How I'm Holding Up on My 2015 Resolution

This morning my friend Patrick Rhone published a short piece called Right Speech.

In Buddhism, Right Speech is one of the precepts in The Noble Eightfold Path. In short, it is to abstain from lying, from divisive speech, from abusive speech, and from idle chatter. It is to consider carefully and mindfully what you say before saying it — weighing how it furthers the recipient of the message. If what we say does not further understanding, come from a place of compassion, or has no true purpose, it should not be said.

I have been bad at this lately.

The post is an apology for his own negativity, but whether he knew it or not, it was something I also needed to hear.

As some readers will remember, I vowed at the beginning of 2015 that I would “Eliminate as much cynicism and negativity from my life as possible.” I did a good job of it for a while, but lately I've fallen back into some old habits, both on Twitter and in my personal life (particularly the latter). I knew from the start I would be prone to falling off the wagon now and then, but I've found that each time I react negatively to something it gets harder and harder to get back on. I take this resolution quite seriously, so it's time to give myself a little kick in the ass with some public accountability.

This post is two things:

1. My own apology—to myself, to my friends and family, and most of all to my son, who my behavior influences most.

2. It's also another request for any of you to call me out if you see me behaving against my resolution. I mean it. I once sent Marco Arment a gentle reminder when he was being negative about something, and I hope someone would do the same for me if the roles were reversed.

Half a year left to go for my resolution, and hopefully a lifetime of optimism beyond that. Let's do this.

The Right Words

Patrick Rhone:

“It is moments like this that I am reminded why I am a writer. I’m in love with and in awe of the power of language. The way a single word or just the right ones strung together can capture the whole of something otherwise only imagined. An entire experience can be encapsulated, examined, and then set free for others to bear witness to, all in an instant, with just three simple words.”

This is truer than many writers know. I'm reminded of Tom Stoppard, who said (emphasis mine):

“I don't think writers are sacred, but words are. They deserve respect. If you get the right ones in the right order, you might nudge the world a little or make a poem that children will speak for you when you are dead.”

The right words in the right order. A powerful idea, that. Put another way, which words are within you right now, merely waiting to be placed in their proper order?

Pennaquod—The Pen Blog Searcher

I don't profess to be much of an expert on fancy analog writing tools, but I do enjoy drooling over them now and again. I typically rely on internet friends like Brad Dowdy and Patrick Rhone for information and tips about such things.

Pennaquod, a Google search tool put together by Ian Hedley, allows you to search over fifty (!) of these pen blogs at once. If you've ever wanted to know about particular fountain pens or notebooks or even typewriters, bookmark this super-handy site for later.

Fair warning: that site is a gateway into some deep, deep rabbit holes for even the most minor of pen nerds. Tread lightly.