Daily writing prompt

How do you manage screen time for yourself?

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I don’t, exactly. I treat screen time like a filler, something to do, and I’d gotten into the bad habit of looking at my iPad after I hit the hay at night, which I know isn’t great for the eyes. I’m trying to cut back on that usage. Sometimes I just get in a quick game of Solitaire– there’s always time for Solitaire– and other times I treat screen time like a reward, after having worked outside for a while, taking a shower and relaxing for a bit. There’s so much to look at.

One of my favorite things is getting the iPad out after having taken a few pics with the phone at the kids’ house or being out somewhere and having taken some scenery pics. They’re better on the bigger screen.

So, I’m currently not very good at managing screen time. There’ a bit of restraint, but I could be better about it.

Daily writing prompt

Do you need time?

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Time is a construct, but since we’ve long noted certain astronomical cycles and broken up the year into twelve months, most with a comparable number of days broken down into 365 or-6 24-hour cycles, then invented calendars with pretty pictures, and clocks and watches that track and mimic said cycles, and since many of us love our gadgets, we are well aware that the sun rises, a day unfolds, the sun sets, the moon waxes and wanes, our biological clocks always hum in the background, and we find ourselves eating lunch around 12 noon and maybe trying to stay in synch with all of it.

But we don’t need time. Time without end is all we have. We might say we want more time, but we already have this endless flowing existence limited by choices, by actions and inaction, by the vicissitudes of human existence and certain biological realities that render us finite beings.

Daily writing prompt

What will your life be like in three years?

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I don’t know, really. There’s been an evolution in the way I think about the future. It used to be that it was marked by a certain open-endedness and a feeling that there’d be time for everything. Anymore, I hope I’m still kicking, still able to get around, take walks, play golf, work outside, interact with our kids and their kids, be of use around the house, maybe even continue being able to help our son with his landscaping business, if he’s still doing that.

At this point in the proceedings, a lot can happen in three years, and not necessarily things one would put on a To Do list.

Maybe in three years, Trump’s days in office will be numbered, if he makes it that far, and that would be something to cheer about.

Daily writing prompt

Invent a holiday! Explain how and why everyone should celebrate.

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This holiday occurs multiple times in a year. Call it 5th Friday, Even Though It Might Be a Tuesday. It’s a day off from work anytime a weekday occurs five times in a month. October 29th on a Tuesday (not to mention Wednesday and Thursday!)? August 31st on a Monday? Perfect. If it unfolds for the fifth time in a month, you’ve got yourself a reason to sleep in, or party, get away to the woods, renovate the bathroom, clean the garage, write a tome on how to achieve world peace, or spend time hangin’ around in sweats and drinking coffee until you can see through walls.

January 2026 will offer up a nice long weekend for ya. So will March, June, July, and September. And even if they don’t string together for a long weekend, a 5th Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday is a nice mid-week break.

Not sure what would happen to productivity or SAT scores, though.

Daily writing prompt

What are your favorite websites?

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WordPress, YouTube, Wikipedia, Chat GPT, Flipboard, Amazon, the local newspaper, and the newsfeed option on my iPad– it gives me a nice sampling of current events and other things. I find that I’m often checking the Popular Mechanics link, along with Space.com, The Atlantic, and Washington Post— their articles are often available even without a subscription to Apple News.

Daily writing prompt

Is there an age or year of your life you would re-live?

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Any of the early years of our marriage, maybe my junior or senior year of college.

Though there was a lot of work to do, maybe my senior year at seminary, when the five of us traveled back and forth to Harper’s Ferry every Sunday and other times as well.

And I wish I could have back the last couple of days my mother was alive.

Daily writing prompt

What historical event fascinates you the most?

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It’s difficult to settle on just one, but I’d have to say, for the sake of current relevance, the re-election of Donald Trump. It will never cease to be mind-boggling, in a bad way.

Daily writing prompt

What’s something you believe everyone should know.

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That not everything can be relativized, that there is such a thing as the common good– or at least good for most– and there is a Golden Rule, even as there are people in the world who apparently prefer being treated like shit.

Daily writing prompt

What does it mean to be a kid at heart?

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I think it’s a commentary on the way many adults feel. Chronologically, someone may be 70 or much older, but mentally and emotionally they could still feel like they did when they were 20.

To be a kid at heart can mean that you as an adult can put your wisdom and maturity on a shelf. You are able to let go of whatever inhibition keeps you, for example, from engaging with kids who just want to play. My grandchildren are always telling me that I’m silly, but they seem to like it when I give them horsey rides or they can pile on top of me or I play hide and seek with them, or we sit on the floor and build something with blocks or play with trucks, sit at a table and draw or color, or kick a ball around.

Maybe part of this is that one just refuses to admit that they’re getting older and should be more careful when they exert themselves. One knows the wolves are getting closer to the door, but the tendency is to ignore them for as long as possible.

Maybe it’s a way for us who have more of life behind us than in front to hold onto something that can feel like it’s slipping away, going by too quickly. We still need to be involved and useful, not discarded.

Besides all that, kids have a knack for bringing out the kid in us.

Daily writing prompt

You have three magic genie wishes, what are you asking for?

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Skilled, soulful leadershIp in government

Long, healthy lives for our kids and their families

5 million dollars, after taxes