by stolzyblog

Meditation Upon Chalk

(This is a slight re-edit of one of the very first WP posts ever made on this blog about ten years ago, when I was transitioning from software-oriented technical writing to more creative things. The exercise exemplified is still of value, it seems to me)… There is a subtle distancing effect which our numerous online devices and other technologies foist upon our minds regarding the world of everyday objects. Left unchecked, we develop a disregard and disinterest in things and their nature, reflected in the disposable stance many ‘movers and shakers’ adopt towards articles of utility. But imagine if the surrounding world of objects could be reunited with their rightful depths of significance, qualities, and history! Suppose you had to think ONLY about a piece of chalk, to take a mundane example, for ten full minutes. How difficult would it be, and what could be recovered?

finis - chalkdovercliffschalk 79centssmall visible plankton

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by stolzyblog

Mrs. Markey’s Sentient Fiddle – (scene 8)

A Novella in installments, tracing the intermingling autobiographies of a boy and a violin, spanning over a century. The previous episode is right here. To find any episode, look here.


(The protagonist posing with some old friends: a Japanese shakuhachi, A Zimbabwean mbira, and a good ol’ American jaw harp.)

(8) – Ma — It’s Johnny’s Dopey Friend, NJ, 1962

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by stolzyblog

Mrs. Markey’s Sentient Fiddle – (scene 7)

A Novella in installments, tracing the intermingling autobiographies of a boy and a violin, spanning over a century. The previous episode is right here. To find any episode, look here.


(The protagonist posing with some old friends: a Japanese shakuhachi, A Zimbabwean mbira, and a good ol’ American jaw harp.)

(7) – Rowena and the Maestro, Albany, 1898

    Read On…

by stolzyblog

Mrs. Markey’s Sentient Fiddle – (scene 6)

A Novella in installments, tracing the intermingling autobiographies of a boy and a violin, spanning over a century. The previous episode is right here. To find any episode, look here.


(The protagonist posing with some old friends: a Japanese shakuhachi, A Zimbabwean mbira, and a good ol’ American jaw harp.)

(6) – The Honeysuckle Bower, NJ, 1962

    Read On…

by stolzyblog

Mrs. Markey’s Sentient Fiddle – (scene 5)

A Novella in installments, tracing the intermingling autobiographies of a boy and a violin, spanning over a century. The previous episode is right here. To find any episode, look here.


(The protagonist posing with some old friends.)

(5) – Christmastime Into New Years, 1898

    Read On…