Friday, June 27, 2008

June 25 Guest Horoscope II: Free Will Astrology

Aries: Welcome to Part Two of your outlook for the second half of 2008, Aries. We're checking up on how you're progressing with the challenges you were given near the end of last year. I'm hoping that by now you're well on your way toward leaving your amateur or rookie status behind for good. I trust that you have had a vision of exactly what you need to do in order to boost your level of professionalism, and that you have taken aggressive steps to carry out that vision. If for some bizarre reason you have not yet begun this glorious work, jumpstart yourself immediately. Fate will conspire dramatically on your behalf if you do. Now here's a tip on how to make sure that your inner warrior is operating at peak efficiency: Assume there's always more you can do to raise your standards and aspire to a higher grade of excellence.

I recently wrote in my journal for the first time since the end of last year. My last line was “And that’s how you don’t write a thesis.” At the end of last year I was really spinning my wheels, feeling tons of pressure about writing my thesis but not making any progress on it. I will defend that thesis on Monday, and then will be free to focus my energies and newfound work-ethic and focus on other writing projects like Teen Pregnancy: The Musical, a screenplay about my grandfather’s experience in WWI, many travel narratives and personal essays as well as some plays I haven’t finished. Then I get to read a lot of classics to prepare for the GRE subject test, research PhD programs in folklore, English, Religious Studies, Comparative Studies, MFA programs in Screen and Playwriting, and prepare compelling applications for same. Some time in there I also need to get a job to stem the mighty exodus occurring with my bank account. So, is there more that I can do? Yep. I still don’t get a ton done on the typical day except maybe reading. But I’ve been intending to reinstate daily schedules. Looks like it’s time. Yeah, things are that serious.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

June 18 Guest Horoscope: Free Will Astrology

Aries: We're halfway through 2008. It's a perfect moment to take inventory of how well you're capitalizing on this year's unique opportunities. So let me ask you, Aries: Are you working your ass off in order to stoke the fire in your belly? In other words, are you doing everything you can think of to get more motivated? Are you trying hard to supercharge your ambitions and refine your passions? If so, this will be the year when you finally figure out how to do what you love to do a majority of the time -- and how to get rewarded by the world for doing it. It's high time to answer your highest calling.

A quick note about Free Will Astrology, it is the greatest horoscope ever, and I recommend it to anyone and everyone. It got me hooked when, a couple years ago, I read this entry for Aries. Dynamic and applicable. Rob Brezny's oracle nearly always speaks to me. That may lead one to wonder why i haven't been blogging about Rob the entire time. Well, for a couple reasons, his horoscope doesn't need experimentation in my mind, it's less predictive and more advisory, thus it isn't necessarily true or not, but something that I can listen to or not. Also, it tends to treat fairly personal matters I wasn't sure I was comfortable blogging about. That being said, let's blog.

This one is right on. This entire year i have planned that if I didn't get into a PhD program--which I didn't--I would use the time to focus on writing to see if there were any indicators whether I could really make it or not as a writer. That's the thing I want the world to pay me to do and do most of the time. Is my motivation where it needs to be? Not yet. My time management skills are making this dream suffer as well as the ever present thesis. Of course those are just excuses, so I've got to finish revisions on my thesis--though draft 1 and 2 are luckily behind me, yay!--and get into a serious schedule where I focus on my many writing projects. And that brings me to the first thing I need to do: make a list of the writing projects that are most important/most likely to get me going and get to work. So, more on that later.

Thanks, Rob, for the reminder that the years half over and my higher calling is still waiting in the wings.

Hisashiburi

That's Japanese for "long time no see." While I could go through many excuses about how my facebook thesis--ah hem, I meant page--never updates the horoscope anymore, that still doesn't account for the 2-3 horoscopes from April and May that I never got around to responding to though I did save them. I tried to update them the other day, but it's been too long. It would taint my scientific results... which are already tainted tomatoes since I seem to have no more horoscopes from facebook. Booooo, facebook. Boooo. So, I have decided to use some "guest" horoscopes until, and if ever, facebook horoscopes get their act together and start posting horoscopes again because I was finding them fairly relevant. So, new guest horoscope coming soon, and just so you know, Chili-cheese fries at Red Robin at Provo Towne Center Mall are awesome. Four stars easy with great chili, cheese, fries, AND real bits of bacon. Lovely, though the most expensive at $9.