Life in progress

Category Archives: Opinion


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Just Jot It Jan 24 – Elusive

“Any word you have to hunt for in a thesaurus is the wrong word.” ~ Stephen King

I used to agree with this wholeheartedly. I still do agree with the gist of it; if it’s not a word you regularly use in your everyday vocabulary, then you’re writing outside of your own voice. And your authorial voice is, arguably, the one thing people read you for. You as opposed to the thousands of other authors who write in the same genre, the same tropes over and over again.

But now? Now that I can’t remember my kids’ names half the time and I often get stuck on a word I know I know, but I just can’t spit it out? The thesaurus has become my favourite book. Can’t come up with that word I use all the time that means “thingamajig”? Look it up in the thesaurus and there it is. It’s a “doohickey”!

Sorry, Mr. King, but I can’t live without my thesaurus. And no, it’s not the wrong word. It’s just the word that went for a stroll. The one I can’t find. You know, the “elusive” one. Yeah, that’s the word.

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Thanks to Evelyn of Eclectic Evelyn for today’s prompt word, “elusive.” You can find her latest post here: http://www.eclecticevelyn.com/welcome-snapchat-wordlesswednesday/

And an enormous thank you to Judy, the hostess with the mostess for the last few days. I can’t express how much I’ve appreciated her help. You can find Judy’s elusive post here: http://www.edwinasepisodes.com/jujojan-january-24th-elusive/ Let’s have a big round of applause for Judy!! 😀

And finally, here’s the daily post with today’s Just Jot It January prompt. Click and join in! https://lindaghill.com/2017/01/23/jusjojan-daily-prompt-jan-24th-elusive/


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Just Jot It Jan 23 – Compromise

I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with compromise. It’s the most wonderful thing in the world to be able to come to an acceptable agreement between two people who want two different things. That is when compromise is a fantastic tool.

But on the other hand, I’m a bit of a control freak. Especially when it comes to the things I want for my family and for myself. If anything stands in the way of what my children need, there is no compromise. Until I’m told there is no possibility, I refuse to give an inch. And I’m the same with the things I want to do for myself. My new career(s) as an author and an editor, for instance. I will not give them up, and I will not compromise my chances of success.

And then there’s my blog. I’ve tried negotiating with it, but strangely, it still demands the same number of hours a day now as it did when I began, four years ago. Back then, I stalked visited other blogs, sometimes six hours a day just hoping for follows. Now that I’ve become somewhat successful at it, new bloggers often come to me. I could very easily still spend six hours a day visiting everyone who visits me. To understand my dilemma, please see the previous paragraph.

It’s a tough call. With my kids, compromise is cut and dry. If I want something different than someone I care about does, that, too, is easy. I compromise. But this work/blog thing is tearing me. I hate to say it, but something, one day, is going to have to give a bit. And I need food on the table.

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Our prompt today was brought to you by the lovely Ritu. Please go and visit, and read her Just Jot It January post here: https://butismileanyway.com/2017/01/23/jusjojan-daily-prompt-jan-23rd17-compromise/

And a very special thanks to Judy for hosting today’s prompt! I encourage you to visit Judy at her blog here: http://www.edwinasepisodes.com/jusjotjan-january-23-compromise/

Finally, go to today’s prompt post and read all the other excellent posts here: https://lindaghill.com/2017/01/22/jusjojan-daily-prompt-jan-23rd-compromise/


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Just Jot It Jan 20 – Transcendence

Worry. What good does it do us? And yet we all do it. It’s what keeps us up at night, and makes us walk into rooms with no idea what we are there for. Because it causes us stress – the kind that separates our minds from what we should be focusing on.

From Pinterest

From Pinterest

I believe happiness can be found in the lack of seeking it. So I strive to be content with what I have. But I think true contentedness can only be found through the ability to transcend worry. To worry is to imagine the worst for the future. If this is true, then the answer is to live in the present. Not only to fully appreciate what I have right here and now — relatively clean air to breathe, simply that I am alive — but to fully concentrate on what I am doing at any given moment. In that moment, there can be no worry.

I have to strive to stop looking ahead to what might be. And love what is now.

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Thank you to Deborah of Notes Tied on the Sagebrush for our prompt word today, “Transcendent.” Please give her a visit and read her latest post here: https://notestiedonthesagebrush.com/2017/01/19/transcendent/

And don’t forget to check out the JusJoJan prompt here, to read all the other posts and to join in! https://lindaghill.com/2017/01/20/jusjojan-daily-prompt-jan-20th17/


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Just Jot It Jan 13 – Hospital

Prepare for a bit of a rant.

My darling son, Alex, with whom many of you are familiar, is deathly afraid of the dentist. So much so, that the dentist refuses to clean his teeth for fear of harming him as he thrashes about.

A couple of months ago, the dentist put in a referral to a hospital in Kingston where he sometimes works, to have Alex seen by anaesthesia with the goal of having him put under for a cleaning. However, that particular hospital lacks the resources to look after Alex if something goes wrong with his heart — he has a heart condition. Result: denied.

Now we have to go back once again to the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO), which is about a three-hour drive each way, not once but three times. First for a consultation, then to see their anaesthesia department, and finally for the “surgery” itself. This last time, we’ll have to stay overnight, because they’ll want us there at 6:00am.

Don’t get me wrong – CHEO is a wonderful hospital. But this new thing of having to go there for teeth-cleaning every year is for the birds. Life was much easier when I could get there in 45 minutes from where I lived. …which was a good thing, since Alex lived there for the first eight months of his life. But many of you, as I said before, already knew this.

I just wanted to bitch a bit. I feel better now.

Thanks for listening.

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Thanks very much to Charlene Bullard from http://faithtoraisenate.com/ for the prompt of the day: “Hospital.”

Did you know you can join in Just Jot It January any time? Click the link and find out how! https://lindaghill.com/2017/01/13/jusjojan-daily-prompt-jan-13th17/


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Just Jot It Jan 9 – Power

The power of words is incredible, isn’t it? I was on the phone this afternoon with my pharmacist, ordering a refill of my son’s heart medication. Most of the people at the pharmacy are pleasant, but this one pharmacist always sounds as though I dragged him out of bed with my phone call. This is how it went:

Him: (in Eeyore’s voice) Hello. How can I help you.

Me: I need a refill of a prescription.

Him: What’s the name?

Me: Alex (his last name).

Him: Is it the mixture?

Me: Yes, that’s right.

Him: I can’t have it ready for you before tomorrow night.

Me: Oh. I need it in the afternoon.

Him: We’re busy.

Me: Can you deliver it?

Him: I guess. If it’s ready before the 4:00 delivery goes out.

Me: Okay then.

Him: Okay, bye.

Ah, the power of words. And of attitude. I wanted to say, How the hell can you be so busy when your service is lousy and you sound so miserable all the time? Cheer the fuck up! But I didn’t. What I also didn’t say was that I needed a bunch of other stuff at the pharmacy tomorrow and I was going to get it all at once. But because of his bad service and his I’m-too-tired-for-this/busy-for-your-business attitude, I’ll go somewhere else to spend my money.

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Today’s “Power” prompt came from 20/20 Hines Sight. You can find her blog here: https://2020hines-sight.com/

And, of course, very special thanks to Dan for hosting the prompt for me today! Make sure you go and visit his most excellent and entertaining blog here: http://nofacilities.com/

Finally, you can read more Just Jot It January posts and find out how to join in here: https://lindaghill.com/2017/01/09/jusjojan-daily-prompt-jan-9th17/ You can start any time!


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#SoCS – First to last

2016. My first thought out of all the things to say about it has, for months, been about how shitty it’s been. Yet personally, I’ve had a lot of things to be grateful for.

I released my first book, making me officially an author. And I had a short story accepted in an anthology, making me an accepted author.

I began taking editing courses and so far I’m doing exceptionally well.

I managed to tick off four of the nine things on my 2016 bucket list. Admittedly, one of them was teach the dog sign language, but that’s something, right?

I made a couple of new friends online.

I kept all the friends I have.

And most of all, I lived. And so did everyone in my immediate family.  (Pray I’m not jinxing anything – there are still 8 hours to go.)

I’m also very grateful for this blog and this community. I’ve lived years without the feeling of connection and they were lonely years indeed. Since I came here to WordPress I’ve felt nothing but accepted, appreciated, and part of a larger entity than ever before. Thank you, my friends.

Thank you to everyone who has commented, liked, and read my posts this year, and thanks to all who have participated in my prompts. I can’t imagine life without you.

Cheers to 2017!

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The Stream of Consciousness Saturday rules and all the other posts can be found here: https://lindaghill.com/2016/12/30/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-dec-3116/


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Writing Through the Uncertainty

I’ve heard plenty of writers say they do their best work when they’re going through loss and hardship. There’s something cathartic, after all, in getting it all out there. Putting pain on paper seems to distance us from it, at least a little. Writing can put things in perspective and let us see our thoughts more clearly.

And then there is 2016. A year of upheaval at levels many of us have never experienced. Yet one might say that most of what has happened isn’t quite personal enough. Things like the deaths of so many beloved celebrities, and a 70-year-old toddler getting closer by the day to running the White House, affect us but they don’t. I realize there are many out there who have experienced the rise of Trump as a personal change in their lives, however I can only speak from the sidelines in Canada on this. Despite the distance, I’m still quivering in fear.

Will the upheaval end with the new year? Probably not. It feels somewhat delusional to believe the number 2017 is mystical enough to somehow make the aging celebrities we all love and cherish immortal.

All this up-in-the-air-ness makes it hard for me to write. I’ve spent the last couple of days trying to figure out why, and all I can come up with is that I have no idea what I’m looking forward to. When I’m grieving, I have an idea. Though depressing, I at least know the person or thing I’m grieving for is gone. Would I trade this uncertainty for the absoluteness of grief? No way. But I still have to find a way to proceed with things as they are.

So, I look back on what made me begin writing in the first place. Just as reading is an escape for so many millions of people, writing is mine. When I’m in a world of my own creation, I’m not here. True, I’m not always certain where my characters are going, but I can live with that. Their adventures, even if disastrous, will not change my life for the worse.

I also feel I must write for all those millions (I should be so lucky to have that many people read me, so let’s say a few of those millions) who need the escape I provide. And lastly, I need to write to know that I’m not alone. And to let others who feel the way I do that they’re not alone.

I need to get back to writing daily. Writing on this blog, that is. I’ve never really stopped; I’m three days away from writing a post for every day of this year on my fiction blog. It’s all that has kept me sane at times.

My new beginning will be Just Jot It January. If I can keep up with that, at least I’ll have the first 31 days of the new year covered. Even if I can’t put my own head-salad into perspective, maybe I can help other people escape theirs for a few minutes a day.

Who’s with me?


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One-Liner Wednesday – One of Those Days

There are days when I feel there’s nothing I can’t do, and there are days when I feel I can do nothing. Today is one of those.

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If you would like to participate, feel free to use the “One-Liner Wednesday” title in your post, and if you do,
you can ping back here to help your blog get more exposure. To execute a ping back, just copy the URL in the address bar on this post, and paste it somewhere in the body of your post. Your link will show up in the comments below. Please ensure that the One-Liner Wednesday you’re pinging back to is this week’s! Otherwise, no one will likely see it but me.

NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, like Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

As with Stream of Consciousness Saturday (SoCS), if you see a ping back from someone else in my comment section, click and have a read. It’s bound to be short and sweet.

Unlike SoCS, this is not a prompt so there’s no need to stick to the same “theme.”

The rules that I’ve made for myself (but don’t always follow) for “One-Liner Wednesday” are:

1. Make it one sentence.

2. Try to make it either funny or inspirational.

3. Use our unique tag #1linerWeds.

4. Add our very cool badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

#1linerWeds badge by nearlywes.com

#1linerWeds badge by nearlywes.com


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#SoCS – Doesn’t Matter

Have you ever done something embarrassing and hope nobody caught on? Of course, it happens to everyone, right? Even when I do something like that and I think nobody saw (things like writing a comment and then erasing it, or a post and then editing it, or even tripping over nothing on the street or walking into a post) I’m still embarrassed. I wonder if that’s because I’ll never be sure whether or not I got caught. So is that moot, or not? Is it moot point because no one saw it? Or is it not moot because I remain in a state of embarrassment for the sake of that ‘maybe’ or just because I’m ashamed of myself.

There is one instance I can’t get over. It involves singing too loud, and I don’t know if anyone noticed, but I beat myself up over it every time I think about it. One thing it has taught me is to be more aware of my surroundings next time.  It seems to me there’s nothing more able to teach a lesson than embarrassment. It’s not something easily forgotten.

I’m not alone here, right? Oh, how embarrassing if I am.

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This post of embarrassment is brought to you by Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Click on the following link to join in and find all the other fantastic posts written for the prompt! https://lindaghill.com/2016/12/16/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-dec-1716/


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The Elephant on the Cover

I can’t stay quiet any longer. There’s an elephant in the Cover Wars room that needs to be addressed.

The wonderful people at Author Shout who host the Cover Wars contest have pitted me against a good friend. Two good friends, in fact. One wrote a book of poetry and the other designed her cover. The first is the lovely Judy E. Martin, of Rhymes of the Times fame, and the second is Chris Graham, aka The Story-Reading Ape.

If I wasn’t competing this week, I would totally be supporting Judy and Chris every step of the way. But alas, this can’t be so. War is war, after all, and one must stick up for oneself.

Having said all that, the main point of Cover Wars, for me anyway, is exposure for my novelette, All Good Stories. I’m sure Judy is thinking the same thing. So while you’re there today voting for my cover ( 😀 ), please also check out Judy’s. Each cover, when clicked, will take you to the book’s Amazon page. Why don’t you click on over and buy Judy’s book?! I haven’t read it yet, but if I know Judy, it’s awesome! Here’s the link to Author Shout, Cover Wars for the vote:  http://authorshout.com/cover-wars/ You can cast your vote once every 24 hours.

This is my beautiful cover, (drawn with love by the ever-talented Belinda Borradaile) for you to vote on:
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And here’s Judy’s! You can click on it here to go directly to its Amazon page, too.

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Thanks so much!