Haymaking time

I’m fascinated by haymaking. Gathering the hay symbolizes many different things to me. “Making hay” is also a metaphor for many other things in life, including economic vitality and even success.

Years ago, someone that worked with me, who also happened to be a farmer on the side, was telling me about hay and weather—mainly that you needed three successive days of sunshine and dry weather to cure, or preserve the hay for storage. Cutting your hay and then, having it rained on for several days robs it of much of its nutrient value and limits its capacity to provide nutrients to a farmer’s animals. Continue reading

Learn from the past

Einstein receives attribution for the maxim that “doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results” is one definition of insanity. If Einstein’s true, and his body of work supports his veracity, then a good many people are just plain bonkers.

Over and over again humans choose paths leading to dead-ends. Even when given a second (and a third and a fourth…) chance, they regularly choose futility.

When I began writing, I was forced to fake it ‘til I made it. Without clips, clients, or any kind of substantial work, I learned to bluff my way forward. I ended up getting work, some of it offering valuable experience to someone finding his way as a freelancer. Continue reading