i'm so glad you're back! the moment i saw your post in my blog surfer, i immediately click on the link to your post to comment, and i haven't even read it yet, that's how glad i am!
i've always enjoyed your writing. which means yes, i'm still waiting for my autographed book by you. :lol:
cjwriter
· 1 year ago
Hi sulz! Thanks for popping across so quickly. But what are you doing commenting on my blog? You should be too busy having fun in Macau. ;)
Hope you enjoy the post when you read it; it's a little more personal than normal. It might take me a week or so to get back into posting and commenting regularly again but I'm glad to be back. And as for the book, you might have a long wait. How about I autograph a postcard instead? :)
thebeadden
· 1 year ago
It IS good to have you back, CJ! I had been wondering where you got off to. (You are on my surfer) I always read your posts but rarely made comments. Sometimes I just don't know what to say, though I enjoy your site.
I am usually very nosy but didn't feel I "knew" you enough to say "What's up and where have you gone?" :)
Now we know. I do hope you are feeling better. Never give up hope in becoming a journalist, you are certainly a good enough writer to be one. Credible people in the media are few and far between right now.
Take care and welcome back.
cjwriter
· 1 year ago
Hi BD, thanks for the welcome back! I'm starting to feel better now and it's been frustrating more than anything else. I didn't mean to be absent for quite as long as I was but it's probably been a good thing in the end; I feel more refreshed and the break reminded me of everything I was missing.
I'm not sure if I could become a journalist now, mainly because I don't have the training to pursue it. I haven't lost hope of becoming a columnist, though; if I have a few novels published, it might generate some interest. And who knows, maybe I'll become the next JK Rowling - then I can just buy a newspaper and do what I want with it! I like the sound of that. :)
We could use more credible journalists though, couldn't we? A good journalist should report the news and there's so much commentary now; there's a place for that but it's not the journalism I knew. The future of journalism is really online; it'll be interesting to see which way it goes.
Take care, and thanks for keeping me in your thoughts. ;)
museditions
· 1 year ago
Alright cj, this time I refuse to tell you your post made me cry. It's a good thing some of us have our favorite bloggers in our Readers, so that even if they haven't posted for a while, we know right away when they do. OK. Taking a deep breath. First of all I like that picture of the old typewriter. Very noir. It's hard to imagine humans used to type on those! One of the reasons the post might have made me cry, if I were willing to tell you that (which I'm not!) is that it's so very personal, and heartfelt. It's such a beautifully written history of how you got to where you are. It explains a lot; shares a lot; trusts a lot.
About Clark Kent? Did that include the Superman thing, too? ;) I'm thrilled that you will be including photography; I so enjoyed your post a while back showing us furniture you designed as well as some of your most treasured possessions. We all got to be in the room with you; (did you notice it got a little crowded in there?) :) it felt so immediate and present. So, if that represents the level of your photography, it can't help but make a wonderful addition to your blog.
Yes, those first comments can be freaky! It's funny, I'll have a post up in a couple of hours where I reflect upon comments and blogging also. I've been reading your blog for about a year, and the comments and how you respond to them are a large part of my enjoyment of it. As for your penultimate paragraph, I honestly don't see why you could not have all these things at some point. The dream may have changed, but it needn't be any less fulfilling therefore. And your poem! I'd just got through drying my eyes when I read that (I mean I would have done if I'd been at all weepy) and then those few lines spoke so eloquently of sadness and hope. It's wonderful to have you back. I look forward to your continued evolution.
Magik Quilter
· 1 year ago
Well I will admit to crying but that is to be expected. Beautiful post son and I love the way you talk about dreams. To me its like one door closes another one opens....we just have to be prepared to open the door and see what is on the other side.
And I even got the poem and am not great with poetry....it was beautiful Christopher and had me smiling through my tears..now that is a scary thing!
cjwriter
· 1 year ago
I'm so glad you liked the post, Muse. As you know I'm a private person and I don't like revealing too much but knowing it's touched people like that is wonderful. I was thinking about the way A Writer's Life has evolved while I was offline and the blog really has come to reflect my own journey through life; it's a little scary sharing so much but also very rewarding.
No, the Clark Kent thing didn't include Superman; but I did have a serious crush on Teri Hatcher for a while. :) I've actually been an amateur photographer for years and I love taking photos but I've rarely shared them, even on Flickr; I've just kept them to myself. But sometimes I see something which inspires a post or adds that extra bit of detail to it, like the furniture; that's what I'm hoping to achieve. I wish I could claim the shot of the typewriter was mine, though; it's such a beautiful shot!
It's funny how bloggers often explore similar ideas, isn't it? Your post was lovely and I agree, it's the ongoing dialogue that makes a blog interesting; that's why I enjoy responding to comments, following the conversation... as for my dreams, I'd love to see them come true but they're not really a priority right now. They've always been for the future; so for now I think I'll leave the rest of that up to fate. :)
And thank you for the kind words about my poem; it just felt like the right way to express what I was feeling, to capture that moment of joy and loss... thanks for keeping me in your thoughts. It feels great to be back. Almost like coming home. ;)
Thanks, MQ; I'm really touched it moved you that much. It was a hard post to write but something I wanted to write; it reminded me a lot of what I'd missed. I like what you said about dreams too... we have to be prepared to trust our feelings, our instincts, and where they lead. If we never take a chance then we'll never reach all that we can be.
And I'm glad you liked the poem. You're much better with poetry than you admit, though. I mean, I had to get my writing skills from someone. :)
Betty
· 1 year ago
Never give up on your dreams. They may pop up in unexpected places and times.
teeveebee
· 1 year ago
Hey CJ, Good to have you back. I've enjoyed your blog in the past and look forward to what you have for us in the future. And by the way, no pressure as far as post frequency is concerned. Relax, have fun, and write! Know that your thoughtful prose is much appreciated.
cjwriter
· 1 year ago
Hi Betty, thanks for stopping by. You're right, I'll never give up on all my dreams; they might change with time but I'll always keep trying to reach them. Who knows where the future might lead? ;)
Hi TVB, thanks for the welcome; it feels great to be back! I didn't realise I'd miss blogging as much as I did; the break's helped, though, and I'm looking forward to getting back into it again.
I like to post regularly if I can as it helps with my writing but I don't want to feel obligated either. I'll probably aim for about 2-3 posts a week; seems like a good number. Hopefully there'll be some fun posts in there as well. ;)
Priya Raju
· 1 year ago
Welcome back, CJ. Hope you feel better now.
You must pity the trolls. Most of them are totally dim-witted. Its my theory that they mutated & lost the frontal cortex of the brain.
Looking FW to the next installment of books that made an impact on you.
cjwriter
· 1 year ago
Hi Priya, thanks; it's great to be back! I am feeling better now; it's taken a while to get over but I'm almost there now.
The trolls are more frustrating than anything else. I've attracted a fair few since I started but it's been worse recently; these two got under my skin. WP.com has fewer options to control comments but I have some ideas which might help. And your theory sounds pretty solid to me; makes me wonder what Darwin would make of trolls. ;)
I'll have the second post finished in a few days; it's a little longer than the first one but it's coming together well. Brings back a lot of memories. :)
B0bbyG
· 1 year ago
Oh great. I'm gone for, like 3 days, and I miss the return of CJ?
Welcome back! :)
I'm sorry to hear you haven't been well. Hope you feel better soon!
I liked hearing about how you began blogging; it reminded me of how I started out.
I look forward to reading your future posts.
cjwriter
· 1 year ago
Hi Bobby, thanks for the welcome! Don't worry, you didn't miss much; looks like quite a few people have taken a break recently. Hope you had a good break.
I am feeling better; it's just taking a while, but it feels great to be back. I'll have a couple of posts finished over the next few days and hopefully a new poem as well; I've been working on it for a while, so should be good! ;)
Its my bloggiversary and I did
· 1 year ago
[...] and also thanks so much all who have followed me on my journey here. Most of all thanks to my special son CJ who patiently guided me until I could do all things here myself…he is a fine teacher and a [...]
All Comments
i've always enjoyed your writing. which means yes, i'm still waiting for my autographed book by you. :lol:
Hope you enjoy the post when you read it; it's a little more personal than normal. It might take me a week or so to get back into posting and commenting regularly again but I'm glad to be back. And as for the book, you might have a long wait. How about I autograph a postcard instead? :)
I am usually very nosy but didn't feel I "knew" you enough to say "What's up and where have you gone?" :)
Now we know. I do hope you are feeling better. Never give up hope in becoming a journalist, you are certainly a good enough writer to be one. Credible people in the media are few and far between right now.
Take care and welcome back.
I'm not sure if I could become a journalist now, mainly because I don't have the training to pursue it. I haven't lost hope of becoming a columnist, though; if I have a few novels published, it might generate some interest. And who knows, maybe I'll become the next JK Rowling - then I can just buy a newspaper and do what I want with it! I like the sound of that. :)
We could use more credible journalists though, couldn't we? A good journalist should report the news and there's so much commentary now; there's a place for that but it's not the journalism I knew. The future of journalism is really online; it'll be interesting to see which way it goes.
Take care, and thanks for keeping me in your thoughts. ;)
About Clark Kent? Did that include the Superman thing, too? ;) I'm thrilled that you will be including photography; I so enjoyed your post a while back showing us furniture you designed as well as some of your most treasured possessions. We all got to be in the room with you; (did you notice it got a little crowded in there?) :) it felt so immediate and present. So, if that represents the level of your photography, it can't help but make a wonderful addition to your blog.
Yes, those first comments can be freaky! It's funny, I'll have a post up in a couple of hours where I reflect upon comments and blogging also. I've been reading your blog for about a year, and the comments and how you respond to them are a large part of my enjoyment of it. As for your penultimate paragraph, I honestly don't see why you could not have all these things at some point. The dream may have changed, but it needn't be any less fulfilling therefore. And your poem! I'd just got through drying my eyes when I read that (I mean I would have done if I'd been at all weepy) and then those few lines spoke so eloquently of sadness and hope. It's wonderful to have you back. I look forward to your continued evolution.
And I even got the poem and am not great with poetry....it was beautiful Christopher and had me smiling through my tears..now that is a scary thing!
No, the Clark Kent thing didn't include Superman; but I did have a serious crush on Teri Hatcher for a while. :) I've actually been an amateur photographer for years and I love taking photos but I've rarely shared them, even on Flickr; I've just kept them to myself. But sometimes I see something which inspires a post or adds that extra bit of detail to it, like the furniture; that's what I'm hoping to achieve. I wish I could claim the shot of the typewriter was mine, though; it's such a beautiful shot!
It's funny how bloggers often explore similar ideas, isn't it? Your post was lovely and I agree, it's the ongoing dialogue that makes a blog interesting; that's why I enjoy responding to comments, following the conversation... as for my dreams, I'd love to see them come true but they're not really a priority right now. They've always been for the future; so for now I think I'll leave the rest of that up to fate. :)
And thank you for the kind words about my poem; it just felt like the right way to express what I was feeling, to capture that moment of joy and loss... thanks for keeping me in your thoughts. It feels great to be back. Almost like coming home. ;)
Thanks, MQ; I'm really touched it moved you that much. It was a hard post to write but something I wanted to write; it reminded me a lot of what I'd missed. I like what you said about dreams too... we have to be prepared to trust our feelings, our instincts, and where they lead. If we never take a chance then we'll never reach all that we can be.
And I'm glad you liked the poem. You're much better with poetry than you admit, though. I mean, I had to get my writing skills from someone. :)
Good to have you back. I've enjoyed your blog in the past and look forward to what you have for us in the future. And by the way, no pressure as far as post frequency is concerned. Relax, have fun, and write! Know that your thoughtful prose is much appreciated.
Hi TVB, thanks for the welcome; it feels great to be back! I didn't realise I'd miss blogging as much as I did; the break's helped, though, and I'm looking forward to getting back into it again.
I like to post regularly if I can as it helps with my writing but I don't want to feel obligated either. I'll probably aim for about 2-3 posts a week; seems like a good number. Hopefully there'll be some fun posts in there as well. ;)
You must pity the trolls. Most of them are totally dim-witted. Its my theory that they mutated & lost the frontal cortex of the brain.
Looking FW to the next installment of books that made an impact on you.
The trolls are more frustrating than anything else. I've attracted a fair few since I started but it's been worse recently; these two got under my skin. WP.com has fewer options to control comments but I have some ideas which might help. And your theory sounds pretty solid to me; makes me wonder what Darwin would make of trolls. ;)
I'll have the second post finished in a few days; it's a little longer than the first one but it's coming together well. Brings back a lot of memories. :)
Welcome back! :)
I'm sorry to hear you haven't been well. Hope you feel better soon!
I liked hearing about how you began blogging; it reminded me of how I started out.
I look forward to reading your future posts.
I am feeling better; it's just taking a while, but it feels great to be back. I'll have a couple of posts finished over the next few days and hopefully a new poem as well; I've been working on it for a while, so should be good! ;)