Out-of-the-Box ESSAYS: A young-at-heart writer explores the complexities of everyday life with her out-of-the-box light bulb thoughts: Out-of-the-Box Essays, #2

By sue viders

Why does a writer, that would be me, feel she has to write still another book of essays?

 

Because a few readers who enjoyed my last book of essays have written to me to say they would love more.

 

But why do I feel the need to share these small bits of thoughts? I'm not a great thinker or a philosopher. I'm just an ordinary woman who has lived a long and mostly ordinary life. But I must admit that I do love to talk to everyone and anyone about a wide variety of topics including the best way to handle almost anything!

 

My way of thinking and approaching a problem may not be your way, but you might enjoy these new essays. I see it as just another way of handling life's little concerns.

• Language: English
• Publisher: sue viders
• Release date: Oct 10, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223481744

sue viders

Sue is the author of numerous nonfiction books. She has also written extensively for a variety of magazines and newspapers. A national columnist for many years on art marketing in The Artist’s Magazine, Sue has spoken to various groups and organizations both nationally and internationally on marketing and writing for over thirty-five years. She continues to lecture and teach writing onsite at colleges and universities as well as at national conferences. She regularly teaches online through numerous writing groups and organizations throughout the world. When she isn’t busy churning out a writing book for aspiring writers, she explores the complexities of everyday life with her “light bulb” thoughts in her essay book, Out-of-the-Box, now up on Amazon. On the drawing board is the next PICK-A-NUMBER book Finding a PLOT in this series and should be finished soon.

Book preview

Out-of-the-Box Essays: Volume 2

by Sue Viders

Copyright © 2023 Sue Viders

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any written, electronic, recording, or photocopying form without written permission of the publisher. The exception would be in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews and pages where permission is specifically granted by the publisher.

Cover and book design by NZ Graphics

Ebook conversion by YellowStudios

First Edition

⁣

A young-at-heart writer explores

the complexities of everyday life with her

out-of-the-box light bulb thoughts

Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1: The Wonders of Creativity

Chapter 2: Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

Chapter 3: Inside My Space

Chapter 4: Leftover Thoughts

Chapter 5: The Power of Words

About the Author

INTRODUCTION

How I come up with these different thoughts is anyone’s guess. They simply come to me, perhaps after reading the morning comics on my husband’s iPad or hearing a conversation at the grocery store.

Because suddenly I get to wondering about that subject or that comment and how I feel about it and … the words come so quickly that I have to write them down before they vanish and are no more.

For if they disappear, I can never remember exactly what it was that I was thinking. Does this happen to everyone?

I don’t know, but it certainly bothers me as I sometimes think it is a sign of approaching old age that makes my mind unable to remember a single thought for more than a few minutes.

I have found that trying to remember an idea or a specific sentence is fruitless. Within minutes of creating this idea or groups of words, if not captured immediately, whether it occurs in the doctor’s waiting room or in the middle of the night, if I don’t write it down, it’s gone.

Once the thought is down on paper, the research begins. What have others written about this? So many hours are spent searching google and various other sites because as anyone who does a lot of work on the internet knows, one site invariably leads to another site and so on.

I can only hope that when each essay is finally put-to-bed that someone will read it and nod his or her head and say, that’s exactly what I think.

[e-mail]

Chapter 1

THE WONDERS OF CREATIVITY

• I Wonder Why

• Some Things Never Change

• Business Cards

• The Lowly Flyswatter

• Ah, Those Unwanted Emails

• Putting Together an Essay

• What’s On Your Wall?

• Empty Pill Bottles

• What If?

• Procrastination

This section is about the ability of humans to create something out of nothing.

The ability to see, hear or feel something and then make something happen, whether it be a new creation or perhaps just a different way to approach the problem.

As we age, we tend to see things through a wiser set of eyes, which stimulates those lazy, do-it-my-way or don’t do it brain cells into a different way of thinking.

So, to my way of thinking, getting the brain to think a bit differently is a great way to cope with aging. As we all age, no matter what we do, creative coping keeps us young at heart.

I WONDER WHY

I guess I’m just an exceedingly curious and some would say a nosey person, but I can’t help but wonder about a variety of things.

Some of these things are very big, some little and even some that I don’t really care about but still occasionally wonder about.

After years of exploring the various aspects, adding in a large dash of curiosity, and a healthy dose of research, I have concluded that it’s no good wasting my time anymore about the religions of the world. Since no one seems to really have a believable answer that is one I can both understand and accept, I leave this question alone.

I raised five children to be hardworking and down-to-earth adults, all off either doing their thing or with their family. All raised in the same house, same parents, same schooling, same words of wisdom to all, yet … one believes the direct opposite of what mom and dad and all the siblings believe.

Genes maybe because it’s not the environment. At least that’s what I’d like to believe. So I wonder why. Therefore, religion and politics are not often discussed at a family get-together.

And, of course, there are the teeny, tiny problems that I can’t seem to figure out such as:

- I wonder why toilet paper, even the softest kind, never feels like a truly soft tissue? I had a cold and had run out of tissues, so I tried the toilet paper. Nope, it doesn’t even come close.

- I wonder why an appliance that is especially needed when cleaning up after a dinner party or a holiday breaks down and refuses to work. Last year it was the garbage disposal. Oh yes, it was Thanksgiving with a load of relatives in the house. As I turned it on, the garbage came up in the bathroom shower stall. So the question is, how do appliances know the exact time to act up that will cause the most problems?

- And I wonder about the old saying, which I know to be true, but can’t understand, why it takes longer for a pot of water to boil if it is being watched.

Lately I’ve been trying very hard to hold back my wondering thoughts as I watch the TV talking heads argue … but who never seem reach a realist conclusion.

So I wonder why these talking heads even talk about the problem.

Lately I’ve been trying to stop wondering about things that I cannot change and try to only question those problems that I have the ability, time and energy to solve.

SOME THINGS NEVER CHANGE

Change is inevitable, or so they say. Unavoidable. War, death and a whole bunch of other stuff will always happen, no matter what century, what group of people or what beliefs people cling to. These things happen. And because they happen, change will occur, sometimes for the betterment of society and sometimes to its detriment.

And there is absolutely nothing anyone, including me, can do about these happenings. So, one has to accept that they will happen and make the best of it … but other things that do affect our daily lives can and do change but that we don’t have to accept. Things evolve, technology marches on with new gadgets and new stuff suddenly appears.

Communication has dramatically improved. The content may not have, but the methods we now can use to reach others has changed with the internet. And think about transportation: We can now travel almost anywhere by almost any means. I sincerely hope the horse doesn’t completely disappear.

However, it’s the little things that we use every day that make life easier that over the years haven’t changed, and probably never will, as they work so well that I say, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I might add, don’t change it.

The first thing that comes to my mind is the old-fashioned, but still useable, pencil. Oh, it’s been transformed into disposable, retractable, electric and mechanical pencils, pens, markers and well, you name it. All sorts of marking devices are now used to help mankind record their lives. Pencils or some form of a writing and recording tool has indeed changed the world. As new ideas form and science discovers more about our