Why do two weeks feel like an eternity when you least want it? If I were to go on a two-week vacation, it would fly by so fast that I would not even feel like I had a break. I have been absent from my blog page since July 6 due to circumstances mostly beyond my control and as I restart my literary adventures, I feel as though I have been gone for months.
It started when our beloved (ahem) Facebook decided to institute upgrades obviously without any kind of beta testing. The changes destroyed the platform integrations that allowed my blogging applications to interact. Not only could I not connect to post blog notifications, but I also had no way to send emails to my subscribers without sending them the old-fashioned way – one at a time. That was not going to happen. And, to add insult to injury, on week number two, a nasty little flu bug decided to invade my personal space. I fought that little sucker for five solid days – all while testing negative for Covid. In my heart, I simply believed that someone somewhere was telling me to take a break. But I am back and stronger than ever. I have to admit my thought processes also took a hiatus. Knowing I could not post allowed me to actually watch the rain and simply listen. I lost the urge to evaluate every raindrop and regurgitate some philosophical hogwash about its hypothetical meaning. It was refreshing. It did not last long, but I valued every mindless moment. So, what was the first puzzle to pop into my brain post-hiatus? Clichés. Yes, I know, that makes no sense. My life sometimes is just a crazy cliché. Yourdictionary.com defines clichés as terms, phrases, and even ideas that at inception may have been striking and thought-provoking but became unoriginal through repetition and overuse. Before the end of the 19th century, cliché described the process of repeating printed designs. Over the years its meaning evolved. I immediately think of “par for the course,” “misery loves company,” “love is blind,” and “laughter is the best medicine.” I relate to these emphatically. But this week, “fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me” came barreling through my repertoire. Those in the know call this a proverb, not a cliché, as it first appeared in a book called “The Court and Character of King James” by Anthony Weldon in 1651. Isn’t it amazing that falling for the same trick twice dates back centuries? We as humans are and have always been fallible. I have, as usual, perhaps “led you down the primrose path” this week. My brain is on overload, and I am “chomping at the bit” to get all my illogical logic on paper. Life often dazzles us with distraction, yet my mantra is always to “keep moving forward” because “this too shall pass.” “There is no time like the present” to be “better safe than sorry” - because we all know that “actions speak louder than words.” Okay. I am officially clichéd-out. It has been both irritating and fun at the same time! I am hopeful that issues of critical significance will flood my senses this week and launch me on yet another flight of fancy. Ah, but that is fodder for yet another rant.
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2 Comments
Michael
7/27/2022 10:36:12 am
Firstaval (as many of my international composition college students phonetically wrote "first of all"): Welcome back. It seems more than two weeks between chuckles.
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Jacque Stratman
8/13/2022 11:02:25 pm
Thanks, Mike! You are a most-beloved reader! I do believe that sitting in any of your classes would have been a hoot! Your students were given a rare opportunity to learn from the best! A "stitch in time" with you would have been priceless!
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AuthorJacque Jarrett Stratman |