Matthew Dicks's Blog, page 723

High-five

My wife is a huge supporter of the high-five.  She's been trying to bring it back ever since I've known her.  Apparently she is not alone:

How convenient. You and God believe the same thing!

Regrettably, I am one of the growing numbers of Americans who do not believe in God.  I say regrettable because I would very much like there to be a God and hope to one day discover that my lack of faith is errant and misguided. 

Just as long as God is not as angry and vengeful as The Bible depicts him.

Despite my lack of faith, I have read The Bible, front to back, three times in my life, and I recently began a fourth reading for a new project that I'm working on.  As a result, I often...

My abyss

Nathan Bransford writes about the nervousness that he feels when starting a new book.  He writes:

"I liken it to staring down at a deep, dark abyss. You know it's a long way down and it's pretty scary to jump."

I have never felt this way.  In fact for me, it's completely the opposite.  I have about a dozen ideas for books rattling around in my head, and I'm ready to start almost any of them on a moments notice.  I can't wait.   

For me, the abyss begins to loom around the halfway point...

New Years Resolutions: 2010

In keeping with tradition, here are my New Year's resolutions for 2010. 

I've decided to eliminate some items from last year's list because they have become so routine that they do not warrant resolution status anymore.  These include writing for at least two hours a day and flossing every day.

To put these items on the list would seem like cheating.  They've become akin to breathing and assuming that people who smoke must be of low intelligence.

Automatic.  Almost second nature.   

I...

Resolution update: 2009 in review

In January of this year, I established a list of twelve New Year's resolutions.  At the end of each month, I report on my progress as a means of holding myself accountable.

1. Finish my second novel before my birthday in mid February.

Done.

2. Live a healthier lifestyle. Specifically:

Done. I lost 33 pound in 2009 and lowered my cholesterol to a "slightly elevated" level  but not high enough to concern my doctor. I played a great deal of basketball and golf in 2009, and added walking...

I cant help it.

I logged onto Facebook this morning while walking my dog and saw that most of my friends had posted wishes for a happy new year. 

These status updates seemed benign enough, but instantly, I felt the need to do the opposite.  Reject the norm.  Resist the pull of the majority.  Post a status update to the contrary.  

I can't explain why I feel this way, but I always have.  My mother used to refer to me as The Instigator.  Others have used less polite language to describe my propensity to...

A decade of neologisms

Here's a selection of The Guardian's favorite neologisms of the last 10 years.

These words and expressions were all coined in particular parts of the world in specific years: they're principally slang and jargon; catching on, but still waiting to be formalized into our dictionaries.

My favorite from the list is:

1.  generica: features of the American landscape (strip malls, motel chains, prefab housing) that are exactly the same no matter where one is

I may use this word in a future...

Literary and Pregnancy Dos and Donts

This adore this Romance Heroine's Don'ts List.  It's quite amusing.

I thought I'd create a list as well. 

So inspired by the birth of my friends' first child two days ago, here is my Friends and Family of an Expecting Parent Don'ts List.

Please feel free to suggest additions to the list. 

1. Don't tell an expecting parent that he or she will never sleep well again.  Just because you gave birth to a monster and/or are ineffective at managing sleep cycles doesn't mean that you should...

Best books of 2009

The New Yorker's writers list some of their favorite books of 2009.

Ann Kingman, Michael Kindness and the Books on the Nightstand listeners list some of their own favorites from the past year.

My hope was to include a list of my own favorite books of 2009, but it occurs to me that I read only a handful of books this year that were actually published in 2009, and while I enjoyed most of them, they were not my favorite books of the year.  My paltry list includes:

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND...

An honor or a disservice?

The NY Times ran a piece about the most commonly shoplifted books.

Oddly enough, THE BIBLE tops the list in some stores.  Perhaps people feel entitled to the word of their Lord.  Or perhaps THE BIBLE is overpriced.  I purchased a copy a couple years ago for a project that I was working on, and I spent well over $100 on it. 

Maybe the masses simply cannot afford the book.  

The Telegraph reports that THE VIRGIN SUICIDES is the most commonly shoplifted book in modern times.  I have not...