On Tony Snow, Adam Frey, Randy Pausch, and John Challis

The death of Tony Snow this weekend was not unexpected, nor is the outpouring of love and admiration for this very special role model.

• Deacon Greg offers a homily on A world without Snow.
• William Teach over at Pirate’s Cove offers some thoughtful observations and a link fest.
• Michelle Malkin’s article delves into the many faceted personality that made Tony Snow so special to so many.
• Lemuel at Hillbilly White Trash provides some clarity about why Tony Snow’s passing has impacted us all who follow politics and media.
• You know the Anchoress will offer some valuable nuggets of wisdom.
• Gina Cobb’s take: Tony Snow, R.I.P. ("Well Done, Good and Faithful Servant") is another “must read.”
• E.M., our favorite American Princess in A Sad And Sudden Loss offers the perspective of the younger generation.
• And Dr. Melissa Clouthier suggests some parallels in the passing of Snow and pioneering heart transplant surgeon Michael DeBakey.

I place Tony Snow with a group of brave Americans from whom we have much to learn.

College wrestler Adam Frey has maintained a fascinating outlook on life in his blog as he continues his battle with some stubborn chemo-resistant tumors.

“I guess all there is to do is go there and kick it in the ass. I am sure God has a reason for this, and I trust him fully. Of course, I hope no offense is taken upstairs when I say I do not really want to go through it…again. Life I think is going through most things you do not want to do in life and only a few you do. I am learning that really fast.”

There’s Carnegie Mellon University professor Randy Pausch, whose continued survival is something of a miracle, yet he sees beyond all that.

And most inspiring because such wisdom is not usually thought to reside inside the body of an 18-year-old, is that shared by John Challis, who has been making the rounds of baseball, football, hockey, and other sports venues, bringing tears to tough guy athletes and news media critters alike. Quotes like this one in a recent Pittsburgh Post Gazette article, “A Beaver County church had planned a fundraiser, but John and his family asked the church instead to conduct the event and give the money to a fifth-grade boy in Beaver County who has a brain tumor.

"His family can use it more than we can," John said. "That's just common sense. Someone does something good for you, then you help someone else."

ESPN produced this SportsCenter feature on John:

Hiatus

Wow, things sure have been quiet here.
I began this blog, in part, as therapy to break a lengthy case of writer's block that was directly impacting my ability to do my job (I am a writer after all.)
I continue to read other blogs, and leave comments when the muse strikes, but since I'm back to writing for pay, this site has faced some neglect.
I'm not giving up the blog experience, but do expect little activity here for the time being.

Here's a little music that applies to technical writers as much as commercial music lyricists.


If anybody would care to drop a word of encouragement (or suggest I find something else other than further polluting the Internet with my ravings), it would be appreciated.
God bless.

Do what you do do well

From the The Positivity Blog, Henrik Edberg offers an interesting counterpoint to all those tips we have read about increasing personal efficiency titled, 7 Habits of Highly Ineffective People. [h/t Craig Newmark]

The habits:

1. Not showing up
2. Procrastinating half the day
3. When actually doing something, doing something that isn’t the most important thing right now
4. Thinking too much
5. Seeing the negative and downsides in just about anything
6. Clinging to your own thoughts and being closed to outside influences
7. Constantly on information overload

I’m guilty of four of these. How about you?

The entire post is brief. The site contains a number of other interesting lists.