tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57013988324107469132024-02-26T09:34:18.458-08:00Life on Clemson RoadThe Off the Shelf Challenge 2021 is underway!Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.comBlogger153125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-4800206309758832242021-04-13T04:51:00.002-07:002021-04-13T04:52:06.373-07:00Not Curious Enough to Finish the March Selection<p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">When I chose non-fiction for March, I knew it would take a little longer than the fiction months had taken. I read about five non-fiction books a year and they always take longer. Partly because I’m usually less anxious to pick them up and partly because I need to really think through what I’m reading.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRyydZMtImrEiI77spuly1jwNU4Nrc4MwYmXexZEL6_dzW_yHZ5h5f_yL0RW7TytIb8RyWBvjWg9p8mcJgG-pyii12NNFHAZJ8gVVExri9lC4cDl4lmIRsna_1ihzGWOdg2Qo3a6zDzA/s2000/Off+the+Shelf+Challenge+February+%25281%2529.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="2000" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRyydZMtImrEiI77spuly1jwNU4Nrc4MwYmXexZEL6_dzW_yHZ5h5f_yL0RW7TytIb8RyWBvjWg9p8mcJgG-pyii12NNFHAZJ8gVVExri9lC4cDl4lmIRsna_1ihzGWOdg2Qo3a6zDzA/s320/Off+the+Shelf+Challenge+February+%25281%2529.png" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><i>A Curious Mind</i> by Brian Grazer with Charles Fishman was no exception. As I write this, deep into April, I still haven’t finished it. Let’s unpack why.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><b>Origin<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">It’s a hardback book that sold for $25. I ordered it May 6, 2015 with three other non-fiction books: <i>Rise: A Soldier, a Dream, and a Promise Kept </i>by Daniel Rodriguez. He’s a veteran who returned from war and played football at Clemson; <i>Reading Like a Writer</i> by Francine Prose, who, I suspect, has never been kicked out of book club; <i>Save the Cat</i> by Blake Snyder.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">On that same order were fiction titles <i>The Naked and the Dead</i> by Norman Mailer and <i>The Almond Tree</i> by Michelle Cohen Corasanti. Neither of which have been read. Apparently in 2015 I had plenty of money for books I had no intention of reading.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><b>Summary</b><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><i>A Curious Mind</i> is Brian Grazer explaining how his success in Hollywood has come from asking questions. It’s part memoir, part how-to and every now and then so completely deaf only a white man could have written it. In his defense, it was 2015, so before we were asking white men to expand their world view to include women and people of color. Nonetheless, when he talks about <i>such different stories</i> all of which starred a middle-aged white man, I’m a little bit like, “WTF, dude?”<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">One of the other things that slows down my non-fiction reading is writing in all the margins. I did that on this one, too. He had some good “nuggets” as my writer’s group lead, Ginny, would say.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><b>What I loved<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Grazer wants to share this secret with us. He wants us to be better about asking other people for their perspectives and stories. He says, “We can teach people to ask good questions, we can teach people to listen to the answers, and we can teach people to use the answer to ask the next question.” That spoke to the educator in me, especially homeschool mom Kasie who tends to lead Hollie through education like it’s a big Socratic experiment.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">He also identified “management curiosity” which has been my style with our Redesign Work platform and now (thanks!) has a name. It consists of asking contributors if the work they’d busy with is the right way to spend their time and energy. It treats all business functions like creative functions by asking, “Are we doing this the right way?”<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><b>What I Disliked<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">Grazer’s book suffers from that practitioner habit of repetition. As if there wasn’t exactly enough to say for a whole book, but we’ll repeat some key tenets so we get to the page count.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">The style is conversational, self-deprecating in places, and only a little patronizing. I might have liked more personal stories about friendships, lovers, and children. But the focus was very much on the extraordinary career he’s had in filmmaking and sometimes seemed like a lot of name-dropping.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;">That said, Grazer is genuine and when he suggests Universities staff a faculty member whose expertise is curiosity, I wrote in the margin, “Mr. Grazer will you endow my Chair at the University of South Carolina’s business school on ‘Curiosity in Management’?” <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="font-size: medium;">Have you taken the Off the Shelf Challenge in 2021? What are you reading?</span></i></b></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-5963949964919795492021-02-28T14:22:00.006-08:002021-02-28T14:25:15.110-08:00Tender Story of Love and Friendship Set Against Early Moviemaking Magic<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Songs-Willow-Frost-Jamie-Ford-ebook/dp/B00BVJG24C/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=songs+of+willow+frost&qid=1614550817&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Songs of Willow Frost<br /></a></span><span style="font-family: arial;">by Jamie Ford</span></div><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I'm not opposed to historical fiction. In fact, I find most of what I know about bygone eras has come to me through novels. That said, this month's Off the Shelf selection was an unexpected kind of historical fiction. One in which the history was new to me but the scenes were very familiar. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I should have expected that the author of <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hotel-Corner-Bitter-Sweet-Novel-ebook/dp/B001NLL5AO/ref=pd_sbs_2?pd_rd_w=rQkR1&pf_rd_p=527ea27c-adf6-4b67-9c5f-265eb29e0622&pf_rd_r=3ACM1KEMSXTV6M5YJQ79&pd_rd_r=3602ef34-e4f4-46c5-a525-a791b7e08ea6&pd_rd_wg=Y9t8a&pd_rd_i=B001NLL5AO&psc=1" target="_blank">Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet</a> would have a gift for juxtaposition, but it caught me surprise nonetheless.</span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Origin </span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGdFpI5TUq1IJyoEa0cdTGOA9MWySn1LwkDR69r_d2IuMrJ4_chqn6LxOFb6WJ_E5VhmhprOmCT4AlS7J2ycuAzYu5AxfIPOu-LyrOp0IdZh6tlNsjrfA0ajfoQbenMBM18o3axIn26w/s2000/Off+the+Shelf+Challenge+February.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="2000" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGdFpI5TUq1IJyoEa0cdTGOA9MWySn1LwkDR69r_d2IuMrJ4_chqn6LxOFb6WJ_E5VhmhprOmCT4AlS7J2ycuAzYu5AxfIPOu-LyrOp0IdZh6tlNsjrfA0ajfoQbenMBM18o3axIn26w/w320-h256/Off+the+Shelf+Challenge+February.png" width="320" /></a></span></b></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Like last month's selection, I purchased this title at a consignment store in Columbia. I paid $6 for it as a hardback. This past week, my editor and best friend Jodie and I were talking about purchasing used books. Since the author does not receive royalties from this practice, we are not big fans of it. In the case of a consignment store, however, the publisher isn't receiving payment either, just the previous book owner. I'm not sure where I stand on that.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Maybe I would just hate to think of my own book being parted with in such a way.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In any case, I pulled <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Songs-Willow-Frost-Jamie-Ford-ebook/dp/B00BVJG24C/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=songs+of+willow+frost&qid=1614550817&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Songs of Willow Frost</a> from the shelf for February and it only took me until the very last day of the month to actually finish it.</span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Summary</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This story is about William, an 12-year-old Chinese boy in Sacred Heart Orphanage outside Seattle, Washington, in 1934. The opening scene is such a good one, we get an immediate sense of exactly what orphanage life is like. There's a kind of hard-knocks-life feel to it that it seems familiar. William's friendships with a Native American boy, Sunny, and a blind girl, Charlotte, are some of the best parts of this book. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Willow Frost is the Chinese film star William believes to be his mother. We get the two reunited and her story in two flashback sections of the book, telling us about her life after her father and brothers die of Spanish Flu and her mother must remarry a real jerk to protect them. The Spanish Flu seems familiar -- plague, quarantine, face masks, fear -- but this era of Seattle history is not something I've studied.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Once reunited, William and Willow each face important choices related to what they're willing to continue to accept and that might be my biggest challenge with the book. Neither William nor Willow seems to have agency until it is far too late.</span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: arial;">What I loved</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There's some good details about the conditions of city life in Seattle at that time and the drudgery that was life in and around the stock market crash. The businessman who employs Willow to sing on the sidewalk outside his music store as a marketing effort is a good, benevolent character. The nun in the orphanage is also a great character who gets a chance at forgiveness and redemption, one she makes good use of. I also liked the early history of moviemaking and film production. Good research showed through there.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There's a child's sense of confusion in the narrative that surrounds William, Sunny, and Charlotte. I think Jamie Ford does a good job of giving us their naiveté even as dangerous as it is. But Willow's equal naiveté is less gratifying.</span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: arial;">What I didn't like</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I wanted Willow to have more moxie. Especially after reading Ford's Author's Note regarding his late grandmother who was a strong "Alpha Female" in an era when to be so strong was not easy or welcome. I wanted Willow to make plans and struggle through failure. But she waited around. A lot. Kind of like William did. Maybe there's a beautiful parallel there, but it was frustrating and even boring in some places.</span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Should you read this</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I liked Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet better, but Ford is a talented storyteller and spending time with anything he's delivered would be worthwhile.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b><i>So what did you read off your shelf in February? Leave a comment to share.</i></b></span></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-60328437651072580762021-01-14T09:44:00.003-08:002021-01-14T09:44:34.631-08:00Self-Inflicted Mid-Life Crisis Wrapped in Beautiful Prose<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Off the Shelf Challenge 2021 - </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">January</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-0e2d47e9-7fff-e1fb-1d00-3f4738b34289"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/One-Last-Thing-Before-Go/dp/0142196819/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=one+last+thing+before+i+go&qid=1610644644&sr=8-1" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One Last thing Before I Go</span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jonathan Tropper</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I write in my books. It’s why I’m not a very good library user. In this month’s <b><a href="http://lifeonclemsonroad.blogspot.com/2021/01/off-shelf-2021-reading-challenge.html" target="_blank">Off the Shelf</a></b> pick, I worked really hard to </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">not</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> write in it. For two reasons: one, I wanted to read it for the sake of reading and two, I felt like I’d probably just end up highlighting whole sections of such beautifully written prose it routinely broke my heart.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is the first entry for the <a href="http://lifeonclemsonroad.blogspot.com/2021/01/off-shelf-2021-reading-challenge.html" target="_blank">Off the Shelf Challenge</a> and I wasn’t sure what format these posts would take so I’m going to try this one and see if it does what we need it to do. I’ll accept your feedback, dear reader, in the comments below.</span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghta2XEnRDa7UQ4yVALi1ykcMRZxlNE3ThylAn3xloU4g3nZDRPxer12HwnanL0hiekAV-Ph2MqF1urA5lsHiqBca97SjTQdqyV2Ha6HvJ7_pqGI089S7QqG8VG6EH2hk_pQ45xKKABA/" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="2000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghta2XEnRDa7UQ4yVALi1ykcMRZxlNE3ThylAn3xloU4g3nZDRPxer12HwnanL0hiekAV-Ph2MqF1urA5lsHiqBca97SjTQdqyV2Ha6HvJ7_pqGI089S7QqG8VG6EH2hk_pQ45xKKABA/" width="300" /></a></div></span></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Origin</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Where I bought the book is the first note I make in the book. I write where and when I purchased it on just about every acquisition. So I flipped this one open to see where and when and … nothing. I apparently didn’t record that. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So here’s what I know about this book: the copyright is August 2012 and this is a hardback version, so it’s probably of that year. The cover price says $26.95 US but on the back is a label printed by a local cycle-up consignment store called Roundabouts that priced the book at $8. The label also says 11/19/2015 which I can guess was when the book was acquired. I apparently purchased it sometime after that.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Summary</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This book follows Silver, a fifty-something former musician who is estranged from his ex-wife and daughter. He’s living in a sad apartment complex with dozens of other former husbands and earning $70 a week for ejaculating into a cup as part of a scientific research study. The sadness of Silver’s existence is quickly established - he’s a has-been musician from a one-hit-wonder band, and more like a passenger in his own life than an active participant until he’s diagnosed with an operable but life-threatening heart condition.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The book is a third-person close narrative with alternative viewpoints of Silver and his daughter, Casey, a recent high school graduate, whose own medical crisis pulls Silver back into her life while intersecting with his new diagnosis. We also get a few segments from the POV of Denise, Casey’s mom and Silver’s ex. The fragments of this former family and the way they try to repair the ties and heal old wounds are the primary occupation of the novel.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What I Loved</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The prose is perfect. Phrases like, “When you grow up in a rabbi’s house, God is part of the package, an amiable resident ghost, floating about in corners, sitting in the empty dinner chair, peering in through the curtains after you get tucked into bed.” I can only imagine all of Tropper’s work reads this way: regular language elegantly constructed for just the right impact. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There’s also this meta-understanding of the language when Silver begins saying aloud his internal thoughts. It’s a manifestation of his sickness, and serves to break barriers between himself and others, so it’s a great device. But it also calls attention to the way the thoughts are constructed -- they are not the same as dialogue -- and yet they’re used as dialogue. Which is so simple a device as to be obnoxiously brilliant.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In one encounter, after the device has been well established, Silver approaches a woman he’s been admiring from afar. The internal monologue reads, in part, “He senses a profound kindness in her, a softness he wants very badly to know and protect… He could be a better man for her.” The woman looks strangely at him and replies, “You know you’re saying this out loud, right?” to which he responds, “I do now.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The reader is left to wonder if Silver thinks of himself in third person: “he senses,” and “he could,” or if he’s monologued the passage as, “I sense,” and “I could be.” And this trick, this device, is so compelling that when it’s used strategically throughout the book, it endears us both to Silver and to the story itself. Not to mention as he’s being honest and revealing secrets, the character is also forcing other characters to respond and spurring the plot forward.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So, like I said, brilliant. And simple. So simple I’m jealous of it.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What I didn’t like</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We don’t have any reason to like Silver, he’s a self-admitted screw up who doesn’t really know why he let his family slip away and his life fall apart. Now, as he’s diagnosed with a failing heart, as his daughter is in crisis and his ex-wife is about to remarry, he seems to want to make a comeback and although he admits he doesn’t deserve a second chance, we nonetheless hope he gets one.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I don’t like that we don’t get the details of the marriage’s demise. We never see the moment when Denise kicked him out. We’re given the same kind of apathetic summation of the events leading up to his being in a kind of effortless fog for seven years that Silver himself feels and I was frustrated by that. I get it -- life isn’t one mistake that ruins us. It’s a series of careless declines, things we decide not to do, that leaves us desolate. But such a realization is both depressing and lets both Silver and Tropper off the hook.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Should You Read This?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’d recommend it. I picked it up Sunday and was done Wednesday evening. It’s easy to stick with, engaging and well-written. It’s not particularly groundbreaking but that’s part of what makes it so good - its smallness is self-aware and it echoes one of those universal truths that one only learns after years of believing otherwise: It’s never the big things that matter. It’s always the accumulation of small things that really determines our satisfaction with our own life.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What did you read this month? Leave the book’s purchase link in the comments and answer the prompts: Origin, Summary, Liked, Didn’t, and Would you recommend it. </span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span><div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-35430347570801612552021-01-02T09:17:00.006-08:002021-01-02T09:21:44.792-08:00Off the Shelf: A 2021 Reading Challenge<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuVuus9JEXLywMxEU2Oe5YJM0914ePK9Ntj-u8QTGa6qERw2r9S5DVZNQd-hkmKo4WM9667yz0ed8uXiZrBdHu5n_cPsi5mYiWk2eoMePzPrzsrOA0esrdW0r4WJDipZ1gLi4cdQA3yQ/s2000/Off+the+Shelf+Challenge.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="2000" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuVuus9JEXLywMxEU2Oe5YJM0914ePK9Ntj-u8QTGa6qERw2r9S5DVZNQd-hkmKo4WM9667yz0ed8uXiZrBdHu5n_cPsi5mYiWk2eoMePzPrzsrOA0esrdW0r4WJDipZ1gLi4cdQA3yQ/w413-h330/Off+the+Shelf+Challenge.png" width="413" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-50042ea0-7fff-bc7e-07fa-6b8caabea93a"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’m a Kindle junky. For the past few years I’ve read 100+ books, all digital, mostly romance. Meanwhile, my library shelves have remained static.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ve borrowed library books. Selected them, requested them, picked them up, and left them on the table while I digitally binged.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On Christmas Day, Hollie received from Santa a paperback copy of V.C. Andrews’ </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Heaven</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. I promptly read it cover to cover. Then bought the second book, </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Dark Angel</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, and read it, too. They were the books that made me want to become an author when I was 12.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Having rekindled my love for paper texts (pun intended), I’ve decided to do something about the bookshelves.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I am resolved to read 12 books already in my possession. Each one, when finished, will be discussed here. It’s my way of committing to 1) reading </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">real</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> books, 2) blogging here more regularly, and 3) writing reviews as a way of sharpening my literary analysis skills.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Once upon a time, I earned a master’s degree in English with the careful study and analysis of literary texts. And lately I’ve been reading books like eating candy. Full consumption. Sugary and empty.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The master’s degree was not wasted. I write much better than many people I know and I’ve skills in recognizing storytelling devices and literary achievement. But I have neglected study and wish to see if a more dedicated effort will benefit me in unexpected ways.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span></span></p><a name='more'></a></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Here are the titles I have selected:</b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Sympathizer</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pachinko</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One Last Thing Before I Go</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lush Life</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Songs of Willow Frost</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Artemis</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Philosopher’s Flight</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Red Clocks</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">They Stole Him Out of Jail</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reckless</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Together</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A Curious Mind</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Literary fiction, commercial fiction, science fiction, magical realism, historical nonfiction, memoir, and … what would we call </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A Curious Mind</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">? Just regular nonfiction I guess.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><span><!--more--></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>So, here’s the 2021 Off the Shelf Challenge:</b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">1.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Select 12 books from your own bookcase (all word nerds have at least 12 unread books)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Commit to the titles with a comment below</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">3.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Come back each month to see what I thought of mine and</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">4.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Share your thoughts on the book you’ve finished in the comments.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pretty simple, right?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ve challenged my family to read 12 books this year as well. Theirs can be brand new, library-loans, or something off the shelf. The rules for them are a bit more lenient. They won’t even have to write about the selections they finish.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’d love to have one screen-free night per week, but I won’t hold my breath.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Life on Clemson Road goes on as it ever has. Thanks for following along on the journey. I promise to be more faithful to it in 2021.</span></p><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></div><p><br /><br /></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-75664815878888583532020-11-03T05:37:00.002-08:002020-11-03T05:45:34.759-08:00Don't be the Sheep<p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Naj71ZFYh56QBH-baVAC0zGyNdcp5Twb5ybbhoQcFTmgPUc5BEvtq_tYubEDjUjfIauHSSz2_F2y5z_ojT_woySfgZmRmtM_x6MJTf2s4L43qENyRd36_v4KfLBqK1mZkjvKT93Zbw/s1076/Screenshot+2018-04-30+15.11.23.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1076" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Naj71ZFYh56QBH-baVAC0zGyNdcp5Twb5ybbhoQcFTmgPUc5BEvtq_tYubEDjUjfIauHSSz2_F2y5z_ojT_woySfgZmRmtM_x6MJTf2s4L43qENyRd36_v4KfLBqK1mZkjvKT93Zbw/w320-h318/Screenshot+2018-04-30+15.11.23.png" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />For too long our elections have been battles between lions. Like gladiator games, we are all in the stadium (or watching from home) with little to no impact on the outcome. We are the sheep. So okay, sheeple, let’s be clear about a few important truths: </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Republicans and Democrats are NOT the government. </i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">They are well-funded factions with paid operatives. They are what George Washington warned us about in his farewell address. They are national organizations that select candidates, decide which races to fund, and manipulate election law to secure their own power. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Political parties are career politicians but that doesn’t mean they know how to govern. </i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Political parties are about getting elected. The paid operatives inside the Republican and Democrat parties are strategists. They dice voter data, make judgments about candidate viability, and design and approve those negative ads we all hate. When paid political operatives take the stage, when they rig contests, when they fundraise, they are not acting in the best interests of the voters. They are acting in the best interests of the party. Because that’s who pays them. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>This is not the most important vote in your life. </i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Any more than last presidential cycle was. Or the one before that. Politicians drive urgency to earn airtime. They are competing with social media, the struggles of your everyday life, your job, your kids, your sex life for attention. Politicians need your facetime and they get it by telling you how much they matter. This is a job interview and they are candidates. They are not heroes. They are not saviors. They are at best celebrities and at worst grifters. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Everything is political only if you let it be. </i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Suspicious of the accuracy of our voting system? Angry that some people aren’t wearing masks? Scared your business will fail if it stays closed? Don’t trust police to keep you safe? Think the border wall is the only way to maintain our national sovereignty? Everything is political if you let it be. And if you exist in your community, you know that nothing is political. How your neighbors treat you, the local restaurants and theaters and art exhibits that express love and pride, a Friday night football game of cheering fans, and school PTO meetings where volunteers support educators: that is life. Not red and blue states. Not pundits and soundbites. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>You are the power. </i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">After the smoke clears and the dust settles and mainstream media goes back to reporting on celebrity gossip, you can still enact change in your community. You can volunteer for local efforts to feed the hungry and shelter the homeless. You can organize community efforts to solve local issues, let your voice be heard at City and County Council meetings, challenge efforts to gerrymander districts. You can find validated news online and share that instead of echo-chamber propaganda. You can get out from behind your computer screen and realize real life, out there in the world, is less scary than the lions would have you believe. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">You can be the sheep. Or you can be the shepherd. Armed and ready to shoot the lions.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-40103518754392629442020-07-11T08:56:00.000-07:002020-07-11T08:56:16.623-07:00Listening: The Forgotten Virtue of Citizenship<i>Borrowed from my friend Alex Peterson, a fellow delegate to the Libertarian Party's National Convention in Orlando this weekend.</i><br />
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<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">As good citizens, there comes times that we must listen to our neighbors and act to maintain peace. In today's discussions that is often a forgotten virtue, and has led to a regrettable situation where two sides are facing off with both believing that the other is exhibiting signs of racism. Although one person does not speak for a movement, when the leaders of the movement do not call out ideals spoken under their banner that do not match the movement's ideals it is assumed they support them. This has become a serious issue between the people stating “All lives matter” and “Black lives matter.”</span><span class="c-mrkdwn__br" data-stringify-type="paragraph-break" style="background-color: #f8f8f8; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1d1c1d; display: block; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; height: 8px; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"></span><span class="c-mrkdwn__br" data-stringify-type="paragraph-break" style="background-color: #f8f8f8; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1d1c1d; display: block; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; height: 8px; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"></span><span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><b>In researching this issue, we did find some very valid points about life experiences in our county that really should be fully heard by all. </b></span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">For example, we found that the idea of impending victimization to be a serious issue for a wide swath of people when they see anything pertaining to slavery. This is especially true near government buildings. We did also find reports of people being stopped an seemingly impossible number of times by the police. These situations merit further action without question. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">Our American Dream is one of equality and personal prosperity. While the arguments of preserving history have merit, the facts are we can accomplish the same thing by moving those items to museums without having to expose people to that kind of negativity. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">We can also use the present hardware used by police to create systems of civilian tracking that would allow us to identify such abuse of power and hopefully end it before someone gets hurt or killed. We would ask that the people under the “All lives matter” banner to listen to some of the speeches given at BLM rallies while imagining if your parents and now you had experienced some of those events. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><b>We would then ask that we respectfully put that part of our past behind us and work together with our neighbors to create a better functioning country for all.</b></span><span class="c-mrkdwn__br" data-stringify-type="paragraph-break" style="background-color: #f8f8f8; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1d1c1d; display: block; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; height: 8px; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"></span><span class="c-mrkdwn__br" data-stringify-type="paragraph-break" style="background-color: #f8f8f8; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1d1c1d; display: block; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; height: 8px; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"></span><span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">That being said, there are also some points that people are making underneath the “All lives matter” banner that have logical merit. When one searches the internet, we find that there are quotes from media and videos on what are represented as being BLM leaders stating that all white people are inferior and racist. There has also been enough violence especially considering the children that are dying from it. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">We would ask that the grassroots portion of the “Black lives matter” movement reach out to the charity's leadership and ask why no statement has been made clearing these matters up. Because of those statements people are really saying “All lives matter” thinking they are educating the person in front of them about racism instead of hearing a cry for help. It would also be important to ask where the billions of dollars the charity is getting is going. It would be fair to say that the money was given with the ideal of helping your community; however, it does not seem to be doing so at this time. If the charity will not come clean on these issues, it is our recommendation the grassroots portion of “Black lives matter” fight for their slogan and money back to use it for actual good.</span><span class="c-mrkdwn__br" data-stringify-type="paragraph-break" style="background-color: #f8f8f8; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1d1c1d; display: block; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; height: 8px; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"></span><span class="c-mrkdwn__br" data-stringify-type="paragraph-break" style="background-color: #f8f8f8; box-sizing: inherit; color: #1d1c1d; display: block; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; height: 8px; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"></span><span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;">If both sides will step back and look at the merits of the other's points, we would find that because all lives matter we should be removing idols of slavery and putting them away. We would also find that anyone speaking in a racist manner should be called out for it and better educated. By doing so, both sides should be able to easily work hand in hand towards the common goal.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><i>In clarification of Presidential Candidate Jo Jorgensen's tweet using #blacklivesmatter and therefore being attacked for being a Marxist, I wrote <a href="https://sclp.org/the-wagon-wheel-coffee-table-of-presidents/">this on the SCLP.org blog</a>. Thanks, Alex, for taking the conversation further by suggesting we LISTEN to one another.</i></span><br />
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<b><i>Who’s in?</i></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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This is an open invitation to anyone who wants to write a blog on the topic of Love & Politics to contribute to this space. It’s safe here, I promise. You are welcome here. You don’t have to agree with me or anyone else. Just tell us a story. Make a case. Make an effort.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><i>Leave a comment if you’d like to contribute or reach out to me kasie@clemsonroad.com and let's talk.</i></b></div>
<span style="background-color: #f8f8f8; color: #1d1c1d; font-family: Slack-Lato, appleLogo, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><br /></span><div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-65571487114704852472020-07-07T05:55:00.000-07:002020-07-07T05:55:01.919-07:00On Freedom<div style="caret-color: rgb(29, 33, 41); color: #1d2129; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">
<i>Shared with permission from my friend Jackie Capers Brown on Facebook:</i></div>
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One of the dictionary meanings of the word freedom is the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.</div>
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Another dictionary definition of freedom is the absence of subjection to foreign domination or despotic government. A despotic government is a form of government in which a single entity rules with absolute power. Normally, that entity is an individual, the despot, as in an autocracy, but societies that limit respect and power to specific groups have also been called despotic.</div>
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On July 4th every year the United States of America celebrates the day that 13 colonies decided to claim their independence from England. </div>
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It is the evolution of this country and what it might become when all citizens are respected and feel they are valued and capable of using their civil liberties to create the change they seek that will cause us to always be at crossroads throughout the history of this nation. This is a normal part of the evolution process.</div>
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The United States of America is not perfect, nor will it ever be. Humans are imperfect. Our challenge as citizens, regardless of race, is for us to not lose sight that this democracy can only see better days as we the people unite to respect, value, demonstrate empathy and genuine care and concern for one another.</div>
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For too long, we have allowed our country to be run by political parties, special interest groups, big business, wealthy and influential people who have not had our collective best interest in mind.</div>
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It's time that we the American people who understand the challenge but are up to it - begin the process of our turnaround in our communities with a focus on UNITY. Finding common ground with people that don't look like us for our collective common good.</div>
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The degree in which we can come together and find common ground and address community issues UNITED will reflect the degree to which we can rise up, TOGETHER.</div>
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For example, we the people need to use our freedom to decide that every citizen and person in this nation has a right to equal justice regardless of his or her skin color, gender, religion, sexual orientation etc. We need to establish what that looks and feels like and hold elected officials accountable for taking action that makes it a reality.</div>
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There is a cost for freedom. There are sacrifices we must make for freedom. There is a level of maturity we must demonstrate to actualize the American dream written in our constitution. </div>
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I believe that each of us has been born for such a time as this.<br />I believe that all of the divisiveness and hate we are seeing in our country is a mirror reflection of the condition of our country's soul. </div>
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And, unless, we are ready to relinquish the control of this nation to one person or political figure, each of us needs to take time to reflect on how we can use our unique code of greatness towards elevating our country to the next level.</div>
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We have to raise our personal standard as to how we will show up in this world and the impact we are having towards creating a better world for the generations behind us.</div>
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We cannot continue to live in ways that urge us to forgo the future benefits of becoming UNITED NOW to appease our tendency for instant gratification. It is clear that this approach is causing great harm to the citizens of this country, and the country itself.</div>
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IT'S DECISION TIME</div>
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I believe this moment in our collective history is calling us to make a decision. Will we step into a higher version of ourselves for the collective good of all?</div>
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We have demonstrated during times of great challenges that we can do this. Will this moment go down in our country's history where we decided to rise above our petty differences and find common ground from which we can begin to rebuild and heal in order to move forward?</div>
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We can respect our individual differences while honoring that which UNITES us. We can RISE UP and become the people who are capable of living our constitution out loud.</div>
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Our individual and collective decisions will determine the fate of our country. The acceptance of this reality provides each of us with the great freedom to choose how we will impact our family, community, and country's legacy.</div>
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<i style="caret-color: rgb(28, 30, 33); color: #1c1e21; font-family: "Helvetica Neue Light", HelveticaNeue-Light, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;">Thank you, Jackie, for allowing me to share this here and for sharing your voice, your vulnerability, and your love with me. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Love and Politics on Clemson Road welcomes you.</span></i></div>
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<a href="https://www.jackiecapersbrown.com/my-story">About Jackie Capers Brown</a></div>
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Catch up with Jackie's significant and meaningful work <a href="https://www.jackiecapersbrown.com/">here</a>.</div>
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<b><i>Who’s in?</i></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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This is an open invitation to anyone who wants to write a blog on the topic of Love & Politics to contribute to this space. It’s safe here, I promise. You are welcome here. You don’t have to agree with me or anyone else. Just tell us a story. Make a case. Make an effort.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><i>Leave a comment if you’d like to contribute or reach out to me kasie@clemsonroad.com and let's talk.</i></b></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-21752941185172443652020-06-29T12:59:00.001-07:002020-06-29T13:01:13.704-07:00Tears Streaming and Chest HighFrom my friend Robert Burgess on Facebook:<br />
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I’d like to wake up just one morning and not relive black trauma at every moment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">It would be to nice roll over and kiss my beautiful wife, hug my exceptional children and have black grief ignore me for just one day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">But that is not today. Probably won’t be tomorrow. Or anytime soon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Reality is waking up in a thick cloud of frustration, anxiety, fear and anger.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Reality is operating in that volcanic space at work, in conversations and alone as if things are normal but truthfully there is an F5 tornado swirling around my mind.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Reality is layering those feelings with a pandemic, an economic crisis and a white supremacist President.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The weight is enough to break any aware, lucid human, black or not.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Yet...inequality in Black spaces has evolved our ability to persevere despite the traumatic obstacles. Like ocean fins to feet, it came out of the need to survive and lives on.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The indelible resilience of the black spirit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">That despite the forces arrayed against us, we still kiss the ones we love, work hard for our families and tell grief that we will not be moved and if we DO move, we will march in solidarity, vote like our lives depend on it, advocate for our community and take the action that can no longer wait.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Tears streaming and chest high.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I still wake up with black trauma swirling in the air but I am filled with hope. This hope says I will fight until our laws, our education system, our healthcare system, the environment, the carceral system and economic outlook prove Black Lives Matter.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1c1e21; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">That in itself feels like a miracle.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Thank you, Robert, for allowing me to share this here and for sharing your voice, your vulnerability, and your love with me. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Love and Politics on Clemson Road welcomes your voice.</span></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicfLADAHgIW8LFuZthVO1WlrxBGi2h3A10Tm1CbsqE5IDv_tGHBHuEArjeD7eGL3SyGE0UemWXJkuW9Pz0MpdIoDSa06AEhg2E7NrphyEpCxEvLUdybguslCH_hU8D31WWKs4H0CWrOQ/s1600/Screenshot+2020-06-29+16.00.34.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="727" data-original-width="878" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicfLADAHgIW8LFuZthVO1WlrxBGi2h3A10Tm1CbsqE5IDv_tGHBHuEArjeD7eGL3SyGE0UemWXJkuW9Pz0MpdIoDSa06AEhg2E7NrphyEpCxEvLUdybguslCH_hU8D31WWKs4H0CWrOQ/s320/Screenshot+2020-06-29+16.00.34.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><i>Who’s in?</i></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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This is an open invitation to anyone who wants to write a blog on the topic of Love & Politics to contribute to this space. It’s safe here, I promise. You are welcome here. You don’t have to agree with me or anyone else. Just tell us a story. Make a case. Make an effort.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><i>Leave a comment if you’d like to contribute or reach out to me kasie@clemsonroad.com and let's talk.</i></b></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-89796850348334965252020-06-20T10:50:00.000-07:002020-06-20T10:50:08.879-07:00Love & Politics on Clemson Road<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">On January 21, 2017, I attended the Women’s March in Washington D.C. I carried a sign that said, “Because Love” on one side and “Because Hope” on the other.</span></div>
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I was there to heal. To understand what the fuck had just happened in the 2016 election when our broken system failed. It failed to deliver a slate of candidates who were (1) qualified, (2) inspiring, and (3) worthy of the great honor of being President.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m a Libertarian and I voted for Gary Johnson. Leading up to the election all I heard was that my vote would help elect Trump. Or Clinton. Not sure how that works that one vote for Gary Johnson counted three times: Against Clinton, Against Trump, and FOR the candidate I actually wanted.<o:p></o:p></div>
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But if I’m honest, even Johnson wasn’t the leader I was looking for.<o:p></o:p></div>
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So at the Women’s March I stood shoulder to shoulder with women who were worried about their reproductive rights, about the future of our country, and the lack of decency in politics and in the White House.<o:p></o:p></div>
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In the four years since then we have been on a wild ride. One that has further polarized and isolated us from each other and from what we think our government can and should do for us.<o:p></o:p></div>
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During the pandemic I was horrified at our country’s willing surrender of pretty much every civil right we have. Like supplicants, we looked to our government and begged it to save us. And if that wasn’t bad enough, our government failed. Like big time.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So what now? Where do we go from here?</span></h3>
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That’s what this blog will attempt to reason out. Let’s think it through. Let’s talk it out. There are no easy answers and that’s okay. I don’t need easy and you shouldn’t want easy. Easy got us here: sadness, grief, anger, and frustration.<o:p></o:p></div>
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"Easy" – the idea that our politicians could and would fix it, that we “deserve” better, that we don’t have to do the work because <i>they</i> will – “Easy” got us where we are. And this place is at best unsustainable and at worst, a total failure of a citizenry to care for one another.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: red;">Som</span><span style="color: #e69138;">eth</span><span style="color: #f1c232;">ing’s</span> <span style="color: #38761d;">got</span> <span style="color: #0b5394;">to</span> <span style="color: #351c75;">give</span>.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Let us bring the LOVE. Bring the HOPE. Bring compassion, bring optimism, bring a willingness to roll up your sleeves and do the work. Bring your words and let’s work on this together.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><i>Who’s in?</i></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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This is an open invitation to anyone who wants to write a blog on the topic of Love & Politics to contribute to this space. It’s safe here, I promise. You are welcome here. You don’t have to agree with me or anyone else. Just tell us a story. Make a case. Make an effort.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><i>Leave a comment if you’d like to contribute or reach out to me kasie@clemsonroad.com and let's talk.</i></b></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-14015300576330880522020-03-10T10:42:00.001-07:002020-03-10T10:42:07.670-07:00ROAR!!! Then wait. Repeat as necessary.
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<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’ve always loved March’s “in like a lion, out like a lamb”
dichotomy. On the one side, there’s a fierce restlessness and on the other, a
kind of peaceful hopefulness.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s not much of a stretch to say I’ve repeated this pattern
in my life almost as if, being born in this month, I was given a script by
which to operate.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I can be very Lion-ish about certain things. I <a href="http://lifeonclemsonroad.blogspot.com/2020/01/rest-in-peace-sir-lion-owl-and-st.html">once
identified it</a> as my leadership style. The entrepreneur in me, the would-be punk
with mismatched clothes and wild hair, she’s a Lion. Nonconformist,
freedom-loving, and willing to <a href="https://kasiewhitener.com/2018/04/30/hashtag-hijacked-debate-pivots/">debate</a>
and argue <a href="https://kasiewhitener.com/2017/03/28/healthcare-is-a-right-and-other-stupid-shit-people-say-at-town-hall-meetings-2/">politics</a>.
She’s been woke these last few years after #MeToo, #Resist, and #ShePersisted. She’s
been willing to admit her <a href="https://kasiewhitener.com/2017/09/26/hey-white-people-takeaknee-this-is-a-coachable-moment/">privilege</a>
and tried to be empathetic to the journey others are on.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A lion is a pack animal, protective and focused on doing what
needs to be done. We’re talking the Nala kind of lion, not Simba the slacker.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv4rS_RJuTD50WIFzK2iRTtLMzy7qoZXCgsJ0e0FtJdOfIQ5BVADQoqDW4CpZLrMnlTTmPV-zWYo7IKMgxLrfPvu8I4Q7zvHBvNwmuET9ynqTySjZsrP3oeGtFZ6outsHHHF4jixTK4A/s1600/Screenshot+2020-03-10+13.36.55.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="786" data-original-width="1452" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv4rS_RJuTD50WIFzK2iRTtLMzy7qoZXCgsJ0e0FtJdOfIQ5BVADQoqDW4CpZLrMnlTTmPV-zWYo7IKMgxLrfPvu8I4Q7zvHBvNwmuET9ynqTySjZsrP3oeGtFZ6outsHHHF4jixTK4A/s320/Screenshot+2020-03-10+13.36.55.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Courtesy <a href="http://screenprism.com/insights/article/in-the-lion-king-could-simba-and-nala-be-half-siblings">ScreenPrism.com</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">My lion side wants to force things, take the lead, share a
vision that others embrace and respond to. She’s writing the entrepreneurism “textbook”
(more of a digital course supplement than traditional textbook). She sees gaps
in the marketplace.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My lion side gets discouraged and frustrated when she can’t
rally people to the cause. Why don’t we have more listeners on our radio show?
Why can’t we get people to participate in our local authors book club? Why is
it so hard to build a tribe?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>If you build it, they will come</i> isn’t exactly a
business strategy. My lion side knows this. She wants to work, to hustle, to
build.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then there’s the lamb. She sacrifices herself. She accepts a
certain kind of dismissal, overlooking, and low expectations. She doesn’t bite
back when people say, “If you can do it, so can I.” (Cuz really, fuck that. No,
you can’t.)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
She smiles with grace and dignity when she’s denied funding
for an idea. When she loses a sale. When she’s ignored by decision makers, king
makers, in this town. She defers: recommends and promotes others into roles she
ought to be Lion-ish about. She gives.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And then she lays down and waits.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And this frustrates my lion side. I want to advocate but am
I standing on an empty shore and spitting into the wind?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s my birthday month. A traditional month of introspection
for me. The year I turned 40 I started a little journal of the “well-lived life”
things I was going to do: read more female authors (check), spend more time
with family (check), donate more clothing (umm), build Hollie’s scrapbook
(umm), submit to more journals (<a href="http://columbiawritersworkshop.blogspot.com/2018/05/what-i-have-learned-by-submitting-every.html">yes,
but with sad results</a>). <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s three years later and I’m no worse off now than I was
then. I’ve published a book, earned a full-time faculty position, and
established the only school for consultants in South Carolina. I’ve also gotten
into some of the habits I wanted to establish like attending live events and blogging
more regularly. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This month I’ll be taking stock again. The lamb in me wants
to understand where I’ve been and how to course correct. The lion in me wants
action.<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment--><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-71743487172586625782020-01-23T04:54:00.000-08:002020-03-06T04:55:15.471-08:00Rest in peace, sir: The Lion, the Owl, and the St Bernard<br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
This week I worked with my classes on goal setting. To get them in the right mindset of thinking beyond “Get an A” as their goal for the term, I encouraged them to consider the various areas of their lives where they’d like to see some improvement.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
We named categories like friends and family, finances, health and wellness, and art and culture. Would they set a goal to spend more time with relatives? To save more money? To work out daily? Or to attend at least one “culture” event per month?<o:p></o:p></div>
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In those goal setting classes, I talk a lot about having a balanced life, one that is rich in relationships, purpose, and joy. A life they would want others to say was well-lived.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Too often over the past few years I’ve had the occasion to think of the end-of-life and the things we say about others after they’ve passed. In each circumstance, I wondered if the work I’m doing daily is building, as the poet says, out of the lumber of my life a temple or a tavern.<o:p></o:p></div>
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This week I learned the man who taught me the very goal setting practice I use in the classroom is nearing the end of his life. He’s comfortable, his daughter says, and at peace. And when I got word through Facebook, I felt pride in the work I’m doing and in the way his lessons have stayed with me.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>The Lion<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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I was a sophomore in high school when Captain Blakeman took the highest officers of our Naval Junior Officers Training Corps (NJROTC) battalion on a retreat weekend for strategic planning for the following year. It was the 4H camp in Front Royal, Virginia, and it was an incredible experience. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Our first exercise was to self-identify our leadership style. I remember claiming to be a Lion: fierce, bold, and willing to take risks. That may be where the entrepreneur in me lives. The writer, the Libertarian, the nonconformist that wears flannels and t-shirts with my business skirts and heels.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Later, during a strategy session, Captain Blakeman explained how each goal could be broken into three strategic objectives and each objective into tasks we could easily do daily, weekly, or monthly. It was my first experience with itemizing work: what will it take to get us where we want to go? Captain Blakeman’s system explained how to create a plan not only for myself but for any team, any organization, and any effort I was meant to lead.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>The Owl<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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My entire career has been built on itemized work organized in the pattern he taught me all those years ago. Even my personal life follows this intentional exercise. Every January I organize the next year’s vision into a series of objectives to achieve and tasks to perform. I’ve become less ferocious and demanding, and more measured and analytical. I’m Owl-like in middle age.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It’s unlikely I’ll have the chance to say goodbye to Captain Blakeman. I’m not alone in these fond memories of what he taught in his decades-long career as a Naval officer and Naval Science Instructor. It’s unlikely he’d remember me, just one of hundreds of teenagers in whose life he made an impact.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>The St. Bernard<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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In all the reflections I’ve been able to do over those we’ve lost, I’m reminded of the third leadership style, that of the St. Bernard. Caring, kindness, compassion and a willingness to go where others won’t to provide relief and comfort.<o:p></o:p></div>
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On the retreat when he had us self-identify our leadership style according to those iconic animals, Captain Blakeman didn’t tell us that the very best leaders know when to be what. Somehow, I think he knew we would come to that conclusion in our own time.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Thanks, Captain Blakeman. May your journey be peaceful and your rest eternal.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-66505538553743632532019-12-04T13:47:00.000-08:002019-12-04T13:47:10.156-08:00Meeting Your Characters IRL<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This post originally appeared on the Columbia II Writers Workshop blog. It's revived here because I think this audience would appreciate it, too. Enjoy!</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Years ago, I went home to Northern Virginia over a school break and met my mom for lunch at Uno Pizzeria. It was on the corner of the most upscale shopping center in our area and it was one of my favorite places to eat.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’d been away at college for a while and had been writing the novel that would become </span><i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">After December</span></i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">. I knew the story was about Brian Listo, a version of myself I felt confident sharing with others. He was arrogant, privileged, and good at everything he did. He also smoked and drank like it was his job and was kind of a slut.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">I loved him. And he loved me back. Through the troubled years surrounding my parents’ divorce and the break-up of our family, when I moved away from Northern Virginia and only rarely went back, Brian was with me.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Josh, actor portraying Brian in the Fanatik Productions trailer</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Imagine how it felt to see him walk into Uno Pizzeria. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">As my mom continued talking to me, I watched Brian move through the bar area. Watched him greet his friends who did not resemble the other characters of the book. Watched him light a cigarette and take a deep drink from a tall beer. The afternoon sunlight played on the shades of dirty blonde and light brown in his hair. His grey gaze seared me from across the room.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Day drinking, flannel-wearing, ridiculously hot Brian stood just yards away.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Of course, it wasn’t him. Searing gaze aside, he was just some handsome college-aged guy that looked like he could have been Brian. To the one-raised eyebrow, he could have been him. But of course he wasn’t.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Neither was Josh, the actor who stood in my kitchen listening to me explain how Brian’s kind of an asshole. And how he’s trying not to be. You know, character arc and all that. Then Josh went upstairs, got in bed with Meli, and filmed the opening scene of the book for the trailer.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Being with an actor who is trying to learn more about Brian so he can accurately portray him was both terrifying and thrilling. Josh looks like Brian. Not as much as that guy in Uno 20 years ago, but a lot like him. And he’s handsome and he has a great smile. But as soon as he started talking, he sounded young. Like Millennial young, and I remembered the literary agent that asked me if </span><i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">After December</span></i><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> had to be set in the 90s.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Yes, yes it does. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Josh is a good actor, he really is. Watching the filming of the trailer was awesome. Thanks to Fanatik Productions for putting it together. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Being in the same room with your characters is the ultimate thrill.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A few weeks back, I visited those Northern Virginia locations where the book is set. Many, like Uno, are no longer in business. But I went anyway. Waxed nostalgic for the 90s and crossed my fingers I'd run into Brian Listo again. Of course, he’d probably have his teenaged son with him.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's <a href="https://kasiewhitener.com/2019/11/04/the-trailer/">the link to the traile</a>r they filmed. It's fantastic.</span></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-74785967350046729342019-11-26T16:40:00.000-08:002019-11-26T16:40:25.190-08:00The Grown Up Version of My Tween Dream is Published<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
In the scene I remember best, Tony lay bleeding on the floor of the cave where they’d built a ramp to skate. All the ramps they skated had these cool names: one in the sewers was called Ratwall and the one in an ocean-front cave (a la <i><a href="https://youtu.be/0A80j2BuMaU">The Lost Boys</a></i>) was called Angel’s Lair. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m not sure how my 7<sup>th</sup> grade novelist thought they lit that cave. Torches maybe? Candles? Or some sunlight falling through openings in the ceiling?<o:p></o:p></div>
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Anyway there was a giant half pipe and Brian and his Crew used to skate there. Tony had gone down inside and confronted Kevin, a friend with a bad drug habit who had betrayed the Crew. Kevin stabbed him.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Brian found Tony, bleeding, tried to patch him up, realized he couldn’t get him out, and finally held him, weeping, while he died.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I wrote that scene a dozen times. Best friends in their final moments together. Betrayal. Violence. Devastation. Loss.<o:p></o:p></div>
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What did my seventh-grade novelist self know about such things? Only what she’d read, seen in movies, and imagined.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Imagined.</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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For the duration of the year we lived in Aptos, California, I imagined what it would be like to have a group of really cool skateboarder friends. Brian would lead them of course, with Tony as his best mate, Jason and Joel as identical twins, and Kevin, the Judas among them.<o:p></o:p></div>
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All those days in the window seat of the house in Aptos, scribbling in pencil into spiral notebooks imagining the day I’d be a novelist. My name on the cover of a book. My characters walking around in people’s heads. Thirteen-year-old me building the foundation of my ambition. A dream.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">And this year, it’s been realized.</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixA1vo-h1KupYVEPLtjtrGlvq4o6XlArrKldG2hlCp_k34LuH-RINZVFTk9bvYeHynf01cAQgzovY7qYaJ12aKZYXKm3fnHUt4FXQLTIuD-YpSVmIcLq8wSzARLjiQtcQJRDYCP33qhw/s1600/After_December_1600x2500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1025" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixA1vo-h1KupYVEPLtjtrGlvq4o6XlArrKldG2hlCp_k34LuH-RINZVFTk9bvYeHynf01cAQgzovY7qYaJ12aKZYXKm3fnHUt4FXQLTIuD-YpSVmIcLq8wSzARLjiQtcQJRDYCP33qhw/s320/After_December_1600x2500.jpg" width="204" /></a></div>
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I have a book. It’s not Tony bleeding in a skate ramp cave, but it is Tony bleeding, dying, and Brian’s loss. His regret. His shame.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It’s a hard book to read, I’m told, because it’s so sad. And yet I don’t feel sad by it. I’m glad to have released it. Freed it. Freed them all to breathe among the readers like feathery seeds of dandelions adrift on the breeze.<o:p></o:p></div>
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In freeing them, I also feel free. And nervous (will they like it?). And proud (look what I made!). And relieved. This thing I’ve been working at, this thing I thought one day I’d do, I did it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Here’s the link to <a href="https://kasiewhitener.com/the-first-book/">the book’s site</a>. And <a href="https://www.amazon.com/After-December-Kasie-Whitener/dp/1948604531/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1XGQHZDCV193S&keywords=after+december+kasie+whitener&qid=1574814784&sprefix=after+december%2Caps%2C147&sr=8-1">where you can buy it on Amazon</a>. And the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/760234237816205/">Launch Day event on Facebook</a>. There will be giveaways and behind-the-scenes and merriment and Q&As and suchness. Find <a href="https://www.instagram.com/kasiewhitener/">me on Instagram</a> for videos. Check out the <a href="https://youtu.be/WTW6IhzwzGk">trailer here</a>.<o:p></o:p></div>
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More than anything, though, even if you never buy my book, find that dream you had that time and figure out how to make it happen. Because there’s a fulfillment beyond comparison in doing so.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-26921658085863159602019-06-10T11:56:00.002-07:002019-06-10T11:56:30.714-07:00Angel Kisses and Overwhelming Gratitude<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
What I usually tell people about Carol Staubach is that she failed statistics in college and she was the smartest woman I’ve ever known. When she retired, Carol was in the topmost ranks of the CIA. She was clever, decisive, and ambitious. So, if she failed statistics, it is perfectly okay that I did, too. She was my best friend Jessica’s mom and at her celebration of life event this weekend it was clear that the people who knew her will miss her now that she’s gone. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My favorite pic of JoJo and me. We were 15.<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> </span></td></tr>
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Listening to them talk, I felt surges of gratitude. First, to be able to be there. Then to be part, even peripherally, of a love so fierce and sure. Then to witness the gratitude each of them had for knowing her. And to witness the way they’re loving each other through the loss of someone so precious.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Last fall we buried both my Uncle Howard and my Papa. I remember at the time feeling the devotion and respect we all had for them. It was our blessing to have known them that held us upright through the services and the grief.<o:p></o:p></div>
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And it’s still coming. The grief, that is. Being in a funeral home triggers it. Certain music, certain phrases, and I’m remembering the cadence of Papa saying the blessing and Uncle Howard’s throaty laugh. This fall when we go back to Clemson for football, I’m sure it’ll be there, too.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Jessica called those moments of remembrance angel kisses. Small reminders that the person you’ve lost is with you. A song they loved coming on the radio just as you’re thinking of them, a story about them coming to mind because of a seemingly-random coincidence. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGEkbM-iO5twqEQlfu-e_emgqlntyHrKdsOhQlEe8cPshrfATTQxoSfwOO09UcKFylo9go-4tgn_EgKZQk8P5CzPa5rnpJ7cwP5NqJYV0aNHc4X8gu2urfNkTHHS8VXe6gSnBV1tHHYg/s1600/JoJoandMe2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1097" data-original-width="1600" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGEkbM-iO5twqEQlfu-e_emgqlntyHrKdsOhQlEe8cPshrfATTQxoSfwOO09UcKFylo9go-4tgn_EgKZQk8P5CzPa5rnpJ7cwP5NqJYV0aNHc4X8gu2urfNkTHHS8VXe6gSnBV1tHHYg/s320/JoJoandMe2.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My 2nd favorite pic of JoJo and me. We were 20.</td></tr>
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There have been quite a few deaths in our Life on Clemson Road over the last two years. Many were peripheral to Charlie and Hollie and myself (like <a href="http://lifeonclemsonroad.blogspot.com/2017/05/you-are-loved.html">this one</a> and <a href="http://lifeonclemsonroad.blogspot.com/2016/02/the-worst-day-of-someone-elses-life.html">this one</a>), but some were rather near like Aunt Carolyn, Uncle Howard, and Papa. </div>
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I’m at that age now where those whom we are meant to outlive will begin leaving us. Each time we gather to pay our respects, I feel such gratitude for having known the people we mourn. Always the love of their families blossoms around me. The softness and warmth of care and devotion blankets us. The strength and passion of perseverance and dedication holds us up even as we crumble into hugs and tears. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Carol’s granddaughter Aubrey has a bracelet with charms from each of the cities they visited together. It’s a heavy silver chain that jingles and catches the glint of Arizona sunlight when she extends her arm to show it. Those moments, I told her, that time together, you’ll never regret it. <a href="http://lifeonclemsonroad.blogspot.com/2013/05/say-goodbye-without-regret.html">I never have</a>. <o:p></o:p></div>
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It was with devotion and love I crossed the country to be with Jessica while she zombied through the second-hardest day of her life. But with gratitude and peace that I journeyed home, knowing she, too, is loved. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I know for certain the <a href="http://lifeonclemsonroad.blogspot.com/2013/06/in-which-she-used-snake-blogger-iphone.html">angel kisses</a> will keep coming. They’ll catch us off guard and remind us how very lucky we are to have forged those bonds. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m so sorry, JoJo, for your loss. My heart breaks for you. And when you need me, know I’m here and can be there after a *short* overlay in the worst town to stain a map. ::wink::<o:p></o:p></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-57807384545266805052019-01-04T14:38:00.000-08:002019-01-04T14:41:54.361-08:002019 Has GOT to be Better<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
I’m an optimist. As such, I expect each year to be better than the last. Lately, though, time and life have been finding new and creative ways to kick me in the teeth.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It started in 2016 when the election friction tore a rift in our nation and in my family. People I considered to be logical, intelligent people became FOX News zombies spewing vitriol. So I began 2017 by attending the Women’s March in Washington, D.C. I carried a sign that said, “Because Love” and stood in solidarity with others who confessed the dark mood of the nation was what brought them out.<o:p></o:p></div>
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That Spring I turned 40. I didn’t think there was much to it but as my friend Heather said, “40 is a motherfucker.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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All the things I thought I was building began crumbling around me. The business lost its biggest clients. My income went to zero. Despite applying for a thousand jobs, no one would hire me. Multiple professional setbacks including an interview for a job I just knew was mine only to see they reposted the position.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Not that they found a better candidate. They’d rather not hire anyone at all than hire me.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ouch.<o:p></o:p></div>
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At New Year’s I declared that 2017 could just fuck right off. Then the Tigers lost in the playoffs and I felt like everyone I knew felt the same way as me.<o:p></o:p></div>
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2018 had to be better.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: , serif; font-size: 12pt;">Photo by JESHOOTS.com on<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/happy-new-year-decorative-plate-714703/" style="color: #954f72;">Pexels.com</a></span></td></tr>
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This past year I worked harder than I ever have. Some 60- and 70-hour weeks. The results were incredible. Not everything I hoped and wished for, that would be too much to ask, but some real traction in a lot of areas.<o:p></o:p></div>
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We opened the Women’s Business Center of South Carolina complete with $100k from Google and a Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting. I secured an adjunct faculty contract at the Darla Moore School and we finally had minimum viable income in the household. I was invited to speak at the Pat Conroy Literary Center and asked to serve on the board of directors for the South Carolina Writers Association. I led workshops and panels and networking events and launched two radio shows on the local talk radio station.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Then, on the biggest day of the WBC of SC’s early life, I sat in a church pew some 90 miles from the Women’s Business Summit. All the work and focus and energy put into that 1-day event and I wasn’t there to see any of it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><i>I had to make a choice about the kind of person I want to be.</i></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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The Monday before the event, my Uncle Howard succumbed to an infection he contracted after surgery and died. He left behind two children, three grandchildren, the love of his life to whom he’d been married for 40 years, and my mom, his twin sister.<o:p></o:p></div>
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During the service, the minister of the church he’d attended faithfully for decades called him a blessed man. Humble and kind, caring and compassionate, willing to give of himself to any who were in need. He was not a famous man, he never held public office or published works of literature. He quietly served on small committees, organizing events and raising money for good causes.<o:p></o:p></div>
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What I had done in 2018 was put myself in service. By doing so, by helping others succeed, by building solutions to fill gaps, I thought to elevate my own position. Service was a marketing plan.<o:p></o:p></div>
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But on November 16<sup>th</sup>, when we buried my Uncle Howard with his Clemson Tigers ball cap, surrounded by two hundred people who loved and admired him, I realized his service was more gratifying than mine. He’d served because he was called to do so.<o:p></o:p></div>
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As we all are.<o:p></o:p></div>
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He’d said, “Yes, God,” when asked to give of himself in love and compassion, in kindness and trust. He’d said, “Yes.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’ve been saying, “Yes, and” as I added my own part to the story being written. I’ve been following Amy Pohler and Tina Fey’s advice for improv comedy: accept the circumstances you’re given (“yes”) and make them better (“and”). Only the “and” I’d pursued had been me asking. It was more like, “Yes, and?”<o:p></o:p></div>
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I was where I was meant to be on November 16<sup>th</sup>, a fact that was made even more clear to me on December 28<sup>th</sup>when we sat in similar circumstances for my Papa. The same minister said of him that he’d been a man who lived the way Jesus wanted us to: humble and kind, in service to those around him.<o:p></o:p></div>
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In service.<o:p></o:p></div>
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As 2018 ends with the double-upper-cut of Uncle Howard’s death and Papa’s, I feel another declaration oncoming: “2018 can fuck all the way off.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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My friends, for whom this year has also been a trial with loss and uncertainty and hysterics and defeats, echo the sentiment to a one.<o:p></o:p></div>
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And yet, I am not embittered by the circumstances of the year. I’m filled instead with a profound gratitude for these two men and what they taught me. I’m encouraged to go forward into 2019 and continue to serve others in whatever capacity I am able. To meet obligations with enthusiasm and optimism. To help, promote, encourage, and sponsor as I am able the people around me who are poised to achieve.<o:p></o:p></div>
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In doing so, I will not necessarily amplify my own talents, but instead be putting them to their intended use.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-14861755044305016602018-11-02T04:08:00.001-07:002018-11-02T04:08:45.440-07:00Suffering, but not Struggling<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
I went to bed last night thinking, “Everyone in my life is struggling right now.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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Marriage issues, career setbacks, rapid and disorienting change, natural disasters and natural transitions. They’re struggling. But are they suffering?<o:p></o:p></div>
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This week I met a woman who told me, “How can you expect to achieve your wildest dreams if you aren’t willing to suffer for them?”<o:p></o:p></div>
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She said, when you eat a good meal or drink a fine wine or see a great show, you pay for it. Ticket costs, right? Entry fees. Tabs and bills and checks and cash.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Why would achievement be any different?</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieo6fLKhNVtI4DLYyDf11MlOyv6pKEmg8jTfEQkUoNyTqtA3zH3nNU47xRzpACvybKKyo66f81NIYQMC74BAjQcKft9XYBhJQeUoslTJcRTNiknuREmBHiXV8gU5nVWXgmjxhE6gN7bg/s1600/Praying+for+a+4th+quarter+miracle+against+maryland.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieo6fLKhNVtI4DLYyDf11MlOyv6pKEmg8jTfEQkUoNyTqtA3zH3nNU47xRzpACvybKKyo66f81NIYQMC74BAjQcKft9XYBhJQeUoslTJcRTNiknuREmBHiXV8gU5nVWXgmjxhE6gN7bg/s320/Praying+for+a+4th+quarter+miracle+against+maryland.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by KW 2008</td></tr>
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I have always been an achiever. I am willing to be first and willing to work hard. I’m willing to get up early and stay up late. The norm for the last ten weeks has been 18-hour days. My latest complaint is scheduling down to the minute, even scheduling family time and trashy romance reading time.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It’s football season, so it hasn’t been all work and no play. There’s just more work to make room for the play hours that football and family time claim.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m doing some things I love: meeting new people, building new programs, testing new ideas, transferring knowledge, and making connections. I truly feel like I’m IN the game. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m doing some things I hate: sticking to a schedule, administrative attention to detail, skipping fitness, cutting back on wine, focusing on the <i>and then</i>instead of the <i>what if?<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">And while I’m suffering, I don’t feel defeated.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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I woke up at 3:30 this morning thinking, 1) it’s too early to get up and start working, and 2) that’s too bad.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Yes, I’m busy. Yes, I’m running on little-to-no-sleep. Yes, I’m straining some of my most valuable relationships – I’m aware, friends, I promise!<o:p></o:p></div>
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But I’m <span style="color: lime;">THRIVING</span>.<o:p></o:p></div>
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When I thought last night of how everyone around me is struggling, I realized I’m not.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Suffering and struggling are not the same thing.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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By suffering I mean I’m having to make hard choices, prioritize some things over others, let some things I loved go, disappoint some people while forging new relationships with others. Change is hard. New ventures are hard. Disappointment and failure and overcoming resistance are hard. That’s what I mean by suffering. It means what I’m doing is hard.<o:p></o:p></div>
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But I’m not struggling. Struggling is being indecisive, feeling alone, feeling disoriented or without purpose or direction. Struggling is questioning motivations of others and myself. Struggling is losing trust and losing faith.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I have faith.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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The things that need to happen <b>will </b>happen. The places I need to be, <b>I’ll get there</b>. The influential persons and events that will shape my life are part of my life because <b>I invited them in</b>. I threw open the doors. I expected their participation.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I was willing to be changed.<o:p></o:p></div>
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This morning I am invigorated. I cannot wait to suffer for my achievements. I can see the horizon and it is a glorious place of fulfillment and peace. And this place I’m in now, it’s the bedrock of that one. It’s the journey. The path. The program. The system. The story I’ll tell.<o:p></o:p></div>
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And I love being in it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-20359305514339544332018-09-06T04:12:00.006-07:002018-09-06T04:12:47.438-07:00You Are What You Wear<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
I paired the butterfly skirt with a t-shirt that reads “Take what you need and burn the rest.” In all the years I’ve owned that butterfly skirt, I’ve never had a perfectly-matching top for it. The material is flowy and satiny with a slender lining underneath. It’s a “work skirt” I’ve had since we lived up in the Upstate and it’s hung, unworn, for years.<o:p></o:p></div>
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This summer my style became work skirts and t-shirts. I wore the Miyagi-Do Karate t-shirt with a dark blue miniskirt. The Save Ferris t-shirt with a black skirt that has grey flowers on it. My Maine t-shirt with the green Tommy Hilfiger skirt. My First Amendment shirt with the white Tommy skirt.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I wrap both wrists in bracelets. I wear earrings in all five holes. Sometimes they match, sometimes they don’t. I let the Jeep dry my hair and push styling paste through it whenever I arrive where I’m meant to be.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I’m 41 years old and my style has emerged as authentic, a little eccentric, and vintage.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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I’ve been telling Hollie for years that if what she chooses to wear is weather appropriate and makes her feel confident, then it’s fine. She pairs red shirts with pink skirts and blue socks with purple leggings. She works in color families, more than in matching sets. Once, when she was wearing all read (shirt, skirt, pants, socks), my friend Jodie said she hadn’t realized Hollie was monochromatic. She’s always had a color palette style, things that don’t clash really, they just aren’t a perfect match. It’s that slightly off-match that defines her style.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Yesterday I wore my Goonies t-shirt with suit pants. It was the first time I had the guts to do it, but I thought it looked really cool. Celebrities do it. Why not me?<o:p></o:p></div>
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In Iron Man, Robert Downey, Jr.’s character pairs a kitten t-shirt with a blazer. It’s an eccentric millionaire look. The kind of My Give a Damn’s Broken look that exudes confidence. I just had to own it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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After about an hour, I’d forgotten I was wearing it and just owned it. The t-shirt with trousers look may take a little longer to gain confidence, but I’m going to work on it because it’s unique. <i>Weather appropriate and makes me feel confident, </i>that’s what matters.<o:p></o:p></div>
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In many circumstances, I’m expected to don the business woman uniform: trousers and a blouse. When I worked 8-to-5 for a big company, I wore skirts every day. High heeled shoes and Kay Jewelers jewelry. While my make-up has always been sparse, I worked my hair between coloring appointments. Painstakingly blow-drying every strand.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Maybe I’m just older. Maybe society has changed. Maybe being a mom had made me less patient with things like hair dryers and jewelry clasps.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Or maybe I’ve always been a skater. </span></div>
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Thrasher Magazine pictures used to paper my walls, my favorite t-shirt was a ripped G&S black and white oversized. At Clemson, I wore a black body suit with a pair of my friend Josh’s jeans and an unbuttoned flannel shirt. I’ve always had a little rebel style, I just suppressed it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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And this summer, I finally unleashed it. It’s not like having a hysterectomy or selling the house, there’s nothing permanent about a wardrobe. But it still feels like a milestone. Like I’ve emerged from the cocoon and started to flap my wings.<o:p></o:p></div>
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And they’re gold and gossamer and pair nicely with a slim pencil skirt.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-42230372182685022792018-07-27T20:40:00.000-07:002018-07-27T20:40:10.565-07:00Put Another One in the Books<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
We’ve been married 17 years.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I wish I had a memory to share for each year but they all kind of blur into this long reality that is: <b>I’ve been with Charlie longer than I’ve been without him.</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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We met when I was 19. So now, at 41, I’ve been with him longer than I was ever without him. The majority of my social circle doesn’t know me before Charlie and those who do barely remember me when he wasn’t reflecting me.<o:p></o:p></div>
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He’s like a mirror. He shows me the very best of myself and, when necessary, the rough edges and dirty parts, too. He expects more of me and because he does, I expect more of myself.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEAweRH89LUgID6V9m4gqjmVtvW8FI5g3KfSPlHcRZqa3Ver4pj9Pjo0i8Tc7XHUPAMS_VL56QfsCPw-bT6t4RhmPITKMJNrG2IGuTjQMF8KYpRbiih4OgvjikbRBU0ngr6_2nO-tIgg/s1600/vFEir%252B5HTu69e6FfpcjxEg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1203" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEAweRH89LUgID6V9m4gqjmVtvW8FI5g3KfSPlHcRZqa3Ver4pj9Pjo0i8Tc7XHUPAMS_VL56QfsCPw-bT6t4RhmPITKMJNrG2IGuTjQMF8KYpRbiih4OgvjikbRBU0ngr6_2nO-tIgg/s320/vFEir%252B5HTu69e6FfpcjxEg.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Those are some sweet $200 sunglasses, folks.</td></tr>
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When I describe him to people who don’t know him, I say he’s the coolest guy I know. I say whenever I’m doing anything I wish he was there participating and that when he’s not, I can’t wait to tell him about it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I remember a few things about the start: the a/c was broken in the church and it was late July in Upstate South Carolina and those out of state visitors were stunned by how crazy hot it was.<o:p></o:p></div>
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We moved to Charlotte that summer and were out of work, but we only stayed three days on our honeymoon at Myrtle Beach because we couldn’t afford to stay any longer. The hotel was beachfront, our room was oceanfront, but we had to check the remote control out at the front desk. We carried the cooler upstairs and watched the end of the NASCAR race while drinking beer. We didn’t have medical insurance. We waited tables.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I remember a few things about the middle: we moved to Easley because our best friend Michael asked us to. We loved that little starter house. We bought whatever meat was on sale and then flipped open How to Cook Everything to figure out what to do with it. <o:p></o:p></div>
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We hit happy hour two or three times a week even after Hollie was born, carrying her with us to sports bars and pool halls and patios.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsAI_CgsIUPCAkYIccTDJU6MbU5XLWCn6e8T4A0zCfcg8v-PQGr_xmoGguhdguqcUZea1PDBhWMWTt_9F-7jlpNUGS93tIqc0yOHyZJYvCkM4cjHm9YwSDH1aWIaVChS8jv6ukhcCeUw/s1600/IMG_0908.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsAI_CgsIUPCAkYIccTDJU6MbU5XLWCn6e8T4A0zCfcg8v-PQGr_xmoGguhdguqcUZea1PDBhWMWTt_9F-7jlpNUGS93tIqc0yOHyZJYvCkM4cjHm9YwSDH1aWIaVChS8jv6ukhcCeUw/s320/IMG_0908.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That's one SERIOUS hangover.</td></tr>
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I remember a lot of the latest: we share pride in Hollie over some of the same things (man, that kid is <i>cool</i>) and some different things, those things that remind us of ourselves and each other. We enjoy Sundays, our neighbors, and the country club. We worry about politics and bills and where our careers are headed.<o:p></o:p></div>
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We spend time together on the golf course, listening to live music, and in restaurants. There have always been restaurants. And we get frustrated and we get sad and we get excited and we get hopeful. <o:p></o:p></div>
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We’re teammates. Above all. We win together and we lose together.<o:p></o:p></div>
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We’ve been in this thing together 17 years. And there’s no one I’d rather have in this boat with me. </div>
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<b>I love you, Charlie. Here’s to 17 more.</b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-36656591048486227522018-06-20T04:55:00.000-07:002018-06-19T15:52:55.861-07:00Love Builds Confidence<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
<i>Going into the archives for some classic blogs to get this blog resurrected. It's no longer The 41st Year and Life on Clemson Road is, as always, an incredible Journey.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>From May 2016:</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
For Mother’s Day, Hollie gave me a picture card she’d drawn in school. It said: </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Mom,<br />
You like to read and write with me, write and read, write and read, write and read. You work every day, work, work, work, work. You watch movies and shows with me, watch, watch, watch, watch, watch, watch. You eat lunch with me on Saturday, eat, eat, eat. I love u!</blockquote>
</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
Beneath it was a picture of two equally-sized people wearing orange, holding books, and standing near a restaurant booth. On the table was a hot dog (hers) and a glass of wine (mine).</div>
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<br /></div>
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My first thought was, “Way to hit that word count, girl!”</div>
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<br /></div>
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My second was, “Hollie really knows me.”</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
I’ve not been hiding myself from her. She knows I love to read and write. She knows I love to watch movies and Animaniacs. She knows Saturdays are our date days and that during lunch she can have sweet tea and I’ll be drinking wine.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">I am who I am.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
Being myself with Hollie is how I’m showing her that it’s okay for her to be herself, too.</div>
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<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /></div>
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There are times when I have to be a certain version of myself. I’m comfortable with roles and responsibilities. I understand that what needs to be done is not always what I want to be doing.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
Authentic leadership comes from a place that recognizes who I am, flaws, faults, talent, and all. And it infuses that person into every role. Even when the role requires I be more.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
For example, I am an extrovert and tend to do a lot of talking to find my way through a dilemma. With customers, though, I keep most of my “finding” to myself. I listen to them speak, ask questions, and hope to help them stumble upon the solution on their own.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
The authority I can demonstrate comes from confidence of purpose. I believe in what I’m doing to grow the business. Every day I wonder if it’s the right thing to do and whether I’ll actually succeed at it, but I do believe in what I’m doing. With that confidence, I can declare what the company is, what we do, how we do it, and invite a candidate to participate.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">I’ve worked really hard to have the confidence to show who I am.</span><br />
<br />
To not be afraid that doing so will send friends and customers running in the other direction. To be bold enough to be authentic.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
I’m not surprised Hollie recognizes me for who I am. She’s one of the reasons I have this new confidence. Her self expression, authenticity, and independence are all traits I deeply admire. Traits I love seeing reflected back at me.</div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
I used to think credibility is what built confidence. But it’s love.</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-19453116159992600952018-03-31T16:08:00.002-07:002018-03-31T16:08:46.576-07:00The 42nd Year is Underway<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Easter is about hope."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That’s what the Australian-accented, boomerang-slinging
bunny in Rise of the Guardians says about his holiday.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Easter is about possibility. Redemption. Renewal.</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s rather fitting that the end of The 41<sup>st</sup> Year
is Easter week. It’s fitting because when I set out to do this last year, I was
really looking for renewal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On my 40<sup>th</sup> birthday, sitting in a bar in New York
City, I wrote, “This all started because Heather said, ‘Forty is a
motherfucker,’ and, like most things in my life, I decided to manage my
expectations.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Forty couldn’t fuck with me if I knew what I was doing. If I
had a plan. A purpose. A mission.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On the first page of the journal I bought in NYC to track
The 41<sup>st</sup> Year, I wrote, “I know I’ll struggle. I know I’ll focus on
the shortfalls and the challenges. I know I’ll be glaringly aware of the
misses, the failures, and the face plants.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>So here they are:</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I did not visit Papa 40 times. I got to Florence 11 times in
the last year. It’s an hour trip and a three-hour commitment. It takes about
$20 in gas round trip. I’ve been too broke and too busy. And yet each of those
11 visits filled me with a sense that my Papa appreciates me. Loves me. Is
proud of me. So, I’ll try to keep my once-a-month pace and hope that will
suffice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I did not donate 40 articles of clothing or put 40 pages
into Hollie’s scrapbook. I didn’t do even one for either of those. I did accept
some pieces from my dear friend, Teresa, who has lost weight and gave me the
six pairs of pants and four tops that have made my working full time doable
these last three months. As for the scrap book, someday I’m sure I’ll wish I
had captured every minute with Hollie. For now, though, I’m waiting until she’s
interested in helping with the project to really take it on.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I did not submit 40 times. I submitted 27 times but now I
have a weekly habit, so that’s a good thing. I feel good about the submissions.
I feel like I’m getting used to rejection and that’s part of being a writer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I did not do 40 runs, in fact I haven’t run at all.
Something I regret and something I plan to remedy. Immediately. Let’s roll that
goal into next year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I didn’t get to 40 new places but I did get to 15 including
two new cities: Kansas City, Missouri and Toledo, Ohio. It’s hard to travel
when you don’t have any money. Some “places” that mattered this year included
the Office of Business Opportunity’s Small Business Conference last May at
which I was a speaker and the Winter Wheat Literary Festival where I was on
faculty. The SCWA’s writers conference in the fall to which I won a scholarship
and the Girls Rock! showcase where I saw my daughter play guitar on stage for the
first time. I’ll take quality over quantity on that one all day long. We even
got to Five Points on St. Patty’s Day which was a big achievement for Hollie
and me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>I also wrote in that journal that The 41<sup>st</sup> Year
was meant to provide wins. Easy ways to show progress and success. </b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Say you will and then do it. No fear. No excuses. No
boundaries.” Reasonable, achievable things on the list.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Categories where I killed it: Blog posts and books by female
authors. I read 73 books last year and have read 28 this year so far. Nearly
all of them are by women writers. My blog posts were mostly on the SCWA blog,
but I also generated content for Clemson Road Consulting, Unapologetically X,
and two clients. This blog, The 41<sup>st</sup> Year, has been neglected. But
that’s mostly as a reflection of my glaring awareness of misses, failures, and
face plants.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, it’s Easter and this is about hope. Renewal. It’s about
opportunity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There has been so much opportunity in the last few months,
really since I started The 41<sup>st</sup> Year and started being intentional
about pretty much everything. Opportunities are not hiding under bushes waiting
to be found like colored eggs. They’re flying past us like dandelion seeds on
the wind. I’ve tried to gather them all. Chased them all. Watched them float by
and wished they were mine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Now I’m going to bloom where I’m planted.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was an important year. A year in which I decided I am
the grown-up in the room and it’s up to me to make decisions and take action. A
year in which I stopped waiting for others to offer, comply, and play along.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was so afraid that 40 would be a motherfucker. So, I
geared up and took a few practice swings. When they landed, and the resistance
gave way, I decided to kick its ass. And what it feels like right now is that I’m
just getting started.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Message Header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Salutation"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Date"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Note Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Block Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="List Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="List Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="List Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
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<!--EndFragment--><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It feels like Game On. Bring it, 42<sup>nd</sup> Year. Show
me what you’ve got. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-36150400528362547162018-03-09T12:14:00.005-08:002018-03-09T12:15:49.658-08:00Selling Myself in Bits & Pieces<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’d like to say I haven’t blogged here since November
because I’ve been crushing it in the 41</span><sup style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">st</sup><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> year.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In some ways, I have. Since January, I’ve added three titles
to my resume: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Project Manager at the McNair Center for Entrepreneurship,</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Adjunct Instructor in Entrepreneurship at the Darla Moore
School of Business, and</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Co-Host of the radio program Start Something, Columbia.</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">We’re waiting to hear this month about funding for a new
women’s business center in Columbia for which I would be Co-Director.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m still Managing Partner of Clemson Road Consulting (formerly known as President of Clemson Road Creative) and I’ve been the Lead Organizer
for 1 Million Cups Columbia for about six months.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">What do all these titles do for my 41<sup>st</sup> year
goals?</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, I’ve been adding up live events with conferences,
summits, and meetings in support of my new titles. I’ve also been writing
dozens of blogs for various outlets. Today I’m sitting down to write out
two-dozen thank-you notes to all of those people who wrote us letters of
support for our women’s business center grant application.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Where I’m killing it: 40 books by female authors.</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In 2017 I read 73 books and so far this year I’ve read 25
books; the majority of these books have been women authors. In fact, I might
want to try reading some men in 2018. I definitely need to add more non-fiction
to the list but that’s the case every year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Visiting new places and visiting my Papa are goals that have
both suffered from my lack of funds. I’ve been so low on cash that a lot of
things (pedicures, wine) have fallen off my regular expenses. I know Papa doesn’t
begrudge me the visits but I have always equated driving with freedom and to
not be able to travel has been a soul-crushing reality.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The purpose of the 41<sup>st</sup> year was always to find
some measurable things I could do, some ways to spend my time that would equate
to impact. I have to say that the work I’m doing these days seems more
impactful than anything I was doing before.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I feel like I’m turning a corner. Cresting a wave. Climbing
the S curve.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Since last March, I’ve given more workshops, submitted more
writing, and applied for more opportunities than I have in the past. I’ve been working
my sales plan with three principles: 1) people need to know me, 2) people need
to know what I do, and 3) people need to trust I can do it. When we get all
three, we earn business.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The business is coming. The future is bright. The 41<sup>st</sup>
year feels like just the beginning.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-29305720997063362142017-11-28T06:42:00.004-08:002017-11-28T06:43:51.349-08:00Where ya been? Oh, right, it's #NaNoWriMo<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So it's National Novel Writing Month or #NaNoWriMo2017 and I've been under a rock. I haven't worked out since Nov 1 though I have been getting up early every day.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I've been writing. This year's project is a Neverland story which you can read more about <a href="https://kasiewhitener.com/">here</a>. And I might stick a little bit on the end here just for fun.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">So this 41st Year post is about falling off the wagon. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I'm a professional wagon-faller. Oh, sure, I euphemize it with words like "redirect" and "pivot" but the truth is, when the wagon doesn't seem to be making any progress, I topple right off.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some of my most famous wagon-fallings include the six-week no-alcohol "tradition" I had for about five years. It stretched from New Year's Day until the Daytona 500. It was meant to give my liver a break after football season because September through December is rough. After 2008, though, I gave that giving-up up. Be sober for nine-ish months and you'll stop inflicting that shit on yourself, too.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another great wagon-jumping happened when I decided to scrap book Hollie's baby book. I did two mini-books and have been collecting stuff for the rest ever since. She's nine. I'm never, ever going to catch up. Which is fine, I realized, when I learned no other moms are doing a week-by-week log of their kid's growing up except via Facebook (collective groan and eye roll).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I've started and stopped dozens of fitness programs from half marathon trainings to swim team to Beast Mode and even a personal trainer. I've started and stopped dozens of diets meant to offset the booze, lose the baby weight, make recovery easier, make my metabolism faster, and make me hotter for my 20th reunion.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In spite of my wagon-falling, I've also been faithful and steadfast in a number of pursuits. I've attended my South Carolina Writers Workshop (SCWA) group sessions two Mondays a month for about three years. I've been at the Tuesday Twitter chat #wschat for more than 5 years. And I've done NaNoWriMo for five years. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Writing, it seems, is a wagon I'm glad to be on.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For the last 18 months I've been faithful to 1 Million Cups which meets weekly and I've volunteered to read in Hollie's classroom every November since kindergarten. I'm not afraid of commitment -- I'm framing an assembled 1000 piece puzzle this week -- I'm just easily persuaded to drop relationships that aren't working.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The 41st Year blog is about the things I wanted to do that I felt would give me evidence of a life well-lived. Live events, visits with my Papa, and meaningful time with friends. What I didn't account for in that planning was the downhill slope my work life would take from January until now. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>The 41st Year is turning out to be less about charting new territory and more about resilience, persistence, and steadfastness. </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lest you mistake these as synonyms, let me explain.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Resilience</b> is about recovery, a return to the original form. I've been working over Clemson Road Consulting for months. The original mission of the company was remote, asynchronous work in storytelling -- a writing studio. We're there. Again.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Persistence</b> is about continuing, a constant effort in a single direction. I've been pushing into fiction writing for half a decade and broke through this year with some highly-regarded work, opportunities, and recognition. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Steadfastness</b> is about being firm in purpose, resolved to a specific direction. I have not abandoned my dream of being either a writer or an entrepreneur. It's tough but if it wasn't, everyone would do it. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I have a vision for my life and I plan to achieve that vision. It's just taking a few setbacks to earn the breaks I need to leap forward.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">My faith remains.</span> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Faith in the vision, faith in my partnerships, and faith in myself. It's funny how spending the entire month with a kid who discovers The Neverland is a lie has made me more resolved than ever to make the most of the real world in which we're living.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, as promised, a little hint of the #NaNoWriMo project:</span><br />
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
The ship anchored off the coast of Neverland, its black sails visible like an ink blot on the horizon. A flag with a skull and crossed bones waved on the highest tip of the highest mast, above a crow’s nest where stood a man peering at the shore through a long, retractable telescope.</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
I peered back through my own lens and tried to make out the whiskers on his face, the set of his jaw, the evil in his eye.</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
“How many?” Peter asked.</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
On deck I’d counted twenty-one. Six pulling at ropes and raising sails, five turning cranks and wheels, four tying knots, three securing ballast, one in the crow’s nest, one studying a map, and one at the helm. The last one wore a wide-brimmed cap with a feather that fluttered in the wind, a long duster trimmed in gold, and tall black books that caught the morning sun and shone as though just polished.</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
“Looks as though they’re getting underway,” I said, watching the anchor emerge from the water and climb toward the rail.</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
“And go where?” Peter’s voice had mocking in it. He hovered just above me, legs akimbo, arms crossed. Did he see what I saw? How keen was his vision for such things?</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
“Let ‘em go,” Hickory said. “They may return with treasure.”</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
“Or chocolate,” one of the twins piped.</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
“Or down blankets and feather pillows,” Peter sneered and spat at the ground beneath him. We’d raided the ship before, stolen the materials they’d captured from wherever it was they’d gone. The luxury of those items hadn’t left our memories and the five of us, Hickory, twins, Rocky and me, could share the same fantasy of fresh peaches, warm silks, sparkling jewels, and crisp wafers.</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
“How long will they be gone?” Rocky asked.</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
Peter’s sneer turned to a glare that he threw carelessly at the bear-costumed boy beside me.</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
“No time,” I whispered. “There is no time.”</div>
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
Rocky blinked, nodded, “Sorry, Peter,” he said quickly so that all the syllables merged into one sound of contrition.</div>
<br />
<div style="font-family: Cochin; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: 18px;">
Peter turned his gaze back to the horizon.</div>
<br />
<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-1528003681293728842017-08-29T03:07:00.003-07:002017-08-29T03:07:44.492-07:00Live Event: Counting Crows and Matchbox 20<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The last time we went to PNC Bank Arena in Charlotte,
Charlie and I misbehaved. We were there to see Kelly Clarkson and Maroon 5 and
Kristen (my sister) ended up babysitting us.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since then, we’ve done Red Rocks twice and basically gotten
our shit together. So the concert before the eclipse was not such a disaster.
In fact, we did several things I’ve never done at a concert:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We arrived late.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our friends Mike and Melanie live in Charlotte and we spent
the afternoon pre-gaming on their back patio. Craft beers, snacks, shade, and
comfy chairs are all better than sweating it out in the parking lot. Plus,
Melanie is an old friend and Mike a new one so it was good to spend time
getting to know them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After we checked into the hotel, we wandered next door to
TGI Friday’s for another pre-game beer and snack. Again, no hurry to get to the
arena.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When we finally got parked and started walking in, we had
missed the first two songs of Counting Crows’ set. Fortunately, our section was
basically empty so finding our seats and settling in wasn’t too tough.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We sat down.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I only typically stand if the people in front of me are
blocking my view. But that’s pretty much always the case. Except not this time.
Our section was the first part of the outdoor half of the amphitheater, so a
wide sidewalk separated us from the inside folks who all stood. We could see
over them just fine. And we were only two rows back and no one sat in front of
us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So we sat. When it is so crazy hot, sitting or standing doesn’t
really matter. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During our favorite Counting Crows songs we stood and
danced, and the people behind us urged us to stand for Matchbox 20 and we did
for the encore. Mostly, though, we just sat and enjoyed the live music and the
light show and seeing Rob Thomas, who looks rather old by the way, on the big
screens that flanked the stage.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We left early.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Apparently sitting and being hot is boring because by
mid-way through Matchbox 20’s set we were kind of done with the whole thing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It may have also been that our buzz was wearing off and the
beers were $25 for two tall Budweisers and water was $5.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“You know it’s just water, right?” I said to the girl at the
concessions. “And that $5 is way too much to charge?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Yes,” she replied.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When you can buy a case for $5 and that’s the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">retail </i>markup you know you’re being
gouged. Five dollars per bottle is $120 per case, or $115 worth of additional
profit. What the hell? Price gouging always makes me angry but at concerts when
it’s 100 degrees and it’s water-for-fuck’s-sake, I can’t hold my tongue.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“That’s ridiculous,” I told her.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“I agree,” she said. Then handed me my change and turned her
attention to the woman behind me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyway, we left early. We pretty much never leave early. I
told Charlie I only cared about one song and as soon as
Rob-looks-too-old-to-be-him-Thomas sang it, we could go. It was the first song
in the encore.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, we left.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Maybe it was that the tickets were Groupon and only cost me
$17 each. Or maybe it’s that Charlie had to work on Monday so we needed to get
up early. Maybe it was us trying to save money and therefore not drinking $25
beers or paying for an Uber.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whatever the cause, we did this concert like grown-ups. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<style>
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mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Counting Crows did not play as long as we would have liked
but we did find that Matchbox 20 was better than we expected. We are now
renewed Matchbox 20 fans. So, there’s that.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-89243839179291914462017-08-22T06:21:00.006-07:002017-08-22T06:22:16.788-07:00Live Event: The Great American Solar Eclipse<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Is it possible for something to be amazing and kind of a let down at the same time? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The word that comes to mind for yesterday’s eclipse experience is “confusing.” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For several months, Columbia has prepared and planned for the event. Parties and performances and precautions have abounded since early Spring. The entire region was aware of our direct path status and the likelihood we would experience an influx of visitors. It was a tourism boon and one Columbia and its surrounding hamlets took full advantage of.
Most impressively, the events of Eclipse Weekend were all very well publicized, rather inexpensive, and included free eclipse glasses. The only real price gouging I witnessed was the City of Columbia’s parking deck rates bumped up to a $10 event fee from their usual $1.25 per hour. But this was going to be a big deal, right? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So we should make it one or at least participate in the well-organized suchness that others had orchestrated. We settled on the Blythewood Total Eclipse of the Park event at Doko Meadows which was both nearby and small enough that I was confident we would have a good experience. We packed coolers (against the rules) and took our own chairs and glasses with us. We listened to the live music performances and joined in the countdown.
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As the sky darkened and totality occurred, we whooped and wailed with the rest of the crowd. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And then it was over. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My friend Melanie’s kid said it first, “Can we go now?” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Then HB chimed in, “It’s so HOT!” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We had been sweating for over an hour, our hair stuck to our faces, ice cream melting before we could use the spoon on it, backs of thighs soaking the canvas tailgate chairs. We had eschewed the shade for a space in full sun and were paying for it. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Then the moon began to assert itself and the eerie light of lunar shadow cooled the park. Not quite twilight, but a greyish flattening of shadow and light. There hung the strange stillness of celestial motion and the curtain of a black and white movie descended.
The crowd turned glasses-covered faces skyward, mouths gaping in awe. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I said to Melanie, “There’s a strange vulnerability here, like in a horror movie. As if this is the moment when, distracted by the sky, all humans are annihilated by invading aliens.” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I cannot have experienced the Total Solar Eclipse without writing about it. There’s so much magic and mystery in it as to be completely surreal. During Totality when we removed our glasses and looked at one another, while the cicadas’ sound surged and the midday felt like late twilight, my writer’s brain was cataloguing details. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Then it was over and we went back to day drinking, live music, exit traffic, and the Monday-ness of the day. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s in the dichotomy of “rare celestial event on Monday” that my discomfort exists. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The eclipse was everything I expected it to be. The park event and live music and visiting friends and open-air boozing were all I would have wanted.
Yet, somehow, I feel let down. Like maybe I should I have also expected some cosmic insight, some spiritual revelation, or some life-altering change. Except eclipses are a predictable pattern, a scientific reality of a steady and persistent relationship between the Earth, Moon, and Sun. Which is comforting.
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And rather boring.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Where were you for the Solar Eclipse? </i></span></span><div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5701398832410746913.post-35032864718261425442017-07-28T06:58:00.000-07:002017-07-28T06:59:45.955-07:00Live Event: The Girls Rock! Showcase at The Music Farm Columbia<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last week I sent Hollie to a Social Justice summer camp that
uses music as their medium to discuss issues related to gender, race, and
bullying. The first thing she said when she got in the car Monday afternoon
was, “Can I come back next year?”</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I said, “Let’s see how the week goes.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She informed her MaMa later that night that at Girls Rock
camp there was absolutely no room for ugliness of any kind. No mean girls.
Period.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">How refreshing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">All week she and her buddies learned about great female rock
stars, played around on lots of instruments, formed bands, wrote songs, and
performed. They danced and sang. They supported one another, encouraged one
another, and felt good about being themselves.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I know no one sends their kid to mean girl boot camp. It’s
an insidious competition for attention and validation that creates mean girls.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But getting a chance to go to
Compassionate-Loving-Rocker-NonConforming-Brave Girl Camp is so totally amazing
that Hollie and I were both blown away by the experience.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />
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<br /></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On Saturday, the camp hosted its showcase, a chance for the
fledgling bands to perform their brand new songs, strut their self-made
t-shirts, and be one in solidarity for all the values the camp promotes:
Inclusiveness, Acceptance, Compassion, Freedom, Individuality, Love, and so
much more.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The parents who gathered to watch the showcase all looked
like me: concert t-shirts, tattoos, beer-in-hand-at-3-pm. It was my
Unapologetically X Women’s March #Resist brothers and sisters and it felt
awesome. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I know I’m doing this mom thing a little different than my
neighbors and my Facebook friends, my college friends and my high school
classmates, my PTO peers and business colleagues. But I’m doing it a lot like
my Girls Rock Tattooed Music Fan Day Drinking Tribe.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And that makes me think it's probably an okay approach.</span></div>
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<br /></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">The content presented here is the proprietary work of Kasie Whitener and may not be duplicated or redestributed without permission from the author.</div>Kasie Whitenerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15475275103424782144noreply@blogger.com0