Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Poem in 32 Words or Fewer

The crew @32poems on Twitter tweeted a contest today (with a 10/30 deadline) to write a poem in 32 words or fewer. Of course, I had to give it a try.

lost & found exploring
she splashes through waves in the moon's shadow
as he chases her laugh breaking against
the sand we wander through looking for shells
that hide like everything from the sun.

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Quick update on me: I'm still on my diet with Tammy, and I've now lost 22.6 pounds in just over 4 weeks. Plus, I haven't been getting headaches anymore, which were getting pretty regular--even with some temperature swings (which always used to cause headaches). Plus, my skin feels amazing. I totally recommend this diet to any and all.

Also, I've been doing the whole Den Leader thing, and I'm getting more and more into the role. My den is making progress toward their Tiger Cub advancements, and I think we're having fun doing it.

I'll be speaking at the Red Clay Writers Conference on November 6 in Kennesaw, Georgia. My topic is on building a writing platform, but there will be many other talented writers there too, including Collin Kelley, Stephanie Davis, and others. (Click here to learn more.)

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Follow me on Twitter @robertleebrewer

Monday, October 11, 2010

The Best Weekend to Visit Southwest Ohio...

...is always the weekend after the first full week of October, which just happened to be this past weekend. And as luck had it, I was up in Ohio visiting Ben and Jonah this weekend. We went to the Eaton homecoming football game on Friday night.

On Saturday, I watched Ben's soccer game before picking up my mom who went with us (Jonah was there as well) to this pumpkin patch we visit every year that has a very cool hay ride. Then, we dropped off mom and headed to downtown Fairborn to experience Foy's and their annual Halloween takeover of the city.

It was warmer than usual, but the trees in Ohio are changing colors and the sky is usually a unique shade of blue this time of year. Anyway, this may be the last time I get to enjoy my favorite weekend in Ohio, so I tried to get the most out of it with the boys.

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Speaking of which, the boys' mother seems prepared to move down to Georgia as soon as possible. They've already been down here looking at homes and have stated multiple times they'd like to get down here by Christmas, which I'd appreciate. Not only would the boys be closer, but I wouldn't have the stress of driving through the mountains of Tennessee and foothills of Kentucky during the winter months.

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Tammy and I have completed the first two weeks of an 8-week liver cleansing diet. So far, I've lost 13 pounds and Tammy's lost around 5 pounds (men lose weight faster than women). The weight loss has been nice, but it's only one of many reasons to try this diet. A healthier liver means a healthier body overall, since the liver is responsible for removing natural and unnatural toxins from the blood.

Eating liver conscious should improve weight loss, appetite, skin, energy levels, and even other things such as gall stones and chronic pains. Or at least, that's what I've been able to gather from the book we've got combined with online research.

All I know is that the diet has been easy, and it doesn't involve counting calories. I just eat whenever I'm hungry--as long as I eat the right stuff. I'll keep everyone looped in on my progress during the final 6 weeks. Of course, the 8-week program ends the Monday before Thanksgiving--when I'll gain like 20 pounds in one day!

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Here are a couple links to cool stuff happening over at Poetic Asides:
  • 2011 Poetic Form Challenge. I'm challenging poets to create their own poetic form between now and mid-February. The winner will be recognized on my blog and also in Writer's Digest magazine (so kind of a big deal).
  • 2010 November PAD Chapbook Challenge. The third annual November PAD Chapbook Challenge begins on November 1 and runs through November 30. As with previous years, poets will have all of December to revise and assemble a chapbook to submit. More details in the post.

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Follow me on Twitter @robertleebrewer