Carma Spence's Blog, page 224
July 9, 2011
Conquering Mythologies
I'm currently reading The Mythology of Supernatural by Nathan Robert Brown … I'm reviewing it for both The New York Journal of Books and one of my blogs, The Genre Traveler.
In the section about Lilith, it talks about the exile elements of Lilith myths:
"So why would the ancient scribes make a point of writing a story in which Lilith is exiled …? The answer is that she was likely the ruling deity of a popular cult from some preexisting culture group. And just as Lilith was defeated by a new...
July 7, 2011
Experimenting with Tanka
Today I'm writing about tanka for my Examiner.com column. So I thought I'd write a sample tanka because I can't seem to find the one I wrote when I was doing a report on poetry in the 5th grade. Here is what I came up with:
[image error]
I pick up her bowl
and recall her furry smile
gone but remembered
I place the bowl in the box
that I donate tomorrow
~ * ~
Endings can be strange
Sometimes they fracture your heart
Other times they mend it
And sometimes they transform you
Into something wholly new
[image error]
June 19, 2011
A Nearly Fatherless Fathers' Day
Today is the first Fathers' Day without my Dad. He died in January, shortly before his 80th birthday.
When he died, I hadn't seen him in about 10 years. We'd talked on the phone, but hadn't seen each other. There were reasons for that that I wish didn't exist. I made bad choices and stuck in a marriage that was bad for me on so many levels that it actually kept me away from my family. Something I regret and am sad to admit.
I loved my Dad … still do. He was such an important part of my life a...
May 24, 2011
Perspective and Not Knowing
[image error] The following is a paper I did for my Philosophy class in Junior College. I got an A on it and it is an interesting read. Enjoy!
During his trial, Socrates said, "The only true wisdom consists in knowing that you know nothing." This is somewhat of a circular statement that denies itself, for if you know that you know nothing, then you know something. If you know nothing, then you cannot know that you know nothing, for you know nothing.
Maybe the word "know" needs defining. The Random House...
May 19, 2011
Fortune Cookies
[image error]I can be kind of a pack rat at times, so over the past few weeks I've been going through all my old files and boxes and clearing out the clutter that no longer serves me.
Among the stuff I found a small collection of fortunes plucked from cookies over the years and thought I'd share them with you.
You will travel far and wide for both pleasure and business.
Well, given that my soon-to-be-ex husband couldn't make up his mind where we should settle down to start a family, that one came true. In...
May 17, 2011
Sex, Lies and Vampires
[image error] The following is the speech I did for my "Speak with Knowledge" project while earning my Competent Toastmaster award. The point of the speech was to be able to read a speech effectively, which is why I chose to use a lot of quotes. This speech was written circa 1989, so it is a little dated … vampires in film and literature have changed a bit over time.
"I thought that I was asleep …. it began to dawn upon me that the air was heavy, and dank, and cold. I put back the clothes from my face, and...
