Welcome back, to me as well. I was MIA from the last
meeting. I don’t know what everyone else thinks about moving, but I think, ‘MOVING
IS A BITCH!’ I don’t want to do it again. If I have a choice, I’ll live here until
I croak.
We spent the first thirty minutes of the meeting catching up on what each of our attendees had engaged in so far this summer. Everybody has been busy writing, editing, and rewriting. It’s too hot outside to do much more than what is absolutely necessary. Even those things are abbreviated due to the heat. Remember, drink plenty of water, wear a hat, and stay in the shade as much as possible. Also, take frequent breaks in the A/C if possible.
Work up a sweat at the computer or desk. Writing can be hard work, but it’s more fun than mowing the lawn in 100-plus degree heat. Well, it is for me anyway. But it’s your choice.
We moved on to the reading portion of our meeting. As usual, a first-come, first-served method sets the reading schedule, and tonight Ernie Ovitz led us off reading Chapter 12 of his latest work, The Penitent Man. Financial intrigue, marital stress, organized crime, and international subterfuge fill the pages of this story. It’s enjoyable to read and packed with information about global finance.
Our senior member, Don ‘Westy’ Westerfield, always has something important to say with his poetry or prose. This week we enjoyed hearing two poems. Tomorrow, shows us Don’s way of looking at what is to come. The opening lines,
In Gods cupboard
still lie all my tomorrows
how many I cannot say
As we listen to his poetry, I watch the audience, all are rapt, some shed a tear. Then, as we turn the page to his second offering, Alaska Sings, we hear the lyrical sound of the Wind wafting through the valleys, over the mountains, and joining the Hawks and Eagles as they sing their songs of warning. Muddy rivers race down the slopes, rushing to enter the sea. We feel the chill of winter and the warmth of a cold sun as we feel the pain of those who take her treasures, even as she wails. As his voice goes silent, we still hear her songs.
We are blessed to enjoy poetry and prose from our writers. Scott Anderson stepped forward with a project of writing 400 Haiku poems this year. Tonight, he read seven of them for our enjoyment. Only three lines, the small Japanese poems conjure images in our minds with few words. And each of us sees them differently.
Bruce Haedrich delves into the world of
automation and AI with a, well, it’s Sci-Fi for now, but may well be reality before
too long. In Bruce’s story, Nadia, robotic humanoids are designed
to look, act, and even feel like humans. Nadia is one of the early models. She,
or should I say ‘It’, is decommissioned and turned back to the manufacturer for
upgrading.
We all know Bruce has a vivid imagination, so what takes place next is not surprising.
A company buys all the old humanoids to turn them into farm workers. With the
newer models taking over almost all the jobs in the world, an economic crisis
looms. Oh, by the way, some of the old models were used to create a new species
of human referred to as TERRESTRIALENSIS. When Nadia asks. “Who is this God, all
of you talk about?”…
Danny Spurlock tells of his thoughts after reading the memoirs of a man growing up in New York City. Did you know that JFK’s assassination exposed an issue with the telephone service in the United States? Danny’s father got a job with the telephone company because of the need for more infrastructure. In those days, ‘women need not apply.’ They lived in a rural area, and Danny couldn’t fathom living in a city. I mean, where would you get a septic tank large enough to handle all that sewerage?
Dino Blanchi writes of his early adult years in New York. Remember when SPF was unknown to youngsters? We used baby oil so we tanned faster; we were human shish kababs. There might have been a few instances where memory-altering liquids were involved. Oh, I’m sure we’ve all had an experience with something like that.
Are you divorced, or at least know someone who is? Lex Concord brought us a “tongue-in-cheek analysis of the dating landscape for divorced men.” How do women perceive a newly divorced man dipping his toe into the dating pool? There are a lot of things a woman might do, say, and ask of a man before she takes him seriously. Lex has looked at this with a humorous eye, and we look forward to more work in the future. Thank you, Lex.
James Kelly also explores relationships in his books, chronicling the MacKenzie family and their military service to the United States. Now the fourth generation of MacKenzies is in harm’s way. Johnathon is fighting in France during WWI. As a tank commander, he is leading troops against an entrenched force of Wilhelm II, King of Prussia. When his tank stalls, he fights on, using the cannon and guns aboard his machine, until the maintenance crew can get it underway once again. He is noticed by his commanding officer. They are at war, where will the young officer end up?
This was a great night, and we heard a lot of excellent writing. Of course, almost all readers received some suggestions; I’m sure we’ll hear about their changes, or whatever, at a future meeting. Until we meet again on August 6th at the Nokomis Firehouse, we would like to see you there. So remember, READ, Read, read some more, and then KEEP ON WRITING!
