Six Weeks of Meditation

On January 13, 2009 I was suspended from my job without pay "Pending Dismissal." I wound up being suspended for six weeks, at the end of which I wound up being quite broke, angry, upset, and introspective.
My first day back on the job was March 3, 2009. I knew I shouldn't be but I found myself being very upset with my bosses and my workplace in general. It took me several days after going back to work to remember that I should be grateful to have a job, especially in light of today's economic downturn. Still, I find myself repeating my new mantra, "I love my job, I need my job," over and over again.
Why was I suspended?
That's a conversation for another day...

Sleepy

It's about 6:30 pm and I'm sitting in the Rail Control Center for NYC Transit. It's a fascinating and impressive place, with a lot of stuff going on... unfortunately I'm sitting here waiting for a snowstorm that seems intent on taking its time. I had to do a double yesterday so I didn't get off 'til 3:00 am, didn't get home 'til 5:47am, didn't hit the sack 'til 6:00am. Got here at 2:00pm and have to stay until 10:00pm... so I'm kinda sleepy. Why is this a problem? Well, I'm supposed to stay alert in case of any emergencies, and I tried working on a couple of my short stories but I kept dozing off. Ah well, what can you do? I finally get some time I can use to work on some of my writing and I'm too sleepy to focus!

Reflection of Me anthology...

One of my short stories, The Toll, has been included in an anthology published by AAMBC Publishing. It's a decent story, kind of a Sci-Fi/Fantasy hybrid. I enjoyed writing it and I hope readers will enjoy reading it. I encourage all who enjoy African-American/Minority literature to purchase a copy of this anthology and give it a looking over, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Rain

Hi,

Well, it's raining out. It's a good day to watch a movie, curl up with a good book, or catch up with a writing project. It's also a good day to just stare out of the window and think about things.

The Thin Man...

Yes, the title of this particluar post is, The Thin Man.... and no it doesn't refer to the great mystery series that featured the erudite if perpetually inebriated Nick and Nora... it also doesn't refer to the fact that I have recently shed more than 20 pounds... unfortunately it refers to the fact that I think I may have spread myself a little thin in my quest for gaining more readers for my novel. What I mean is that since the publication of my novel, I have joined a myriad of literary websites, joined clubs, associations, blogs, organizations, fellows, etc. Now I find that in trying to keep up with all of those things, I actually wind up failing them all to one degree or another. Not only that, but I find that I spend so much time at those tasks that I haven't spent near enough time at my actual writing. Anyway, even with the knowledge that marketing is extremely important, I find that I must pull back somewhat if I am to ever finish (or even start) some of the other projects that I want to sink my teeth into. Do other authors exeperience this feeling of being pulled in multiple directions at once like a soft, malleable piece of taffy? Um-m-m, taffy, yum-yum. Do you feel guilt when you leave the marketing of your current project in order to work on your next one? Alas, until next time.... ciao.

Radio Interview that Never Happened

Well, the radio interview never happened. But I did receive an email from the host of the radio show explaining what went wrong. Below is that email:

Good Afternoon Arnold,
I hope and pray that all is well with you. I have no complaints. I would like to sincerely apologize to you for not being able to Interview you on the show. As my show says "Everybody Has Issues". On Tuesday morning my Computer Crashed and I was unable to do my show. I had to put it in the shop and did not get it out until Thursday evening. Because my show is Broadcast via the internet and all of my information is stored on my computer, I had no way of contacting you. I did however apologize to you on air, Thursday evening and Friday and at the same time promote your book. Please accept my sincerest apology and I would love to reschedule you on the show again soon, to discuss your Book. My fans would love to hear from you. Again, this was beyond my control and I apologize for any inconvenience that it may have caused. I will check the schedule and see when we can have you on the show as soon as possible. Thanks for your understanding. Until my keyboard clicks on again - Peace!
Appreciatively,
THE b.r.burns SHOW"
Everybody Has Issues!"

Radio Interview a BUST!!!

Hi all,

Well, I was all ready for the radio interview... What radio interview you ask? Well I was contacted by a representative of the b.r. burns blogtalkradio show and asked to be a guest on May 28th. I accepted of course! I then did all the things that I was asked to do by the represetatives of the b.r. burns show... I sent them my bio, I emailed and told all of my friends, family, and associates to tune in, I even bought a new telephone because my old one is a cordless model and can sometimes be unreliable. I psyched myself up, did some additional research on the topic, and I even rehearsed a little... I mean I was ready!

The time came for the show to begin, the website counted down to the start of the show, then a message came on at the time the show was supposed to start, reading, "Waiting for Host to call in." That message stayed on for the entire one and a half hours that the show was supposed to air until it finally just went off. No interview. No explanation. No email (even though I emailed them and politely asked what happened), no nothing. So... so much for that. I'll just keep on promoting my novel in whatever venues possible and keep on keeping on. I'd still like to know what happened though...