The Writing Life: Self-Restraint: An Admirable Vice

by Raymond Alexander Kukkee

Time reflecting the eternal flame of hope  (c)2011 wlk photography

"Know thyself" --a fine ancient adage, is it not?

I'm kind of an old-fashioned type. I know that, and  perhaps I always have been. I like tradition, the 'expected' and edifying practices rooted deeply in the past, simply because such things are the bleached bones of my heritage. 
I enjoy beautiful things. I have an Achilles' heel for pets and wildlife, gardens, trees, sunflowers, Mother Nature's creations in water, rock, and sky.  Old cannons, rich dark chocolate,  coconut trees,  toasted cinnamon bread with coffee, amethyst clocks  and pirate chests filled with gold. 
Loyal readers continue to amaze me, as do other writers, my friends, those incredible scribblers of all things fascinating, good, creative people who continue to challenge me to get better;  dictionaries,  sultry, hot, sexy women, and bold, self-confident thinkers. Solid-minded people displaying innovation and intelligence invariably pique my interest.
Literature,  fiction, poetry, the spice of everything,  you name it, I like it. Savouring the English language is one of these rare, beautiful treasures;  the world of literature is a richly spiced jewel  that should be polished and tasted with vigour. It should be enjoyed.  That is why I write.
 The simple act of  creating and scribbling such tomes should equally be practiced,enjoyed, and above all, protected.
 Although literary perfection, Latin, and old English are now as rare as exotic orchids, -- and chests of pirate gold aren't  appearing upon the doorstep of most writers  anywhere soon,  dreams of literary elegance persist.   We dream creativity into reality. We dream of success. We work at creating beauty, fiction,excitement and perfection for those around us. For the world. For civilization. For the future.

Word mills, content mills, writing traps for novices,  set up with their own self-serving agenda, show the opposite, pay no more than lip service to creativity or the practice of traditional ethics.  The industry is preoccupied with money instead.
 Greedy word mills  are being revealed for what they are, and as a result are displaying instability and imminent failure.  We now know it's a great idea to not only read, but understand the self-serving 'terms of service' that can be changed daily without notice.  It is ever more essential to be aware.
In fact, the written word, "articles" today,  as delightful as they are, often buy the writer into a trap.   
Caveat emptor.
 I'm not delighted with this trend to the brazen practice of  commandeering and theft 'lesser' ethics  in the industry that has been taking advantage of, and damaging creativity.    This is not a 'good' change for civilization.  We resist change naturally, but it is difficult to watch, being traditionalist in nature. Great civilizations require unparallelled  creativity and art in all forms.

Should creative minds  be forced to a constant state of alert for hosers,  thieves, profiteers less than ethical corporate interests, greedy, arrogant,  non-creative people who willfully and brazenly take advantage of  the creativity of others?

The growing specific lack of ethics in the industry annoys the hell out of me.
I don't like that trend. Why?   Changing to lesser ethics for profit is inexcusable.
Writers, thieves and court jesters alike have their own reasons for existing. What are yours? 
We can now laugh raucously.   We have diligently practiced the fine art of self-restraint with gusto;  a few months of generic self-improvement.  Where the good old-fashioned rant is concerned, self-restraint is an admirable vice.
 I have no idea how long I'll be able to hold out, how about you?
 At times I think  I'm too polite. Is it because I'm Canadian?
Call in the cavalry. Load the grape shot.
 
Is that Incoming I hear?

photo credit:    (c)2011  WendyLee Kukkee   (wlk photography)

Abusive Relationships: Writing for Quantum Change

The Age of Light is upon us

I write,  because frankly, I love to write about everything.
How about you?  Do you itch to write about this or that, something, anything?  Are you compelled to write about relationships, experience,  home life or families?  Do you ever want to change things you perceive as wrong? 

I  practice writing for quantum change.   I want to see change for the better in society, --even the smallest change, and  in many cases, I want others to change for the better on their own initiative, by being honest with themselves.  I want  society's leaders to lead. 

I have to be honest and admit I have a secret. I am
impatient.   I want to change things for the better instantly if not sooner --but  some things need to be changed instantly if not sooner.  

One of the major problems with that theory is that one must correctly understand what the status quo really is at the moment of observation. Reality. 
Perpetrators of wrongs must see themselves as doing wrong. 
 Abusive people need to be made to see themselves as they really are. Abusers. Abusers of women and children, abusers of seniors, the weak, and unfortunate pets.   Abusers are those individuals  that abuse anyone or anything that  happens to be less powerful, less able to protect themselves and unable to escape. 

Surprisingly, it is survival of cowards  that comes to mind. 
The fact is, abusers are insecure, weak-minded,  incompetent cowards that viciously abuse and minimize others to aggrandize themselves, to show how "powerful and superior" they are.  
In fact, little do they realize, they reveal themselves to be weak-minded, pathetic cowards --even psychotic and mentally ill individuals.

Any writer can default happily and  make up fiction, but the realities of physical abuse of women, children and families can be  black eyes, broken minds, broken hearts, broken homes, and broken bones--even death.    
 What society is doing now, or what is not being done, what is  subtly approved, --right now, rightly or wrongly  --and the bruises society's  victims wear --is what has to be dealt with, and now.  Denial  by society is unacceptable. Denial by individuals is unacceptable. 
How is the future framework of society established ? 
By what we do today. What we formulate and accept as normal today.  What is considered acceptable today.  
 Human beings are interesting subjects, interesting entities, and in the fantasy world, society is extremely fascinating --misguided or not,  faulty or not,  modified by aversion therapy a la  Clockwork Orange  or not.  

In reality , however, society is defective. 
Reality. Broken bones.  Bruises.  Being choked  is what it is, not what one may fancifully pretend it to be. Denial does not erase bruises or repair broken bones. 
The tendency to abuse can be modified and "fixed" but only with  willful --and honest attention. 
We  may arbitrarily and solemnly declare there are  underlying issues, events, and dissociated facts,  social causes that precipitate attacks  upon others in  abusive  relationships.  We're supposed to generously allow for those.  We convince ourselves it is unnecessary to intervene,  pretend it unnecessary to force anyone to be truthful  --after all, we can compensate with social feel-good understanding and give them a dandy "slap on the wrist".    
Sure, we can. We're an advanced society, supposedly  we can be politically correct and go out of our way to understand deviant behaviour. 
 Somehow that's supposed to make things better, it is supposed to prevent black eyes and bruises, broken bones and death, but it does not.
If we  remain silent and say nothing  we renege  on our duty to society.  We avoid facing perpetrators down..  We avoid pointing fingers.  Never rock the boat, never pay inordinate  attention to anything. Be 'politically correct'.  Ignore  the blatant regression of civility, society, ethics, and  brutality within relationships -shall we also silently blame and admonish the victims? 
After all, it's the status quo. It's approved by society's experts.
 
It's 'normal' according to society's 'experts' , so it's 'fine'.   It's been happening for centuries, so it's 'fine'.  Some cultures approve, even promote the abuse of women as property of spineless, vicious, abusive  men, so it's acceptable.    In some archaic patriarchal  cultures, "honour killing"  of daughters, sisters and siblings is "fine".
It's a typical strong man, weak woman relationship 'authorized' and , by neglect, seemingly approved by liberal feel-good social studies regardless how outrageous that may be.     
Guess what?  At Incoming Bytes, it is not "fine" .
I have no intention of accepting the status quo of the continuous abuse of  women, children or pets.
 I'm writing for quantum change, and you can too. 
If you dare.



That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

The Beginning

Incoming BYTES                                        photo by r.a. kukkee

It is with some excitement and trepidation I have finally  taken it upon myself to speak my mind and write a blog.  A real blog.  Incoming Bytes, powered by the light of the early morning sun....


What will Incoming BYTES be about?  
Everything.     Everything that piques the curiosity, touches the  heart,  outrages, or offends the soul.  Justice,  societal mores,  the environment, social affairs, news, events, tragedy and triumph.   I will ask questions.   I will not only question, but  interpret, infer, critique, and at times praise what I observe.    I may provide a perceived answer or two, or leave that job to the reader.   I may at times  condemn or annoy shamelessly. Perhaps controversy shall arise at times, and offend, even though offense is not specifically intended.  Perhaps offense is actually earned upon occasion and if that is the case, so be it.
Above all,  I will express my personal opinion with HONESTY. 


 The second  question that must come  to the fore should probably be:  “Why?” 
Why bother to speak out?   The fact of the matter remains,  in Utopia, and modern suburbia,  ordinary individuals should  expect to be happy and pleased with what they see around them.  If they make observations that make them  become angry  and fail to  comment,  or simply do not bother to address lack of ethics,  poverty, crime, and daily issues, why expect miracles?  Instead, observe events and offer positive  ideas for change, or  we  cannot expect any change for the better. 
Societal pressure at times favours the status quo, does it not? Look out of the window in your neighbourhood.  Listen to your children, co-workers, the media and observe.  Clearly quantum change for the better  is needed in North America and world-wide.


It took quite some time to firmly decide that  writing a web log could be a suitable forum that can promote discussion.  Again, write about what?   The simple answer is, “literally everything”. Everything that amazes or surprises. New discoveries. Everything that prickles the mind or the soul. Everything that excites, amazes, causes  creative juices to flow, consternation and anxiety, or offends the sense of justice.  What offends you? What excites you? What piques your interest?  What makes you happy? What enrages you to the very core of your being?  Please leave a comment.


* By the way, we believe  it possible to express forceful opinion without the use of invectives and foul language.  Such language and offensive, hateful commentary will  be obliterated mercilessly from comments.  If the reader is  angry, he or she is requested to take time out, return later, and leave an insightful  comment in the form of civilized dialogue.

Will Incoming BYTES  be successful?   That decision is left to the reader.   Come again soon. 

*Note from North of Lake Superior:  In spite of the current interest in global warming, in Northwestern Ontario it seems it has not arrived, --at least not today.    It is winter, cold and dry, and there is a wonderful  blanket of snow  for kids of all ages to play in.