the Wakefield Doctrine

Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)

Beach and distant homes.

The current host and curatorae of the Ten Things of Thankful bloghop is Kristi. She sees to the details that are necessary for this place to be live, open and available to all who would participate in ‘the Bloghop-that-Lizzi-created’. We are most grateful for her hard work, and for that we surely need to stakeout a spot on this week’s list. Lets say… Grat #5

The Rules are few and liberal. Consider your week just past, your life six years ago or the people who form the fabric of your life, of the people, places and things that cause you to feel grateful, share what you will in a list. (Or, as you may see, from time-to-time, any other format that you find enjoyable. Thats the liberal part.)

For us here at the Doctrine, we’re off on a weekend of work-work and yard-work. The work-work is not so bad, as it includes holding an Open House. In my case, that manifests as a total Win/Win. If I get people to show up I may get an offer and get the house sold. If however, I don’t get anyone to show up, I can complete another Chapter of Interlude. (See Item 6)

So on with the show. Surely I must feel the emotion of gratitude for:

1) Una

2) Phyllis

3) the Wakefield Doctrine. Because, with the principles (of the Doctrine) now an integral part of my worldview, I’m the fortunate recipient of insights such as, “…as clarks are Outsiders, our perception of the world around us and, more importantly, of the people who make up our world, is one grounded in partial and fragmented views. We see the world as from the fringe of the crowd, people are heads and torsos, events are middles, climaxes and recollection, our relationships are forever ad hoc*. We base our judgements on parts, more frequently than on wholes. Of course, if you spend your life deciphering the actions, motives and intentions of others from bits and pieces seen from a distance, two things result: 1) your relationship to the world around you is a jigsaw puzzle with a third of the pieces missing and b) you develop a reliance on intuition and creativity in order form a sense of self and from which a place to stand when relating to the world at large.”

4) The inclination (and, to an extent, the capacity) to respond to the occasional disruption of (life’s) routines as opportunity to self-improve myself

5) Kristi for pulling together the various loose ends and random parts and having the link ready each and every weekend

6) My online WIP, ‘Interlude’

7) ‘Almira’ and the work before me to edit it into a condition that not only improves the story but increases the chances of finding an agent

8) THIS SPACE AVAILABLE (For anyone out there who may be on the fence, thinking they’d enjoy posting a TToT post, but are still not comfortable with hitting ‘Publish’. Send me one of your Grat Items in a comment and I’ll publish it here.

9) Sunday Supplement (Does today look like Sunday to you? I didn’t think so. Stop back tomorrow)

10) Secret Rule 1.3 )”…the approaching completion of a List of Ten Things of Thankful becomes an Item, in and of itself, once that (completion) becomes assured, such assurance may be expressed in the number of keystrokes remaining, the amount of coffee left in the mug or a deadline that does not suffer delay with any kind of grace. Like that.” (quid pro quo, too).

* (from Collins Dictionary.com):

“An ad hoc activity or organization is not planned in advance, but is done or formed only because a particular situation has made it necessary.“**

** both evidence and proof of the rust-edged wonderland that is a clark’s day-to-day reality…lol I knew the definition of ‘ad hoc’…basically, but when l double checked and found the above, l did, in fact, laugh out loud. Fortunately theres no one here at my Open House yet.

Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clarks, scotts and rogers)

Ok, last week doing a post from my phone was, well, worth the effort. It was in the context of,  ‘Hey! Look what I can do!

This week? Not so much. Surely not worth the blurred vision that results from excessive writing on a phone screen.*

My primary computer at home is laid up with ‘growing pains’. Its a long story (yeah, I know! Knock me over with a feather.) In any event, I’m writing this weeks post with the nearly zen, ‘Moving finger taps, and keeps on moving’. Good story behind the computer problem. Will tell it in Item 7. Later today. I’m still at my Open House. Yeah, now that you mention it, I will tell you more about the current state of my writing jones. (Item 6).

For now lets get this thing published.

So on with the words!

This is the Ten Things of Thankful bloghop. Created by Lizzi, (still denying her family connection to her once removed uncle, CS) Lewis back in 2014. It is the second longest running bloghop I have participated in. (The first being Finish the Sentence Friday)

Anyway, the rules are simple** link your post (of) the Ten(ish) things that you feel grateful for and make the rounds and comment on the others.

This week I will claim gratitude, with an option on items of hypogratitude. (As clearly permitted in Chapter 7.t ~para 3.78, section 2 of the BoSR/SBoR that states, in part, ” Why, of course he can!”)

1) Una

2) Phyllis

3) technology

4) Hypograt Item: technology and its contraindications for individuals of advancing age and retreating confidence

5) the Wakefield Doctrine…. for it’s capacity for encouraging me to recognize (and thereby reinforce the lesson) that ‘Fear is the only enemy.’

6) Writing my litera veritas, ‘Interlude’ and editing ‘Almira’

7) Computers: A story of age, ambition and fear. (To be cont’d). A quick update on the Struggle with Fear and the Status Quo. Did an upgrade of operating system (necessitated by the need for another application upgrade) and computer crashed. Took it to a computer repair shop. Computer works like new….. new as in although I have not lost any information, non of the bookmarks or presets survived. I am resisting the temptation that only by restoring an exact replica of what I have always had, can I go forward. That is the challenge. I understand intellectually that there is no such thing as re-capturing the past. But fear is neither rational nor intellectual.

To be continued…

8) THIS SPACE AVAILABLE (For anyone torn between desire and fear, if you can’t seem to overcome the fear of the first post (a fear that I will say, without fear of contradiction, has been experienced by everyone present) then send it in as a Comment and I’ll gladly post it it here at Number Eight)

9) Sunday Supplement

10) Secret Rule 1.3

* speaking of reality changes…how did we go from: “Honey, its alright to sit on the floor to watch tv, but only in front of the couch. You’ll go blind if you stare at the boob tube from only six feet. It’s a twelve-inch screen and sitting any closer will damage your eyesight. ”  to:
“Nice! Is that the hi def 24 inch flat panel display? Sure saves a lot of space, now theres room for your keyboard and coffee on your desk.”

** ‘but its the secret, (as in the Book of Secret Rules aka the Secret Book of Rules), rules that makes it fun.

Musika?

Welcome to the Wakefield Doctrine (the theory of clark, scotts and rogers)

Driving from Pawcatuck, Connecticut into downtown Westerly, Rhode Island.
Thats the Washington Trust Bank on the right and in the distance, the rather attractive Westerly Library.

Union St. Westerly. That’s the Town Hall on the right and the library straight ahead.

Approaching the intersection of Broad Street and Elm Street.

This the first annual-manual (as in: written on a phone*) TToT post. Kristi is the host/housemother and beat cop of the Ten Things of Thankful bloghop. She has the daunting, and always unenviable task of keeping the lights on and rhetoric police off our trail. This week, I’m grateful for:

1) Kristi for all her efforts that contribute to this bloghop being here each and every weekend

2) Phyllis

3) Una

4) an established reputation as one who looks at most social and cultural rules and requirements as possessing the moral power and force of those little warnings at the bottom of tv commercials that inform us that: a) the man or woman rope-free-climbing the side of El Capitan is a professional and 2) we should not jump up from the couch and try to free-climb…well, anything. As a result l have complete confidence in my use of this, Item Four, in such cavalier fashion.

5) Open Houses. Because that is where all the fun writing is happening these days. Interlude is the serial flash story and I’m becoming concerned that l might sell the house (where the Muse, at least in this case, apparently lives) before l can complete the story. (Talk about your Virtual World problems! Lol)

6) Almira  I’m getting more and more entangled in the fairly intimidating, (to me, at any rate), task of editing the book. For now, I’m going light on the re-writes and simply getting to know the story and it’s characters, the better to be a position to write stronger POV(s). An encouraging thing about the process is the story is still awfully good! No, serially! (You know how sometimes, as a young person, you’d be at breakfast, after the clubs have closed, and the girl you were falling for all night is sitting across from you in an all night diner? Then, out of nowhere, her flawless tan complexion begins to suffer for fluorescent overhead lights, clearly she suffers from a ‘strobe and colored spotlights deficiency’. You accept that no one is perfect and begin a conversation, except, this time it’s at a normal volume, across the formica table and you hear the double negatives and indiscriminate cursing show themselves, like middle fingers in a Junior High School class picture. That the majority of other patrons are over-the-road-truckers and they give every appearance of being offended, doesn’t help and you begin to suspect that your conversations of the evening had been, somehow, transformed by the fact that your repartee involved speaking so close to the other’s ear that a successful joke would be rewarded by laughter that could be felt in the hair around your ear. But her eyes are as beautiful as you remember and so you stay, shifting your attention, much to the relief of your libido, to other aspects of the person across from you. …Kinda like that.)
The best part about editing? The moments when you stop and, in all sincerity, ask yourself, “I wrote this?” lol

7) (Hypograt Item): the seemingly certain end of summer.

8) THIS SPACE AVAILABLE (If you like the idea of this bloghop and would love to participate but are hesitant for any reason, say no more. Send in one of the items you’ve written as a Comment and I’ll gladly post it here. That way you can see how it looks on ‘the big screen’ before hitting send on your post.

9) Sunday Supplement This week’s Sunday Supplement is a little different. (I know! I agree!) So last night, Una and I are sitting around surfing the cable at around 10:00 pm. The temperature outdoors was comfortable, so I had the door to the deck open. Here is what we heard:

The audio is a bit low, which is unfortunate, as the sound that would make you think, “oh, thats an owl!” loses something in the recording. It had a slightly  corkscrewed howl at the end of each vocalization. Really rather interesting. Then this afternoon we came across some tracks in the woods that look a lot like deer tracks, provide the deer had prominent claws. lol

10) Secret Rule 1.3

* one might be tempted to characterize this as a digital finger-painting, but that would be mean. Say what you will about a five-year-old’s level of sophistication in the appreciation of art and such, but l tell me you ever again saw the color blue as blue as the paint you used in your first effort with the small, squat jars of paint in a noisy room that smelled like brushes, paste and peanut-and-butter sandwiches.