tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-143108242012-02-16T03:43:24.230-05:00ANXIOUS WRITER ATTEMPTS ADVENTUROUS LIFEPeggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.comBlogger10461100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-35583748946144406682010-12-13T19:52:00.004-05:002010-12-13T20:00:41.498-05:00

Hurry to the new location, and sign up again (or for the first time) to follow or subscribe.It's still the Boldness Blog. And I'm still an "Anxious Writer Attempting An Adventurous Life."The address is www.peggypayne.com/blog. I'm eagerly awaiting your arrival. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-83946822464965788692010-11-20T14:58:00.002-05:002010-11-20T15:05:14.807-05:00

Don't live down to expectations. Go out there and do something remarkable.-- Wendy Wasserstein quoted at She Writes (I also think one can stay in and do something remarkable.)Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-71043205864274153552010-11-18T12:32:00.003-05:002010-11-18T12:38:20.491-05:00

These trees are across the street from my office. Fall color can be an irresistible reminder to dare to live with one's innate flair. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-47186201368759899712010-11-15T15:50:00.005-05:002010-11-15T16:20:46.153-05:00

Last week I committed myself here on this very blog to finish by last night a project that has been sitting on my desk at home for four years. This job was to go through the thousands of slides and negatives and B&W prints from the years when I was doing a great deal of travel writing. And to sort, cull, and properly store the ones I want to keep.Done!!!!And only because I staked myself out

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-24499603181897511172010-11-09T14:14:00.003-05:002010-11-09T14:40:22.169-05:00

Thursday morning, I started working on a little project that has been sitting unfinished on my desk at home for FOUR YEARS!!!! The wee task is culling and properly storing the photos I took in the many years when I was doing a lot of travel writing. They have been sitting in little yellow boxes and ancient plastic slide sheets in a blue steamer trunk. The trunk was full. Thousands of

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-83675373234972069432010-11-05T11:57:00.003-04:002010-11-05T12:13:19.703-04:00

I had no idea that house-sitting was an industry.In August, when I enjoyed a three-week bonus life as a "a New York writer," I was staying in a studio of a daughter of a friend of a friend. It was an informal arrangement. And I was thrilled to get the chance to do it.House-sitting is good way to work in an extra life in a different state or country. Or even in the same town.This week, when a

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-21807878668326059542010-11-04T18:04:00.003-04:002010-11-04T18:10:39.110-04:00

In the last couple of months, I haven't been at all in the mood to write. And I've taken some time away from it.However this week and last week, I did it anyway, which is more typically my strategy.But I did it quickly, without looking back, without being very impressed, without much giving a damn.Then in my regular feedback group today, I read the last week's worth. (I hadn't so much as looked

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-71628523476098713452010-11-03T10:43:00.004-04:002010-11-03T11:31:31.216-04:00

Thanks to all who were so helpful in my brother Harry's campaign for judge. He didn't win this one. And this is the first race out of his nine political campaigns that he ever lost. It seemed to me, after he won his first at age 27 against a long-established incumbent and two other fearsome and well-funded opponents, that he would always win.Well, that's almost never true.This new outcome is

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-82028152090249257272010-11-01T11:24:00.005-04:002010-11-02T11:35:23.217-04:00

When it's your brother who's running for office, you'll do all sorts of bold and marginally undignified things. Like standing beside a highway in a startling coat for four hours, waving and grinning at every single car that passes. That's how strongly I feel about Harry Payne being elected to be a NC Appeals Court judge.Out on the roadside Saturday, lifelong family friend and architect Paul

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-34647188672733185152010-10-22T11:37:00.011-04:002010-10-22T13:55:30.062-04:00

Last week was a mini-bonus life in a house full of writers with good food and good views: the writing workshop at Doe Branch Ink in North Carolina's Blue Ridge Mountains:To give full credit, the shot above of the group from the third floor landing was taken by novelist/site manager Nick Roberts.The ones below are part of my record of the week, and my parting exploration of the neighborhood: the

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-60511335182751969812010-10-14T14:53:00.011-04:002010-10-14T15:56:02.428-04:00

Next to the last full day of the writers' retreat at Doe Branch Ink in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I've fallen into the peaceful and richly interesting routine of this extra tucked-in life. We are six writers on these 50 acres with three rustic houses and lots of desks with views. We're all getting work done. I know because the daily reading of revisions is at four p.m. One of our number has

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-88549950950608932652010-10-12T20:36:00.004-04:002010-10-12T21:13:30.901-04:00

This is the kind of extra life that is like a surprise package. I agreed to run a writing group at a house deep in the North Carolina mountains. Miles from a paved road. I showed up. And now I'm three days into an eight-day experience far from my regular world. It will be a chunk of time with distinct edges that allows me to operate a little differently than I might otherwise.Doe Branch Ink

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-85402377610261873442010-10-07T19:17:00.004-04:002010-10-07T19:31:22.468-04:00

I'm working so hard this week getting ready to go away for a week to a Doe Branch Ink writers' retreat that I haven't had time post.Bold Bonus Life Tip #5: Building in extra lives, even only week long, takes a lot of tying up of loose ends in advance. Back to you soon -- from the North Carolina mountains. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-76064990777100360212010-10-01T18:24:00.003-04:002010-10-01T18:38:40.009-04:00

It takes a bit of chutzpah to keep a sense of humor in some professions.Take anesthesiology, for one example. Unless you're one of the 5.3 million people who have already heard this, then you must click and listen, for the smile value.These guys demonstrate Bonus Life Tip #4: one can have an extra life even while the main one is still going on. Another example: I talked with a successful

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-45967811453716206692010-09-30T18:40:00.005-04:002010-09-30T19:05:36.290-04:00

Think you're too old to get a whole new life?Have a look at this week's New York magazine, which honors nine current high achievers who are in their nineties or over a hundred. (In their hundreds?) For example, composer Elliott Carter has published 14 new pieces of music since he turned 100. Turning through the portraits in New York, I was wowed and inspired by what it's possible to do (as long

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-90639482430538208212010-09-27T19:22:00.004-04:002010-09-27T19:44:05.670-04:00

Here's a provocative and bracing quote sent by Mamie of Can I Do It?Risk! Risk anything! Care no more for the opinions of others, for those voices. Do the hardest thing on earth for you. Act for yourself. Face the truth.- Katherine MansfieldNow, taking this literally, the hardest thing on earth for me would be doing one of several things that I don't want done. But the hardest thing that needs

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-62509300707168446452010-09-23T19:33:00.005-04:002010-09-23T20:04:41.740-04:00

My own most recent "extra life" was, as regular readers here know, the 18 days I spent in August as a New Yorker. I was apartment-sitting on the Upper West Side. For a year and a half, I'd had in mind the goal of enjoying a spell as a Manhattanite. It was a 60th birthday present to myself and I'm now veering dangerously close to 62.So it took me a little while to get there, but I did and it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-29969276042098125012010-09-21T18:47:00.004-04:002010-09-21T19:04:53.886-04:00

Maybe you build and repair your own cars and refrigerators and such, but not me.I like instant oatmeal. Processed foods. Processed plumbing. Things already done.But now and then in the case of my familiar trusty sits-with-me-all-day computer, I get the idea I can fix a problem myself. Now and then I can and it's greatly satisfying.But just now I tried to fix a little problem with my blog and

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-25650142626173661762010-09-18T16:13:00.002-04:002010-09-18T16:27:47.461-04:00

I was just Friended by a writer in California I haven't met, Nina Vida. (We have lots of friends in common.) I looked at her page and was inspired.It begins: "When I'm tempted to look at life as a series of successes and failures I remind myself that the journey is all."Note: she became a writer at 50 and now has seven books out from major publishers, most recently The Texicans from Soho Press

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-21347334942117440272010-09-16T19:54:00.002-04:002010-09-16T20:05:49.443-04:00

Cherished careers don’t always stay on track from beginning to end – especially in wobbly economic times.This can be frightening and painful. A bonus life as a grocery bagger is not what anybody went to school to prepare for.A commencement speaker at Harvard Divinity School, Professor Kimberley C. Patton, thinks that in profound ways, the difficult, uncertain periods are a good thing.“…In these

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-10668337175847413752010-09-10T15:26:00.008-04:002010-09-13T19:31:20.739-04:00

Friday, I dared to spare a few extra minutes.So often in the course of a work day, I could walk where I need to go, but drive instead to "save time."Today I walked to and from lunch at the Side Street Cafe. It's maybe nine blocks.Here's a little of what I would have whizzed past if I'd ridden. And the smell of a gardenia-laden bush.Not to mention the honeysuckle. The city even provided regular

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-84151354758567253552010-09-09T18:18:00.005-04:002010-09-09T18:42:04.237-04:00

I made this announcement yesterday on Facebook and the responses have been so lovely and enthusiastic that I'm going to keep on posting the news everywhere. (Of course, I have other good reasons as well.) Here it is:My brother Harry Payne is running for the NC Court of Appeals, election day in November. His expertise is labor and employment law--and being a particularly good guy, scrupulously

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-48049422816170062402010-09-08T18:51:00.005-04:002010-09-08T19:09:57.212-04:00

One of the ultimate bold acts, in my view, is to take an unblinking look at one's finances. I've just read a book that has relieved me of that dread -- and of the guilt and blame that come from discovering the precise results of one's less good decisions.For getting rid of the fear, The Cure for Money Madness , by Spencer Sherman, presents a few brilliant and do-able ideas that work:Figure out

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-27041734188916457232010-09-02T18:37:00.003-04:002010-09-02T18:59:50.137-04:00

It's almost a week now since I returned from my 18-day bonus extra life as a New Yorker. I've noticed a couple of significant after-effects of having tucked in this Plan B Life. 1. I feel very optimistic, as if almost any good thing is possible (and I'm capable of making it happen.)2. I've been ordering different items for lunch (stuffed pepper!?) at the cafeteria, not my old "regulars."3. I've

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-84483762191658588732010-09-01T14:34:00.003-04:002010-09-01T15:10:16.336-04:00

I'd heard the name Kickstarter, but somehow the startling opportunity there didn't register until recently when my artist stepson Jay Dick brought a particular project to my attention.Kickstarter is a site/service that allows "artists, designers, filmmakers, musicians, journalists, inventors, explorers..." to raise money for their projects. People can pledge any amount for a project that strikes

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-79553708657866601742010-08-31T20:39:00.004-04:002010-08-31T20:55:58.540-04:00

Worked at home today. How is this bold? Well, it's way too handy to take a nap, which I did do (I sometimes "close my eyes a minute" in my serious grownup office as well, but somehow that feels less risky.)Daytime naps are notorious for producing weird dreams and this one threw me into a drama that felt portentous. As follows: I was in a house where a spider more than a foot in diameter kept

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-85395475851153368772010-08-30T19:49:00.003-04:002010-08-30T19:57:29.841-04:00

First day back in the office after my 18 day Extra Life in NY. I arrived with the bold resolve to: "not be a workaholic drudge with eyestrain." The day has been no shorter than usual. But I've certainly been more relaxed. Not once all day have I thought while doing one piece of work that I really should be doing another. However, I find that I'm the only person working today in my five-person

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-9265756045314266942010-08-29T15:42:00.003-04:002010-08-29T16:01:11.102-04:00

You'll have to admit, it takes some cheek to say this:My focus is shifting from accomplishing things to having fun.I noticed this during my recent 18-day extra life in New York. I did accomplish a few things, both for clients and myself. But I didn't drive myself crazy over it. And it's entirely possible that the results were, as a result, better.But whether they were or not, I feel my

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-26636204053592633542010-08-28T14:07:00.006-04:002010-08-28T15:34:36.517-04:00

Friday was the final day of my 18-day extra life as a New Yorker. As Audrey Hepburn at 28. This two-weeks-and-four-days experience was a tremendous success for me. I loved it. I do feel satisfied now that I've had a Manhattan life. Just as I feel satisfied that I had a life in India, in the three months I spent there researching my novel Sister India. These were not mere trips. They felt

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-68866720397369159762010-08-26T10:03:00.001-04:002010-08-26T10:04:26.325-04:00

On my penultimate day as a 28 year-old New Yorker (my mini-life on the Upper West Side ends tomorrow), I took a bus to the Bronx.It was the borough I hadn't yet hit. And I wanted to see it slowly and aboveground instead of popping up out of a subway. The part I saw around 145th, not far across the river, was jammed with fast food and bargain stores and sidewalk merchandise. Lots of narrow and

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-32194392448405054432010-08-25T00:42:00.005-04:002010-08-25T10:19:45.451-04:00

I revisited some of my New York past yesterday. That's probably an important piece of an extra bonus life like my 18 days as a Manhattanite. First, I had a very pleasant coffee and re-connect with the literary agent who sold my first novel, Revelation and The Healing Power of Doing Good, and with one of her colleagues. Then, by chance, I wandered past the famously artsy hotel, the Chelsea (in

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-10185959493047675142010-08-24T08:10:00.005-04:002010-08-24T10:06:56.051-04:00

Audrey Hepburn came home.For new arrivals here, this is the way I think of the New Yorker whose apartment I'm "sitting" in for my extra mini-life as a Manhattanite. Her glamorous job called her back a few days earlier than she'd planned; she's now staying with a friend so that I can finish out my life here.It was a happy meeting. (She's the daughter of a friend of a friend and we'd never set

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-4641482397510364952010-08-23T10:20:00.007-04:002010-08-23T10:46:37.216-04:00

Audrey Hepburn is coming back to town today. That's how I think of the young woman who is letting me use her apartment for my 18 day bonus life in Manhattan. lAudrey is a few days early and is graciously staying with a friend so that I can finish my extra life here. Her terrace plants are doing well (see above)-- except for the one I 90% killed, then replaced.Interesting note on the outcome

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-42337723276848436162010-08-22T20:20:00.006-04:002010-08-22T22:45:29.339-04:00

A cool rainy Sunday in my extra life in Manhattan: a rousingly good church service, a three-hour brunch-with-live-jazz with good friends who'd driven up from Philadelphia, then an excellent late-afternoon play in a small theater with audience discussion with the playwright and composer afterwards. Then, of course, the long walk and the frozen dairy product, this time a roasted almond fro-yo in a

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-43262449792780434182010-08-21T21:47:00.007-04:002010-08-22T20:42:49.099-04:00

This splendid orb was created for the 100th dropping of a Times Square New Year's Eve ball. The New York Times started the practice in 1907. This piece was made by Waterford Crystal and a lighting company in 2007 to commemorate the century of these celebrations. This ball now sits in the Times Square Visitors Center, with an inspiring commentary:"The ball has always been a physical symbol of

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-52359118150194350342010-08-20T20:28:00.005-04:002010-08-20T21:37:42.323-04:00

Food report from my bonus 18-day life in Manhattan: above you'll see a lamb kofta burger from a fine establishment called 5 Napkin Burger.It was impressively good. And as juicy as advertised. In fact, 5 napkins were not enough; I needed a bib, really wrecked my shirt.Speaking of wreckage, here's the update on yesterday's crisis with the plant that I'm supposed to be plant-sitting for here that I

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-48454231780269099582010-08-19T19:26:00.003-04:002010-08-19T19:46:47.531-04:00

Well, I screwed up.I'm here in New York apartment-sitting, with the simple duties of watering the plants and bringing in the mail. You'd think I could handle that.But I let one of the plants on the terrace go too long without water. Its prognosis is now iffy. I've sent my confession and apology to Audrey Hepburn (that's the way I think of the New Yorker who owns this apartment). I didn't want

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-80466235229780396392010-08-19T00:10:00.004-04:002010-08-19T02:23:05.238-04:00

The first day of the second half of my bonus life in New York felt like four different days crammed together. Yesterday was: Gallery-hopping. Doll clothes. Meeting with book editor. Evening haircut that felt like a Japanese tea ceremony. And then today turned out to be a half-day. Time has been funny that way in this extra life.Yesterday morning I started with the galleries, the cluster of

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-41073209492265877982010-08-17T09:46:00.002-04:002010-08-17T09:52:01.954-04:00

Number 9? This means that I'm at the halfway point in my 18-day extra-life-within-a-life. As a New Yorker, I'm middle-aged. But I'm not taking this as a sign that I should re-assess, have a crisis, or do anything differently in my New York adventure. I'm going to keep on poking into things on whim.I worked some yesterday on getting ready to talk with a book editor today. Then went off to "New

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-32548655771691613482010-08-16T09:56:00.004-04:002010-08-16T11:27:37.042-04:00

Sunday was Rap Day for me.First, brunch at The Grey Dog in the West Village. Highly recommended spot, but I was there to say hi to the daughter of a friend back home who waits tables at the cafe when she's not going to auditions. She just got a one-month role on Seinfeld! But she was off yesterday and so I left my note to her with the very charming young maitre d'. Food report: huge brie and

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-68076095563875033042010-08-15T10:38:00.010-04:002010-08-15T11:15:22.923-04:00

A few highly personal images from my Bonus Life in New York:From the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden in the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens. At home, I live beside a little pond with a Japanese zigzag bridge. Husband Bob has very Eastern tastes and philosophy.A piece of the Tudor City neighborhood, on the east side of mid-town, where two of my good friends grew up.The base of a beech tree in the

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-26068639099822523272010-08-14T10:40:00.004-04:002010-08-14T11:38:06.098-04:00

5:40 a.m. I was up getting ready to go get my ticket to see live Saturday Night Live.I arrived under the famous NBC marquee at Rockefeller Plaza by 6:30, only to learn that the making of the shows is "in hiatus." But that's not what the website had told me.Furthermore, the security guard helpfully advised me that if a new performance had been scheduled for tonight, I'd probably have needed to

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-15459201593528247202010-08-13T12:12:00.004-04:002010-08-13T12:41:48.430-04:00

Posting in the morning today, for a change, while I'm feeling fresh and clear-minded. Never mind that it's 12:13 pm. That's mid-morning for me in this New York 18-Day Bonus Life. I've settled into a schedule of going to bed about 1:30 or so and getting up about 9. Not really much different from my sked at home. But this feels much more leisurely, of course, since I'm not heading off to my

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-70000554184187335692010-08-12T23:40:00.003-04:002010-08-13T00:06:10.011-04:00

Lotta lotta walking -- twice across the island of Manhattan, and from 87th down to 42nd and halfway back. And almost every instant of it interesting.And a little shopping: got a couple of light cotton tops at Forever 21 for dealing with the heat. (I know I'm actually 28 on this trip, but I'm young for my age.) Then, fittingly, went to Love, Loss, and What I Wore, a play by Ephron sisters based

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-45263019247052771572010-08-11T22:24:00.004-04:002010-08-11T23:17:08.286-04:00

Tired. I went out to Coney Island on the train this afternoon, a place I richly imagined as an elementary school kid. I'd heard back then that this was a place that had even more carnival rides than nearby Carolina Beach. This was inconceivable bliss.But my interest in such rides waned, and definitely ended after I had my first and only roller coaster ride at Myrtle Beach in South Carolina. I

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-70722097487876409012010-08-10T19:44:00.004-04:002010-08-10T22:04:35.786-04:00

After the euphoric first day of my 18-day life in Manhattan, I learned that even in a bonus life, one has to run errands: the drugstore, the ATM, etc.However, doing these mundane things here makes them fresh and new. For one thing, everything was in walking distance. No driving. That alone was staggeringly refreshing. And, coming back, half a block from "my" apartment -- hereafter to be

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-68240422176604377942010-08-09T11:24:00.008-04:002010-08-09T13:04:41.966-04:00

Have embarked on my 18-day life-within-a-life in New York, the one I promised myself as celebration of turning 60 a year and a half ago. I hadn't yet figured out how to work it out (pay for it) and then this marvelous house-sitting arrangement fell in my lap and suddenly I'm here.And it's thrilling. I arrived yesterday on "the Chinatown bus" -- an express overnight trip from Grand Asia Market

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-83428040754482659182010-08-02T11:14:00.005-04:002010-08-02T11:39:23.415-04:00

My friend, Christina, knowing I'll be in Manhattan next week, passed on word of a cool workshop there. I love the idea, and it can be done anywhere: turning your junk mail, your pile, into a piece of art. When you think about it, there's no end to the forms one's pile of garbage paper and odds and ends can take. Highly customized notecards at the very least.It'd be interesting to take one

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-66338558811274662262010-07-30T14:33:00.004-04:002010-07-30T14:48:02.782-04:00

New York has called me and I need to cancel the Get-Published workshop that I announced in my last post.Thanks to those who expressed interest. I'm sorry for any inconvenience. The situation: I got an offer I couldn't refuse: 2.5 weeks plant-sitting and being a "New York writer" in an apartment on the Upper West Side. Great chance to see some colleagues--even though it's August-- and lead

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-58177352616050358192010-07-26T18:38:00.008-04:002010-07-27T13:00:35.087-04:00

You’re invited to a Get-Published-in-Today’s-Market Seminar on Saturday, August 14, at my cabin in the woods, south of Chapel Hill, NC. You’ll learn:--How to think about your book or idea – however literary or personal – from a commercial perspective --How to approach an agent (with fiction or nonfiction)--The trends in publishing by the major houses and how to stay current--How

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-4340273652973902002010-07-26T12:04:00.003-04:002010-07-26T15:15:49.516-04:00

It's been a wild couple of days. At first, seemed as if Mom had had a heart attack. Then it appeared to be an infection in a lung. Then it was definitely a fairly weird situation. I won't encumber you with the medical details, but some organs had gotten kinda twisted up. And apparently, she has had this situation for decades, maybe even from having twins 57 years ago, and no one knows why

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-68815564127376114802010-07-21T16:28:00.002-04:002010-07-21T16:49:16.901-04:00

“Every thing we do is music and everywhere is the best seat.”— John Cage(discovered on the website of Ranch La Puerta spa in Tecate, Mexico)"He was an early writer of aleatoric music (music where some elements are left to chance),..." Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-13904083120787959252010-07-20T17:47:00.005-04:002010-07-20T17:53:43.220-04:00

Today is Tisha B'av, a Jewish fast day dedicated to mourning the various acts that destroy holiness in the world. I learned this from the blog of composer Meira Warshauer. She and I have been friends since we were in first grade.She writes: "Today, for a few more hours, we can feel the sadness of a world in pain. Today we don’t have to get busy fixing it. We also don’t have to turn away from

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-68128166991655116472010-07-20T13:58:00.002-04:002010-07-20T14:17:40.957-04:00

Brain research from Israel shows that what works best for taking immediate brave action is to disconnect from the fear and do it anyway.Neuron magazine reports that people watched in an MRI machine could let a live snake closer to their heads if they "dissociated" from the feeling of fear."Courage is associated with dissociation of reported fear and somatic arousal." Somatic arousal being the

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-75395727091508751662010-07-19T18:49:00.003-04:002010-07-19T19:08:09.107-04:00

I put my little kayak in the water yesterday and went for the first longish paddle of this year. Tennis elbow has kept me away from it for months. I was waiting for it to be totally healed, then got tired of waiting, and went for a little kayak ride anyway. I've used that strategy with an injury on two other occasions. Once it was a total permanent cure (for back trouble) and the other time

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-80639366274159176052010-07-17T15:57:00.003-04:002010-07-17T16:04:38.426-04:00

I'd heard that the gallery light in the new N.C. Art Museum had a mysterious ethereal beauty. Last night at dusk and in a thunderstorm, I made my first visit. (Characteristically, it was work that took me there: a gallery is going to be a setting for important stuff in my YA(young adult)-paranormal-romance-in-progress.)I did find the ethereal light, the feeling that the classical sculptures had

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-68321234718891056322010-07-16T17:11:00.005-04:002010-07-16T17:40:17.629-04:00

Last night, I watched the movie Milk, the biopic about San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to hold major public office in this country.Sean Penn did a terrific job playing the part (won a Best Actor Oscar.) I already knew of course that Milk and the supportive mayor of the city were murdered in city hall by a fellow councilman.What struck me in the movie was how many

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-16570418604097620842010-07-14T11:53:00.003-04:002010-07-14T12:28:52.412-04:00

Should you be in the mood for a hilarious compliment to boost your boldness factor, go get your writing "analyzed" at I Write Like Margaret Atwood.All you have to do is paste in a few paragraphs and the site's software speedily decides what well-known writer uses similar word choice and syntax.I ran across it on a Facebook entry this morning and hurried straight to the site.I learned that I am

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-26059477093783802352010-07-12T14:04:00.003-04:002010-07-12T14:24:30.144-04:00

So often it's difficult to know which is "the better part of valor."I think most of us would do the right thing most of the time if we were sure what it was. (Heady discussion at lunch today about the pros and cons of fundamentalist religion: it does give a secure sense of right and wrong about many things.)But would any religious code tell me whether to keep working at the moment or take a nap

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-57645516746851605982010-07-09T13:54:00.005-04:002010-07-09T14:22:07.078-04:00

How is it possible that my car failed, my computer got a virus, I lost my health insurance, my credit card was stolen, my psychologist husband moved into a new office and independent practice after 42 years with his old group, and major repairs are going on at our house--all in the same few weeks? Is it something I said?In some martial arts testing, there's a part called rondori or randori,

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-82526070161948958332010-07-06T12:19:00.002-04:002010-07-06T12:38:22.905-04:00

A flower-mobile (see photo two posts ago) is a hard act to follow, of course. But my morning glory car was replaced -- on the eve of Independence Day weekend -- by this cherry-bomb-red 1998 Ford Escort. I'm thrilled and feeling a new surge of bold independence. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-56345053855373173592010-06-30T13:36:00.003-04:002010-06-30T13:52:02.318-04:00

Yesterday I sold my flowered '92 Camry on Craigs List.(see photo below) About twenty people were interested within minutes of my posting, three of them fiercely so. I felt as if I were suddenly defending a dissertation (not that I really know what that feels like.) The experience was a bit agitating because I know nothing about cars, could answer none of the questions, and wondered if I'd set

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-20769448101564065802010-06-25T14:16:00.003-04:002010-06-25T14:48:33.085-04:00

I'm thinking of rehoming my beloved Morning Glory Car, in which I've had many literary thoughts and even written a few immortal pages.For the right collector of literary stuff, particularly North Carolina or Southern, this hand-stencilled-by-the-author art car will be a real find. For the right offer, I'll throw in signed copies of my books. Handsome by candlelight, she's a 1992 Camry with

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-38591803863819236562010-06-24T12:13:00.003-04:002010-06-24T12:32:53.978-04:00

Cheers for Elaine Marshall, who just won a primary runoff in the face of huge obstacles. Her opponent was the candidate of the party establishment (according to the News & Observer) and she was dealt a tremendous personal blow with the death of her husband during the campaign (which I only learned after the results were in.) She now has the Democratic nomination in the U.S. Senate race in my

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-2443379185150691142010-06-23T18:27:00.005-04:002010-06-23T18:49:58.760-04:00

Bold move for me: I put oil in my car, for the first time ever.The oil light on the dash had started to flicker late last night. I picked up a few quarts at a convenience store. A helpful guy there advised on what kind a '92 Camry would most like. (This is a car I dearly love.)This morning, with a funnel from the kitchen and a gardening tool to prop the hood up and my cell to call Auto Logic to

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-53991644823853437622010-06-22T17:03:00.003-04:002010-06-22T17:17:52.950-04:00

Good friend with bad diagnosis. Too much of this is happening and at an increasing pace. And I'm only 61.I'd always heard that old age was not for sissies; I thought that saying referred to coping with one's own ailments, impairments and indignities.But, no -- it's a whole lot larger than that. I've watched my wonderfully healthy mother deal with what has happened to so many people close to

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-3380050536240194362010-06-16T16:27:00.006-04:002010-06-16T17:00:37.963-04:00

This is a plug for the wonders of my magical husband. A clinical psychologist, Bob teaches self-hypnosis in an all-day seminar at our house about every three months. This quarter's "all-day," as we call it, is this Friday at our log cabin beside a pond in the woods.Participants learn to use self-hypnosis for whatever purpose they choose: enhancing creativity, managing pain, improving focus,

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-41780301127375214562010-06-14T14:48:00.003-04:002010-06-14T15:08:48.402-04:00

Handled horizontally, this is the new key to my office, freshly adorned with moon and stars. Vertically and pointing up, it's now a key for opening my imagination.Pointing down, it goes to my unconscious.What a handy tool to have close by at all times! Maybe I'll be more careful now not to misplace my keys. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-6715262378254635672010-06-11T14:04:00.002-04:002010-06-11T14:13:44.155-04:00

It's easy to doubt the effectiveness of one more small action toward a goal. Here's a light-hearted reminder that setting one thing in motion can make a difference. Thanks to Michael Lindsay of Inform Creative Services for sending this cheerful burst of creativity. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-73184027731372869382010-06-08T10:57:00.001-04:002010-06-08T10:59:53.773-04:00

Reminders to persist toward your bold goals:"Colonel Sanders was in his 60s before he founded Kentucky Fried Chicken....Stephen King wrote many novels before he had his first one published.Dolly Parton was told that she sang like a billy goat and had no chance of making it in show business."Please note the source of this encouragement: SZ Magazine, a publication on dealing with schizophrenia,

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-55020315051569764312010-06-07T12:32:00.005-04:002010-06-07T12:41:18.531-04:00

Spiders aren't a particular fear of mine, but I don't love them. This one, discovered at night our semi-outdoor sink, was different from anything I'd seen before, its body like a small avocado. It was so unusual I decided to take a picture and wound up getting closer to it than I otherwise would have.Which reminded me: fear diminishes when there's a job to focus on. I found in my early news

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-39856140380794285532010-06-04T15:50:00.004-04:002010-06-04T16:08:32.944-04:00

I think they're wonderful together. My husband thinks they're wonderful separate. What do you think? Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-45354816860057965622010-06-01T19:01:00.001-04:002010-06-01T19:04:10.847-04:00

"The dear old human experience is a singular, difficult, shadowed, brilliant experience that does not resolve into being comfortable in the world. The valley of the shadow is part of that, and you are depriving yourself if you do not experience what humankind has experienced, including doubt and sorrow. We experience pain and difficulty as failure instead of saying, I will pass through this,

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-60814685679250332302010-05-31T13:59:00.003-04:002010-05-31T14:04:14.321-04:00

Wherever each of us is on the hawk to dove continuum, I think we have to admit that soldiers are bold. They act on their convictions and risk their lives in that action. They also risk coming home with brain damage and/or missing limbs.So, here's to the bold soldiers of all stripes!Happy Memorial Day to you and the warriors closest to your heart. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-79556967559425448762010-05-28T18:39:00.002-04:002010-05-28T18:47:21.673-04:00

I'm going to visit my mom this weekend which means I'm also going to the beach (Wrightsville Beach, NC). I was right on the point of scheduling a surfing lesson, the first in my life, when I suddenly remembered that I have tennis elbow in my right arm. Probably I should wait until I can use both arms.Frustrating? Or off the hook? Or both?I do mean to do this thing -- and this summer. I'm not

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-66848882994408425962010-05-21T12:53:00.001-04:002010-05-21T12:55:56.691-04:00

Bold and persistent, 94 year-old Hazel Soares got her degree in art history from Mills College this past week.Mills itself is pretty bold. From the website: "Over the decades, Mills “firsts” have been numerous: the first women's college west of the Rockies (chartered 1885); the first laboratory school west of the Mississippi for aspiring teachers (1926); the first women’s college to offer a

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-59839788267888948822010-05-19T13:12:00.002-04:002010-05-19T13:15:23.374-04:00

...to save the world.Taken at Swan Quarter, NC, near the ferry to Ocracoke Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-14198764858799662482010-05-14T11:04:00.003-04:002010-05-14T11:13:16.200-04:00

I've occasionally been accused of over-subtlety in my communications. I occasionally remind myself that it's a gift to the listener to be clear. My therapist once said to me: "it's not intrusive to tell people what they want to know." Not that they always want to know what I have to say. But if I'm going to say it, nothing is gained by burying it.Below, a visual reminder of "flat out," a

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-16414263096547963032010-05-13T16:25:00.002-04:002010-05-13T16:29:28.515-04:00

Different things scare different folks. A bold move for one person is routine for another, and vice versa. For example, if I tried to take the stand that this bird is so casually doing, I would be bold, indeed. On the other hand, I've done some things that this fellow would absolutely quail at. My point, punnery aside, is that comparisons, in the case of courage, are not only odious, they

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-43445759071921206362010-05-11T16:25:00.004-04:002010-05-12T12:27:48.740-04:00

Helen Mirren's wax likeness was unveiled at Mme. Tussaud's yesterday and the picture of her with the fake version was number one in gossip site Radaronline's Hot Photos. I applaud the bold Dame Helen for the chutzpah to be totally hot at 65. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-55753814892772010992010-05-11T15:28:00.007-04:002010-05-11T16:10:12.697-04:00

Last week I taught my "Writing Powerful Stories" workshop on Ocracoke Island on the North Carolina Outer Banks.The participants were public school teachers/guidance counselors/principals, etc. The sponsor was the NC Center for the Advancement of Teaching.What's bold about this? For one, I, who am primarily a writer, was teaching teachers. And more striking, the courage and honesty of the

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-76475633723908878432010-04-29T18:15:00.002-04:002010-04-29T18:33:24.503-04:00

I'm getting ready to head off to Ocracoke on the NC Outer Banks to teach a writing class for five days for NCCAT. Very nice assignment, I know. At the same time, teaching is the boldest thing I ever do. The most demanding of attentiveness. Writing is a piece of cake, by comparison. Public speaking is a walk in the park. (Pardon the cliches, please.) Teaching is serious stuff.Ran across

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-55179699928613389612010-04-27T19:13:00.004-04:002010-04-27T19:31:07.034-04:00

Gandhi, one of my often-mentioned heroes, is an encouraging example in part because of his rough start. Prior to peacefully running the British out of India, he was a lawyer who was too cowed to speak up in court. He lost case after case. "He was a total failure," writes Paul Rogat Loeb in an AARP Bulletin piece adapted from his book Soul of a Citizen. Gandhi's Indian family "sent him off to

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-44474722336332458472010-04-26T12:20:00.003-04:002010-04-26T12:24:35.324-04:00

Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-88393425729537947362010-04-25T15:37:00.003-04:002010-04-25T15:41:17.392-04:00

Just passed a thousand posts on Friday without even knowing it. That would be about three novels in length. Though, I must say my novels are more considered than my posts. Still, it does make me think. A thousand! Damn! Will have to cook up an appropriate celebration. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-89767866731195840552010-04-23T11:51:00.003-04:002010-04-23T11:56:12.155-04:00

Yesterday afternoon my writing group was called off, and instead of rushing back to my laptop, I went home and hit the garden.Hit is the operative word. I did some serious pruning. For me, this is a bold move.My general gardening philosophy is: if a thing wants to grow, I let it grow. This concept, put into practice, lends the place a certain straggly aura. Yesterday, however, I got out the

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-59839303386486877162010-04-21T18:15:00.002-04:002010-04-21T18:28:49.281-04:00

Live your life in such a way that when your feet hit the floor Satanshudders and says, "Oh no, she's awake."- unknown(Mamie can be found at Can I Do It?) Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-58438532871774908502010-04-19T14:46:00.002-04:002010-04-21T18:30:47.035-04:00

I find growing older, I'm increasingly bolderAnd increasingly hard to subdue!- author unknown Contributed by quote maven Mamie of Can I Do It? Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-78226447678320035012010-04-16T18:05:00.003-04:002010-04-16T18:18:05.068-04:00

Got me a new agent and I'm really happy with her. This is always a great moment in a writer's life. So I'm celebrating. And Husband Bob brought home hydrangeas. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-39145814409604029012010-04-13T13:04:00.004-04:002010-04-13T13:21:03.740-04:00

"Talk does not cook rice."-Chinese Proverb, quoted from productivity guru David Allen's latest newsletter. (His mantra is Getting Things Done or GTD.)I'm a great fan of talk myself. However, in most situations, the conversation (or the monologue) has to be followed by action for any "rice" to result.Rice, I now realize, is a symbol of fertility and prosperity. What have you been talking about

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-38670333151015084732010-04-12T17:53:00.002-04:002010-04-12T18:08:15.071-04:00

My sister-in-law Ruth Sheehan, a truly bold writer, is a columnist for the local News & Observer. She has often used that space to champion better treatment for the mentally ill.Recently she started a column saying: "It took a lot of guts to write this book." Which would have gotten my attention even if she weren't related to me.The book Our Voices: First Person Accounts of Schizophrenia is

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-80663637148581991492010-04-08T12:35:00.003-04:002010-04-08T12:44:48.274-04:00

Made a recent personal discovery: I have more courage in the morning. I don't mean the arduous moments of struggling to wake up, but instead after I get rolling. Then the world feels new, or newish, and I'm out in it.Fatigue, on the other hand, does not make me bold. And that's probably just as well. Have you observed any such patterns in yourself? This could be useful info for scheduling.

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-50458205364531173672010-04-06T16:13:00.003-04:002010-04-06T16:35:14.653-04:00

Last night's national college men's (NCAA) championship was a contest in which neither side backed down or got rattled or gave less than a terrific performance.An underdog team went up against a school that has won the title several times, but not in quite a few years.An aging super-star coach competed against a young rising star coach.Duke versus Butler reached mythic proportions.Duke won, (my

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-20564617940274551632010-04-02T17:43:00.004-04:002010-04-02T18:16:46.362-04:00

It's Passover. It's Easter. It's spring.I wish you refreshing newness of life and the strength of your roots and traditions. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg it

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-61957473966246035002010-03-31T15:36:00.003-04:002010-03-31T15:50:17.698-04:00

This little rock garden plant emerged between the front steps of my office building and has been blooming cheerily for about a week. Everyone is careful to step over it. This is a good demonstration of the crack/flaw in an object being part of its charm. Remember the story of the cracked pot and "do your thing" whether you're perfect or not. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-57409462866511277402010-03-29T13:45:00.004-04:002010-03-29T14:04:57.449-04:00

Dropping by my local library a week ago, I looked around toward the desk to say "hi" to my favorite librarian. I didn't see her and figured it wasn't her Sunday to work. A few more steps and I came upon a picture of her, surrounded by fresh camellias from someone's yard. Joyce. That's the only name I knew her by. She'd died two days earlier, suddenly of a stroke at the age of 58.Since then

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-66018712526453181212010-03-23T11:31:00.002-04:002010-03-23T11:39:58.120-04:00

However you feel about the healthcare reform bill passed this week(and I'm heartily in favor), it's surely clear that Obama is a president who has stuck his neck out. Who bet the farm. Who put his eggs in one basket. And any of the other cliches that stand for high-risk persistence over a long haul in the face of stubborn obstacles.And he succeeded. Obama was my candidate. And, though I don't

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-35690917144471401812010-03-22T20:15:00.002-04:002010-03-22T20:20:22.374-04:00

Just ran across this item about repairing roads with garbage in Saathee, which is a magazine for Indians living in the Carolinas.It doesn't sound as if the idea is entirely worked out. However, this is the kind of thinking we all need to be doing: using one problem as the solution to another problem, thus solving both. That's bold. Add to del.icio.us - Stumble It! - Subscribe to this feed - Digg

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-83687361731150686662010-03-17T17:42:00.011-04:002010-03-17T18:55:55.454-04:00

One of the five offices in the charming 1910 Raleigh house where I work has been transformed. The room or half the room can be rented by the week or the month, by a writer or anyone else needing a place to work quietly within a small creative community. Above you see Desk One in the room now referred to as A Room of One's Own, with a nod toward Virginia Woolf. Below are Desk Two and the central

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14310824.post-24775435030716937592010-03-16T15:06:00.006-04:002010-03-16T15:55:37.105-04:00

A couple of times, in answer to requests, I've promised pictures that I didn't immediately deliver.I guess I should say I'm making semi-good on the promises, since I've come up with only picture in each category.This first one is a piece of the road from where I live toward the first stretch of pavement. It's the downhill-and-around-a-pond route I said I didn't care to drive when the ruts had

Peggy Paynehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14504076672775821088noreply@blogger.com2