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Feb 8, 2013 • This following poem is from Edgar Lee Masters: I HAVE STUDIED many times The marble which was chiseled for me— A boat with a furled sail at rest in a harbor. In truth it pictures not my destination But my life. For love was offered me and I shrank from its disillusionment; Sorrow knocked at...
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brian
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Jan 7, 2013 • Just when you think it’s safe to listen to the radio, a sappy love song hits you right in the nose. I present Owl City, “Vanilla Twilight,” for your consideration and listening pleasure. The song is just openly romantic. It makes me pause, a bit, and reflect on the power of well chosen words. Yeah,...
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brian
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Dec 26, 2012 • The Mayans were wrong. We’re still here. Well, the misreadings of a few archaeologists who looked at the end of a Mayan cycle as the end of the world were actually wrong. Go figure. So the world is still here, Christmas has come and gone, and life as we know it trudges forward. And snow...
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brian
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Dec 4, 2012 • It’s December. The holidays are upon us…again. It would be disingenuous if I tried to say that I didn’t absolutely love this time of year, but I suppose that there are things that get in the way of truly enjoying the season. For me, well, if you’ve been reading along with me then you know...
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brian
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Nov 18, 2012 • In the grand scheme of things, what is it really all about? Is it our accomplishments? The achievements we so proudly sought out, sometimes sacrificing all for, will they really be the things we hang our hats on at the end of the day? Writers long for publication- God knows I’m no different- but really,...
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brian
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Nov 11, 2012 • This, again, from Paulo Coelho. Here he discusses the nature of true happiness, and I think that there are a few people I know who should read this. Come o think of it, we all should read it. As a side note, I’ve mentioned how much I love Paolo Coelho’s work before, so I won’t...
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Nov 10, 2012 • I’ve had a bad feeling lately, a feeling that, not unlike some windswept reality tv start, I’ve “driven well past the last exit to relevance and veered into something closer to irresponsible” with my last few entries. So in an effort to get back on track, and to let go of the angst ridden posts...
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Nov 7, 2012 • I was struck by this Pablo Neruda poem, the resolve in it, the level of self-knowledge its narrator shows. Poetry often allows for the distillation of human experience, and this one is no exception. I particularly like the use of the beach imagery, as I also like to use it in my poetry. I’ve used...
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brian
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Oct 28, 2012 • This post is deliberately two sided. Both sides have to do with rejection. There are similarities between the two, no doubt, and in the similarities hopefully some inspiration can be gleaned. The first example comes from an email I received last week. It was a rejection from Willow Springs magazine, and it went succinctly...
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brian
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Oct 16, 2012 • A former student posted the following bit of wisdom on his blog, and I wanted to share it and give him a shout out. Here is the post from Vincent Barr’s blog, entitled On “Workaholics,” Work Ethic, and Motivation.” I’m a believer in ROWE (results oriented work environment). Performance should be measured in terms of...
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brian
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Oct 6, 2012 • I love Salem, Massachusetts. Just returning last night from a field trip that brought me there with thirty-six eleventh graders, I’ve had some time to think about this gem of a city and its dark past. I’ve lived with the witch hysteria just about every year I’ve taught thanks to Arthur Miller’s Crucible, and Hawthorne’s...
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brian
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Sep 16, 2012 • I love my blog. For years now I have been chronicling thoughts, hopes, aspirations, hurts, and writing tips right here on Sharper Thesis, the blog. But last night I was reminded in an abrupt way that there are rules to social media, and that if you forget them like I did you can miss out...
