Fast Post – Quietly Passing By

January 30, 2021

21 Days of Posts – Day 21 – How Does Worship Music Affect The Service?

Reading Time: 3 minutes

This is day twenty-one of twenty-one days of posts between January 10th and January 30th of 2021. This is the last day of the fast. Hello again to those who read previous days, and hello to those of you who may have stumbled across this post “out of order”. You should go back and read from Day 1, for a few reasons. It explains why I am doing this. It is the first one, and I may make reference to something in it in this post. It also has a list with each day’s post (once they are available) and you can jump to whatever topic you are interested in. Thanks for reading!

We made it! Day twenty-one has arrived and this is the last post in this series. This is the last official day of the fast, but the church doesn’t consider the fast over until noon tomorrow. That’s fair. I’ve written many times how music affects my mood and my thoughts, but this post will deal with how music affects the worship service, at least for me. Not everyone will feel the same way and some may feel that I am focusing on the wrong thing, but this is how I feel, so I thought I would share.

January 29, 2021

21 Days of Posts – Day 20 – Why Am I Writing A Fantasy Novel?

Reading Time: 4 minutes

This is day twenty of twenty-one days of posts between January 10th and January 30th of 2021. Hello again to those who read previous days, and hello to those of you who may have stumbled across this post “out of order”. You should go back and read from Day 1, for a few reasons. It explains why I am doing this. It is the first one, and I may make reference to something in it in this post or a later one. It also has a list with each day’s post (once they are available) and you can jump to whatever topic you are interested in. Thanks for reading!

I wrote about this subject briefly back on Day 2 of this series. I mentioned that a fantasy novel was an ambitious project. I also mentioned that I like the freedom to make new rules and realities. All of that is true, but there is a deeper motivation and a cowardly avoidance behind my endeavor to write a fantasy novel.

January 28, 2021

21 Days of Posts – Day 19 – What Verses Would I Have Tattooed On My Body?

Reading Time: 4 minutes

This is day nineteen of twenty-one days of posts between January 10th and January 30th of 2021. Hello again to those who read previous days, and hello to those of you who may have stumbled across this post “out of order”. You should go back and read from Day 1, for a few reasons. It explains why I am doing this. It is the first one, and I may make reference to something in it in this post or a later one. It also has a list with each day’s post (once they are available) and you can jump to whatever topic you are interested in. Thanks for reading!

I know, it is an odd question. I’m not much for getting tattoos. Not that I am opposed to anyone else getting one, just me. Aside from not really wanting to undergo the process, I don’t have a very welcoming canvas for tattoos. I’m hairy, and have moles and other flaws pretty much anywhere a normal person would get a tattoo. But I have considered the question of what I might have tattooed on my body.

January 27, 2021

21 Days of Posts – Day 18 – Music Can Be Addictive? Yep

Reading Time: 3 minutes

This is day eighteen of twenty-one days of posts between January 10th and January 30th of 2021. Hello again to those who read previous days, and hello to those of you who may have stumbled across this post “out of order”. You should go back and read from Day 1, for a few reasons. It explains why I am doing this. It is the first one, and I may make reference to something in it in this post or a later one. It also has a list with each day’s post (once they are available) and you can jump to whatever topic you are interested in. Thanks for reading!

I’ve always felt that listening to certain passages of music was highly therapeutic. There are many piece of music that I would declare were helpful in either reinforcing or diminishing certain emotions and moods. Some music is so good, you want to listen to it over and over because it gives you actual physiological “chills”.

January 26, 2021

21 Days of Posts – Day 17 – Story Arcs Are Hard

Reading Time: 3 minutes

This is day seventeen of twenty-one days of posts between January 10th and January 30th of 2021. Hello again to those who read previous days, and hello to those of you who may have stumbled across this post “out of order”. You should go back and read from Day 1, for a few reasons. It explains why I am doing this. It is the first one, and I may make reference to something in it in this post or a later one. It also has a list with each day’s post (once they are available) and you can jump to whatever topic you are interested in. Thanks for reading!

The title of this post says it all. Story arcs are hard. Just making all the scenes in one book coalesce into a believable story is hard enough. I can’t image trying to do so over multiple books, as many authors are doing these days. Some of the most successful books published these days are books in series. For example, the Harry Potter series, or George R. R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire series, or any of the young adult series like The Hunger Games or Twilight, or Divergent.

January 25, 2021

21 Days of Posts – Day 16 – Why Do We Fast Every Year?

Reading Time: 3 minutes

This is day sixteen of twenty-one days of posts between January 10th and January 30th of 2021. Hello again to those who read previous days, and hello to those of you who may have stumbled across this post “out of order”. You should go back and read from Day 1, for a few reasons. It explains why I am doing this. It is the first one, and I may make reference to something in it in this post or a later one. It also has a list with each day’s post (once they are available) and you can jump to whatever topic you are interested in. Thanks for reading!

The title of this post could be read multiple ways. It could be just a curious exposition of what the post is about, or it could be a whining complaint of why do we do this every year. I am going to focus on the non-whining explanation, so if you came here to try and find a sympathetic soul for your fasting doldrums, this post is not for you.

January 24, 2021

21 Days of Posts – Day 15 – The Effect of Music on the Likeability of a Show or Movie

Reading Time: 4 minutes

This is day fifteen of twenty-one days of posts between January 10th and January 30th of 2021. Hello again to those who read previous days, and hello to those of you who may have stumbled across this post “out of order”. You should go back and read from Day 1, for a few reasons. It explains why I am doing this. It is the first one, and I may make reference to something in it in this post or a later one. It also has a list with each day’s post (once they are available) and you can jump to whatever topic you are interested in. Thanks for reading!

We’re in the home stretch now! This is the last week of the fast and this is day fifteen. I chose this topic for today after realizing that some of my favorite shows and movies are not necessarily the best written, produced, directed, or acted, but they had fantastic music producers. Sometimes, the music producer is simply building on top of a great script, cast, director and crew, but sometimes, the music producer is the only thing keeping the show or movie in the memories of those who watch it.

January 23, 2021

21 Days of Posts – Day 14 – What If I Never Finish Or Publish Anything?

Reading Time: 3 minutes

This is day fourteen of twenty-one days of posts between January 10th and January 30th of 2021. Hello again to those who read previous days, and hello to those of you who may have stumbled across this post “out of order”. You should go back and read from Day 1, for a few reasons. It explains why I am doing this. It is the first one, and I may make reference to something in it in this post or a later one. It also has a list with each day’s post (once they are available) and you can jump to whatever topic you are interested in. Thanks for reading!

It is a sobering question. For all the work I have put into writing, what if I never finish, much less publish a single thing? What would that mean for me? Honestly, I don’t know. My writing urges come and go, my creativity with them. I always seem to be able to psyche myself up for November and NaNoWriMo, but after that mad rush of thirty days, things tend to more easily get in the way of me writing.

January 22, 2021

21 Days of Posts – Day 13 – Give Me Perspective…

Reading Time: 3 minutes

This is day thirteen of twenty-one days of posts between January 10th and January 30th of 2021. Hello again to those who read previous days, and hello to those of you who may have stumbled across this post “out of order”. You should go back and read from Day 1, for a few reasons. It explains why I am doing this. It is the first one, and I may make reference to something in it in this post or a later one. It also has a list with each day’s post (once they are available) and you can jump to whatever topic you are interested in. Thanks for reading!

I realized as I was about to start writing this post that I had neglected to publish my post from yesterday. It was waiting for me, complete, edited and ready to go, but I failed to push the button. It was late when I finished it, so I guess that is why I missed that last step. Oh, well. It is published now and through the magic of WordPress time travel, it shows as being posted yesterday. Cool.

January 21, 2021

21 Days of Posts – Day 12 – My Favorite Music

Reading Time: 3 minutes

This is day twelve of twenty-one days of posts between January 10th and January 30th of 2021. Hello again to those who read previous days, and hello to those of you who may have stumbled across this post “out of order”. You should go back and read from Day 1, for a few reasons. It explains why I am doing this. It is the first one, and I may make reference to something in it in this post or a later one. It also has a list with each day’s post (once they are available) and you can jump to whatever topic you are interested in. Thanks for reading!

We’re now at a post I have been looking forward to writing. I could fill pages with my favorite music, because I like lots of music, but I’m going to put some restrictions on this favorite list.