someone said if you are baking to do it on a sunny day for best results maybe it is high or low pressure systems), quality or freshness of ingredients.
If you check the internet for facts there are millions out there and some of them are bunk and some of them are actual facts.
Your mind is the sifter to ferret out and cipher the wheat from the proverbial chaff.
Sometimes we can rely on our “gut” instincts, our initial reaction, sometimes not.
There are no magic formulas or phrases, or attitudes; just use memory and your common sense (which seems to be not as common as it was or maybe it never was common).
This is just an exploration into our lives. NO ONE WILL EVER BE ABLE TO PREDICT, PROGNOSTICATE, OR PROPHESY what your life will be or what will happen or your future.
We are so varied in nature, in mind and in body that someone who smokes a lifetime may get lung cancer and some may not.
But do we want to roll that dice or spin that roulette wheel?
Minimize your risks for maximum returns.
Incremental equals monumental as always.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 17, 2022
Reconnection to your Intuition
I received this email from Inner Integration, Meredith Miller, who knocks it out of the ballpark:
“Hi David,
When we are living in states of dissonance, that puts us at risk of being easily manipulated.
One of the ways of building immunity to abuse and manipulation is to identify and resolve your inner conflicts and the ways in which you're not living in coherence.
When we aren't entirely living in integrity with our values and mission, we are living in incoherence.
When our idea of who we are is not aligned with what we are doing, this will create a state of dissonance.
Sometimes we might even think we are living our best life, and maybe we are in some ways, but in other ways we could be living a fantasy and looking toward a future that isn't entirely aligned with our personal mission and life purpose.
Incoherence causes a state of dissonance between the mind and heart.
When your actions aren't aligned with your values, there will be a deep, yet unconscious, conflict between knowing who you really are and the way you are living your life.
That creates dissonance and confusion in your mind, which clouds your thinking and blocks forward movement.
This incoherence and dissonance is why people can fall into fear campaigns by abusers in their personal relationships. It's also why some people buy into the fear propaganda broadcasted through the media and social media.
Usually when we are in a state of dissonance, even though we aren't entirely aware of it, deep down we know something is off and that creates a gnawing anxiety that won't go away.
This is also why abusers aim to confuse their targets.
Abuse causes Cognitive Dissonance and the Cognitive Dissonance disrupts the intuition.
That's why the rules that abusers create are non-sensical and constantly changing. They're always changing plans and convictions to keep you seeking solid ground and to exhaust you in the process.
You start to get confused and lose your connection to your intuition.
They say something adamantly in one moment, then in the next hour or day they suddenly flip a switch and say, just as emphatically, the exact opposite.
In one moment they can give you a compliment or say something "nice" and in the next breath they take it away with a devaluation.
The abuse cycle involves idealization and devaluation. It's all part of the abuse, even the love-bombing which can appear to be an act of kindness, but it's just a manipulation meant to confuse you.
Many people looking back at their abusive relationships ask the question: Why was my intuition not working?
You can't hear your intuition through the confusion and brain fog.
Cognitive Dissonance is caused by inner conflicts and incoherence of the mind and heart. This creates stress on the nervous system, which may shut down when overloaded like that. It becomes hard to feel yourself or to think clearly when your nervous system shuts down.
The primitive human psychological defense mechanism of denial is activated so the stress is temporarily relieved but the conflict is not resolved.
Numbness sets in, suppressing feelings.
Cognitive Dissonance can also be caused when you're caught between the reality that you don't want to see vs. the fantasy that you want to believe in. This can be about a person, relationship, job, project or other life situation.
When you're leaving an abusive person or situation, if you want to help yourself resolve the Cognitive Dissonance, stop indulging in the fantasy of the "good" times when the abuser was love-bombing.
Recognize that was also part of the abuse cycle. It doesn't look like abuse. It looks like everything you'd been longing for since childhood.
Unresolved childhood trauma makes you a prime target for manipulation as an adult.
In society nowadays, many people have the fantasy of "getting back to normal".
This is the same fantasy that an abuse victim has when they want to get back to the "good" times.
It's the same toxic hope that tells you if you keep complying and doing what the abuser/s want, then your fantasy can be reached and things will be good and normal again.
But things were actually never "good" or "normal".
Those were illusions.
"Good" was just the seduction phase into the abuse and "normal" was a word used to describe things we normalized in a world that was anything but normal long before 2020.
That carrot on the stick is never reachable because it doesn't exist.
Abusers will trick you into believing that if you keep going, they'll let you have those "good" times and that "normal" life again.
Resolving the inner conflict of the dissonance is key to unsubscribing from the abuser's narrative.
It means you have to relentlessly face the truth.
This is more difficult than it sounds.
You'll get clear when you're focused on the truth and not your fantasies or illusions.
Clarity doesn't just come with time. Healing doesn't just magically happen with time either. We actually have to do the work.
If you want greater clarity in your life, you'll need to ask yourself the right questions.
An abuse victim will be highly invested in the fantasy of what they want to believe about the abuser or the potential of the relationship. Yet it's not based on reality at all, which is why it is so dangerous.
This treacherous fantasy creates the unconscious pull that leads abuse victims back to abusers an average of 7 times. Sometimes it's 7 times with one abuser and other times it's a repetition compulsion with 7 different abusers.
Layers of compounding damage can be done every time that cycle is repeated.
This is why I've recommended to victims of abuse to write down every abusive, manipulative thing the abuser did since they met them. It's called a Sobriety List because it's supposed to bring your mind out of the trance and into the sobriety of truth and reality.
This list of abusive, manipulative things includes the love-bombing, which is actually the most dangerous part of the abuse cycle because that's how abusers hook a target.
An abuse victim can relentlessly face the truth by reading the Sobriety List any time their mind wants to indulge in the fantasy of returning to the "good" times or when they feel their mind slipping back into denial and considering staying or returning to the abuser.
I have only one regret in the last two years. I wish I had created an extensive Sobriety List of the global events since January 2020.
I am well aware that the abuse of power didn't start then, however the events that have taken place since then are at another level, leading toward something truly nefarious.
Resolving the Cognitive Dissonance is one of the first steps for anyone who survives the abuse.
It's also one of the first steps for awakening from this global tyranny.
These questions can help you get greater clarity over your life right now and where it's going:
What is the path most aligned with your purpose and mission?
What inner conflicts and incoherence might be disturbing your intuition and blocking you from knowing your mission and living your purpose?
When the sudden changes in the world shattered peoples' plans back in 2020, we were forced to look within and question what really matters... How has your awareness of your values, mission and purpose changed over the last 2 years?
I'm currently transitioning from the micro-niche of narcissistic abuse recovery into relational trauma healing in order to pivot with the changes in the world.
Lately I've been working with more coaching clients who want to heal their personal traumas so they can step into leadership positions in their communities, during and after this global situation.
Recently I've been invited to interviews with teams of people who are focused on resistance to the global tyranny.
I'm so happy to join the global conversation and contribute my part, relating the abuse dynamics on the interpersonal and familial level with what's happening on the macro level around the world, as well as providing some solutions.
Dr. Reiner Fuellmich and his team from Germany invited me to speak on Abuse Dynamics As An Explanation Of Conformity to Tyranny... What's The Way Out?
YouTube censored the original version of that show within 48 hours but you can still see it on Odysee and some other sites.
My interview starts about 2:04:40 into the session.
By the way, Ariane Bilheran, the French psychologist speaking before me, talked about totalitarian systems and the character personality traits found within them. It was fascinating and aligned with what we've learned about psychopaths in general.
Every week Reiner's team of lawyers in Germany, the Cor on a Investigative Committee, interviews people from around the world speaking on their particular topics related to the global tyranny. They have some fantastic interviews on Odysee because YouTube constantly removes their new videos and channels.
One of my favorite interviews they did was with a Holocaust survivor, Vera Sharav, who described what happened in the 1930s before people had any idea where that was going. She described how we are currently watching the same gradual escalation of tyranny taking place around the world now under the guise of public health, just as it was in early Nazi Germany.
We are either going to learn from history, or repeat it again with significantly worse consequences because this time the segregation of people and the violation of consent is happening on a global scale.
If you look back in history at the authorities who were censoring, silencing people, burning books, setting fire to printing presses, and otherwise banning free speech... those were never the good guys.
The main social media platforms have become obsolete due to their complicity with tyranny.
Eventually people will realize this.
For a while, I was stuck in the dissonance of wanting to go back to the "good" times when people could just post content on those sites and other people would see it, uncensored.
That fantasy was butting up against reality, where those social media platforms have been increasing their level of censorship, propaganda and gaslighting to control the narrative.
After over a year of inner conflict, I finally stopped posting new content on social media due to their escalating censorship policies. Once I made that decision, a new path forward opened.
I'm grateful that those sites allowed me to connect with all of y'all. I'm also grateful that many of you can see what's happening in the world is exactly what we've been learning about on my channel, and that your experiences with abuse was your immersion training for these times.
Walking away from what I built on social media in the last 6 years was a very difficult decision, but I am already seeing the positive results.
Sometimes we have to let go of what was in order to open the door to something new and more aligned with our destiny.
I want to share with y'all this song, "Love Has Won", written and sung by Leigh from Australia, a member of the Inner Integration community.
It's a beautiful reminder of how much light is emerging from the darkness.
The images in the video show the growing unity of people around the world from all walks of life... all political, cultural, religious and secular backgrounds joining together to stand against tyranny.
Abuse always escalates and things are getting crazier in the world every day.
We are not responsible for what the abusers do.
We are only responsible for our own actions and choices.
It's very important to remember that every abusive system (family, workplace, social group, society) contains abusers and enablers.
The enablers are the accomplices who maintain the abusive system, whether they realize it or not.
If everyone else walked away from the abusers, we would liberate ourselves and the abusers would remain powerless, mediocre and alone without targets to abuse.
Many times in human history, people have been faced with growing tyranny and they had to choose between standing up for their human rights or complying with the abuse. Both are risky.
Which future would you prefer for you, your children and grandchildren?
Many of you chose to leave abusive families and workplaces or other social groups in order to protect your health and sanity. In doing so, you set a boundary and chose not to be an enabler any longer.
History often doesn't speak of the enablers of tyranny, the people who comply and support the abuse, allowing it to go on. Maybe this is something that I should've highlighted more in the conversation over the recent years about narcissistic abuse.
So here we are now and the question is, how far will it go this time?
And what will be the cost?
We have the power of choice to UNSUBSCRIBE from the abusive system.
We have the power.
"...the power's rising on the side of light
look up and know that love has won..."
~ Leigh from Australia”
Meredith Miller
Coach & Author
Inner Integration
All her words not mine (I may have used bits and pieces or paraphrase portions of this before but the whole article is excellent.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 15, 2022
Auspicious
Auspicious is the same as suspicious, don’t you think?
If something is auspicious it is favorable or conducive to a goal.
Doesn't mean it will happen and doesn’t mean that it won’t.
So it seems the word is synonymous with likely.
Suspicious is very similar in results, it may seem likely or favorable or have a chance but then it may be unfounded or not likely at all.
So was last year auspicious?
Is this year auspicious?
Consult your tea leaves or whatever methodology you might use to find out.
I have no clue.
If we are grounded in action and moving forward than it really doesn’t matter how auspicious something may be.
It is neither here or there or anywhere.
The horizon is still out that and come what may it is still a horizon that may come or not depending on what happens right now.
The here and now is where our hearts long to be. The here and now are the most meaningful.
There here and now are HERE, RIGHT NOW!
Let all the predictors and pundits have their say for we are creating our future here and now.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 11, 2022
Library
I want to applaud the person who started public libraries:
Benjamin Franklin
The first public library in the U.S. is contested, but there are three generally accepted answers. The first is the Library Company of Philadelphia which was founded in November 1731 by Benjamin Franklin. It was a subscription library and supported by members.
Thank you, Ben!
Many thousands of pleasant hours have been spent there in my youth and the years since.
What a wonderful place. The tomes of knowledge are there for your use.
Especially useful before the advent of the internet.
I read an article today about the advent of libraries (about 6 or so) hiring social workers to help people.
That article is here:
I still prefer to read hardcover and paperback books that I hold in my hand and turn the pages. I look at and use screens way too much and do not like digital books. I realize they have advantages such as packing a whopping amount of knowledge and books on the storage drive.
If that works for you then it does not matter to me.
I have someone in my neighborhood that has put out a small shelf of books by the front sidewalk on Sunday for people to borrow or have free. I have used this many times and try to leave some books that they may not have for them to use.
That is especially thoughtful and useful. I take a walk and see what they have. Very beneficial.
I have even read articles on other people that have done the same type of thing in one form or another. Applause to them.
Libraries have taken the rich vastness and wealth and put that information into the hands of people who could not afford to purchase those books and magazines for years.
The internet is reducing that somewhat, but at what cost.
Is your screen time as useful as reading a book or article?
Social media adds relatively little useful knowledge and seems to be almost destructive of time and anti-knowledge mostly.
Use your eyes wisely.
I like to think that if the eyes are the windows to the soul then maybe one should be very careful about what one let’s into our soul.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 9, 2022
Bildungsroman
I was watching the “Damnation” series on Netflix when I heard the word Bildungsroman. I don’t believe I’d ever heard that word and looked it up. Interesting word and meaning:
bildungsroman etymology
Definitions from Oxford Languages
Bil·dungs·ro·man
/ˈbildo͝oNGzrōˌmän/
Origin
German, from Bildung ‘education’ + Roman ‘a novel’.
Bildungsroman is the combination of two German words: Bildung, meaning "education," and Roman, meaning "novel." Fittingly, a bildungsroman is a novel that deals with the formative years of the main character, and in particular, with the character's psychological development and moral education.
From Huck Finn to Jane Eyre, some of the most successful and memorable works of literature follow protagonists on their path to enlightenment and maturity.
Such books are known as Bildungsroman novels. I know what you’re thinking: a what??? But a Bildungsroman isn’t as scary as it sounds. In fact, some of your favorite stories probably fall under this category!
What Is a Bildungsroman Novel?
The term “Bildungsroman” describes a novel that deals with the protagonist’s formative years and psychological growth from adolescence to adulthood. The term and genre have German origins, with “bildung” meaning “education” and “roman” meaning “novel.” Thus, stories in this genre are “novels of education.”
This may lead you to conclude that Bildungsroman novels are equivalent to what we call “coming-of-age” stories. The two terms are sometimes used interchangeably, but that’s not always correct.
A coming-of-age story is a more generic term for a novel about growing up that can fall into pretty much any genre. A Bildungsroman is a specific literary genre about the growth and education of a character from from lost child to mature adult.
Bildungsroman novels are generally written from the first-person point of view, and often include the protagonist’s name in the title (such as Jane Eyre or David Copperfield).
What Are the Four Stages of Bildungsroman?
Bildungsroman novels generally contain 4 stages that lead the protagonist through their transformation:
1. Loss
The protagonist experiences a profound loss at the beginning of the novel, usually during their early formative years. This could be a death, or perhaps the end of a significant relationship.
2. Journey
Following this loss, the protagonist embarks on a journey, which can be physical or metaphorical, to find the answer to a big question. In the process, they will gain life experience that helps them better understand life and the world.
3. Conflict and personal growth
The journey isn’t easy, and the protagonist makes at least a few mistakes along the way and is usually at odds with society. But as the story progresses, they slowly begin to accept the ideals of society.
4. Maturity
By the end of the novel, the protagonist demonstrates significant change, psychological growth, , and maturity. The story sometimes ends with them helping someone else on their path to maturity.
What Is an Example of Bildungsroman?
Below are classic novels that can be considered part of the Bildungsroman genre:
Jane Eyre, Great Expectations, To Kill a Mockingbird, Huck Finn, Tom Sawyer, David Copperfield
Writing a journal is not the same. Writing a coming of age story is not the same. There may be similarities.
Specifics matter as in most cases, similarities won’t hold up to as in metaphors.
They give you an idea or sounds like or seems like but not the whole complete Bildungsroman.
I was surprised at how much I’ve been writing throughout all my life and though I knew my learning was not complete I was surprised none of my classes, or learning, or study had yielded this one little tidbit.
Please share with me your experiences in discovery and how it impacts you and your life.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 7, 2022
Size Matters
Gift Exchange is just one example…
On a walk today the wife and I were discussing how when we were married how we would go to each other’s family and open gifts.
She then said that my family was quite different than hers in the approach.
Upon reflecting back, she was correct.
My family would have the children pass out the presents then it was a mad melee of people opening presents all over the living room. It was a mad house then afterwards we as parents were busy trying to figure out who gave what and who received what.
Her family on the other hand would take turns. Youngest first. It was difficult for the young ones to wait but what a difference. The spotlight was on that one person and everyone got to see what they received and then proper thank yous were given to the gifter from the giftee.
So we adapted our family to her family’s style.
Not because it was better but because it made sense to be able for each child and adult to have that spotlight and be given the respect and audience they deserve.
It is just one way to do it and there are likely many other ways as well. We just hit on the one that resonated with us.
The difference was clear for us and we have found that our children now have adopted that method usually for their own family.
What are the traditions in your home?
Are some traditions worth keeping or so some need to be adapted to fit you?
Speaking of fitting:
When something fits well we like it.
This applies to all kinds of things, attitudes, beliefs, etc.
The size really does matter for each of us.
We look for fitting endings, fitting results, fitting in all sorts of things in our lives, not just our clothes.
Fitness is in the eye of the beholder and in the mind of each of us and that fit is what we have adapted and changed from childhood. Some things we kept, others we discarded or gifted to someone else.
Some things we were reluctant to give up and some things it was so easy we hardly realized it.
Some things we got rid of and wished we had back and some things we could not get rid of fast enough.
Fitting is a matter of mindset, perspective and lessons learned.
What is fitting today may not be tomorrow; but don’t worry about it, you'll know it when it comes and it will be so easy to see then.
You are very capable of seeing what fits you and what does not. Others opinions belong to them, not you in the same way your opinions do not belong to them only you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
January 5, 2022
Celebrate
The holidays were and are a celebration and yet with the New Year you’ll see and hear ads and marketing and all about what you need to do. The version of you that is not enough listens and hears and wants more and better.
WAIT A MINUTE!
Look at you! Look how far you’ve come over the years. Why just a few years ago you did not possess what you have now, and even further ago we may have been really ignorant and not clued into so many things.
It is time to celebrate you being you.
You are wonderful!
You are amazing!
The inner workings of you currently possess so much capacity for love, peace, calm and more.
True we always want more but in time.
Right now. Today. This hour.
You are wonderful.
You are accomplished.
You are knowledgeable. If you never learned another thing after today you’d still be able to fulfill your life destiny and calling, JUST AS YOU ARE NOW.
Too often we do not celebrate our achievements and just how much we contribute to society, our community and our friends and family just by being here.
We are an example of industriousness, hard work, determination, grit and nobility.
Yes, nobility.
Nothing can divide us from any of that ever.
We are wonderful.
Here’s to you. Here’s to us. Here’s to what we are bringing to this new year and we are determined to make it even brighter in spite of all the other events going on out there.
Those events do not shape or control or determine how we will go forward or with what determination.
We determine that.
Celebrate and be you as often as you can, LOL!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
January 3, 2022
Two Components to a Complex Problem
One can not eat their “weigh” (pun intended) into being thin.
One can not write their way into being a writer. [However you can be a writer by writing]
One can not gamble their way into being rich or poor.
One can not drink their way…
Or smoke their way…
Or take pills or drugs their way…
Or love their way…
Or plastic surgery their way…
Or shop their way…
Or exercise their way…
Or lie their way…
There are so many kinds of addition that I’ve alluded to above:
Gamboling
Smoking
Alcohol
Eating
Drugs / pills
Love Addiction. Love is a tricky thing
Plastic Surgery Addiction
Shopping Addiction
Exercise Addiction
Compulsive Lying
Anger
Sentimentality
Depression
Emotions
And yet each of the addictions above are needed to overcome each one.
For instance one has to eat and one eats themselves fat as one can eat themselves thin.
Moderation, types of food, quantity, etc.
One must use drugs and pills at times to overcome illness.
One must shop to replace items in their household as those items are used.
One must drink at least water and maybe sometimes other celebratory drinks and enjoy there is a line though.
And one must even lie on occasion to spare others feelings or to be diplomatic.
On and on it goes using what could be additions or addictive to overcome those issues that ail or plague us.
A line must be drawn. It must be clear, it must be with intent, it must be your choice and with you totally in the driver's seat your success or failure is all on you.
Yikes! That is a problem isn’t it.
I do not want my success or failure to hinge solely on me and yet it truly does.
We can help each other as much as one of us lets others help.
We can be a force for good or at least moderation.
No amount of sermonizing, chastising, berating, browbeating, mental games will really work.
Just hard work and effort and determination.
If you have an addiction then the root cause will not be the addiction itself.
The root cause is in our minds.
The psychological addiction goes further and deeper than just the physical one.
Find that psychological root and you have found nirvana and the way to correct the physical one.
It will be way easier and simpler and I know it won’t be easy, just a bit easier to be able to attack it and overcome it.
Plus if the psychological addiction is erased then the physical one will be unable to return.
Since we have erased the need under the physical need.
The physical need becomes not a need then.
Something to think and ponder.
If you have any other thoughts let me know.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 1, 2022
So it’s a new year
What does this mean?
Do you sit and wait to see what happens and then react to those events, issues and calamities?
Do you watch for opportunities?
Do you see who or what is vying for position to decide what to do?
Or is it time to act?
A new year and one wants to start fresh, but the same plagues and issues and problems that were bothering the world and country are still there.
How do we start fresh with all that baggage?
Do you need to start fresh with no baggage?
No you don’t, you can’t, there are no do overs just moving forward same as yesterday and the day before.
In the meantime what we do, when we do it, who we interact with and how we interact with EVERYTHING and EVERYONE is in our hands now.
Just move forward one step or action at a time.
“Move Forward” is the mantra that seems so simple yet has so many complications.
We can let last year hold us back, be a weight or release it and move forward in spite of last year, the year before or even before that.
No year has the power to hold you back.
No issue has power over you.
No problem can possess you fully.
Unless you let it.
I refuse to let it.
I chose to move forward.
By the way a new lesson has been issued.
David Alan Binder is celebrated, awarded, accomplished, published, titled and certified.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
Please feel free to freely share any of my content as long as you acknowledge David Alan Binder and insert the website www.davidalanbinder.com at the end of your shared post or email or text, so they may see my other content on their own.
I would request refrain from sharing the stories on the stories tab since I am actively looking for a publisher and agent.
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
December 31, 2021
New Approach
This attribute is tried and true, if at first you don’t succeed then CHANGE YOUR APPROACH until you do succeed.
Yeah, that part in italics is almost always missing from the real way this old adage is written.
Don’t ask me how many times I tried to stop chewing my nails. Started when I was a little kid and several times throughout my life I was able to stop for a while.
Not like the quitting smoking adage which is someone has stopped smoking at least once a day but then started either the same day, the next day, or in the next week or month. That is not quitting if you start again.
Anyway, back to what really works. A fresh approach is an option when working [there’s that action verb] on creating a new pattern.
Perhaps one might say that it marks the first time in a new pattern. There has to be a first. It is something that leads and creates new thinking and behavior. That FIRST IS OH SO IMPORTANT! It has to be acknowledged, recognised and celebrated. That first is followed by a second and so on until, voila, new pattern.
A new version of you. A viable solution to other attempts that did not work.
Is there something wrong with you? ABSOLUTELY NOT!
Even if after a month or more you don’t repeat the pattern as often or stop for a while it will be easier as soon as you get back on that pattern treadmill and it is a treadmill.
It is basically putting one time in front of another time and so on repeatedly.
You define that pattern and you determine and you control and you choose.
We all do!
I’ve chosen to ignore patterns that need to be followed and then I chose to do them again.
The difference one person told me between a saint and a sinner is that a saint keeps on picking themselves up one more time and doing the pattern.
Quitting can be a pattern and we need to recognise it, name it and move away from it.
If you renew, if you attempt again, if you work and do whatever action you are wanting to do one more time then you are winning.
It is just one more time but that ONE IS MEGA-IMPORTANT.
MEGA-RESULTS are just the accumulation of one more time. Incremental has to yield to monumental with the addition of one more on top of another.
IT ABSOLUTELY HAS TO!
IT CAN’T NOT GIVE RESULTS. (2 negs make a pos)
Those results are, you making a difference in you.
Those results are making a difference in your life.
Those differences add up.
I see that this has turned into like a New Year type article without even trying. I didn’t know where I was going but I kept going until it got somewhere pretty important.
How about you?
Going somewhere?
Yeah, we all are. Let’s go together.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 29, 2021
Connection
How connected are we?
How connected are you?
In your town, city, county, state, government; do you have connections?
Yes, to an extent we do have connections.
As a citizenry we are more connected now than ever before in the past 100 years or even longer (however long humankind has been on the planet).
Now what if I were to tell you that even though your connections are vast, so numerous that it is mind boggling; we are still not connected.
There are “All in all, Hubble reveals an estimated 100 billion galaxies in the universe or so, but this number is likely to increase to about 200 billion as telescope technology in space improves, Livio told Space.com.Mar 19, 2018”
So on this planet we are connected yet to the universe we are a speck and have very little connection to the rest of the universe.
What does this mean?
It means that there are so many other perspectives and not from a science fiction point of view from a real point of view that even though there are millions of stories yet barely an anthill on earth has been discovered in the realm of storytelling.
The rest of that storytelling universe is out there and waiting to be discovered or imagined or thought about and as those boundaries are crossed in our minds we will discover more and more and unveil more and more and concoct more and more.
There are infinite possibilities.
Now back to connection. Story Grid’s Shawn Coyne states that connection for the one story you are writing for another person depends on practice alone.
If you are not connecting with your audience whether it be one or more then it will take practice.
Take me for instance, I’ve been writing since I was sixteen. Truly serious writing. I’ve connected with thousands of people and readers and yet my anthill of connection is very tiny compared to other writers.
I’ve had this website and written thousands of articles and have thousands of viewers and readers yet my connection seems very tiny.
We want more connection; how do we get it?
Write more. Read more. Learn More. Keep working on your body of work and grow it incrementally.
Each day we practice it grows. We are here to motivate and encourage and induce each other into that monumental arena.
In the realm of possibilities it is entirely possible.
That is so cool to think about.
That right there motivates me even more.
How about you?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 27, 2021
Estrange
es·trange
/əsˈtrānj/
verb: estrange; 3rd person present: estranges; past tense: estranged; past participle: estranged; gerund or present participle: estranging
cause (someone) to be no longer close or affectionate to someone; alienate.
"are you deliberately seeking to estrange your readers?" [LOL, Answer is of course NO!]Similar:
alienate
antagonize
disaffect
make hostile/unfriendly
destroy the affections of
turn away
drive away
distance
put at a distance
sever connections between
set against
set at variance
set at odds with
make hostile to
drive a wedge between
cause antagonism between
sow dissension between
Opposite:
attract
unite
Origin
late 15th century: from Old French estranger, from Latin extraneare ‘treat as a stranger’, from extraneus ‘not belonging to the family’, used as a noun to mean ‘stranger’. Compare with strange.
Use over time for: estrange
Definitions from Oxford Languages
I found it interesting that the root is “extraneous” as in not belonging.
This time of year this can be a poignant subject; however, be it known that at least 27% of us (almost one out of three) are estranged from someone, be it, one person in our family, our used to be friends, someone who was close to us but now is so distant (in demeanor) that it is like we never knew them (or at least) don’t recognize this version of them and they feel the same or similar to us.
So think of those who are in your inner circle. Your “family” are those who chose to love you for you. Ignore your mistakes and bobbles and goof ups and the authentic you, just love you for being you. That is true family.
People whom you can be authentic with and truthful and frank and honest with and they are irreplaceable and without comparison.
Seek out those who treat you as you deserve and whom you have a camaraderie with and who appreciate you this season.
This will make the holidays not only tolerable, not only acceptable, but worth looking forward to and enjoyable.
That is the feeling we must gravitate toward and choose to embrace.
Our life, our choice, our principles, our outcomes are depending on us to move (An Actionable and Conscious Decision on Our Part) in a direction that serves us.
Just part of being proactive and incremental to get to monumental.
(Acknowledgements to Paul and LIz of Liz Amazing YouTube Channel for the suggestion.)
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 24, 2021
Deliverer
To what kind of deliverer am I referring?
This time of year and in fact more so since a particular event in the last two years a deliverer comes to our doors regularly for many of us.
Even this time of year we receive delivery more than regularly.
Some households may have a deliverer on Christmas Eve for packages Christmas morning.
All of this delivery plus I also heard the term deliverer when listening to a Henry Wadsworth Longfellow story this morning.
And as I walked this morning I thought about deliverer and the meanings we may associate with that one word.
Many people, from many religions or who are non religious may answer the following questions in different ways.
Who is your deliverer?
What is your deliverer? (this is actually quite a different question than the first question)
How does your deliverer affect you?
How does your belief in a deliverer change you?
How does your opinion of your deliverer drive your behavior?
How has this deliverer changed your life previously?
Will this deliverer continue to change your life?
Can others tell by your actions that you have a deliverer?
Is your deliverer solely religious? Is your deliverer also based in other areas, such as science?
Is science or invention a deliverer to humankind of innovations that ease our lives and relieve drudgery and much physical labor compared to the early 1900s, the 1800s and before?
Do we acknowledge all sorts of deliverers in our lives?
Can another person be a deliverer?
Are you a deliverer?
These are questions for deep thinkers and from these questions we can grow and learn and then proceed anew for the rest of the day and tomorrow and the rest of our lives.
My challenge to us is for all of us to be deliverers and to recognize deliverers that are all around us.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
Please feel free to freely share any of my content as long as you acknowledge David Alan Binder and insert the website www.davidalanbinder.com at the end of your shared post or email or text, so they may see my other content on their own.
I would request refrain from sharing the stories on the stories tab since I am actively looking for a publisher and agent.
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
December 23, 2021
Love Bombing
I’d heard of love bombing which is a manipulation tool used by someone to get on your good side. It can be either compliments, gifts, praise, or some other tactic to get you to think that the person who is doing this is a “good” person.
I just heard from Meredith Miller that love bombing can be just the absense of abuse.
Say an abuser takes a day off of abusing someone, then the someone might think, “Oh, the abuser (of course they don’t call them the abuser but use their name) is not abusing me today, so today is really a good day.” And while they are enjoying their good day they may feel better about living with the abuser.
I knew about sweet and mean cycles to effectively manipulate a person's feelings and keep a person on edge, or off center, or not knowing how to feel. When there is cognitive dissonance created by being NICE sometimes and then MEAN at other times, that Cognitive Dissonance confuses the abused and keeps them guessing not knowing what will come next minute or hour. When one is left to wonder what is going to happen next, how can they enjoy that very minute? How can they think well, I am happy now so I’ll smile, when the next minute they could be yelled at, or frowned at and wonder what is going to happen now? These cycles are what manipulators use to keep us off balance, to control us, to keep us walking on eggshells and think about what might be coming our way and not being able to enjoy the now.
Life is way too short for dealing with people who use these tactics. The passive aggressive use these tools some of the time. Abusers use these tools constantly. Manipulators have a play book and it is all memorized to keep us off balance.
Sometimes we can’t think of the right way to respond when we have so much chatter (cognitive dissonance) going on in our head it makes it very difficult to know how to respond to appease them.
Why are we appeasing them? Because we were raised to be nice, and not to be rude and sometimes we allow people to just run rampant with our feelings, not allowing us the space to be able to feel our feelings and emotions as we were intended to feel them.
They say nice people finish last, but we can be nice by saying, “No more!”.
Be nice to yourself.
This is part of standing up for ourselves.
This is part of taking control away from them and giving it to us. We own the control over us, not them.
We own our feelings not them.
We are the master of our emotions, not them.
We deserve, NO, we don’t just deserve, we demand, we have the privilege and the right to own ourselves and not let others have that ownership.
What do you think?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 21, 2021
Eloquence
Eloquence which is “fluent or persuasive speaking or writing.” is on the decline.
At the beginning of the 1800’s the word itself was near its peak usage.
The graph shows a decline until 1900 then usage levels off.
The usage of the word itself does not mean speaking or writing with eloquence rose or declined.
What matters if the familiarity with the word itself and if it’s usage declined then possibly eloquence as a pattern of speech or writing may have declined. Or it may have not since we have many examples of eloquence during the 1800s and 1900s. Eloquence may be prominent mostly in the writers of script, song, and books.
Everyday people have their moments but it may becoming rarer and rarer. Everyday people use cursing and sign language and attitudes do not do this with eloquence or style. It is derogatory, and rude and sometimes down right crude.
*+++ off does not have the ring of “Thou shall go to the summit of the mount and jump off” and is certainly more brief, which has a real intent rather than a general off hand statement.
I don’t know, I’m just postulating.
What does this tell us about ourselves?
Do we think before we curse?
Do we take the time to speak with intent rather than some off hand comment?
I’m not sure if that is eloquence, however I believe that speaking with intent has more eloquence and adds more to the integrity of our speech.
My intent here is that I recently read an article by Joshua Millburn whom I’ve quoted here a few times and from the content of this article and it’s eloquence and the thought that went into his article, it is truly in my eyes eloquent.
Also, eloquence is in the eye of the beholder.
If I pronounce to the world that I am using eloquence in my speech or writing, they may not see it or hear it.
It is for each person to figure out what is eloquent and what is not.
Again it is opinion, theirs not yours.
Should you care?
No you shall not care if they think you are eloquent or not. You shall care if you’ve written well and spoke well and with true intent, integrity and be authentic.
Eloquence is wonderful when encountered and noticing when someone is or is not eloquent adds to our understanding and recognition.
When we advance understanding and recognition in ourselves we have gained immeasurably.
Enrich yourselves a bit everyday and you’ve added enrichment to your life and your monumental.
After I wrote this I looked up the etymology of the word eloquence, this is an interesting perspective I will quote:
Eloquence is a word which has been made the expression for the highest power of speech in producing the effect desired, especially if the desire be[,] to move the feelings or the will. Many efforts have been made to define eloquence, some regarding it as a gift and some as an art. "It is a gift of the soul, which makes us masters of the minds and hearts of others." (La Bruyère.) [Century Dictionary]
What do you think? Any examples come to mind?
Is it a gift or an art?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 19, 2021
Here is an admission from a writer I know…
She wrote:
“I changed the killer three times! The characters were basically going round and round on the carousel of plot until the murderer finally leapt off the page and grabbed me by the throat to say, "It's me, you ink-stained fool!' It was a twist I didn't see coming, so hopefully readers won't either. (Yes, a novelist's life is an odd one.)”
Christina Hoag wrote the above.
This is what I mean when I state that characters have voices and desires and will manifest themselves when given a chance.
Use your plot carousel a whirl many times and see what pops up.
Use your characters and put them on that carousel and see where they end up, are they protagonist, antagonist or just have angst, or are another type of character. (You do know all the character types that need to show up, right?)
Have the characters change hats and positions within the story and see if the story issues solve themselves.
Your characters speak, listen to them. What are they saying? What are they doing? What drives them? Where are they headed and what is their purpose or stigmas or other complications?
This does not happen if you don’t write it many times and many ways.
It will finally manifest itself when you put in the time and the effort.
Practice makes this happen.
Sitting and thinking and wishing and planning and hoping does not make it happen.
Only your actions make it happen.
Good luck! Wait a minute luck has nothing to do with it either, only hard work.
I will continue giving you assignments each month for you to exercise your muscles and work out and train effectively.
If you have an assignment for our readers email me and we’ll see if we can add it to the assignment list.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 17, 2021
Mood
If your mood is weather dependent then if the sun is not shining that puts you out of control.
If your happiness turns on a whim of what is happening in the news on any day, shootings, tornados, virus, etc. then again you are not in control.
If you need others to behave and not act out (driving, cutting in line, etc.) then their behavior is affecting your behavior and you again are not in control of you.
If you are in control of you and your feelings then none of the above affects you. Oh, it is sleeting and this will be an interesting day. Or look at the way that person is weaving in and out of traffic and going at outrageous speeds, maybe they will get picked up or maybe something else will happen. Oh, well, they chose to be a maniac, not I.
I chose to be in charge of my emotions and not let others be in charge of them as much as possible.
Am I perfect at this? NO WAY, that is why every day is a challenge and a learning experience to see how I react or not react in real life situations and see what happens.
My dependence remains on me not others mood or the weather or other circumstances, your dependence remains on you, solidly upon us.
This article is suggested by an email I received from Seth Godin and I wanted to pass some of the concepts along and it fits well with my messages.
Have a good one today!
Of course you will, you decided this yesterday and the day before and of course today.
Keep your agency in your hands.
We have a privilege and a right to stay in control of ourselves and ultimately our peace of mind.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 15, 2021
The Perfect Alignment
Do your beliefs perfectly align with someone else's'?
How do you fit-in in this society?
Your neighborhood?
With your other friends?
With your family even?
What about your work?
Do you fit perfectly in alignment with everything each of those above say and do?
Is your authenticity authentic or does it wax and wane as the situation or people demand?
What about the universe, are you in alignment like sometimes the planets or stars align or do you remain in the same old pathways to line up only once in a while?
What does it even mean to be in alignment?
Of course, we know when we are laying brick or our tires need alignment, or in other tasks to make it straight or not wobbly or ensure it goes in the correct direction.
Our lives are like a sailboat tacking in the winds and we do not make progress in straight lines but with course corrections to ensure we get to our goal or destination.
Aligning ourselves can feel like a battle. There is no one way to do it. There are thousands of ways! And even more there is your way and my way and someone else’s way and those ways are not in alignment.
The tides of our history are being written today and so that current history causes even more course direction to ensure results even come close for us.
I’ve been buffeted by those winds and fighting the steering wheel to keep it on the road as much as you. So do we give up and go off the road where the wind seems to want us to go, or do we keep it together and keep correcting and steering towards a destination that has better rewards than the ditch?
I love articles that make me think, make me reflect and take into account the nuances that I feel that make me unique but we are all struggling and feeling the nuances of others and it can either cause angst or it can be like a dance.
Smile and keep dancing and enjoy the music while you can since it may stop at any time without warning.
Living life to the fullest one day at a time just like all of us.
Sit and cry, your choice.
Or dance and smile, and smile and dance.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 13, 2021
When is the last time…?
…you were grateful?
…that you passed along something that you heard or read since it just struck a chord within you?
…you gave someone a present for no reason?
…you consider yourself a giving person?
…someone gave you something for no reason?
Secret Santa:
For Christmas please link my website to your friends stating why you love this website and mention a specific article by date and title.
This would be wonderful!
On another note: (…that you passed along something that you heard or read since it just struck a chord within you?)
Caution sharp turn ahead, I am switching topics.
I wrote an article recently on The Perfect Alignment.
These are my mentors
Richard Grannon, The Spartan Life Coach
An NLP Master Practitioner and Motivational Speaker he offers Coaching and Seminars.
An extremely well spoken, simple straightforward explanations on various topics. Highly recommended. (Note: Spartanlifecoach.com is going to be taken down soon like sometime before end of 2021)
He can define and help you cope with CPTSD (complex PTSD) which a majority of us have been through even non-veterans.
UPDATED: Fortress Mental Health: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1M89FFkO4BhSrFIrm7EH5w
OR
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCU9xNc-P8GWAdafmAcNVi6g
Joshua and Ryan have essays, podcasts, and resources at Minimalists.com They have moments of clarity about life and purpose as well and can be very eloquent.
Meredith Miller, Coach & Author at Inner Integration
Coach Corey Wayne YouTube videos on Relationships and Life Coaching (the wife and I listen to him but not as much as we used to)
Straight talking right from the hip (at first glance this may seem like a pickup artist type teacher for men but his depth goes way deeper)
https://www.youtube.com/user/coreywayne
Lisa A. Romano, ACoA
This gal knows her stuff and hits the heart and mind with her message and how you can get better.
She also thinks highly of herself which sometimes may be distracting or distressing.
http://www.healingselfesteem.com/
Dr. Bruce Lipton
Epigenetics | Power of Subconscious Mind
Seth Godin, a master of words and craft.
Read his blog for enlightenment.
Meredith Miller - Inner Integration
https://innerintegration.mykajabi.com/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrNg_13PdqKAZRPqyclRq1g
Chaz Ellis Project He's a man with a plan for you.
What's sup? What's sup? What's sup? This is yo man, Chaz Ellis. Peace out.
http://thechazzellisproject.com/
Elliott Hulse "Yo Elliott!"
Two different colored eyes and a mouthful of charm. He can rock your world with advice that is sound and practical.
https://www.youtube.com/user/elliottsaidwhat
Psychopath Free
Frank advice and an extremely good site to fight Psychopaths, Narcissists and Manipulators
https://www.psychopathfree.com/
One of the best articles is: Top 10 Frequently Asked Questions about Relationships with Psychopaths & Narcissists
Trent Hawley
A recovering person from a narcissist. Listen to his story and understand it from a common man's perspective. Although he may not be adding addition content to his channel.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOIdzmdWaFkM4I7aVOjqGCA
Dana
http://www.thriveafterabuse.com/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkUVh2cwep3jCYwDjE689Wg
Dianna Iannarone
She has lived it and overcome it.
Anthony "Tony" Robbins
Another Life Coach, but extremely practical advice. "Can I get an AYE?"
James who discusses Narcissism
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCp6mxIkU8I5ODff4PxVKKkw
Leo Gura, of actualized dot org
https://www.actualized.org/leo-gura
Austin Dobson wrote a beautiful poem that is so profound and well written it almost makes you cry. It is called, "Before Sedan" you have got to read it even if you don't like poetry. You will love this one.
http://www.bartleby.com/297/489.html
Others I now I listen to and read Sam Vaknin a narcissist who explains narcissism and other psychology material extremely well-he has at least two PHD’s, The Minimalists-Joshua and Ryan, Minimal Mom (I think that’s her moniker, she’s more for entertainment), Drew from Playing with Sticks YouTube channel, also for entertainment (he’s in Alaska and don’t confuse him with the other Playing with Sticks channel).
It is amazing the breadth and depth of the people that I glean information from and those above are just a few really. There are more that I can’t even think of right now.
My in box gets stuffed with these and more for me to peruse and reflect on and then inform you of the best gems that they produce and write.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 11, 2021
The Perfect Alignment
Do your beliefs perfectly align with someone else's'?
How do you fit-in in this society?
Your neighborhood?
With your other friends?
With your family even?
What about your work?
Do you fit perfectly in alignment with everything each of those above say and do?
Is your authenticity authentic or does it wax and wane as the situation or people demand?
What about the universe, are you in alignment like sometimes the planets or stars align or do you remain in the same old pathways to line up only once in a while?
What does it even mean to be in alignment?
Of course, we know when we are laying brick or our tires need alignment, or in other tasks to make it straight or not wobbly or ensure it goes in the correct direction.
Our lives are like a sailboat tacking in the winds and we do not make progress in straight lines but with course corrections to ensure we get to our goal or destination.
Aligning ourselves can feel like a battle. There is no one way to do it. There are thousands of ways! And even more there is your way and my way and someone else’s way and those ways are not in alignment.
The tides of our history are being written today and so that current history causes even more course direction to ensure results even come close for us.
I’ve been buffeted by those winds and fighting the steering wheel to keep it on the road as much as you. So do we give up and go off the road where the wind seems to want us to go, or do we keep it together and keep correcting and steering towards a destination that has better rewards than the ditch?
I love articles that make me think, make me reflect and take into account the nuances that I feel that make me unique but we are all struggling and feeling the nuances of others and it can either cause angst or it can be like a dance.
Smile and keep dancing and enjoy the music while you can since it may stop at any time without warning.
Living life to the fullest one day at a time just like all of us.
Sit and cry, your choice.
Or dance and smile, and smile and dance.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 9, 2021
How many decisions do you make each day?
Dozens if not hundreds.
What to wear, what to eat, which direction to go to the place you want to go (for me when going to work I had basically to go south then east then south but there were so many roads that I could go east one then I developed a pattern and there was no decision since I made it and then kept it-at least till there was road work which changed that for a month or so then I went back to the predetermined route).
So we predetermine our choices by making them several times and then keeping with that traditional choice. If breakfast is oatmeal and coffee and you have that every day then you don’t have to decide, you just do it.
So we have traditions of previous decisions that we’ve made and we just do that again and again.
So here is where it is tricky, what if we’ve predetermined a decision and kept with it then all of a sudden we change it. That is being aware and constantly evaluating is this the best decision from the past and should I change it.
Or sometimes we just want a change.
How about, “If you choose to not decide you still have made a choice!”? Yes, that is a quote from a Rush song, Freewill:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mEzgc_ne60
Every time you delay a decision that delay means you’ve made a choice. Whether for a day or a lifetime.
If one does not brush their teeth then that nonaction affects their mouth, teeth, dental health, breath, etc. even others who may not wish to have interaction with a bad breath person. There are potentially permanent possibilities or consequences since one did not brush their teeth.
Every nonaction that we take has consequences and every action we take has the possibility of choice.
Healthy choices may ensure healthy lives.
The thing about choices is that they are decisions; and the unintentional non-decisions have consequences just like intentional carefully decided choices have consequences.
May all your consequences come from thoughtful choices and add to your monumental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 7, 2021
A ROOT BALL
The root ball was massive afterall it was the result of over 20 years of growth.
The plant had been nourished and thrived until the need to remove it had become overwhelming.
Now it had been dug up which took considerable effort and actually many years.
The dirt had to be saved but careful, get one root and the whole thing could start growing from the tiny bit of root. You know how insidious weeds can be.
The dirt and detritus of that over 20 years clung to the root ball for dear life and would not be shaken, nor knocked off easily.
It would take time, plenty of time.
Well, time is all we have so I have been using my time to clean off my root ball from past “habits”.
That “habit” cost me and is still costing me. It is not the “cravings”, maybe the yearning for a simpler time and thinking I knew where I belonged and how I fit in.
Now it seems like I don’t fit in since this removal.
Let’s say you were in a cult or club for over 20 years. You are very familiar with the traditions and those people called you friend, and that very familiarity now works against you.
That familiarity is haunting and constantly asking you, did you do the right thing by uprooting your life.
Literally, the uprooting of your life is brought about by stresses and fractures within that particular community that means you could NO longer allow it to permeate your life and yet it still attempts to do so.
There are those who are not aware you’ve even left, and treat you like you never did. There are those who know you left and want you to come back and contribute to the group's goals (you are just another body and helping hands to them really, nothing more[how sad]).
The mannerisms, the learned behaviors, the habits are there just lurking and lingering with a vengeance and any one of many things or thoughts can trigger the memories of old “friendships”, for that hive mind set still has tendrils that reach out.
As a people pleaser I have to be intensely wary of that “need” that I have in my nature to be liked, to want to fit in, and it stresses my mind and body when I am not accepted.
As you know I read for myself for pleasure and now for analyzing the written material to become a better writer, and I write for myself and if you enjoy what I share then wonderful and I am glad, even happy for both of us.
That dirt on the root still clings to my root ball and even though I’ve been cleaning off those roots to remove every bit of the old, sometimes the “weed” as I call those habits still wants to spring up and grow within me.
That root is my “well, it is not really a cross to bear” but it is a symbol of my internal struggle to remove it and all that it meant to me.
That yearning for the old ways, the belief that Santa exists and will bring me everything that I want and the presents and the snow and the memories when those songs fill the air and well, it really lingers and even now after all of these years I may think, did that belief really hurt me?
Yes, it must have since I chose to move on, I cut it out of my life and yet it does not stop others from planting their subtle and not-so-subtle reminders.
Now this is NOT about Santa. It is about former beliefs that no longer serve.
Be wary of that root, it is still there and would happily be introduced into your fertile soil if you let it.
What does this invoke within you?
What is your “root”?
How does this make you feel?
How do you cope and keep committed to a course of action?
I’d love to hear any and all of your responses.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 5, 2021
The Boundaries of your Discontent
This is an instance of an article being so well written and says so much that I need add nothing to it. So read on for a guest article [entirely quoted from another source, an email from TheMinimalists.com] featured today:
By Joshua Fields Millburn
“We're alarmed when people disregard or disrespect us.
But maybe there’s a reason they treat us poorly.
Perhaps we’ve tolerated their behavior so long
that they’ve grown comfortable in their misbehaving.
Here’s the truth about tolerance.
The boundaries of your discontent
are marked by everything you tolerate.
Bickering, scorn, disdain.
Spite, abandonment, outrage.
Cruelty, torment, abuse.
We don’t realize it, but
our tolerance is a magnet for neglect.
When we tolerate ridicule,
we attract more of it.
When we tolerate heartbreak,
it shows up at our doorstep.
Now, that doesn’t mean that tolerance is bad.
Nor is it something you should avoid.
In fact, tolerance is wonderful
when it moves us toward
acceptance, respect, appreciation.
But when we stay in the shallow end,
mired in the murky wave pool of tolerance,
we are battered by timorous emotions—
sadness, anger, melancholy, insecurity—
that carry us into the waters of chronic discontent.
Spend enough time in those currents, and you’ll be nauseated by the toxicity. Before you know it, you’ve been steeped in a low-grade misery for years.
It’s as if we’re punishing ourselves in the name of virtue or discipline or commitment or whatever buzzword piques our self-righteous pleasure sensors.
Thankfully, there’s a flip side to this coin.
When we stop tolerating the nonsense,
we make room for kindness, mercy, grace.
These states arrive when we no longer permit the misconduct,
when we’ve decluttered our attachment to the people who are careless with our love.
As strange as it may seem,
to put up with insolence or mockery
is to lack compassion,
because, in a real way,
we encourage what we tolerate.”
QUITE A Think Piece
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 3, 2021
Challenge
What challenges you?
Problems, issues, relationships, ordinary things, what?
Finding answers to life’s questions?
Just keeping the drains cleared?
There are everyday challenges, there are unique challenges and there are challenges that someone else gives you.
Should you accept a challenge that someone wants to give you?
Depends on what it is and what it does for you, NOT them.
It is ALL up to you on what you accept and what you reject.
Also, sometimes we make small things a bigger challenge than they really are and that is on us.
I’ve done it and thought afterward, why was I so worried about that particular “challenge” when it turned out to be nothing and this other thing is really kicking my proverbial butt and has become a major challenge.
Yeah, sometimes we don’t see those things coming and sometimes we believe some challenges are bigger than we thought.
That is the flaw with perception. If we perceive it to be one thing like a challenge then, voila, IT IS!
If we think a thing is not a challenge then MAYBE it is not.
So think positive that what some may consider a challenge is not really a challenge.
This website has been working for six years now. At first it was a challenge, a huge challenge, how do I set it up, how do I do this right, how do I make it grow, will people even be interested or care?
As soon as I stopped worrying about setting it up and just worked on setting it up, and knocking first one priority then the next then the next it ceased to be a challenge and became just setting priorities and finding answers and solutions and doing the next thing then the next.
The priorities were setting the pace and they became priorities not challenges.
So it becomes your to do list.
If you are writing a book for instance then your first priority is what is it about and select what you want to write about. Then who are your characters? And select your characters.
The questions of is it relevant, will someone read it, who will care and all those questions doesn’t have any affect on your actions, again, set priorities, and knock them down one by one.
What if one won’t go down like a missed bowling pin? Then try again until you knock it down.
What if you write a whole book and it stinks? Then that is great! There was so much learning and progress in the DOING that the destination takes care of itself. You wrote it and it may be the biggest stinker ever, but YOU WROTE IT!
That is a fantastic accomplishment in itself. Many aspiring writers are stuck on one chapter or paragraph or another and NEVER finish it. So when you finish that fact that you finish is the biggest accomplishment ever.
Now do it again and make the next one less stinky.
Then do it again and that diligence that we talked about is you putting it into action day after week after month and stringing together all those little pieces into the unicorn, elusive rainbow novel or book or story.
Once you write that great big hit. AND YOU WILL WRITE IT SINCE YOU DID YOUR DUE DILIGENCE BY WRITING ONE AFTER ANOTHER.
What? You thought you only had to write one? Pah, silly person, you have to write and keep writing because if you get one that is great then the publisher will say, hey, what else you got.
Look at all those stinky volumes you wrote and then say to yourself. What if I take this one and polish it some more since NOW I know what I’m doing and do it again only this time so it is NOT stinky, then guess what?
You have another.
Dust off another stinky one and you’ve done it again.
That diligence produced a shelf full of ideas, characters, paragraphs that put you where you are so then you can use them to refill that story cannon and shoot out another.
BOOM!
Also this applies to anything that requires multiple, multiyear, multitimes of practice. Of course your first clay pot, first equation, first experiment, first music produced by any instrument, or sports activity is going to not be perfect and will be in some regards, stinky, or not like a pro.
To get to be a pro you use those previous practices and add them up in a row until you are a pro.
Boom!
That is incremental thinking at it’s finest.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 1, 2021
According to Story Grid
If you are not familiar with the Story Grid by Shawn Coyne then you really must introduce yourselves to this site.
Not only introduce but completely familiarize this site and all the free stuff it has to offer for writers.
Here’s an example:
“The 5 Commandments of Storytelling
Causal
Coincidence
Active Turning Point
Revelatory Turning Point
The Best Bad choice
Irreconcilable goods
Some really good stuff and if your stories lack any of these five items then guess what, you get to pick the re- that you get which will be “rewrite” or “rejection”, GUARANTEED!
So avoid getting either by including all the above.
So much valuable information that I’ve gotten from this site and DON’T let it overwhelm you. Slowly absorb it and go over it and over it and incorporate it and learn more and more.
These things will finally connect together in your mind. As you read a story you will see those things in Story Grid leap out and you’ll say, “Oh, I understand now!” and it will incrementally improve your understanding and writing.
There is NO ONE PARTICULAR expert there are dozens of experts and yet despite all the expertise there are things they don’t know and things that will work that they say won’t work.
I’ve seen it time and time again. There are rules and there are breaking the rules since the “rules” are not absolute.
Rules are guidelines and as with anything, “your results will vary” which is a HUGE statement.
Our experiences vary from person to person and sometimes we get lucky, intentionally lucky, or just happen to fall into something (as long as it doesn’t smell bad, then go with it).
If your yellow in your mind should taste like bananas and yet to someone else tastes like lemons and they want lemons then agree and say yes I meant for that to taste just like you wanted.
Be that versatile and accepting. Now when they say it tastes like bananas and I wanted lemons then say but it is yellow and it can taste any way you want it.
Does any of this make sense? I think it does. Think about it and let me know what you think. Enjoy all the flavors of the colors.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 30, 2021
Excitement! The next lesson / assignment is here. Early gift for you!
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
November 29, 2021
Crisis
Life is a coin.
Most things in life have opposites.
I'm sure if you think about it you can come up with dozens or if you are diligent, hundreds.
A protagonist wants, no absolutely needs and has to have an antagonist.
Without the opposite side of the protagonist coin the book or movie you read or watch will be tepid, stagnant and not able to move freely and go somewhere.
If your protagonist has no troubles, no setbacks, no issues, no obstacles then the book or movie will be so blah no one will be able to get past the first few pages.
Your protagonist must have challenges, fears, a very difficult time, plus more than a few twists that present themselves and plague them in a variety of ways.
Nothing is straightforward and simple and certainly not for your characters. You will drag them through the proverbial dirt, stomp on them time after time and they continue to persist and overcome or at least sidestep those obstacles or change directions and come at the problem from another way, perhaps more than once or twice.
This / that is the importance of the crisis.
Without nuances and wrinkles in the script or story, your characters and your plotlines stink. Wrinkles are complications that maybe were foreseeable and usually are not since those wrinkles are plot twists.
A plot without twists is plain. Our life without twists is very plain as well. We also need twists and turns. We have no agony and then are able to rebuild, to gather our resources to recover, and have NO reason to be thankful that it was not worse. We NEED, no we thrive on twists and turns in our lives. It gives us the opportunity to learn, to grow, build ourselves into the nextgen or version that we are destined to become.
A crisis builds our character, teaches us lessons, gives us accomplishments, refines us in its fire.
The dross is burned away and we shine through, sometimes it leaves us gasping and wondering if we can go on.
Yes, we can. Yes, you can. Positively those negatives will take your incremental and turn it into your monumental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 27, 2021
Ctein interview with David Alan Binder
From his website about Ctein:
I'm Ctein, and I'm not your average photographer.
I have a double-degree from Caltech in English and Physics. I've written over 500 articles, columns, books, and manuals on photographic topics. I've done research in everything from solar astronomy to computer screens and from the seventy-year-old dye transfer printmaking process to state-of-the-art electronic color displays. I've made new discoveries about ordinary B&W photographic printing and new designs for computer printers. Most recently, I've become a novelist, co-authoring Saturn Run with John Sandford. I'm hard at work on a new novel, a disaster thriller, with David Gerrold. Yeah, the tribble guy. Cool!
His website: https://ctein.com/
His other website: https://photo-repair.com/
1.
How do you pronounce your name? How did you come by the name Ctein?
It's pronounced k'TINE (or kuhTINE if you're not so good with
glottal-stops). It was a nickname I picked up when I was editor of
the college newspaper and it ended up sticking for all my writing and
photography work. Eventually 99% of the people I knew knew me but
only by that name, so I had it legally changed. Yes it is singular -
no first/last name.
2.
Where are you currently living?
Daly City California, the very northwest corner overlooking the ocean.
3.
How did you happen to coauthor a book with (John Roswell Camp-pen
name) John Sanford
He asked me to!
Okay, longer version:
https://whatever.scalzi.com/2015/10/08/the-big-idea-ctein/ Honest
to God, this is entirely true. (Except for the line about money being
the root of all evil - I never said that. John stuck it in because he
thought it was funny).
[I, David Alan Binder, am inserting a portion of the conversation here so you don’t have to go zooming off on the link; however, the link has a longer version that is quite interesting in itself so if you happen to have more time definitely click the link and read it all.]
“John: I have a proposition. Hear me out before you say no. That science fiction novel? It’s not happening. You should write it.
Ctein: I don’t do fiction. It’s way too much like work.
John: Yeah, yeah. Look, just think about it. I’ll send you what I’ve got so far. It’s not much. There’s no pressure; take as long as you like. It’s not going anywhere for me. If you want to try your hand at it, you’ll be pretty much writing the whole first draft on your own.
Ctein: You’re not making this sounding more attractive.
John: I’ll help when you need it. I’ll do the first rewrite, we’ll both polish it up, my agent will sell it, and we’ll split the money.
Ctein: Money’s OK. Working for it, not so much. ‘Sides, I’ve heard it’s the root of all evil. Well, some of it, anyway.
John: Lotsa money.
Ctein: All right… I’ll probably say no. Actually, I’m pretty certain I’ll say no.
John: Whatever. First thing is, we need a spaceship and we need one that can get built fast. I figure our future US will have a pretty decent space station…
Ctein: That won’t work. I don’t think there’s any good way to turn a space station into a spaceship.
John: You’ll figure something out.
End of phone call. I read over the files and went to bed. The next morning I thought, “Waitaminit, I know how to turn a space station into a spaceship.”
I was probably doomed at that point, but it took me months to come to terms with that.
Six months later, I had done everything a skilled and experienced professional non-fiction author could possibly do. The office was a hell of a lot cleaner. Heaping stacks of papers had been properly sorted and filed. Even the computer desktop was reorganized. It was either tell John to forget it, go after the bathroom tile with a toothbrush, because, damn, that grout was dirty…or start writing.
I opted for door number three.”
4.
What is the most important thing that you have learned from that
writing experience?
That I could write fiction! Because honest to God, up to that point I
assumed that I couldn't. Sure, I had 45 years experience writing
nonfiction, probably over a million published (paid for!) words. But
that's a whole lot different from writing fiction. Nonfiction "only"
requires me to relate facts I already know in a coherent and
entertaining fashion. Fiction requires me to make all the facts up,
which is a whole lot more work.
5.
What would you say is your most interesting quirk?
I have no idea how to answer this - I am extremely quirky. Or
eccentric. Or barking mad. Take your choice.
6.
Tell us your insights on self-publishing or using a publisher (please
be specific to aspiring writers see the merits of each) ?
The plus side of self-publishing: you get to keep almost all the
money. The minus sides: you have to do ALL the work! Marketing,
distribution, publicity, etc., etc. All the stuff that writers hate
to do and is the job of the publisher (or should be - they are
offloading way too much of that onto authors).
Also, if you're going to self-publish fergodsakes lay out some money
for a professional proofreader. Seriously. I only know one person in
all of creation who can proofread her own work, error-free, and I
have no idea how she does that. You're not going to be number two.
Nothing says self-published like egregious typos.
You also might think about hiring a professional designer for your
book as well. Unless you are actually really good at that. Unlike
proofreading, you can be - I designed and laid out my first book,
POST EXPOSURE, even though it was published by a regular publisher.
Why? Because it got the book out six months sooner and they paid me
to do so! You can download a free PDF of it here:
https://ctein.com/booksmpl.htm
6a.
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
Putnam, located in NYC
7.
Any insights on eBooks vs. print books and alternative vs.
conventional publishing?
Not beyond what I said in question 6.
8.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published
(something not easily found on the internet)?
Just one - keep submitting it, to everybody you can think of. These
days, with publishers preferring electronic submissions, it doesn't
even cost you a stamp and printer paper.
9.
How did you get an agent or suggestions on acquiring an agent?
(again something not easily found on the internet) Any tips for new
writers on getting one?
Sorry, no tips here. I inherited John's agent.
10.
Do you have any suggestions or tips for new writers (please be
specific and informational as possible)?
There are no universals on how to become a successful writer. Other
than that you DO have to write. More specifically, you have to FINISH
what you start. That can be harder than it seems, especially if
you're working long form. You get to the middle of a novel and you
can see the light at the end of the tunnel in either direction. Just
keep slogging.
But other than that, no advice. Anything any successful professional
author tells you about how one "should" write is going to be wrong
for a significant fraction of would-be writers. There is no one
right way to do it.
11.
What was one of the most surprising things you learned with your
creative process?
I was better at descriptions than I thought. That's my weakest area.
What I call set dressing. I'm good at inventing characters and
absolutely great at dialogue and voice. But the stuff I can write
easily tends to be a radio play. No pictures! Turned out that if I
worked hard at it, I could write the pictures. Still not my strongest
area, but adequate. I managed to surprise myself - doesn't happen
often!
12.
How many books have you written?
Two nonfiction (POST EXPOSURE and DIGITAL RESTORATION) and two
fiction. SATURN RUN has, of course, been published. The natural
disaster thriller I wrote with David Gerrold, RIPPLE EFFECT, is still
looking for a publisher.
13.
What is the one thing you would do differently now and why?
Maybe tried writing fiction earlier. Or not. I'll be frank - I'm in
it for the money and I find writing fiction to be hard work (unlike
writing nonfiction). I'm not sure if I hadn't lucked into such a
sweet deal with John that I ever would've had the inclination to
write fiction. But it would've been nice to know that I could if I
wanted to.
14.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
Plan like you'll live forever and live like there's no tomorrow. Or
to quote James Taylor - "Never give up, never slow down, never grow
old, never ever die young."
November 25, 2021
Pride and Prejudice
I love this movie (official trailer here):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ur_DIHs92NM
Every time I watch it I get choked up and have tears in my eyes at the beauty of how situations resolve.
It has a very happy ending and happy endings are important in my life.
It would be very difficult for me to write a novel that did not have a happy ending.
Knowing yourself and your personal choices are important.
I’ve hammered the heck out of practice and writing something, anything; however, I recently read a book by John Sanford Deadline where one character states, I’ll paraphrase it:
I practice [guitar] every day, I don’t care about a music career since those are one in a million to be able to earn great money. It is the diligence my father says that will help me throughout my life.
Diligence at anything will get you down the road of life in whatever direction you choose at the moment even if you change directions, diligence will always be there for you to use and will inspire you to continue in the face of all obstacles.
If I were to have one thing in my life it would be diligence.
That grit and determination to continue to put effort into whatever challenge will pay dividends in whatever I venture and whatever path I choose.
In a world of choices we narrow those choices farther and farther by quitting, by not continuing in some direction, any direction.
Choose diligence and your choices have just multiplied exponentially more than you will ever imagine.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 21, 2021
Facts, Opinions, Perspectives and Truth is all up to you
"Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth." — Marcus Aurelius, book Meditations
This sounds like a great quote and even makes sense, but not everything we see or hear that makes sense is an actuality. Sometimes it is just plain made up.
So you see below that this quote is NOT a quote at all. Marcus NEVER wrote that.
How many times have we been duped by false narratives, unfounded facts, and just plain lies.
So many that a site like Snopes gives us a way to verify if the rumors, or facts, or quotes or things that we see or hear are real and factual or not.
It has become a way of life to hear or read and then verify to figure out the truth from the lie.
Even respected, renowned, well regarded people with confidence and meaning well, just plain fudge the figures, garner the statistics, play shell games with the facts, or out and out tell falsehoods to get you to believe them.
We have to be super aware, have the truth radar running round the clock, and fact check everything.
Don’t believe it until you’ve verified it. Is this sad, in a way, but in another way it makes you dig, and research and puts you directly in charge and in control of who and what you believe.
You can believe in yourself and your power just grew from that knowledge and in the verification of whatever someone or something is trying to pass on as knowledge.
An interesting situation for sure.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 19, 2021
How great artists think and found out this...
What initially brought this to my mind is I believe Leonardo Da Vinci is credited with saying:
“[he] just chips away everything that doesn’t look like David” the famous statue he created.
So then I thought, well how do writers, painters and other artists do that when they don’t start with more than they need they have to continually add to the material to create what they imagine?
On that thought the paper or canvas or whatever medium you are using to express yourself is only added to not “chipped” away.
I for one keep adding words until the thought and idea that was in my head is formulated. I suppose it is pretty similar to painting and other crafts.
Sculpting is very singular in the approach unless you count molding, blacksmithing or similar but very different crafts.
A basket maker does not remove reeds until the basket is created.
So then I went on a rampage studying artists and crafters and learning more. Here is what I found:
Great sports minded people use the following technique: “Visualisation is the art of mental imagery – where you put your focus entirely on achieving a dream and actualizing it to become true. So, when you say you believe something and you are applying the art of visualisation for it, you are using your mind to portray your dreams already becoming true.”
I believe this can be used with other mediums in addition to sports.
Another site listed, “The artists see the unseen and communicate it.”
From Wikipedia, “Oscar-Claude Monet was a French painter and founder of impressionist painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it.”
Great craft and art moves the creator and the aficionado of that particular craft.
There are many styles of crafting, here are a few in painting: Modernism, Abstract Art, Expressionism, Cubism, Surrealism, Chinese Style, Japanese style and many others I am sure.
“CREATIVE PEOPLE REALLY DO SEE THE WORLD DIFFERENTLY!”
“How we respond to life around us depends on certain key aspects of personality.”
And now here is one of many articles I’ve read on the subject and it has some great insights on how we think. Here is the article, that and others I’ll be referring to below:
https://www.happiness.com/magazine/inspiration-spirituality/10-things-artists-do-differently/
After reviewing the article I highly recommend it as part of our reading this week.
Do you have any thoughts or addition to this?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 17, 2021
It's not about perfection…
So “it” is not about perfection.
Let’s face it, we are not perfect.
Wish we were but we are not.
We are flawed, dysfunctional and imperfect.
So if “it” is not about perfection then what is “it” about?
“It” means life, “it” means us, “”it” means relationships, “it” means craft, “it” means skills or “it” can mean any number of things.
So when we realize that we are not perfect that is when we can make the changes that move us closer and at least in that direction.
Will we ever get there?
Who knows, maybe or maybe not, but why not head for a better version of yourself?
I look back 5 or 10 or 20 or more years and see how far I’ve progressed.
That is so much improvement over my short life span yet still I am not perfect and that is the biggest realization that we need to become aware of.
This awareness is the catalyst for moving, for change, for improvement.
So if life is not about perfection then what is it about?
I would say that life is all about improving.
For without improvement we are static, not dynamic.
Without improvement we are stagnant. not continually evolving.
Without improvement there is no change.
So your antennas are crackling with this new information and that change only comes from that information.
Change is in the atmosphere, I sense it, I feel it and I’ve lived it for years and years.
Let’s change together!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 15, 2021
Realizer
The other night as I was going to bed a word went through my mind and that word was realizer.
Within us we have a realizer. It is not an organ, a sense, a muscle, or a tangible part of us, but it is like when you gut or you have a sensory type feel but not associated with the 5 senses. It comes under instinct but maybe it is more subconsciously or within our fiber or being or it just makes sense without the scientific or experimental process being applied to it.
A realizer is most likely part of our brain next to the awareness and close to how things dawn on us after years of exposure to various influences sometimes we just know.
Is that instinct, no but it is part of us and maybe a culmination of living and being on this planet that final we realize somethings that we did not realize before a given time in our lives.
It just springs forth and is there all of a sudden.
Conversely, a realizer can work against us.
As a child I was at a small carnival and saw a ring toss game. Now the rings were barely larger than a soda bottle or as we called them pop bottle top at the time (they were empty with no caps). I looked at the game and saw there was NO WAY I could lose. Just look at it. One ring but look at all those bottles, how can you miss. So my realizer did not realize that it was nigh impossible to get a ring to land on a bottle neck, heck, I’d be lucky to hit the top of a bottle let alone go on the neck.
But I was undaunted, my dad paid and said okay, here are three rings and put one around a bottle neck.
I gave it a toss and TADA! It landed around the neck of a bottle. My family was astonished (I wasn’t). I took home a big pink teddy bear and it was great.
My realizer did not know the physics of the game, it did not know how difficult it was and it did not know how many people lost trying to do the same thing and that was how the carnival made money, not by giving away bears for little to nothing.
Later in life my realizers became more in tune with what I saw after watching people as I grew up and how difficult carnival games were.
They are very difficult and I’ve heard of some of them even being rigged.
The point is sometimes when we don’t realize we can’t do something then we can.
So your realizer is an extremely important part of you.
Even now I write and don’t realize or care to realize the literal lottery of being a writer.
Throwing the right words, with the right theme, and getting them in the right order, and then submitting those words to someone who sees in those words meeting their criteria which I may not even have realized their actual criteria and then it passing not only through the initial phase but then to pass whatever criteria of their company and the people within it, since as I understand it there is more than one gatekeeper in the publishing or agenting business usually.
Maybe if my realizer was truly active, maybe I would not get out of bed.
But hey, I see other people doing it and I rally around the cry, “If they can do it, then I can do it!”
What a great motto!
What a great equalizer!
What a motivation!
What a realization that I’m just as special as everyone else who writes and is on this planet so I’m going to write and see what gets printed.
Maybe you’d like to try and write an article and send it in and see if I print it (on this site) at no charge to you and you only have one person standing in your way.
YOU!
Just write it and see what happens and if that comes to realization and then I accept it and another realization happens then it gets printed and others realizations are improved and then they try it.
Voila, you’ve just started a movement.
By the way, at the same time you are incrementally improving yourself as well.
TADA! What a feat of ingenuity and an incredible performance by none other than YOU!
Do you dare to try?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 13, 2021
What does your [BLANK] want?
So what does your story or your art, your creativity want?
Does it want something? Does it have a mind of its own?
You created, wrote, made, crafted it, but what does it want to say that you had not intended until it was created, written, made, or crafted?
Sometimes your characters take over as you are writing and that is because they have a voice. Likewise with everything you do and everything there is embedded within your creativity
You don’t even realize it but they are living and breathing inside of you waiting to get out.
You’ll never find out UNLESS you write and write or create or draw, or craft and do it again and again and again.
Your inner voice will come out eventually. What a beautiful moment!
Your inner becomes an outer and manifests itself with you, beside you, and sometimes in spite of you.
You are the greatest hindrance to your inner voice if you do not create, write, draw, make, craft, do something and make it come alive.
Sure it does not exist without you, but once it does exist then watch out! Your inner voice will evolve.
It will start out in one way and then change and evolve and become something that is unexpected, or different or something you originally did not conceive. That is creativity at its finest.
That incremental that leads to the monumental is blocked, stymied, hindered if you are not taking action steps several times a week.
That action will propel and forward you and your art.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 11, 2021
Whose tail are you chasing?
If you don't control it, it will control you.
This includes:
Temper
Obsessions
Emotions
Think about it. Without control we are just reactionaries waiting for the next thing to trigger us.
What is reactionary behavior?
Adjective. of, pertaining to, marked by, or favoring reaction, especially extremes
Noun, plural re·ac·tion·ar·ies. a reactionary person. (according to Google)
So reactionary means being not in control and not being methodical, planned, and thoughtful.
Whose tail are you chasing? Or is it chasing you?
Is it the tail of an obsession or is it a planned course of action and direction?
Will this action or direction take you anywhere or just in circles or until another action or direction comes across your path?
Ever watch a loose dog wander around sniffing and running and how that dog zig zagging and no real direction other than their nose to follow? Many people are like that.
They have no plan, no purpose, just wandering. Especially in social media, or the internet, or even in life in some instances.
Incremental change comes with thoughtfulness, mindfulness, purpose, deliberate choice, and planning AND it takes us in a direction we have chosen ahead of time to get us to that monumental destination.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 9, 2021
Oops, wrong way!
There was a character from a childhood cartoon show that was called Wrong Way Peach Fuzz from the Rocky and Bullwinkle show:
https://rockyandbullwinkle.fandom.com/wiki/Peter_Peachfuzz
Often I’ve found myself going the wrong way in my life. This was after years of pursuit in that wrong direction. It just took a lot of time, years even until I realized it.
That realization was at a personal cost and a family cost, yet that realization was only one that I could make.
No one could make it for me.
There was also a song that I remember and never quite understood really until I was an adult called, “You Got To Walk That Lonesome Valley” and here is a version by Pete Seeger and Arlo Guthrie of it if you are not familiar with it and want to hear it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcbqCssiBUc
The point I’m trying to make is that we can be on the path to a wrong way and only we can determine which way is correct for us.
Also, we may find ourselves on the wrong end of something as well. And that can be as shocking as picking up a telescope and looking through the end of it and the thing we wanted to see closer is actually farther away. So we are looking through the wrong end of that telescope.
It is up to us to turn that telescope around and use it correctly to see that thing closer rather than farther.
It can be like that with opinions or arguments. It is up to us to look at both ends, or the several ends of the opinion or argument and determine which end serves us.
We DO NOT serve the opinion or the argument, it serves us until we decide if we’ve changed and it no longer serves us.
We control what serves us, what is useful to us and what end of whatever discussion or object that we are using.
I’ve used tools the wrong way on purpose but it served in that manner for that particular time as well.
It is up to each of us to choose how particular things will serve us and be useful to us. At some time and at some point a thing may not be useful anymore. Opinions, arguments, tools, even people, and of course objects are subject to our choices.
We do not have to justify our choices to anyone but us.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 7, 2021
Who is in it together?
Does it necessarily have to be we? Why not include everyone?
From Seth Godin:
“In it together
That’s not what we usually hear. To have “us” we often need “them.”
To make a profit (or a commotion) in social media, the math is usually division, not addition.
And as [the] media has crept into every corner of our lives, it often thrives on discord.
The irony is that the network effect that powers our culture (it works better when others are using it too) depends on connection.
When Stewart Brand put a picture of the Earth from space on the cover of the original Whole Earth Catalog, it was a revelation for many. The photo was new, but the image was also a timeless reminder of how futile it is to forget the very nature of our finite world.
Ideas can spread and multiply, creating new opportunities and new frontiers. But we’re still on the same planet, no matter how much a few people spend to go (almost) into orbit.
As we begin to move beyond a century of industrialism, all of us are coming to grips with the impact that the industrial engines we depend on have created. The chronic shift in the climate of the entire planet is going to be the most significant driver of change of the next twenty years. For all of us, not just a few.
Unlike current events or politics, this is neither local nor temporary. It’s hard to fight the weather, as it changes all of the inputs and the outputs of our life.
The first step is to realize that we’re in it together.”
In my mind I wonder how people can buy tickets or go to a venue and then believe they don't have to follow the rules they agreed to by entering or by purchasing? That is wacked!
That is either working together or working to antagonize those around you as well as whatever company or venue you want to use.
If we are in this together what steps do we take to enforce the rules of the whatever establishment we are attending.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 5, 2021
Lessons on Learning
Lessons come in all sizes.
Sometimes the lessons we learn are not really that huge, but small ones are just as treasured as huge ones.
One lesson I learned a long time ago was from my wife stating that she learned to use a paper towel or some folded over toilet paper to open the door when leaving the bathroom after washing her hands. This was to keep from getting all those germs from the door handle which EVERYONE uses regardless if their hands were washed or not.
I thought that was a grand lesson and I’ve applied it ever since. Since lessons are not really lessons if we do not apply them. (That is an Altruism!)
I recently heard or read this statement:
If you lose, don't lose the lesson.
I really believe that this little truth will help us “win” or “lose”. It can be applied to sports, writing, games, anything. There are always lessons to be learned even if we are not the one selected or awarded.
AND... you are not really losing if you learn a lesson, you are gaining knowledge, insight, perspective, humility, and how the other “won” or scored higher or was selected or awarded.
Incremental learning equals monumental learning over time.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 3, 2021
Be formless, be shapeless
This stems from Bruce Lee, note his intensity as he states this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJMwBwFj5nQ
Pretty good advice.
The next one I’ve seen two ways:
"Your mind is like a water my friend when it is agitated it becomes difficult to see but if you allow it to settle the answer becomes clear"
-Master Oogway
“Your mind is like this water, my friend. When it is agitated, it becomes difficult to see. But if you allow it to settle, the answer becomes clear.”
― Bil Keane
His "Be water" concept is very meaningful. I heard somewhere that he found this ideology when training with his master Ip man, he used to train punching water but he realized how many times he punched it, it won't break. Water adapts to the thing it is poured into, just like we must adapt to our living conditions whether it's good or bad and find something to improvise. Water is weak, but with persistence it can break rocks(river water) just like us, with persistence we can finally do what we thought impossible.
Empty your mind, be formless, be shapeless, like water.
Incrementally shaping your now self into your monumental future self.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
Don't forget a new lesson is available
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
November 1, 2021
Pangs of Pain
Each encounter is an opportunity.
Where are your fondest memories?
Typically the most fondest memories are based upon relationships that included love and trust.
Once an individual who created fond memories with you is gone (whether for a time or have passed on) then when you think of them, those fond memories create within an individual pangs of missing the individual.
Think of a separation of a person whose relationship with you created mistrust, dislike, lies, deceit and selfishness.
Do you miss them when you are away from them?
Nay, nay, I dare say you do not.
They have created a relationship which is one sided, using you to get what they want but have no need for reciprocation.
So personally, I do not miss my mother, my dad a little bit, not my step mother, nor my in-laws who have all passed on.
Yes there were some fond memories growing up but as the relationship grew older the reciprocation grew less and less and I saw the lies, manipulation and deceit then I miss them less and less.
I don’t miss them.
This is very sad.
What I miss is the relationship that we should have had and could have continued to have, but they abused the relationship rather than cultivate the relationship.
Wow, that is a powerful statement that I never wanted to have to state.
So where do we go now?
So we now have an opportunity from this day forward to create fond memories and create relationships based upon relationships that include love and trust.
These moments are most precious and dear.
Being missed is not your choice but it is based upon how you behave and your willingness to give and based upon what you give.
If you sow it then you shall reap it.
An incremental step in the right direction is better than a leap in a direction that benefits no one.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 31, 2021
Adversarial Interoperability
This was recently brought to my attention by my friend Seth Godin.
After I’d read the article below it revealed some things that companies, policies and ourselves might do that sabotages what we are attempting to accomplish rather than further our agenda.
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2019/10/adversarial-interoperability
What do you think?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 29, 2021
If eye
I wrote this in order to help in my relationships with others, especially those closest to me.
If I run away from you
How will I find a way thru?
If eye close my eyes
How can I see a way to you?
If I shout at you
How will I find the words to tell you how much you mean to me?
If I get angry at you
How will I be able to channel the joy I feel?
If your feelings and emotions get in the way of your relationships then it is incumbent upon us to find a way to curb those emotions and feelings from being an impediment.
Just incrementally thinking through to the monumental us.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 27, 2021
Paranoid
I wrote this as some paranoia was coming into the forefront of my life and I had to eradicate that feeling.
The result of the paranoid feeling is here:
You don't have to be as paranoid as you have to be
You don't have to be more paranoid than anyone else
Paranoia can control
Grip you by the shortest hairs
Get you in it's sights, keep you indoors at nights
You don't have to be more paranoid than yourself
The decisiveness of the divisions we've created in our minds seem to be concrete
It eliminates us as a brother or sisterhood
The commonness gets washed away in the vileness of our hate
It blasts friends and families apart
It destroys our lives, killing our feelings, our hearts just don't feel anymore
We have entered an emotional war as soon as we walk in the door with our closed minds, our selfish attitude
There's more to you than me
And what I may think
There's more to me than you
And what you may think
You have a platform at a height that makes one dizzy with all the effort to keep yourself elevated
You opinions are cross pollinated with the anarchy rhetoric that you spit
Take off the blindfold and sea to shining see
If we keep on this way
Surely day will break into pieces
The waves will say goodbye to peaces
The madness spreads like an infection
Whether or not to get an injection
Since when do your rights come before mine
Everyday we are leaving it farther, so far behind
Now I am less freaked out and more calm and even keel.
Our worst days may become better as we deal with those emotions that have a right and a privilege to be heard and felt.
They are just feelings.
They are just emotions.
Deal with them before they deal with you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 25, 2021
Nothing is easy
Well, one thing is easy and that is listening or reading.
I’ve read and listened to hundreds if not thousands of talks and essays and opinions with all kinds of information and knowledge.
That part is very easy, at least very easy compared to incorporating that information and knowledge (some might even have been conflicting against what I already knew or by what I’d learned just a few days before).
So it is interesting that I pass on tidbits of information and knowledge that work for me some to a greater extent than others; however, the incremental increases have helped lead to the monumental that I am currently in the process of becoming.
Here is another tidbit of information that may or may not help you depending on your situation and where you are in your learning process.
Two Easily Remembered Questions That Silence Negative Thoughts by Anthony Metivier:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvtYjdriSpM
After I listened to this talk I thought well that is simple except I have a real objection to learning sanskrit. Simply because of what I perceive to be the actual usefulness of it in my daily life.
Come to find out that if you listen to meditations, many who lead those meditations use sanskrit chants.
So one lesson I’ve learned is that I at least am familiar with some of it and that helps to know that.
I know pieces-parts of many languages and some useful and others not as useful. But knowledge can always be attached to something you are familiar with and it fills in the incomplete picture of your unknowledge.
We work on this daily. At work I used to say, well, I’ve learned something today, now I can go home. I was kidding, but it seemed everyday I learned something.
Your incremental development depends on this learning process in becoming monumental.
What do you think? Any thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 23, 2021
Is Free really Free?
I’ve received free stuff, but mostly the free stuff is associated with strings or caveats.
Companies love to tout buy one get one (BOGO) free. Nay, Nay, that is just 50% off so mark your prices up accordingly and voila, you are paying for both with the one.
Or phone companies will give you a free accessory, like a phone or tablet or watch BUT you must purchase a monthly additional line for it to be able to work. So that is not free at all but paid for by your subscription for as long as you use it. Nay, Nay, that is NOT FREE.
Even my free lessons and help are not really free. You can find them here:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
So it takes time and effort for me to write them and post them and I do this monthly. It actually costs you only your time and attention, that is still a price. So the onus is mostly on me in terms of the cost of my time and effort to write and post them. But that is acceptable.
The most precious thing that you have is time and once you’ve squandered that time on whatever you are doing you will NEVER get it back.
So all that FREE time that you have can literally be subtracting from your quality of life if you are using it frivolously.
Yikes! That is a difficult way of looking at it and yet we all do it. Waste time on frivolous things.
So the most important resource you have and it is in limited quantities is your time, your life line will not get any longer to make up for the wasted time. There are no do overs, however, if you are conscientious then with effort and thought you (and me and we) can use our time carefully and wiser than we currently are using it.
Just another example of incrementally leading into the monumental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 21, 2021
Cloth
On a recent vacation we went to the beach and since I had a swimsuit on I put my wallet in my pocket.
Now since I don’t swim with stuff in my pockets hardly ever, I forgot my wallet was in my pocket and therefore it got wet when I went into the ocean.
Of course, I had some papers in my pocket (the money survived just had to dry it out so that is some good quality paper) but there were other papers that did not survive. I had to throw them out and what an inconvenience to replace.
It made me think that when we were starting out with our first baby and we bought some books that the best books we felt would survive the onslaught of a baby pulling, poking, salivating, or other baby type stresses put on the book, that the survivable books were plastic or cloth.
Cloth books could really take the mess and could be cleaned pretty easily. Why do we write or print important things we need to keep for years on paper? Why don't licenses, registrations, passports, vaccine cards and other important papers not come on better substances, like cloth or money type “paper” which is really a linen I think, or just be laminated.
Imagine a world with just that one little change made to our lives. Swim, fall in a creek, wade deeper knowing that your important documents are protected by a better substance than paper.
Government agencies are so slow to adapt to changes or use some forward thinking. Vaccine cards are on paper and are so easy to forge it is unreal that someone did not think of that happening. Driver’s licenses are now quite a better document than they used to be (yeah, they used to be on paper).
And of course, money, passports, driver’s licenses are now very protected against forgery or duplication due to the previous attempts at duplication and forgery.
One more thing about ID, it seems like the "I" stands for I and the "D" stands for Dentity which means that D is doing all the heavy lifting. (That is a Norm Macdonald-of SNL-joke of which my son recently reminded me.)
Fun stuff!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 19, 2021
Dysfunctional versus Disfunctional
dis- 1. a Latin prefix meaning “apart,” “asunder,” “away,” “utterly,” or having a privative, negative, or reversing force (see de-, un-2); used freely, especially with these latter senses, as an English formative: disability; disaffirm; disbar; disbelief; discontent; dishearten; dislike; disown.
There is more than one way to look at a word. Just saying, lol.
Dysfunctional versus Functional
Dysfunctional relationships some or more of the following:
Denial
Silence
Being Ridgid
Isolating
Functional relationships some or more of the following:
Honesty
Flexibility
Intimacy
Communication
When we recognize the functional from dis-functional it helps us to therefore choose the functional.
Functional is part of the incremental improvement we seek, so you know where the other leads.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 17, 2021
A little of This and a little of That
And now THIS:
Change your mindset, change the game. Dr. Alia Crum
Please, Please listen to this TED Talk, it is fantastic:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tqq66zwa7g
And now THAT:
I heard a song and the lyrics said, “...this maturity keeps me from being old…”
I like that and believe it can be true.
Our mindset is SO, SO important that we often do not pay attention to our mindset.
It can change the game, for sure.
Now on to a little of something else:
What if...
something goes wrong?
What if...
I am making or worse made a mistake?
What if...
this is the end of “blank” for me?
(fill in the blank with whatever you’d like)
But what if...
and this is a HUGE what if...
But what if...
...it all works out okay?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 15, 2021
Mixitry
As we have ascertained, life is poly faceted.
We carry within us knowledge from and of many disciplines, from cooking to chemistry to woodworking, to metallurgy, to biology, to astrology, to all kinds of knowledge and learning from near and from as far as the internet reaches and beyond.
There are so many -ologies that we are familiar with and have a passing to a thorough knowledge and learning of.
So what does all that mixitry mean?
It means that you are powerful and more powerful than anyone from the 1970’s and 1980’s and before.
Sure there were and are encyclopedias and great halls of books and a trip or dozens would reveal that knowledge to you if you took the time to read and digest and study.
Now it is all at your fingertips.
What do you do with those fingertips?
Do you spend time learning and gaining more knowledge or do you find out about socialites and celebrities and politicians and issues and news and what else?
What out there is worth knowing?
What is out there on the world wide web that you are ignoring and what is out that you are focused on?
Again it all depends on you and your choices.
I know I have banged that gong many times but reminders even for myself need to be extremely plentiful so I don’t waste my time with useless knowledge.
Useless knowledge is the bane of our society.
When the cash register (if they even call them that anymore) tells us what change so we don’t even have to count and add and subtract, when machines are so smart that it dumbs us down simply because we do not practice and practice to get good at math.
Why practice that skill when computers and calculators are at our fingertips?
What happens when there is a power outage?
Well, at least we have batteries.
But how long do those batteries last?
In a natural disaster, the concern is with survival and our skills at survival are minimal since everything is provided for and to us and it is a given. Until it is not a given.
When stores run out of stocks and delivery is down and power is scarce then we have to survive.
Maybe we should spend a bit of time now in order to learn some survival skills.
How to cook over an open fire maybe?
How to even start a fire maybe?
Oh there are lighters and matches but in a prolonged scenario those items become more and more scarce.
Just a thought. What do you think?
A mixitry of skills will provide us with the knowledge that we have enough skills to survive.
Without survival then everything else is moot.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
October 13, 2021
Indeed
Today let’s explore the word indeed.
indeed (adv.)
c. 1600, a contraction into one word of the prepositional phrase in dede "in fact, in truth, in reality" (early 14c.), from Old English dæd "a doing, act, action, event" (see deed (n.)). As an interjection, 1590s; as an expression of surprise or disgust, 1834. Emphatic form yes (or no) indeedy attested from 1856, American English.
The word Indeed is probably not used very much, at least I have not heard it much in the USA. Mostly heard in period pieces of England I suspect.
What are you indeed? Who are you indeed?
What are you in action and doing?
Who are you in action and doing?
What and who are you in truth?
Deed means action and indeed then literally means in action.
Oh no, another article related to our actions and how we need to think about our actions and use intent to ensure the actions we perform are actions that will attain our goals.
Nuff said on that subject I believe for now.
Our intent is displayed by us indeed. By doing, by performing, by moving our bodies in the way that achieves something to be able to be completed.
Started, in process and then completed.
Yes, being indeed means completion.
Indeed may also be a remark such as “my word”.
Yes your word is your indeed as well.
I am just flipping through many cycles of usage and trying to put a spin on it here and there in order for me to think about what I am saying and how it has significance.
I used to listen to a program called “A Way With Words” on NPR. A good program to delve into words.
Our words when chosen correctly can direct our thoughts which then direct our actions and those direct our questions into giving us feedback and information for the next cycle or iteration.
What are your thoughts about this?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 12, 2021
Opinions Matter
According to Wayne Dyer opinions matter.
No, not other people’s opinions about you.
Your opinions about you.
Other people’s opinions do not matter.
It is not that you don’t want their approval, their approval is welcome.
However, YOU DO NOT NEED, NEVER NEED someone’s approval.
To need it gives away your power.
For you will always be seeking that which you need.
Need your own approval.
Abraham Lincoln said, “I never had a policy; I have just tried to do my very best each and every day.”
(Finally Google is allowing me to insert images into my articles. Thanks Google.)
We chase shadows and not the real thing oftentimes.
We are building our character every day and we do not need a policy. If we do our best each day and follow our gut, our instinct, we can easily follow our will since our will is often what is best for us.
Following other people’s rules and guidelines lead us into thinking that one race is better than another (clue: no it does not matter nor is one better), bloodletting is an example of the best knowledge that medical practitioners had at the time, which we know was wrong, sterilization was not practiced, monarchy’s were gods, the earth was flat (which is still contested today, how on earth is that still contested?).
So we know even at times when there is groupthink that the group does not always know what is right.
A dumb rule is a dumb rule. Do not ignore it, work to change it.
Dumb rules are based upon incomplete or lack of knowledge about a subject.
Improve the knowledge, complete the incompleteness.
Now, for the how to do this:
The how, is to follow your best instinct at the time and attempt to do the right thing or correct it, although we may learn later that our knowledge was incomplete.
I never advocate breaking the law.
Do NOT break the law. Work at changing laws and rules that do not work or that fail.
To take matters into our own hands and ignore rules or laws will imperil our lives to some extent, maybe the full extent.
Never imperil yourself or others.
A carnival ride that states a child must be a certain height is a rule for safety. That safety prevents carnivals from liability and may be arbitrary but it is their rule and we must either comply or move on.
It is their rule and to break it imperils us or our child.
The rule was well thought out and the impact is very little.
Rules and guidelines are there to help us.
Either obey or work for change.
There is no inbetween ground.
Back to what others think of us:
Our goal is to advance our knowledge only, we do not work for achievements and accolades. The achievements and accolades are welcome and wanted, but NOT NEEDED.
Our advance of knowledge is first and foremost and this site is dedicated to the advance of knowledge.
Incremental to monumental over time.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 11, 2021
Dysfunction is Normal
Fog of War, this originally meant the uncertainty of battle situations; however, it is more universally applied now to certain situations. Natural disasters, large accidents, family chaos, and possibly is applicable to these and many other situations.
Clouded Mind, this is also known as brain fog or mental fog or maybe even mental fatigue. If you are bombarded by situations then you have this cloud that affects your mind and you’ll act differently than normal or maybe even not act at all at a time when action is certainly required.
Shadow of Doubt, the sometimes fleeting feeling that the action that you take is not correct to, maybe a more deep rooted foreboding of the correct action to take will not be correct no matter which action you chose.
The Certainty of Dysfunction. This phrase “Certainty of Dysfunction” was created by myself for this article. It means we have a measure of dysfunction that is taught or learned by our family, our culture, our teachers, our society, and other affiliations that we are born into or mantles that we assume as we join certain groups and philosophies.
We are born into dysfunction and it is not our fault. We learned it from our dysfunctional families. Oh, how cute, you think your family is free of dysfunction. Nay, nay, EVERY family and person has some form of dysfunction and this is VERY normal, for us to be living is dysfunctional. This is normal because we are human and every human may meet certain criteria that makes us like others; however, there are intrinsic and inherent fallibilities that we have or learn from the beginning.
I am really not picking on teachers. It is just one example of many that I could use for this article.
Teachers for instance and we can substitute below parents, leaders, society, culture, heritage, whatever portion of what and where we grew up in and those individuals involved have all presented information that you were not able to grasp.
There are teachers that forgot, or presented, or taught in a manner or left out important items when teaching you something at sometime, somewhere, somehow. It is not your fault, and it is not their fault, they are human and not everything is conveyed in a manner that we can assimilate and absorb.
We all assimilate and absorb via different methods and some are better than others yet how can our teachers know all those nuances about us.
Dysfunction is normal, it is very normal. There is no average dysfunction, it is just there and present in every situation. So one mows the lawn or does the dishes, is that dysfunctional? No, some tasks do not involve or they may involve dysfunction it depends. That is the tricky part: we do not have to diagnose, measure or identify it. Just know that it exists. Knowing something exists helps us to explore and maybe tune in to when it is affecting us or affecting a situation abnormally and then to correct or take a different approach.
Certainly once we realize it we may want or need to act differently and certainly not repeat it.
This is what makes the difference between autopilot and being aware and scanning and analyzing our behavior and others behavior.
This realization has benefits and it is not another radar on your roof and thousands of radar. One large radar is enough to perform the scanning and analyzing. Your brain can handle it. It will not overwhelm you since you are in control and can calm yourself and use it when you are able. There may be times when you do not use that scanning and analysis and that is not the end of the world, it is just for that moment you have decided that it is not important.
We humans are so fascinating and interesting and multifaceted.
The depth and breadth of our minds is like the ocean which is largely unexplored and I hear is largely unused.
Let’s tap into that large unexplored and that unused portion.
What do you think of these concepts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 10, 2021
Sic Parvis Magna
This was a Latin motto or saying that Francis Drake adopted or used.
First of all, who is Francis Drake? Francis Drake, turns out that he was a privateer which essentially means he was hired (so he was a “contractor”) by the English Monarch at the time to either sink other nations' ships (I believe Spain was the country they were at war with at the time) or take those other ships and their cargo.
Those spoils of war were supposed to go to the English Monarch; however, I believe he decided to keep those spoils for himself.
How would England know what he took and what he kept, if his crew kept quiet about it.
Be that as it may, he basically was a pirate rather than a privateer with that philosophy.
That does not diminish his philosophy.
His philosophy is:
Which can be translated a couple of ways I’m listing below:
Sic parvis magna — from small beginnings come great things
The source is: https://asstra.com/press-centre/asstra-videos/asstra-transportation/megatransports-7/
Sir Francis Drake with his new heraldic achievement, with motto: Sic Parvis Magna, translated literally: "Thus great things from small things (come)
Thus monumental things (great things) come from incremental things (small things).
Tada!
What a fantastic philosophy which we teach and practice and adopt and adapt right here on this very site.
Wonderful that great minds think alike.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 23, 2021
Poly Faceted
Meaning many facets.
If one takes a poly faceted dice and rolls it, the die would stop due to the friction of each facet as it rolls across the floor.
The less facets the less easily it would roll.
Conversely the more facets the more easily it rolls across the floor.
It it has millions of facets or no facets then it becomes more like a marble which will roll until it hits the wall or a rug or something that stops it from rolling.
Sometimes in our poly faceted life we don’t even realize we are rolling “across the floor”.
What does “rolling across the floor” mean?
It can mean just existing. It can mean just motating without direction, just letting others, emotions or conditions push us around and we take off rolling with those emotions or conditions until the next emotion, other person, news or conditions present other issues and ping us into rolling in another direction or ping us into rolling the same direction faster and faster.
We are not controlling our direction, let along the what that is pinging us into motion.
Those controls mean we are taking our life and creating the meaning and not letting others, news, conditions or issues create the meaning.
Yes, again we are the god that defines and determines who and what we are, unless we let those others, news, conditions or issues determine who and what we are.
Thought, Word, Deed (action) and Questions are the key.
Those are OUR key to ourselves and self defining and self creation.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
September 21, 2021
Imaginate
This is a word that I just heard (that rhymes) from Richard Grannon on one of his latest videos.
He has some great videos and this one is exceptionally good.
Four ways to create a better life video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtqMaQKorF0
Thought
Word
Deed
Questions
Just that simple. One must listen to the explanations of each one of the four but it is not only “intertaining” (I just made up that word).
Since you have to go “in” to the hows and whys and the benefits and “in” to oneself and what one are doing currently and what to change “in” oneself.
Maybe there are things you need to change and maybe there are things that you are doing correctly.
It never hurts to have reminders and to inspect the mileposts along the way to ensure that the directions we are going “in” are the correct ones.
This is a poly faceted life and I have more to say about that in the next article.
Until then, enjoy.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
September 19, 2021
Choices
Recently an individual gave me like 3 or 4 choices.
Let us say A, B, C and D for instance.
After emphasizing that choice A was at 5 or 6 in the morning and that I “COULD” choose that, I said I’m not gonna do that and this individual says, “You COULD.”
I said, Why would I get up at 5 or 6 in the morning when choice B, C and D were later in the day so I would not have to set an alarm. I could just get up, have my morning like usual then do B, C or D.
So I felt Choice A was not a real choice.
Then I found out, luckily before I made a choice, that the individual preferred that I chose choice D.
After thinking about it, I said, why did you offer me all those other choices since you preferred D and really it made no difference to me except that I have normal sleep.
Well, they said, you could still choose A, B, C or D.
I said that, since I care about you as a friend then you preference would take precedence unless I had a preference which I did not.
So in the end I felt like that any choice but D was either at least a set up for a discussion or at the most a trap.
When are your choices traps?
Is this intentional in our society now?
Do people, friends, loved ones, relatives, spouses, workers, coworkers or even bosses give us choices that are traps?
I do not expect for people on that list of people above (friends, loved ones, relatives, spouses, workers, coworkers or even bosses) to give us choices that are not choices. I have had many bosses that do not want honest or truthful discussion of facts, they want me to hear their discussion of the choices then me to choose their choice. That happened to me all the time.
What good is surrounding yourself with people who say, Yes, whatever you say is best?
There have been many leaders and even of countries that have made that habit of not listening to good advice but doing what they want regardless of what is best or at least performing pros and cons and an analysis of a few scenarios to determine the course of action that has the most benefits to the most people.
It is time that this country, nation, and citizens realize that their decisions impact many people and a balanced and thoughtful decision that will impact the least people with negativity and the most people with positivity will rule with those gains in mind.
There are some instances where the good of the few outweigh the good of the many but that type of decision needs thorough discussion and maybe the many will see that benefit and maybe they will not.
But at least the decision needs to be thorough and thoughtful and carefully weighed and then maybe the reasons even listed, over this is the way it is and you cannot question it.
Questions are always allowed and if not then it is not a democracy it is a dictatorship.
The question why has to be answered.
We may not like it but it affects us and we need to know why.
What are your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
September 17, 2021
Cog
From Oxford Dictionary online:
cog1
/käɡ/
See definitions in:
All
Mechanics
Nautical
Medieval History
noun
noun: cog; plural noun: cogs
a wheel or bar with a series of projections on its edge, which transfers motion by engaging with projections on another wheel or bar.
"the cogs and springs of a watch"each of the projections on a cog.
"applewood was the favorite material for the cogs or teeth of a cogwheel"
Phrases
a cog in the machine — a small or insignificant member of a larger organization or system.
"copywriters have been seen as just a cog in the big advertising machine"
Yet maybe cog is something more than what is stated above. To me, it is also a root word:
Is COG a prefix?
The prefix co[g]- becomes, cog- before g: cognition, [co + gnoscere, "to know"], et al.
So does cog mean to know?
What about cogitate?
Is this part of cog?
What if all those little gears in our brain that make us cognitive, give us cognition, add to our knowledge are cogs?
Each of these incremental cogs are part of us and we give them life, meaning and drive them.
We are the engines of our cogs.
All this means that in this internet world, you can be instantly added to emails, texts, phone calls by machines and by people who are happy to continually push their agenda into your face.
This site is completely different from that.
If you wish to contact me you can, I do not reach out to anyone, I have no PUSH content, or automatic email list, you can’t even subscribe to me.
You must make the effort to log on to your phone, computer, whatever and then actually go to my site and then read the content to learn and read these articles.
You come to me of your own volition and I sincerely appreciate that and that is always in my mind when I write these articles to inform, enlighten, entertain and be inclusive yet really exclusive.
These words what I say is not for everyone, even though I’ve readers from all over the world and thousands of them.
In a Google search this site does not come up first rarely ever. So this is an inside secret.
It is not easy to share my content, since there is no easy way of sharing.
I have no way of being “liked”, voted up nor is this site invasive.
I do not glean any information, cookies or any other snacks from you.
Your information is yours and this site respects that.
Thank you for reading.
Any comments? Anything you’d like to ask?
Just email and we’ll talk about it.
Most of all I am here for you, you are never here for me.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 15, 2021
DIVORCE
One thing that I may or may not have mentioned is the fact that my parents were divorced when I was really young and all my memories of them together are not very happy ones, even though there are pictures that show different.
D-I-V-O-R-C-E
(That song by Tammy Wynette was popular on Country Radio when I was growing up and I hated it because of my parents' stigma that I took upon myself.)
That particular act of theirs seems to have haunted me throughout my life.
Divorce besides meaning to dissolve a marriage also means “separate or dissociate (something) from something else.
"we knew how to divorce an issue from an individual"”
That is according to a source on the internet so I’ve put it in quotes.
Why did that act perpetrated by someone else to someone else define me?
After that all I saw were happy families with mom and dad and children, but I did not have this so I thought I had no happiness.
I chose to define myself and my life and I chose to think that there was something that I could have done to change the minds of two selfish individuals.
It was their act not mine.
When I used the word “haunt” above it literally has been that way for the majority of my childhood, teen years, and early adult life.
So much so that I would do anything not to put my children through that since it was so painful to me.
The agony of not having both parents together in a marriage at a time in history that the divorce rate was extremely low. That rate has since climbed significantly and the stigma is significantly less but it is still a stigma to some of us.
Our pain points drive us and if we do not control that then they not only control, but define and bind us.
Putting a spin on our history may help us feel better, have better emotions, and think of ourselves differently.
Quite a lot to unpack and process. I still am even though I’ve been writing over the years about our choices and that we can change our choices.
That rut is so ingrained and has such a grip.
How can we let it go, that which we have chosen and chose other paths?
How do we change who we are?
When the pain gets so intense, then maybe it is finally time for us to go through the transition.
It does not mean we will go from one way of thinking to another just like clicking a switch.
Far from it. It is a day by day (sometimes hour by hour) change in us.
Those increments of our change will define us with tomorrows that are brighter and less clouded with pain.
Put down the pain and pick up the change. Even if for a moment the relief will be worth it.
That relief can then continue to propel us to more change. Little by little.
So you control your destiny by those little changes.
Yes, we will back slide and we will revert but those are temporary and we can take the proverbial two steps forward and one step back dance but that dance becomes more effective as we progress those two steps.
But hey, that dance does not begin until we take at least one step.
Ready to dance?
On another note I saw an episode of the “Hit and Run” series that was titled, Prose and Cons.
I love this twist of words and phraseology.
So very cool.
If you see this kind of wording that has puns or intentional bendings and meanings of words I really would love to see them.
Just email them to me and I’ll share them and credit you if you wish.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 13, 2021
Regulation
Without regulation as a society we are lost.
Self regulation is the best way to regulate; however, banks and schools, corporations and even politicians do not self regulate. They all have rules and regulations to follow since those institutions did not have the self regulation and did things that promoted their own self interest over what is considered reasonable and acceptable.
Too often when they do unreasonable or unacceptable things they are not punished enough. Just more laws and regulations are passed to try to keep them in line.
Loopholes are ways around regulations.
Some people make careers around finding loopholes, others just ignore and hack their way through systems and gates and crash in and take what is not theirs.
Rights are abused and destroyed, even law enforcement does not self regulate at times. The very people we depend on to follow regulations and enforce regulations.
A self regulated person has more peace and calm. Less drama is required and yet it seems that we are handed more drama as much as possible.
Time to take a note from Young Guns the film and say,
“Regulators, let’s ride!”
You and I are regulators of our growth, of our demeanor, of our universe and our choices give us more or less of what we want or give us more of what we don’t want.
If we regulate our choices then our lives are enriched and so are the lives of those we come into contact with.
Again, “Regulators, let’s ride!” together.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
Just added a new story to my stories tab which is here:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/stories-written-by-david-alan-binder
September 11, 2021
Writing is Writing
From Seth Godin:
“There’s no such thing as writer’s block. There’s simply a fear of bad writing. Do enough bad writing and some good writing is bound to show up.
And along the way, you will clarify your thinking and strengthen your point of view.
But it begins by simply writing something.”
The gist of this is even bad writing is good writing since you are getting used to the process, you are practicing, you are learning, you are writing.
The most important part of writing is writing.
If you don’t write then you are not, so it becomes easy when you think of it that way.
Writing is writing.
If "You Are a Writer (So Start Acting Like One [and write])": Jeff Goins
Easy, yet hard. Simple, yet it takes a lifetime to master.
On the continuum of life it does not matter if you are a teenager, a young adult, middle age or older-yet wiser.
Use your life to write. You will be writing texts, emails and other missives in your whole life, if you include studies then you write notes, your lessons, many things and they all take skill.
I am sure your assignments from elementary school were very different from high school or college, but it is all writing and that is the important part.
Each time you learn and grow and put that growth into the next time you write.
Writing is writing.
Remember that and incremental writing leads to monumental writing.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 9, 2021
Negative Narrative
No, we are not talking about writing; we are discussing thoughts and emotions and our inner narrative.
If we complain a lot, then that is a negative narrative.
There are other signs of a negative narrative; if you are critical of yourself or others.
If you see conspiracies in your friends, family or relationships or coworkers.
If the world is against you that is a negative narrative.
The way we view the things around us is a view created only by us.
Our views, our perspectives, our paradigms are literally our choice.
If we choose to view something as positive or negative is within our control.
We control our universe and in that respect you are the god of your thoughts. You can make them or destroy them or do what you will with them.
You are that powerful and omnipotent.
The thing is we don’t realize it.
The “think” is we don’t realize it.
The think is the thing.
Our think is the thing.
The biggest thing is our “think”.
When we realize that, then we realize just how powerful we really are.
How powerful are you?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 7, 2021
Perspective
I am reading Harlan Coben’s book “Missing You”. A character in it goes through some introspection and to do that talks a walk in Central Park.
That character’s father taught him in the video and smartphone age that it pays to change to something else. The father back in the day had his mother yell at him to put the book down and go outside.
Imagine being told to put down a book to go outside.
However, what matters is that we change our consistent pattern from one thing to another. This gives us change. It gives us perspective. And as the Dad liked to emphasize it gives us balance.
Being out in nature does not really add anything to us if we usually do that. Being in balance does that for us.
We change from what we usually do to something different in order to take that change of pace and maybe it will bring us boredom.
Boredom allows us to think about something else for a change, not the same old same old.
Boredom means our creative juices get a change to be let loose and find out what those juices think of, turn up, run into and just plain run down like a down running around just for fun and sometimes will find something very interesting.
Turn your brain loose by making changes and changes will give you new perspectives and new perspectives will give you balance.
If a tire is not balanced it can work against our forward momentum and we can lose traction, lose gas mileage, and moreover wear out way too fast.
Incremental change, perspective and balance into your new monumental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 5, 2021
Just another day
So we were recently traveling and happened to stay at a Country Inn and Suites is a book lovers paradise because they have partnered with Penguin Random House Books and offer a complementary Read It & Return Lending Library.
Sad news though there are not very many books on the one I stayed at. Some books are kept behind the check in desk in a cabinet with glass doors.
I asked the clerk (a 20 to 30 something) to tell me which books were there (only 4 or so).
They had one book with two names on the cover Daniel Defoe on the top and Robinson Crusoe towards the bottom both in about the same size font. She pulled it down and showed it to me and said, “I don’t know which is the author and which is the book title”
I told her it was a very famous old book and she looked inside and said it was written April 25, 1719. Yep, I said it was really old when the original was written. The point is she did not know that.
Are schools failing or is that not important about some books, I am not sure. At least I knew that and was able to inform her.
We can help other peoples’ incremental as well as our own. Granted this was not earth shattering but each bit of knowledge is important in its own right and who knows when a couple of bits or more might add up to a monumental shift.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 3, 2021
It Never Gets Old
What does this mean to you?
What activity or activities can you apply this to?
Cleaning the bathroom?
Cleaning anything?
Working in the garage?
Working around the house?
Cleaning the garage?
Yard work?
What activity(ies) do you do that never get old?
That is where your heart is!
That is where your mind is!
That is where you belong, doing that activity(ies).
So you try to do them as much as possible.
When I sit down to this computer to write this or any other article, that never gets old.
It does not mean that I always have ideas for an article, sometimes I don’t.
I have to think, plan and cogitate on the article and things I’ve read or heard or seen to get the ideas but once the idea gels then I am full bore ready to write it.
That is how you want to feel about your profession or professional hobby (which I consider this to be). It cannot be a profession since I make very little at it, but it is a labor of love and I really enjoy it.
What do you really enjoy doing?
Try doing more of that activity(ies) since it will enhance and bring peace and you will find such enjoyment.
Encourage your children to balance their activities. I know they will say social media or games are their enjoyment, but that interaction is really temporary and an escape.
The activity needs to be one that gives you progression in life and social media, watching the screen, and games do not ever give you life progression. Games especially are able to give you a sense of progression through levels and achievements but they are digital and not real.
So what are your thoughts on this or any other subject?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 1, 2021
What do you need?
A comedian once said when his son wanted $100 shoes.
I’ll pay $50 dollars for your shoes. Son says, but I need these $100 shoes.
Dad says, no, you need shoes. I have $50 for shoes, so what you “need” is another $50 to get the $100 shoes. Now the question is, how are you going to get another $50?
Back to us and our needs.
Do you need a car?
No, there are many ways to get around from walking, taxi, other modes of paid point to point transportation, public systems like busses, trains, planes, rentals, scooters, bikes, etc.
If you limit your choice to having to have a car then there are many expenses that go with that mode that you have to pay up front in order to get somewhere.
So where are you going is the first question?
Now how best to get there and maybe what are the cheaper options.
These questions and the thought process helps us develop pros and cons, the good, the bad and the sometimes ugly way of tackling problems not just of transportation but other life dilemmas as well.
Our choices may make our wants needs. We have the choice to either fulfill a want or a need. Which do we choose?
Too often our needs are replaced and destroyed by our wants. To buy a candy bar when your household needs soap is a huge sacrifice to your household, to cleanliness, yes you can wash with just water or shampoo or disinfect your hands with sanitizer however soap is a pretty basic necessity for our lives.
The quality of your life is determined by your choices and what needs you choose over your wants.
Pretty simple but that candy bar is so tempting and you’ll be able to get that soap another day.
Your choices make the quality of your life better or worse.
Here’s to incrementally making good choices for a monumental tomorrow.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 31, 2021
Treasure
There is treasure everywhere. I regularly find money on the sidewalk, in the park ($5 bill near the basketball court), quarters, etc. It is fantastic to find something of value. Once I found a multitool that is worth about $60. That is just in the last year alone.
So if you were to find a box. What would you like to find in that box?
Wait. Wait. Think about it before saying to yourself, hope that box is chock full of money.
Really. What do you consider valuable?
What would be a worthy find?
Really think deeply about it.
What if you could find anything?
A cure.
A new skill.
A true find that helps humanity.
Would you want something selfish in the box or something that gives to all of us?
This kind of thinking exercise lets us explore our consciousness and even our unconscious gets involved if we put it on the back burner and let it simmer.
Exploration of the mind is the kind of exploring that we do so little of.
In this age of our planet most things have been thoroughly explored or take special tools and equipment to explore more than it has already been explored. Not to mention costly trips and destinations and maybe even guides and helpers.
An expedition can be extremely expensive.
Take a journey to your mind.
Courtesy of the Amboy Dukes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrUH9pGk90w
I encourage you to find your incremental mind by exploring constantly and unceasingly to find your monumental mind.
There is a new free lesson, it has been added one day early!
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 29, 2021
The Power of Incremental
We all do it and we all experience it from the time we crawl to now. We have progressed in so many ways from physical to mental to psychic.
Do you think about it or does it just happen?
Yes, progression is progression even if you don’t think about it. And yes progression multiplies because with knowledge comes more knowledge. The more you have to build on the easier and more we can learn.
And yes, it is nice to think about it and enjoy it and relish in it even.
Celebrate the small things (incremental).
Take joy in the small things like nature, a flower blooming, the quiet, the power of the mind, the power of NOT thinking and letting the mind go rampant, running away with every thought so that you can not concentrate on more important things.
An accomplishment that is acknowledged by even yourself gives back to you and boosts you (NOT YOUR EGO THOUGH!) That is the portion of you that we need less of is ego.
Eckhart Tolle breaks down the ego in simplified terms.
And yes, he has dozens of videos on the ego alone.
Words are pointers and each word is a signpost and it is up to you to look beyond the word and see what it is pointing at.
Recognize that the word is meant to share not only that word but experiences and danger and other aspects of life that we would not get from grunts.
Oh, grunts are pointers as well but not as useful if all grunts sound somewhat the same.
The power of a grunt is lost in the power of a word.
Use your words.
Use your intellect.
Use your knowledge.
Use your power.
Words are power, wisdom and a signpost for greater things beyond.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 27, 2021
The Power of YOU
Fun with words:
A reader, a Dear Reader, sent in this tidbit:
Collider scope is a fun word, actually two words to replace the one word kaleidoscope.
What are your fun words you’ve thought of in the last week or so? Let me know.
I cannot emphasize enough the power of the book by Eckhart Tolle. Here is a book review:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgGtNgLSCqU
Here is a summary he posts of the review:
“The Power of Now, by Eckhart Tolle - The concepts in this book can come across as very simple, but don’t let that trick you into dismissing them without any contemplation. these concepts, although simple, are profound.. The power of now gets into some deep stuff that needs to be reflected on way beyond a short video summary… With that said, keep an open mind going into this. You may get an initial reaction to resist what this book teaches, but just put your opinions and judgments to the side for a few minutes and consider the possibilities.
The three primary concepts I want to focus on are as follows: 1, you are not your mind, 2 - the present moment is all we ever have, and 3 - acceptance of what is.”
This is a breakthrough book and will change your life if you let it.
The book is a masterpiece of learning about yourself and how you operate.
The little incremental time that you use to listen or read the book will add monumentally to your monumental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 25, 2021
Romantification
When I wrote Romantification I wondered if it was really a word, so I Googled it.
No, it is NOT a real word SO I have just coined a new word, TA-DA!
To me Romantification means the way we romanticize things we know very little about.
Many people think since we live in Southern California everything is peachy.
SoCal is just like everywhere else. There are good things about it and bad things.
We live in a desert and the heat in the summer can get to over 100 many days in a row and upwards of 115 regularly which is crappy.
However, on the plus side during November to March when it is cold and snowy and blizzardy up north we have sun and sun and more sun and temps are very mild and it may get down to 40 or 50 or 60 at night but warms up during the day to 70 or even 80 and can feel warmer due to the constant sun.
Before we retired we researched the heck out of living somewhere cheap like Mexico, Costa Rica, Belize and other places of that nature.
We ALWAYS looked at both sides of the equation. For every good thing about a place there are bad things.
Most of those countries the plumbing system can not handle toilet paper so you DO NOT FLUSH it ever since it will clog up pipes. So what do you do with it? Put it in a convenient trash can that is placed by the toilet. Imagine how that plays out. That filth is right there everytime you go into the bathroom to shower, brush your teeth or etc. You have to take it out very often since toilet paper can have CRAP on it. Talk about being very disgusting. That one thing alone can be daunting.
Let me tell you about the wildlife. I mean WILD! Monkees, very large lizards and reptiles and snakes and those fire ants and roaches the size of tanks. Heck, we even have those types of roaches here in SoCal. I still hate them so much and it is worse when they invade your house and we spray in and outside the house at least once a month. And still get them.
At least in Iowa during the winter we did not have to deal with bugs so much since they went dormant or waited until it was warmer to emerge.
We’ve been researching living in a RV part or full time and there are so many pros and cons.
Please ensure that you perform research on your potential lifestyle changes FULLY! Take your time, make lists, talk to lots of people, search, search and search for different ways to cut the cake. (What pests are in the certain place you want to live? What is the weather like, year round, potential disasters, earthquakes, tornadoes, fires, etc?)
Often our planning is not thorough NOR is it balanced. We read about the luxury of basking in the sun on the beach with margaritas and forget that there may be sand flies or fleas or other biting insects. Yeah, no-see-ums live in sunny sandy places other than Canada and Minnesota and I am sure in other places.
If you have wonderful evenings to sit out on the patio and get mobbed by mosquitoes it may affect your quality of life outside. If you don’t enjoy being eaten or wearing Deet or other pesticides full time on your skin then that may affect your decision to live in places that have mosquitoes or whatever pest you may learn about.
Another factor in lifestyle changes is how difficult is it to reverse your decision if you decide not to like what you moved into.
Basically if you want to RV, rent before you buy. If you want to move somewhere exotic, visit and rent before you buy.
Try before you buy is a wonderful motto in lifestyle changes and if you are just trying then you can decide to not make those changes.
I knew a woman who’d been single for over 15 years. In one year she retired, moved from the desert here to the South, and she married. Three huge lifestyle changes. MAKE SURE YOU DO YOU RESEARCH EXTENSIVELY before doing any or all of those things. Know what I'm saying?
In our lives we sometimes make decisions that are impossible or very inconvenient to back out of then we are stuck.
Incrementally make changes and try it before adopting the whole new style, and your life will become monumental by following that philosophy.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 23, 2021
Marinade
Last night we had kabobs with lots of veggies and beef and chicken that had been marinated.
The marinade added a flavor that the meat did not have on its own.
This soaking in the juices of flavor is like us soaking up sunshine to warm ourselves and give us something we would not have on our own.
Learning has a marinade component. To learn a language it is best to immerse oneself in it rather than a few minutes a day.
Immersive learning is marinade learning I think.
The marinade approach steeps us like tea to soak up and soak in and get flavor out of the learning leaves.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 21, 2021
Social Eyes
We tend to socialize on social media way more than we just call someone up and chat.
In a distracted society it seems we have to be connected way too many hours of the day and yet when we are connected in person we can not give the other person the time to finish thoughts and completely explore subjects. We are constantly interrupted by “notifications” that are just busy and distracting us from really living.
Our sense of social eyes does not see how to socialize clearly.
As Eckhart Tolle states we must practice being in the now to maintain extreme clarity from social media and from our minds which are constantly haranguing us with thoughts and recriminations and past and future narratives.
To all of my dear readers I highly recommend listening to and practicing “The Power of Now” full audiobook by Eckhart Tolle which is FREE!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckB-wue0TiU
I have listened to it many times and I’ve heard that to truly learn and understand something you may have to experience it through reading or listening up to 10 times.
The brain is too easily distracted while listening and there are many parts that were hard to capture exactly what he was directing me to do. It is quite simple stuff, just so different from what I usually do. It is like learning a different language.
One has to continually repeat and then continually practice to get it perfected.
It is really a good lesson on life, this continual practice to get principles perfected.
I’ve had to do it so many times that it is becoming a habit to instill within me the practices and principles to being a highly motivated, highly anticipative, highly cognizant individual.
If I let myself run on automatic then I am not self directing and channeling my thoughts and self.
It is a marvel how our brain thinks, copes and compensates and sometimes just refuses to create new neural pathways from what is familiar and so ingrained.
Try it and see!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 19, 2021
Autonomy
The ability to act responsible. As we age we gain more autonomy in our choices and lives.
5 year olds do not have the same autonomy as 25 year olds.
It would be a fantastic life if there were less laws if citizens had the responsibility to govern themselves.
I am sure that as laws were first thought up many who passed them did not think of all the loopholes that others would possibly think of to jump through and “get away” on a technicality.
Lawbreakers many, many years ago did not have many rights since many thought that law keepers would do the right thing and enforce the laws judiciously; however, in some cases that did not happen.
Law enforcers were given autonomy and then that autonomy had to be reigned in and more rights given to law breakers.
I know when our government was set up that there was balance between the judicial and the executive and the legislative and ever since some of those branches have tried to work around and take advantage of some of the other branches.
Wouldn’t it be lovely if we all played by the rules and did not seek loopholes to take advantage over others.
We do not seem to be very responsible at times.
We all fall into this category.
Disputes about who owes who what and who is taking advantage of who else is rampant in our legal system.
Corporations seem to be able to find the largest loopholes and take advantage of tax and money savings and pass those on to the consumer.
No one wants to pay their fair share yet we all demand to receive our fair share.
Which side of the fence of this controversy are you?
How do you feel about this subject?
Love to hear from each of you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 15, 2021
Keyhole VS Door
There are many views in the world. Some views limit us and some are limitless.
What vistas await you?
What are you missing due to your limited vision or something blocking your vision?
We all have vision deficit and we all need more vision, more clarity, more ability to see things as they really are and not as others would like us to think they are.
Refer to the title of this article and ask yourself, which are you looking through?
Is the cloudiness in your vision a product of your belief system, a limit in your mind or in someone else’s mind.
Who do you please with the current vision you have now?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
If we rely on others for our vision then we are subject to manipulation.
If we rely on ourselves for our vision then we are subject to some possible entrapments by our culture, our friends, our company, our political or other beliefs.
We try to win the “race” of life and yet we sometimes use fuel that does not add ability to propel us.
Something to think about.
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 13, 2021
Superstition
Today is Friday the Thirteenth. Does this day hold or mean anything to you? Do you dread today and the implications of 13? Plus Friday together? Why?
Something to examine within yourself and ask does this belief system serve me? Or do I serve that belief system?
Wikipedia states that superstitions abound in most cultures. A few are listed here:
Bad luck is an unpredictable outcome that is unfortunate. This is a list of signs believed to bring bad luck according to superstitions:
Breaking a mirror is said to bring seven years of bad luck[1]
Bird or flock going from left to right (Auspicia)(Paganism)[citation needed]
Certain numbers:
The number 4 (tetraphobia) in Chinese culture, Japan and Korean cultures, which sounds like "death" in most of those languages.[2][3][4][5]
The number 9 in Japanese culture which sounds like the Japanese word for "suffering".[4][5]
Also in Japanese culture, maternity wards numbered 43, as it can literally mean "still birth"[6]
The number 13, known as triskaidekaphobia
The number 17 in Italian culture[7]
The number 39, known as the curse of 39, in Afghan culture[8]
The number 666, known as hexakosioihexekontahexaphobiaFriday the 13th (In Spain, Greece and Georgia: Tuesday the 13th)
Failing to respond to a chain letter[9]
Giving a clock as a gift in Chinese culture, as in Chinese, to give a clock has the same pronunciation as attending their funeral[10]
Hanging a horseshoe with the ends pointing down, as it is believed that the luck will 'fall out'[11]
On the Isle of Man, rats are referred to as "longtails" as saying "rat" is considered bad luck.[13][14]
Placing chopsticks straight up in a bowl of rice in Chinese and Japanese culture is reminiscent of food offerings left for the dead. [18]
Pointing towards feces (England)[19]
Saying the word "Macbeth" or wishing someone "Good Luck" while inside a theatre
Tipping a salt shaker over[12]:188
Viewing one's doppelgänger may be considered a harbinger of bad luck
Black cat crossing one's path[12]:294
Are superstitions real?
Do you believe in them?
If so then that belief places limiters on your behavior whether that belief is actually true or not. The fact that you believe it makes it true to you.
If you think about something like, I am not sick but what if I was sick, does that increase the likelihood that you will get sick.
I know people during WW2 that stated they did not believe that the holocaust was happening since those people were German and believed that German people would not do anything like that.
All people are capable of most anything no matter what tribe, culture or nationality. A lot of atrocities have been committed but also a lot of good has been committed by people of all races.
So your belief system shapes you and guides you and limits or unlimits you depending on your beliefs and how you follow those beliefs.
Letting your beliefs (which may or may not be truths) guide you may be leading you to follow something false since a belief may or may not be true.
Something to think about.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 11, 2021
One Size Fits All
One size that does and yet does not fit all is life. Life is the size you want it to be. We learn early on to stay in the lines, fit in with others, share, play nicely and conform. Conformity does not allow you to be completely you. Conformity only allows you to be like others.
Our uniqueness becomes obscured by our conformity. Rules, norms and behavior studies are based upon statistics and standards and majorities of family feud style of what the most people would do.
Are you like most people? Maybe, maybe not. You are like some people sometimes. You are NOT like some people at other times.
The collective we, tends to outweigh and obscure the individual me.
Our vision allows us to see both. Realize both. To be both at the same time.
Our expectations, others expectations can blind us to us and only see the we.
The wart or scar or or physical imperfection, we may think of the mental limitation, or capacity or ability to be completely cognitive we see as a defect. What if it is only unique-ness? What if it ALLOWS us to stand apart? What if it is not a boundary? We love to place limiters upon ourselves and on others rather than accept those and declare them as individualisms. Those are not limitations or defects, those allow us to be part of the herd yet distinct.
Many of us would like to physically or mentally adhere to some imaginary standards that media or other sources impose and repeatedly feed us. Feed yourself a different view and standards and norms have no power over you.
Of course, this is an attitudinal shift that takes place slow but surely. You are beginning to...(insert your shift in whatever thinking here) and it starts to happen. We feel it within us, we allow it to evolve and loosen the controls of others. It takes many mental reminders and path corrections during each day for us to become the real us.
Incremental shifts become monumental shifts.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 9, 2021
Uncertainty
We love familiarity and with familiarity comes certainty since we know what to expect. That is one of the largest reasons we don’t change, don’t like change, and won’t change even though we accept that we need to change.
What a dichotomy and a contradiction within us.
Certainty versus uncertainty.
It is a hard choice yet one that only we can make. Typically when the certain and familiar comes to a certain point within us then we are ready for change and will move in another direction and precipitate that change, finally.
The tipping point for change is within us and only we know when that shift has enough power and momentum that we finally move away from certainty and into the zone of uncertainty and change.
Think of a time when you changed behaviors. For me when I established my own household I was adamant that I would have a clean house and not hoard things like my mom did. I hated living in that place growing up and even though it was familiar it was repulsive and I knew that my room was my zone of cleanliness and non-hoarding. Every other room was not my zone and it was excruciating to live in that zone.
When I visited my dad or other people’s houses it was a breath of fresh air to be able to visit and be in those spaces that had cleanliness and areas to sit or move in without the impedance of stuff always in the way.
When we would visit my mom after I moved out, it was like we were unexpected (she knew we were coming but made no effort to facilitate us being there until after we were there). She would move stuff off of the couch and chairs so we could sit down AFTER we arrived. (How rude!)
It made us feel that she did not care for us or about us or our feelings.
So I’ve gone on long enough about me. What about you? What makes you comfortable and cared for and loved?
Do you establish that in your life so you know that when others visit they feel cared about and wanted?
Thinking of those times and how you feel about things and visiting other people's houses and places they live and the feelings and vibes you get from that visit and if it is pleasant or not helps you to formulate how to live your life and establish a home.
You establishing that home and place to live helps you to establish boundaries and breed familiarity that you can live with and enjoy.
May we all be a joy and have enjoyment when we are visited and when we visit others.
Establishing your zone, area and place takes incremental steps yet adds immeasurably to your life and the livability that you feel in that space.
We are incrementally heading toward our monumental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 7, 2021
David Alan Binder YouTube Channel
This YouTube Channel has a few videos and slideshows I’ve created from vids and pics.
The sharks are from Manhattan Beach which we saw off of the Manhattan Beach Pier in July 7, 2015.
The Isla Mujeres videos and pics are from July 17 to 31, 2021. You will see Baracuda as we snorkel and from the shore near our rental.
Also, fantastic video of a Whale Shark. So magnificent.
All our vacations have been planned for years and paid for by ourselves entirely. We've had no contributions for over two years and that is absolutely acceptable. If you can afford it and it is entirely up to you. This is a labor of love and we expect to not make any money. None of our channels are monetized nor do we have ad revenue or any other kind of payout or sponsorships at all. This site is entirely free as is the YouTube channel.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3JjSVinPTZpt38yvwm33bw
Please like and share with your friends.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 5, 2021
Quitting is for Quitters
From The Oregon Trail by Rinker Buck:
“Sometimes you are doing quite a lot by not doing anything. You are not quitting.” You just keep going. That’s all there is to doing something is not quitting.
So the effort we put in everyday proves that we are not quitters. That we put concentrative effort and thought into our actions to achieve desirable outcomes.
Also, we realize that effort spent in ways that are diverse to our goals, can be contradictory to effort that could be spent in a productive direction.
Spending time frivolously means we are quitters.
We may not be quitters but we are squanderers and have robbed ourselves of quality time.
We’ve subverted our accomplishments by wasting the time we could have spent in the direction of our accomplishments rather than away from them.
Every move we make is directional. Either you are heading toward something or even if it is temporary you are heading away from that something.
Driving down the highway and stopping by the side of the road to spend time texting, phoning, gaming or whatever instead of driving means the longer it will take you to get to where you want to go, and want to be.
You impede yourself from maybe ever getting there by that kind of logic, yet people do that all the time when they get in front of a screen and spend hours and hours going nowhere.
Spend your time going somewhere instead of nowhere.
Incremental going somewhere becomes monumental going somewhere.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 3, 2021
Also assignment or lesson 8 has been added to this area:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
Bile
Too often the application of words from human health conditions permeate into other parts of language.
We may think of someone that seems to have bile in their behavior as a bad person.
However, knowing that bile aids in digestion and is NOT acidic and is actually helpful to the humans that it operates in makes bile a useful thing.
Now bile reflux is another matter and medically it is not germane to this discussion; however, this reflux is not good for us.
The concept I am attempting to grasp here for myself as well as you Dear Readers is that for me it is extremely important to use my terminology clearly to describe what is happening in my life.
Being able to clarify and assimilate is a basic human instinct and perpetuates our understanding and increases our learning.
I often when presented with new concepts attempt to attach or hang them or associate those new concepts with something else I already know.
This may or may not skew the new concept if I don’t entirely understand the knowledge I am associating the new concept with. Or the meaning I have of the previous knowledge may put a “spin” on the new concept.
Concepts can be constructs from previous knowledge. Constructs may be real or may be entirely fictional or may be somewhere in between.
Our conception may be obstructed by our previous knowledge (or constructs) or skewed by what we were taught or told or our limited understanding.
I seem to be laboring and sometimes in touch with real reality and sometimes a fictional reality that most often happens in relationships with others.
I want to trust and be trusted however due to the several times I’ve been hurt by trusting it is difficult to trust.
So this skews my relationships and I finally realize that that happens and if we can compensate for our limitations in some areas it can help in other areas.
Compensation is something that all mammals do.
If injured physically a mammal will compensate. I’ve seen three legged dogs and hurt birds who still manage to get by and it is amazing how they learned to deal with life’s accidents and compensate.
Our compensating mechanics need to be operational at all times and we can compensate for what we may perceive to be shortcomings.
I just learned of a girl who in sixth grade still used her fingers to do math. That girl has now graduated from a university with her masters degree in behavioral science (psychology I believe). She was able to compensate for that particular portion of her learning process and yet was able to learn quite abely and well.
Sometimes we define ourselves by our learning inabilities and fail to recognize that those do NOT define us, we define us.
One limitation does not mean total limitation. We have so many abilities to overcome so many limitations all the time. You see it in the special olympics and other places all the time.
Yet can we see it in us?
Realize your limitation for what it is and then compensate and overcome it and bypass it and deal with it and become monumental in spite of it, or maybe because of it.
You are a living petri dish and experimenting everyday.
Put on your lab coat and perform experiments today and evolve and compensate and overcome.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 1, 2021
History
History has such fullness, such expansiveness, so many lessons to be learned.
Each issue, situation, drama, accident, exploration, incident has historical data that can be used before and after each such item.
We can learn based upon precedent history if we allow ourselves to just explore that history.
A thought that I have had for the last year or two is that history has a fluidity to it, depending on who wrote it and their perceptions and their ramifications.
Sometimes we want to erase history by removing statues or ignoring some of the consequences of that history but history will not be forgotten by some and will not be ignored by others.
History happened. It actually happened and even with the nuances that people may spin it with it remains there and unabashed and shining out to all who might see that it was there and it really happened despite the fact that we may want to cover it up or ignore it or tear down some images that remind us of that history.
History made us who we are today.
The most important lesson history has for us is to learn from it.
How do we learn from it if we remove it, tear it down, don’t speak of it and ignore it?
I don’t know all the answers however I feel compelled to think about it and ask questions and explore what may happen if we left some iconography up and then talk about it in positive ways and what we learned from it and how we can prevent it from happening now and in the future.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
July 15, 2021
Try out my earlier content:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/01d-interviews-articles-2018-to-2015
Then scroll down to see earlier content.
Playing with Words
Playing with words and using them in unusual context or situations means your mind is active and that you are vocalizing (or within your mind) manipulating words and their meanings.
Generally young children do not understand puns and sometimes even jokes that revolve around word play.
This is because conceptually their minds are still evolving and learning and they have not progressed to the point of picking up and learning and figuring out how this works.
It is just something they will have to learn along the way to higher speech and learning eventually.
Carpe Diem is latin for “Sieze the Day”. Carpe Shar Pei means “seize the dog” a certain type of dog breed and it rhymes but makes no sense but can be fun to say.
Flustration is a blend of two words Flustrated and Frustration and may be used by someone that wants to convey both words at once. (I personally love this word and first heard it a long, long time ago by a salesman named Harold Cleveland, I am not sure if he was being clever or maybe he just did not realize that it really was not a word, who knows.)
Remorse from https://www.etymonline.com/ which is an excellent source of finding root words and word usage and how words developed means the following:
remorse (n.)
"intense and painful self-condemnation and penitence due to consciousness of guilt; the pain of a guilty conscience," late 14c., from Old French remors (Modern French remords) and directly from Medieval Latin remorsum"a biting back or in return," noun use of neuter past participle of Latin remordere "to vex, torment disturb," literally "to bite back, bite again" (but seldom used in the literal sense), from re- "back, again" (see re-) + mordēre "to bite," which is perhaps from an extended form of PIE root *mer- "to rub away, harm."
The sense evolution was via the Medieval Latin phrase remorsus conscientiæ (Chaucer's remors of conscience, also translated into Middle English as ayenbite of inwit). Middle English also had a verb, remord "to strike with remorse, touch with compassion, prick one's conscience" (late 14c.), from Latin remordere.
One usually does not think of this word as “biting back or in return”.
There is remorse but there is no morse to go with it.
Ask a child this story question:
You say, Pete and Repeat went to the well. Pete fell in, who was left?
The child may say, Repeat.
You can then say, Very good.
You say, Pete and Repeat went to the well. Pete fell in, who was left?
The child may say, Repeat.
You can then say, Very good.
You say, Pete and Repeat went to the well. Pete fell in, who was left?
The child may say, Repeat.
You can then say, Very good.
This can go on and on until the child catches on. Fun for the first time or two then when the child catches on, they know and have learned how it this story goes.
What word play or stories do you know?
I’d like to feature those words or stories in this forum.
Please email me at dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com and I’ll share them.
Thank you Dear Readers for your contributions.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
July 13, 2021
Truth is not Proof
“Correct” and “incorrect” are personal, situational, perspectival. (partial quote from Joshua Fields Milburn)
There is no correct clothing, there is only your clothing.
On to other thoughts:
We we're all hypocrites situationally. Given certain situations we can all be hypocrites and even biased. If we are human we are hypocrites and biased and that alone makes us human. We must recognize when we are and when we aren’t. There is no need to seek absolution for when we are, if we recognize the need to reduce such behavior then we are more likely to reduce the behavior.
Being busy means you are involved in too many things to recognize what and why you are doing them.
BE PRODUCTIVE
Being productive means heading for a goal, making progress in your personal journey, productive means making efforts to achieve your goals and doing those things that work or take steps to your goals.
Being productive does not mean you can’t do other things to handle situations and issues as they arise. That is life and to eliminate that is to not live, but assume that those will happen and take the time necessary to deal with those. It is incrementally important for our realization to slowly sink in over time and recognize when we are handling situations and issues and wasting time on manufactured situations and issues and when we are making time to be productive.
If you do not make time to be productive then you will produce nothing.
Take the time to make the time or eliminate some time wasting behavior to be productive.
Easy but difficult if one does not have perspective.
Recognition, realization and awareness means perspective into our behaviors.
Perspective means you are able to prioritize and manage and still be productive.
One more thought, what if our past is our construct, an image we maintain, a thought that we had but it is no longer real. The past is the past and recognize that it shaped us but it is NOT us. Others remember that same past differently therefore it is a construct, a sometimes imagination or feeling that may or may not have been intentional or inflictual. It happened. (and I more than anyone else needs to stop ruminating into that past to try to find answers where the past does not hold answers only illusions based upon our thinking and MAY NOT EVEN BE TRUE).
Also the future is a construct, it is imaginary until it actually happens. Plan for the future but do not hold it as a golden whatever. Planning means taking what the future holds and dealing with it. We cannot forecast what tomorrow brings but we will end up dealing with it.
Our preparation to deal with situations and issues is far more important than what actually happens tomorrow.
Often I am exploring in these articles for deep truths and probably am just running into truths and concepts that are already known widely but my finding them still makes them extremely important to the way I think today and tomorrow.
May you find your incremental truth today for your monumental tomorrow.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
July 11, 2021
Nuance
A simple thing like a bit different inflection to a word can change the whole meaning to the user and perception to the listener.
That can be nuanced for both individuals.
There is no such thing as normal or average or usual. For we are so varied (intellect, humor, approach) as individuals despite being so similar (two arms, legs, eyes, etc. for the most part).
Nuance is the way we live and breathe and approach our lives which adds by itself as much difference (if not more) than as the other differences.
Nuance has intent with your purpose, goals and projects.
No one else has that same purpose, goals and projects since your nuance gives it something extra and adapted only for yourself.
Others may give you goals and projects and that is acceptable as long as those pass your boundary test and you wholeheartedly consent. It sometimes is part of a job, living with others and just plain living that sometimes from day to day we have to give away a portion of time to others that matter in our lives.
If you think about it, you / we are so nuanced that no other person is anything like you, or thinks or acts exactly like you.
Even pets and animals have some individuality which is their nuance. There are instincts and habits and similarities with other pets or animals then there are the distinctions that show them in a close perspective or situation to be extremely nuanced and adaptable in their approach.
As humans we are a species like no other and even comparisons with others in our species break down like metaphors break down since not all the specifics pass through from one to the others.
Your nuanced incremental becomes your nuanced monumental.
Deep divers think deeply and ponder the aspects of what they read and absorb and learn daily.
I dive every day, how about you?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
July 9, 2021
Intention
Intention only happens if you intend it to happen.
Intention takes method, mindfulness, practice and diligence otherwise it will never happen.
For instance, my Dear Readers you visit this site only with intention. It will never pop up on your computer or your cell with a blurb or clickbait saying some marvelous header and a place to click. I do not email or send out regular notices of articles that are published. I do not have a subscriber list.
You have to consciously think about visiting this site and basking in the calmness, the lack of flash, the soothing thoughts and articles, the regular adfree, non promotional.
You know that when you come here I am not pushing any products for sale or have any other agendas, no sponsors or any way of making any money other than your donations.
The donations I’ve received amount to mostly free books from authors I’ve interviewed as a thank you for their featured interview, hardly a payoff. There’ve been a few monetary donations and they are most welcome and valued.
This site is for you and you may give me direction and purpose by emailing me and letting me know your wishes and desires. You are my boss in that regard and I’ll give your wants thoughtful consideration. If you have an article that you’d like to write and it promotes the values that you’ve experienced on this website then shoot it to me in an email and let’s have a look.
If it is a worthy article and valid and has salient points there is a distinct possibility of it being published on this site.
Let’s work together and see what we come up with. The articles can be your stories, comments or just something that you care to write about. [Again as long as that item is thoughtful, caring and has insight that needs to be brought to the Dear Readers of this site.]
Many thanks to you.
Our intentional incremental leads to our monumental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
July 7, 2021
This article written by Josua Fields Millburn, one of “The Minimalists”
I am quoting it in its entirety due to the salient wisdom and sage advice that he gives and to try to give the jist of his article without quoting will do it no justice.
So without further ado:
I wish I was 40 again and had this wisdom.
If you click on the (More.) you will see a link to the original article and be able to read more. Just hovering over the (More.) won’t show the link.
By Joshua Fields Millburn
Now, standing at the entryway to 40, I'm contemplating 40 truths I've learned in this lifetime.
1. Letting go is not something you do. It is something you stop doing. You stop pretending every thing is precious. You stop clinging to material possessions and toxic relationships. You stop acting like busy is a good thing. You stop posturing as if achievements make you, you. If you let go of the thing but not the attachment, you will get dragged. (More.)
2. Decluttering doesn't work. If you own too much stuff, a “67 decluttering steps” video won’t help. The problem isn’t a shortage of decluttering tips—the problem is the attachment to stuff. So if you want to simplify, understanding the benefits is much more powerful than the techniques. If you deeply understand the why, the how takes care of itself. (More.)
3. Organizing is well-planned hoarding. Organizing the excess only hides the clutter. No matter how "organized" you might be, you are still forced to care for every possession you store in bins and boxes and basements. Ergo, the simplest way to organize your stuff is to get rid of most of it. (More.)
4. More stuff won't make you more complete. Neither will getting rid of it. You were born complete, and you are still complete—even in an empty room. (More.)
5. Love people and use things. Because the opposite never works. This isn't just the title of The Minimalists' new book, it is the North Star by which I navigate. (More.)
6. Minimizing isn't meaningful. Jettisoning your excess stuff can be freeing and even exciting, but it isn't inherently meaningful. True, clearing the clutter creates the space for a more intentional life, but it's up to you to determine what to do with your newfound freedom. (More.)
7. Scrolling is the new smoking. Our addictions are showing. Look around the next time you’re in a checkout line: heads tilted downward, faces lost in glowing screens, technology turning people into zombies. A generation ago, nearly everyone absently puffed cigarettes throughout the day. Today, indoor smoking seems unthinkable, but it’s been replaced by the captivating glow of our six-inch screens. (More.)
8. You can't change people. A healthy relationship is one that enhances your life without trying to change the other person. (More.)
9. The thing you want is never the thing you want. We think we desire people and possessions and prominence, but what we really desire is the feeling that arises from those things. If we interrogate our wants, we can locate what we truly desire. (More.)
10. Advertisements are poison. They disturb the peace. They make us feel inadequate. They encourage overconsumption. They indoctrinate our kids. They promote outrage. They sway elections. They fuel fake news. They lack sincerity. They persuade people to go into debt to buy things they don’t need. (More.)
11. You cannot fix anything. As soon as something is “fixed,” the world will change, and it will become un-fixed, exposing the truth: it was never fixed in the first place. If you have a problem, it is useless to try to fix it. You must understand the problem if you seek to eliminate it. (More.)
12. Conditional love is an oxymoron. To love is to see things as they are, not as we wish they would be. To place conditions on love is to remove love altogether. (More.)
13. The path to peace is uncovered with subtraction. Peace cannot be packaged and purchased. It is buried beneath the hoard we’ve added to our lives. Yes, some objects may enhance our lives, but only after we subtract the attachment that gets in the way. (More.)
14. Success does not exist. Running after a result isn’t success—it’s chasing. Chasing the past or the future. Success is always bound to chasing. Chasing is attachment. Attachment is suffering. Suffering is failure. (More.)
15. Your happiness is moderated by your expectations. Absolutely nothing and no one can make you happy, but your expectations will certainly increase your misery. (More.)
16. Attachment is not love. Every attachment—even a so-called healthy one—is a tether that restricts your freedom, a governor that constricts your ability to love. You've been told, by pop music and poetry, that to need someone is to love them. But that was a lie. That’s not love—it’s clinging. (More.)
17. All advice is flawed advice. The moment you try to convince someone, you have lost the plot. The truth does not require persuasion, coaxing, or coercion—it is the truth whether you’re convinced or not. (More.)
18. The solution is the problem. Most people want “solutions” because they’re unwilling to dig down to the root of the problem. What if, instead of numbing the pain, you sidestepped the solutions and scrutinized the problem itself? If your desk chair is aflame, reading the Fire Safety Manual won’t save you. The problem isn’t a lack of instructions—the problem is your posterior is on fire. (More.)
19. Righteousness fuels the ego. Our culture has moralized everything from clothing and consumption to relationships and routines. But “correct” and “incorrect” are personal, situational, perspectival. And they are detrimental as universal proscriptions. You are not supposed to do anything. Anyone who tells you otherwise, any human being who seeks to change another, displays the ugly hubris of the ego. (More.)
20. Love is more. In our culture, we stretch love to apply to people and pick-up trucks, friends and fried chicken, lovers and Louis Vuitton bags. But when you extend anything beyond its natural limits, it loses its strength. This is especially true with love. (More.)
21. "Habit change" won't change your habits. Human beings are infatuated with “habit change," but lasting change doesn’t work like that. Stated plainly: Changing your life won’t change your life. But understanding will. The moment you recognize the source of your troubles, an awareness flows through every fiber of your being, and habits change without volition. For once you see the problem in its entirety, you will have no choice but to change. (More.)
22. Empathy is overrated. We hear everyone from preachers to pundits proclaim the power of empathy. But most of these people are actually talking about compassion. If that’s the case, I have no argument: compassion—that is, concern for the misfortunes of others—is useful, and we could use more of it. Empathy, however—that is, the ability to feel the suffering of others—is not a desirable outcome. (More.)
23. We are all hypocrites. The man who protests capitalism using a megaphone he purchased from Walmart. The woman who tweets about income inequality on a device made by underpaid workers. The minimalist who owns six jackets (me). We are all hypocrites. And we are all suffering on some level. So, instead of pointing fingers, we can find compassion for the people who disappoint, upset, and anger us. (More.)
24. Most emergencies aren't. We often confuse other people's priorities for our own. Technology has brought everyone else's so-called emergencies into our inboxes. But just because something is important to your neighbor, that doesn't mean it must be urgent to you. (More.)
25. There's no such thing as "good" debt. The debtor is always a slave to the lender. Thus, be free or be in debt. You can't be both. (More.)
26. A credit score is really a debt score. Your culture has told you that to be a "responsible adult," you must have a "good" credit score. Nonsense. There's no such thing as a credit score. If it measures your ability to go into debt, then let's call it what it is: a debt score. If you plan on being debt-free, then a credit score is useless. (More.)
27. Being does not require doing. Doing less isn’t about the doing—it’s about the less. (More.)
28. Busyness is a cultural disease. There is a vast difference between being busy and being focused. The former involves the typical tropes of productivity: anything to keep our hands moving, to keep the conveyor belt in motion. It is no coincidence we refer to mundane tasks as “busywork.” Busywork works well for factory robots and other automatons, but not so great for people who are attempting to do something worthwhile with their waking hours. (More.)
29. Criticism hurts only because you value praise. These are two sides of the same coin. If accolades, approval, and admiration are important to you, then you'll suffer with every cavil, niggle, and jab. Chasing the "good" will always bind you to the "bad." (More.)
30. You don’t value the things you think you value. Your values aren’t what you say they are; they are whatever you spend your time and resources on. Show me your calendar and your bank statement, and I will show you what you value. (More.)
31. A life without boundaries is a life without peace. It might seem like setting boundaries is the last thing you’d want to do to foster relationships—as if boundaries mean you’re unwilling to let people in. But you can establish a boundary without erecting a fence. Knowing your boundaries will help you get a grasp on what you’re willing to accept, as well as what you need to reject, to live congruently. (More.)
32. Competition is a mental illness. We are smitten with "winning." But tethering contentment to an outcome is a recipe for discontent. If you win the game but lose equanimity, what have you won? Nothing. You’ve lost everything. Ancient cultures have known this for millennia: competitive behavior is linked to depression, anxiety, stress, and self-harm. (More.)
33. Society conflates schooling and education. You don't need a lectern and a lecture to learn something valuable. (More.)
34. Parenting is detrimental to children. While adults might have more knowledge, children are far more wise than their conditioned parents. Consequently, we are better served by learning from our kids than we are from "parenting" them. Perhaps Kapil Gupta said it best: "Adults are fools. Children are wise. For children, everything is new. The adult hasn't seen a new thing in years." (More.)
35. When everything is precious, nothing is precious. We hurry through life pretending everything is important: from marketing meetings and makeup and Mercedes-Benzes to social-media followers and stilettos and sentimental items. But if everything is important, then nothing is. (More.)
36. "No" is the most freeing word in the world. You are buried by false obligations. But if you say "yes" to everything, you're accidentally saying "no" to your own tranquility. (More.)
37. Your opinion does not matter. Neither does mine. What matters is the truth. Our beliefs only cloud the truth. (More.)
38. There are no shoulds. There are only coulds—possibilities for the future. A devoted seeker won’t find anything they must do, but they will discover many things they can do if they are compelled—compelled not by society, but by a deep longing in their heart. (More.)
39. Health is everything. If you’re reading this and you’re healthy, you’re already living the dream. Everything else—possessions, status, riches, validation, adulation, even companionship—is window dressing. (More.)
40. Ultimately, there is nothing. There is no past, there is no future—those concepts exist only as memories and thoughts that occur right here, right now. Don't worry! This isn't a "bad" thing (good and bad are societal constructs)—it's a freeing thing. If there's nothing to cling to, then there is only now. (More.)
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
July 5, 2021
Dreams
I was doing yard work and I did some really good thinking while doing that.
It is therapeutic as well as relaxing as well as getting something done that needs to be done.
Where do you do your best thinking?
While driving? While vacuuming? During housework?
While walking? While waiting in line or at a business waiting to be served?
There are so many times you can think while you are involved in a monotonous task that you’ve done repeatedly and can basically do it by rote while you concentrate on some fantastic thinking.
If you are not doing some great thinking during those mundane chores then maybe we should consider it a priority.
For we never have enough time to really think things through and thoroughly.
Last night I had a dream about a single dark cloud that had lighting within it and in researching that dream I had some very good insights. I use Tony Crisp’s dream site called Dreamhawk. https://dreamhawk.com/
I recommend it and analysing your dreams is an excellent activity since it reveals a lot about you and your subconscious.
One caveat is that Tony Crisp is English and therefore sometimes as an American I think of descriptors for my dreams and then have to think of how an English person would say those same type of descriptors and modify my American descriptors for English ones; such as pram for baby carriage or lift for elevator, etc.
Last night I dreamed of dinosaurs and the insight that I got from the first paragraphs was very insightful. I’ve never dreamed of dinosaurs before so it was unusual.
Combining that with the dark clouds under the word cloud was powerful.
There was more but I won’t divulge more since it is not helpful to you.
Another feature of dreamhawk is the useful questions in the last few lines of most descriptors. Those questions probe and encourage more analysis and answering those questions or telling yourself how those questions affected the dream and you provide even more insight and depth to the dream analysis experience.
Dreams may be the incremental we can learn from to become monumental.
Try it and let me know how it works for you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
July 3, 2021
Light
It seems to me that we have been taking our lives and making them easier (lighter if you will).
Is light always better?
Are there any repercussions for this light life we are living?
As over the years we’ve taken our discussions more from face to face we have lost a lot.
Think about it.
We used to not have phones. Then we did.
As we gained telephones then we lost at least one or two points of connection. The facial expressions and the body language.
No biggie right? We just make due.
Then we went to pagers (some had a sort of text quality to them in the form of “call me for this or that” type of thing or just call this number.
Then there were the early cell phones which enabled us to talk in places other than phone booths and our homes or where phones were available for public use.
Then there were emails. Email added another layer of complexity. You had to type it out and then wait. That was great for shooting a lot of communication and then using the wait time to do other things until people got back to you.
You lost vocal inflection in that transition.
Now we have text. Do you even look at your texts way later and say “wow, that is really a dumbed down conversation” I’m not even sure you can call it a conversation. It is two or more people texting back and forth and commenting on texts from two or more times back and keeping it all straight and in context can be exhausting.
We have lost so many connections. Our “conversations” are not conversations they are just comments on what another person has asked or commented on.
We are distracted during texting.
We have lost vocal inflection.
We have lost body language.
We have lost facial expressions.
The vocal inflection alone can mean you can hear the sarcasm or have to be told later, oh, that was sarcasm.
Communication light is dumb communication.
The video conferencing has gone a step in the right direction to see the facial language and expression and hear the vocal inflection.
Think about stepping into a heavy conversation with text.
Have you ever done that?
We have and then ended up calling since it really is not viable trying to do it with texting.
Think about your communication. Why can’t you text and say do you have a moment to talk and then phoning?
Step away from light and enter the realm of more meaningful and nuanced conversion.
Incremental steps, incremental steps into monumental achievements.
It will be a wonderful addition to your life and the lives of your friends and loved ones.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
July 1, 2021
Stressors
Stressors may seem to multiply in your life however did you know there are good types of stressors?
Taking a vacation, getting married, having a baby, holidays, moving into a new house or apartment, a promotion or a new job are all types of good stressors.
“The right amount of stress is good for you and tunes up your brain.” It can actually benefit your health and improve your performance.
The bad news is that no one knows exactly what is the right amount and right type of stressors for you.
What if we approached any type of stress as lets see where this stress takes me and if I can make the most of it?
What a novel idea! What a unique approach!
It is one of the many choices in perception that we “get” to perform daily.
So if you are like the kid in a stall mucking around in the manure you can see it two ways: 1. This is the most yucky thing in the world. Or 2. It is fantastic that I get to clean up after a horse and if I do a good job then maybe I’ll get to ride that horse.
Both are real world ways at looking at a particularly nasty job and both are realistic ways we can make the choices that benefit us and help our psyche and our mind to deal with the issues that life brings to us each day.
I used to have a job where we prestressed concrete for walls, floors and ceilings. The idea was to string the right amount of tensioning into the rebar and forms so that the concrete when poured actually dried stronger then just plain slab concrete.
A particular engineering feat that someone came up with in order to use less concrete and have it ready poured for walls, floors and ceilings and do it in a controlled environment in order to have the right consistency and quality every time.
You are your own engineer of your environment. You are wearing your lab coat every day and experimenting with what works for you.
Even when you have an experiment go awry you learn from it. Thomas Edison and the light bulb filament saw every failure as one step closer to the right filament.
Your filament that lights up your life is right in front of you in the raw materials (issues, people, instances and problems) and with enough experimentation you will be able to achieve great results.
Or at least results that are more pleasant than those other results that your other approaches have given you.
“Sometimes we have to change ourselves in order to see changes in others.” [That right there is word gold and a certified wonderful saying. Feel free to use it.]
Your incremental choices enable your monumental successes.
It is the first of the month and here is the new free lesson:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 29, 2021
Jections
There are so many “jections” in our lives.
Rejection
Projection
Dejection
Objection
Subjection
I just listened to a Ted Talk - Overcoming Rejection, When People Hurt You & Life Isn't Fair | Darryll Stinson | TEDxWileyCollege
It is well worth listening to and may bring some insight into your life as it did mine.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yBfAeadqjI
Thanks to TED and all the people who make these uplifting talks available to all of us.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 27, 2021
Carrots
We all know how to do certain tasks and some of us are quite good at it.
There are certainly thousands of How To books and videos out there to help us be able to do what we currently are unable to do.
I’ve learned so many lessons from these books and videos.
You may even be expert enough to develop your own How To books and videos.
I applaud you if you can, do or want to.
We need more carrots in our life.
Funny thought, my oldest son when he was a baby loved the baby food carrots so my wife fed him those carrots a lot.
Once at the doctor he asked did you notice your son’s skin color is a little yellow. She said, oh yeah, why is that?
He asked what he ate regularly and she said baby carrots in a jar.
He said cut back on the carrots since he is eating enough to change his skin color. Pretty funny stuff!
Carrots can help us see better, uh, mmh, wait, not that kind of carrot.
Oh yeah, carrots can be drivers, what motivates us as in the carrot and stick analogy. (I’m not even gonna address the sticks).
It is important to know ourselves enough to know our drivers and motivations so we understand when we respond in certain situations why we respond the way we do.
Response is a mechanism that sometimes we don’t even think about. It is so ingrained into us that it is like automatic.
If you have a response mechanism that serves you then as long as you’ve examined it and it serves you then keep it.
We need to keep responses that serve us.
If a response does not serve you well then it is time to examine it, see the triggers and head them off and end up with a different response that serves us.
Serving you is my carrot and if your carrot is reading my articles then we have developed a system that is mutually beneficial. Love it when it happens to you or someone else.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
If you’ve been reading my articles for several months then you see the value.
Send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 25, 2021
Deserve
Forms of the word “deserve” are; deserving, deserved, deservedly. (this may or may not be a comprehensive list).
What do you deserve?
Is a right given by the constitution or the laws of your country something you deserve?
How are you deserving?
What have you personally done to deserve all that you have received in this life?
It is good to reflect and personally examine this word and how it affects you, the effects it may have on your thinking and what is deserved in your life and what just is.
That is the limit on my insights currently, just thought of this word this morning and felt that it needed closer examination.
Words pop into my mind and I give them the thought that they “deserve”. Some words more than others, but I love to roll them around and ponder upon those words.
Each word that we use deserves to be used within context and with full meaning. There are many times in my life when I’ve used one word and maybe another word had a usage that fit the situation more correctly.
If we live in a “free” country do we get the benefits we deserve? At this time in the heat of my state (California) or your state currently do we deserve AC, do we deserve running water, do we deserve housing, internet, utilities, amenities, benefits and a certain lifestyle?
What do you deserve?
Think about it and let me know your thoughts on this word and any others that you find interesting and worth exploring.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 23, 2021
Inept
From the inception of email, to phone trees, to the internet, to web chat, the ineptness of corporate America grows and grows.
The the most outrageous part of this is that it is INTENTIONAL.
Customer service used to be calling up someone and they dealt with the situation and you were actually responded to and either mollified or it was actually corrected.
Now customer service is a complete lack of service. Oh, we did not understand, oh, your choices are limited to this or that (but what if you need something else).
Pick your way through a phone tree and be on hold forever trying to reach the right person.
I called one division per choice on the phone tree, that division said no you need another division, then that other division said you need to be in a third division, and when reaching the third, you guessed it, I really needed to talk to the fourth division. Each time it took many minutes to actually reach someone and for them to shuffle me off to the next.
Minutes and minutes drag by and your time is wasted, and they do not care. There is no cost to them for your time. There is no cost to them for their employees doing the shuffle with your call since their employees are paid to be there regardless of your call or someone else’s.
Do corporations really care if your problem is fixed or corrected?
NO! They don’t care but they give the illusion of caring.
The illusion is better than the actual since it cost them nothing to project in their manner and tone that they care and want so badly to help you.
I recently wanted to finance my home (with my existing financier), after months of emails and phone calls and supplying documentation it went absolutely no where. No refinance, nothing.
They just completely dropped it all since for them to refinance me at a two or three percent less rate meant they would lose money over the period of finance. Pretending to do something and yet doing nothing has yielded them 2 or 3 percent more each month that they strung the refi out and then doing nothing they continue to make that amount every month until my loan is paid off.
That ineptness pays off month after month.
You have examples of corporate ineptness that others would find unbelievable and find outrageous. There are no laws against incompetence since the illusion of competence is always present.
The incremental incompetence gains them monumental dollars if done with hundreds or thousands of customers daily.
Their bank account grows, your time and patience, and drive to fix the problem as it gets harder and harder to continue the fight.
They wear you down.
Yet, I tell you that each time I encounter this it makes me more determined to continue to resolve it and when they eventually see that I will not go away then they finally fix what I wanted in the first place.
I have numerous examples of this incompetence and just over the last month let alone over many years.
My incremental doggedness and stick-to-it-ive-ness will pay off for me and add to my monumental.
Keep attempting to correct the system and when you find an instance of competence then that is a rare thing indeed and relish that instance.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 21, 2021
Superpower
We are prone to assign superpower to some people.
For instance, (this is not inclusive but some examples) a monk, or a president or a ruler (like king, queen, prime minister) or an executive, or a person who has authority be it bestowed upon them from a city, county or state or even country.
These people have some powers that are bestowed upon them only by the nature of the office that they hold. Once they do not hold that office then the powers go away.
Now I also picked a monk in that list and their “power” is that they are in a position that we most likely will never be in. They are isolated, meditative and concentrating and focusing on peace and serenity among other qualities that we would all like to have.
That peace and serenity comes at a huge price, they have to give up possessions, family, friends and a whole different life in order to pay for that peace and serenity.
Many of us are not willing to pay that cost.
Do they know more than us? Maybe, maybe not.
Professors and teachers also are on that list and their power comes from knowledge and a position of leadership over us. Once we are out of class then we are not under their power, especially once we graduate or at the end of the semester.
Their power comes from specific knowledge in a specific area and they are so immersed in that particular knowledge that it is like a super power. Does that power pertain to real life, maybe, maybe not.
Manipulation of key facts of knowledge gives them domain over those facts.
Once those facts are no longer used then not so much.
What is your superpower?
Yes, you actually have one and most likely more.
You are exceptionally good at what; puzzles, math, maps, identifying key facts or figures, face recognition, remembering names, cooking, spelling, punctuation, rote memorization, working with your hands, which skills, what?
You may not have been born with it, but you developed it and now it is you as much as you are it.
You know you are and it is a good reminder for us to name each one and know them.
You are most definitely good at many things and that is your superpower.
Think about it and you’ll think of more and more if you really focus on what makes you unique and exceptional.
For we all are exceptional in many ways.
An exceptional incremental evolves into an even more exceptional monumental!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 19, 2021
Stacking
Remember blocks, wooden blocks long before legos. Or Lincoln Logs or Tinker Toys and how when you dumped them out you immediately began stacking them, building with them.
As kids we’d had a tank that was battery operated and shot a plastic “shell” out of the turret by spring power. It could go forward and backward on the rotating treds and mostly did not stop until it hit a wall.
We’d build walls and castles and little buildings and then turn on the tanks.
Or shot the tanks at the wall of blocks.
You did not need plans or any time to wonder “what am I going to build?”. No, you just built.
You just started with something and ended up with something and named it either during or after building.
The important part of the build was the stacking, without stacking nothing was born.
One block by itself was a disappointment. Nothing could be built with it. Even two was not much better.
You needed bunches of them.
The more the better.
Skills are like that.
One skill by itself is okay but one always need more.
Skills also stack.
One block at a time.
Every skill you have is stacked.
Every skill you have has been built on and built on until it is a very grandiose skill.
And you have many skills that you’ve stacked on and those skills in turn stack with each other.
Your vocal skills are like that, from goo goo goo to da da da you built that skill into a powerful language.
Every day we are stacking our skills and learning more from each stack and the interconnectability of our skills we sometimes ignore.
Acknowledge the skills that you have.
List the skills that you have.
Even the minor ones (like learning a second language which is taking me years and years) and also the major ones.
We each have skills and our skills can be complimentary.
Let’s work together and use our skills together.
Email me about your projects and plans and let’s work together.
We’ll stack our skills together since one can never have enough skill.
NOTE: In a few days an article that I wrote titled "Deserve" will be published here. It is interesting since that article was written June 18, 2021 and then today June 19, 2021 I received an email from Seth Godin with his take on Deserve. Interesting, great minds think alike.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 17, 2021
Scatter Learning
We each learn at our own pace.
Sometimes it is concentrated and focused like a laser beam and sometimes it is like floodlight and bright and sometimes like a fluorescent light shines randomly all over a room rather than one spot on the wall.
The scatter method works.
The focused laser method works.
The floodlight shines that light in one place and it works.
The fluorescent light method also works.
The light everywhere but in no particular place works.
All these lights work, some better than others and when you need a focused light sometimes an unfocused light is not enough.
The point is focused or scattered light works and has many different uses.
Your methods may be scattered or focused.
Your practice may be scattered (infrequently) or focused (daily).
Olympians work out daily and practice daily.
An armchair athlete may practice or work out once a week or month.
You determine your methods and your focus and therefore determine your future.
You become the kind of person that you develop through your methods.
The more focused the sooner you get there. The less focused then, you’ll get there, when you get there.
You set the pace and the methodology to your future.
Incrementally does not care about the method, monumental takes your method and gets you there sooner or later.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 17, 2021
Alchemy
If you are seeking a way to turn lead into gold, it actually can be done.
If we are talking about transforming ourselves (our skills) from a base element into one of higher value then that has many words that describe it.
It can be called practice, or repeated exercises, or performance of a repeated exercise in or frequent performance of an activity or skill so as to acquire or maintain proficiency in it.
Also, it can be called training, rehearsal, repetition, preparation, exercise, drill, study.
Another word that may be overlooked is discipline.
In order to become proficient one must have discipline in whatever art, craft, skill, or other word you chose to use.
Discipline is the practice of training people or of people training themselves to accomplish or be accomplished.
We are accomplishing today in order to become accomplished in whatever skill we are attempting to master.
Discipline and mastering go together.
Similar words are control, regulation, direction, order, rule, with strictness or a firm hand until it becomes a routine, regimen and our training or teaching or instruction is complete.
However many skills may be in a high skill set and yet not be complete. There is no end to learning but that is because as humans our minds and learning are limitless.
Limitless means there is not a completion but a graduation, continual development to higher and higher levels.
This is important for us to understand in this learning and thirst for knowledge that we bestow upon ourselves.
There is not a person in the world that can make you do anything. You chose to do it and engage in that practice until you decide not to.
There are many skills I have tried to master and decided that it was not for me. No reprisals, no condemnation, just a switch from that to this or something else.
I wrote poetry, now I write children's books, but I am also branching out into other types of books and communication.
It is my choice and it is fun, exciting and engaging. Keeping my mind active and learning and focusing.
Will I ever be done? I sincerely do not ever wish to be done or complete.
I will continue to do this until I am unable or I choose to change or evolve into something else.
Let’s continue to evolve incrementally into monumental beings.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 15, 2021
Alchemy
If you are seeking a way to turn lead into gold, it actually can be done.
If we are talking about transforming ourselves (our skills) from a base element into one of higher value then that has many words that describe it.
It can be called practice, or repeated exercises, or performance of a repeated exercise in or frequent performance of an activity or skill so as to acquire or maintain proficiency in it.
Also, it can be called training, rehearsal, repetition, preparation, exercise, drill, study.
Another word that may be overlooked is discipline.
In order to become proficient one must have discipline in whatever art, craft, skill, or other word you chose to use.
Discipline is the practice of training people or of people training themselves to accomplish or be accomplished.
We are accomplishing today in order to become accomplished in whatever skill we are attempting to master.
Discipline and mastering go together.
Similar words are control, regulation, direction, order, rule, with strictness or a firm hand until it becomes a routine, regimen and our training or teaching or instruction is complete.
However many skills may be in a high skill set and yet not be complete. There is no end to learning but that is because as humans our minds and learning are limitless.
Limitless means there is not a completion but a graduation, continual development to higher and higher levels.
This is important for us to understand in this learning and thirst for knowledge that we bestow upon ourselves.
There is not a person in the world that can make you do anything. You chose to do it and engage in that practice until you decide not to.
There are many skills I have tried to master and decided that it was not for me. No reprisals, no condemnation, just a switch from that to this or something else.
I wrote poetry, now I write children's books, but I am also branching out into other types of books and communication.
It is my choice and it is fun, exciting and engaging. Keeping my mind active and learning and focusing.
Will I ever be done? I sincerely do not ever wish to be done or complete.
I will continue to do this until I am unable or I choose to change or evolve into something else.
Let’s continue to evolve incrementally into monumental beings.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 11, 2021
Music
Music can be divided into so many genres and categories and subcategories and when it comes right down to it many pieces are so individual that it can be hard to categorize.
So?
So what?
Just bask and reflect on that thought.
Music can easily be placed into different types, yet that categorization can be subjective and generic and maybe too convenient.
Books and writing and art tend to fall into that same broad spectrum of division and yet by inference all crime stories are not totally crime stories. In the same way that all sculptures are not monuments to certain people or places or things or animals.
Subdivisions, the song by Rush categorizes housing developments and yet all housing developments are not subdivisions and in fact may be different types of subdivisions.
The same is true of people, races, cultures and ethnicities.
You as an individual are so unique that there is no other anywhere even like you. Even if you have an identical twin that looks just like you the thoughts and feelings are completely different.
Think of yourself as one of a kind.
YOU MOST DEFINITELY ARE ONE OF A KIND.
There is NO other like you, anywhere in the world.
We do have common thoughts and feelings but that is where it ends. Not all our thoughts and feelings are common. Maybe on one topic or subject.
There are so many splits that each of us is extremely difficult to categorize yet we each do that split second judgement or sizing up and categorize each other every day.
Maybe we can stop categorizing and summing up who we see and meet and treat them like individuals.
For we all are individuals and each of us needs to be treated and respected like individuals.
The individual incremental becomes eventually, day by day the individual monumental.
Each individual achievement is a societal achievement and we all can celebrate that.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
How about sending some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 9, 2021
Walking
Everything has stopped. All utilities are not running. All vehicles, engines, motors, everything has stopped and will not run.
The predominant motive force for centuries was walking.
What will you pack?
Where will you go?
You step out of your house and head in what direction?
For what purpose?
What is your destination, your desire, the first place you would go, the last place you would go, what are your motives, your wants, your needs?
Do you seek supplies, connection, something else? If so, what and why?
The purpose of this exercise is to stretch your mind beyond the day to day.
Use your imagination, use your insight and your skills.
Remember how to make fire? Remember how to survive?
Remember how to communicate and have connection without phone, TV, internet, cable, anything digital?
What do you envision? What are your methods? Why do you choose to do what you will do?
Understanding ourselves and these basics brings us closer to who we truly are.
We are so far from ourselves when we are always connected but not connecting.
An electronic device is our path to somewhere, anywhere but here with us.
I’d love to hear the answers to these questions and more.
Drop a line and give me your feedback, comments and just talk.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 7, 2021
Irony
Thinking we’d save money my wife takes my vitamins, the one for over 55. Figured we’d save a little since vitamins are vitamins, right!?!
Nay, nay!
Men don’t need iron since we reuse our red blood cells, women need iron.
There’s a few other things women need that men don’t need in the vitamins too. (I forget what now)
Just a little thing that crossed our path yesterday.
I told her she needs Geritol. (That is an old, old product and we both laughed out loud!)
Writing by the Numbers
Or any other activity for that matter.
There is no magic formula.
There is no if you do a (hero’s journey) + b (background) + c (characters) = X (exciting and publishable story).
You can paint by numbers but you can not be a true artist if you do not practice and apply skill and crafting to your project. Using your own techniques and the uniqueness that only you can bring to the application of that craft.
Plus anything by the numbers may “look” pretty but can be formulamatic and is really unoriginal.
Developing the thought process is the first process and developing a sense of style, finding your “voice”, and using all the understanding and knowledge that you have gained continues to build and compound.
Of course, studying the principles and understanding how the elements blend together to make a compelling statement or story is also a prerequisite.
Then taking all of those elements and blending them into your own style is key.
Someone else’s style is their style and your style must be forged and hammered out at the keyboard or the pen and paper.
While you develop your style and observe and put together all the pieces eventually you’ll achieve brilliance.
Incremental brilliance becomes monumental brilliance.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 5, 2021
Exceptions
If a rule is constant then it does not change.
When we make exceptions we are making rules.
We are creating exemptions and caveats and loopholes to rules.
Therefore the rules are changing.
Let’s examine the pros and cons.
My grandmother had a rule when she was older, driving and living in Chicago. Always turn right.
Right turns were easier than left turns especially if there were no traffic lights or stop signs to stop the cross traffic.
Cross traffic was difficult for her to negotiate, so she would turn right then find a place at a traffic control place to turn left or u-turn to go back the direction she really wanted to go in the first place which was left.
Simple and effective and she did this religiously and suggested it to me when driving in her area. Voila, it really works sometimes.
Other times there is not a necessity for it due to lulls in traffic or being in a place with not so much traffic.
So when we create exemptions and caveats and loopholes to rules we really are changing the rules.
Finding what is allowed in the law sometimes takes some digging and finessing and challenging and lawyers are able to find loopholes, exemptions and caveats for those who can afford to hire lawyers.
Not everyone can do this. The difference between the haves and have nots. It makes no difference to me since I rarely hire lawyers and then just for a will or simple legal work not to find those loopholes.
The important thing to note which maybe I glossed over is “When we create exemptions and caveats and loopholes to rules we really are changing the rules.”
If you have a personal rule, like no kisses on a first date or don’t cross the street in the middle but only at a crosswalk sometimes it is an inconvenience to adhere to the rule.
You made the rule and you can determine if an exception can or should be made.
You are creating your world and how you’d like to live and comport or conduct yourself. Also, your rules do not apply to others.
Many people think that since they have a rule that you have to follow their rules. Nay, nay.
Only if for instance, you are in their house or on their property maybe. If you took offense to one of their rules then you can leave and be under your own rule base.
There are many overlapping rules and jurisdictions.
City, County, State and Federal plus personal and if employed or at a business then those rules may be invoked.
One entity may allow something (like a state allowing certain items to be used in a certain manner) when the Federal jurisdiction does not allow it. So as long as you are within the state lines and following their rules you may or may not be picked up for using certain items.
If you go interstate and cross state lines with an item then another set of rules may supersede the rules you were following at the start of using said item.
It can be daunting and challenging to keep track of rules and ignorance of the rule or law does not give you a pass either.
Just something to think about. Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may send some love through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
June 3, 2021
Real Change
Real change is not spare change.
It is the capacity to dramatically make our lives into something brighter, something better, something different.
As we discussed previously, change is the shift, it is no status quo, it is not the same-o same-o, it is diametrically opposed to being the same and putting up with the same and staying the same.
Change has momentum, it has inertia, it has motivation, it has its roots within us and is not superficial.
Change is not temporary, it is permanent.
Change is more than a change of clothes, or pennies in your pocket at the end of the day.
Change pays off in ways that you’ll not foresee until you make that change.
Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror” reflects that only you can make that change.
Someone else usually can not make changes in you, unless they are a catalyst for change within you.
Here are the minimalists pithy comments on change.
“Change occurs when the status quo becomes unbearable.” —Joshua Fields Millburn
“Playing it safe will keep you alive; embracing change will help you thrive.” —Ryan Nicodemus
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
Also a new story has been published on my website! Please see this link to read any or all of them and feel free to read them to your children or forward to those who may enjoy them. They are proprietary and may NOT be copied or used for any purpose other than to read to your own children or family.
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/stories-written-by-david-alan-binder
June 1, 2021
A huge Character Creation Tip and Trick by Robert McKee
Occasionally I will bring to you an article from another writer. This brings other perspectives to the foreground and helps us all learn and grow from that perspective.
This particular article may prove to be very helpful in my humble opinion.
Enjoy...from Robert McKee
“The Key to Character Creation
The only self you ever know is yours, and even then there are limits. Self-deception distorts self-awareness, and so you never know who you are as well as you think you do. Self-knowledge is imperfect, but it’s all you have.
If you know yourself only in part and other people even less, how can you create original, complex characters? By asking this question: “If I were this character in these circumstances, what would I think, feel, do?” Then listen for the honest answer, because it’s always correct.
You would do the human thing.
Despite clear differences between people--differences of age, gender, race, language, culture--we are all far more alike than we are different. We are human beings having the same fundamental human experiences.
If you are thinking and feeling it inside yourself, you can be certain that every person coming down the street toward you, each in her own way, is thinking and feeling it, too. The more you penetrate the mysteries of your own humanity, the more you’re able to understand the humanity of others.”
Also from the same article is this quote:
"Everything I know about human nature I learned from me."
- ANTON CHEKHOV
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 31, 2021
Shifting into YOUR Overdrive
There was a theme in my last article about shifting from your subconscious (unconscious or unawareness) into your consciousness (your awareness).
You knew it within you but it was at a deep level then it shifted via emotion or some other method that is internal to you.
Once that deep level of subconscious was invoked and it became manifest consciously then it became knowledge. You became aware of it.
It still requires a shift, a shift from I know what I need to do to actually doing it.
Action is difficult because we have to overcome the inertia that we’ve developed to save energy, to stick with the familiar since we as a species are programmed to save energy and not waste it. We are programmed to stick with the familiar since to get out of the familiar seems strange and foreign.
Therefore the same old same old is easy, changing is difficult.
Why work hard, when familiar is so easy?
Why use all that extra energy when the familiar saves energy, it saves thought, it saves having to really exert ourselves and our brain to think and break the pattern of the familiar.
The familiar is SO STRONG, SO INGRAINED, MOLDED SO DEEP WITHIN US, it is hard to break out of that mold, out of that familiar rut, change our behavior.
We all want to change. We all desire change. We know we need to shift.
But just like a stuck vehicle needs to rock back and forth to sometimes get unstuck, plus accelerate beyond the normal effort to overcome that stuck rut of the familiar.
Emotions are the key.
Emotions are the key to so much of how we operate, that understanding that key, which is a code, so we have to think about it and translate it to unlock it.
It is not natural. Since it is unnatural it is difficult.
Since it is difficult it takes effort, sometimes supreme effort to overcome the lethargic self, the habit bound self, the self that will put up with situations that we really should not put up with.
Let’s think it through, let’s talk it through, let’s develop a habit of change to improve our thinking.
Improving how you think about things improves your life.
We are the creator of how we deal with our emotions.
We are the creator of our stress, our unhappiness, our misery, our happiness.
We create it from how we think about issues that bother us, that may initiate how we feel, but we can take how we feel and then act on that emotion and channel that emotion into an emotion that serves us.
Sadness does not serve you, so change that feeling from sadness into something that does serve you.
It all comes down to servant and master.
As Sting said in the song Wrapped Around Your Finger, “When you'll find your servant is your master”
Who is the master, you or your emotions?
You decide.
The incremental leads you to the monumental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
A new free lesson has been posted today as well:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
May 29, 2021
Knowledge ⍯ Insight
Knowledge does not equal insight.
That’s right.
We know how to do so many things yet that knowledge does not compel us to do those things.
Spending
Dieting
Healthy eating (yes this is diff from diet)
Exercise
Name many health related things and we have the knowledge but not the power to do so.
Action is key.
How do we inspire, compel, create, mandate, encourage, facilitate ourselves into action?
A shift is required to compel us into action on our own behalf.
What is that shift and where does it come from?
Just like a shift car or truck we can travel in 3rd gear (given that said vehicle has 4 gears) and yet if we do not shift we will not ever be in fourth gear.
Even with the knowledge.
We can hear it in the engine, we can feel it in the rpm’s of the vehicle, we have the knowledge for when but if we do not do it we stay in 3rd.
When I taught my daughter to drive a shift type car, she was intimidated, even afraid. I told her when to shift and then she did, sometimes well after I told her.
She learned to hear and feel and sometimes over revved the vehicle but so what. It is a learning process.
Same for ourselves.
The compulsion or action to shift comes from knowledge + insight.
That insight brings the actual shift within ourselves to do that action that will benefit us.
One example for me is when I saw people around me at work going to classes and getting degrees while I did not go to any classes to get a degree.
That emotion of seeing them, feeling their pride, their accomplishment finally spurred me from knowledge that this would be great for me into the insight to actually start taking classes.
I was in college for 10 years, one class a semester and sometimes being off a semester depending on family (yeah, four kids, know what I mean?) and work (overtime at times of 12 hours a day for 6 days a week for 2 or 3 months).
The shift was first felt in my subconscious then it shifted to the emotion in my conscious then I acted (signed up for that class).
You can do this with anything.
If you have the subconscious prickle to do something which you really are not aware of is just an emotion.
Then you feel that emotion and have to identify what prompted it, deal with it and find out what it is saying to you.
It might be anger, sadness, feeling left out, a hollowness, a need that has arisen.
It does not matter how it manifests, what matters is what you do with it.
We had so much stuff in our house and when her parents died and my mother died all in one year, we ended up with a lot of extra stuff that we had to deal with.
We felt overwhelmed and burdened and there was so much stuff plus the emotional stuff. We decided not to put our kids through that emotion and load them down with stuff. So that compelled us into the insight from the unconscious (emotion) to the conscious feeling of that emotion to the dealing with that emotion to then ACTING on that emotion. The insight brought us to ACTION.
What a beautiful insight to be compelled to clean up your house and clear out some stuff.
This is an extremely simplified example and may seem like it is nothing especially if you are aware and do this type of assessment of your emotions and act on them.
Some people never get it or take longer to get it. THAT IS PERFECTLY ACCEPTABLE. Be willing to learn at your own pace and don’t worry about how many seem to be way ahead of you or behind you.
Learning is not a race. Life is not a race. I have learned so much in the past 10 years that I could have learned previously but I did not.
Oh well, I am still learning and applying and acting and doing and getting there.
How about you? Any examples of epiphanies?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 27, 2021
In this segment...
Send me your questions, your answers, your inquiries, you can Ask Me Anything. Let’s hear from you.
If you need a topic you may want to know more about then here are some suggestions...
We’ve taken several Carribean and one Mexican Riviera cruises.
I’ve performed extensive research (years of research) on living in other countries that have lower costs of living and can specifically address questions about several countries. I answer with a balanced perspective since many places seem to only give the positive considerations.
Writing is a big topic and since I’ve interviewed over 357 authors of collectively almost 4000 books! That is a lot of interviewing but more importantly it is a lot of information about how to make writing work, how to format and frame and present and really cool tips and tricks of the trade. You may read on this website all 357 interviews or you may ask me pointed questions about the craft. Plus I’ve published and won a few contests and have years of experience.
We can form a partnership and I’ll help you with your project for free. No credit or payment is required. I’ll help with whatever aspect of your writing project you are developing at any stage.
How about it? Let’s hear from you!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com (questions and inquiries).
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 25, 2021
Opinions
Let’s talk about a horse.
This horse thought that a gray horse was gray.
Neigh, neigh!
A white horse thought that the gray horse was white.
A black horse thought that the gray horse was black.
This is not about black horses, gray horses or even white horses but opinions that if expressed may affect how other horses think about you.
They may gang up on you even though you think differently from them.
So does your opinion matter?
If that opinion is expressed in a group of other like minded horses then that opinion matters.
If that opinion is stated in front of horses that believe the contrary to that opinion then the horse could be ostracized.
Outcast, even convicted by public opinion for having an opposing opinion.
Our society seems to have the opinion that their opinions matter and that everyone else needs to go along with the herd.
If a horse does not go along with the herd then it may wind up being alone or not having others around to mingle with.
Be careful of your opinions.
You can have all the opinions that you want.
You just may not be able to express them at any time you want and at any place in the herd.
What is your opinion of that?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 24, 2021
Paywall
Simply put I have no paywall.
All of my content is available and is available to all.
Everyone is special.
I have no other channels except a very tiny YouTube channel with very few videos of some of my encounters with a turtle and some sharks (I was on a pier for the sharks).
I have email for contact, although I have a twitter account, I don’t use it. I had some kind of picture posting app (can’t even remember the name of it) or account and it seemed silly and I don’t use it either.
I don’t give out my cell phone except occasionally to authors for an audio interview but that is extremely few since I’d rather provide them with a list of questions and let them respond at their own pace and time.
I don’t do Patreon either since all my content is free.
Also my content is ad free with no advertising at all.
I am me and you are you and together we can explore writing and other topics (send me ideas or questions, no problem).
We’ll enjoy growing, learning, exploring and discovering and gaining knowledge together.
I have two methods for getting paid, your contribution via PayPal ONLY IF YOU CAN AFFORD IT AND THINK THE CONTENT IS WORTH IT and the other method is not getting paid and I’m okay with that since I really do this for the love of it.
Thanks so much for stopping by.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 23, 2021
Sometimes our approach is machine like...
[first apologies we've been gone]
Can you think of times when you approached a project or issue like a machine?
Is the robotic attack and knock one down after another working for you?
Do you think during the repetition of the task as you churn out your daily or weekly item?
Is it engaging?
Is it thought provoking?
Is it mind boggling?
Is it worth it?
That is the thought process we need to bring to our repetitive task to ensure that the quality is there plus we are engaged and being engaging at the same time.
Mindless repeating or stamping your work and grinding out each one and throwing it on the done pile takes time and commitment but is there thought and feedback to it?
Have you inspected for quality?
Have you inspired yourself to do each one with better and higher quality, are you a craftsman?
Is each project a work of art that you poured your soul and self into?
Does the project or piecework give you satisfaction?
Lots of questions and examining and self reflection are qualities that enhance and show up time and time again after the first one and the thousandth one.
I’ve written almost 6 years on this particular website and before that countless years of blood, sweat and tears (remember that group from the 60’s?).
Roughly over 500 individual articles, not counting the stories and other material for my website and other articles as well as journaling my life story of almost 300 pages and digitizing a few thousand pictures.
Literally my life is in my work. The details can be overwhelming at times, the marketing is endless and the self promotion is time consuming and sometimes seems to yield little results.
Think of all of you that you put into your material that you produce.
To me it is not daunting, it is a monument.
It is increments of my life that create this monument.
It is my Mount Rushmore, it is my Mona Lisa, it is my David (literally).
My life gives meaning to my art and my art gives meaning to my life.
Something to think about as you grind out those widgets.
Make them widgetier, make them mighty, make them with pride and make them better than before.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 17, 2021
A Grand Country
We live in a wonderful time and if you live in the USA it is a wonderful place.
We have so many freedoms it seems like too many, from guns, to free speech (say anything and I mean most anything and we can get away with it.
We have so many freedoms that most other countries envy us.
Yeah, maybe even despise us since we brag, gloat, and throw our weight around.
No we are not humble. We are pretty proud and it shows.
We are so much in the other countries faces it is embarrassing.
And if we travel to other countries then we can be tiresome with our endless expectations.
What if we were more humble and less defiant and show more gratitude and be less in your face.
That is the mark of a truly enlightened people.
They know they have it good, even great and they lord it over NO ONE EVER.
If we are such a great nation then toning it down a level is in order.
Be gracious, be grateful, be humble, be fantastic in teaching the world what a truly great nation we are.
Let’s start at home first, right here in the USA.
Let’s be gracious, be grateful, be humble, be fantastic in teaching ourselves in the USA what a truly great nation we are at home then abroad.
Consider it.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 15, 2021
ISMS
What are isms?
Are isms being too ism?
Are there too many isms?
Are you aware of all the isms and the implications of all these isms?
Have you heard of wokeism?
How about safetyism?
I just heard about both of those just the other day and had no idea what either of them were or meant.
How many other isms are out there that we don’t know about?
Should we know about more ism?
It makes me want to hold my head and say, “What does it mean? What does it all mean?”
The jargon can be overwhelming if one does not break it down, relate the unknown to the known to help one shape the new current reality.
Reality is shifting it seems almost daily.
So take a deep breath and calm down.
We can figure this out together and piece it together and get by until we have a true understanding of the latest ism that is bound to come by any time now.
Isms are how people identify themselves.
An Americanism may be the symbols, or the liberty bell. There may be others that are people like George Washington or just the title, like Supreme Court Justice.
It can be based in our culture or maybe in our ethnicity or our affiliations.
Isms tell us a lot about ourselves and others but we must remember that isms are not us.
We are individuals and individualism is more than applying statistics and cross sections and branding and other appellations.
Individualism is all about us and being individual as part of a group and us single-ly.
I am me and no one else and you are you and no one else so let the isms be around but they are not all encompassing and do not completely define you or me.
What do you think of all this?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 11, 2021
CHAINS
“I forged these chains.”
This can mean we will wear them in this life and the next!
We forge our own chains.
Funny, but sometimes our chains are invisible.
We are unable to see the chains or even sometimes the effect of our chains.
Sometimes we even knowingly and proudly wear those chains.
Culture can be chains, sometimes culture can free us from chains.
Misconceptions are chains.
Lies are chains.
Ideology can be chains.
Sometimes we can see others chains but not our own.
Sometimes others can see our chains but not their own.
We choose what chains to wear like jewelry, to adorn, to send messages, to add to our lives at the same time it subtracts from our lives.
Chain links can be added or subtracted but not unless we chose to.
It takes mental and sometimes metaphysical or even psychological effort to unforge chains or reforge them into something useful.
Learn from your chains.
Learn from other peoples chains.
The whole forging aspect, the compulsion, the ideology behind and the intent of the chains are not what is usually intended I’ll bet.
On the other hand if you chain together enough ideas and innovations then a certain amount of greatness can be achieved since a bundle has more strength and durability and impact than just one.
The strongest chain is as strong as the weakest link.
What is your weak link?
What is your strong link?
Is your weak link fixable?
Or can you compensate for it?
We can figure out our chains and our links and take the incremental links and forge a monumental chain.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 9, 2021
New Chapters
New chapters are exciting.
Revisiting a chapter can also be exciting.
A woman I interviewed in 2017 over 4 years ago just contacted me about her new book and if I’d like a copy.
What a wonderful question for me to answer?
Do I want her new book?
I am just so pleased that she remembered me and felt I added value to her life.
There are so many that have contacted me about their writing and it is so great and I am grateful for their contact and their addition to my life; and anything that I contribute to their lives is icing on my cake.
The giving on this site never ends and I look forward to each day for that giving and it goes both ways.
When I read your comments and articles and stories I get feedback, I get value and I add value.
I stated it many times, but we can help each other just by the little personal connections.
What a great structure we build together.
You are working toward your monumental at the same time that I am.
We are each working one little increment at a time.
Each word, each minute, each one of us working like ants in this great huge hill and imagining the labyrinth we have created.
It is massive and even predictable.
I marvel at people who take matchsticks or toothpicks and make things out of them.
Here are a few thousand of them:
So fantastic and wonderful and so intense the labor and concentration and effort.
And we get to share in those structures.
We get to see those monuments after their hours and sometimes years of struggle to perfect each one.
That is what we are doing together.
Perfecting our craft and our minds and our intellect.
How perfect is that?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 7, 2021
Enlighten
Deepening your understanding.
Your understanding of people, situations and issues increase as you study each and become more aware or cognizant of nuances and upon reflection enlightenment becomes your friend.
Becoming more aware, may or may not be transcendent; however; becoming more aware gives you an all around look at something to be able to see around the corners (as a metaphor) to discover that which may have been hidden or not in plain sight.
Becoming more aware of you, of the ones around you, of you family and their agendas, their faults and their capabilities helps you to ensure that you read the situation correctly for a more correct assessment.
I’ve misread a situation many times and upon reflection and going through the situation in my mind it has helped enlighten me.
Even talking to others about the situation has helped me to see motives I was not aware of.
Even my own motives I was not aware of.
The main understanding we need to acquire are our motives.
Our motivation is our drivers and what compels us in the directions we end up taking.
Motivation is our key to the lock of why we are the way we are. And the way others are.
Until you understand the why, you will never be able to reverse or break habits or replace them.
Understanding why you do or don't do what you continually do gives you the leverage to make breakthroughs.
Plus understanding why others do what they do or don’t do helps guide us and avoid misunderstanding or misrepresenting a situation.
Any thoughts or comments on when you misread a situation or gained enlightenment?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 5, 2021
Objectivity
How is your objectivity?
Are you entirely objective?
Are you subjective?
Does it depend on your mood?
Does it depend on the moon or other phases you either understand or maybe don’t understand?
How can we be more objective in our judgements and opinions?
Seeing an argument or issue from many sides helps with that objectivity and that enlightenment adds to our development and our habits and our knowledge base and therefore our peace.
Being objective has many functions that serve us well.
Being subjective does not serve us (there may be some cases that I can’t think of right now-if you think of some let me know).
Objectivity is another tool in our toolbox that we can use more and be judicious with, maybe even more lavious with.
What do you think? Objectively speaking, of course.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 3, 2021
Worth
What is a day worth?
What is your life worth?
What is it worth to you to be able to breathe and live and find meaning?
What is worth, worth?
And where did we get our worth?
From an insurance actuary who determined how long we will live before we die?
No, we gather our worth from a million pieces of information that our senses gather from the day we were born.
Every time your mother or guardian made time for you and soothed you and held you, you were gathering your worth.
That essence is sucked out of everything we do, every interaction we have with other humans.
The essence of worth may be worthless if your input is skewed, if your caregivers gave you the wrong impression, or you misread that impression.
It is so fragile and tactile what our worth is and it is still being formulated and some of us reinforce predetermined past worth by our current situations and input and false and true inputs.
Our worth is not what we are paid per hour in our employment.
Money has worth that we have assigned to it. As long as we agree that it has worth then it works.
Our worth is not determined by how much a company will pay if we accidentally get snuffed out by their product.
Our worth is incalculable; however, we continue to calculate it in our mind.
It is an interesting scenario.
Our ego is so fragile and yet so strong.
It rules us and motivates us and rules us mercilessly and yet it can be hurt by such simple gestures and phrases.
The scarcer an item the more it is worth. Our time is the scarcest commodity that you have; however, we repeatedly squander it daily.
Commodity prices fluctuate depending on demand, source and supply. Currently gas is not in shortage but the demand is high and the transportation that gets it to the pump is 20% to 25% less than usual (tankers to haul it need drivers), therefore this will translate to the pump until it balances out.
Think about your supply, your transport of items and your demand for those items.
We’ve seen it time after time with toilet paper and other things during the pandemic.
Factoring all those things into our demand, sales and procurement takes a lot of time and resources of a lot of people across the nation, as well as ourselves.
What is all this worth to you?
Something to think about.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
May 1, 2021
Pay the Price
What does paying the price mean to you?
Are there repercussions? Is it a good thing or a bad thing?
The price we pay in our life is to have events that bring us all kinds of emotions.
That is the price of living and being human.
Emotions are a good price to pay. It is how we deal with emotions that determine how large a price we pay.
Do we take that emotional toll and then exact that toll on others to spread the price we pay around to others, by our accusations, our recriminations, by our anger and taking out our emotions on others?
Sometimes we do, we are human.
If we are aware we can fix that. If we operate without awareness then if we don’t recognize we can’t fix.
Part of the incremental process that helps us become monumental.
Paying a price for our choices has been a constant in our lives.
Simply there are certain actions that you take that later have consequences then that is a price that you pay not only for the original action (if there is an actual price like candy, cigarettes, or other potential vices) and there may be prices (consequences) to pay because of those actions.
Say diabetes or cancer or any number of things that may or may not be caused by our actions.
Do you think about how not only you pay the price for your actions but others might also pay a price?
If you drive too fast and get a ticket that is a price that only you pay possibly. If that money paid for a ticket decreases your income with which to buy food then that may impact your family in some small manner and is the price they pay. Not to mention the delay of time in getting the ticket.
A small price to pay, a traffic violation; however, there may be more. Insurance rates can go up as well. More price to pay, literally.
What if that driving too fast causes an accident?
More price to pay. Potential traffic fines, insurance costs, lives hurt or taken, other vehicles or damage to pay for, etc.
That is just one little choice that may or may not have consequences and that is the price we pay in a society that has lots and lots of cars. A lot of people making choices that can affect us and are they even thinking about those choices or are they unconscious?
Good question. Are our choices conscious or unconscious?
Another good question.
Another way of paying a price may be practicing at a craft, art or writing, athletics.
The price of time, effort, repetition, learning, growing, accumulating skills is innumerable and costly to us.
However, that price may have dividends.
The dividend of enjoyment, working with teammates, accomplishing a skill, taking that skill and making money.
Becoming an amature or a professional may make dividends from that price you paid to get to that level.
So our consequences have a price and potentially a dividend depending on the results of our conscious decisions and choices.
It is all up to us and how we examine our choices and decisions.
Interesting and sometimes daunting but we have the skills and knowledge to take that incremental to the next level to monumental.
Anything I’ve missed or aspects we should consider?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
If you are unaware or a first time visitor you may like the free lessons and helps:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
April 29, 2021
Excuse me, there is a why
Yes there is ALWAYS a why and there it is standing right there behind you unnoticed.
The understanding of this principle will mean so much more than instructions, how-to’s, and as The Minimalists state “methods and modalities”.
Simple formulas and instructions do not cut it when you are analyzing the motives and conditionings and culture that you have internalized that prevent you from following formulas, methods, instructions or how-to’s.
Knowing and understanding and plunging into the depths of your own psyche is an absolute to changing behavior.
In The Minimalists email to me just the other day about
https://www.theminimalists.com/changing/
This article or essay as Joshua likes to call it, explains in depth about how the human really works.
The instinct that animals rely on is not inherent in humans.
Our “instinct” or operating instructions are baked into us by experiences and events in our lives.
If you Mother or Father, or loved one betrays you, hurts you in some way, even just the regular child being raised by a parent that doesn’t always know how or use the right skills
(Yes, I am raising my hand as well, I did not always do the best thing when parenting since my parents did not teach me and the culture is that we learn by doing.)
The baking in of that whole process of growing up leaves us with patterns that we’ve used to cope and adapt and figure out what works but may not be useful for developing our own long term relationships with others.
We have to “unbake” those experiences. That means figuring out why we overeat, we disassociate, we blank out, we use our four F’s (flight, fight, freeze or fawn) responses.
Understanding ourselves brings us to the useful tools to unravel that tangled mental process within us.
All of us have tangled mental processes and that is natural.
Just don’t let the tangles remain.
Deal with them so they do not become life long issues and impediments to our progress.
Read The Minimalists article which really reaches into just how to treat the underlying conditions that affect our current conditions.
Here it is again: https://www.theminimalists.com/changing/
Give it a read and let me know if you find it as useful as I did.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 27, 2021
...is a many splendored thing
What are many splendored things?
There are several that I can think of.
However, those things may apply to only me.
What are your splendiferous things?
What has beauty and is splendid in your life?
The evaluation and reflection on this is wonderful and can add positivity to our day as well as our lives overall.
It is good to acknowledge what is going well and what is great and gives us the peace and calm added to our lives.
Too often our day can focus on the negative aspects and keep in mind that one or two or a series of incidents does not make it a bad day.
The day is not tainted or spoiled by one bad thing. A day is still a day and has both positive and negative aspects and if we chose to focus on one or the other it is our choice and therefore that choice reflects back on us.
Focusing on the positive reinforces and focuses on our gratitude.
Gratitude is something we may not dwell upon enough possibly.
Here’s to you and your splendid day and all the wonderfulness of it.
Any thoughts or feedback?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 25, 2021
Equanimity
This is a huge subject.
It is a game changer and it is another trait that I am beginning to add to my life.
It will ease your mind and give you peace if you are able to shift your view of the world.
The world is both personal and impersonal.
I highly recommend this article. It will add dimensions to your life that you may have never had.
It helps one gain acceptance and guidance and calm and serenity.
Here is the information from Nick Keomahavong:
“If there is one thing I can offer you that will shift your life, THIS is it! Change your perception and your entire life will change. Equanimity is the MOST difficult virtue you can cultivate. In this live lecture, I'll give you an overview of equanimity from a Buddhist lens and also through the mental health lens. I give you many examples so you can fully grasp this concept with real practical exercises you can use. Check it out and hope you enjoy. “
This will add enormously to your incremental and launch you further towards your monumental.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aT6094MEY0
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 23, 2021
Literally Essential
Yes, both of these may not occur unless you are mindful and apply them.
This information becomes very essential and may help you in your next story or your current story or your story you’ve created but have not finished.
It is about motives and needs and wants.
Without wants, needs and motives your characters are lifeless as life would be if humans did not have those traits.
Ensure that those traits come shining through and make your story compelling.
This is from Story Grid which has so many useful articles and ideas and applications that they are too numerous to mention.
They are a regular reading and study habit of mine.
Without more ado here is the link:
https://storygrid.com/literal-and-essential/
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 21, 2021
Aspects
One thing I’ve learned about Tarot cards is that as you draw them and read them (not that I am any great authority or have any notions of how well they work), the point is that as you draw them and read them they can be positively aspected or negatively aspected.
I believe this is true for the events of our lives as well.
There are positive and negative aspects to everything we do whether we realize it or not.
Say I walk to the park, the positive aspects are walking and getting fresh air and enjoying nature. Negative aspects might be I stepped on a bug crossing the grass and ended its life (very negative for bugs, maybe positive for humankind depending on bug variety). Maybe there are so many kids running and playing and having a good time that it negatively affects my mood. Maybe I run into some neighbors that I don’t particularly care for and wish I hadn’t run into them, or maybe I run into some neighbors that I like and we have a good conversation that helps me. Positive aspects and negative aspects.
Think about your life. Vacuuming and cleaning and washing and caring for your family (this applies to both men and women). The positive aspects are cleaning and healthier environment immediately around you, the negative aspects may be the drudgery of it and knowing that it will have to be done again next week (or sooner).
So that we operate and have complete transparency in our lives we absolutely must think about the positive and negative aspects of our lives.
This can add gratitude to you, it will definitely help you gain insights and reflection of both sides of the aspect mirror.
Our lives have gains and losses, pluses and minuses and sometimes we focus on the one over the other and do it repeatedly.
This can steer you into being a positive minded individual or a negative minded individual depending on how much of a habit one is over the other.
Mindfulness is a mantra that I’ve repeated in different ways and this is an excellent way to examine your life.
So if you happen to be a glass empty type of person this will help you see that glass half full portion that you may miss.
Or if you are a glass half full type of person this will help you see that glass half empty portion that you may miss.
It rounds out your life and gives you deeper perspective and helps you enjoy both sides of issues and events.
Put on your lab coat and do so introspection and some inspection of events and issues of your life and those around you.
Deeper thinking keeps us aware and informed.
What do you think?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 19, 2021
Oh no, it’s lost
We recently misplaced an extremely important piece of paperwork that cost lots of money to obtain.
There were so many emotions we went through and still are going through around this event and it will potentially have to have us cancel a trip we had planned for two years (last year was pretty much a non-travel year for obvious reasons).
We’ve gone through shock, surprise, astonishment, guilt, blame, finding fault, anger, sadness, grief, loss, and even questioning our own minds and abilities.
That last one is the worst of all.
When you think you have lost your mind is really the end of the world and it seems like your frame and poise and centeredness is unfindable and unreachable again.
We all have these moments on some scale or another and it is a real heavy burden and can establish patterns and thought processes that need to be corralled and examined thoroughly to ensure one does not take side trips to guilt land or recrimination ville.
Two destinations that are not fun to go to.
So focus on what one can do rather than what one did not or should have done. Establish a baseline and what one can do to recover and to make amends and to reestablish the document.
Those are proactive actions.
One can continue to look and search and try to find but one can also move forward toward healing and restoring peace of mind by taking steps to reapply and reobtain the document.
There are two sides to this and to focus on the negative eats one up (been there, done that).
Keep in mind that your mind will jump all over the place and skip back and forth between recovery and blaming.
Your mind is keen and active and wants to be part of the process and sometimes the negative aspects are easy to focus on when recovery seems so far away.
We are learning together and growing together and gaining understanding by the understanding that we mete out to each other.
Often more attention to focus on positive aspects of each other are needed.
Often more hugs and just showing love and support are needed.
Really be positivity focused and watch the mood swings and bring them back to the positive side when required.
We attempt to remember that the person is more important than any object and place emphasis on that perspective.
Mindful and careful monitoring is what is needed in a time of crisis.
What are your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 17, 2021
Different Question and Answer Strategies
We’ve discussed why a question everything attitude may get you some answers that you’ve never thought of and how it can affect your life.
However-here is the caveat-when can questions not help?
Questions that have no answer are not helpful so it is pointless to ask those questions.
Questions where the answer is repeatedly, ‘I don’t know.” are not helpful so maybe another line of questioning is possibly helpful or maybe not.
It is up to us to determine when to change it up and when to quit.
With children, “why did you do that?” is not helpful since it sounds like an accusation or even with adults.
Get to the root by phrasing your questions differently.
Maybe ask yourself, “Why would that be?”
Maybe instead, try, “What is the reason for that?”
Maybe, “Why would you do that?”
For yourself if there are questions you don’t want to answer right away and want time to think:
Another way for people to dodge questions they don’t want to be asked is to return a question for a question, “Why would you ask that?”
“Good question, let me think about that.”
Or simply the politician's response which is to answer the question you wanted them to ask rather than the question they asked.
So wrangling around questions and answers and coming at them from different directions and ways helps to break through maybe to the real answers.
If a question has never been asked in a certain manner it might just be the breakthrough that is required to get further into the heart of the matter.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 15, 2021
Focus
A microscope, binoculars, magnifying glass and your mind all must be focused.
If not focused images are blurry, not readable, and may even be directional very off from the target.
Sometimes we focus on mirages. They may or may not be mirages. The difference is what are we doing day by day to ensure the mirage has a better chance of appearing.
Wanting to be a major league competitor of any sports at all requires diligent practice and focus on the day to day just to get all the requirements to be able to even have a chance. Many wish without diligent practice.
Our monumental is dependent on our incremental; the same way our monumental is at the mercy of our incremental.
There is no monumental without the incremental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 13, 2021
As an artist...
As an artist you have to think beyond the imagination of ordinary people.
You can be ordinary, many of us are but we channel an extraordinary focus, determination, practice, diligence, determination in order to become beyond ordinary when we practice our artistry.
As an artist you come to know your media extremely well. The study and the depth of study is beyond ordinary.
The layers and complexity of our media and knowing how the interactions of oils, latex, acrylic, gouache (I don’t know what that even is), watercolor and how they interact and work together or against each other and if they should even be used at all together.
How the stone or clay or plastic or whatever media will react to the various forces you apply to it is again a very cultivated and nuanced application of your knowledge, skill and passion.
Accidently discovering a methodology is great however the greatest asset is repetition, constant evolving, and constant study of your materials.
We are all artists of some type.
The type is not important, it is the approach and the confidence and the study and the continued learning from what you have done and the study of others and what they have done.
As an artist you envision beyond your limits for if you believe you have limitations then that belief will keep you from becoming what you desire.
Again it is the construct of your current belief that holds you back from your future self and skill.
Interesting how thematic this becomes as does the incalculable tiny steps and movements that led to the force of each of them adding, multiplying and gathering of power to become monumental.
Simple as that. Yet, so difficult to master.
Mastering the simplicity of your craft is your challenge and we are working on that every day.
What are your challenges? How are you multiplying and challenging and using your strengths to overcome your weaknesses?
One must know their weaknesses in order to overcome them.
Without that knowledge then the weaknesses remain draining our strength without our even realizing it.
That one tiny step of finding, discovering and exploring yourself and pinpointing those weaknesses is a huge source of your future strength.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 11, 2021
Proof
I’ve had quite a few articles about reality, belief systems, paradigm and about our constructs. Refer to those articles if you will.
Our imagination is a great tool and it is used in so many situations and can prove to help breakthrough common misconceptions by imagining how things can change or be viewed differently.
Preface, I am not anti anything I believe in living and let live and your beliefs are your own and belong and can be manipulated by no one unless you choose to let your beliefs be manipulated by someone.
Someone who is superstitious may throw salt over their shoulder at the appropriate time, or not walk under ladders or be careful not to open umbrellas indoors.
Those belief systems are valid to those individuals and others may say, “Show me proof, that these superstitions work.” Those who have those belief systems can’t. There is no proof.
Now what do we have proof of?
We have proof of nature, animals, real tangible objects that we can see and touch and experience.
Show me a ghost.
Show me a spirit.
You can’t, there is no proof, there is just someone who believes in them because they BELIEVE they have seen one at one time or another.
OR
They may believe that spirits and ghosts exist because it seems logical.
Most of our beliefs fit into the “well, it seems logical that this is true so I believe it to be true” regardless of actual proof.
Racism is a construct.
Illusions are a construct and we construct them all the time.
Bias is a construct.
Culture is a construct.
Fantasies are a construct.
Cons are a construct. They are constructed to look legit, sound legit and get the con-nee to believe the con-ner, however; cons are only legitimate in getting the con-nee to hand over something to the con-ner.
Constructing an illusion is a double construct.
Fiction is a construct. Yet it is entertaining but we realize the boundaries of fiction and the real, or do we?
Many people believe in leprechauns, loch ness monster, mermaids, Atlantis and other myths were constructs.
How many of our beliefs fit into that genre?
How many of your beliefs fit into that genre?
The Easter bunny is a construct.
Santa Claus is a construct.
Fix can be a construct. See the following article:
https://www.theminimalists.com/cannotfix/
Control is a construct. There is very little that we actually control and usually it is predominately ourselves.
Whose belief system takes precedence and is it determined by commonality, popularity or quantity of followers?
It all comes down to the individual and what construct they choose to believe.
For every person that believes in a construct I can show you a person who claims to believe and yet does not follow it. Does that add or subtract validity?
I can also show you for every person that believes in a construct at least one other person who does not believe in that construct.
Amazing but true.
There is no proof of any construct.
Another HUGE construct is agenda. Many people have agendas and they attempt to construct with others why their agenda is important so others will take up the same agenda and make the agenda easier for others to follow. Gather the momentum so to speak.
Arguments are constructs. Both or many sides of many things can be argued for and against but in the end it is one opinion or another.
I’ve searched for information on a particular item regarding health or diet or eating and been able to find opposing views on why that item is good or bad on different sites.
How is this possible that sometimes people will say something is not good for you and then others will say it is good for you?
It is all a construct by that particular person with their own agenda or argument or opinion.
Two of the largest constructs are government and currency.
Laws are enacted and there is an enforcement arm that goes with laws to ensure that we comply but we’ve known so many governments that eventually fall apart since the people determined that they did not want to be governed by that type of government. Our own country (the USA) is a prime example of a colony that did not like the “handling” or exploitation of England and because of experiencing this tyranny rebelled. They changed their construct from British rule to USA rule.
The same with currency if we believe in it and go along with it then it holds value and we will use and trade with that currency. Once we lose faith in it (think Confederate states currency once the Southern Government was dissolved and actually before as it kept losing it’s value since it was just printed without backing of any kind). There are other governments that have printed and printed and made the currency practically useless as a commodity to be used and trading became the commodity.
Our constructs are our belief system.
Our belief system only holds value while we give it value, maybe until we value something else other than the current belief.
Do you find this offensive to be discussing this?
Why?
This says a lot about you and your belief systems, it says nothing about mine.
I do not castigate anyone for what they believe in or in what or who they chose to follow as well.
I hold all harmless until I am harmed and hurt by any of them then I hold that person responsible, not the belief system.
The person is the one who is responsible and should be condemned for actions or non-actions not beliefs.
This is how we achieve world peace.
We live and let live and let all belief systems coexist and exist.
Hold the individual responsible. Not the belief.
Hold the leaders responsible. Not the belief.
There are constructs everywhere and we have to recognize that those constructs are valid to individuals.
Just as ours belong to us individually.
Maybe we need to deconstruct our constructs.
Drop me a line and let me know what you think.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
NOTE: I rewrote this article at least a dozen times in order to ensure that my intent is clear and that it does not repeat other articles of mine. Did I achieve my intent? Let me know, I’d really be interested in what you think.
April 9, 2021
Discovery
Discover a discovery!
How exciting is that?
No, not found something that you thought you’d lost but a real discovery.
A true discovery.
How do you discover?
What steps do you take to discover something?
The easy answer is that one has to explore to discover something.
Discovery without exploring is impossible.
If one explores one’s mind and how one thinks and those perceptions, one will discover that some of our perceptions are actually constructs.
We’ve constructed our thoughts to reflect our emotions rather than to examine our emotions about a specific event and see if those emotions are really warranted about that event.
In other words, sometimes our emotions overreact.
If we get mad and think about that thing that we took umbrage about, we may get madder because we are so focused on the one emotion that feeds on itself and becomes a monster.
We have created rage due to out of control (we have refused to control our) emotions and let those emotions rule us rather than us ruling the emotions.
We have spun out of control since we refused or did not control ourselves.
This is at the base and is the bane of humankind in not being able to control our constructs about events and issues and letting those events and issues control us.
Discover this about yourself and you are digging deep within and reaching an understanding that is far greater than we had of ourselves.
Understanding leads to more peacefulness.
And peacefulness is the sweet fruit of that hard work.
AND it really is work to be able to delve into those depths that are elusive and do not want to be explored and exposed.
This exploration is key to having and being calm in the storm of humanity.
Feel your breath and your heartbeat and your body as it further reacts to this peacefulness.
Maybe now you understand the phrase:
I’ve reached the peace that passes [comes from] understanding.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 7, 2021
Thinking about retiring to Mexico?
Here is a series of pros and cons and articles about this subject:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/blog/0998-retirementinmexico
Normal
Are you normal?
What is normal?
Who is normal?
Why be normal?
Is normal really a thing, a person, a situation?
I say to you, “Nay, nay!”.
Normal is a construct.
Normal is a way of viewing data not people.
Normal is a distribution on a bell curve and NOTHING MORE!
It is not us, it is not anyone around us, it is nothing but a fiction and an imaginary person who does not exist EXCEPT maybe in someone’s mind.
Not ours.
We are not normal, nor should we ever be normal.
We are us, we are ourselves, we are who we should be.
We are whole, we are happy sometimes and we are sad sometimes.
We have both positivity and negativity and that is okay and it is right since everyone has these traits and emotions and that is the way it should be.
Nothing is normal and something is exactly the way it should be.
We are evolving and growing and learning and we are NOT the same everyday and yet, in some ways we are the same everyday and this is perfectly acceptable.
Accept who you are and you will allow yourself the space to change if you want, evolve if you want, and to grow into the person who you were meant to be.
This article is suggested by Seth Goding, my mentor for many years.
“Unilver has decided to get rid of the word ‘normal’ on their personal care product labels. Because when it comes to people, normal is an artificial construct, the center of a statistical bell curve but not a standard that we ought to seek to achieve, even if we could.
Normal is a distribution, not a person.”
What do you think?
When we examine our everyday language and thoughts then we are examining our constructs and our belief systems and those systemic beliefs guide us for good or ill.
We are who we construct ourselves to be and that can be good but can also be an edge to cut ourselves with sometime down the road.
Incremental changes it the way we get to monumental.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 5, 2021
Labels, Logos and Mission Statements
Do you have a label?
Do you have a logo?
Do you have a mission statement?
Does it even matter?
In the 1980’s mission statements for corporations really took off and came into vogue.
Companies wanted employees and hired consultants to ensure their mission statement was the right wording and said all the cool buzz words.
I would have loved to see a mission statement that read,
“ XYX (name of corporation) exists to make as much profit at the expense of quality, our employees and produce as much stress as humanly possible in order to line the pockets of our executives and board of directors.”
How honest is that?
How much homogenized BS exists in corporate mission statements?
It almost makes one regurgitate to read one of them.
What difference does a logo make?
Do logos induce you to buy a particular brand?
Are you the kind of person that does or does not carry or wear labeled / logoed merchandise?
How important is it?
Will it save you from any disease?
Will it save your soul?
What if you knew you were going to die in a year?
What would you do differently?
Would having the latest be your motto or would doing kindness and being more loving be your motto?
Just something to think about.
It can add to your incremental and overall your monumental in the way you think about “things” and about yourself, and what you are wearing.
We all like to be cool.
But what is cool really?
What cachet is there in a label and a logo?
It is all made up and smoke and mirrors.
It may be the highest crime or scam ever perpetrated or perpetuated upon humanity.
Yet we go along with that particular type of “magic” in the name of cachet.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
Looking for Authors to Interview from the following states to complete all 50 states, please.
NEBRASKA and VERMONT plus would love to have a Washington DC author as well.
I’ve interviewed authors from England, Wales, Canada, India, Scotland, Ecuador, Spain, Australia and USA.
Also, looking for more from those countries above plus others.
April 3, 2021
What is your rope?
I must give kudos to Kyle Cease for some of the ideas and I’m making an effort to add to those ideas and enhance them.
His original idea is here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mSA60YxIDg
The rope is anchored to the bottom and yet as the water rises we hold onto the rope tighter.
Why would we do that?
What makes us, compels us, makes us think that holding tighter will save us, when in fact it drowns us or puts us deeper into the morass that is weighing us down.
If the water is rising, then why would we hold tighter?
Maybe our misperceptions? Maybe we don’t want to recognize our limitations, or we have limited vision of our real bonafide reality?
It could be our addictions, like Kyle says, addicted to power, weath, manipulation.
Maybe it is just familiar and anything not familiar is scary and we can’t let go of familiar and embrace scary change.
Addicted to the past, afraid of the future and if we see the right now, we know we have to let go of the rope in order to stay alive and live free and breathe.
Let go of your rope, since it is a rope of your making, no one else made this rope. WE MADE IT!
Another thing to think about and it really made me think and continue to think.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 2, 2021
My Octopus Teacher
Here is all you need to know about this amazing, fabulous film.
Rotten Tomatoes the review site gives it a 100% rating.
IMDB is only 8.2 out of 10 (why I’ll never understand).
My review is it is fantastic and the higher quality of TV that you have the more fantastic the scenery is.
You’ll feel like you are there present and living that life with Craig Foster and experiencing it first hand.
If you snorkel, scuba, or love marine life, you have got to see this film.
If you want the deepest sensitivity about our relationship with animals and how more intense it can be and wants to be.
We share the planet with animals and yet they put up with us WAY MORE than we put up with them.
Learn our relationships from animal to human to nature to this planet and other planets.
I predict you will be astounded by the film and what you will learn.
You will definitely love it and you’ll become like me, a raving fan telling others how fantastic it is.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
April 1, 2021
There are no fools here.
Homosapiens
Yes, you and me, all of us are homosapiens.
We are so unique, the only one of its’ kind in the whole wide world.
All other mammals, fish, reptiles, birds, insects, etc. do not have the one thing that we have.
If you were to take a guess there are several things you might guess.
Speech, however, others have ways to communicate but we have words, a whole dictionary of them.
We wear clothing.
We have fire.
Blushing, other species do not blush.
A lot of animals reproduce until they die, not humans.
Opposable thumbs.
Power, no other species wields the power that we do.
Laughing and crying.
Mental disorders.
Reasoning.
Falling in love.
Believing in a God or supreme being.
And the last thing (which was suggested to me as I was listening to Eckhart Tolle) is…
Ego.
No other species has a relationship with itself.
No other species has an inner image of themselves that we do.
We are a comparative species and as such we compare ourselves in every category with other humans.
One may say “I am better looking than her.” or that “I am smarter than he.” We do that all the time and there is no reason for it.
It does not benefit us in the least, it only has to do with self image.
What is your image of yourself?
Do you like your image in your mind?
This is the depth of our mind and our imagination is to rank ourselves and give others rankings based purely upon our perceptions.
Our perceptions (our imagination) become our reality.
For good or for bad (which again is only a perception that we are making up as we go).
Our self image is not good or bad it just exists and maybe it is the one thing we may want to eliminate.
It serves no purpose.
It gives us no useful knowledge or any gain of any kind.
Self examination is useful, ego has a place but the self esteem is not really that useful.
If we give up all our self esteem (meaning to not have self perceptions that are not useful) then we gain more understanding, more knowledge and a truer picture of ourselves.
Something to think about.
[A new lesson has been posted today as well.]
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
March 31, 2021
SOURCE
What is your source?
How do you control your source?
Does your source serve you?
If a person has a feeling and cannot accept it, how should they feel about that?
Why can’t they accept it?
Who or what is telling them they can’t accept it?
You are the source!
You are the god of you!
You are creating you every moment of your life!
You are the source!
Your patterns may attempt to control you, to say to you, this or that is unacceptable.
Your patterns may be your source and you are letting them rule you.
So take control and be your source.
Accept that which your pattern may tell you is unacceptable.
Sometimes your pattern is logical and sometimes it is even right (meaning correct) and that is what you need to do.
Sometimes it is not logical and sometimes it is so far from incorrect that many can see that it is so wrong and so not you.
We want to see that as well.
See who you really are.
Accept who you really are.
Do not let your ego, or your source or your family or your peers, or what others think rule you.
Of course, there are caveats. One absolutely can’t harm themselves and others.
One absolutely needs to live inside the laws of the land that you live in.
Incarceration due to following a whim and a source that leads to that dead end is just silly.
Being silly is fine, being happy is fine, as long as, insert your own dialogue here since there are always caveats and precedences.
You are smart enough to figure out what is a source you want to follow and what is a source you will not and cannot follow.
You are source.
You are you.
You are the creator and the power and the light and it is inside of you that all things come to be for you.
We limit ourselves, and hold ourselves back and do not attempt certain things due to what we perceive is needful.
Maybe it is needful that we inspect what we perceive and ensure that it is legit or not.
Trust in yourself.
The more you connect to you the more you connect to that ONE SOURCE the one supreme being.
What a beautiful, beautiful creation on your part!
You are the creator and you become one with the Creator.
How deep is that?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
Coming near the first of each month:
If you are unaware or a first time visitor you may like the free lessons and helps:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
March 30, 2021
Is your incremental in the way of your monumental?
How is that even possible?
Incrementally speaking, if you do a thousand of one thing then the results should speak for themselves.
You’ll achieve greatness.
Not so fast, grasshopper…
If the incremental you are performing does NOT, I mean REALLY NOT contribute to your monumental then it does not matter how many incrementals you do. A thousand or even a million, greatness will be as far away as ever.
The incremental you want to do are those incrementals that contribute to the monumental.
Everything else is just dross. Not that we don’t have to deal with dross or the less than stellar items from everyday life, we do!
Deal with the dross then get back to the incremental that contributes to your monumental.
A thousand paint strokes goes a long way to ensuring that you are learning the steps to being an artist.
A million, well you get the picture (pun intended).
Ensure your actions in the incremental world will follow through and augment, even punch the ticket in the monumental world.
If every action has an equal and opposite reaction then every incremental action will react and eventually become monumental if every incremental contributes to the monumental.
What are your thoughts on this subject?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
March 29, 2021
Heather Earles interview with David Alan Binder
Heather’s website:
About Heather:
“If you’re going to do something right, do it right the first time.” That’s one of my Dad’s sayings. In other words, use your head or a level when building something from the ground up ;).
As to a career, I’ve worked in the modeling/acting industry, and I have also worked with a company called Seed Hawk, out of Canada. At present I have a company called H & E Literary Works LLC, I blog, of course, have a podcast called Herb ‘N Wisdom™, I’m an author of fiction and children’s books, and I write a Healthy Living article for my local newspaper.
Where are you currently living?
North Dakota
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
Always keep your reader/audience in mind.
What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
I love dialog, so many times I will write an entire scene based around a conversation.
Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
My first book, To Know Her Calling, was through Westbow Press. Located in Bloomington Indiana. A Busy Morning On The Farm, is through Pufferprint, 100 Quotes For the Good Times and Bad and A Guide to Identifying the Most Common Herbs are strictly eBooks on Smashwords.
Any insights eBooks vs. print books and alternative vs. conventional publishing?
If an author is serious about having his or her books noticed, they should have both eBooks and print. Landing a traditional publisher is very difficult even if you follow all of the correct techniques or read all of the blogs on “How to land a literary agent and publisher.” Unless you are using a paid service, have an inside contact, have lots of money, or have a well-known name, your emails often get rejected. However, you make more money if you land a traditional publisher. Self-publishing and Indie publishing take money upfront, but you have more control of the overall editing process.
Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
You need a literary agent if you are looking to have a traditional publisher.
How did you or would you suggest acquire an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
Do your homework, go to each site and see what a literary agent is looking for as far as fiction, children’s books, drama, and so on. Then read how to send in a query letter. Each agent or agency is often different in how they want a letter sent.
Do you have any suggestions or help(s) for new writers (please be specific and informational as possible)?
It's hard for a writer to understand, but you cannot hold your work so close that you are unwilling to change certain things like titles, scenes, or wording. If you will not change anything about your book, have it self-published or do Indie publishing because the traditional publisher will change parts of your book. As a new writer, a critique group is beneficial for you to share chapters. If you want to grow as a writer, you cannot be offended by honest comments.
What was one of the most surprising things you learned with your creative process with your books, editing, publishing or illustrating?
How long everything takes and the cost.
How many books have you written?
5
Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be as specific and information as you possibly can)?
Read an author you admire and then ask yourself why. Also, set up a schedule. For instance, I had a schedule where I would write 500 words per day no matter what. Never be afraid to write the middle or end of a book, even if you are only starting. Creative writing means you write, don’t worry about punctuation or proper sentences. Write your book first, then take a week break and go back and start editing.
Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
If we are talking about anything other than a children’s book, you need to have an element of surprise, something the reader would not expect.
What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
I always write based on real people, real conversations. I also like more dialog. When the author can put their emotions into the story, the reader can feel it.
What are some ways in which you promote your work?
To save time, I will use either Word or another software program where I can speak, and the words are automatically typed, not for the entire book, but for parts I have roaming around in my head where speaking takes less time, and you can get your thoughts out on paper at a faster rate.
What saying or mantra do you live by?
I have a couple. Go red or go home! In Christ alone my hope is found.
Anything else you would like to say?
Don’t be afraid to be different. So many books are exactly the same because they are edited to the point where the author’s voice is lost. Edit, but don’t eliminate your voice.
March 27, 2021
Madness
Viruses are infuriating.
Viruses weaken you, viruses tie your hands, viruses cripple you.
Viruses can stop the work from flowing and begin the madness of correcting what is wrong and taking your life from devastation back to normal.
This all takes time which you don’t have, don’t want to give up and which makes you feel weak and sick and less than tip top.
I am referring to the computer type of viruses.
I had a warning come up this morning, so I had to fight and slay the dragon before I even could go to work.
Fortunately I have excellent virus protection and it is worth every penny to keep this monster at bay.
It is insidious and rampant and ever lurking.
Just waiting for us to let our guard down just for a second.
Click on the wrong link in an email (even from a friend) let alone a scammer and bang you got BIG PROBLEMS.
Viruses take many shapes and styles from colds, to flu, to other bugs, to even (yeah, this is a stretch but I’m including) bacterial ones as well. Technically not a virus but I’m a lumper and lumping them in as well.
Inoculation is simple and easy before you get a virus and seems to be the ultimate protection unless you are able to keep yourself or your computer in a virgin environment with no contact with others. (Imagine no internet!)
I cannot even begin to imagine it, and yet just 50 years ago the internet was invented and roughly just 20 years ago, in 1991 came into general use.
We’ve only been using this fantastic tool for 20 years and look at what our lives are like.
This is the stuff science fiction seems to be made of and yet here it is right in front of us, on our phones and in our homes, everywhere we go.
All that information for us to use and play with and learn from.
Don’t waste this precious resource.
No, we’ll never use up the internet but we waste it learning about the latest news and yet that news does not impact our city or region usually.
We use it to play games, to learn about games, to look up scores and use social media (the ultimate time waster there).
Not that any of that is particularly bad, but when you can learn languages, sociology, psychology, geology, biology, most any -ology that you can.
Please don’t waste your time on not learning, use it to learn, that is what I mean about wasted resources.
Your time is the most precious item that you waste every day.
Yeah, I know it is yours to waste and do with it what you will.
As for me, I am ever learning and growing and becoming more knowledgeable about those things that will help me to become a better version of me.
What does the new version of you look like?
That is up to you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
NOTE: Updated to authors from 48 States!
Authors in the England, Wales, Canada, India, Scotland, Ecuador, Spain, Australia and (48 states) USA (9 countries). Over 357 authors of collectively almost 4000 books!
March 27, 2021
The Top Ten Reasons to Write or Publish
Here is a complete listing of my latest communication with Seth Godin. I’ve been his follower for years and have passed along tidbits of information as I glean them.
This latest offering is about writing a book; however, many of the list could with a little rewording apply to most any project you are currently participating in or anticipating in starting.
The Top Ten Reasons to Write or Publish a book:
“It clarifies your thinking.
It leaves behind a record of where you are at this moment.
It’s clearly not going to be a worldwide mass-market bestseller, so you can focus only on the people who want to hear from you.
It’s a project that is completely and totally up to you.
Because it’s a generous way to share.
As hobbies go, it’s energy-efficient, takes up very little space and is portable.
Because then you get to write another one.
It will increase your authority in your field.
We need to hear your ideas, they matter.
And then you become an author.
It’s not that hard to publish it when you’re done.
The publishing is a bonus, a way to seek completion, not the point of the exercise.”
What are your top 10 reasons?
Mine are mostly because I want to and it sounded good at the time.
Prestige and acclaim are out the window since there are a plethora of authors; however, the number of writers who are not published are vast in number and the authors are far fewer.
It is an accomplishment of monumental proportions!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
David Alan Binder is celebrated, awarded, accomplished, published, titled and certified.
March 25, 2021
Find your Mind
It seems so simple, it resides in your brain so it is a no brainer to find your mind.
I’ve been writing over 30 years and it dawned on me today after working on another story to publish.
So it has taken me over 30 years to realize and I’m going to give you a HUGE shortcut to writing.
This may also work with other projects. I find that when I am working on the car or the house that I use another mind besides my regular one.
Find your mind refers to getting into that particular frame of mind.
When I’m working on, for instance, some plumbing project replacing a flush mechanism or replacing inline filters.
I have to switch inside my mind and say, okay this will take some time. Be patient and careful and bring all your expertise and experience to this task.
Or if I’m writing then I have to think like a writer, not a plumber or carpenter or a mechanic.
It takes different skills to do different projects. Maybe some people can switch automatically but I have to bear down and give it some thought and be sure which mind I am in.
Like I said earlier, I was writing a story earlier and later after finishing I examined in my head what I just had done and it dawned on me, hey, you switched in your head to a writer.
When I am a writer I am not thinking like a regular person. I have to think like a writer. Not just wordsmithing but bringing to bear on that task all the learning and advice I’ve read and heard about writing.
Sometimes it is not automatic and maybe this will help you to advance your craft in one area or another.
Something to think about, if you have an example of Find your Mind” or a situation that fits this, let me know.
I’d love to hear about it!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
March 21, 2021
A Writer Has Got to Be Ruthless
Of course my writing is superb, that’s what I think, but really subjectively my writing always needs, it requires much improvement.
Every day I get better but it is not good enough.
The reason is not the writing in itself, it is the fact that I can’t SEE it.
I am blind to faults in my writing, since I cut myself a break or sometimes I even autocorrect in my mind an error.
We are so easy on ourselves and sometimes are not harsh enough (there are a few of you who may be TOO HARSH and that stops now as well).
A balanced approach of harshness and easiness is required with a leaning towards, just a tad bit of leaning not full throttle towards harshness.
Be judicious, be alert, be astute, be aware, and read it out loud for Pete’s sake and everyone’s sake.
Reading out loud catches more mistakes than reading it twice I know. Several of the authors (out of the 500 I’ve interviewed) say this is a KEY PRINCIPLE. Read it out loud!
This was also taught in at least three writing classes that I've taken.
We want to present the best version of our writing since it is a reflection on us and our work.
Reflect the best you have.
Reflect your magnificence.
Reflect your wisdom.
Reflect your story.
Reflect your real intent and meaning in your writing.
Here is a quote from Robert McKee:
“The ultimate source of character is you. But what do characters need from their writer? To create a well-written protagonist or cast member, the first faculty a writer requires is taste.
Learning to discriminate between bad and good in other people’s writing is not difficult. However, to see it in your own calls for guts and judgment. It requires an intrinsic disgust with banality and an eye for the vital versus the lifeless.
Tough-mindedness not only inspires truthful writing but a truthful life as well. The more you spot these faults in your own pages and trash them with the repugnance they deserve, the more you avoid them in life.
Masterfully told stories provide insights into life as if illuminated from a distant, unseen wisdom. The more you read superior writers, watch excellent stories and study, the more you widen and deepen your taste.”
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
If you are unaware or a first time visitor you may like the free lessons and helps:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
March 19, 2021
Recipes
How to make or produce something becomes a “How To” or a Recipe for others to follow.
The recipe for perpetual ignorance is: “Be satisfied with your opinions and content with your knowledge.” Elbert Hubbard an American Writer (1856 to 1915) [my wife’s grandmother left a bunch of writings she had made notes of and this was one of them that we ran across in the last month.]
I remember (actually my friend remembers) when he said, “I’ve got something to say about that” (whatever conversation we were having). I said, “I bet you do!” since he always had something to say about everything (or so I thought). He really had lots of opinions and maybe I was a little tired of hearing all of them or something was off that day, either with me or him. He has never forgotten it and neither have I.
The point is that others have opinions and we have opinions and it behooves us to be careful that we do not hold so fast to our opinions that they lead us to ignorance or non-furtherance of our knowledge.
Other people have good ideas as well.
Another note her grandmother had written down is, “Minds are like parachutes, they function only when they are open.”
Very interesting. I looked it up and it is attributable to Thomas Robert Dewar.
I’ll share some more: “Your IDEALS is what you wish you were. Your REPUTATION is what people think you are. Your CHARACTER is what you know you are.”
“Our acts become our habits. Our habits form our character. Our character determines our destiny.”
These sayings give us not only courage but insight and wisdom that we may have known but I continually need to be reminded of these are many more in order to be a me that I am proud of.
What are your favorite sayings? They may be worthwhile to share and remind us all.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
March 17, 2021
Questions
'The quality of your life is dependent on the quality of your questions' is my paraphrasing of Anthony Robbins quote ('The quality of your life is a direct reflection of the quality of the questions you are asking yourself')
“How may I help you?” is a question customer service people like to ask.
And that is not a bad question to ask. There are no really bad questions. Even reiterating a question that has been asked before may elucidate more understanding.
What outcome are you seeking?
This is a wonderful question to ask others when attempting to resolve issues.
It is also a fantastic question to ask yourself.
Perhaps you are in a negotiation and don’t ask the question, you may think of $10 for an item and they may be thinking of $5 for that item. If you just start with a number then you give away your position and may come in higher than the other person. “What outcome are you seeking?” gives the other person the chance to start and you learn from their answer. It works with issues or items that you are working out or bargaining for without the dollars.
A true negotiator also keeps in their pocket a very strong position of if they don’t get what they want at the value predetermined then they walk away.
Walking away is a very strong position and may entice the other to say, “Wait, what about X?” If they do not, then walk away and maybe you’ll be approached by them later.
When entering a search in the search engine, when entering a store, starting a project, performing training or weight loss or when doing anything, ask yourself, “What outcome am I seeking? This will guide you into the paths that give results.
Be results oriented and watch the increments add up faster.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
March 15, 2021
Indicator Light is LIT!
Once driving on a trip our indicator light for the tire pressure came on as we were going up the long mountain incline from Phoenix to Flagstaff.
Being proactive I pulled over to a rest area on the way up that happened to have restrooms and a scenic view. Luckily for us a state trooper happened to be stopped there and we asked him about it (since we did not have a gauge and the tire did not look low). He said, “Oh that happens all the time when you change elevations but it is good that we stopped and checked since the tire could have a nail or screw in it).
So that was very cool, but until we settled it our anxiety was also an indicator light that was on.
I have had my anxiety indicator (mental only) light come on last night in the middle of the night and when that happens it is a sign that I need to take stock and examine it and put it to bed (so to speak) so I can sleep the next night if not that night.
I have resolved that the next time this happens that I will thank the anxiety for the warning. Then I will say to myself, I appreciate the warning and I will attend to this warning in the morning. Now I have given my unconscious permission to feel the anxiety that it brought up and told it that I will address it in the morning.
That will allow me to stop being anxious.
If not, then I will tell my subconscious to STOP. I do NOT give it permission to bring it up any more. It will be dealt with in the morning and if it persists like sometimes it can, I will repeat STOP and keep repeating it as long as it takes until I go to sleep.
This allows me and the subconscious to coexist and work together and not have separate agendas.
We want to ensure that proper agendas have proper permissions for ourselves and our minds and for others in our lives. We will let them know when they have permission or assign a time to deal with whatever issue that has been brought up.
This is all about feeling the feelings and emotions and not letting them control you. You are an adult and you control them, not the other way around.
This is incremental living at its best. This is a step by step procedure for handling either day or night issues. Many do not know how to do this and their emotions run rampant and can run right over them at any time the emotions come up.
Being able to give permissions and time tables and address those issues when we deem it correct deflates the subconscious and gives it the attention it craves and yet, also tells it when we will have a chat and address that issue.
This works wonderfully with our subconscious and our children (grown or not) and our friends and anyone whom we deal with. We let them know that we hear them and that their issue will be dealt with at such and such a time.
It gives them the expectation of when and where they will be dealt with and creates an atmosphere and love and respect.
Love yourself and work on this. Managing your expectations and their expectations is key to an incremental life.
I’d love to hear your examples of your incremental life and your experiences of dealing with real life issues.
We all need help and training and we can deal with these issues.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
March 13, 2021
Is your monumental blocked?
Answer the question please.
Your monumental may be blocked and these are indicators:
You don’t have time.
5 minute increments ensure that your incremental becomes monumental. For instance, I’ve gotten on the computer or cell phone to look something up or spend JUST 5 minutes and it ended up being 30 minutes to an hour. I wasted 25 to 55 minutes by not being cognizant of my incremental. I have sacrificed my monumental by being incremental in a way that does not feed my monumental.
So don’t starve your monumental. You must feed it the same way you give sustenance to feed your soul and your psyche.
Screen time of any kind is usually time wasters.
Obviously we have people that need us and can suck those moments away when we’d like to spend them elsewhere. Give them what you can but be limiting gently by saying, “I’ll interrupt myself and set a timer and give you 5 minutes.” This lets them know they are special but without caving in and giving them a whole afternoon. (You may have to increase the time given depending on what is happening with the other person, but be limiting and give them 30 minutes or an hour at most and this lets them know you care for them without the sacrifice of hours.
Distraction and lost in thought and daydreaming are not actions by any means. Yes, it takes time to gather thoughts on specific subjects in order to ensure a quality project but distraction and take over. Living in the past or ruminating about various events that you really cannot change or do anything about does not make effective use of your time.
Playing games are huge time wasters unless you are playing with your children and have great interaction, and you can give kids an hour to play, read or whatever they want then the time becomes yours after their time is up. Always set a timer and then wrap up rather than cut off abruptly.
You have to make time for you.
Your projects want to have you respect them and ensure progress is made and you’ll feel better about your devotion to those projects if you balance working on them and being with your family or friends.
Life is balance, grasshopper!
There is take and give and if the takers take all you can give then you have nothing left for yourself.
What are your ideas and tips and tricks for accomplishing the Incremental through to being Monumental?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
If you are unaware or a first time visitor you may like the free lessons and helps:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
March 11, 2021
Incrementalism
What does incrementalism mean?
What do incrementalists do?
How can incremental living add to your life?
Are there any negatives to incremental living?
How does it affect me and how does it affect you?
Is incremental change too slow or enough or right?
I will answer these host of questions and more in this new segment (article) called Incrementalism.
First, I love the name. The name has true meaning for me since my life has been lived incrementally, not just in time but in gains and losses. (Yes, there have been losses but those losses created space for gains.)
Incremental living is NOT fast living.
Incremental living is NOT slow living.
Incremental living is change and advance and progress at your pace. You set the pace, you set the parameters and you control all the controllable variables associated with it and of course, there are uncontrollable variables. See the Serenity Prayer.
Our whole lives are incremental from learning to crawl to toddling to walking to running and these are important processes and changes that we adapt to at our own pace. I’ve seen some of our children potty train in about 1 year and I’ve seen some of our children take longer. I do NOT measure one against the other. We do NOT measure ourselves in terms of others. It takes what it takes, in other words, time is irrelevant, change is relevant. And comparisons to others is irrelevant, comparison of ourselves to the changes in ourselves is extremely relevant. For just as one has gains and losses when losing weight or learning math, or another language (yes, I’ve been trying to learn Spanish for over 15 years and it is a slow hard fought process, but hey, I really know so much more than when I started that that incremental change and comparison is important to keep me wanting to continue and motivates me.
No progress is de-motivational and even if we forget or have losses it is more important to know that we are aware of the losses and can overcome them and surpass them (think of the stock market, your gains are the earnings if the stock goes up, however, if the stock goes down then you are still gaining since the price per share goes down but the dividends buy you more stock since the share value is down). That concept is wonderful and it took me a long time to understand and be good with that concept regardless of my acceptance. It still happened but the learning and the knowledge and understanding is extremely important.
Know that stock earnings analogy can apply to your life. If you find a penny, it is worth more than a penny since over time a penny in 1969 was worth 1 cent, in 2021 it is worth $7.13. Here is the full explanation from a website:
“$1 in 1969 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $7.13 today, an increase of $6.13 over 52 years. The dollar had an average inflation rate of 3.85% per year between 1969 and today, producing a cumulative price increase of 612.76%.”
The learning rate of incrementalists is far and above since they are aware of that change. Being aware and intentional is at the heart of change and progress.
Incrementalism is as deep as the ocean and ready for us to deep dive into being and immersing ourselves in those peaceful waters.
Peaceful since we now are aware over time what we do, our actions, matter, every day.
We know there is no escape from the consequences of reality and our actions. And we also know that reality changes as we change.
Knowledge grounds us and is our foundation and a rock to build upon.
The sound principles of Incrementalism give us guidance. Gives us a path. Gives us rules if you will, and gives us motivation.
This motivation is selfish; however, at the same time as we grow others around us can see that change and may ask about that change in you.
Your choices affect you and eventually affect others and ripple out into the world.
Any questions?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
If you are unaware or a first time visitor you may like the free lessons and helps:
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March 9, 2021
I have published a new story today as well, see this link:
(NOTE: Wanted an agent or publisher for my stories! I have determined to not self publish mostly due to Child's Picture Books need pictures and I am not an artist.)
If you see any errors or have suggestions, please let me know. Thanks
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/stories_1
Monumentally speaking
The incremental becomes monumental.
That statement says so much with so few words. Anytime a statement or proclamation of that magnitude speaks to us, we want to listen for our soul, our being, our every fiber feels it and it resonates.
Resonation means we are achieving motivation, uplist and a positive drive and propulsion towards greatness.
What is greatness?
How do you define it?
However you define it, having the learning that gives you daily or weekly returns, can be greatness. Having a better clarity of purpose, scope and view, is greatness.
Anything that adds value to our lives helps us achieve greatness. Even motivation to do better (however you define better) will give us rewards and determination to follow through and just stand firm in our convictions.
We are convicted by our convictions, for better or worse, for good or evil.
Our convictions make us, and we endure and either suffer by those convictions or we bask in that afterglow and ambiance of those convictions that propel us forward.
Learning is a forward word. Learning is rarely backward, knowing more and adding upon what we have learned is forward. Forward thinking adds value.
I look forward to the next article and the deep thoughts that I evoke within me.
Let’s enjoy and be happy in those deep thoughts and it is definitely like the sun bringing us warmth by its rays.
The rays of knowledge warm us for those cold wintery times when we need them most.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
If you are unaware or a first time visitor you may like the free lessons and helps:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
Join the Community: People I’ve interviewed are New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors, David A. Adler author of 250 books, Dandi Mackall author of 450 books (one is a Hallmark movie-My Boyfriend’s Dogs), UCLA Professor of screenwriting - Richard Walter, Bill Crider author of mystery fiction, Craig Johnson for the series Longmire, Robin Burcell, Craig Dirgo and Boyd Morrison (all THREE are coauthors of different books with Clive Cussler), Robert Gatewood, authors of Children’s books, thrillers, poetry, historical novels, romance, non-fiction, self-publishers and those with over 20 famous publishing houses, an 11 year old author, Father Goose, Don Knotts’ brother-in-law, editors, two authors that have a TV special for Hallmark and Teachers, PHD’s, Lawyers, Doctors, Educators, and Professors, Self-Help gurus, writers for articles, journals, magazines and technical writers, all sorts and types of award winners, a singer, plus authors in the England, Wales, Canada, India, Scotland, Ecuador, Spain, Australia and (42 states) USA (9 countries). Over 240 authors of collectively almost 4000 books!
March 8, 2021
Ists or Isms
The title refers to “...ists or ...isms” (generally punctuation does not do well in titles so I left that portion out).
A movement can be started by anyone such as the minimalists movement, or the minimalism movement and there are other movements in religion, weight loss, alcohol use, drug use, and many, many more.
[Side note, I loved when a commercial came on and featured songs by a bunch of different artists and at the end the most famous artist of all was, wait for it, Mini Moore. She was so famous that she was listed no matter what genre, era, type of music. Of course, I am actually referring to “many more”]
Almost every culture in the world has its’ isms and ists or even ites, the followers of a particular movement.
I am a member of many movements, I do not subscribe to just one. Meditationism is one. Writerists is another. Blogite is another. Yes, I am making up terms but curiously those terms are not listed as misspellings. Interesting.
Be cautious about what movements you are part of, for one movement may have cache’ at one particular moment and fall out of favor several months or years later.
McCarthyism was one such movement, Fascists is another where many people followed and subscribed to those movements and found out that there were inherent fallacies in those movements.
Be thoughtful and be sure you examine your intent. Socialism and Communism are others.
And before you write that hate mail, just note that I do not endorse nor am I telling you what movements you should or should not follow. Do what you want to do.
But do it with intent and with clarity and reexamine your isms and your ists and your ites at least every week and be sure you vet and verify before you trust any movement.
That is the point. Vet and verify before you trust and examine that trust as you go down whatever particular road or path.
isms cause schisms
Schisms become chasms
Chasms become canyons
Canyons are extremely difficult to bridge
Bridges are the way to build towards each other
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
If you are unaware or a first time visitor you may like the free lessons and helps:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
Join the Community: People I’ve interviewed are New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors, David A. Adler author of 250 books, Dandi Mackall author of 450 books (one is a Hallmark movie-My Boyfriend’s Dogs), UCLA Professor of screenwriting - Richard Walter, Bill Crider author of mystery fiction, Craig Johnson for the series Longmire, Robin Burcell, Craig Dirgo and Boyd Morrison (all THREE are coauthors of different books with Clive Cussler), Robert Gatewood, authors of Children’s books, thrillers, poetry, historical novels, romance, non-fiction, self-publishers and those with over 20 famous publishing houses, an 11 year old author, Father Goose, Don Knotts’ brother-in-law, editors, two authors that have a TV special for Hallmark and Teachers, PHD’s, Lawyers, Doctors, Educators, and Professors, Self-Help gurus, writers for articles, journals, magazines and technical writers, all sorts and types of award winners, a singer, plus authors in the England, Wales, Canada, India, Scotland, Ecuador, Spain, Australia and (42 states) USA (9 countries). Over 240 authors of collectively almost 4000 books!
March 7, 2021
Simple Synopsis of Plot vs Story
I really appreciate “things” like explanations or examples that simplify my learning. Sometimes concepts are difficult to wrap your brain around and anything that will help with that wrap around is appreciated for the beneficial clarification.
Here is one of those articles, and I get these articles from scouring the internet and bringing the best of the best here to you.
Plot versus story what IS the difference?
https://screencraft.org/2021/02/19/plot-vs-story-whats-the-difference/
Let me know if you know of any articles or explanations of concepts that have benefited you and I will certainly share them with the rest of us.
Thanks so much for listening (for reading is a form of listening) and adding value to my life.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
If you are unaware or a first time visitor you may like the free lessons and helps:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
Join the Community: People I’ve interviewed are New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors, David A. Adler author of 250 books, Dandi Mackall author of 450 books (one is a Hallmark movie-My Boyfriend’s Dogs), UCLA Professor of screenwriting - Richard Walter, Bill Crider author of mystery fiction, Craig Johnson for the series Longmire, Robin Burcell, Craig Dirgo and Boyd Morrison (all THREE are coauthors of different books with Clive Cussler), Robert Gatewood, authors of Children’s books, thrillers, poetry, historical novels, romance, non-fiction, self-publishers and those with over 20 famous publishing houses, an 11 year old author, Father Goose, Don Knotts’ brother-in-law, editors, two authors that have a TV special for Hallmark and Teachers, PHD’s, Lawyers, Doctors, Educators, and Professors, Self-Help gurus, writers for articles, journals, magazines and technical writers, all sorts and types of award winners, a singer, plus authors in the England, Wales, Canada, India, Scotland, Ecuador, Spain, Australia and (42 states) USA (9 countries). Over 240 authors of collectively almost 4000 books!
March 5, 2021
Impulses
There is a certain amount of daily living that gives in to impulses.
Impulses to me are not well thought out actions but more of a what the heck attitude and not thinking about long term gains or goals.
Again living with thought and intent and purpose leads one away from impulses of the moment and instant gratifications.
Screen time in almost every form is instant gratification and that gratification has an expense.
The expense of gratifying those moments today sacrifices those minutes on an altar that want to give us more meaning and more purpose and more of everything that we give back to us.
We are the recipients of that giving and it goes into a void to never be claimed.
I’ve done that. I’ve procrastinated or hesitated too many days and lost out on free or discounted items that would have added value to my life.
That value adds up incrementally and for those of us that have accounts that earn dividends or interest, the incremental becomes monumental.
NOTE:
Coming soon (the articles are already written).
Announcing a series on:
The incremental becomes monumental
That would be a good title for another article and if you use that statement please ensure that you give me credit for it. Thank you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
If you are unaware or a first time visitor you may like the free lessons and helps:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
Join the Community: People I’ve interviewed are New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors, David A. Adler author of 250 books, Dandi Mackall author of 450 books (one is a Hallmark movie-My Boyfriend’s Dogs), UCLA Professor of screenwriting - Richard Walter, Bill Crider author of mystery fiction, Craig Johnson for the series Longmire, Robin Burcell, Craig Dirgo and Boyd Morrison (all THREE are coauthors of different books with Clive Cussler), Robert Gatewood, authors of Children’s books, thrillers, poetry, historical novels, romance, non-fiction, self-publishers and those with over 20 famous publishing houses, an 11 year old author, Father Goose, Don Knotts’ brother-in-law, editors, two authors that have a TV special for Hallmark and Teachers, PHD’s, Lawyers, Doctors, Educators, and Professors, Self-Help gurus, writers for articles, journals, magazines and technical writers, all sorts and types of award winners, a singer, plus authors in the England, Wales, Canada, India, Scotland, Ecuador, Spain, Australia and (42 states) USA (9 countries). Over 240 authors of collectively almost 4000 books! March 3, 2021
Living a Lie
Are you living a lie?
This article is a complete rewrite since the first time I absolutely got the idea and concept completely wrong.
This first article is all the way towards the bottom after this article. Enough said although, one's perceptions can change and the change of those perceptions is you finding the truth or real meaning behind those concepts that you thought you knew. Interesting.
Onto the precept of Living a Lie.
One may seem to live a lie when one lives their life a certain way, and after learning a truth or further meaning one changes their belief system, or changes the way they live based upon further learning and someone may think that previously one was living a lie.
Not true. You were living what you knew to be true at that particular time and then based upon further light and knowledge and learning you found other or deeper meanings and are now living those further and deeper meanings does NOT mean you were living a lie previously.
Living a Lie would be actually knowing a truth and not living it.
Interesting concept to explore and it may explain some behaviors of some people who know better but do not do better based upon their current knowledge.
I find the Living a Lie concept intriguing and there are many insights we can gain from thinking over that concept and when it actually takes place versus when others think it may take place in our or their lives and in practice.
We all are living a lie ONLY when we go against the truth we absolutely know for sure.
If that truth is unknown then there is no lie.
What are your thoughts?
Note: Original article is way after the following and shows how wrong or how I did not fully understand the concept.
Many people do not understand the full concept of many things and it can lead to a completely erroneous thought process and life.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
If you are unaware or a first time visitor you may like the free lessons and helps:
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
Join the Community: People I’ve interviewed are New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors, David A. Adler author of 250 books, Dandi Mackall author of 450 books (one is a Hallmark movie-My Boyfriend’s Dogs), UCLA Professor of screenwriting - Richard Walter, Bill Crider author of mystery fiction, Craig Johnson for the series Longmire, Robin Burcell, Craig Dirgo and Boyd Morrison (all THREE are coauthors of different books with Clive Cussler), Robert Gatewood, authors of Children’s books, thrillers, poetry, historical novels, romance, non-fiction, self-publishers and those with over 20 famous publishing houses, an 11 year old author, Father Goose, Don Knotts’ brother-in-law, editors, two authors that have a TV special for Hallmark and Teachers, PHD’s, Lawyers, Doctors, Educators, and Professors, Self-Help gurus, writers for articles, journals, magazines and technical writers, all sorts and types of award winners, a singer, plus authors in the England, Wales, Canada, India, Scotland, Ecuador, Spain, Australia and (42 states) USA (9 countries). Over 240 authors of collectively almost 4000 books!
Original Article on Living a Lie which went in a direction that was not clear to me at the time:
Have you stated you were doing something (like a diet or something else) and weren’t, or were but not succeeding much?
Have you ever exaggerated your job experience?
Think of other instances where you may have lied or not told the truth which by the way is lying.
The point is we have all lived a lie to some extent. Most people when they find they are living a lie, when they learn the truth or find out a better way they switch or stop and then change to living that truth.
They weren’t intentionally living a lie they just did not know a particular truth and so weren’t following that truth.
Truth frees us from lies, either intentional or unintentional ones.
So living a lie is not bad as long as one finds that one is doing so one wants to change and then live a truth.
Much better to be living a truth than a lie.
March 1, 2021
Expectations
Expectations are real. At least your expectations are real to you. They live, they breathe, the fact that they exist means you created them, they did not come into being on their own.
I imagine other people’s expectations are real to them.
I cannot imagine what other people’s expectations are; therefore those expectations are nebulous and do not really exist for me since I have no concept of what their expectations may be.
Therefore, my expectations do not exist for them, or if they (expectations) exist, they exist (in my mind) probably quite differently than that person or persons may expect.
What happens when my expectations do not match up with the reality of the situation that I had expectations about?
How do I internalize those things that match up and that do not match up to my expectations?
And that, my friend, is the dichotomy.
If you expect expectations to match reality then we’ll probably, most likely, have some kind of emotions from that mismatch.
If your expectations are met and surpassed then most likely you’ll be pleasantly surprised and maybe elated and feel that it is wonderful when that happens. I’ve had that happen and it is a great feeling.
For expectations, give you or you decide to have feelings about them. That is the expectations give you the choice of how to feel about those expectations being met or not.
When one thinks of expectations and how one may respond to them being met or not, then one may think; how do I manage my expectations?
Maybe the answer is not to have expectations then emotionally the dichotomy or disparity of feelings that stem from expectations will not enter the picture.
I’m not sure how I feel about that statement that I just made. I am writing and trying to elucidate upon expectations and am wondering how to ensure that my feelings are not hurt or damaged in some way by my own expectations.
My expectations when I drive are for others to obey the traffic laws and to drive safely when I know and see almost every time I drive, someone driving while using phone or texting or doing some other stupid things that they and I know they should not be doing. That is very frustrating and just thinking about it I feel anger that they are putting me and them at risk.
So just talking and thinking this through, what if I drive without expecting others to drive safely and to obey traffic laws. Then I would drive defensively and be more watchful for sure and if they drove stupidly would I be upset? Would not having those expectations ensure that my emotions would not get confused?
I’m going to have to think some more about this topic and see if there is any more to be gained from expectations versus my feelings and emotions that arise due to those expectations.
Seriously, if you have any comments or feelings or any insights at all. What I’m trying to say is any and all insights have value and I’d love to hear from you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
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The incremental becomes monumental
February 27, 2021
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A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Quotes
We just watched the movie, “A beautiful day in the neighborhood and it is an amazing movie and has some real deep thinking moments within it.
I highly recommend it and remember since it is about Fred Rogers it has little action and excitement. It is a slow and thoughtful film that will tug at your heart and compels me to want to be methodical and thoughtful and pay attention to my feelings and emotions and treat EVERYONE very nicely and patiently and have a moment for every single person that crosses my path.
The list below comes from this site:
https://butfirstjoy.com/beautiful-day-in-the-neighborhood-quotes/
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Quotes
1. “I think the best thing we can do is to let people know that each one of them is precious.” – Mr. Rogers
Yes, we are all precious and if one thinks they or their group is more precious than they need to rethink that position. We are all precious and important.
3. “We are trying to get the world positive ways of dealing with our feelings.”
Dealing with our emotions and feelings will release the tension and previous issues and baggage that we don’t need to carry with us every day of this year or any year.
4. “You love broken people… like me.” – Tom to Fred
“I don't think you are broken.” – Fred Rogers
No one is broken, we are in different stages in our lives and that is not only OKAY but it is GREAT and even FANTASTIC at our most lowest level (no there are no low levels although some would like to think there are) at what some may consider deficit and defunct and derelict we are STILL FANTASTIC since we are humans.
5. “Sometimes, we have to ask for help. And that's okay.” – Fred Rogers
Don’t be afraid to ask for help. We don’t have to be self-sufficient. We do need to rely on other people and apply proper self help for ourselves and be there for US, ourselves, first then help others.
6. “He's just about the nicest person I've ever met.” Tom about Fred
Being nice is way out of VOGUE and we want to be nice to and for each other. It makes the world a most exhilarating place to be in.
7. “Just take a minute and think about all the people who loved us into being.” – Mr. Rogers
This is so true it is nearly unfathomable if it is not spoken. Even if had the worst mother or father or caregiver, that is not the point, we were loved into being.
9. “Fame is a 4 letter word, but ultimately what matters is what we do with it.” – Mr. Rogers
Too many take that 4 letter word and think it is all about them and grandioseness is applied; their ego swells to enormous proportions, when in fact the size of the ego is not a measurement that counts.
10. “Look for the helpers. You'll always find people who are helping.” – Fred Rogers
We have all types of helpers and they are everywhere, so please make a point of not only seeking them out but give them the praise that they are due. Be grateful for them.
11. “Do you know what forgiveness means? It’s a decision we make to release a person from the feelings of anger we have against them.” – Fred Rogers
This is ENORMOUS and FOREMOST and gives me chills everytime I read it.
12. “Sometimes it’s hardest to forgive the ones we love.” -Mr. Rogers
This also is so true, we hold grudges closer to ourselves like they are gold, but the first letter G does not make them equal.
13. “There’s always something you can do with the mad you feel.” – Mr. Rogers
Please read my article on “Spill the Blood of Anger”.
14. “To die is human, and anything human is mentionable. Anything mentionable is manageable.” – Fred Rogers
Everything we do is worthy and mentionable and helps us to learn lessons and even if it is a mistake or needs correcting then as long as we recognize that fact then it is NEVER in error, only if we do not correct it is it a real error.
15. “Children need to know that even when adults make plans, sometimes they don’t turn out as they hoped.” – Fred Rogers
This is the building the tent scene where Mr. Rogers was unable to build the tent by himself and he left that in the scene to let children know that not everyone can succeed at what they try. It is important to know that and by continual effort we may eventually succeed.
There are some great quotes listed there and the world can use those quotes and make this a beautiful day in their neighborhood.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 25, 2021
Spill the Blood of Anger
Anger is a fueled emotion.
Anger can be a necessary emotion.
Anger need not be an emotion that provokes a fight or argument or brings out anger in the other individual or group.
Anger is red and spikey and can tie up our emotions and lead us to think that the only way to follow through with that anger is to take it out on others.
Anger needs to be felt and dealt with. Anger does not need to be hidden and clandestine and buried within us. Anger if buried surfaces in ugly ways. Again DEAL with your anger before it deals with you.
Anger is not bad. Anger is not good. Anger just is.
What do you think you are doing?
Why did you do that?
Do you think you know better than me?
Who do you think you are?
All angry statements and all statements for which there may or may not be good answers but the person that asks such questions usually does not listen to the answers.
Our motivations are our own. We do not have to justify or excuse or try to inform an angry person.
If you spill the blood of your anger, you will defuse the situation and calm down and let the air out of the angry balloon that is so puffed up with anger that it may explode.
In dealing with our anger we spill no blood either literally or figuratively.
Jimi Hendrix lyrics:
Anger, he smiles towering
In shiny metallic purple armor
Queen Jealousy, envy waits behind him
Her fiery green gown
Sneers at the grassy ground
Blue are the life-giving waters
Taken for granted
They quietly understand
The once happy turquoise armies
Lay opposite ready
But wonder why the fight is on
Think about your anger and deal with it before it deals with you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 23, 2021
CT SCAN
Scanning…
Found it!
Of course, we want to be scanning and be continually watchful for those insidious and heinous conspiracy theories that are perpetuated throughout.
Definition: “a belief that some covert but influential organization is responsible for a circumstance or event.”
They seem to proliferate and never go away even when obviously wrong and even disproven.
Some common ones are:
The holocaust never happened
Covid has not killed over 500,000 people
The election was “stolen”
The moon landing
JFK assasination
Here is a multitude of others:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_conspiracy_theories
Some of them may even be true, who knows.
The interesting thing is that the people that believe in these CT’s won’t be changed by any evidence or argument.
It is their reality and if their reality is skewed then there is no correcting it, UNTIL, they change their reality themselves.
Pretty sad.
We have our own CT’s and stick by them no matter what evidence is to the contrary.
The belief system is our boundary, our CT, our nemesis, our limiter, our refusal to access or consider other possibilities. Our reality until it changes.
“I know my Aunt X hated me and this is the evidence.” Who knows, many times who cares since it is minor but it means something to you.
I hammer home, time and again that our reality is the most important indicator that we can perpetually monitor and it wants to be checked on a daily basis.
For without an objective reality, we potentially lost in a dream world of our own creation (sometimes more dream than substance.
Remember...
You can escape reality, but you cannot ignore the consequences of reality.
Where are your weakest weaknesses?
It is in your paradigm, what you accept and reject.
It is you limiting you and maybe limiting your potential.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 21, 2021
Narrative
The definition of a narrative is thus; “a spoken or written account of connected events; a story”.
Your family has a narrative.
There are stories that are told and retold that are funny, or stick in the memory and those involved may like or may not like that narrative that is told (depending on their involvement and how sensitive they are).
There is a political and national and cultural narrative that we all are embroiled in to some extent as well.
There are so many narratives that we can’t keep track of them all, the neighborhood narrative, your work narrative and those are varied on who is the boss, and who was involved, there is the narrative of your friends and your interactions with them.
I had an acquaintance from work that had many harrowing narratives since he took lots of risks. It was a wonder he was still alive at the time of his telling those narratives.
Another narrative that we may or may not think about are the narratives that are NOT told.
The family stories or “secrets” that were never mentioned yet were part of our narrative. The fact that I was abused by a pedophile right before kindergarten was NEVER talked about after it was found out. No punishments were meted out and the only thing the family did was not avoid that individual. Another time my own step brother who’d heard that one family discussion about the pedophile later while we were camping overnight in the yard wanted to do the same thing to me and was overheard by a zealous stepmother and got punished severely by my dad (one of the only times he was punished-but that is a whole other topic). It was NEVER discussed ever! Or the time my own father threw me on the bed in a fit of rage and choked me. Later my stepmother commented that this was the only time she saw my dad cry (whether from guilt or frustration, who knows) and she BLAMED me for him crying. NO ONE EVER KNEW ABOUT THAT and the torture that I carried in my mind about how I CAUSED ALL OF THOSE INCIDENTS (I know now to be wrong, but I carried that for decades).
What narratives! What secrets that canNOT be told since it brought shame on the family. Wait; it was my narrative and it seemed like they were shaming me by not acknowledging it or doing anything about it or letting me discuss my side of it. It was all swept under a rug.
There are so many narratives that are sidelined or someone will project another narrative and say look at this but not this (in a kind of sleight of hand of a magician type of trick). That projecting of the spotlight is a manipulation in itself.
There are so many media circus sideshows around that we are distracted from the true narrative and what the real story is and how we are affected.
Corporate and political greed play a huge part of those narratives that are not mentioned and the narrative that they play out is “Look at this product, you must have it since everyone who is anyone has it.” Manipulation and control through PR and it even is pervasive enough to make the news about certain products.
Your narrative is controlled by those broadcasters and I use the term loosely to any blog, vlog, podcast, news, internet, media, be it newspaper or other and what they allow you to see and therefore are directing your thinking.
By getting you to think about what they want you to think about is the ultimate slavery.
You become a slave to that narrative since you cannot escape it, you cannot avoid it and you are entrapped and ensnared by it and it is perpetuated by the other slaves of the system.
How do we break out?
How do we live our narrative and not theirs?
How is it even possible that they are able to control and manipulate us so easily?
It is seemingly easy but it takes quite a bit of force and it comes at you from all directions and it pervasive and everywhere you look and everywhere you are.
It is on every shelf of every store, product narrative, video narrative is everywhere, sit and wait and listen and watch is a way to make the masses (US) drones and sooth us with that narrative and that they will take care of us and they know what is best.
I have no easy answers, but think about what is NOT being said rather than what is being said is the best way to identify when a narrative does not serve you.
Think about how that narrative that is being told manipulates your, insists on certain behaviors, controls you and your thoughts to some extent.
Think rather than react and buy the latest product to sooth you into a narrative escape bubble that feels good until you realize that there is no substance in that product bubble. It is just smoke and mirrors and you SPENT YOUR HARD EARNED MONEY on that product that brings you no peace, no tranquility, no comfort, nothing.
Bring yourself to those things that bring real comfort, real peace, real tranquility and true purpose and life force.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 19, 2021
Peace
Another simple concept is peace; however, check the headlines and news and the things that are brought to our attention and there is NO peace at all to be found.
If anyone is not for world peace then they are a fool and yet there are people who take such bold stances that there is no chance for peace let alone making productive compromise.
Are we as a people, as a world, so far apart that bridges cannot be built, that agreements cannot be made, that we cannot seek harmony.
If your stance is so political, religious, outrageous and so far out of reach of others then there is NO CHANCE OF PEACE.
So it all starts with you. I am not saying that if someone won’t build a bridge that you join them on their side of an argument. Just walk away from that argument, debate, that bashing each other and no conclusions or compromises are reached.
Or is there?
You decide when enough is enough.
You get to turn off the outside warmongering, political crisis, events that hurt, maim and mangle, you get to selectively listen and watch what gives you peace.
Your peace is dependent totally on you and no one else.
Do those things that give you peace and avoid the things that don’t give you peace.
You can discard the flotsam and the thoughts and let it travel on by and through without holding on to any of that crap.
Your peace is under your control.
If I let myself get upset then it is my fault. No one can make me do anything, I let it.
So choose to make a choice.
A nondecision is more of a choice than a decision.
A decision means you care and are selective.
A non-decision is a cop out, is a wimp in action and most likely fixes you with someone else’s choice.
Make your stand, fight your fight by not fighting.
Walking away will give you peace.
End of article, on another note:
Note for thought, my donations in 2020 were zero.
Please make a choice to help out if you are able.
I’d really appreciate it.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 17, 2021
Brought to you BUY...
This site is freely accessed by all who enter freely and appreciatively.
No subscription required.
No hype or selling or buying needed.
Not even one advertisement, ever, never, at all.
It cannot be freer than this, and I have hundreds and thousands of visitors that come to read these thoughts and articles.
That is pretty magnificent in this day and age of a few cents gleaned here and there by all the myriad ways channels have of extorting and exhorting their listeners and readers and visitors.
I will never treat you this way. Think of the kind of treatment that you get from other sites.
Pop ups, encouragement to buy this or that, endorsements, sponsorships (I wish I had a sponsor, lol, but I don’t)
Everything and everyone that I quote or link to, I freely acknowledge and list and have no connections with those other people or sites and they do not even know that I do this.
I only do it for the education of my clientele and you good people, my dear readers and my dear writers.
We are all here to learn and pay attention and find new ways and paths to greater knowledge and through that knowledge comes real and true power.
That power resides within you and you are adding to your power and knowledge every day.
I only wish that I could do more. Wait! I can do more for I will be here today, tomorrow and the next after that and I will.
I promise you that there will be more content, more great solutions and answers and ways to get through our dilemmas.
Please, send me your requests and your thoughtful responses and I ensure that I address all of them (as much as I am able, within reason).
Our power is within us and our power is guiding us and our power multiplies as our synergy increases together.
Let’s keep working together.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 15, 2021
Humanists
Divisions are natural, if we divide a problem down to it’s basic parts it is possible to come up with a solution, so the tendency as humans is to divide things in order to make sense of them.
Divisions are also boundaries. Us and them, you and me, one country versus another, cultures clash since cultures are divisions and also boundaries between us and them.
We are racists, religious-ists, creedists, genderists, colorists,and many kinds of ists in order to create divisions or boundaries plus it distinguishes one from another.
Distinctions are important. Divisions are important.
Separation of facts or beliefs or opinions are important to most of us. So much so that wars have been created because these distinctions are so important that one or another cannot overlook these differences.
What unites us? What brings us together? What brings us peace?
Do we even concentrate on those things that may unite, encourage togetherness, cultivate peace?
Many times people don’t or won’t or it is not important to some.
How can we make it important? How can we make it a choice? How can we ensure that others understand what we understand without coming to blows? Without arguments and strife?
Does anyone really want this? If it was important then that importance propels it to the forefront and is in our minds more often than not.
We cannot make anyone do anything. We can motivate, encourage, remind, gently mention, point out and numerous other actions, but the real importance is up to how that other person wants to interpret it. Not us.
Can we let go of this need to make others see our point of view? Bashing is commonplace.
Bashing is not arguing, is not debating, does not sway or change minds it is just that, bashing.
Bashing is a beating about the brain with facts, information, ideas and opinions without the least bit of that bashing entering into the other person’s head.
Eliminate bashing, arguing, getting upset by controlling yourself. We only control us, not them. Them being anyone else we may engage in.
By controlling us, we control the framing, the foundation, and the change within us.
We make the choices that eliminate risk and have its own rewards for our efforts; however, slight it may seem.
This type of change is slow, seemingly takes forever, but we all have time and the time is now to take the time to ensure our time left is more peaceful.
Asking questions of ourselves propel us further into the insight and into our mind and the power to instigate changes than it does to ask questions about others behavior.
Our behavior is paramount and once we make that paramount then others will notice and see and quite possibly make changes in themselves.
This is a Grand Canyon slow type erosion change that takes centuries but a slow change is often better than the quick type of avalanche of change that wipes out and defaces the mountain side of humanity.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 13, 2021
Simple
How easy is anything?
How hard is anything?
Depends on what it is.
In our youth the first time for anything was very difficult and nigh impossible, but we were persistent.
We were dedicated to the task at hand and with encouragement from our family we did that task.
Now did we need encouragement, no, not really, but it helps to have someone in your corner rooting for you and sometimes explaining, bouncing ideas off of and just helping in any way they could.
It certainly helps to have that helping person be one who has been there and done that and by having done it before they are more of an expert than you.
They may have only done it ONCE and yet they are the expert.
Such an easy thing to be an expert, eh?
Well, not really just more experienced than you.
I heard a surgeon tell another new surgeon that the way to learn is to:
See one
Do one
Then
Teach one
Seems over simplified, yet, it works to some extent.
Confidence by another helps an under confident one gain it and that confidence overcomes the obstacles that hold(s) one back.
Where is your team? Where is your support? Where are the people who will help propel you into the next dimension of your creativity?
The Answer is Simple. (Actually, it is very simple and sitting right here in front of you.):
Answer: ME!
Yes, I am here to help. Will it help me, certainly, but it won't cost you a cent. It helps me since we get better together.
Alone we can do it; however, think of the synergy, the double application of genius (at least brain power), being able to bounce ideas and brain storm
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 11, 2021
Care
Care is a simple word.
Care has so many explicit and implied meanings.
Care does not translate into some other languages.
Spanish does not have a word for care. If one would say, “I don’t care.” in Spanish then one would phrase it, “It is not important to me.” or something like that.
Do you care? Is a simple question which can be answered in, oh, so many ways.
It depends on what, who, where, when or what topic, person, group, issue, and many other items about that “thing” one may or may not care about.
Financial freedom, political freedom, spiritual freedom, or any other type of freedom sounds very freeing and peaceful and exhilarating and wonderful.
Any freedom is not free, any freedom that you care about has a cost and a price and in order to obtain that freedom you will pay for it.
Freedom does not just happen it takes thought, intent and HARD word in order to obtain it.
Years of work and dedication go into obtaining financial freedom and Dave Ramsay or one of his protege’s brought up a good point, that in order to have financial freedom you may need to live in a very less than spectacular way.
In order to obtain financial freedom one may have to drive a crappy car, live a less than wonderful financial lifestyle in order to gain enough money to obtain that freedom.
One other thing that one must do is one MUST NOT CARE what everyone else thinks or does or lives like.
One must not care about the kind of car that you drive when others are deep in debt with the latest and greatest vehicle.
Making your priority matter above what your buddy thinks, your family thinks is very difficult.
It goes against the grain of what most of those around you are doing.
You can look in the driveway and see all kinds of stupid; however, the stupid people are making vehicle payments while you are driving a crappy vehicle that is paid for.
That is smart in the face of all the stupidity around you.
That common mindset in how most others live and you living the opposite of that makes you uncommon.
It makes you in control of your money, not your purchases in control of you.
Control is what we need to care about, control is important for in the end the person that can control themselves and their lives through their spending habits (and it HAS TO BE A HABIT) control their environment, control their wellbeing, control their ability to adapt to the obstacles that life throws at you.
Having a savings or rainy day fund to back you up gives you peace of mind, that the latest financial problems like new tires, machinery in the house that break, natural events like floods, earthquakes or tornadoes or storms may mean expenditures are required to fix it. Having those funds resting in a place of access rather than loans are entitling and give you the control and peace to live an uncommon lifestyle.
For one to be uncommon means to not be common not to “BUY” into the mindset that one must have 2 or more vehicles that are brand new, that one must have the latest gadget or phone or device.
Let’s be uncommon together and build an uncommon community amongst ourselves.
Join me, every other day and we’ll discuss all kinds of topics that will propel us into a world of peace and prosperity and mindfulness that rewards us with the benefits of restful sleep and less stress.
That is the hardest part of all. If you
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 9, 2021
Self Evaluation
It turns out that when we self evaluate we either underestimate or overestimate.
If one under or over then one does not have the real picture, one does not know how one is really doing in the area that one is self examining.
Here is a video that discusses this in a limited way.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9XTox7zlSw
The Art of Personal Growth video "Why Stupid People Think They Are Smart" helps illustrate to some point.
I decided to explore this further.
I’ve interviewed over 500 authors and the majority of them say that an aspiring writer is propelled further by working with a group of other writers.
Why is this?
The feedback component gives us overwhelming results and our own feedback is way too limited to help us to the extremes that others feedback helps us.
Study groups through both of my degrees in college help propel me much further than each of us on our own.
We all had different perspectives and as the perspective changed the quality of work increased significantly.
We repeatedly made A’s in our work and our projects were thorough and compelling to be able to impress professors who had years of experience with so many other students that we outshone and made an impression.
Why is this?
A contributor of one is singular and that absolute brought only one dimension to any project.
A one dimensional object has much less visibility and depth and just lacks. Think of a square versus a cube.
There is just more mass and bulk to the cube.
A two or three or more dimensional object expands upon the singular and fills it out and adds to the overall extent of it.
Writers groups and other groups that one works with can be just as forceful in advancing the agenda of all of the contributors.
My best writing has that feedback which is why I encourage my readers to give me feedback to add further to my limited experience and my limited knowledge.
Help yourself by helping others and all helping each other is a very compelling way to work.
Situation Wanted:
I’m looking for others to form a study group with and work with, we will help each other to the next level and help each other to outperform what we can do singley.
Interested? Please contact me and let’s get going.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 7, 2021
Really? This is unreal.
I know that it takes all kinds to make the world and that diversity is pretty cool at its best.
I just saw a video about a grocery store (not a chain, I don’t think) where the owner was refuting the evidence of the pandemic and the quantity of deaths resulting from it and saying that the store’s policy was if you had a medical condition that prohibited wearing masks then you would not be questioned about it.
As a result nearly EVERY person, employees and customers alike were NOT wearing masks.
Oh, the humanity! This is a proverbial blimp exploding, on fire and watching the crash. I canNOT believe that this is allowed in this day and age!
It is horrible the amount of evidence that some of us can ignore and refute with simple words that says essentially, “Whatever I see is not real and I only believe what I want to believe.”
The self deception is clear on that level.
As a former person who was embroiled in a cult. I thought I had clear faculties and mind and was smart about what I chose to do and not do.
Everyone can mislead themselves at some point or another. EVERYONE! Even you.
We all have self deception practices that others can see but we can not.
I am holding up a mirror to what I do, what I see and what means what to ensure that I am not misled again. EVER!
Join me, in being in command and control and examining your motives and practices.
Do you have any examples or thoughts on this? If so, let me know.
February is a short month so be sure to check the assignments / lessons tab and “git’r done”.
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder/001-lesson-helps-assignments
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 5, 2021
By Degrees
How does a person get to the point of being homeless?
How does a person become a drug addict?
How do [some of] our politicians believe it is acceptable to show favoritism and accept favors in exchange for favors?
How does a person end up owning 155 pairs of shoes?
How do any of us end up where we are today?
It turns out that the formula is pretty simple.
The short answer is BY DEGREES.
We get where we are by degrees, it is all the baby steps that add up to here we are now.
We all know that we learn one step at a time and sometimes we do not realize how important that relentless one step at a time adds up and over time our lives become deteriorate into a shambles or become so superior and accomplished that we are amazed that we came so far.
By degrees is relentless, is motivating, is compelling, is a force to be reckoned with, shows us how to proceed and become and grow and change and be a person you and your family can be proud of and that you become a standard, a show piece, a model of what can happen if a person lives their life…
BY DEGREES!
Please share how you were able to advance by degrees and what you have accomplished. Thanks
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 3, 2021
For What It is Worth
If ever there was a time for the human race to ask itself…
The finish to this sentence will be revealed at the end of this article.
It is amazing how many videos and websites make an appeal for clicking on them to intelligent or smart people.
They range from
X number of habits of smart people, to X number of reasons why intelligent people…, to why intelligent people won’t do XYZ.
Why is that?
Those particular videos and podcasts and articles appeal to people who think they are smart or intelligent.
No one wants to think they are stupid so they will click on stuff like that and say, “Yeah, that describes me, or that is what I do. So I am smart / intelligent.”
I believe that all humans have degrees of smarts and intelligence that all people can be appealed to on the basis of their brain power since we all have brain power.
The lack of brain power is in using it or not using it.
I, EVEN I, have been known to do something and later realize, wow, why didn’t I think about that? If I had, I would have done the opposite or something different.
Yeah, I’ve been there and we all have done that at one time or another.
Knowing the results of thinking and non-thinking, brings to us redoubled efforts to think even harder and try to use the concepts that we’ve learned and improve our results.
That is the difference between people who learn versus people who don’t learn.
We all think, but do we all learn from our thinking.
That is the huge question for all of us.
I like to think that I am a learning machine and there is so much to learn that I am capable of improving my learning every day.
So we go forth with our standards raised high and find out what will we learn today to apply to the next moment of our life to improve it.
I certainly believe there are numerous ways for our government to improve, and for huge improvement in the response to the current pandemic.
What will propel us forward as a human race is examining what mistakes were made in 2020 that we can eradicate or reduce in 2021.
What are your thoughts on this particular topic?
Has this raised any questions for you?
Are you thinking differently now than you did before reading this article?
Will you think differently than you did yesterday based upon what you’ve learned today?
I’d like to think that we will.
Anthony Robbins — 'The quality of your life is a direct reflection of the quality of the questions you are asking yourself'
If ever there was a time for the human race to ask itself quality questions, THAT TIME IS NOW!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
February 1, 2021
Today is the first day...
You can supply the rest of the many choices available. It is also the first of the month, so that means I will have a new lesson / assignment today or in the next few for sure. (I have been posting [usually] every odd day and today is an odd day that follows an odd day, very odd, LOL!)
Be sure to check that out, speaking of which your assignments are due today. You may send them in or grade them yourselves, the important thing is to do them.
Practice, practice and hone your wits and skills razor sharp.
Also, I will be posting more stories under the STORIES tab if you dare, if you care, if you have comments about those I’d appreciate hearing from you.
I am also sharpening and honing my skills as well.
Happy February and Appreciate each and every one of you and your following and ensuring that this a success.
Choose to make a difference today and every day.
Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 31, 2021
What’s on your mind today?
Really! I care what you are thinking and why you are
thinking and all those grandiose thoughts that you have.
We are as we think and we do as we think so thinking is
so very important that one cannot emphasize how
important it is since it is a gateway act that leads to our
other acts.
Another thing that recently came into my view was from
Seth Godin.
He said Belief and Knowledge:
This is a portion from his blog: “But belief is what we call
the things that stick around, particularly and especially in
the face of changes in knowledge.
While more knowledge can change belief, it usually
doesn’t. Belief is a cultural phenomenon, created in
conjunction with the people around us.
The easy way to discern the two: “What would you need to
see or learn to change your mind about that?” ”
So once you change your thoughts do your beliefs follow
or are you so stuck and stick by your beliefs no matter
what and no matter how the argument against your beliefs
make sense, will you change or not?
I feel like we are stuck in a place by our beliefs and that
our beliefs do not allow changes usually.
Is that good or bad? Does that mean anything? Yes and
no.
If you change your beliefs like your socks everyday then
that base that foundation can be very weak and like
shifting sands which is why we are so firmly rooted in
belief since we do not like that wobbly feeling of not being
rooted and not having that secure foundation.
Most of our beliefs came to us in childhood and we have
gradually grown out of and become who we are because
we left some of those beliefs behind.
The boogeyman, ghosts, monsters, (spoiler alert, lol)
Santa Claus, and others that we believed in and have
been disseminated and destroyed and no longer exist.
Some like ghosts and monsters may have evolved and
one belief about them may be replaced by another.
Serial killers are monsters and so monsters have been
replaced by other threatening and hideous people or
animals or issues.
Alcohol can be a monster as well as other addictions and
vices.
So our beliefs are somewhat fluid but not nearly as much
as we may like to think.
Always review your values and your beliefs and maybe
some of them are ripe for change, maybe even overripe
and the smell is so potent that we may wonder why we did
not notice.
Noticing is thinking rather than just being content with the
same old, same old.
What do you think? No, really what are you thinking, drop
a line and let’s talk.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT
com
All angels are appreciated!
January 29, 2021
Two things
The first thing is if you’ve been reading me for a while or a few days you know that I end my articles with “A Think Piece by David Alan Binder”
I do that because my articles make us both think, both when we read them and long after in our subconscious.
That is the inherent ability of learning is to put what we’ve read on the back burner (the subconscious) and it keeps simmering and resurfacing and our brain is relentless in its thinking and rethinking.
We do this for numerous things going on in our lives and our routine. It is a habit our brain has that ensures we are safe, that we really saw and heard what we thought we saw and in dealing with people and conversations long after the initial meeting or interview.
The brain is helpful in that way and I love that aspect of ourselves. I am so grateful for my brain for automatically doing this and this is the FIRST time ever I’ve stated that fact and in all the times I've been grateful for so many things THIS THING, the subconscious is one of the most fantastic, awesome attributes that we all have.
Second thing is:
If you are a writer or a reader the following is one thing that we really need to know. Inside and out and thank you to Shawn Coyne for this article and all his helpful advice.
Please enjoy and let your cognitive and your subconscious work on this and absorb it fully.
https://storygrid.com/conventions-and-obligatory-moments-for-genre/
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 27, 2021
How to anything
There are so many How To videos, podcasts, advice books, etc.
Everyone in the world can give you advice on How To do just about everything you can think of.
The shortest answer I’ve ever heard from The Minimalists on the subject of How To…
Is this:
The short answer to How To do anything is to take action and just start doing it.
You’ll figure out how to do it smarter, easier, better, with less energy after you have actually done it a few times to several times.
It requires us to actually do that action, rather than have a clear pathway, or clear instructions.
Of course there are some things that you want to absolutely do correctly the first time, from crossing the street (no mistakes or you never cross another one maybe?) but many things you can do the first time and the second and eventually by the 1000th time you get really good at it and figure out the short cuts along the way.
Writing is like this, math concepts are like this, having a general idea of how to proceed is fine and that can be researched but if the research actually keeps you from doing it then maybe you need to do it and learn as you go.
Also, after you begin and try it you can read up on many different ways and you can hang that knowledge on the skill tree you started building by your first doing and performances and figuring it out.
Building skill trees help us to take concepts that are foreign and hard to learn and hang those concepts on our skills and absorb them.
The subconscious can work on our previous doing by thinking about our progress and how to proceed to the next steps as well.
Build your skill trees every day and grow your knowledge.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 25, 2021
Up the Ante
Yes, this can be a poker term but it also can mean upping the stakes, increasing your commitment, and putting in more value into a project as well.
What if you wrote 300 more words per day?
What if you exercised 5 or 10 minutes more per day?
What if you increase your value by $5 or $10 more dollars a day?
What if you increase your energy and commitment by 5% or 10% more per day?
What if you (use a metric of your choice here) and added to it by (insert this much more metric here) and what would you have eventually?
You need not make these increases daily but maybe monthly or quarterly or even yearly, any small increase will add up over time.
That increases your commitment, your drive and your follow through as well.
A gain is welcome in any metric.
What will you gain if you actually do one or more of the items listed above?
You gain action and that gains you results and results are what we have to show for our efforts.
Are your efforts showing results?
Measuring ensures that we at least maintain from the day before for that adds perpetuation to our purpose and drive and ensures there are gains and no losses.
Sometimes just not having any loss (of action, of input, of effort) from day to day is as important as a gain.
What are you measuring daily?
What are your metrics?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 23, 2021
Diamond
Diamonds are quintessential to the world and set a standard.
As a certified diamontologist and working in the industry for many years, my wife possesses great knowledge about diamonds. More than the average person for sure.
I rely upon her for advice, but I also find out as much as I am able in order to ensure that I am knowledgeable and can verify what I am being told by anyone in the business.
This comes under the verify before you trust column (I’ve written an article not too long ago last year about that.)
Taking advice or suggestions without verification is foolish and one can easily be misled.
The crystal of a diamond reflects back to us whether there are embedded flaws or not.
It does not hurt the diamond except maybe in value.
We are diamonds and as human diamonds we each have flaws that can be verified by others many times over.
Does that mean we are worthless, nay, nay, I say NO!
As diamonds we are each priceless.
I was thinking just this morning that if one can make someone else appear foolish or stupid, why would one do that?
To make another person look stupid or foolish is childish.
That is beneath us.
When I play a game with my grandchildren I do not use the brute force of my accumulated knowledge to blundeon them into losing.
When I am talking with someone and it becomes apparent that they do not know what they are talking about, I do not call them out and point out where they are wrong or short of the knowledge that I have on that particular subject.
I treat them as human beings and am respectful of them.
I know but they do not have to know that I know better.
I find it better not to humiliate and crush others with my knowledge.
A professor I had once at university once told me a story about how she has her masters degree and was sitting in an amphitheater where below there were several dozen people getting their doctorate and the assemblage was presided over by a few prestigious leaders of the university. The leaders were setting up the ceremony and at one point asked if anyone had questions. She with her masters degree had a question of the prestigious leaders with their doctorates and respectfully raised her hand and indicated she had a question.
The leader looked up into the gallery and stated, “You don’t know enough to ask a question.” and ignored her.
What a haughty contemptuous display of knowledge that was totally irreverent and irresponsible and a transparent display of power and the leader’s supposed intelligence.
Be careful of using your intelligence just to injure others.
All persons self esteem is precious and we owe it to each other to be kind and be grateful for our knowledge and share whenever we are able.
Any thoughts, dear readers?
Reminder the assignment / lesson is still due at the end of the month roughly and I look forward to reading them.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 21, 2021
[NOTE: All credit to Seth Godin for this article.]
Seth stated in his email:
“The first half of Bruce Springsteen’s autobiography makes some things abundantly clear:
He had no natural ability to play the guitar. In fact, after his first lessons, he quit, unable to play a note.
He had no singing talent. Every group he was part of needed a lead singer, and it wasn’t him.
And just about everyone dismissed him. Audiences walked out, his first agent simply stopped returning his calls and bandmates gave up and moved on.
He didn’t even know how to drive a car. Not only wasn’t he dating in high school, he wasn’t even cruising around town, being a charismatic rock star.
Talent is overrated. Skill is acquirable.”
It is clear that persistence pays off and being persistent is key.
Learning more and more is useful about whatever it is that you want to accomplish, just being persistent and not learning won't help.
Keep evolving, keep innovating, keep using other tactics and
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 19, 2021
Teeter Totter
Life and relationships are like many rides and resemble a teeter totter in many ways.
The analogy fits and is congruent in my mind.
I recently had a person I know and were casual acquaintances. I had futurized about the possibilities.
I believe we all do this, that is get fixated on where we are going and not where we are.
They recently revealed very slyly that they were withholding information from me.
I thought I was man enough to take it and just keep that person at a distance enough and just be very casual and not really reveal anything much more about me.
Just talk about what's going on in the community more or less, which is me being more non-committal but still present.
I’ve been reflecting on this incident and it has been very eye opening in my reactions. I’ve gone the gamut of feeling hurt, betrayal, punked, duped, with an intensity I really don’t like those feelings since it is a reminder of my childhood then as a grownup when instances like that had happened.
I tend to really reflect on those times and feel crushed.
I had a future forecast when I shouldn’t and I’ve been hard on myself for those feelings. I shoulda seen it coming, I shoulda known better, I shoulda this and that, you see what I’m saying.
My articles abdicate and encourage being in the present and the here and now and I actually did not do that.
So I took my child self by the hand today and we talked about this and how we would proceed.
The main lesson in this is life (and relationships) are a teeter totter and it takes two to balance that playground equipment.
Sometimes you are up and sometimes you're down and rarely are you balanced, even your thoughts and emotions and feelings are this way. Relationships and life are this way.
One day one way and another day somewhere else on that balanced scale.
We don’t live perfect lives or relationships, none of us do.
What I present to you today is not how I will be tomorrow. It is all a work in progress and can change hour by hour let alone daily.
So I will keep also that in mind, constant course correction and balancing our hearts, our minds, our souls, our spirit, our emotions, our feelings.
We are here for each other and this community is strong in spirit. I also try to keep my writing balance and look at both sides and each article I write usually has two sides to it.
If you feel I am missing a side or two, please, let me know.
This portion of this article is written a full 24 hours after the above portion:
As I thought and thought through the events mentioned above, I remembered some excellent advice:
WHICH WAS WRITTEN BY ME! Of all people, LOL!
That advice is that one can decide or chose how events affect or effect you. You are the decider as a famous president once said, you get to make the decision as to how it is framed and how it gets into your mind and worms at you or if you have the power and say to yourself, ah, it is but a scratch and I am not affected by it. Rather than saying my whole day is ruined.
I decided that I am progressive enough to reframe that event and it is meaningless! It does not affect me, it will not alter my mood or my psyche or enter my mind.
It is wonderful how freeing and powerful one can feel when one develops a mindset to their own advantage.
Too often we give others power over us. Not today, not in my house, not on my watch, we have the power today, right this minute and we decide.
If you feel I am missing a side or two, please, let me know.
I’d love to hear from you.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 17, 2021
Transjective vs Objective vs Subjective
From the online column of Andrew Sweeney:
“...John Vervaeke’s ‘Awakening to the Meaning crisis’: the introduction of fresh new language. Vervaeke has invented a word which is very useful here: transjective. This means that ‘relationship’ transcends—or is much more real than—the subject and object in itself. This term helps go beyond the endless culture war between the romantic and the empiricist, or the radical romantic who privileges the muddy pond of his own narcissistic subjectivity, and the radical empiricist who sees only dead mechanical processes.
To put it in Martin Buber’s formulation: the I/thou relationship transcends the I/it transaction. That is: the transjective space transcends both the ‘person’ and the ‘thing’. We need to understand that objects and persons are part of a living, breathing ecology of relationships, and that everything affects everything else. A transjective state allows us then to enter ‘the transcendent’ or even ‘the sacred’ world of relationship.
Our body, for instance, is neither a subjective experience nor a mere object or thing: it is, in Vervaeke’s words, a transjective emergence in an autopoietic bio economy. If this is too much of a Vervaekean mouthful, we can think of evolution: we develop fitness and evolve through natural selection and feedback loops in our environment. This means we cannot grow as an isolated individual—in fact the isolated individual doesn’t really exist.”
https://andrewpgsweeny.medium.com/transjectivity-5f280ef1189b
Shawn Coyne has stated: “Whoever powers the story powers the world.” “The story empowers us.”
That is why we are writers and we bring out objectivity, subjectivity and transjectivity to the story.
Here is the full speech by Shawn Coyne “Looking for meaning-Part 1” here: https://storygrid.com/hj2-preview/
It is definitely worth a listen to hear his concepts plus he is a twenty-five year book-publishing veteran and editor with major publishers and now out on his own for many years.
Let me know what you think about these concepts and how this may effect or affect your writing.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 15, 2021
DysFUNctional
There have been a few series that have started a trend of fun with dysfunction.
The writers do not have a heroine or a hero, there are no likable characters or characters that you root for.
The writers do not have these two characters per se, “Protagonists and antagonists are both essential characters in a story, but they propel the plot in different and usually opposite ways: The protagonist works toward the central story goals, while the antagonist works against the goals. The words “protagonist” and “antagonist” are antonyms”
It seems that each character is the protagonist and their emotions, actions and behaviors is the antagonist.
There is only one dysfunctional character after another and the shenanigans that they do to themselves and each other.
It is nightmarish and yet we watch. What is this teaching us?
Yes, the heroine or hero archetype has been thoroughly explored yet I believe there are nuances yet to explore.
Without a leader type character who is saving the day, or the planet or saving something if only themselves and a small group then what do we have.
If the lead person is not working toward a goal it is all piecemeal about the emotions and vicissitudes and ambivalence and tantrums of everyone in the cast.
It leaves one shaking their heads at how far the entertainment area is choosing to call entertainment and yet, we as a people generally tend to follow with incredulous horror, not believing it and wondering how much farther wrong can this plot go.
And I am sorry to say it is going a lot farther wrong before it will go right I believe.
A very sad state of affairs.
Without positivity and hope and goodwill then we are mired in the muck of the self pity and caring-lessness of characters who can’t and don’t and won’t help anyone else much less themselves.
What are your thoughts on this type of writing that we seem to be seeing currently?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 14, 2021
If you know this then you are a writer
Consider this article in the vein of “you might be a writer if you do this…” and nod to Jeff Foxworthy
If you write you are a writer, simply put writers write
If you practice AT LEAST 10 minutes a day you are a writer (kudos if you can do more)
If you have at least one finished draft you are a writer (more than 2 or 3 drafts and no finishes, sorry you are not a writer)
If you finish what you start then you are a writer (non writers never seem to finish)
It does not matter if you are a pantser or a plotter or any other type of writer, just write
If you keep notes on your phone, on paper, in your head (careful I’ve put things down on my head only to misplace them, lol), if you keep notes everywhere, by the bed, by the sofa, by your chair, in your car, wherever you go, you are a writer.
You can substitute and make your own if, then statements and if you do this then you are that.
If you write exclusively for yourself, you are a writer.
If you write for any other reason, go back to the reason above and be a writer for you and none other.
The others will come.
If you know this:
This [your] work is automatically protected the moment it is written down; it does not have to be "registered" for a copyright for it to be valid. According to http://copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-general.html#mywork
"Your work is under copyright protection the moment it is created and fixed in a tangible form that it is perceptible either directly or with the aid of a machine or device."
...then YOU ARE A WRITER!
Stop reading for now and start writing.
Anything else you should know to be a writer? I’m always looking for good items to add to this list, let me know.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 11, 2021
“Adult Child” Abuse
It seems like I’ve been hearing and learning concepts now that I have not heard in my whole life. Have I been under a rock or something? It is mind boggling what one can learn later in life.
I was listening to a Dave Ramsey (all credits to him and his crew) episode on YouTube and came across some interesting concepts that are NOT about finance / money. It is about relationships.
Adult Child Abuse - This one hit me really hard, extremely hard, that there is such a thing as abuse of parents upon their adult children. To ask an adult child to break their boundaries in order to continue parental bad habits is abuse.
[There may be instances of another type of Adult Child Abuse, where it is your adult children are abusing you by not respecting your boundaries as well.]
We Are Family - Using the “we are family” card in order to further and continue to get you to put up with their insane, zany, chaotic, unpredictable, messed up behaviors is beyond conceivable and yet this is perpetuated every day.
If you brother or sister is an addict to gambling, alcohol, smoking, drugs and you contribute to that behavior then you are an enabler. Enabling their behavior is giving them something (money, living space, etc.) in order for them to continue their bad behavior and decisions is you creating your own version of insanity.
Also, your family has its own direction and goals and commitments and your family’s direction, goals and commitments are NOT YOURS. (In some cases you are letting them know that whatever has happened through the previous generations is stopping with you.)
As mentioned in the episode that is a whole case of facing the fire to stop that fire, means that you are getting burned (not literally but figuratively) since it is so painful to tell your family no. You are hardwired to want to please them.
Sometimes the only thing you can do is say no and repeat that no as many times as it takes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81wf00lACZA
Have a listen and let me know if you agree.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 9, 2021
You Loving You
What does that look like?
What does that feel like?
What do you do that shows you love you?
It is important for us to realize when we are loving to ourselves and when we are not.
It helps us to be at peace and harmony within ourselves.
When it seems like the news services are delivering wave after wave of fomenting unrest and insurrection that chips away at our inner peace it is important to remember what we really have versus what they want us to think we have.
What do you have?
Currently there are no riots or fires or killings on my street. I look out over my little city and see no signs of any of that.
My inner peace is in what surrounds me, not what is happening elsewhere.
There may be terrorists and anarchy and killings but they do not define me and this moment.
I went to bed last night after listening to the news flashes of the day and I was reminded by Kyle Cease that none of that is in the world that immediately surrounds me.
NONE OF THAT AFFECTED ME and most likely you; however, it did attempt to alter our mood and our perceptions and our feelings about the world that we live in and we do live in a greater world.
That greater world is not our immediate world and that is a distinction that will help us all sleep better at night.
What do you think loving you looks like?
Write it down and then enact that every day, after we love ourselves then we can love others even more effectively.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 7, 2021
Fear itself is scary but wait; is it really?
Winston Churchill states that “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself”.
We are not the first to ask why that is so. What hold does fear have that keeps must from moving and from acting and from being ourselves.
I was listening to Kyle Cease of Evolving Out Loud (another one of my free YouTube videos that I watch/listen to regularly) and he stated it in such a way that made very plain and simple to understand
If you think something is scary then you will restrict your behavior. “That way the only thing that has power over us is fear.”
Metaphorically speaking the boogie man keeps you in bed since you think he is under the bed. Once you realize he is your imagination then the fear is gone.
So what other fears do you have that hold you in and keep you in your place.
“THE ONLY WAY a wrong relationship has power over you is fear.” Once you realize that you can walk away and not put up with that wrong relationship, walk away and the fear dissolves. This is similar to familiar is good, unfamiliar is scary holds us and keeps us in the familiar.
“The only way a job has power over you is fear.” Yes, we fear losing our job, but if we work hard to get another job then we can walk away without that fear since we have another one.
“The only way the news has power over you is fear.” Once you realize that the manufactured news fears do not hold for us it frees us from that fear. (Do not ignore good advice, like wearing masks, wearing seat belts, etc.) Fears can help us but also fears can make us not do things that maybe it is not bad for us to do, like car accidents, not everyone has car accidents and not everyone is a crazy driver so if we are careful and keep our wits about us we can drive sane and keep ourselves safe. (No we cannot control other drivers but that fear that they may plunge into you may be pervasive but does not eliminate the need for us to go to the grocery store, job, etc.)
“The only way the government has power over you is fear.” Fear of prosecution for violating laws, incarceration, or other money based punishments. Obey the laws and fear is not a factor. If your government is oppressive then it may be time to examine how to live elsewhere, or how to live with it, without fear.
“The only way” that fear makes you stay where you are is if you let it. You have to give fear permission to let it rule you, once you do not give it permission then the cuffs of fear do not bind you.
I do not fear my readers I seek their advice (I realize that I may receive emails and feedback that are untoward and not meaningful or not helpful) but I will deal with that as it comes.
Just like managing my relationships it is a give and take and I choose whether to take advice or feedback or not. I do not let my relationship fear drive how I accept advice or feedback.
The greatest power you can have is whether to give fear power or not.
It is your choice!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 5, 2021
one heckofa year
2020 was one heckofa year (Google rules, that is as strong of wording as I can use and I really want to use stronger language).
January 1, 2020 What were your plans, goals, and things you wanted to do. Yes, we all had to cancel, change, reprioritize and adapt. We are very capable and have done those things, all of us.
So it is January 2021, we have moved forward through all of last year and will we let it affect us? Will be kowtow to the new information that we’ve learned last year, in some respects we have to but in some respects we will move on.
We will continue to adapt, and change, and move forward. This site has implemented so many changes just in the last few months and we continue to evolve.
I refuse to let anything bring me to my knees until it actually does. I refuse to stop, I refuse to put an end to what I want to do, I am continuing putting out content and articles and lessons and assignments and stories.
These things are for me and if you enjoy them then great, I am glad you do and appreciate your reading and emailing and questioning and hearing from you.
We continue because to not continue means not living, means we are stopped by all the external mechanisms that may bring pressure on us to stop.
We will not be stopped.
A note I only produce readable content (no audio, no video, nothing that really is Instagramable, or Tweetable, or anything that removes your involvement via reading.
Really there is no likes or dislikes, you may forward and link my content as long as you credit me and that is the ONLY WAY that anyone else hears of my content.
No news service, no celebrity, no other way of disseminating content other than you.
Just you and me.
Thanks for continuing to read and thrive and keep moving with me.
Let’s make 2021 was one heckofa year!
I’d love to hear from you and your thoughts.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 3, 2021
Jeremiah Ukponrfe interview with David Alan Binder
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55848438-hive
Website: https://www.jeremiahu.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremiahuauthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremiahukponrefe/
How do you pronounce your name?
Jeremiah Um-Poor-Eefe
Where are you currently living?
Vancouver British Columbia [Canada]
What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
The importance of discipline
4. Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I have chosen to self-publish
5. Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
It is under my publishing imprint, Punching Sideways Publishing
6. Do you have any suggestions or helps for new writers (please be specific and informational as possible)?
When you're self-publishing it is very important that you vet the people you are working with. In general it's often best to pay the best way for what you pay for. I made the mistake of getting somebody cheap for the Mobi, and Epub version of the book, and they couldn't really do the job properly. Essentially in the end you often get what you paid for.
7. How many books have you written?
This is my first novel, and am currently working on my second
8. Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
I think the best stuff is that you can trace back, such as the little things and details that build up to a twist, making it fun to read and spot for a second time.
9. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
My Novel Hive is the first in The Arcane Volumes, a new long form series which will span what I hope to be a grand story. This the first of nine so there is a long ride ahead.
10. What are some ways in which you promote your work?
I reached out to a lot of different instagram influencers, blogs, on twitter. I just made sure to send out a lot of messages through different avenues. You get a lot of rejection, but essentially you just try to get as much exposure as possible.
11. What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
I probably would have made sure that I get the job done the first time regarding the people that I hired.
January 2, 2021
Reading
A simple activity, reading.
Yet, an intricate activity.
An activity that keeps on giving, through the learning and the aftereffects.
The article linked below describes the benefits of reading.
“Their findings, that reading a novel may cause changes in resting-state connectivity of the brain that persist, appear in the journal Brain Connectivity.”
In other words, we continue to think, reason, ponder, wonder and connect to a story while the story is in progress and long after the story is finished.
http://www.futurity.org/reading-novels-leaves-shadow-activity-brain/
It is beautiful to think about how complex our brains are and how much the brain works for us in order to figure things out.
Life is a puzzle and we are constantly fitting the pieces together this way and that way and making sense of what we read, hear, see and our reactions to others and their reactions to us.
We LOVE to think. In is in our nature, it is born within us and carries us through our whole lives.
The essence of humanity is that we think. Animals react and behave with instinct and while we do too at times we also reason.
The thinking piece is an important part of life. As essential as feeling and wanting and being part of it all, in some way, shape and form.
We THINK!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
January 1, 2021
2020 was the year of the rat. The symbolism of it also being a pandemic or type of plague year as well is not lost.
2021 is the year of the ox. May we be stronger from all the tribulations and learning we are going through.
December 31, 2020
[Please note the new tabs and features on this website, we are growing and changing and meeting the demand of you good folks.]
Better or Worse
Better or worse is a judgement not a measurement.
It is also a double edged sword for what is better for one may be worse for another, if better for both then great, but it is still a judgement that those two individuals have passed upon that action.
Judgements do not serve us.
Measurements serve us.
Measurements let us know when progress is happening and when it is not.
Progress may at first appear to be static, or detrimental or may affect others in adverse ways.
The automatic factories and robots and large harvesters have put many people out of business; while at the same time have made manufactured goods for abundant and cheaper, and provided larger quantities of food and crops available for most.
Seems like there are winners and losers to everything, but not all is lost. So as we progress, we must train to not exist on the lowest rung or whatever rung that may be eliminated by automation.
If you are in a repetitive job that has no brain required then you may be at risk of elimination. Simply because people are expensive and have so many factors that are indiscernible or unpredictable. That is a fact of life so make yourself useful, indispensable, so involved that the business cannot exist without you.
Even managers may not be indispensable, our local hospital eliminated many manager type jobs early this year (March 19). It was epic and unreal since I am sure many of those managers thought they were indispensable.
“The focus of the reorganization was on leadership and administrative staff totaling a net reduction of 10 employees.”
The few positions I remember that were eliminated were a nursing leader and an HR manager.
One would think that nursing leaders and HR managers were indispensable; apparently not.
Sometimes we cannot predict or see what may be useful or not; but oftentimes it is fairly predictable and we should move ourselves away from those predictable positions.
Whenever I check out of a store I AVOID SELF-CHECK OUT, at all costs. The store does not pay me to check me out and I do not want to affect someone else’s job or potential staff reduction.
Something to think about when you are shopping. Help keep jobs by avoiding activities that may eliminate jobs.
Movement can keep us working together through these difficult times.
Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 29, 2020
Static or Dynamic
[ It is exciting for me to announce that there will be some changes in the next few days and some new offerings on this website. This will offer more depth to my dear readers and my dear writers.]
We choose how we live.
I heard an interesting thought today and had to share it.
Dave Ramsay said, “Action is movement” probably many people have said that (even I may have said that before).
We create when we move.
A beautiful short sweet thought.
Static is staying stationary and has humans being, our movement matters, even the little movements.
Getting out of bed, brushing your teeth, combing/brushing your hair, all the actions you take to make yourself presentable are important even when you are staying home.
Be presentable for yourself and no one else and you will enjoy being presentable.
Life is full of more or less, ups and downs, in and outs, going and coming and many more movements than we think about.
Heartbeats, breathing, circulation, blood pulsing, skin shedding, collagen production, so much is going on and I am glad I do not have to think to be able to keep all those processes going.
Our habits are processes that we keep going without thinking about them as well.
Attack a habit that does not serve you.
Our habits can be our servants or our masters.
We decide, we choose, we lean on them and make them and we can break them, if we truly desire and movement away from habits that do not serve us is a great accomplishment and no small feat.
If you can master the little things then those things will make you a master.
That sounds like a quote, I’ll stop and look it up and see if anyone has said it before.
WONDERFUL! I just looked it up and I am the very first in the whole world to say it.
I can truly say that I’ve coined that phrase and that is fantastic.
“If you can master the little things then those things will make you a master.” by David Alan Binder
I’ve just put another mark on the world, at least my little world and if it infects, affects, effects someone else then that is great. It really does all of those for me, and that is who I strive to impress and motivate and create for.
Also, remember that we all have static and dynamic moments in our lives and that does not define us as a whole.
Dear Readers and Dear Writers, may you be able to impress and motivate and create and care for yourself.
This is all part of having a wonderful life.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 27, 2020
Be Trust Full
Be trustful, be trust full
Full of trust, (remember to verify before you trust)
In this case how trustworthy are you?
Are you worthy of trust?
Would you trust you?
Many of us do not trust ourselves in a lot of situations.
If I’m late do I trust myself to drive safe and obey the speed limit, or do I push it. Drive over the speed limit, cut through parking lots to avoid stop signs or lights, roll through stop signs if no one is around, etc.?
If I’m on a diet do I trust myself to eat right (at least 80% of the time), if on an exercise regimen will I walk, run, lift weights at least 5 or 6 times a week, if I am practicing writing will I write at least 30 minutes a day?
There are so many things that we need to be able to rely on ourselves yet we do not show up for us. That is the ultimate betrayal is in NOT showing up for us.
We need us more than anyone else needs us, yet we cop out, we stall, we do something unproductive versus productive, we veg out, we couch out, we sabotage ourselves.
How do we show up for ourselves?
How do we be our own best friends?
We show up consistently, every day, in the best way.
We show up when it counts and where it counts, if we need us then we are there for us. We practice, we exercise, we diet, we do those things that show us we care about ourselves.
Much in the way you do for your family and friends, be consistent and constant and daily for yourself.
How are you doing with showing up for yourself?
Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 25, 2020
Resolve
[Happy holidays, seasons greetings, and Merry Christmas!]
Confidence and resolve go hand in hand.
It helps that we think, no, know that we can do a thing but having the steel and the resolve to carry through is key.
A keystone principle is one that if not implemented or used then the whole structure will collapse.
Resolve does not mean solving it means having the grit and determination and resolution to carry through.
It is a practice that we need in order to not self sabotage or abandon ourselves or sidetrack us.
To stay on point, on task, on top of and actioning (taking absolute action on a particular task) ensures that we get the things done that matter.
Phones don’t matter. Research does not matter. TV does not matter. Games do not matter (unless you are dealing with people and using skills such as language, math and logic) DIGITAL GAMES ARE A TIME WASTER and therefore do not matter. So many screens in our world, from those smart devices on our fridge, wall or other places are just interfaces and black holes that suck the time away from us and therefore KEEPS US FROM GETTING THE NECESSARY THINGS WE NEED TO DO.
Without getting things done we do not have peace of mind, we do not have resolution and we do not have our effort have meaning.
We all want our efforts to be meaningful and to mean something not only to ourselves but to others as well.
Pitching ideas, thinking of schemes, planning well and dreaming dreams are all well and good, but without actioning then we really have not accomplished much of anything.
ACTIONING! ACTIONING! ACTIONING!!
Actually doing that item, that deed, that thing that needs to be performed is cathartic and gives one peace of mind through creating.
You are a god (small letters), if you are a creator then you are a god. [Note: This is not anything special, it only separates you from the non-creators, either you are or, well, the opposite].
Produce, productive, productiveness, productivity, actually producing work is wonderful.
I get this feeling that is very hard to describe when I create when I write when I produce.
Try it and see your results and how much you can actually get done today. So tell me, what have you done today.
(remember that gathering ideas, intelligence and learning and studying are essential and come before producing; however, without production the gathering, learning and studying gives knowledge without actually using those building blocks to produce)
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 23, 2020
Should We Save or Spend...
On the surface saving makes sense and sometimes we have to spend; however, we need to examine for what we are saving and for what we are spending.
If you are saving money, that is always a good thing, if you are saving in the right places. Currently CD’s don’t make much sense when you can make so much more in mutual funds, right? A friend of mine gave me some advice. Trust but verify. Yeah, that friend was Ronald Reagan President, and he gave this phrase to ALL of us.
I’ve had a financial advisor for years (still do) at one time my work gave us access to a financial advisor as well.
Wow, I was lucky and had access to two of them at once; however, that did not stop me or prevent me or prohibit me from learning all I could about various investments and ANY recommendation one would give me I would verify in TWO ways.
First, I would look up that particular investment and find out all I could about it. Then if I agreed with that one investor’s advice then I would ask the other investor what he thought. If ALL THREE of us agreed then I would trust and then DO what they suggested.
HOWEVER, ALL THREE OF US HAD TO AGREE!
The same goes with any advice or suggestion that you get from anyone.
VERIFY, VERIFY, VERIFY!!!
Always, ALWAYS, verify, do not trust without verification.
Reagan had it WRONG!
VERIFY then TRUST!
If you do not verify then there is no reason to trust.
I hand out advice and suggestions everyday on various concepts and thoughts and opinions and ideas, they are just that. They are mine, not yours.
They should not be yours ever, until you verify, study what I am saying, then research it ourselves.
Too many of us are afraid of research, when that is the most important thing you can do, without it you may know little to nothing and knowing things keeps us out of trouble.
It keeps us safe, it keeps us from making mistakes.
Every email I get I verify it’s veracity and source and even then I usually don’t click on links in emails since it has been proven time and time again that that is how people get scammed, PC’s and phones hijacked and get taken for lots of money and time and heartache.
If you are an assumer then you deserve what you get, and I really, really don’t want that for any of us.
Give a thought and a care and know what you are doing before you do it. Afterwards it is almost too late to verify and ensure you are doing the right thing.
Make sense, what are your thoughts and how do you verify before you trust?
I really would be interested in hearing from you.
Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 21, 2020
Spending Thoughts on what is worthwhile...
Here is a real life example (I attempt to use real life examples in order to be able for me to learn from me.)
A person who ordered something from me on a selling platform, informed me at the time of her payment, that for me to carefully package the item since she knew it was fragile.
This was a very strange request, of course, I knew it was fragile and I had also sent many items previously that were fragile and had never had a problem shipping items and having them arrive intact.
So we packaged the item appropriately and lo and behold the item arrived on her end and it not only was damaged but the shipping system that had shipped it had enclosed the torn up very padded envelope in a plastic bag and NOTHING of the item was delivered. No plastic box that it was wrapped in, no information that I had sent, not even pieces of the item.
Of course, this person immediately demanded a full refund and accused me of not wrapping it correctly.
This upset me greatly since I pride myself on great customer service but I also have a 5 star rating on the selling platform.
I fully refunded the person their money. So I lost the item, the shipping, the tax, my profit but also completely gave the person all their money, so in reality I lost quite a bit on that “sale”.
I thought about it in the evening since it happened yesterday and then last night when I woke up I thought about it and got worked up again.
Here are my thoughts on this transaction:
It might possibly have been a scam, since for that person to send me pictures of a package that was completely damaged and nothing in it is not strange but the fact that I was forewarned which was completely unnecessary. Also, I feel like it was a crime not merely a damage thing. Someone at the shipping service either stole it or quite possibly this is what this person who bought it who perpetrated the crime. I believe they stole it and pretended like it was completely destroyed and not ONE SINGLE PIECE OF THE ITEM WAS IN THE CONTAINER AT ALL. If the shipping service had damaged it there would have been something left, not just an empty envelope.
My wife on the other hand this morning said it rankles her as well; however, she has decided that “life is too short to spend time on these thoughts”. She is moving on and I am too.
We have learned that there are unscrupulous people in the world who will take advantage of others.
It is really a pity and karma will deal with them, not me.
This is a lesson and I will continue to do business with anyone that purchases from me on that selling platform and continue to purge items from our household that we no longer need.
In reality the loss of the item and the money is worth spending time thinking about.
The loss of my time and peace of mind is far greater in worth and it stops now.
I sincerely send you the peace in your heart, mind and soul that we all desire and let’s try and direct our thoughts away from those things that are not worth spending our time and effort upon.
Yesterday was a great day and today is a great day. Let’s make it a great day for all we come into contact with.
Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
(Side note: I was analyzing my stats on the website and find I have readers from all over the world, AMAZING and thank you so much for reading! Over 15,000 new readers, I am so grateful for the new readers and regular readers, it just overwhelms me to have your support!)
December 19, 2020
On The Couch
I’ve spent years talking with counselors, teachers, therapists, psychologists since the age of 15.
Plus taken courses on psychology, performed the tasks of counselor, therapist, teacher, trainer and coach for decades.
Plus I’ve devoted years of my life studying aspects of the human mind and physiology and the inner workings of humans and how we tick.
This is a majority of my life and based upon that here are some observations (divined through my experiences and the experiences of others that I’ve heard about).
If you are obtaining help for the first time be sure and “interview” via phone or in person and make sure they are a good fit and that their style is something that you can use. Be sure and ensure they have both style and substance. Style without substance if nothing, just a classy approach without any delivery.
Sometimes you may need to upgrade to another individual. See “a” above and be sure you interview your upgrade like you did your first one. Each one needs to be vetted by what you know currently and AT LEAST yearly if not monthly be evaluated on how much you are really progressing. YOU SHALL PROGRESS is your mantra; and ensure that you and the individual are doing all each of you can to ensure that progress is made.
Sometimes the individual(s) do not care if you get “better”, they are happy with you coming and talking to them week after week and month after month.
YOU MAY BE JUST A PAYCHECK TO THEM.
Sometimes you know MORE than the individual you are talking with. I have been in sessions and asked about certain treatments or methods and that individual had no idea and had never heard of that treatment or method and was not interested in finding out more (I recommended reading some material and in the next session asked if they’d read it and heard something like, well, not yet but it is on my list.)
Listening and talking is very therapeutic but without action you are STUCK! You must take the steps to move yourself out of the situation, the individual you are talking with may offer suggestions and actions and clues and pieces of the puzzle and great advice, but if you do nothing with it; then that is what you end up with. Talking and listening and NO ACTION!
If you are “On The Couch” then you are an active participant, not just a talking mouth with an ear for them to hear you regurgitate your life.
Your life is meaningful and is chock full of information to learn about yourself and how you and others work.
Ensure you are gaining understanding into how you and others work, which again, means active participation, homework, useful exercises (meaning things for you to do not a work out of your body but your mind).
Let me know your results and how you are doing and let me know your thoughts on your progress.
I will give you honest, kind and thoughtful feedback if you desire or I can just listen. Let me know.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 17, 2020
The Engine that Could
The story of “The little engine that could” by Watty Piper is a beautiful story about the limitless possibilities that one can experience if one is not limited by one’s mind set and one’s belief in one’s ability.
It expresses that if you believe you have the ability then you then HAVE THAT ABILITY.
Athletes do it, ask any Olympic Champion. They visualize it then they do it.
Of course, the Little Engine that Could does not take into account the size of the hill and the mechanics and physics of the little engine.
Science could express whether the little engine actually can or can’t depending on all the metrics and data of that particular engine and the climb.
Science can not explain why you can or can’t. Maybe psychology can; however, psychology cannot explain why some can and some can’t.
It is not a matter of power, or focus or ability, or training or dynamic or what have you.
It is a matter of your determination that allows you to have power over that one thing that may be holding you back and that is your belief.
So how do you change your belief. Slowly, almost excruciatingly slow so it would seem. It is an minute by minute thing until those minutes build into a mountain of time and practice and expression and you eventually can.
Remember you cannot do this with the roulette wheel since no amount of mind power can control it.
It only happens with the power of your mind and the power of your skill and the power of practice all combined into the one ball of lightning that produces results.
All the intent in the world will not pave your path; however, if you study the problem and study how others have done it and study the rules and then see how those rules can be bent or manipulated to your effort then you see how it is done and then when you see it you do it.
When I started this site over 5 years ago on May 15, 2015 I saw the potential and envisioned how it would work and, BOY, have I ever adapted and adapted and then adapted again and again.
The evolution from there to here is mind boggling and nothing like I envisioned from the start since at the start I could never have seen far enough down the road.
I had to begin the journey, thinking that I could, and once down the road, finally saw, OH, I need to change this and then that and further down the road, WELL, there are more things to change and adapt and tweek and manipulate.
I used to think that if I put blurbs on other sites and exhorted others that I could draw an audience.
Now my attempts to do that are minimal, people are naturally drawn to my site by their own inquisitive nature and by the nature of the articles that I write.
My articles are not perfect, my site is far from perfect, my approach was not perfect, nothing I did was perfect, except the adaption, the practice, the change, the just get down the road further and then see what needs to be done.
BUT and that is a HUGE BUT, if I did not get down the road even a little bit I would not have seen the next curve or side road or anything. I would have been stuck at the start just dreaming and wondering and hoping.
AGAIN IT IS ALL ABOUT ACTION!
Take action no matter what you do, if you do nothing then that is what you will get.
If you do something then that is what you get.
The more action you put in the more you will (and others will) get out of it.
Start with the following phrase...
I am beginning to believe…
AND THEN TAKE ALL THE ACTION THAT YOU POSSIBLY CAN!!!!
What will you choose?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 15, 2020
We all have a choice
Choices are a gift at this season, what is your choice?
It will be your gift that lasts!
You receive a gift. You thank the person for the gift, even though you may not like it, you may not need it, or you feel the person did not even know you enough to really find out what you would like. That is just plain being nice.
Being rude would be to say, “Why did you get this gift?” or “Really, how did you think I’d want this?” or anything in that similar vein.
That is rude! Let us be gracious this Season.
Let us say, “Thank you so much!” and smile and be grateful that you received a gift.
Recycle or Repurpose or Re-gift
Then if you have no need for the gift then you may repurpose it or re-gift it to someone you deem may need it or would like it. That is legitimate and thousands of people do that every year.
You may recycle the gift by donating it to any number of wonderful charities out there who would be able to sell it and raise money or be able to “gift” or give it to someone who may need it.
Or you may throw the gift away.
You may have even more ways of disposing of the gift in a kind and thoughtful manner and by that way honor the intent of the original giver and as a side bonus, by not making the original gifter feel lacking or less than or feeling like you are upset when all that person was doing was being generous. You may not see it that way, but they sure were being very generous thinking of you and giving you a gift.
They thought long and hard about it and even thought you’d like it. It does not matter that they were wrong, and there is no need to bring that up.
There is the thought and there is the deed and then there is the reaction.
All have merit and what you chose to do with any part of those interactions is up to you.
What will you choose?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 13, 2020
Remembery and Conknives
This word is a combination of the word Remember and the word Memory but it is not the word “rememory” obviously.
So does it mean more or less than rememory, does it have more substance and more meaning as a word on its own.
Of course, since I coined it I think it does.
Another work that I coined yesterday is:
Conknives - as in a person Conknives against me, the word is a derivative of Connive and Knives together
The meanings are somewhat overlapping which seals in more meaningfulness to me.
con·nive
“secretly allow (something considered immoral, illegal, wrong, or harmful) to occur.
Or conspire to do something considered immoral, illegal, or harmful.” Courtesy of Definition of Connive by Merriam-Webster
I like coining words, terms and phrases. How about you?
Do you have words, terms or phrases that you’ve coined?
If so, it would be interesting to me and my readers for you to share them with us.
I’ll ensure that you get credit for it as well, if you’d like or you may choose to be anonymous.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 11, 2020
Confidence
First I wanted to share another word with you. Several days ago I shared with you some words that are made up and are fun and make one think of the possibilities.
Thinking beyond the current boundaries is what drives me and my imagination.
A reader shared with me one of those words:
Karmakazi
Fun to think about and fun to say as well.
Flustration is another word that I shared with you all several days ago this is to encourage new readers to seek out the past articles for tidbits that they might glean.
If you were able to gift yourself with one thing for this season what would it be?
This gift is for you only and no one else.
Virus immunity?
Peace of mind? (Since this is a one time thing, peace of mind is perpetual so what one thing would give you peace of mind this time so it won’t give you peace of mind a minute or hour or day from now)
If I were to give you a gift that would keep on giving it would be…
CONFIDENCE!
With confidence you can do things that currently your lack of confidence does not allow you to do.
Approach life with confidence.
That one thing you are doing that you are unable to do, what if you did not know that you could fail.
Confidence is like that.
At a fair many, many years ago, I had a little ring that I purchased from a carnival person and it was stated, “Put that ring around a soda bottle and you get any prize you wanted.”
My child like mind saw that ring and thought, there are so many bottles sticking up there, “how can i miss!?!”
And so I threw like I couldn’t miss and guess what, I did not miss. Missing was not an option.
I made it and won a large pink teddy bear, in those days it was about ¼ my size and my family marveled that I was able to do it.
I said, “It was easy, there were so many bottles I couldn’t miss!”
Be like that child that will never miss. Use that mentality and bring it to every task you perform.
There are so many novels written that are made into movies, TV series, become best sellers, are acclaimed and celebrated and that is the writer you want to be.
One that can’t miss, you not only will, but you SHALL, and you can’t fail to write a beautiful, wonderful, heartfelt story that so many people will love.
Now take that attitude. Does a cake baker ever think, “This cake will probably fall and be flat.”
No, I don’t think so.
Does a cleaner ever think, I’ll probably miss some dust so I won’t mop? NO!
They clean and clean and clean never thinking about what they may miss.
It is NOT an option!
Dust, clean, bake, write, exercise, walk, run and everything you do with confidence.
You not only will, but as they put in legalese you shall, since shall means you have to, this cannot be ignored and it has to be complied with and shall be done.
If it is not done, performed or adhered to then there are legal ramifications.
YOU SHALL WIN! YOU SHALL PERFORM! YOU SHALL be CONFIDENT AND SUCCEED.
Now what say you to that piece of advice?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 9, 2020
On the Hook
Seth Godin has a definition for “on the hook” that I thought was very meaningful and poignant.
In Turkey at a bakery one can buy bread and if one can afford two loaves then one can buy one and put one on the hook. In this case it literally means to hold in reserve so if someone comes into the bakery hungary that loaf of bread “on the hook” can be given to the hungary person free.
A beautiful thought and a wonderful way to give during this season when times might be especially difficult for so many.
Also, it ensures that the gift cannot be used for drugs or alcohol or smokes that don’t really benefit the person like a monetary donation might be used for instead of sustenance.
It would be wonderful if someone owning a shop of some type would put a notice out (like buy one get one put on the hook for someone else later), an interesting way of paying it forward.
There are so many ways to give out there and ensuring that your donation will be used in meaningful ways is a practicality that is out of our hands sometimes.
Sometimes one must rely on the one receiving the donation to use it correctly and meaningfully.
That measure of trust is something to build in a society. I remember a person begging at a corner and I knew that nearby was an outdoor stand selling food to promote business at the enterprise.
I told the person that wanted money that if they came to the outdoor stand I would buy them some food at that place.
They came over with their spouse (I assume) and I bought them lunch and they were grateful and I was grateful to be able to help them out and make a meaningful contribution to their lives.
May we all put something “on the hook” for others.
Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 7, 2020
200 Million Prize
I wish I was speaking about money and that I had 200 million to give out in prizes.
I don't but I have something that may be even be a help to you and enable you to not feel so alone in figuring out this life.
At your birth you were handed a 200 million piece puzzle and that is called life and you had to figure it out.
Everyone shows you their picture and you feel like your picture should be similar but not exactly like theirs.
Wrong!
Your picture is your picture and looking at the box lid will not show you how to build your picture. The internet will not show you the solution to your picture, it can give you insights or it can completely mislead you.
Your picture is totally dependent upon all the various inputs you have in your life and the views others may want to incorporate upon you and enforce their rules upon you.
In the end it really is your rules that should win out, not theirs. Their views are guidelines and we are continually making attempts to figure out life, our life.
There is no right or wrong way. There is no perfect life. There is no such thing as letting others build our life's puzzle and hoping that it fits us.
We have to do this ourselves, no one else can do it for us.
There is a song that has been running through my mind the last few days and it is this one, George Jones "Lonesome Valley"
You can read the lyrics and hear the song here:
https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/georgejones/lonesomevalley.html
Here is the chorus to Lonesome Valley:
"You gotta walk that lonesome valley
And you gotta walk, walk it by yourself
Nobody else can walk it for you
You gotta walk, walk it by yourself."
It is a little preachy but has a basis behind it that is very true. This life is a lonesome valley and some people may help us and some may hinder us and some may be just there doing nothing at all, but ultimately it is all on us and our choices.
Another thing is that the picture changes constantly as we add pieces and subtract pieces and try something here, then there.
There is NO picture unless you put those pieces together.
There is only the picture we build and it constantly changes, sometimes hourly, daily, weekly or monthly.
It was not the same as last years and it definitely won't be the same as next years.
My sincere intent is to try to help us understand, and work out what this life is about and it is a real effort to bring us to a working knowledge of ourselves, our intent and our forces that we have.
We have the strength and power of gods [no, we are not gods but we have some pretty effective abilities] to affect ourselves and others.
Thanks so much for reading, listening and sharing.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 5, 2020
Minimally Thinking
What a new thought!
We as a couple are minimally thinking now.
What do we have that we don’t use?
What do we have that we don’t need?
If it has been over a year, then why are we hanging on to it?
I have a history involving hoarding and it started with my mom.
She hoarded paper, plastic, years and years’ worth of mail, newspapers, plastic containers (like cool whip bowls, yeah, dozens of them).
After she died, we threw out boxes and boxes of old mail, newspapers and items that one cannot use.
Or the reverse, she had about ten laundry liquid soap containers all with something in them, many of them full.
Why?
In case she runs out for what, months, maybe years?
Unbelievable!
Yet, we had to hire the large waste containers that trucks bring, very large ones, 8 feet wide and 24 feet long and filled them very carefully, in order to ensure space savings and still had to order another one.
She lived in a trailer, just a regular trailer, not a double wide. You could hardly walk through it anywhere with all the stuff that was in there, packed in there.
Pretty much all Americans have too much stuff.
When you have storage units to hold all your stuff, you got too much.
So how much is too much? You have to decide, and then you have to put your foot down and act.
Stop buying so much stuff!
Get by on less.
Imagine the savings, in dollars from not buying what you don’t need, imagine the savings in headaches from not moving stuff around and trying to find the best fit in your closet, or storage room or garage.
If you move bins around that is not minimizing.
You actually have to get rid of stuff.
Sell it, donate it, trash it.
It really feels good and it is unbelievable what sells.
We’ve sold a tiny Lego set and made some real, big dollars on it, since it was older and never opened. (It just sat in a bin of gifts for years and was not given to anyone and now all our kids are too old and their kids are too old for it, so we sold it and made a hundred times what we bought it for.)
But that is a one in a million item.
The rest we are getting $3 to $25 dollars for and we are happy to have that extra money since things are very tight.
Not just for us, but for everyone.
I want to tell you that with your donations and our selling we are getting by, not too badly.
It would be nice to have more money at the end of the month, instead of more month at the end of the money.
But, hey, we all make do.
What do you have that you don’t need?
Consider getting rid of, donating, giving to someone else (family? Or someone).
It is just a thought and thoughts are the start of big changes and ideas are dreams that you have to put into action, in order to realize any benefit.
Oh wait, there’s more…
In another article later.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 3, 2020
Knife and Fork
Are you finished?
Can you really put a fork in it and call it done?
When do you know something is really finished?
That is an age-old question and many have polished and polished an article or book and never published it.
This can apply to other projects not just writing.
Many have started books or articles and then never finished them, so the dream way of doing it is to write until it is the first draft is finished so at least you can say you finished writing it. It may not be polished finished but at least the first draft is complete which is a tremendous accomplishment.
Be sure to include forks in the road. A choice of two or more paths, a Plan A and Plan B and many more plans as the progression goes.
Lots of knives need to be used from maybe the main character gets stuck or some kind of fight or the sharp wit of another character. Conflict is not all sparring but can be verbal as well.
The spoon obviously may be the back or foreground love story, two people “spooning” once in a while and that ensure all the cutlery is present and used.
The analogy breaks down as all analogies do at some point or another.
The real point is to have a fully fleshed out story, article, project, book at the end of the end.
There will be many ends to your project, the you’ve gathered all the notes or bought the materials end, the beginning of construction or writing and that particular end, the sanding and painting and finishing, the polish on the draft if you will end, the run it by an editor or other reader for help end (by the way I can help you with a read through of your project if you’d like-FREE).
Getting through that editor, agent, publisher to the it is finally published phase is another end and it is also a beginning as well. Now you get to market and push and share and sign copies and get people to purchase and get interest generated which is a huge task with a beginning and guess what? That task never ends while you start another somewhere in the whole process and repeat and repeat and repeat.
Fun and games and it is the chase that excites you, it is the writing that excites you, it is the creating that excites you.
It is being there in the middle of it all and taking on all tasks one at a time and knocking them off of your to do list that excites you. That motivates you, that propels you to do this.
And it is so much fun and great entertainment for you. Be darned with everyone else.
You are doing this for you and no one else if you are entirely truthful with yourself.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
December 1, 2020
Is this you?
1. Purposely not listening
2. Excuses and blame
3. Jealousy
4. Backhanded compliments
5. The relationship is one-sided
6. Playing victim
7. Denial and gaslighting
8. Hypocritical
9. Dishonesty
10. Controlling behaviors
11. Lack of Communication
12. Irresponsible, Immature, Unpredictable
13. Lack of Trust
14. Significant family and or friends don’t like your friends or your friend’s friends
15. Controlling Behavior
16. Feeling insecure in your relationship
17. A dark or secretive past
18. Non-resolution of past relationships
19. Your relationship is based upon the feel to be needed
20. Abusive behavior
All the above are red flags for your behavior or someone else’s behavior
If you are not aware of them then you NEED to be, read up and study them and think about your relationships and what they REALLY are.
Be careful.
I believe that I have some of those behaviors above, HOWEVER, I believe that one has to have the majority of those behaviors, a multiplicity or many of them in order to be red flagged.
Some of those behaviors can be fixed IF YOU HAVE THEM.
If someone else has them they have to fix themselves, you can’t fix them because they will not see those behaviors in themselves. EVER!
Watch Dirty John and see if you are like her or like him. If you are like her what are her red flags, if you are like him what are your red flags?
Interesting
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 29, 2020
CASH
There are finance people who insist that every person would weigh a purchase more if we paid cash rather than credit.
The mind looks at the cash and the pain is instant, debit and credit cards do not have instant pain associated with them.
Every purchase has a pain point and it is necessary in order to keep us from buying too much or over paying for items.
Stores make mistakes all the time and even bank tellers have cash (paper) counting and coin counting machines since tellers make mistakes and banks do not want any counting errors especially if banks have more money given to customer than the customer's actual transaction.
We have to watch stores and any interruption by whoever is with you distracts you from potentially catching those errors.
I am not saying that stores do it on purpose but one particular hardware store charged me $11.49 (their system price) for a $9.99 (on the shelf price) purchase not once not twice but three times and I only had two of those items. That was a hefty mistake in their favor and all they did was correct it.
No apologies, no we'll give you a discount for keying in 3 instead of 2, or the system was incorrect in the price charged so we'll give you xx item or dollars to help make up for it, or give me a $5 gift card for my next visit.
I may not make a next visit, there is no incentive, and that one visit was very painful since I had gotten to the car and looked at the receipt and went back in and talked to cashier, they did a price check and I talked with a manager. So painful and IT WAS ALL THEIR FAULT. I got nothing for their mistakes.
WE have to pay when we make mistakes but stores and corporations seem to get away with not admitting fault so many times.
Arrg! That is aggravating at the least.
So my advice alone with Dave Ramsey and other financial professionals is cut up the credit cards or only keep them for emergencies and pay with cash to feel the pain.
At this time of year it will be helpful for you and me not to over spend on items that we cannot afford.
Downsize your holiday and downsize your stress levels immensely!
What do you think about that?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 27, 2020
Picking and Grinning
Usually in the background of my day I am thinking about what for the next day or several days to publish. Sometimes an idea comes to me and sometimes it doesn't, but at the crucial time it always comes to me.
So I'm picking my brain and wondering what to write about and what I'd like to say, when I thought, "Hey, why not let my readers tell me what they want?"
So since I have no agendas I won't throw out a select list or menu of ideas, I'll let you free form and flow and send me your ideas.
You all know my email address and if you don't it is at the bottom.
The beauty of this is twofold, I'm picking your brains and you get to give me input on what is relevant in your life and your space.
So this one is totally for you.
Send me your ideas and I'll tackle them.
This can also be like an Ask Me Anything, where you can just ask me questions you may have on relevant topics that you know I write about or it may be just your curious about "whatever" questions.
Thanks and here's looking forward to hearing from each and every one of you.
What do I write about?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 25, 2020
Seth Godin has a new book
Seth's new book called The Practice includes some pretty interesting concepts. I'm going to list each concept then comment on some of them (maybe all, we'll see)
· Skill is not the same as talent.
DABinder: Skill is developed and can actually surpass talent if enough time, attention and practice comes into play.
· A good process can lead to good outcomes, but it doesn’t guarantee them.
DABinder: Process has a large percentage (over 50% at least but not sure how much over 50%) of ensuring good outcomes. Good outcomes in general take planning, action and then execution and there is a degree of luck and timing.
· Perfectionism has nothing to do with being perfect.
DABinder: This resonates with me. When I read this, I was, OH, this is FANTASTIC and so true. I also believe that perfectionism can be carried too far and one needs to be sure they are not OCD with this area.
· Reassurance is futile.
DABinder: Reassurance may be needed but some people will not be reassured and that is just in their nature, but I think it can be mitigated if we work at it.
· Hubris is the opposite of trust.
DABinder: Once a person exhibits hubris then trust is usually not an option of that person.
· Attitudes are skills.
DABinder: This is so true. Attitudes can be fine tuned and amplify all other areas of our life and can permeate and crash through obstacles. A good skill to develop is a great attitude.
· There’s no such thing as writer’s block.
DABinder: Again, I agree with this whole heartedly. Just write through it and it will come. Just put something, anything down and eventually the muse and the skill within you will let it out.
· Professionals produce with intent.
DABinder: I think that if you do not have intent then you can not be a professional.
· Passion is a choice.
DABinder: So if you have a choice then be passionate about what you do and how you are and it will show in whatever work you choose to apply yourself.
· Creativity is an act of leadership.
DABinder: This and others in this list show why Seth has created so much and shown us so much.
· Leaders are imposters.
DABinder: I am not sure what to say about this statement; maybe some of my readers have some ideas. Anyone?
· All criticism is not the same.
DABinder: I agree with this, some criticism is cutting and vindictive out of jealousy or whatever motive. Be kind as you creativitely (this may not be a word but I feel it is acceptable here) help others and the less critically you can be will be appreciated.
· We become creative when we ship the work.
DABinder: I don't have much to say about this; ;except it feels true.
· Good taste is a skill.
DABinder: Cultivating taste is like any other skill that we cultivate; so many skills are required and good taste reflects through us and in our work.
So if you have any thoughts about the above; I've love to hear your thoughts.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 23, 2020
BUTTON?
Button, button, who’s got what?
Basic game play is determine out what the rules are and the meanings, and where-with-all.
Without knowing the rules there is no point in playing with the button since we have to know what that button can do and if you’d want to push it or not.
In this particular case the button is self-destructive behavior.
We all participate in that behavior from time to time and sometimes we get away with it and sometimes it smacks us in the forehead and we wonder why we “played” or tried that kind of thing.
In my opinion, any kind of habit forming addictive behavior has the potential to be self-destructive in some manner.
Biting finger nails (especially during the pandemic is rolling the proverbial dice), cutting, smoking, gambling, alcohol, and numerous others.
Even speeding and taking chances in vehicles and crossing a street can be exciting and an adrenaline rush but ultimately can be self-destructive.
So my dear readers and dear writers, eliminating those behaviors helps us to move in a direction that benefits us and our loved ones.
Knowing one’s emotional state and handling flashbacks keeps us even keel and away from self-destructive behavior.
We are not children but some of the things we do can be child like and detrimental.
Think it over and let me know what you think.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 21, 2020
Knife and Fork
Are you finished?
Can you really put a fork in it and call it done?
When do you know something is really finished?
That is an age-old question and many have polished and polished an article or book and never published it.
This can apply to other projects not just writing.
Many have started books or articles and then never finished them, so the dream way of doing it is to write until it is the first draft is finished so at least you can say you finished writing it. It may not be polished finished but at least the first draft is complete which is a tremendous accomplishment.
Be sure to include forks in the road. A choice of two or more paths, a Plan A and Plan B and many more plans as the progression goes.
Lots of knives need to be used from maybe the main character gets stuck or some kind of fight or the sharp wit of another character. Conflict is not all sparring but can be verbal as well.
The spoon obviously may be the back or foreground love story, two people “spooning” once in a while and that ensure all the cutlery is present and used.
The analogy breaks down as all analogies do at some point or another.
The real point is to have a fully fleshed out story, article, project, book at the end of the end.
There will be many ends to your project, the you’ve gathered all the notes or bought the materials end, the beginning of construction or writing and that particular end, the sanding and painting and finishing, the polish on the draft if you will end, the run it by an editor or other reader for help end (by the way I can help you with a read through of your project if you’d like-FREE).
Getting through that editor, agent, publisher to the it is finally published phase is another end and it is also a beginning as well. Now you get to market and push and share and sign copies and get people to purchase and get interest generated which is a huge task with a beginning and guess what? That task never ends while you start another somewhere in the whole process and repeat and repeat and repeat.
Fun and games and it is the chase that excites you, it is the writing that excites you, it is the creating that excites you.
It is being there in the middle of it all and taking on all tasks one at a time and knocking them off of your to do list that excites you. That motivates you, that propels you to do this.
And it is so much fun and great entertainment for you. Be darned with everyone else.
You are doing this for you and no one else if you are entirely truthful with yourself.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 19, 2020
Three Steps Forward – Two Steps Back
Here are some of my thoughts on this subject:
· It doesn’t make the journey easy, but you can get there.
· At least you are making progress.
· If this pertains to your characters then that is a real good path for them to be on, for if it is too simple (3 forward and none back then it won’t hold anyone’s attention), if it is too difficult (3 forward and 3 back then that won’t hole a reader’s attention since there is no progress-note you can do that once in a long while but not regularly at all).
· It proves there are obstacles and all of us face obstacles and problems and issues, which is real life and the taking the bad with the good.
· It builds character and strength and opposition builds us ultimately, making us stronger and learning from those puzzling things that thwart us.
So, what are your Thoughts? I’d be interested in your comments and views and if you have items to add to the list.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 17, 2020
I find that this prose resonates with me:
" I counted my years and discovered that I have less time to live going forward than I have lived until now.
I have more past than future.
I feel like the boy who received a bowl of candies.
The first ones, he ate ungracious,
but when he realized there were only a few left,
he began to taste them deeply.
I do not have time to deal with mediocrity.
I do not want to be in meetings where parade inflamed egos.
I am bothered by the envious, who seek to discredit the most able, to usurp their places, coveting their seats, talent, achievements and luck.
I do not have time for endless conversations, useless to discuss about the lives of others who are not part of mine.
I do not have time to manage sensitivities of people who despite their chronological age, are immature.
I cannot stand the result that generates from those struggling for power.
People do not discuss content, only the labels.
My time has become scarce to discuss labels,
I want the essence, my soul is in a hurry…
Not many candies in the bowl…
I want to live close to human people, very human, who laugh of their own stumbles, and away from those turned smug and overconfident with their triumphs, away from those filled with self-importance,
Who does not run away from their responsibilities.
Who defends human dignity.
And who only want to walk on the side of truth and honesty.
The essential is what makes life worthwhile.
I want to surround myself with people, who knows how to touch the hearts of people.
People to whom the hard knocks of life, taught them to grow with softness in their soul.
Yes …. I am in a hurry … to live with intensity,
that only maturity can bring.
I intend not to waste any part of the goodies I have left …
I'm sure they will be more exquisite, that most of which so far I've eaten.
My goal is to arrive to the end satisfied and in peace
with my loved ones and my conscience.
I hope that your goal is the same,
because either way you will get there too .. "
This is from the site poemhunter.com
Today we decide now how to live for tomorrow and however many tomorrows that we have left.
If you have a surplus of tomorrows then you may parcel them out to those who will appreciate those days.
The sick, the dying, the ones who are facing terminality with grace.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 15, 2020
It Is, Isn’t It?
It is happens.
It seems like every day you hear the words, “It is what it is.”
But is it really?
When is it not what it is?
How can we determine this?
Is there a way of critically thinking that allows us to see beyond what is?
How can we change our viewpoint or paradigm to include what is and what isn’t?
Is this what discoverer’s do?
They figure that it is there beyond what is and then they go and break through the known barriers and discover what isn’t.
Explorers are known to go beyond and above and where no woman or man has gone before so they know there are unknowns.
There are known knowns, known unknowns, unknown knowns and also unknown unknowns. (this is courtesy of Donald Rumsfeld who made the phrase famous)
So you have to think outside the boxes and spheres and oceans and depths that are already known and be willing to make some personal sacrifices to go beyond what is currently know.
I find it fascinating to see the progression of mapping through the centuries. The boundaries of the known world is so tiny compared to what we know of the world; however; what we know is tiny compared to years and decades from now.
It is not likely that we’ll discover new continents but new worlds, most definitely.
Let your mind and imagination roam free and beyond what others have thought and done and seen.
If it was easy anyone can do it, but since it is extremely difficult only just a few of us will do it.
May you and I be one of those few.
When what seems to be is, is not and what seems to be isn’t, is.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 13, 2020
When is a con a con?
Here is the definition of con courtesy of Google
persuade (someone) to do or believe something, typically by use of a deception.
"I conned him into giving me your home number"
Similar: swindle, defraud, cheat, trick, fleece, dupe
Deceive, rook, exploit, squeeze, milk, bleed, fool
take advantage of, mislead, delude, hoax, hoodwink
bamboozle, string along, embezzle, sting, diddle
rip off, take for a ride, pull a fast one on, put one over on
take to the cleaners, bilk, gull, finagle, fiddle, swizzle
swizz, sell a pup to, stiff, euchre, bunco, hornswoggle
gazump, cozen, sharp, mulct
Isn’t interesting that we have so many similar words for con?
noun
an instance of deceiving or tricking someone.
"a con artist"
I’ve been tricked into believing something that wasn’t true so many times in my life it is difficult to remember all of them or even attempt to count them.
April fools doesn’t even count. I find it interesting that now we have fake news which is not even counted in the list above of similar words and why not? It should be since fake news is just another con to get one to believe something that isn’t true (it’s fake).
The lies and deceit in this country is escalating exponentially.
Here is a couple of examples that may be similar to cons but are very small.
I was at the bank today and waiting my turn in line. A young person in line ahead of me had their turn. That person wanted said they’d gotten a $20 bill yesterday from this bank and now wanted to trade it in. The cashier said okay and inspected it thoroughly then said; I need your bank card. He did not have it. Then she said I need your social security number, he did not know it. Then she said I need your ID and he said it is in the car and ran out to get it real quick.
I asked the teller if she could wait on me. She said he went to get his ID and will be right back.
I said I have my ID and my check to deposit in my hand, and I am ready why do I have to wait on him who was not ready?
She said okay I can help you and did.
Amazing!
That is minor in the overall scheme of things but my time is valuable.
Here is another one on the same day, no less.
We go to the grocery store and are waiting in line and have several items.
A woman is standing right next to the line with one item. My wife almost said go ahead but for some reason did not, then as we were checking out she noticed that the woman had in the next lane a whole shopping cart of items and it looked like she was trying to get someone to let her go ahead then she’d grab her cart.
What is happening to our society when we are so impatient that we can not wait our turn and if it is our turn are we ready?
I remember another one, a man was at a return counter and I was next in line, he had counted a bunch of money out on the counter for a money order and then he proceeded to thumb through pictures on his phone looking for something cause he would select a pic then shake his head then look some more. After half a dozen of looking at a pic then not using it, I said, as long as he is using his phone may I return this one item, while he does that. He explained that he was looking for a picture so he could find the address of the person he wanted to send money to. I said go ahead and look while she takes care of my return.
So she did and I went on my merry way and he’d found his picture of the address.
People, as John Pinette says “get out of the line”
His comedy routine on this is here: (this is extremely funny)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pr7JD6a_ECM
Enjoy and be sure you are ready when you are in line or step aside for those of us who are ready.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 11, 2020
Deciding which brush to use and why
Today Dear Readers and Dear Writers we are going to discuss using brushes.
I was reading in Pete Walker’s Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving and he said something interesting in about Chapter 11 or 12.
My wife and I discussed it and we came to some conclusions.
First what I was basically that when he is talking with someone and they seem to talk way more than him; he does not say how much more but way more than 50%-50% which is the way a conversion is supposed to be roughly so I’ll pick some numbers probably 75 to 95% of the total conversation). Given that perspective he said that if he feels numb from them talking way too much then he knows that they are a narcissist. After discussing this with my wife we decided that he painted with quite a broad brush in that sentence. We’ve known people who are nervous talkers who have talked that much but are not narcissists. I am sure there are other reasons for one person talking way more but am not coming up with them for right now; maybe if they are going through a stressful situation and need to talk it out.
What I am cautioning is that we do not paint with too broad a brush; stereotypes and potentially everyone does it is think, that if one purple person does X then all purple people do X or if several green people do X then all green people do X. I’ve put in simplistic terms to demonstrate how we can get caught up in that type of thinking.
It happens more often than we may realize, I think.
Using a broad brush to describe a group of people may seem appropriate however not everyone in that group may be absolutely like that right down to the last letter of that description.
Humans being what they are they are diversified if nothing else. One man is not like another but is like another man in many ways; just not in EVERY SINGLE way.
Using a brush of the appropriate width or a tempered width allows us to capture the complexities of the people we deal with every day as well as those we hear about everyday on the news.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 9, 2020
The Brain Sea
There is turbulence, there is seething and frothing whitecaps, there are undercurrents, there are tides of emotions, there are all the undersea "inhabitants", and there are unfathomable depths.
Basically the brain sea has all the composition metamorphically as the ocean.
It is vast and uncharted and has deadly reefs, pleasant relaxation areas of islands, extremes of climate and temperature and warm Caribbean breezes and Antarctic icy blasts plus the ice bergs to go with it.
There are every kind of place imaginable and some that you can't!
With time, patience, care and loving attention and intention you can and shall be able to become a savant of yourself, a genius of how you work, a scientist conducting real time experiments and laboratory work on yourself.
You will be able to dissect (not literally, but figuratively), and figure out what makes you tick and why you respond the way that you do to stimuli.
Start delving into this marvel and wonderful organ that makes you work sometimes without you even realizing it and sometimes when you are intentional and controlling it in the smallest ways and the largest ways.
Don't just react and rely on instinct or let your ego run rampant. Be able to do what you want to do when you want to do it and actually control your emotions and sometimes keep people guessing as to what you are thinking.
Learn your "tells" and what you do to give away how you feel and avoid giving your "enemies" or those who may want to do you harm either verbally or physically.
All is possible and you will know yourself better than ever before...
IF and ONLY IF you do the work.
There is no app or easy way, there is only the hard work and patient exploration and sometimes muddling around that will show you the way.
Do your emotional intelligence work. Don't know what that is? There are countless articles some on this website and some on other sites; just do your research and find out about yourself and how you may work.
No one can do this for you, you gotta do the steps yourself.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 6, 2020
Hey, whatcha wearing...
Yes, that is a strange question but it while it may be a weird question; let's just spend a moment or two with it.
Did you vote yesterday or day before?
Yeah, before I get all political, I'd like to thank you if you voted and the rest of you do not get to complain.
This election and many others have been decided by relatively few votes when you figure that about 140 million to 150 million citizens took the time to exercise their privilege and vote.
328 million people (not all of whom are eligible to vote) and roughly half voted.
So half of the people in the US are letting the other half decide who wins and who loses.
That is crazy. That means if we all were to count off by twos that the ones rule and the twos don't even care to have a voice.
So when I ask what are you wearing today, I'll tell you what I'm wearing today.
I am wearing my particiPANTS.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
November 5, 2020
The Battle Continues...
If there is anything that we have learned from stories it is this:
Game of Thrones - No matter how numerous your enemies both from the North and from around you...
300 (Gates of Fire) - No matter how numerous and relentless your enemies and how hopeless your battle...
Too many stories to mention...
As with stories there is also our lives:
You may have cancer...
Your parents may have died (ours in 2017-3 of them)...
Your son disowns you...
The current disease and how it affects you...
Whatever trial or tribulation you are currently facing...
THUS CONTINUES THE BATTLE
The battle does not end because we want it to end; it either ends in victory or death. If you are not dead then you are still battling.
We all are!
Every day and every hour of our lives can sometimes feel like a battle so stay positive.
If the enemies arrows are so numerous then, "we'll fight in the shade" (from 300, Gates of Fire)
Never give up. Those in the Game of Thrones never gave up, if we would have faced those odds, why fight, it is hopeless, NO, IT IS NEVER HOPELESS! It is only hopeless IF WE give up hope.
It is never over, unless WE say it is over.
Think with courage and conviction and convince your fellow battlers (the ones on your side) that we will get through this and live to fight another battle for to not live, to put down our proverbial sword means our death and we can NOT have that.
We WILL not have that.
We SHALL NOT have that.
No way in Hades, am I ever giving up and NOT battling.
Who is with me?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
November 3, 2020
REMEMBER TO VOTE!
Waiting Expectation
Waiting can be a game and it can be played with the patience of a chess player or it can be a sprint and us rushing to a finish line, that is in the future.
Waiting has expectations. Do you have expectations of waiting?
In a place of wait, think doctor's office or license or title renewal, there are lines of people killing time.
Arg, the inhumanity of the people stabbing the waiting time with their expectations of hurry up, how can I get ahead, and who is next.
We play the waiting game time after time and each time it is endured rather than enjoyed. Magazines, watching TV, reading plaques and bulletins on the wall and now cell phones help with this ugly task of waiting, even people watching are preferable than living in the now. WE DON'T LIKE TO WAIT!
I even have seen one person make the meditation pose and wait that way. An effective use of the time (and that wait was for two hours!)
I abhor listening to people talk on their phones loudly and the phone is on speaker so I can not only hear one side but I am subjected to hearing the other side. That is more than rude, it is double rude.
What if we manage our expectations? What if we wait with no expectations? T.S. Eliot has a poem about this.
Waiting with no expectations of moving forward, of finishing, of how to pass the time, of anything. We do not like to live in the here and now especially while waiting. We'd rather be anywhere but in that waiting game.
It is a game, and if we play it with patience and even love and willingness, for the end result must be worth it if we are willing to sit or stand and wait.
Let the end result propel you forward without the expectations of a tedious wait.
Let me know how that works out for you and if you have any suggestions.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 31, 2020
Where are the bodies?
It's Halloween and soon Day of the Dead, we all know where the bodies are.
You know don't you?
Yes, you do.
The bodies may live on in your head.
I once heard someone that was counseling about trauma and how the neglecters, the abusers, the abandoners, the hypocrites and the liars and all of those people that perpetrated crimes and atrocities upon us or are loved ones are eternal.
The torment that they dish out still stays in our heads, and as that couselor put it, they "you can still hear them dancing jigs in your head." That is a paraphrasing of what he said but it seems that they never die, they can live one long after they've been buried.
Therefore the bodies, their bodies seem to live within us.
Yes, they can be exorcised, not in a religious sense but in a therapeutic sense, by enormous courage and work and a huge amount of effort we can reduce, quiet and eventually shut them up within us.
Stay safe and keep working on that emotional literacy, every day. If you do not have an emotions wheel and work on your emotions. Don't stifle them but actually hear those emotions and listen to the emotions (not the traumatic words) but feel and thank the emotions. Those emotions are telling you something and you MUST listen and give the emotions time to express and feel the emotions and then you can move on.
Yes, listen to those emotions, 80 (I just picked a high number since it will seem like an extremely high number), but it will be numerous times a day at first and then you can gradually narrow that down and decrease the count and some days the number will be higher and some days it will be lower.
Just feel the emotions, meditate, care for yourself, and soak in the tub, burn incense or a candle to two and take care of yourself. This is important work and you have to come first and then you can take care of others.
Without caring for yourself your family may say, "Hey, what about us?" and you just say that after I care for me I will care for you as much as I am able.
Sometimes we are not able to do a whole lot and that is cool and it happens and it will not be every day.
Writing a journal and using the writing magic spell and expel the trauma and exorcise the emotions and the bile.
Try it, it works. Let me know of your progress.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 29, 2020
The Free State of Jones
This is a historical fiction based upon true life and events and it will knock you over with the powerfulness of the story.
I thought I had read enough and knew enough about the civil war and the events preceding and anteceding, as well as, during.
"You know nothing, John Snow." as a line in GoT applies in that case and in this case.
A wrap up of this movie is shown below in this link to the Smithsonian Magazine:
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/true-story-free-state-jones-180958111/
I advise you to watch the movie and learn history and how discrimination cut against many people, not just who you thought discrimination existed against.
This discrimination continued for at least a hundred years after the civil war.
People are people and all should be treated humanely.
Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 27, 2020
The First and most Valuable Advice as an Author (or anyone that may produce content)
Way back when, many years ago and in a place far, far away; I attended a conference for authors and aspiring authors.
I knew I wanted to write but had no clue.
One piece of advice I learned was this:
Your name is the most valuable piece of property that you have.
Make sure that you own your name.
I thought, "What are they talking about?"
The talk went on and it dawned on me that they were talking about your domain name FIRST AND FOREMOST claim YOUR NAME.
So I immediately went out and claimed www.davidalanbinder.com.
Then I had to figure out what to do next.
I had to decide what platform to make my website on; yeah, there are dozens from free to pay monthly.
I did not know how to make money nor did I want to use my money so I opted for free.
Free is good, but free is limited and I've been both glad of that decision and regretted that decision EVERY DAY.
How can that be?
I love the fact that this site is free, except for all the time and effort I put into it, I only pay for the domain name yearly and the web editor is free. That being said, the free web editor has some serious limitations. I've linked www.davidalanbinder.com to Google sites in order to be found; however, Google also sometimes lists my website as
https://sites.google.com/site/dalanbinder
So both work to find me; I just wish it would show up as only www.davidalanbinder.com and nothing more. That is perfect world thinking and of course, we do not live in a perfect world so I accept those limitations since it is free.
Also, I used to be able to intersperse pictures into my word content but now I'm unable to do that. Google either allows pictures in a picture page and words in a word page but not both. I'm sure there is a work around but have not been able to find it yet. I'm working on that for sure.
As I was saying go and grab your domain name. Claim your name as your domain name, if it is not available then do the following.
I met a fellow whose domain name www.jasonbrick.com was not available so he flipped the script and claimed www.brickjason.com.
It really works and makes it maybe more memorable to have your last name first. At least he has a version of his name.
So rather than be a www.yourname1.com be a www.nameyour.com
I really do not like domain names that have numbers if the first one you want is taken. Not a real good way to go and hardly memorable especially if you are not 1 but 2 or more.
Just a piece of advice, think about it and if you'd like your domain name mentioned in an article just let me know and let's get the word out and the traffic started to your website.
Oh, by the way, better start writing some good content as well, LOL!
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 25, 2020
Bruce Springsteen is talking to us
Yes I know he is a song writer and singer among other things but I think he is talking straight to us and we should listen.
He says in an interview with the Oct. / Nov. issue of AARP "You have your antenna out. You are just walking through the world and you're picking up these signals of emotions and spirit and history and events, today's and past remembrances."
That one paragraph tells us so much. And sums up how we should approach each day, "with our antenna out".
If you are not paying attention all of that inspiration is passing you by as you nonchalantly pass it up and don't think a thing about it.
We are thinking people and thinking people pay attention to themselves, to others, to nature, to everything in order to glean and winnow and grasp every little bit of life and vitality and experience and then bend it to our will.
Put is in our own words and use our own experiences to enhance what we've seen and learned and experienced and mutated.
Don't be afraid to plunk around, twiddle and pick at it and pick it up and put it down and turn it every which way, including inside out.
I love the way the play "Wicked" (I assume the book or play) takes the movie "Wizard of Oz" and chops it up and spits it out with some secret sauce and verbiage and voila, it takes it to a whole nother level.
Don't be afraid to take things to a whole nother level and make it yours and take the meat of one thing and sausage it into another.
This is done time and time again and if we pay attention to the muse, she or he is telling us something, if we listen.
Tell me what you've heard or experienced and then been able to spin it and make it yours. I'd love to hear about it.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 23, 2020
Intake Equal Output
For plants they intake CO2 (carbon dioxide) and output O2 (sweet oxygen) which we use every breath of every day.
Thank you to all the plants of the world. What a wonderful job they do without acknowledgement, with only occasional gratitude from us, with no effort or frills or expectation of payment.
That is a valuable system.
There are other valuable systems found in mother nature and if we look hard enough, all around us. Electricity (yeah, we pay for it but so worth it), phone - so mostly utilities are on the list, but roads and highways, some forward thinking person or entity set it all up and it costs us some but again so worth that cost.
Personally we all have intakes from everyone else, family, friends, media, etc. and because of that intake or due to our involvement we have emotions of many kinds as output, as well as other output.
We all have intake and we all produce output that contributes to society.
Many people it may be hard to determine if their contribution is worthwhile or not, but we won't think of that, certainly there are people everywhere whose contributions are significant, from road maintenance, to hospital workers, to the janitors and garbage collectors, to so many others that I am failing to name.
Thank you for your contribution.
I read and scan and listen and tune in to so many types of intake and that allows me to have a prodigious amount of output. (Yeah, how significant is my contribution to society may be debatable, however, you are reading this and thank you for reading, my Dear Readers and Dear Writers.)
Engage yourself in items that allow you to intake calm, intake peace, intake solid worthwhile reading, meditating, viewership and listening. The music that you make and intake, the art that you make and intake, the visual items that you make and intake, the writing that you make and intake affects us all as a society and we all thank you.
Thanks for your contribution.
Any thoughts on this topic or others? Let me know.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 20, 2020
Your abuse does not define you
This is an excellent article:
https://thoughtcatalog.com/kirsten-corley/2016/05/your-abuse-doesnt-define-you/
Of course, I have some thoughts on the subject. Do not allow abuse to be an adjective. Keep it as a noun. Do not allow abuse to be a descriptor of you. Keep it as a descriptor of the person who committed the abuse.
Abuse happens, but it is not your fault, it is not your blame, it is the fault and blame of the abusers.
It is their punishment, it is their abuse that spews and taints the world, but it does not taint you. You are Teflon it does not stick to you unless you allow it.
Do not allow it to stick. It happens, and it is it is NOT ON YOU.
IT IS ON THEM, the abusers!
It is their crime, not yours.
It is their shame, not yours.
It is their narcissistic pattern not yours.
It is their hate, not yours.
It is their life, not yours.
You just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and that is on them, not you.
They are the ones that will reap what they have sown, they are the ones that will suffer more that they have causes suffering, they are the ones that will be punished not the ones that they punished with it.
They do not deserve to be forgiven.
You do not deserve to spend your time and effort and attention on determining how and why and when and where and who to forgive.
Spend your time recovering, caring for yourself, getting the therapy and the counseling and the psychological care that you need and deserve.
You are the light of this world and they are the darkness and destruction and they will reap it. Maybe not now, maybe not in a month or more, but they will reap it.
Their torment is at hand and will be endless.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 17, 2020
Pete Walker book Complex PTSD From Surviving To Thriving
I am reading the Pete Walker book:
Complex PTSD: From Surviving To Thriving
I had to purchase the book but that is okay, so I'll be sharing some of my experiences from this book.
I bought the book in order to deal with my child abuse, my over 100 sitters, day cares, day camps, etc. plus, the physical abuse from my father, the scathing abuse by my stepmother, the verbal abuse by my mother plus my abandonment issues.
Here is one paragraph from my life story: " My Dad abandoned my Mom and therefore abandoned me. My Grandma abandoned my Mom and therefore abandoned me. My Mom abandoned me at the age of 4 or 5 to a night with a pedophile, and then abandoned me with numerous caretakers, child sitters, day care centers and givers. My Mom abandoned me and gave me to my Dad for three years after half brother was born. My stepmom just had to push to be my Mom and of course my Mom was so shitty that my stepmom made the grade to have me calling her mom to placate her but my real Mom did such a shitty job that anyone breathing could have beat her out for Mom so my stepmom had it easy for my affections but did not return them. My Dad abandoned me into the care of my Mom since he left bruises on me and my Mom took me to a medical doctor to document the bruises on my butt and got custody of me. Our son has abandoned us, our daughter Arianne it feels like we've been abandoned by her. My siblings a step brother and two half sisters have abandoned us and have not spoken with us since 2017 when my stepmom died. Abandonment is a key issue."
I am NOT telling you this for sympathy, don't feel sorry for me. This is to help each of us deal with our own issues. My issues are mine and yours are, well, yours, but that is what we have to deal with.
We not only want to survive those issues but to thrive in spite of those issues.
A life well lived is a good retaliation to those who made our lives miserable at one time or another.
Richard Grannon made some videos on the Pete Walker books and Richard's videos are always great and serve great purpose in my healing and trauma issues. I highly recommend his material.
Richard's YouTube Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCU9xNc-P8GWAdafmAcNVi6g
Richard tackles hard issues like all kinds of personality issues that you may (and most likely have encountered and dealt with either knowingly or unknowingly-the more you know the better your armor will be concerning all personality types.) Funny thing about other people's personality issues is that they inflict their personalities on YOU.
Sometimes for good, but sometimes in the other direction with bad to evil intent since the personality issues make them likable yet very manipulative.
I'll also be reading this 6 pages or so article: SHRINKING THE OUTER CRITIC IN COMPLEX PTSD, Oct 2009 By Pete Walker. You can get it here:
http://www.pete-walker.com/pdf/ShrinkingOuterCritic.pdf
Plus this article: SHRINKING THE INNER CRITIC IN COMPLEX PTSD by Pete Walker (925) 283-4575; (www.pete-walker.com) You can get it here:
http://pete-walker.com/pdf/ShrinkingTheCritic.pdf
And I'll also share things from this that are pertinent and that may help us.
If you run across materials, articles and books that are extremely helpful then by all means share them with me and I'll share them with our Dear Readers.
We can help each other while helping ourselves.
On another note: I write close to 150 articles a year and so far have very little contributions and without monthly support from my readers. I've been doing this for over 5 years (that is about 600 articles or more) and have a total of $175 dollars from my supporters (divide 175 by 5 for a yearly stipend, lol).
If you are unable to throw a few dollars my way, that is acceptable. Keep reading and support me in other ways by sharing the articles, sending me email, and wonderful support in that vein. Thanks for coming back.
If you find any of my content helpful, I understand how much free information is available on the internet these days and we all want it free, there are a few things that I donate to and subscribe to that make my life easier and more meaningful and I'd appreciate you throwing an few bucks into my jar once in a while.
Thanks so much for reading, listening and sharing.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 15, 2020
Elizabeth Gilbert TED Talk
Today we have a double quoted article.
I found this article by Steven Pressfield from his Writing Wednesdays on Oct. 15, 2020.
He quotes her TED Talk:
"I was in the middle of writing Eat, Pray, Love, and I fell into one of those sort of pits of despair … [and] I started to think I should just dump this project. But then I remembered Tom [Waits] talking to the open air [when inspiration for a song hit him while he was driving on the freeway and had no way to record it] and I tried it. So I just lifted my face up from the manuscript and I directed my comments to an empty corner of the room. And I said aloud, “Listen you, thing, you and I both know that if this book isn’t brilliant that is not entirely my fault, right? Because you can see that I am putting everything I have into this. If you want it to be better, you’ve got to show up and do your part of the deal. But if you don’t do that, you know what, the hell with it. I’m going to keep writing anyway because that’s my job. And I would please like the record to reflect today that I showed up for my part of the job.”
What this is saying is that you have to show up in order for the muse to show up. If you show up and the muse is not showing up then you can say to the corner, ceiling, your deity or whatever, but actually say it OUT LOUD and vent your frustration and enable yourself.
Sometimes frustration is the catalyst that is required for us to be able to fully tackle and huge project and believe me, writing is a huge project.
It may seem like you can show up here and find great articles or inspiration or words of wisdom, but it is hard, HARD work.
It takes sometimes more than me just showing up. The keyboard requires input and that input has to come from somewhere.
If you have article ideas please share them and help me by being my muse.
Thanks so much for reading, listening and sharing.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 13, 2020
Positivity quash the Inner Critic
Positivity counts. It quashes the inner critic.
Our inner critic is our worst enemy.
It constantly says things like, "you'll never amount to anything" "this won't work" "remember the last time you screwed up, yeah, that's gonna continue" "you are worthless" "whatever you try till end in failure"
How many times have you heard those words or something like it" This comes from the person who should love you most, YOU!
You should be your best friend and confidant and mentor and want to encourage yourself to greater levels and heights and achievements.
There are hundreds of articles and books on how to silence the inner critic. Pete Walker and others have tackled this subject admirably and I highly recommend any of them to help you fight this battle and overcome it.
It can be an addiction and a self fulfilling prophecy and also make you self sabotage.
You are NOT your mistakes. Every human on earth makes them and sometimes repeatedly.
Yourself talk is what makes you or breaks you.
Learn to talk to yourself with positivity. Usually the inner critic is triggered in a flashback for either a reason (something has occurred to you or someone close to you) or it is triggered for no reason at all, it just happens.
As Pete Walker says, learn to recognize and anticipate these episodes and learn to deal with them effectively. Emotional literacy is the key according to Richard Grannon.
I use and continue to use these techniques and I HAVE TO USE THEM EVERY DAY. I know it is not so much like brushing your teeth every morning and night as it is you being a medic triaging your situation and emotions and then developing techniques to deal with them. This is a priority and one needs to deal with these feelings, emotions and flashbacks IMMEDIATELY. The rest of your day will go way better and you'll ease and gather your resources and strength and determination and courage and GRIT. You will become your own savior. You may ask whatever deity you believe in to help you and that won't hurt, but what you do for yourself does not depend on your faith or your hope or your love, it just depends on you taking the steps.
Just take the steps and relieve yourself of those stresses, since flashbacks can add so much stress from reliving or revisiting those situations that happened in your childhood, or youth or even in adulthood. It happened because we did not have perfect upbringing, or perfect parents or friends or counselors or teachers even rabbis and priests and spiritual mentors. NO ONE IS PERFECT therefore, there is no such thing as a perfect childhood. Even if there was it does not apply to us.
We have the childhood we had and that is the end of that. The dealing with it may take every day of the rest of our lives but that is just a matter of being consistent.
Even we are not perfect parents, siblings, sons or daughters, or cousins, or friends, or neighbors or whatevers. We are who we are and life is never perfect so get that out of your head right now.
What we are perfect at is what we concentrate on and develop and have perfect attitudes. Setting our minds to developing long term and to be consistent and constant and always be aware and set our intent to continue to help ourselves.
That is being perfect, when we are being ourselves. Your best knowledge and achievements and accomplishments came from you and your diligence and determination. You are the best at what you do since there is only one you. You are unique, you are the best at being you and no one else can be you.
Continue being you and not someone else and you'll be perfect.
The perfect part is being you.
I am there for you and with you and encouraging you and me every day, every minute and with consistancy.
Just reread my articles and focus on being you. We are in this together and everyone progresses at different paces and that is perfect. You can only deal with so much at a time and what you don't deal with today, guess what, it's not going anywhere and it will be there tomorrow.
So just deal with it. Do the emotional literacy. It is just that simple, those baby steps are SO EXTREMELY important and your life will be so much better and wonderful and less complex if you deal with those issues as they pop up their ugly heads.
Life is issues and if you don't have issues then you are dead.
I'm not ready for that and neither should you, so let's tackles these problems. They are not insurmountable, they are you, part of you and you will make them non-issues.
Let me know what you are going through and we'll work through this day and everyday together.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 11, 2020
A small piece of advice:
"I’ve learned that (most) writers live in a roller coaster-like state, emotionally speaking, experiencing hope, joy, and disappointment, often daily. It takes time to get your sea legs. And you learn that the meaning of “success” must adapt to the realities of the publishing industry, the public’s taste, and many other factors out of your control." Ed Protzel author (whom I've recently interviewed)
This tiny piece of advice compartmentalizes all that can be said about an author and writer.
It is a fantastic roller coaster ride, from the beginning it is a slow uphill, with very little movement seemingly since it is mostly you incubating the idea, wrapping your arms around it and then deciding so many things and then writing. Then there is the writing until the first draft is finished then all the editing and redrafting by the dozens to almost a hundred and then finally finding a publisher and / or an agent or both and marketing (yes, you are the marketer, the editor, the pusher, the manager, the everything from advertising, to getting the word out, to just making time for all of that and so much more until it is in a state to finally be sold.
That is a daily process that you follow through again and again.
One thing I learned about project management when I was a Project Manager is that I was there mostly to get other people to do their jobs; which HARDLY ANYONE DOES AUTOMATICALLY! Unbelievable, you take and that time and effort with your documentation, you meetings and your contracts and then you still have to cajole and remind and beg and plead for others to just do the job they are paid to do.
Nothing is easy, nothing runs automatically by itself, it must all be coordinated and rehearsed and changed and there are always, always things that do not go smoothly, things that come up, called discovery, since when you open up an area to be a project by nature it is never the way people remember it and there are always nuances to be overcome and to be bypassed and to go around and just to "manage".
This is a main stay: "...experiencing hope, joy, and disappointment, often daily...".
Love your life on the roller coaster with all the ups and downs and twists and turns since it keeps it from being mundane and keeps you sharp and always looking for the next new issue.
What do you think? Does that sum it up?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 8, 2020
Ed Protzel interview with David Alan Binder
1. How do you pronounce your name?
It’s Prot-zel (emphasis on the “Prot”), like pretzel with an “o.” If I were French, I guess it would be pronounced Pro-zel (silent “t”). Se la vie!
2. Where are you currently living?
I live in St. Louis, Missouri. I have lived elsewhere for periods of time — Hawaii and Los Angeles. But I always came home to St. Louis. Maybe it was Cardinals Baseball or Blues Hockey that drew me back. But if I hadn’t returned, I wouldn’t have met my wife.
3. What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
I’ve learned that (most) writers live in a roller coaster-like state, emotionally speaking, experiencing hope, joy, and disappointment, often daily. It takes time to get your sea legs. And you learn that the meaning of “success” must adapt to the realities of the publishing industry, the public’s taste, and many other factors out of your control. Yet writers keep at it. Does that make us masochists?
4. Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I was always set on finding an agent and a traditonal publisher that would appreciate my work, rather than self-publishing. I am lucky to have found TouchPoint Press, which has released all four of my novels. TPP can be found at: https://touchpointpress.com/.
5. Any insights eBooks vs. print books and alternative vs. conventional publishing?
I certainly appreciate the convenience of eBooks, allowing readers access to multiple books on a single, portable device. But it was important to me that my publisher release my books in print, as well. There are plenty of us left who enjoy the tactile experience of turning a page.
6. Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
It may sound trite, but perseverance is key to finding an agent who believes in your work, and who will then find you a publisher. I’ve known very talented writers who were rejected many, many times before being accepted by an agent. The days of sending a manuscript to a publisher are long gone, I fear.
7. How did you or would you suggest acquire an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
You must learn how to sell yourself and your story, adhering to professional standards in your queries. And each agent has his/her own submission requirements. So be prepared to spend a great deal of time researching and soliciting them. Most writers, especially fiction writers like me, aren’t schooled or adept in marketing themselves. And you are going to have to market yourself, first to find an agent and then to pursue book sales.
8. Do you have any suggestions or helps for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
I highly recommend joining local writers groups and critique groups. Members are very supportive and can introduce you to a variety of resources to help you hone your writing and marketing skills.
9. What was one of the most surprising things you learned with your creative process with your books, editing, publishing or illustrating?
It became clear to me that there is no one way to write, that everyone uses a different process. For me, I have to be in the right frame of mind when I sit down to the computer to do any good. Once I’m “sparked,” however, I have to be dragged away.
10. How many books have you written?
I’ve had four of my novels published: The books in my Southern historical DarkHorse Trilogy (The Lies That Bind, Honor Among Outcasts, Something in Madness), which centers on the bond between abolitionist Durk Hurst and a dozen Black friends as they traverse slavery, Civil War and early Reconstruction; as well as The Antiquities Dealer, a sci-fi suspense/thriller about a plot by a secret Israeli society to clone Jesus Christ. I have partials of others waiting to be completed. Too many ideas, not enough time :)
11. Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Read. Read as much as you can. You’ve got to fill the reservoir to get a glass of water! It doesn’t matter if you’re not reading in the same genre you write in, but language and the art of putting words and thoughts together is the magic elixir of good writing.
12. Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
It begins with conflict, especially for fiction. Once you establish a good conflict, and then increase the conflict in every scene, your story will have somewhere to go, some new path to take, which can lead to other plot twists. My novels are filled with plot twists, making for some fun and often startling reading.
13. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
My books are extremely visual, probably because of my background in screenwriting. That and structure, plus the strength of my dialogue.
14. What is one unusual way in which you promote your work?
I do as much as I can on my own to get the word out about my books, benefitting from my wife’s career in PR/marketing. Occasionally I pay for services.
15. What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
I would have been more social, joining the writers guild, and been more selective in choosing critique groups.
16. What saying or mantra do you live by?
I’m not much for introspection in terms of my writing, so no mantra. In fact, I’m not always sure what I want to say before starting on a new book, let alone how I want to say it. Instead, I’m generally sparked by an idea. Then I’m off to the races!
Connect with Ed:
Website: www.edprotzel.com
Blog sign-up: http://www.edprotzel.com/subscribe
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/edprotzelauthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/EProtzel
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14757802.Ed_Protzel
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2PTRqnT
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/Ed+Protzel?_requestid=317111
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ed-protzel-6b215299/
October 6, 2020
The sun is shining but is it?
Sit under a tree especially in the summer and you will see variations of depth to the shadows.
Everything from complete shade to partial to a dappled effect by scarce leaves to a branch that is leafless and whose branches provide scant shade.
Characters need that type of nuance and depth and multifacetedness.
Stories need nuance and to be intriguing and make readers say in their minds, "where is this going?" "I wonder how someone did that?" or "who will do that or what will happen next?" or any number of questions in a readers mind.
Readers must question, wonder, think about and try to figure out aspects of a character and story, or if they are NOT questioning, wondering, thinking and figuring then the reader is NOT engaged.
They are just reading words. They are not engaged. They are just there with no role of their own.
Readers must have a role. Readers must be engaged. Readers are crucial to the story or there is no story.
That is the place of the story arc. If you don't know about that then you are not a writer.
If you don't understand the way chapters must change from negative to positive or positive to negative. If a chapter ends negative then the next chapter must, NAY, SHALL end positive or the story has not changed state.
Stories MUST change state or it is not a story.
Study the principals. When you reread or rewatch stories then watch for the state change from episode to episode or chapter to chapter.
The hero or heroine must be challanged constantly and have set backs and not always go from step 1 to step 2 without attempts that fail.
CHARACTERS MUST FAIL FROM TIME TO TIME or there is no state change.
It would be like an adult playing checkers with a toddler and just literally besting them in a few moves. That does not build suspense, which means that there will always be one winner and it is so predictable then why watch or read it. It should NEVER be obvious.
The story must have doubt, even super heroes or heroines have setbacks and must fail sometimes or there is no engagement.
Your characters must progress and make missteps and stumbles and go up the wrong path. That creates challenge and ensures that your characters evolve and learn and grow and therefore become more human.
Being human does not automatically mean you can write a human being or any other character.
Be nuanced, have them be shadows not either light or dark.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 4, 2020
What does it all mean?
She was able to rise above it all
She did not look left nor did she look right
She did not see below the distant fall
She did not want the height
She just focused on what she wanted
and she found more than that from what she overcame in that fight.
I wrote this little prose and felt it very meaningful.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
October 2, 2020
Reality Map
Your map of reality is different than mine.
My reality is based upon things that are true to me, your results may vary.
My mother was narcissistic, argumentative, moody, poor, uncaring, letting the children run wild, never proactive always at work, sending me to various caregivers from day camp to individuals and once in a while a day care or just let me fend for myself and late much of the time. My mother is probably very different than your mother. (I won't go into the reasons or telling you what she did for me to find these truths.)
Other people had mothers and those mothers seemed kindly, caring, empathetic, stay at home, and usually nice. I believe now that those mothers had maybe a different face that they put on when the friends were around and when the friend left they could be different. I don't really know.
My step-mothers are kinder than my mother so it was easy to like her more than my mother. Unbeknownst to me my mother had set the bar so extremely low, that my step-mother was not very kind, favored her child over me, had me spanked by my father for little things and so forth. I later deduced that she was not much of a mother to me at all, but that was many, many years later.
My map of reality had to change sometimes to fit my new perceptions of reality. It does not mean my reality was really the truth, it just means it was my perceptions at the time.
Others races gave me varied experiences and overall were judged by me to be good or bad, until I finally realized growing up there are good and bad of all races. Some were kind and some unkind, some people who were friendly and some people who were thugs. All were people of various races. Behavior is not race dependent.
Examine your map of reality and refine it based upon your new experiences and not just your old concepts. Old concepts could be skewed. Not really far off, but skewed enough that they are incorrect.
Mapping reality is a responsibility, NAY, it is something we are all engaged in to some degree. I’ve been trying to dial up my degree of engagement, involvement, intent and diligence to this task to ensure where others are coming from and where I’m coming from.
Is your map of reality correct?
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 29, 2020
Being Human
"If we are to continue living we must continue being human." I heard a line similar to this from the movie 1984; however, it is not one of the main quotes from 1984 that I can find by Googling. Interesting!?!
This is very intriguing to me.
What is being human? (Not to be confused with humane)
Being yourself may or may not be human.
Being a contributor to society may be being human, I’ve seen many people who work in the service industry or banking or government who were going through the motions, just putting in their time and not applying themselves to their own or their customer betterment.
Being human is a varied definition, but I thinks it begins with being intentional, not being on autopilot and not really thinking.
How does this affect you, how does this affect me, how does this affect others? Good thoughts to have if you are being human.
And it adds being thoughtful, balanced, nuanced, being adaptive is a very human quality and helps us through many situations.
I’m being very free and letting my thoughts be sort of random, yet semi-logical and focused at this time exploring this subject.
Why should we care?
I think that is a being human think to think about and examine why you should care.
As human beings we have such heights to climb, planets to reach, places to explore, things to do or we can just take advantage of other human beings.
Please be thoughtful and considerate and be human first and foremost in your daily endeavors.
Thank you, Dear Readers and Dear Writers.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 25, 2020
The Subtleties of Language
There are colloquialisms in every culture across the world.
What translates in one country may not translate not quite as well in another.
There is an urban myth that Nova translates as "no go" in Spanish but that is not true.
Some friends of ours who had other friends in the USA from India wanted to name their baby Gopee (not sure how they would spell it but essentially it was pronounced "Go Pee" and our friends told them, no don't name your baby that, it is not a good thing in English.
Sometimes we understand the subtleties and sometimes we don't.
Try to tell a joke in English in other countries and it may fall flat especially if it uses puns, or innuendo or something nuanced like that.
Mass o Menos (translates exactly as "but the least" but I've got a friend who uses it and he speaks Spanish and uses the phrase as, "more or less".
On the Navajo reservation there were white people who thought that the phrase, "Bilagáana Bilasáana Bił (pronouced like with-bith) Likan" It is nonsensical since it means only the "White man, apples, to him is sweet". However, if you look at it all the words create a kind of sing song roll off you tongue so easily if you are learning Navajo words and the phrase is catchy but means really not much in Navajo and would rarely be used.
Same goes for the song, " Mairzy doats and dozy doats and liddle lamzy divey. A kiddley divey too, wouldn't you?"
Which really meant, "If the words sound queer and funny to your ear, a little bit jumbled and jivey, Sing "Mares eat oats and does eat oats and little lambs eat ivy."
Learning all the nuances of our language is important. Plus the translation to affect a vocal accent and sound Scottish or Irish or Italian when they are speaking English and yet to write what they are saying in English and provide that type of accent on a screen or paper is difficult. I'm reading the original Mutiny on the Bounty (all three books), if you've only read the Mutiny part you have missed out because the other two really fill in gaps and lets you know that some people are not totally kind or self centered or idiots or any one thing. People are complex and nuanced, more so than their speech and to capture that complexity your characters have to be more than just one kind of person. They have to have multiple moods, not always one way.
Your heroine or hero is not always happy, is not always looking for justice, is not the grand person to rescue someone else sometimes the heroine or hero can be selfish, jealous, a tyrant in some ways, kind, and sad.
Mix it up, since we are mixed up people. (Yes, that was an intentional way of phrasing it.)
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 23, 2020
Fear
Being fearful or afraid is normal. As human being we fear so many things it can sometimes be overwhelming.
Sometimes I like new things and sometimes I don't want to push my boundaries.
I'm sure that this depends on mood, as well.
I've spent a good part of my life living in fear, being afraid, wondering if I was too much this or too little that.
SO WHAT! WHO CARES! Obviously I did and it prevented me from being me.
Now that I'm learning to be the person whom I enjoy more. Fear has held me back, kept me hostage, and not let me be me, due to thinking others will think bad of me.
It became more of a filter than it should be. Almost constrained me and kept me in place ruled by moods, superstitions, myths, and what other thought.
It does not hurt to think things through and the impact of you actions and words on others, but with being kind and thoughtful, one can actually be themselves.
I bring this up because I am being intentional. Exploring my intentions and emotions and see if they have added value or not.
Fear has not much added value. A fear of heights for instance will keep you from the edge in high places and this is NOT what I'm talking about.
It is the fear that constrains you from saying, doing and even thinking and exploring your domain and your emotions.
Never stop exploring and wondering and thinking through your motivations, your justifications, just be thoughtful about the whole process.
Those who act without thinking probably regret it. A well thought out action is great. Sometimes time does not allow us to think, sometimes we must react. Give yourself time (if not in a life threatening situation), use words like, "Let me think about that before answering." Or repeat the question to ensure you understand the question when you are really giving yourself more time to think.
Sometimes the best sentence to anything someone says is "Oh really." or "That is interesting. This also allows you time to think while really saying not much at all and without asking a question.
Just a few ideas and thoughts that I have.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 21, 2020
Can I take your bags?
I was carrying three bags. I had to have all my stuff, you know.
One bag was just my clothes and you never know what kind of weather you'll run into so I had summer, winter, coats, sweaters, T-shirts, shorts, along with different socks and shoes and one pair of boots for snow or rain.
The second bag was for the items that I need every day, toothbrush, water flosser, pills, hair brush and gel and just all kinds of stuff like that plus some different medical supplies, band aids, stomach and headache remedies, etc.
The third bag was for all the memorabilia that I can't let go of, a little car, a Duncan yo-yo, some pocket knives, jewelry that I wear once in a while, assorted tools in case I need a screwdriver, wrench, pliers, gloves, etc.
All those bags get quite heavy, but I carry them everywhere I go. One never knows if one will need something and you have to be sure to cover all your bases.
Oh, I forgot to mention that there are some other things that I carry around. My mother and father were divorced when I was quite young, of course, I had a step-mother and when they had children, I ceased to be a favorite, there were also a couple of marriages or affairs on my mother's side, plus moving and living in about 12 different houses in four different towns from the time I was born until high school finished. So I did not grow up in any one neighborhood or have lifelong friends, or see the same neighbors so why get to know anyone. I was surrounded by people, but lonely for people who knew me and understood my situation. [authors note: This paragraph is completely true and not even the half of it.]
Is there a way out of this dilemma?
Yes, drop some baggage or at least minimize the baggage that I carry. I had problems and issues with the growing up situation and chewed my fingernails either from nervousness or hunger, not sure which. That BAD habit is one serious bit of baggage that can be dropped; however, it takes willpower, and perseverance and determination.
Your willpower, and perseverance and determination, will help you with your baggage situation. The "drop the baggage" topic is not new, it is a very old concept, yet we all still carry around way too much baggage.
Will we ever let it go?
We carry worry, stress when in place of these may I suggest enjoying the NOW. Now is always here, the past can be kept in the past, the future will arrive soon enough. Enjoy what you are doing right now, like reading this fine article.
The worry about tomorrow and all it brings you can deal with tomorrow. Easier said than done, but it takes thought and intention. Write it down, set a timer and when it goes off every hour, say to yourself, "Am I in the now or some other time?"
Let me know how it goes for you and I'll update you on my progress as well from time to time.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 18, 2020
Ask a Question versus Accusation
If you say to someone, "I'd like to ask you a question." Many times people will take your question and think it is an accusation instead.
So if you preface the question with, "Hey, I'm just curious, may I ask you a question?" Then it may seem not so accusatory. Or if after you ask the question, say something like, "...this is just a question and nothing more, there are no agendas." Or if you can think of a better way to phrase it, that is all I can come up with just now.
I mention this subject since recently I said, "May I ask you a question?" And it was about someone's sleep habits and they took it that I was accusing them of bad sleep habits, which I did not mean at all. I was just curious as to how they got into that bad sleep (or non-sleep) habit, as it were.
So what do you think"
Can you think of other instances where a question might seem accusatory?
What are your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 16, 2020
Digging a Hole
When is the last time you dug a hole?
Before you answer that question, let us define this further.
Digging a hole refers to any task that you may be doing currently or in the near future.
Why are you digging that particular hole?
Have you thought it through, is there irrigation, water telephone, cable or other lines where you want to dig. (Yeah, I've actually dug through lines I did NOT want to dig through, silly me.)
What are you going to do with the hole? My gosh I do ask a lot of questions, but one needs to be sure the hole they dig is useful and for the intended purpose and need; otherwise there is no need to dig that hole.
Metamorphically speaking if you dig that hole will people want to see that result and furthermore pay you to see that result.
Of course, I am not talking literally about digging. It could be writing, selling, making a product or service or craft. Is there a demand for that particular hole or are you just spinning a roulette wheel or other game of chance and seeing if you come up with the correct color or number and "win".
That's another question, what is winning mean? That is a huge subject all on its' own.
Just be careful what, where and how and for whom you are digging. There are a lot of ungrateful people who will let you dig that hole watch like construction site looky loos who seem so interested as you do it. They will even let you pay them to edit it and word smith it and market it and agent it and publish it. But in the end you need more than a hole that only you care about.
Maybe you'll get your family and friends to buy a copy or two. Maybe you can pay to get it ranked and rated and even put on a high value list that others may see.
It may even win an award (which I understand helps) but does that really help to sell it? I don't know. I've won writing awards and still ended up with a hole that only I cared about and who knows if anyone bought a copy other than me.
Just be sure that you enjoy digging the hole and that YOU are the only one who may appreciate that fact and if you do then keep on digging.
By the way, you may have to dig several holes until you strike paydirt. (Now that makes me laugh, how about you?)
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 14, 2020
That's a Stretch
Life is about growing and learning and evolving.
Life is also about stretching yourself beyond the usual.
Think about ways to become greater, stronger, livelier, happier, wiser. Each of these involve you taking an active role and using what you have to increase that which you have to become what you are meant to be.
That involves stretching. Like stretching before and after exercise to limber up the muscles the gray matter of the brain needs to be stretched as well. If you use the same old neuro-pathways then you'll keep thinking the same things and getting out of those same routines let's us evolve further than we can imagine.
Einstein, Voltaire, Eli Whitney, and many others took the working knowledge of the current time and added upon it immeasurably to propel the current knowledge way past what it was.
The same can be done for ourselves and our loved ones and family and friends. We are the current leaders of discovery for all of those around us.
Think of bigger, better, more evolved ways of thinking and you will grow way past what you may have thought was conceivable.
The boundaries that we as humans have are only those that we impose upon ourselves or others try to force upon us.
We are not going to let those boundaries stop us. We will bend, break and surpass the current thought and models until we are closer to utopia.
Do NOT let current thinking subject you to the harmful and short sightedness that is prevalent. If the athletes of yesterday; let that happen there would be no under 4 minute mile.
This not only applies physically but alto to mentally.
Look how far we've come from the cave dwellers, the 1800's, the 1900's or the 1950's.
No one in 1900 even conceived computers or some of the medicine and vaccines that we have now.
We may not think we as a society can progress but we not only can but we will. If not led by you then by someone else.
Each generation builds upon itself in greatness or depravity. Let us shoot for greatness, every time, evey minute of every day.
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 12, 2020
Comfort and who you are or were
I've come up with a saying and want to get your opinions or thoughts about it.
"Being comfortable with who you are depends on being comfortable with who you were."
"And being comfortable with who you are means being comfortable with who you'll become."
I ran this by a few people and got their opinions and they said, yes, that makes sense, although one colleague suggested making it more concise which the version above reflects that conciseness.
In the words of another trusted colleague: "If you haven’t processed past actions and issues that it’s hard to move on from that person that you were. That person still manifests. Closure and understanding helps us grow. Therefore who we are now is a continuation and growth of who we were and will be – I see it as a constant cycle."
What are your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 10, 2020
Pluses and Minuses
Everything has pluses and minuses.
Not one thing is completely plus or minus.
That is decision making 101.
List them out.
When you purchase a vehicle, there is a whole lot more than just the vehicle itself.
At the dealer they will try to sell you bunches of add-ons. When we bought a certain type of car over 25 years ago (before internet), I had researched the heck out of that type of car and found out that in Japan they undercoat the car; however, there was no mention of it on the list "accessories" for the car.
The dealer wanted me to pay for undercoating (in Iowa with the roads being salted at that time it may seem like a good idea); however, from my research I knew it was already undercoated and they were selling me an option that was already included free.
Research is priceless, I said, "No thank you."
So the total for the vehicle that you buy is the vehicle cost, the interest if you get a loan, the insurance (which is yearly), the registration and license (license is yearly), and maintenance (oil changes, etc.) to keep the vehicle in good shape.
Hint, lookup the TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) for the make and model of the vehicle you'd like to purchase and you'll find out that places like Kelly's Blue Book and others have listed the TCO of many vehicles. Pick one that has low TCO and you'll still have a new vehicle but one that does not bankrupt you and you'll rest easier knowing that you've factored most of the costs into your budget.
Not doing a budget? Shame on you. Everything needs to be budgeted or you either have too much money or foolishly are spending more without realizing it.
Everything has a cost, from the incidental candy bar, drink or other that you pick up when you buy gas, or groceries or whatever.
If you have a new couch then maybe you want new lamps and end tables to accent it. Those other items may be unnecessary costs and not really necessary. How often do you really entertain? Are you trying to impress yourself? Think about it. Joshua Becker calls that expansion spending that one never counts in the original cost. New suits may need new shirts or ties, or new dresses or outfits may need new shoes, all these should be factored in "BEFORE" you spend.
Make sure you list all the pros and cons. I recently made a purchase thinking that I can return it. Not so, Target's policy during the pandemic is NO RETURNS (at least in our area). Which is not the liberal return policy that we are used to so if you buy it and don't like it you may have to "eat" it, not literally but it stays in your house taking up space.
Be careful and cautious. Always good advice at all times.
Be safe and spend wisely, for as someone said (Ben Franklin or someone) a fool and his or her money are soon parted).
Yeah, I've been foolish but I'm more careful now and wish I'd have been more careful a lot longer. Still learning and growing and accomplishing more than ever, LOL.
How are you doing with TCO? Any suggestions?
Your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 7, 2020
Heather Morris interview with David Alan Binder
About Heather Morris abbreviated: Heather Morris commenced a B.A. degree at Canterbury University (NZ) in 1986 before moving back to Melbourne in 1987. After a year settling our family into a much bigger city, she enrolled and completed my B.A. at Monash University in 1991. She majored in Political Science.
In 1995 she began work in the Social Work Department at Monash Medical Centre in Melbourne where she stayed until 2017.
In 1996 she decided to follow my passion for storytelling and enrolled in The Professional Scriptwriting Course through the Australian College of Journalism.
She went on to attend many screenwriting courses, seminars and workshops in both Australia and the U.S. Her workplace provided me with a wealth of heroic storylines, several of which she adapted into screenplays that now line the bottom drawer of her desk.
https://www.facebook.com/HeatherKMorrisAuthor/
http://www.heathermorrisauthor.com/
https://www.instagram.com/heathermorrisauthor
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17029974.Heather_Morris
1. What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
When writing historical fiction research is essential, must be thorough, have a variety of informants, but there comes a time when you have to say ‘enough is enough’ and write. Trust in yourself to tell your story with honesty, and value the memory of those you speak to.
2. What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
I am too new to this industry to have developed any superstitions about what I do which makes me laugh is I have this great email filing system, I use very creative names for the file, but when I go back to find the file I can never remember where I filed it. Drives me crazy!
3. Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
I consider myself to be so lucky, or as Lale [Sokolov, the tatooist of Auschwitz] would say, ‘lucky, lucky, lucky’ to have the most wonderful, amazing, caring, honest publishers. It had been my intention to self-publish, I have a daughter-in-law who self publishes and is very happy doing so. There has not been one thing about my journey with my publishers in Australia, the UK , the US or anywhere else for that matter, that I would change or even question. I respect their opinion on designing covers to suit their market, I am humbled and in awe of the talent translators have reproducing my stories into languages I can only gaze at with glassy eyes, loving the font, the layout.
a. Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
Wow, where to start. I know, from the beginning. Here in Australia, Echo Publishing decided to have a punt on an unpublished author. Their parent in London, Bonnier Zaffre introduced me to a world beyond my wildest dreams. Then came Harper Collins in the US for The Tattooist of Auschwitz, and St Martin’s Press, NYC for Cilka’s Journey. As much as I would love to name all my other publishers, there are over 50 of them, allow me to single out a few. Marginessy in Poland, Planeta in Spain, Ikar in Slovakia, Albatros Czech Republic. I have been so lucky to travel to many of these countries and spend time with those involved in getting my books to the book stores. I must also the outstanding audiobooks that have produced.
4. Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Coming a little from left field on this one. Because of my advancing years I felt I didn’t have time to be writing query letters and waiting for responses. In the comfort of my own home I made a 3 minute video talking about the story I had, and posted it on the crowd-funding platform, Kickstarter. Publishers then came to me. I have suggested this attack to many writers in many countries. I know many budding authors have followed suit, and had success.
5. How did you or would you suggest acquire an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
I do not, and never have had an agent. That’s not to say they are not worth their weight in gold. My one and only attempt to get one, phoning a local agency, ended after a 20 second chat, with ‘not interested if you haven’t already published something’. I could have, possibly should have, persevered, but patience is not one of my virtues.
6. What was one of the most surprising things you learned with your creative process with your books, editing, publishing or illustrating?
Editing, editing, editing. I fall in love with my editors (in a non-romantic way). I love how I write a bunch of words, send it to them, they weave their magic and the most amazing stories unfold. I love picking their brains, and why they changed, or restructured my work. Having these talented people in my life, where I had thought what I wrote was what was going to the printers, is a delight. Who would have known the same words in a sentence, swapped around could make such a difference.
7. Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be as specific and information as you possibly can)?
Research, research, research, now throw the bloody research away and write. When I sit down to write I do not have any researched material or notes in front of me. If I haven’t retained it and understood fully the story I want to tell, then it doesn’t make the page. You have to be able to tell your story in your head, out loud if you don’t mind your cat and/or dog looking at you with concern, otherwise how can any reader travel with you, feel and empathise with your storytelling. Only after I have written the majority of my content will I go back and check facts, namely to get dates and times correct. I remind myself I am writing fiction, not an academic non-fiction record. I also like to give myself a word count to write to each day, when seriously writing. I push myself, will not go to bed until I have got there (helps I’m a night owl), to write 3000 words. It does not matter if the next day I delete / rewrite half of them, there is discipline in writing something, always better than nothing. My other little quirk is music. I have a particular piece of music I listen to before I start writing each day. It can vary from book to book depending on the story. I also end my writing day listening to the same song for every book. ‘Rise Up’ by Andra Day. So inspiring and a nod to my days efforts.
8. Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
Emotional arcs. I learned this when studying how to write, by formula, a screenplay. Constantly change your emotional arc. If your storyline is a love story, throw in some sadness, drama, comedy. Think of someone watching your story being played on a screen. You don’t want them to be terrified, or laughing, or deeply sad, even threatened the whole time, you need to switch out the emotion your reader is feeling. Whatever your main emotional arc is think of it as a roller-coaster, it will be the peaks, get some variety into the troughs.
9. What are some ways in which you promote your work?
With the help of my publishers we work out a strategy of how best to reach people, and of course we work very closely with booksellers and libraries – they are so important. I am very pro active with my readers. I have a readers’ Club, website, and engage with Facebook and Instagram. Haven’t gone down the twitter road. Only so much technology and social media I am capable of adapting too. I travel extensively (not so much right now) doing loads of events and media. It is a joy being able to speak about my books and I never tire of meeting people and listening to them. Right now all my connections are digital, thank you Covid-19, and am becoming quite the expert Zooming, Skyping, Teaming and now a new platform, Clean Feed has entered my life.
I look forward to appearing in person at literary festivals, signing sessions, and attending the richly rewarding media outlets my publishers arrange for me. I also look forward to ‘dressing completely up’, not just from the waist up. So many pairs of beautiful shoes not being worn right now.
10. What saying or mantra do you live by?
I have adopted Lale’s mantra to live by – ‘If you wake up in the morning, it is a good day’. It is so hard on us all right now learning to live through a pandemic. There are many amazing health care professionals and scientists working to give us back the way of life, we either had before and want back, or a new one we intend to reinvent for ourselves when we can. All we have to do each day is wake up, oh and give thanks.
September 5, 2020
Knowing is the finest part
How many times have you thought, "...if I'd have known then what I know now, I'd have been able to..."
Yes, we all have.
You don't know what you don't know.
There is so much to know you can't know everything so don't beat yourself up for what you don't know. That will get you absolutely no mileage, no progress, no gain.
Thank the universe, your god, or whatever being, mother nature that you finally learned what you needed to know.
We all progress at different paces and I would have thought at my age I'd know a lot more but I keep finding things that I didn't know and now I know them.
I am grateful for the knowledge that I do have and sometimes it just is not enough.
Remember that widget you bought and had to have and now it just sits on the shelf or is lost in the back of a closet. You did not know that you did not need it at that time you thought you did and we all have those kinds of thinking from time to time.
We've all done it and now that money is spent and gone and we can't get it back. Donating or selling it gives us a fraction of return but hey, we can get something for it maybe.
The self flagellation for anything is time consuming and gets us absolutely no where when we should focus on the lesson to be learned from that particular error or lack of thinking or whatever lead to that partial think. Partial think is where we do not completely think things through.
Many things are that way. As Dave Ramsey, "there are all kinds of stupid sitting in peoples' yards, houses, closets, rooms and garages." He suggests that any vehicle that has a loan taken out on it is a waste of money and new vehicles are especially so. Boats, RV's, timeshares, etc. are another huge waste of money and do not profit us as much as we would like to think or want to feel.
Sometimes those "things" just feed our ego when our ego needs to starve or be put in place at least.
Don't let your ego get out of control and talk you into something that you really know deep down is an impulse purchase.
Yeah, we all need to work on that and this article just helps reinforce those things that will help us in the long run.
I'm here for the long haul, not short spurts that do much of nothing. I'm here to help since I plan to be here for a long time.
Together we can help each other. Any suggestions?
Your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 3, 2020
Oxymoron
The only constant is change.
Think about that statement and it is very oxymoronic! A constant is something that does not change and yet we are saying that there is no constant since everything changes.
But is that true?
No, gravity has never changed from the beginning to the earth until present day (and probably will not change tomorrow or the day after).
Now there came a time when Galileo discovered gravity and then brought it to world view and then the world accepted gravity as a thing but before that acceptance the world population did not believe in gravity. They did not even know about gravity and then they had to finally accept gravity and then it became a thing that was worth believing in.
I've had the same thoughts about LOTS of things and practices and evolutions in my life. I finally had to accept some things since it was so obvious, other things I had to not only be persuaded but to ponder and think about for years before I accepted those things.
Now after many decades I'm still thinking about that one thing and have decided that it is not a thing.
You get to make those decisions every day. You get to decide what is a thing, if that thing is real and if so do you believe or accept it.
The same goes with religion, or politics or whatever forces you believe in. The roots of your culture may get in the way of your accepting or rejecting. The tools of society may have to work hard to convince you that a thing is really a thing, but ultimately you get to decide if that thing is really a thing.
This is some extremely deep thinking. I had classmates that wanted me to believe that reality was not reality. That we were just a program or a though in someone else's mind and that we did not really exist, we just thought we existed.
Yes, this was years before The Matrix and the software programming and the Artificial Intelligence that we now see in phones, computers, thermostats, all kinds of appliances.
If my grandma who died before there were cellphones were alive now she'd be in awe with the technology we have now.
Some technology we have now almost mimics reality and real people so well that if she were to answer the phone now and be asked by a computer questions, she would answer thinking it was a person.
Think about that reality that we had then, compared to now, compared to what is to come. What mimics will they develop that our children and grandchildren will say to us, be careful grandpa that is a computer. We'll think but they did not used to be able to do that, how can they do it now? They will say that reality has changed. That what you knew is not anymore. What is now is new and is different from anything that you expected.
That is so weird to type out and yet to say it out loud that someone will have to warn me against things that I have or will have no knowledge of, and cannot even conceive of.
That is some far off futuristic thinking. What computers will run spaceships without humans doing anything? What will be plug into in the future that we cannot even conceive of now?
What will the future bring?
That is a really big oxymoron, to think that like gravity there may be something out there on our planet that we do not even know existed and yet has been there a long, long time. And has been there since the world began.
That boggles the mind and yet, someone somewhere will discover something that we did not know about yesterday and we'll know as a reality next year, or the next or in ten years or more.
It is fun and exciting to think about the world that will be that we did not even know existed all around us before.
Your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
September 1, 2020
Joe English interview with David Alan Binder
His Website: https://sites.google.com/view/somebodyelsestroubles/home
About Joe (abbreviated): Joe English has a B. A. cum laude from Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and an M. A. from Rice University in Houston, Texas. English is a Woodrow Wilson Fellow. English was featured in a 60 Minutes broadcast as a first hand witness to neighborhood re-segregation in Chicago. He was a professor at Triton College in River Grove, Illinois, for sixteen years. English’s writings have appeared in the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Sun-Times, the Chicago Reader and Co-Existence, the literary journal which featured the works of Henry Miller. His most recent publication, the short story Mrs. Padgett's Pearls, was selected by Zimbell House Publishing for the anthology After Effects.
1. Where are you currently living?
I spend the days I have left in two soulful places: the westside Chicago neighborhood, Austin, where I have lived for 50 years, and the North Coast town, Sosua, in the Dominican Republic, where I have had a place for the past twelve years. Austin is considered by those afar a “ghetto,” as, for the past 49 years 95+% of its residents are of African descent. I am of Eastern European descent. When 99% of my neighbors fled in panic in a period of 18 months in 1971-72, I decided to “cast down my bucket where I was.” My Austin experiences are translated into a good chunk of SOMEBODY ELSE’S TROUBLES. Sosua too is a place of grace and grit; it was abandoned banana plantations until the late 1930’s when Jewish refugees fleeing Hitler’s tyranny were welcomed by the Dominican people, who greeted them with bottles of wine and loaves of bread when their ships arrived; the Dominican Republic was the only country at an international conference in Evian, France, set up by Franklin Roosevelt and other world leaders to actually do something other than talk.
2. What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far?
Embrace rejection.
3. What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk?
Well, of course, truth be told, I have SO many! To pick just one: finding the precise combination of words to express what’s going on but doing so in an unconventional fashion.
4. Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher?
In today’s environment, I don’t think it makes much difference. An unknown writer has to develop, and develop quickly, a sense of fatalism.
a. Who is the name of your publisher and in what city are they located?
Zimbell House Publishing, Union Lake, Michigan, USA
5. Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published?
Persevere, persevere, persevere. I had in excess of one thousand rejections over a twenty-five year span before linking with the wonderful folk at Zimbell House. The upside was that SOMEBODY ELSE’S TROUBLES underwent many, many, many rewrites and is a much better work than it was when first “completed.” I put “completed” in quotation marks because, as every writer knows, a work is never done, but, finally, has to come to a stop.
6. How did you or would you suggest acquire an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one?
If lying down with dogs is your thing, by all means, secure an agent—if you can. Good luck in linking up with one who has at least a wee bit of ethics.
7. Do you have any suggestions or helps for new writers (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Of course, it goes without saying, that you know in your bones that every word, nay, every syllable, you have written is golden. Rely on others. Find strangers to read what you have written. Do they read to the end? What kept me going is that so many people read TROUBLES to the last word; clearly its story and characters resonated. Whenever I heard of anyone who READS (careful here: no one wants to admit they do not!), I’d foist TROUBLES on them. Over the years of rejection from agents and publishers, out of the 200+ readers who started TROUBLES, only six did not finish it. No more needs be said.
8. What was one of the most surprising things you learned with your creative process with your books, editing, publishing or illustrating?
That the characters take over the ship. “We’re in charge, not you!”
9. How many books have you written?
One and one too many.
10. Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be so specific that this most likely will not have been seen elsewhere)?
Write. Stare at the empty page. Caress every word. Think! Keep doing so until you hit the nail on the head. Do not settle for “good enough.”
11. Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story?
The characters will decide. Twists that are organic are fine; twists for the sake of cleverness are not.
12. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd?
My life experiences, mine and mine alone, which are its foundation. The weaving of various stories of disparate people from different worlds into a tapestry. The fact that TROUBLES has something unique to say.
13. What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why?
Probably not have started in the first place. The writing process is torture enough. The abuse one endures in trying to see to it that “Attention must be paid!” is beyond understanding.
14. What saying or mantra do you live by?
Cribbed from Lily Tomlin: “No matter how cynical you become, it’s never enough to keep up.”
15. Anything else you would like to say?
Yes. Thank you.
WEBSITE: https://sites.google.com/view/somebodyelsestroubles/home
August 28, 2020
Warts
I had warts as a child. One here or one there and they were mostly on my hand at various times. Then for a time in my life (for about 5 years during grade school) I had a mass of them on my left knee.
I am not sure why. There was no real reason for me to have them, they just appeared one at a time and then spread and years later decided to leave.
Did it change me? Yes, I was embarrassed by them and tried to hide them (try to do that wearing shorts which at that time in history were very short not long like during the 80's or 90's).
Did I wish I did not have them? Yes, who would want them. They were useless, they served no purpose except to make me different at a time I wanted to be like everyone else and not different.
Vile, repulsive, reprehensible, and yet, they did not create or change anything within me, they were just there.
Did I need to change my attitude about them? Maybe, people said "you'll grow out of it". I did not believe them since I was enduring it in real time for days, weeks, months, years and they were grossly evident.
The flaws we think are flaws may not be flaws. Maybe those things are there to just make us different. To make us stand out, to make us vary from the "normal".
How many other kids did I know that had warts? I don't think I knew anyone else, but then that is not something that people communicate with others, like, "Oh, say, did you know I have warts?" I think it is important for everyone to know. The same way one does not point out zits or scars or anything else that happens to them.
Life happens to us. And yet it is just life. What we really need to think is, this is just life and life will go on and soon this will pass and another part of life will happen to me.
Some parts of life I will like, some I will not like, some I'll barely notice and some I'll feel like I may not live through.
But it is still life.
You are experiencing life. Right now and every day. What do you look forward to, how does that change your life today? What is today that will not be tomorrow or at a point in the future?
Soon, all too soon there will be no more life for some of us.
This is a journey and will eventually end.
Maybe living today, all day and every day is the most important part of life.
Maybe, just enjoying life today with all its' foibles and fallacies and just plain old life happening. Maybe life is worth enjoying after all.
Maybe, just maybe, life is better than non-life. With warts or without warts, after all what difference does it make as long as we are living?
Your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 26, 2020
Whales versus Guppies
All credits to Gary Larson Cartoons for a wonderfully funny cartoon.
Two spiders make a web at the end of a slide. And one spider says to the other, I don't know if this will work. The other says, but if it does we'll eat for weeks.
Love it!
THINK BIG!
Why shoot for the top of a hill or mountain or moon when there is a universe out there for all of us to attain?
We pick up cans and bottles for 5 cents and ignore the dollar opportunities.
So think bigger, think real money, think what pays big dollars and what just trickles in a few cents.
It is worth your time and effort to really think over what you are going to do with the rest of your life since how you live the rest of your life ACTUALLY depends on how you will live the rest of your life.
That is not crazy talk that is an admonition for all of us to live in the now to get to the future that is brighter than we can imagine.
Think over the top, think and dream big then act big.
We have so many limiters that we put on ourselves and if we'd just try it maybe it will work. So what if you fail 6 times or 18 or more, just one great breakthrough could mean such success that your wildest dreams could not have imagined it.
I'm with you, let's do this together and work it out.
Truthfully I'd never eat a whale or a guppy but I prefer to think that whale size ideas will feed us longer than guppy ones.
What is your whale idea? Now go get it!
Your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 24, 2020
Etymology
I use this reference all the time in looking up words since I want to know more than just the word definition. I am interested in the origin and the language base and the background of a word.
It fills in and makes the word more robust in my mind and helps to fill in knowledge gaps that I may have.
I highly recommend it to improve and increase your word power!
Your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 22, 2020
Thin Air
Just so you know, there is a term called “Thin Air”. It is also scientific and magic. The scientific explanation comes from Scienceline.org
The “thin” air at high altitudes has considerably less oxygen and pressure. This is because the earth's gravity holds the oxygen close to the surface — so much so that half of the oxygen in the atmosphere is found below 18,000 feet. For comparison, Mount Everest is about 29,000 feet”
Also, just as an aside you weigh more at sea level than you do at 10,000 feet altitude. About .8 pounds lighter up there.
The magic explanation comes from your father or mother or caregiver when you ask them for money, typically you’ll hear. “What do you think I’m made of, MONEY!? (Don’t answer it’s rhetorical.) Or you’ll also hear, “Money doesn’t come from thin air or grow on trees.” [If any of you find a money tree, call me and don’t tell anyone else.]
Your creative genius doesn’t come from thin air. It comes from a wellspring within you. It is a combination of brain working with heart working with spirit working with imagination. A rare combination of items working together.
There are 7.4 billion people in the world.
There are approximately 281,300 people employed as an Authors, Writers, and Editors. (According to StudentScolarships.org https://studentscholarships.org/professions/585/employed/authors_writers_and_editors.php#sthash.RxQKXwaH.dpbs)
This means you are approximately 0.00380135135 percent
That is 1 in 26,306 (without the decimals). Of 26,306 people walking around you are the only one that is a writer.
You are unique, you are rare, you are a writer!
Your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 20, 2020
Cheating
This article is inspired by Seth Godin, who also printed an article on this subject not too long ago.
As he explains it either you do or you don't.
If you don't then "the belief in the validity of the [process and]... It’s a statement of moral authority, a promise of consistency and valor." and it is respectful.
If on the other hand one believes in cheating and the ramifications of it then one that does that believes that there are no costs.
Actually there are costs since, "...because if everyone cheats, then there is no system left."
It destroys the structure, the framework, the whole context of trust, honesty, and degrades us all, not just the perpetrators.
The reason cheaters expound and signify the cheating is they want others to normalize it and make it seem like it is not that bad. Also, their justification means that the reasons have to be supported; whereas, non-cheaters need no justification or support. The honesty stands on its' own.
Yes, we all want to win, but sometimes the costs are not counted. If one's nephew or sister gets a job that is undeserved just because they are related does not account for the individuals who did not get the position that they deserved are hurt, economically and socially and their family and their self-worth. They do not think about what if that happened to them.
If one does not stand up and insist that the cheating stop then there is no deterrent other than waiting for them to finally understand what it really means (which they probably won't) plus if it persists then it will eventually work against those who did not stand up and denounce it.
Seth sums it up by saying: "Because being on a team that wins by cheating is ultimately self-defeating."
There is also an old adage that says "Cheaters never prosper", actually they do for the moment but overall they resoundingly DO NOT PROSPER!"
A definition from the internet is here: If someone is successful at something because [one] cheated, [one] will ultimately pay for [their] deception. The proverb cheaters never prosper simply means that those who gain an advantage at something by cheating will ultimately have to face the consequences of their actions.
Cheaters never prosper origin from the Oxford Dictionary:
https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803095604763
Your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 18, 2020
Hugs!
I had a dream that my granddaughter and my son and my daughter in law were visiting us and because of the virus we have not hugged in many months and yet see each other about once a week or so.
I love to see them and hear about how and what they are doing but the not hugging and wearing masks is totally getting to me and driving me nuts.
I must be a touchy, feely kind of guy or did not get enough of that when I was a kid. I'm not sure but for many of us it is very important.
In the dream they came to visit and they reached out their arms and wanted to hug. And I said but what about the virus? And they said, "It is not worth it." I broke down and with tears hugged each of them.
There is something missing in our society recently and that is touching, handshakes, hugs, fist bumps, just generally behaving like real human beings with real feelings. We step back and create space but we create an aloneness that permeates our culture today.
Dear Writers and Dear Readers, today we are giving each other hugs.
It is sad. Please give yourself a hug. Now. Wrap your arms around yourself and hold yourself. It is amazing and it is totally worth it, because we need loves and hugs and touches and this type of socialization to feel really human and appreciated and loved and there is so much psychology going on that it really messes with our head if we can't do what we were made to do.
Give yourself a hug and give those whom you are able to touch without offending a hug (only if appropriate). It is one of life's wonderful gifts that we can give to each other.
Your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 16, 2020
Your Assignment
Yes, today you get an assignment because the actual doing let's you think and stretch and put yourself fully into a situation.
When I was in the nuclear industry, we had drills every 6 months and these were actual situations although simulated to put us through our paces and to test our knowledge and our skill and our intuition and our ingenuity and our purpose; which was to provide safe power no matter what happens.
Bring your knowledge and your skill and your intuition and your ingenuity and USE them. This is highly advantageous and develops within you the powers that you will require to perform well in any situation.
This can be about writing or it can be about whatever you want but you have to DO IT, or you've done nothing if you just read about it without the doing.
The DOING is THE MOST IMPORTANT PART.
Action gives us drive and purpose and a determination to succeed. Experiencing this is actually fun and let's your mind explore and develop and create and be someone or something that you did not know you could be until you actually DO it.
Let me know your experiences with this assignment. I look forward to hearing from each and every one of you.
Your Thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 14, 2020
OCD
Which is, of course, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Many of us have it in mild to major forms.
As an observation, a germophobe must absolutely be going nuts during the first half of this year and may continue to do so for years following.
What rituals do you have that help to calm you? It is not good or bad to have rituals. If they soothe you and you are aware of it then good for you; if you are unaware of it then you are acting unconsciously. We try to act in conscious manners so that we understand our behaviors and our actions.
The future is uncertain, our death date is uncertain, what others may think or do or act or say is totally uncertain. (Knowing someone well gives us an idea of how or what they may do or act or say or think; but realize that we are not omniscient and therefore, may be incorrect.
"Anxiety and worry is born of intolerance of uncertainty." Quoted from a Sam Vaknin YouTube Video.
At first I thought that maybe being obsessive is okay and being compulsive is okay. I thought being obsessive about writing would be good. Being obsessive about loving your family would be good. However, after looking at the definitions, I think not. It seems like obsessive or compulsive takes things a bit too far.
Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
August 12, 2020
FLAGS
Flags are symbols and send messages.
Are you listening or watching?
The symbology of flags has been shown through the ages to be used for a fiefdom, kingdom, battle signs, signaling from one section to another on the battlefield, or at other places, one if by land two if by sea (yes, that was not flags but still symbols that we recognize).
Do you recognize common signs and symbols or flags?
A person who is kind and nice and smiles a lot either is genuinely interested or has ulterior motives. Can you tell the difference? You have to watch the smile, does it extend all the way up to the eyes and the eyes crinkle around them? What questions is the person asking, watch their body language (more signs or flags there for you to interpret).
So what we are establishing is that there are good flags and then there are red flags which I've discussed before; however, are you watching your flags / symbols / body language?
How much and what are you communicating to others?
We watch and learn from other people but it is just or more important to watch and learn from ourselves and our demeanor.
Demeanor can be mean or it can be nice, or something else. Be so inquisitive that you learn from yourself and your behavior and your mannerisms.
Many of our learned behaviors are learned in childhood (sometimes through trauma or drama introduced by family, friends, or relatives or others).
If we do not recognize our behaviors and understand where those behaviors emanate from then we do NOT know ourselves and therefore we do NOT know what we really are communicating.
Deeper understanding of ourselves means we have deeper understanding of others and therefore our future can be brighter through that knowledge or dimmer through that lack of knowledge.
I am on your side. I am rooting for you. Plus me as well. Let's work together to understand and be more adaptive to circumstances. This is an excellent strategy and improves our circumstances each and every moment that we apply these new skills.
How about it? Have a question, or an issue, or just plain want to talk and connect? Send me an email and let's see what happens.
So, now what are your thoughts? About anything. Just drop me a line.
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 11, 2020
Life Issues or Problems
There are multiple life issues (problems) throughout our lives.
Life issues may consist of:
Abuse
Death / Funeral(s)
Birth
Health conditions and there are a myriad of those that wax and wane or linger or that we have to deal with
Siblings
Parents
Children
Grandchildren
Co-workers
Friends
Family
Neighbors
All of the above can deal us life issues or conditions or problems that we have to deal with.
This is not the discussion for how to handle those life issues, just know that they will, can and have happen(ing / ed).
Life is full of problems, if you don't have a problem then enjoy the reprieve and hold your breath because there is a problem just around the corner.
It is real and it permeates our society.
The rejoinder to life issues is, well you are dealing with that, but I am dealing with this; therefore my life issue is worse than yours.
Not so!
Life issues are equally chaotic for each of us and that trauma or drama or whatever the issue has equal consequences.
There is no such thing as my medical condition is worse than yours.
Let me repeat: There is NO SUCH THING AS MY MEDICAL CONDITION IS WORSE THAN YOURS!
Each condition affects us equally. My cancer does not trump your measles. My mother dying does not trump your child passing away.
There is no such thing as one drama or trauma out doing another one.
Trauma is trauma. An earthquake is an earthquake and it affects one or more of us in different ways and does not outweigh the tornado that any of us is affected by.
Yes, a neighbor may be dealing with Lou Gehrig's disease but that has not bearing upon someone else who is dealing with lupus.
I've seen many items in the news where a person has lost two children and their spouse is an addict and the rest of the family was in a train wreck will that person was dealing with abuse, alcoholism and a disease. Yes, that is a lot of trauma, some of it self-dealt, some not. Some of it is even someone else dealing with their own demons which affect us in various ways.
I am not telling you that you don't have issues; all I am gently saying is that we all have issues and we all have to deal with them.
There are so many times that I've thought, "Wow, I'm glad I'm not dealing with their issues." Yes, those issues were large and in charge, but I do have my own issues.
For instance, I just found out that my mortgage will be in place for another 14 years, as it is currently. I am dealing with this issue. We've paid ahead and are still far from done and this is at a time in my life when I thought I could retire (I am certainly old enough) but the bills (which we have kept up with) still keep coming and it is difficult to pay ahead on the 14 year (feels like a prison sentence) that we cannot make any headway with.
Your donation can end this prison sentence through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
So my trauma / drama from this issue is no greater or lesser that the trauma / drama that you are dealing with.
We all have issues that we are dealing with and NO ONE OF US HAVE ANY RIGHT OR PRIVILEDGE of saying, mine is worse than yours. Or saying yours is not as bad as mine.
Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
August 9, 2020 I will cease ranting about the Google transition since the reason my Dear Readers and Dear Writers are here are to read great articles.
The Yikes Moment
I've watched so many shows (TV, Movie, Series) where someone with a gun just does not get it! What is wrong with people who wield a revolver? It is a long range weapon, yet, they always have to walk to within less than arms length to threaten people.
You never do that! Never, never, Capital N, Never!
Yet time after time they protagonist or antagonist continue to do that. Haven't they seen any TV shows or movies and know that their weapon will be knocked aside or even worse taken from them?
If you are watching shows of any kind, please learn from those shows and the characters and decide now, if you would do what they are doing or if you'd do things differently.
In my mine, one should not threaten anything; either you do it or you don't. A threat just gives the person more time to continue doing what you don't want them to do. Giving them to the count of 3 conditions them to wait until 3 and they yell, Okay, I'll do it. Who wants to hear you count, they don't, you don't, I don't.
THE MOST IMPORTANT PROCESS OF OUR LIVES IS LEARNING FROM OTHERS!
Unless you are intent on learning by making every mistake that can be made then you are in for a hard and probably short life, LOL!
Yikes! What were they thinking, is the most important thing you can say to yourself and to learn from.
Rejection causes obsession. If a woman or man, or boy or girl rejects another person then that rejected may become obsessed with the rejecter. It happens all the time. Look for the red flags.
Red flags in other peoples behavior are there to warn you and for you to avoid people with red flag behavior.
For instance, if someone angry most of the time, is insolent, creates drama, argues a lot, abuses others (verbal or mental or physical. Then watch and when the red flags go up, then you go the other direction and eliminate them from your life.
No, just walking away and coming back later when they have calmed down is NOT good enough. ELIMINATE THEM FROM YOUR LIFE! Completely and forever. You don't need them in your life, no matter what they are to you. Mother, father, brother, sister, cousin, friend, best friend, neighbor, whatever the relationship, life is too short for drama.
If you associate with someone who has continual drama, you get to hear about it, you get to feel it, you get to experience that drama every time you are with that person.
Why would you do that to yourself? That is inviting drama into your life and that is masochistic (look it up, it is very important - it is an activity that IS painful or tedious).
Pain and tedium are not your friends and friends that are clouded with that and exude that are NOT allowed in your world.
The more tranquil and calm and peaceful your friends that calmer, tranquil and peaceful your life will be.
These are the most valuable words you can take to heart.
Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
Your donations although infrequent are greatly needed. Pay through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
August 8, 2020 So this article is going to be about the new transition that Google is forcing me to do since it wants all Google sites to be updated to the new look.
There are two issues currently:
1.I hit the button to transition my old site to the new site style. That was easy. The HUGE problem is that all my interviews and articles from August 2020 back to August 2018 did NOT transition. So you only see, January 2015 to August 2018 articles and interviews.
(Sure would love you to be able to see the newer content. So now I have to figure out how to do it, which leads to the next issue.)
2. There is NO tutorial about how to add articles or anything.
So here I am on my own, writing an article that I do not know how to incorporate into my site. Previously I wrote the article in a Document formant and then copied pasted it into a new page on my site.
I DO NOT EVEN KNOW HOW TO ADD A NEW PAGE ON MY SITE!
WEIRD!
Also, I’ve updated a title to a whole page and the sidebar still shows only the old title. Another oddity.
Also, I am forced to use Google Documents which I am unfamiliar with, although so far the basics aren’t too bad. But WHY? Google why must I use all of your tools and not the tools that I want to. Any document should be able to work not just yours Google. Every entity wants to be the sole provider of everything and exclude others. On this particular computer there is a MS Explorer that loves to make Firefox or Google Chrome not work and force me to revert back to Explorer or whatever the current name it is called.
Makes me grit my teeth and growl with frustration and anger.
Thanks for taking this journey with me and I am still figuring out how to enable comments easily. Currently you may only email me comments, but one of these days I’ll figure it out.
I find that my Computer Science degree is pretty useless amid all the fast and furious changes and hard to find how to do stuff. Good thing there is the internet to look this stuff up.
HOWEVER, it really should not be this hard! I am a great believer in ease and friendliness when adapting an area for a user or customer. Not some convoluted hard to follow like when Word changed to Ribbons, which was not better just another way of organizing that was not intuitive.
I LOVE INTUITIVE, and it seems that is not possible for some reason.
Sorry for the ranting but yes, I am upset that I have to work so hard just to do simple articles.
Thanks for listening. Your thoughts?
A Think Piece by David Alan Binder
Your thoughts, dalanbinder AT gmail DOT com
You may donate through PayPal to ab3ring AT juno DOT com
All angels are appreciated!
Mindfulness — Aug 12, 2018 2:50:21 PM
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From Survivor to Thriver — Aug 7, 2018 10:31:15 PM
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Chris (C.C.) Humphreys interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 20, 2018 12:17:03 AM
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One and Done — Jul 12, 2018 12:21:48 PM
If my wounds were visible… — Jul 11, 2018 12:47:02 PM
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Sharon Marchisello interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 14, 2018 10:23:31 PM
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Think Responsibly — Jun 7, 2018 10:29:50 PM
Mary Beth Magee interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 5, 2018 10:30:45 PM
What if you used Kintsugi on your stories? — May 31, 2018 10:30:09 PM
You are a Star — May 30, 2018 10:41:38 PM
John Lee Dumas interview with David Alan Binder — May 24, 2018 10:28:46 PM
What are you working on? — May 22, 2018 10:26:42 PM
Ayn Rand number four — May 20, 2018 6:51:17 PM
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Ayn Rand Number Three — May 8, 2018 10:42:08 PM
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SNOWBALL! — May 4, 2018 12:55:42 AM
Are you more compelling than a tablet (or a phone)?t — May 1, 2018 10:30:53 PM
Life isn’t any fun unless there are obstacles to overcome — Apr 29, 2018 11:20:47 PM
Jane Yolen interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 24, 2018 10:41:48 PM
Ayn Rand Number Two — Apr 19, 2018 11:06:52 PM
Lizz Lund interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 17, 2018 10:33:24 PM
Ayn Rand Number One — Apr 15, 2018 5:53:22 PM
What are you chasing? — Apr 12, 2018 11:23:03 PM
Numbers don’t count. — Apr 10, 2018 11:01:41 PM
Seth Godin Fails! — Apr 9, 2018 12:05:07 AM
Here is an excerpt from Story Grid Podcast — Apr 5, 2018 11:08:32 PM
Bravado — Apr 3, 2018 11:41:44 PM
Seth’s Blog today — Apr 1, 2018 3:10:40 PM
When is the last time your brain hurt? — Mar 29, 2018 10:59:30 PM
Personal Challenges and some methods I use to overcome them — Mar 26, 2018 10:18:09 PM
What is the definition of leader? — Mar 23, 2018 4:18:13 PM
Your greatest resource is your resourcefulness. — Mar 20, 2018 10:25:24 PM
The Harder I Work, The Luckier I Get — Mar 20, 2018 12:44:02 AM
Janice MacDonald interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 6, 2018 11:38:10 PM
Krista Lynn interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 5, 2018 11:54:23 PM
Carpe’ Carp — Mar 5, 2018 6:15:15 AM
What the Dickens? — Mar 1, 2018 11:46:32 PM
Put a number on it — Feb 28, 2018 12:54:36 AM
Wanted: A Mentor — Feb 25, 2018 6:09:56 PM
How do you describe the process? — Feb 23, 2018 1:07:41 AM
Are your “adapting” muscles being worked out? — Feb 20, 2018 11:48:58 PM
Value — Feb 18, 2018 4:25:44 PM
Wendy Lee interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 16, 2018 12:32:58 AM
You are a Commodity — Feb 15, 2018 12:36:34 AM
Jane Kirkpatrick interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 13, 2018 11:26:45 PM
M. J. Joseph interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 11, 2018 6:05:16 PM
Fear of the Unknown is your greatest enemy — Feb 8, 2018 11:36:21 PM
K. M. Weiland interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 8, 2018 11:32:02 PM
Vijaya Bodach interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 6, 2018 11:15:44 PM
Just tell yourself if the queen can do it, then you can do it. — Feb 4, 2018 6:35:57 PM
What if… — Feb 2, 2018 12:42:51 AM
THE ART OF READING — Jan 30, 2018 11:40:29 PM
“Words speak to me.” David Alan Binder — Jan 28, 2018 4:16:25 PM
“There is no learning without remembering.” — Jan 25, 2018 11:25:27 PM
Logical Fallacies — Jan 24, 2018 1:12:15 AM
A Great Quote and an article on choice — Jan 18, 2018 11:58:25 PM
Teacup Fishing — Jan 16, 2018 11:33:33 PM
“Measure yourself by what you have…Not by what you don’t have” David Alan Binder — Jan 14, 2018 5:45:19 PM
Julie Hedgepeth Williams interview with David Alan Binder — Jan 10, 2018 11:51:49 PM
“We can not solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them” — Jan 9, 2018 11:49:36 PM
Author Julie Williams with New South Books — Jan 4, 2018 11:38:54 PM
What motivates you? — Jan 4, 2018 11:37:24 PM
The one thing worth more than anything — Jan 2, 2018 11:42:39 PM
Space, the final frontier — Dec 29, 2017 12:21:46 AM
Read like a Writer — Dec 27, 2017 10:21:52 PM
Happy Holiday, Merry Christmas, Good Hanukah, Cheerful Kwanza — Dec 26, 2017 11:51:00 PM
Jessica Tornese interview with David Alan Binder — Dec 24, 2017 10:33:47 PM
Find a way, not a way out. — Dec 23, 2017 6:26:48 PM
What do you think I said? — Dec 21, 2017 11:38:05 PM
I read Seth Godin’s blog every day — Dec 19, 2017 11:32:04 PM
Research is Crucial to Writing — Dec 17, 2017 7:35:51 PM
I’m letting you take advantage of me. — Dec 14, 2017 11:56:34 PM
Jennifer Dawn Anderson interview with David Alan Binder — Dec 12, 2017 11:50:33 PM
Doing only, those things that advance and enhance you; those things are the only things worth doing — Dec 10, 2017 5:06:14 PM
Practice — Dec 7, 2017 11:56:45 PM
Kathy-Diane Leveille interview with David Alan Binder — Dec 6, 2017 11:08:08 PM
SHARKS — Dec 5, 2017 11:38:55 PM
SECRETS — Dec 5, 2017 1:07:23 AM
Charlie Lovett interview with David Alan Binder — Dec 5, 2017 1:05:39 AM
Suffocating — Dec 4, 2017 12:12:39 AM
The Future is Fluid — Nov 21, 2017 11:59:13 PM
Are you listening? — Nov 19, 2017 3:30:56 AM
Become a Better Author with 3 Powerful Habits — Nov 16, 2017 11:22:31 PM
Brandon Ellis interview with David Alan Binder — Nov 14, 2017 10:56:24 PM
Generally or Specifically — Nov 12, 2017 7:12:14 PM
Malign — Nov 11, 2017 6:24:55 PM
Books have associations and moods that go with them. — Nov 10, 2017 8:32:19 PM
Finding Fault — Nov 9, 2017 11:21:43 PM
RV There Yet? — Nov 7, 2017 10:29:06 PM
Are you a fan of bookstores? — Nov 5, 2017 5:26:23 PM
“Write about Writing” or “Right about Writing” — Nov 3, 2017 3:16:33 PM
Tracee de Hahn interview with David Alan Binder — Nov 2, 2017 10:49:47 PM
Robert (Bob) Levinson interview with David Alan Binder — Nov 2, 2017 12:59:49 AM
Kathleen Lopez interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 31, 2017 10:48:11 PM
Do you experience review lockup? — Oct 30, 2017 3:00:46 PM
Robert Hellenga interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 28, 2017 4:42:49 PM
Steve Liskow interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 26, 2017 10:26:37 PM
Alice Loweecey interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 24, 2017 10:51:05 PM
Sonder — Oct 24, 2017 10:49:51 PM
Roger Johns interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 21, 2017 2:56:23 PM
Tendentious — Oct 21, 2017 2:54:52 PM
A Day of Pampering — Oct 20, 2017 6:47:56 PM
Sheila Lowe interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 20, 2017 5:17:03 PM
WHEN IS HALF OF SOMETHING, A WHOLE THING? — Oct 19, 2017 10:46:43 PM
Torn Realities — Oct 18, 2017 11:03:28 PM
Ethos, Logos and Pathos — Oct 17, 2017 11:01:24 PM
What brought the shelf down? — Oct 14, 2017 5:51:19 PM
What if something we thought was true, is false? — Oct 12, 2017 11:07:14 PM
Scott Driscoll interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 12, 2017 11:03:33 PM
Resistance is just a disguised battle — Oct 10, 2017 11:46:09 PM
Jayson Barniske interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 9, 2017 11:13:16 PM
When will the good guys win? — Oct 7, 2017 6:00:25 PM
Struggling Writer (Part 1) — Oct 5, 2017 10:11:29 PM
Cindy Enderson interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 4, 2017 12:24:05 AM
45 — Sep 29, 2017 10:26:43 PM
Savant — Sep 28, 2017 10:46:14 PM
Heather Sunseri interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 26, 2017 10:56:15 PM
Guy Winch — Sep 23, 2017 7:01:45 PM
Are you a survivor? — Sep 22, 2017 4:07:15 PM
Your next project… — Sep 20, 2017 11:01:26 PM
Dual Duel — Sep 18, 2017 11:32:19 PM
Divinity the next step — Sep 16, 2017 7:51:24 PM
You are divine… — Sep 15, 2017 10:17:32 PM
Complete — Sep 15, 2017 1:29:24 AM
Nick Cole interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 13, 2017 10:55:59 PM
I never metaphor I didn’t like — Sep 11, 2017 2:56:54 PM
Transformation… — Sep 10, 2017 5:37:40 PM
Filters — Sep 9, 2017 8:27:54 PM
Theft — Sep 8, 2017 4:01:50 PM
Here is a new way to learn: — Sep 7, 2017 4:39:03 PM
You are what you see but… — Sep 6, 2017 4:05:30 PM
Brain Food — Sep 5, 2017 5:13:12 PM
Taste… — Sep 3, 2017 6:55:19 PM
This is very strange... — Sep 2, 2017 7:12:31 PM
You are you through and through — Sep 1, 2017 10:04:24 PM
Hugh Howey who wrote The Wayfinder The fourth part of his advice to writers. — Aug 30, 2017 8:35:28 PM
C. A. Rudolph interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 29, 2017 11:04:25 PM
Hugh Howey who wrote The Wayfinder — Aug 26, 2017 6:57:19 PM
Michael Sprankle interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 26, 2017 6:46:52 PM
Son takes the steps. — Aug 25, 2017 4:32:30 PM
Ed Protzel interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 23, 2017 3:57:45 AM
The Humpty Dumpty Syndrome — Aug 20, 2017 4:12:01 PM
This is the story of two couples who were friends — Aug 19, 2017 6:01:40 PM
Dr. Bruce Lipton — Aug 17, 2017 7:14:23 PM
Two deaths in one month time span is too much — Aug 16, 2017 6:02:37 PM
Heidi Greco interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 13, 2017 11:32:35 PM
Joan Leotta interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 9, 2017 4:26:55 PM
Sherry Knowlton interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 7, 2017 4:11:31 PM
The Martian by Andy Weir — Jul 31, 2017 10:52:45 PM
Debra Lee interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 27, 2017 11:20:14 PM
Be Productive not Busy — Jul 26, 2017 2:11:28 AM
Do you get it? — Jul 20, 2017 11:08:56 PM
Paddy Chayefsky — Jul 18, 2017 11:20:19 PM
Reject Rejection!!! — Jul 15, 2017 4:39:05 PM
A million ideas — Jul 13, 2017 10:04:10 PM
Mary Lawrence author of the Bianca Goddard Mysteries interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 9, 2017 1:40:26 PM
Michael Hauge interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 8, 2017 1:51:37 PM
Habits to Write By — Jul 1, 2017 2:02:35 PM
Barry Lancet interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 24, 2017 3:53:11 PM
What do you know and will it hurt you — Jun 22, 2017 11:05:18 PM
Dr. Karl G. Larew interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 22, 2017 11:01:04 PM
Warren Bull interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 20, 2017 11:04:53 PM
Forum — Jun 18, 2017 3:48:53 PM
malleability — Jun 17, 2017 8:46:54 PM
What is your narrative? — Jun 16, 2017 3:26:25 PM
Marilynn Larew interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 16, 2017 3:22:32 PM
You are a living and breathing entity, better do something with that entity… — Jun 14, 2017 11:22:02 PM
Penny Goetjen interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 14, 2017 11:19:06 PM
“If you love something you pay close attention to it and it tells you all its secrets.” — Jun 13, 2017 7:11:54 PM
Leslie O’Kane interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 13, 2017 7:09:56 PM
Everyone has a blog... — Jun 13, 2017 12:11:59 AM
Lesley A. Diehl interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 13, 2017 12:09:20 AM
If you are reading, then what are you reading? — Jun 10, 2017 3:19:55 PM
If you are not writing, then what are you doing? — Jun 6, 2017 11:26:59 PM
Sherry Knowlton interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 2, 2017 11:44:00 PM
J.J. Lamb interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 2, 2017 11:35:43 PM
Bette Golden Lamb interview with David Alan Binder — May 30, 2017 5:02:25 PM
David Knop interview with David Alan Binder — May 18, 2017 3:52:11 AM
Sybil Johnson interview with David Alan Binder — May 13, 2017 4:57:14 PM
Jennifer Kincheloe interview with David Alan Binder — May 13, 2017 4:55:50 PM
Linda Joy Singleton interview with David Alan Binder — May 11, 2017 4:10:45 AM
Jason McCarthy interview with David Alan Binder — May 5, 2017 2:51:50 PM
Tonya Kappes interview with David Alan Binder — May 4, 2017 11:00:35 PM
Stephanie Berget interview with David Alan Binder — May 4, 2017 1:43:01 AM
Leslie Keller interview with David Alan Binder — May 2, 2017 11:17:56 PM
Interview with Dr. Barry Weinhold, Ph.D. by David Alan Binder — Apr 27, 2017 11:35:53 PM
Paty Jager interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 27, 2017 3:29:49 AM
Lorie Lewis Ham interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 25, 2017 12:23:27 AM
Thonie Hevron interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 21, 2017 4:24:44 PM
Tammy Kaehler interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 20, 2017 11:22:56 PM
Kathleen Heady interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 19, 2017 10:59:40 PM
ARLENE KAY interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 19, 2017 12:11:20 AM
Pauline Jones interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 13, 2017 11:10:01 PM
Myra Jolivet interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 11, 2017 11:18:46 PM
Adi Rule interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 8, 2017 5:53:49 PM
Lisa See interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 7, 2017 2:36:30 PM
Danielle Girard interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 6, 2017 11:25:50 PM
Kevin T. Johns interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 4, 2017 11:25:46 PM
James Montgomery Jackson interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 30, 2017 11:27:25 PM
Betty Hechtman interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 29, 2017 11:08:46 PM
Pamela Fagan Hutchins interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 28, 2017 11:15:03 PM
William Fietzer interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 27, 2017 11:11:48 PM
Sharon Healy-Yang interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 27, 2017 11:09:09 PM
Polly Iyer interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 24, 2017 4:49:13 PM
Puja Guha interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 24, 2017 12:04:10 AM
Janet Irvin interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 24, 2017 12:01:16 AM
Christine Husom interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 22, 2017 11:19:17 PM
Maria Hudgins interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 22, 2017 11:17:02 PM
Kristen Houghton interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 20, 2017 11:47:58 PM
Susan Conant interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 18, 2017 7:31:50 PM
Glenn Ickler interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 17, 2017 10:22:36 PM
Judy Howard interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 16, 2017 11:53:44 PM
Cheryl Honigford interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 15, 2017 3:07:02 AM
Mary Ellen Hughes interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 15, 2017 3:04:59 AM
Barbara Hodges interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 14, 2017 3:48:08 AM
Sasscer Hill interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 9, 2017 1:16:26 AM
Peg Herring interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 8, 2017 4:22:59 AM
Maria Gianferrari interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 4, 2017 6:03:52 PM
L. C. Hayden interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 1, 2017 1:57:18 AM
Michael Guillebeau interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 23, 2017 12:43:28 AM
Ellen Hart interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 22, 2017 12:46:00 AM
Karen Harper interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 19, 2017 8:14:59 PM
Mark Essig interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 19, 2017 8:12:07 PM
Wendy Sand Eckel interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 18, 2017 4:44:39 PM
Veryl Ann Grace interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 18, 2017 4:39:55 PM
Elena Hartwell interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 18, 2017 12:29:55 AM
Carolyn Hart interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 18, 2017 12:24:39 AM
Janet Hubbard interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 17, 2017 12:06:39 AM
September Fawkes interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 16, 2017 11:56:45 PM
Sharon Hamilton interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 16, 2017 11:51:29 PM
Helen Pepper interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 15, 2017 1:17:24 AM
Kelly Garrett interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 15, 2017 1:11:05 AM
Parnell Hall interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 12, 2017 4:13:05 PM
Adele Fasick interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 11, 2017 5:53:56 PM
Sally Goldenbaum interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 11, 2017 5:49:54 PM
Connie Dial interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 10, 2017 6:47:14 PM
Stephanie Jaye Evans interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 10, 2017 6:07:18 PM
Cynthia Graham interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 10, 2017 6:01:59 PM
Mary Anna Evans interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 8, 2017 1:17:44 AM
Laurie Fagen interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 8, 2017 1:13:45 AM
Mark Shaw interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 2, 2017 3:30:20 AM
Susan Furlong interview with David Alan Binder — Jan 31, 2017 12:56:42 AM
Cheryl C. Malandrinos interview with David Alan Binder — Jan 5, 2017 1:15:24 AM
Discipline the Discipline — Dec 20, 2016 1:03:09 AM
Diane Fanning interview with David Alan Binder — Dec 13, 2016 1:34:14 PM
Martin Ball interview with David Alan Binder — Dec 13, 2016 1:32:30 PM
Looking for Potential — Dec 11, 2016 7:13:16 PM
Beth Everett interview with David Alan Binder — Dec 10, 2016 4:01:28 PM
Debra Erfert interview with David Alan Binder — Dec 7, 2016 1:27:30 PM
Karen Docter interview with David Alan Binder — Dec 1, 2016 1:30:10 PM
A.D. Garrett interview with David Alan Binder — Nov 22, 2016 2:11:58 AM
Laura Elvebak interview with David Alan Binder — Nov 22, 2016 2:05:47 AM
Wil A. Emerson interview with David Alan Binder — Nov 18, 2016 3:52:37 PM
Crystal Coombes interview with David Alan Binder — Nov 10, 2016 1:09:36 PM
What It Takes To Be a Great Writer-Guest Blog by Lucy Adams — Nov 10, 2016 1:04:58 PM
Dianne Dixon interview with David Alan Binder — Nov 9, 2016 4:28:08 AM
Danny Johnson interview with David Alan Binder — Nov 2, 2016 4:38:49 AM
Dan O’Brien interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 27, 2016 3:55:35 AM
Adrienne Yorinks interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 27, 2016 3:54:01 AM
Theresa Crater interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 21, 2016 4:01:59 PM
Chad Morris interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 20, 2016 12:42:54 PM
Joan Curtis interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 19, 2016 12:47:13 PM
Kathryn Lasky interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 19, 2016 12:42:51 PM
Patricia Curren interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 12, 2016 12:59:48 AM
Tish Davidson interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 9, 2016 3:18:51 PM
Jonathan Cahn interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 8, 2016 7:23:38 PM
Kathi Daley interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 7, 2016 2:43:12 PM
Gideon Hodge interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 7, 2016 12:21:22 AM
Janet Dawson interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 6, 2016 1:49:27 AM
Garry Ryan interview with David Alan Binder — Oct 1, 2016 3:26:47 PM
Craig Dirgo interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 29, 2016 4:39:42 AM
R. E. Conary interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 28, 2016 3:56:49 AM
Bruce Robert Coffin interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 27, 2016 4:03:45 AM
Angela Porter interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 18, 2016 5:30:40 PM
Heather Ames interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 17, 2016 2:44:18 PM
Pepi Vilana interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 13, 2016 4:06:32 AM
J.C. Lane, aka Judy Clemens interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 12, 2016 4:26:16 AM
Melodie Campbell interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 11, 2016 3:35:01 PM
Henry Herz interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 10, 2016 8:03:58 AM
Robin Barefield interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 9, 2016 3:59:41 PM
Thomas Perry interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 7, 2016 1:00:35 AM
Judith Jance (aka J. A. Jance) interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 3, 2016 5:09:07 PM
Boyd Morrison (also a co-author with Clive Cussler) interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 2, 2016 4:30:18 AM
Jacob Appel interview with David Alan Binder — Sep 1, 2016 1:08:37 PM
RJ Beam interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 30, 2016 1:37:55 AM
Kathryn J. Bain interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 25, 2016 12:08:47 PM
Janice Alonso interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 17, 2016 4:00:34 AM
Christina Hoag interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 16, 2016 1:58:13 AM
Persevere Dear Writer — Aug 14, 2016 6:53:28 PM
Steve Theme interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 12, 2016 3:40:03 AM
Lawrence Watson interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 11, 2016 2:47:13 AM
Are you in love with the art in yourself, or are you in love with yourself in the art? — Aug 7, 2016 7:02:51 PM
Jane Wilson-Howarth interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 5, 2016 1:09:36 PM
Veronika Ayriyan interview with David Alan Binder — Aug 2, 2016 1:47:21 PM
SS Hampton, Sr. Interview with D. Alan Binder — Jul 27, 2016 8:41:28 PM
Blogging Basics 101 . com — Jul 26, 2016 12:52:16 AM
Robin Burcell interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 26, 2016 12:40:21 AM
Matthew Dicks interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 22, 2016 2:08:47 AM
Richard Goodfellow interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 17, 2016 4:28:47 PM
Tina Whittle interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 14, 2016 12:44:59 PM
Paul Moorcraft interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 13, 2016 2:11:48 PM
Mitch(ell Scott) Lewis interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 4, 2016 3:28:11 PM
Never mind leaving your lover, you need these 50 ways to be a writer. — Jul 3, 2016 3:08:09 PM
Stephen Spignesi interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 2, 2016 3:02:36 PM
Zoe Burke interview with David Alan Binder — Jul 1, 2016 3:15:29 PM
Margaret Coel interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 30, 2016 3:22:29 PM
Professor Karl Jacoby interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 28, 2016 1:12:50 PM
Reavis Wortham interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 27, 2016 1:17:10 PM
Jeanne Matthews interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 26, 2016 2:41:12 PM
Michael A. Kahn interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 24, 2016 12:53:14 PM
Jim Baker interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 23, 2016 1:17:36 PM
Kathleen Delaney interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 22, 2016 12:55:18 PM
Is the New York Times Best Seller list a fraud? by David Alan Binder — Jun 21, 2016 1:14:15 PM
Melissa Tantaquideon Zobel interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 21, 2016 1:11:49 PM
Libby Hellmann interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 20, 2016 1:04:19 PM
Kate Charles interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 19, 2016 3:27:46 PM
John Moss interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 17, 2016 2:28:46 PM
Donis Casey interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 16, 2016 1:05:24 PM
Ken Kuhlken interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 15, 2016 1:08:01 PM
Michael McCarty and Jody LaGreca interviews with David Alan Binder — Jun 14, 2016 1:07:12 PM
Kristen Landon interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 13, 2016 12:58:54 PM
John Daniel interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 12, 2016 3:11:55 PM
Jana Bommersbach interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 11, 2016 7:37:01 PM
Claire Johnson interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 10, 2016 1:14:25 PM
Joe Burke interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 9, 2016 1:06:09 PM
Micheal Maxwell interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 8, 2016 1:11:15 PM
Jane Tesh interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 7, 2016 1:34:28 PM
The best advice is to read and read a lot but what if it influences you too much? — Jun 6, 2016 12:48:25 PM
Laurie Stolarz interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 5, 2016 5:27:16 PM
Zoey Kinsman interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 5, 2016 3:25:53 PM
Dennis Palumbo interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 4, 2016 4:08:49 PM
Ryan Jo Summers interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 3, 2016 4:33:22 PM
Don Bruns interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 2, 2016 1:05:52 PM
Robin Stratton interview with David Alan Binder — Jun 1, 2016 1:17:15 PM
Fiona McDonald interview with David Alan Binder — May 31, 2016 1:02:34 PM
Bill Moody interview with David Alan Binder — May 30, 2016 2:59:35 PM
William Fitzhugh interview with David Alan Binder — May 29, 2016 3:00:36 PM
Dana Stabenow interview with David Alan Binder — May 28, 2016 3:55:04 PM
Wayne Zurl interview with David Alan Binder — May 27, 2016 12:58:29 PM
Gustavo Florentin interview with David Alan Binder — May 26, 2016 1:11:02 PM
Regina Scott interview with David Alan Binder — May 25, 2016 1:05:48 PM
J.M. Leduc (pen name of Mark Adduci) interview with David Alan Binder — May 24, 2016 12:47:25 PM
Amy Koko interview with David Alan Binder — May 23, 2016 1:03:37 PM
Brooks Benjamin interview with David Alan Binder — May 22, 2016 6:32:41 PM
Joe Clifford interview with David Alan Binder — May 21, 2016 2:54:03 PM
Martin Edwards interview with David Alan Binder — May 20, 2016 2:58:35 PM
Thomas Shawver interview with David Alan Binder — May 19, 2016 1:11:46 PM
Eileen Boggess interview with David Alan Binder — May 19, 2016 1:08:48 PM
James R. Hannibal interview with David Alan Binder — May 18, 2016 12:50:40 PM
Susan Swan interview with David Alan Binder — May 17, 2016 12:36:28 PM
Leonardo Wild interview with David Alan Binder — May 16, 2016 1:15:15 PM
Jeff Wilson interview with David Alan Binder — May 15, 2016 6:43:48 PM
Carly Kade interview with David Alan Binder — May 14, 2016 2:44:55 PM
Paul Harris interview with David Alan Binder — May 13, 2016 1:03:08 PM
Hope Tarr interview with David Alan Binder — May 12, 2016 1:04:35 PM
Sandra Brannan interview with David Alan Binder — May 12, 2016 12:55:10 PM
Robin Tidwell interview with David Alan Binder — May 11, 2016 1:14:41 PM
Camille Barnes interview with David Alan Binder — May 10, 2016 1:11:23 PM
Kate Louise interview with David Alan Binder — May 9, 2016 1:09:36 PM
Brian Yansky interview with David Alan Binder — May 8, 2016 3:47:33 PM
Dr. Keith M. Souter interview with David Alan Binder — May 7, 2016 4:14:43 PM
Charline Profiri interview with David Alan Binder — May 6, 2016 3:10:36 PM
Kenneth Womack interview with David Alan Binder — May 5, 2016 1:05:06 PM
Kevin James Breaux interview with David Alan Binder — May 4, 2016 1:29:06 PM
Geraldine Brooks, author of THE SECRET CHORD — May 3, 2016 1:08:38 PM
Maggie Plummer interview with David Alan Binder — May 2, 2016 12:46:43 PM
Catherine Reef interview with David Alan Binder — May 1, 2016 6:26:46 PM
David Estes interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 30, 2016 3:36:29 PM
Lisa Renee Jones interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 29, 2016 12:42:53 PM
Kat Martin interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 28, 2016 12:56:30 PM
Tom Epel interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 27, 2016 1:16:11 PM
Dr. Roy A. Teel Jr. interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 26, 2016 1:02:01 PM
MK McClintock interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 23, 2016 3:25:28 PM
Stacy Nyikos interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 22, 2016 3:10:59 PM
Lois Wickstrom interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 21, 2016 1:05:56 PM
Andrew Livingstone interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 20, 2016 1:07:45 PM
5 Countries and 30 states and read by thousands more — Apr 19, 2016 1:14:48 PM
Bruce Wetterau interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 19, 2016 1:07:35 PM
Cliff Garstang interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 18, 2016 1:11:29 PM
Monica Wood interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 17, 2016 3:07:41 PM
Diane Stanley interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 16, 2016 2:45:07 PM
Rob Rayevsky interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 15, 2016 1:05:22 PM
Nicole Ruble interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 14, 2016 1:20:24 PM
Michelle Meadows interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 13, 2016 1:12:00 PM
Margo Sorenson interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 12, 2016 1:26:08 PM
If you write alternate histories type novels then watch out. — Apr 11, 2016 1:22:50 PM
Rachel Herz interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 10, 2016 3:51:58 PM
William Kenower interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 9, 2016 4:22:50 PM
John P. Matthews interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 8, 2016 3:24:14 PM
Don D'Ammassa interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 7, 2016 1:13:33 PM
Michael Hartigan interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 6, 2016 1:09:38 PM
Richard Walter interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 5, 2016 1:19:29 PM
Debbie Fischer interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 4, 2016 1:33:47 PM
Kathryn Erskine interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 3, 2016 3:09:33 PM
Gail Jarrow interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 2, 2016 3:36:42 PM
Who are you? This question is one we may have asked ourselves in order to find our purpose and our goal. — Apr 1, 2016 11:04:47 PM
Dandi Mackall interview with David Alan Binder — Apr 1, 2016 1:03:51 PM
Terry Jennings interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 31, 2016 1:00:21 PM
Chris Gall interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 30, 2016 1:08:48 PM
Palm Springs Living-JASON GRAAE at LULUs and more — Mar 29, 2016 12:54:37 PM
John William Grisham interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 29, 2016 12:49:41 PM
Helen Ketteman interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 28, 2016 12:53:53 PM
Jill Kelly interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 27, 2016 3:10:11 PM
Roberta Mudge Humble interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 26, 2016 3:34:15 PM
The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks and Watership Down by Richard Adams — Mar 25, 2016 5:42:19 PM
Dorian Cirrone interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 25, 2016 4:29:49 PM
Janet Kaderli interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 24, 2016 1:19:56 PM
Jamie Forgetta interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 23, 2016 1:16:42 PM
Barbara Joosse interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 22, 2016 1:17:43 PM
Jeanpaul Ferro interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 21, 2016 1:23:05 PM
Dennis Fortier interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 20, 2016 3:31:41 PM
John Shelton Reed interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 19, 2016 3:58:32 PM
Megan Watzke interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 18, 2016 1:12:19 PM
Craig Johnson interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 14, 2016 12:48:37 PM
Jayne Conway interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 13, 2016 3:48:53 PM
Megan Watzke interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 12, 2016 10:45:39 PM
Elaine Chaika interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 11, 2016 4:12:58 PM
Michael Cooley interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 10, 2016 2:01:40 PM
Marilyn Anderson interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 9, 2016 2:15:42 PM
Susan D. Matley interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 8, 2016 2:07:48 PM
Bill Crider interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 7, 2016 2:11:40 PM
Joe Broadmeadow interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 6, 2016 3:41:59 PM
What you are doing is just marvelous. You are unselfishly promoting the works of other authors, authors you have never met, but who somehow have captured your attention. — Mar 5, 2016 3:53:38 PM
Julien Ayotte interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 5, 2016 3:52:27 PM
Deannie Humphrys-Dunne interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 4, 2016 2:08:21 PM
Robert Casilla interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 3, 2016 2:09:00 PM
Patrick Yukman an 11 year old via his mother Sandi Yukman interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 2, 2016 2:27:35 PM
George Carlin, very profound words — Mar 1, 2016 2:25:35 PM
Katrina Morgan interview with David Alan Binder — Mar 1, 2016 2:08:28 PM
David Oppegaard interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 29, 2016 1:55:42 PM
Gloria Gavris interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 28, 2016 4:25:01 PM
Jim Aylesworth interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 27, 2016 4:58:15 PM
Martha Kneib interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 26, 2016 5:14:49 PM
Max Elliot Anderson interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 25, 2016 2:15:50 PM
T. A. Barron interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 24, 2016 2:14:00 PM
Kelly Lydick interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 23, 2016 2:18:52 PM
Marion Dane Bauer interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 22, 2016 3:12:01 PM
Mark Tiedemann interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 21, 2016 3:20:23 PM
Cynthia Hodges interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 20, 2016 4:53:17 PM
Ian Singleton interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 19, 2016 2:03:52 PM
Interview with “Unlocking Parental Intelligence” Author, Dr. Laurie Hollman by David Alan Binder — Feb 18, 2016 2:18:34 PM
Robert Gatewood interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 17, 2016 2:24:32 PM
Charles Ghigna (Father Goose) interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 16, 2016 2:08:04 PM
Ian McKay interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 15, 2016 4:19:13 PM
June Mita interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 14, 2016 3:54:03 PM
Eric Murphy interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 13, 2016 4:09:22 PM
Gil Stewart interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 12, 2016 5:33:33 PM
Eliot Peper interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 11, 2016 2:24:07 PM
Donations are appreciated. — Feb 10, 2016 2:11:42 PM
Jon Wilkman interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 9, 2016 2:17:54 PM
Daniel de Visé an interview sent personally to David Alan Binder — Feb 8, 2016 2:34:37 PM
Steve Kemper interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 7, 2016 4:22:12 PM
Dan Lawton interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 6, 2016 4:11:54 PM
It is time for an update for you, Dear Writers and Dear Readers — Feb 5, 2016 4:25:33 PM
Jendi Reiter interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 5, 2016 4:06:00 PM
Leslie Pietrzyk interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 4, 2016 2:37:17 PM
Ginny Rorby interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 3, 2016 2:16:31 PM
Lauren Scharhag interview with David Alan Binder — Feb 2, 2016 2:13:05 PM
Jacqueline Marcell which I am sharing with my Dear Writers and Dear Readers: — Feb 2, 2016 2:09:09 PM
This open letter from The Author’s Guild Inc. to the Association of American Publishers may affect you — Feb 1, 2016 2:35:10 PM
Anthony Martin interview with David Alan Binder — Jan 31, 2016 6:18:20 PM
Tim Morgan interview with David Alan Binder — Jan 30, 2016 5:51:09 PM
Author Richard Van Camp interview with David Alan Binder — Jan 29, 2016 3:44:51 PM
Deborah Millitello interview with David Alan Binder — Jan 28, 2016 1:53:08 PM
Suzi Weinert interview by David Alan Binder — Jan 27, 2016 2:33:03 PM
G. M. Palmer interview with David Alan Binder — Jan 26, 2016 2:10:21 PM
Jane Ozdowski interview with David Alan Binder — Jan 25, 2016 2:29:46 PM
Travis Naught interview with David Alan Binder — Jan 24, 2016 5:18:20 PM
Toni McCloe interview by David Alan Binder — Jan 23, 2016 4:08:23 PM
Marcia Berneger interview by David Alan Binder — Jan 22, 2016 2:45:57 PM
Sean Lovelace interview by David Alan Binder — Jan 21, 2016 2:33:30 PM
Diana Iannarone interview by David Alan Binder — Jan 20, 2016 2:25:06 PM
Here’s one method on how to get your book published — Jan 19, 2016 2:21:16 PM
Replace “I Should” with “I Choose” — Jan 18, 2016 4:56:39 PM
Michael Jacobson interview with David Alan Binder — Jan 17, 2016 3:33:56 PM
Korby Lenker interview by David Alan Binder — Jan 16, 2016 4:13:05 PM
Kev Heritage interview by David Alan Binder — Jan 15, 2016 4:31:18 PM
Carol E Wyer the author of Three Little Birds and nine other books-an interview by David Alan Binder — Jan 14, 2016 2:30:37 PM
David A. Adler has written 250 books interview by David Alan Binder — Jan 13, 2016 2:31:29 PM
Richard Barnes interview by David Alan Binder about his eighth book Enemies — Jan 12, 2016 2:03:27 PM
Marcus Aurelius has an important lesson to share with us — Jan 12, 2016 2:00:43 PM
Nikola Tesla has an important lesson to share with us — Jan 10, 2016 7:36:11 PM
Marcie Wessels author of Pirates Lullaby interview by David Alan Binder — Jan 9, 2016 3:15:55 PM
Andrew Crofts interview by David Alan Binder about his book Confessions of a Ghostwriter — Jan 8, 2016 2:18:34 PM
Jess Stewart interview by David Alan Binder about her book Rough Guide to Smooth Life: A guide to Living a Life You Love — Jan 7, 2016 1:26:46 PM
Napoleon Hill has an important lesson to share with us — Jan 6, 2016 2:34:58 PM
Michael Punke author of Revenant manages to get the word out without saying a word — Jan 5, 2016 2:33:46 PM
Wisdom from Stephen King — Jan 4, 2016 2:11:39 PM
Reinventing your career — Jan 3, 2016 5:00:21 PM
Are you happy now? — Jan 2, 2016 5:14:51 PM
Kate Evans interview with David Alan Binder — Dec 31, 2015 6:35:29 PM
Have you heard of Pentatonix? — Dec 31, 2015 4:39:41 PM
Andy Weir is the author of the book “The Martian” — Dec 30, 2015 2:18:36 PM
Tim Grahl has a free eBook for you named, “Book Launch Blueprint" — Dec 29, 2015 2:37:48 PM
Peter Dickinson an author who was a late bloomer — Dec 28, 2015 2:46:53 PM
Gilles Beaupre author interview by David Alan Binder — Dec 27, 2015 7:22:51 PM
2015 Stories of authors: Paula Hawkins went from struggling author to literary sensation — Dec 26, 2015 5:32:21 PM
The latest book by author Eliot Parker is “Fragile Brilliance” — Dec 24, 2015 1:59:31 PM
Tips for becoming a successful eBook author — Dec 23, 2015 2:20:39 PM
Have you set a new goal? — Dec 22, 2015 2:15:33 PM
Author A’shyia Swensen said, “Yes” when the answer was really, “No.” — Dec 21, 2015 2:31:30 PM
The differences between us — Dec 20, 2015 4:09:47 PM
What’s busking? — Dec 19, 2015 6:05:33 PM
What's your story? — Dec 18, 2015 5:02:16 PM
Read and Learn new words — Dec 17, 2015 2:32:23 PM
Papa V, who is actually Steven Vaitonis wrote children’s book, Edison the Christmas Elf and the Imperfect Perfect Toy. — Dec 16, 2015 2:00:08 PM
Storm the walls, Dear Writers and Dear Readers — Dec 15, 2015 3:07:19 PM
Storm the walls, Dear Writers and Dear Readers — Dec 14, 2015 2:03:59 PM
As you see in my blog I reach out everywhere for inspiration from Wall Street Journal, the internet of things, Rolling Stone — Dec 13, 2015 3:51:00 PM
In the words of Freddie Mercury aka Farrokh Bulsara “If you see it, dear, then it is there.” — Dec 12, 2015 4:10:08 PM
Guinotte Wise author interview by David Alan Binder — Dec 11, 2015 1:53:36 PM
Cy Curnin of The Fixx said it and it makes so much sense — Dec 10, 2015 2:40:48 PM
Terrorists — Dec 9, 2015 2:25:45 PM
Pet Peeves — Dec 8, 2015 2:18:16 PM
Yesterday’s blog was a lovely conspiracy theory song — Dec 7, 2015 2:55:43 PM
JEM - THEY (The Hierarchy Enslaving You) — Dec 6, 2015 7:11:25 PM
Calling all Bands — Dec 5, 2015 3:54:19 PM
Adam Gidwitz, Brooklyn based Author in NorthJersey.com tells tale — Dec 4, 2015 5:04:11 PM
Mystic River author Dennis Lehane had problems most of us wish we had — Dec 3, 2015 2:26:00 PM
Bernard Cornwell’s book Agincourt — Dec 2, 2015 2:43:27 PM
Calling all Authors — Dec 1, 2015 2:49:40 PM
A Trip or Journey — Nov 30, 2015 2:36:22 PM
Holiday or Vacation — Nov 29, 2015 4:54:11 PM
Return of the Western — Nov 28, 2015 4:05:17 PM
Benefactor — Nov 27, 2015 2:39:47 PM
Frolic and Smile — Nov 26, 2015 2:53:41 PM
Today is the first day but not the last — Nov 25, 2015 2:53:52 PM
What inspires you? — Nov 24, 2015 2:46:01 PM
Gift Ideas for you, Dear Writers and Dear Readers of this blog — Nov 23, 2015 3:17:39 PM
An interesting turn of phrase — Nov 22, 2015 2:42:36 PM
What I am and what I am not — Nov 21, 2015 4:02:43 PM
You've got to see this! — Nov 20, 2015 2:38:53 PM
An 8 year old author — Nov 19, 2015 3:05:52 PM
Behind every writer there is an army — Nov 18, 2015 2:17:31 PM
Bison or Buffalo — Nov 17, 2015 2:27:31 PM
Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm — Nov 16, 2015 3:04:36 PM
Fringe — Nov 15, 2015 3:50:49 PM
Fantasy or Reality? — Nov 14, 2015 2:53:39 PM
Concentration — Nov 13, 2015 3:18:15 PM
Let’s take a look at relationships. — Nov 12, 2015 4:08:40 PM
Master and Student — Nov 11, 2015 3:10:57 PM
Tina Houareau write the children’s book, “The Runaway Peanut-Butter Jelly Sandwich” Now that is silly. Now it is not only silly it is a book. — Nov 10, 2015 3:08:14 PM
Batting 1000 and Writing like you mean it — Nov 9, 2015 2:29:23 PM
Face book and other things — Nov 8, 2015 5:36:45 PM
A Day in the Life continued — Nov 7, 2015 3:22:24 PM
A day in the life — Nov 6, 2015 3:53:48 PM
The Wolf — Nov 5, 2015 2:56:28 PM
Claire Cameron, author of The Bear — Nov 4, 2015 2:54:14 PM
Stacy Schiff author of Cleopatra, A Life and now author of the new novel The Witches, Salem 1692 — Nov 3, 2015 3:08:32 PM
Julian California — Nov 2, 2015 2:13:24 PM
Investments — Nov 1, 2015 2:49:44 PM
Chuck Logan interview on Minnesota Post (MinnPost): — Oct 31, 2015 11:51:46 AM
Describe this — Oct 30, 2015 3:00:43 PM
From where do you draw your strength? — Oct 29, 2015 2:47:29 PM
Hitchcock’s Axiom — Oct 28, 2015 2:27:28 PM
R. L. Stine on Halloween and other scary things — Oct 27, 2015 2:03:05 PM
Focus — Oct 26, 2015 3:47:04 PM
Making the List continued — Oct 25, 2015 4:05:49 PM
My Blog Made the List — Oct 24, 2015 2:52:29 PM
Twilight Zone — Oct 23, 2015 4:31:38 PM
The Future is Fluid — Oct 22, 2015 2:48:43 PM
Yesterdays blog, on Everything happens for a reason is a wonderful post but let us continue from there. — Oct 21, 2015 4:51:01 PM
Everything happens for a reason. — Oct 20, 2015 4:56:16 PM
Tension — Oct 19, 2015 3:18:16 PM
Reality — Oct 18, 2015 4:43:59 PM
Be Philanthropic — Oct 17, 2015 5:47:51 PM
Wendy Lipton-Dibner, a bestselling author of the book, Focus on Impact, was just published and is featured in an article on Forbes. — Oct 16, 2015 2:42:39 PM
Author / Illustrator Claudia McGehee who will be honored at the 16th Annual Iowa Author Awards Dinner in Des Moines public library on Oct. 27 is insightful and a fellow Iowan. — Oct 15, 2015 1:24:03 PM
Twilight authoress Stephenie Meyer is penning a new book. It takes the first twilight tale and glops the gender on them. — Oct 15, 2015 1:21:57 PM
Henning Mankell, Swedish author of the crime series about Kurt Wallander has passed away at the age of 67 of cancer according to the web site news.yahoo.com — Oct 13, 2015 2:02:11 PM
Illusion of Control — Oct 12, 2015 1:39:14 PM
Personal Qualities R Us — Oct 11, 2015 10:04:28 PM
Sushi Mastery — Oct 8, 2015 1:33:51 PM
“The Bad Bunnies” book by Arianne Binder — Oct 7, 2015 1:36:23 PM
Find a good Write Coach. — Oct 6, 2015 1:05:30 PM
Love this article on tips from 23 Famous Writers — Oct 5, 2015 1:47:06 PM
Almost 30% return — Oct 3, 2015 6:46:12 PM
This is an excerpt of an interview of author Andrew Gross — Oct 3, 2015 6:38:59 PM
Magic! Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat. Nothing up my sleeve. Presto! — Oct 2, 2015 1:20:11 PM
Elizabeth Gilbert of the book Eat, Pray, Love — Sep 30, 2015 10:19:21 PM
Dear Writers, this is my very own top 10 list. (I have loved David Letterman’s Top 10 List for years.) — Sep 29, 2015 1:40:55 PM
Jojo Meyes is an author of “Me Before You” book that has sold over 5 million copies. — Sep 28, 2015 1:08:45 PM
25% Return — Sep 27, 2015 3:22:08 PM
James Patterson — Sep 27, 2015 3:15:18 PM
Yes, I've been busy blogging — Sep 26, 2015 5:44:24 PM
Thank you San Diego and Colorado Springs — Sep 26, 2015 5:13:01 PM
10 Core Personality Traits for personal change — Sep 26, 2015 4:52:37 PM
Essentials for Writing a Story — Sep 25, 2015 5:28:11 PM
More Lessons That I Have Learned — Sep 24, 2015 1:42:19 PM
The 5 Most Important Things to Know when Writing a Book, Novel or Story — Sep 24, 2015 1:40:43 PM