Association Of Catholic Bloggers

Storytelling is a very "human" thing. But not all of us are storytellers. And some of us don't even care for reading stories. Which is just as well, since we're not supposed to be all alike. "Fiction is Lies" Giving and Getting Impressions Coming at Reality from Different Directions "Little Less Than a God" Imaginary Worlds and Human Dignity More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Fiction and truth, human nature and creativity, remembering who and what we are. Looking at reality from different directions. Attitudes and impressions.)

I'll be talking about ChatGPT, artificial intelligence, and why I don't think we're doomed. Search Engines, Iron Gall Ink and Me Prolonged Paragraphs, Abundant Adjectives: a Prolix Style From Another Age It's New, it's Scary and it's (Not) the End of Creative Writing ChatGPT and Three Fears 1. Loss of Economic Security (or Maybe a New Job) 2. Loss of Originality: Being Homogenized Diversity and a Discerning Chatbot 3. Loss of Creativity (Quoth the Chatbot: "Nevermore"?) Twitter Terror and the Chatbot of Doom Psst! Know Where a Buddy Can Get a Nuke? "It Can Only be Attributable to Human Error" From "I Read it in a Book" to "I Saw it Online" Nostalgia, Memory and Job Security More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Chatbots and three fears. ChaosGPT: Twitter terror and the chatbot of doom. Accepting change, and why I do not think creative writing is

It's been a year and a day since I talked about socializing, the pandemic and individual differences. "...I can sympathize with folks who really do need people: people who are physically close, not 'close' only in a virtual sense. I'm also willing to accept that not everyone is like me. For which we should all be thankful. And that's another topic. "That said, COVID-19 pandemic restrictions haven't cut into my social life all that much. "Before 'social distancing' — a poorly-chosen phrase, and that's yet another topic — started becoming a cliche, most of my social life was online...." (" People Who Need People — and the COVID-19 Pandemic " (January 24, 2021)) Somewhere during the last year, I noticed that I'd been enjoying my research and writing routines less. And had let some projects drop off the back burner. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I enjoy reading. Some folks don't. I have no idea what fraction of readers boast of their bookish practices. Or how many non-readers argue that reading is a waste of time. Apart, perhaps, from their occasional dip into a how-2 article. Since there's little tumult and shouting on the reader/non-reader front, it's probably not among today's major issues.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America : A brief look at readers: avid, picky and practical. Fiction, ethics and making sense. Fashionable melancholy, the Great Commission and why I write.

I'm intrigued by that which: Exists within this universe Exists beyond Might exist I've talked about "that which exists within this universe," what we've been learning about it, and why science doesn't upset me. I've talked about it a lot. Basically, I'm a Christian and a Catholic. I think truth matters. Faith is in part a pursuit of truth. Science is a pursuit of truth. As Pope Leo XIII said, "truth cannot contradict truth." Sometimes we learn something new, but I really don't see that as a problem. I've talked about what the Nicene Creed calls 'invisible,' too. Which isn't church-speak for electromagnetic phenomena outside visible spectrum. And that's not quite another topic. But I've written precious little about stuff that might exist. And why I don't see a problem with being a Christian and enjoying stories. Or writing them. So that's what I'll be talking about today: along with hubris

This will be my 31st daily 'journal' entry. I hadn't been planning on a daily posting schedule. But Sauk Centre's weather gave me something to write about three days in a row.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I started "A Catholic Citizen in America" on September 16, 2008; as a Blogger blog. Time passed. By 2016, I was having technical issues with Blogger. Then, in May of 2016, the service's zeal to protect users and viewers from a particular image file format gave me the last straw. That's when I decided to re-launch "A Catholic Citizen in America" as a WordPress blog. Which I did, finally, a few months later.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I found a few resources for my next "Dr. Faustus" post this morning and afternoon, and got some writing done. Then it was time for my hour at the Eucharistic Adoration chapel. That was, I think, an hour well-spent. But I'd been on a roll with the writing, and I don't think that will happen again in the time I've got before supper. I'd been reading about stewardship during my 'chapel' hour, so that's more or less what I'll write about here. But mostly about vocations. My vocation, specifically. And I don't mean a job or career.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

If you're back for more of "A Catholic Citizen in America:" thank you! These daily 'journal' posts are something new. I started talking about them last Saturday. ( January 23, 2021 ) Then I got distracted, which is par for the course and almost another topic. Today I'll say what I'd planned to say then. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I never wear a face mask while at my desk. Make that almost never. I did this morning — Saturday, January 23, 2020 — while taking that picture. △ And I wore one I'd had at the hospital while taking a picture for " Back from the Hospital: The Masked Minnesotan Rides Again ."... The face mask I'm wearing in today's photo is from Sauk Centre's Walmart. And that brings me to one of the two things I was going to talk about today. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

An important exercise that I have engaged in since I was in college was to sit for a few minutes with a cup of coffee and my journal, and make a 5 Year Plan.  I have specifically prayed about where exactly I hope to be in 10 years. At that time, in 2030, I will have two children in college, 5 kids at home, three will be teenagers and two will be pre-teens.  My mind is sorta blown when I think about that, but also, I have a lot of good hopes and good plans for my future. There is no question in my mind that my calling in life is to be a writer.  It is my passion. When I go to a bookstore and grab a cup of coffee, browsing and getting ideas and a pulse of the zeitgeist is possibly my favorite activity.  I come alive, time moves swiftly, and I have a million ideas of what I want to read and write next. My hope is to get a regular writing gig, hopefully with an online Catholic publication, write a nonfiction book and get it published, write a book of poetry, write a children's book

Nancy H. C. Ward's " Sharing Your Catholic Faith Story " has been in print and available on Amazon.com since April, 2019. Back cover blurbs include Lisa Hendey's "an enjoyable template for the challenge of evangelization" and Gary Zimak's "a book that needed to be written." "Sharing Your Catholic Faith Story" is a big deal for me, too. It's the first time I've had a byline in print since I wrote articles for the Red River Valley Historical Society's Heritage Press. That was in the 1970s. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Once upon an evening dreary, while I pondered, fogged and bleary, Over many a disconnected fragment of erratic text, While I dithered, nearly dozing, suddenly I started thinking: I should be sleeping!... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

He woke, heart racing, breathless, wet with sweat, in the starlit time before dawn. He shuddered when something touched his arm. It was his wife. "Again?" she asked, rolling her belly onto him. Soon she would bear his first child. "Again," he gasped. He waited until his breath came more easily. "The same thing. It was awful." She waited. He would talk soon. Perhaps then he would sleep. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Someone said "write what you know." It was definitely Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, Nathan Englander, or somebody else. I've mostly seen the quote applied to writing fiction. Apparently some folks assume that it means authors should only write stories about events they've experienced. That may help explain why fantasy and science fiction stories aren't taken seriously in some circles, and entirely too seriously in others. Others, including John Briggs , Diablo Cody /Brook Busey-Maurio and Jason Gots , say it means using the author's emotional memories when telling stories. They're professional writers, so I figure they know what they're talking about. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

My #3 daughter has some of my qualities, and attitudes. About four years back now, she vented frustration about writers, faith, and assumptions. She wasn't nearly as loud as I've often been during 'vents.' When folks learned she's a writer, they'd often say something like 'oh, good: we need more Catholic writers.' She'd say something like "I'm a writer who is Catholic, not a 'Catholic writer.'" I know what she means. She isn't writing another 'lives of the Saints,' or book of prayers. She's a Catholic who writes.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Joy of community. Writers go forth. Onward and Upward. God Bless Welcome, Join me in my camp here. Are you familiar NaNoWriMo? It is National Novel Writing Month. It is a virtual camp for writers to achieve their goals in creative writing. Having tried to do this camp NaNoWriMo thing for years. Finally, I am a participant yeah for me. In July, the writer can choose their own word count. Well, in any camp you can. Just do not let the stress and getting it perfect get to you anymore. My saying is “better done than perfect”. If I reach the goal, great and if I do not great. I am participating, to me that is all that matters right now.                 read more

I am part of a little Catholic book called  Love Rebel: Reclaiming Motherhood . One of the contributors, Bonnie Way, asked me questions about blogging for her own blog,  The Kola Mom . First, tell us a bit about yourself. It took me years to finally decide to start writing again. I had taken a 30-year sabbatical after leaving university to raise nine children. I just couldn’t seem to start writing, probably because the computer still intimidated me before I started blogging. No wonder- I had written all my university papers on a MANUEL typewriter. However, realistically there was simply too much work running a household for eleven people and helping with the farm animals and our large vegetable garden. continue

Well, I have taken the plunge, and officially started to compile my stories into sections for a book. It might take forever to rewrite and edit because my method of writing is pretty basic; I simply  spill out artless slice-of-life stories with little or no revision. I am surprised how many I have actually written. If I include spiritual reflections on family life, I have the book  more than half done with 46,700 words without calling on my adult kids to help trigger my memory. I also entered a first chapter contest.  After finishing two more teaching modules, I will be officially finished the first chapter which is about 9,500 words. To win, I need  people to click on the  cheer me   on  button. Winning simply means promotion on the editor’s website. Perhaps the first stage will be to self-publish a short excerpt with the helping of Connie who is staging a forum to help newbies. If you are interested drop in to register for the 30 minute, free forum tonight and as many times

A researcher with a digital camera noticed faint marks on a half-million-old shell. It's the earliest known abstract mark: made by Homo erectus. Scientists discovered genetic traces of a previously-unknown group of people, Denisovans , in a Neanderthal's DNA a year ago. Detailed analysis of the Neanderthal DNA reveals details of that Neanderthal family's history: and a few genes from another previously-unknown group.... ...The woman we know as KNM ER 3733 lived about 1,700,000 years ago.... ...The human family has changed a bit since her time: most of us have shorter arms and legs now; our foreheads are smoother and more nearly vertical; and we're probably better at singing opera. I'll get back to that.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .