Checking in!

Greetings and hallucinations! Hope this finds everyone well and happy.

Life is very good. Work is going well, I have an active social life, my cult keeps me busy and my job is secure. I am a lucky, lucky woman.

I put writing and blogging on hold for a few months to focus on other areas requiring my attention. No regrets for doing so, but now I need to think about resurrecting my story and taking another stab at getting the words from my brain to paper.

This time I will concentrate on maintaining balance between the various parts of my life that need my attention. I won't punish myself for not being able to partipate in NANORIMO or other challenges. If I want to not blog for a while, I hereby give myself permission. I will write when the story flows from me and not berate myself when it doesn't.

I want to write, but I'm not driven by it. Perhaps that's a result of my comfortable life.

Whatever happens - I'll be hanging out here occasionally and will visit some of my favorites once in a while.

I'm well. I'm happy. Life is good. Hope you are the same.

Today's lesson: They're, their and there

Reading has occupied much of my scarce spare time lately. It takes a lot to irritate me, but the recent spate of misusing the words there, their and they’re has steam rolling out my ears. So, here’s today’s lesson on the proper usage of there, their and they’re.


First – THEY’RE

This is a contraction. It means they are. That’s all it is – ever!


Second – THERE

The primary use of there is as a location. “It’s there.” “Go over there.” They live there.”

As an adverb, it is:
1. used to introduce sentences in which a state, fact etc is being announced. "There has been an accident at the factory; There seems to be something wrong; I don't want there to be any mistakes in this. "

2. means at that time; at that point in a speech, argument etc. "There I cannot agree with you; Don't stop there – tell me what happened next!"

3 (with the subject of the sentence following the verb except when it is a pronoun) used at the beginning of a sentence, usually with be or go, to draw attention to, or point out, someone or something. "There she goes now! There it is! "

4 (placed immediately after noun) used for emphasis or to point out someone or something. "That book there is the one you need."

As an interjection, it is
1 used to calm or comfort. "There, now. Things aren't as bad as they seem."

2 used when a person has been shown to be correct, when something bad happens, or when something has been completed. "There! I told you he would do it! There! That's that job done. There! I said you would hurt yourself!"

The primary point here is; there is not a person or persons – ever!


Third – THEIR

This is a possessive form of THEY

As an adjective

1 belonging to them. "This is their car. Take a note of their names and addresses."

2 used instead of his, his or her etc where a person of unknown sex or people of both sexes are referred to. " Everyone should buy his own ticket. Everyone should buy their own ticket."

As a pronoun,
a person, thing etc belonging to them. "The child is theirs. He’s a friend of theirs. He’s one of their friends."

Their is not a location – ever!


Please, please, please – I beg you – use them correctly.


All assistance courtesy of www.thefreedictionary.com.


Are you using these words correctly? What word misuse sends steam rolling from your ears?

Hope!

Bleak and dire predictions, stock market crashing, massive debt and unemployment, savings wiped out and homes foreclosed. 2009 started out with a depressing thud.

In Seattle we had the snow from hell – happily downplayed by Mayor Snowpuff Marshmallow Man. Then ark inspiring rain fell to ruin lives and livelihoods.

Hope. Where’s the hope? Where’s the promise for a brighter future? Where’s the inspiration? Not a person – a sign of better things to come. In the media we only hear what’s wrong and how difficult and long it will be to repair. A little bit of hope – that’s all I ask.

Then yesterday, on a foggy day in Seattle, a bright ray of sunshine appeared on the Hudson River in New York. It illuminated the country and world and reminded us of all the reasons we have to hope.





On January 20th another ray will shine – this time as our new president is sworn in. Change won’t come immediately – but I have hope.





Pain under my shoulder blade that spread to my head creating shockwave headaches exacerbated by typing – my reason for not blogging much lately. With a new doctor, physical therapy and minimal drugs, things are improving daily. Other than that, my life is very pleasant and full of hope.

Are you well and happy? Do you have hope?

Happy New Year

That was perfect! Thank you Uncle Jay. Will you marry me?

Reverse psychology, by its most rudimentary definition, infers that to get someone to do something we must tell them to do the exact opposite. For years, New Year's resolutions made were New Year's resolutions unkept for me. So this year I hope to use reverse psychology on myself so at the end of the year I can say I actually kept some of my resolutions.

So here are my reverse psychology resolutions for 2009! (In reverse order of course)

10. To not win more than a million dollars in any lotto, lottery, mega-millions or anything else I forget to enter.

9. To gain 20 or more pounds.

8. To be broke and homeless.

7. To be sickly and infirm.

6. To have no friends.

5. To lose my job.

4. To lose my appetite for chocolate and hamburgers.

3. To have no clothes and walk naked throughout the Pacific Northwest.

2. To lose my memories.

1. To not finish the cozy mystery lounging happily in my head and partially on my computer.

There you have it! My reverse psychology resolutions. Any bets on how many I won't keep? Any you want to add?