Adages
A difference Between a Science and an Art
After I thought for a while, it made sense. If you can’t replicate the work and get the same outcome, then it’s not science. If you can replicate the work and get the same outcome, it’s not art. Seth Godin
All About Masks
I put my first mask on some sixty years ago. In my Medical School during cadaver dissection in anatomy class, the stench was difficult to tolerate. The mask was a status symbol then, and put me in the circle of health professionals. Later, during long open-heart surgery cases, it seemed
Laborer – Craftsman – Artist
He who works with his hands is a laborer. He who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman. He who works with his hands, his head, and his heart, is an artist. St. Francis of Assisi
Life Lessons
The pessimist complains of the wind; The optimist expects it to change; The realist adjusts the sails. William Arthur Ward
Nothing is Random
We look at the sky at night and see chaos. We drive on 405 through Los Angeles during the rush hours and see disarray. We walk into the forest, look at the trees and see discoordinated growth around a seemingly unregulated river. Scientists study the environment, trying to find out
Evolution of a writer
Progression (or regression?) of a writer One starts as a writer. Then becomes a teacher. The next step is to be an editor. In the final stage you become a critic.
A Mentor
A mentor is a spirit with many faces. Find the one, who builds you up. Avoid the one who tears you down. The first type sees only problems. The second sees potential.
Who is Critic
“A critic is someone who enters the battlefield after the war is over and shoots the wounded.” Murray Kempton. American journalist
Writing Emotions
It’s not what happens to the people on the page, it’s about what happens to the reader. Gordon Lish
Getting Older
Getting older is raising from the ground up, seeing less details, but having better overview. When up, one suddenly realizes he’s at peace. High in space, there’s no noise, quiet and the air is cleaner. You see only important things.
Writer’s life
It would be a mistake to treat any novel as autobiography. Rather, it’s an author’s insights into life’s secret places. Robert McKee.
Punctuation
The semicolon is not necessary, but useful. Tells the reader to slow down, but don’t stop.
Mongrel dogs have the best of their progenitors
Mongrel. What’s an awful name for a dog. A dog not belonging to any recognizable tribe of dogs. A product of an accident. Incidental dog. Oops-dog. Dog-pariah. My dog-loving nature shakes with horror. I go to a local bakery often and frequently ask for a bagel. The one I like
Non-monetary Value of a Cup of Coffee
It was 6:45 in the morning, and I was standing in line to pay for my cup of coffee in Duke’s cafeteria. The Weekly vascular conference was just about to begin. In front of me there was a young man, may be 30 years old. He was dressed in a
What’s Better: Being Smart, Intelligent or Wise?
It’s not that I am so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer. Albert Einstein Be as smart as you can, but remember that it is always better to be wise than to be smart. Alan Alda A smart man only believes half of which he hears, a
Divide and Conquer, Still the Way to Govern
When I came to this country in 1975 United States of America was …one Nation, under God, indivisible… Now we have democrats vs republicans, women vs men, immigrants vs the rest of the country, unions, Congress vs Senate vs The President, Tea Party, Occupy movement, older generation vs younger generation,
