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Cancer Scare

For Cancer, the fourth sign in the zodiac, the motto is "I feel, therefore I am." But sometimes that motto can be a scary, not a comforting, thing. Interestingly, "Cancer" is an ancient word of Indo-European origin, derived from a root meaning "to scratch."

White Water

White water kayaking is an adventure sport where a rapid body of water is navigated in a kayak. Whitewater kayaking includes several styles. The Greek, Herodotus, 484-425 BC, wrote in his travel diaries about boats with which merchandise was brought from Armenia to Babylon. The boats were made of a wooden framework that was covered with animal skins. There was no mention as to his use of one of these boats.

The Screaming Summer of 2003

Poetry may be a better stress reliever than working out or meditating because it requires you to articulate your thoughts through words, which helps you not only understand your emotions but also communicate them more effectively. From a writer's perspective, writing poetry can be equally elusive as reading poetry. Many writers believe poetry can be a mask they can hide behind. But no matter how beautiful you made it, it ends up being a window to your soul.

Quiet Time is Necessary

Solitude is very different from a 'time-out' from our busy lives. Solitude is the very ground from which community grows. Whenever we pray alone, study, read, write, or simply spend quiet time away from the places where we interact with each other directly, we are potentially opened for a deeper intimacy with each other. --Henri Nouwen

First World Problems

The stage is set for war. Oil prices are surging to record highs. China is threatening Taiwan. Russian forces appear ready to strike south. The battle in American politics is heating up into the most fiercely contested presidential election in American history… wait a minute, that's not fiction…

Excerpt from CHEAT TO WIN

Connie Murphy is a senior drug investigator with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. She is dedicated to protecting public health and safety, but while conducting seemingly routine inspections, intrigue and danger intervene. As you proceed through the series, Connie grows as an investigator, and you get to know her personality, interests, family, love life, and more.

To Nicole

Most readers start a new poem assuming that they can understand what they read on the first pass, and if they don't, that something is wrong with them or with the poem. Still, others will assume that the poem is a kind of secret code, that each word or line corresponds to one meaning, and unless they can crack this code like an Enigma machine, they've missed the point. Then there is always that segment of readers for whom the poem can mean anything they want it to mean.

The reading of any poem revolves around the question of meaning, an inquiry that frequently has multiple answers. Since a poem is part meaning, part technique, and also about things like rhyme or wordplay. This results in several directions for interpretation.

Cloudy Skies

In a park in Moscow, there is a monument to the Soviet Union building a nuclear bomb. It's in the actual shape of the bomb. Now, admittedly, in the middle of nowhere New Mexico, we have an obelisk erected to the event of July 16, 1945. But that's a little different, and less scary, than placing a nuclear bomb facsimile in the middle of your capital city.

Irresistible Snake Oil

SNAKE OIL: a substance with no real medicinal value sold as a remedy for all diseases. A product, policy, etc. of little real worth or value that is promoted as the solution to a problem.
5 min, 44 sec read

Gray Ice

Lake Ontario is the smallest of the five Great Lakes by shoreline. But still, over 2 million New Yorkers live on Lake Ontario's shores. The lake occupies a distinct thermal regime, characterized by the formation of ice. Ice formation plays a distinct role in the area's heat balance, as it significantly reduced the ability of the water to absorb the sun's warmth.
34 sec read

Confession

Complete understanding of any modern poem will not come after one reading. You might want to read through the poem once to get a general idea of what it's about. Don't try to figure it out the first time through. Consider the literal meaning of the poem then look at it for symbolic meaning. Think about the imagery and figurative language. There may even be multiple ways of interpreting a poem.

Who Was That Man

I would write a million thank yous
If I thought anyone would say
Just how grateful we are
For what you did on Saturday

An Adirondack Adventure

Did you know there was a Adirondack Center for Writing? Turns out you can get hired there a s a writer--or so their Web site implies.

The Adirondacks is place of beauty and a rare piece of unspoiled wilderness in the Northeast United States. But the wildrenesss is rearely without mystery. For example, back in November 2020, Thomas Messick suddenly vanished when he was hunting deer in an area of wild forest near the town of Horicon in Warren County.

Stick of Measurement

Poetry and crime fiction may not seem like the most obvious pairing. Crime writing and poetry together usually find themselves embracing short sentences and the crisp imagery of innovative writing, and both have always had a flair for fierceness that can assail our senses. Even Agatha Christie published not one, but two poetry collections.

Cheat To Win Released

In Cheat to Win, Connie learns her pre-approval inspection at Triple A Labs was suddenly and unexpectedly cancelled. This is highly unusual because the company's investigational new drug application is nearing approval.

You Can Do It

The cover for this story is taken from an World War II wartime poster produced by J. Howard Miller in 1943 for Westinghouse Electric as an inspirational image to boost worker morale. The poster was rediscovered in the early 1980s and widely reproduced in many forms, often called "You Can Do It!" but also called "Rosie the Riveter" after the iconic figure of a strong worker.

Battles

Speakers of American English (notably in the Midwest and Deep South) use the word levee, from the French word levée. It originated in New Orleans a few years after the city's founding in 1718 and was later adopted by English speakers. The name derives from the trait of the levee's ridges being raised higher than both the channel and the surrounding floodplains.

LCRW Inklings

What if there was a place you could meet your fellow writers virtually? What if there was a place where you could read your draft work to others, without having to edit it or spend hours using a spell checker? What if there was a place you could help other writers with their work… no prep necessary? Now there is. You need to join MEETUP to attend.
Every Tuesday 8 PM
On ZOOM