Have you ever been to busy to help someone out? What if you looked back and said, ‘man, I really should have helped them out’? Is that regret really more than just a superficial guilt? It’s probably not the gnawing guilt, the kind that just … Continue reading Am I really that unhelpful?
It’s an embarrassing question to have to ask, but I’m just like anyone else; isn’t there a favored activity from your childhood that fell by the wayside because the demands of the adult world simply demands way too much of your time? In my case, … Continue reading Am I really much of a bookworm anymore?
He was convinced there was no egress from this nightmare of corridors. Minutes ago Mehtab had stood on the roof, overlooking a yard encircled by hoarding and floodlights, and could actually see the way out to the desert; but naturally it had changed when he descended … Continue reading Egress: Games and Revolutions
So remember a couple weeks back when the wife and I drove up to Minot on a mission? (if not, check back later, I have to bedazzle all my posts after I get home every day) Well, I am now revealing that the object of … Continue reading Weekly Photo Challenge: An Unusual POV, #4: Proud o’ my wheels
Do you remember all the toys you had as a kid?
I had plenty of toys as a kid, and for the most part you could say that they fit into these broad categories; there were building toys, action figures, stuffed animals, plastic vehicles, remote-controlled vehicles, and books. I count books because they were significant part of my life, especially when I was a kid. However, discounting books as toys since they would win hands down considering how much I read as a kid, do I really remember what my favorite toy was?
I can tell you with absolute confidence that the one toy that I miss most, and the one that I would have back if I could, was my stuffed buffalo. I could get another stuffed buffalo, but I have never seen one like the one I had when I was a kid. And I’m really not sure I could describe it, but I know it when I see it. That being said, I don’t think the buffalo would qualify as my favorite toy per se.
You see, as a kid I was really preoccupied with building toys. Now when I say building toys, I’m talking about the kind of toys you use to build things; I had Lincoln Logs, I had Legos, I had Construx; then there were various models that I mangled; but I really liked to make stuff. It made me feel creative, it have me purpose in my play, it helped to build my imagination. So if there’s a favorite that I had it was a building toy. When I was younger it was Legos, but when I was older, I began to get into Construx, which if you have never seen it, is like a plastic snap-together erector set. Speaking of erector sets – I’ve seen them, I’ve heard others say they had them, but I never did. It might have to do with all the little pieces. As it was, my Dad threatened to throw away my Legos if he ever stepped on one when they were given to me, and for what it’s worth that still makes me laugh to think of it, I don’t know why.
As an adult, I still enjoy creating, crafting, and building things, and the building toys taught me that it was possible: that piece by piece things can still be created from scratch; and this is important in a world that is largely manufactured by machines. This is where hand-making renegades get their courage: through this confidence that everything is made not by magic, but by discrete processes that can still be done to some extent by hand. I’ve made hand bound journals, knitted and crocheted articles of clothing, and cobbled together structures of wood. Nothing is beyond my reach if I only have the materials and the know-how plus time.
And sometimes I still fool around with my Legos.
This post was prompted by today’s Daily Post prompt.
So do you ever get to feeling like all anyone ever does online is complain about stuff?
This ain’t the barter system, baby. You want my future in six words? I make it to one hundred.
Dear friends and readers, I have had this questionnaire put to me: 1. What is your favorite beverage? 2. How many hours do you sleep at night? 3. What do you eat for breakfast? 4. Do you like to cook and why? 5. How do … Continue reading Do I really like questionnaires?
“Well, Vern – ” “Well?” Vern returned Carl’s look of mischievous intent. Every time the old feller gave that look, he dropped a line that was so heavily baited it could snap a tree trunk. Thank heavens he only did it when the Coffee Stop … Continue reading Chronicles of the Dragon Runner, lap 1: An Unusual POV
Today’s photo comes from my run. Part of the trail at the end of the River Road Trail was closed with fresh blacktop on it, so I had to improvise a route that would get me back to my usual path. I ended up following … Continue reading Weekly Photo Challenge: An Unusual POV, #3: Lost in the Woods
Rob's Surf Report 