Results, Benchmarks & Award

After yesterday's poll, I looked into the results and the comments you all left (big thanks to everyone who answered) and found that generally speaking, people mostly want a mix of posting topics. That's what I figured I'd see, but there were a few deviations making the 2nd highest choice topics about ME ME ME. **BLUSH** Thanks guys and gals.

I'll try not to disappoint you.

As for the "Benchmark" part of the title, I just wanted to shout out a big thanks to everyone who's joined my blog as a follower. I've passed the 50 followers benchmark. It's an honor for me to have so many of you stopping by to read what I have to say and encourage me in my own writing journey. A big special thank you to those of you who, not only follow me, but come by regularly to comment! Also I'd like to give a special thank you to Moonrat, who's industry related blog inspired me to start blogging again. So Moonrat, if you find yourself in sunny AZ, you are welcome to all the goodies in my trash cans and I promise I won't call Animal Control. **for those of you who don't already follow Moonrat, go check it out the blog, it's great!**

On to the "Award" portion of the title. I recently found myself a new blog to follow called Southern City Mysteries. I'm sure a lot of you are familiar with it and if not, drop by. There's some great postings and information coming through. I was graced there with an award called the "Creative Writer Award," and a wonderful review for my blog. THANKS! This particular award does not appear to have any stipulations or anything. I'm going to hold on to it and will pass it on here in the near future, so stay tuned. EDIT: Also, Tiana Lei was kind enough to pass on the Honest Scrap Award as well. I've answer the Honest Scrap questions before. Here is that post if you want to see my answers.

As a side note, I'm posting a missing persons request. Does anyone know where Ash went? She ran the blog "From Ramblings to Interviews," but it's not there anymore. I wondered if her link changed or do we need to send out the blood hounds and helicopters?

What do you people want from me!?

Keeping it simple today. I'd just like some feedback from you all to know what you hope to see from me in the near future.

Um...

So as you may or may not know, I am employed in the health care industry. I've worked in the administrative or patient service side of health care for coming on about 7 years now, following a decision to leave the computer world of networking and technical services behind. It didn't take long for me to learn that, just as it was in the computer world, the healthcare industry is saturated with funny stories and quotes. In the spirit of this blog discussing issues revolving around writing and reading, I'm going to share some of the funny things I've encountered in written messages between patients and their physicians over the last few years,

So without further ado, here are the quotes, questions and comments that have left me dumbfounded or smiling.

[Moment 1]
Patient: "How long does it take for marijuana to get out of your system?"
Me: "um..."

[Moment 2]
Patient: "I took my wife's birth control. What is going to happen?"
Physician Response: 'Well Mr. _______ you won't be getting pregnant."

[Moment 3]
Me: So let me get this right. You want Dr. ______ to write you a letter for work clearing you of TB (Tuberculosis), but you haven't been TB-skin tested nor have you had a TB chest x-ray in over 2 years?
Patient: "Well when you say it like that, you make it sound bad."

[Moment 4]
Patient: "I need to know what to do. I got bit on my nose by a Bee."
Me: "I'm sorry, did you say the bee 'bit' you?'
Patient: "Yes, it bit me on my nose."
Me: "um..."

[Moment 5]
Physician's Order Reads: "OB wants Neurology to clear the patient before delivery of her child"
Me: "um...What if they say no?"

[Moment 6]
Patient: "I'd like to know if my doctor can give me an antibiotic for the camel flu."
Me: "Camel Flu?"
Patient: "Yes."
Me: "um..."

So, Here's the Scoop: Tokyo Vice

About 2 weeks ago, my soon to be father-in-law made a reading recommendation to me. Little did I know that the book he was referring me to, Tokyo Vice, was going to open as much of a door to my mind and heart as it did. I listened to him explain the premise of the book, then told him I'd love to read it and so began my journey.

The reading journey brought me back in time, to 2006, when I had went on a personal vacation to spend 3 weeks in Tokyo. Hoping not to come across as a completely unprepared foreigner, I thought I'd do my homework on Japan. I'd learned to read and write the Japanese Hiragana and Katakana which would help me survive some of the written world of Japan. I'd read about onsens, Kabukicho, foreigner job opportunities, visa options, gaijin houses, hostess clubs and most of the do's and don'ts to make sure I was prepared for what I'd be getting into. Little did I know that those things were only scratching the surface of a culture symbiotically tied with the Japanese Mafia. Little did I know that while I was playing around in Tokyo, trying to escape some of the woes of my past, the author of Tokyo Vice, Jake Adelstien, was right around the corner from me (literally at times) risking his life gathering information against the Japanese organized crime syndicate Yamaguchi-gumi. So, obviously, this book hit home with me really hard and really fast.

The book begins by taking you through a wild, and quite funny journey of Jake's introduction into the world of journalism in Japan, namely covering criminal activity for the Yomiuri Shinbun. His wit, skills, gaijin status and luck come together forging the perfect ingredients to bring about this memoir tell-all. As I followed his journey, I was enlightened to many aspects of Japanese culture, criminal or not, that I and many others are ignorant to. In some ways, I almost wish I hadn't heard about some of the things he mentioned in the book, after all King Solomon put it best in his own journal of Ecclesiastes: "For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow."

Despite the difficult elucidations I was being filled in on, I found myself unable to turn away from the book. The further into it I read, the more real the characters and the author became to me. I was filled with sorrow, encouragement, happiness and fear in this roller coaster ride of a book. I can honestly say that I've never felt more part of the story or connected to the characters as I have with Jake's story. His train-wreck of a tale ultimately leads him to a very dangerous dilemma, that any reader could easily agree makes an amazing climax. Without revealing too much, I simply want to say that if you have any passion for Japan or curiosity toward journalism, this is a MUST READ. It will leave you breathless, scared, entertained and maybe even a bit paranoid by the time you finish it. I would offer this warning though, if you have any aversion to sexual content or foul language, you may need to pass on this one. Jake is brutally honest and when honesty meets the crime world, you are bound to be left uncomfortable.

As a critical point to the literary compiling of this book, I did find that the time line of the story, as well as the abundance of Japanese names, were sometimes hard to follow, but by no means were enough to hinder the progression of the story. There are a few rabbit trails he takes you on, but they are there to fill in the gaps and are well worth the time to read.

All in all, it was an amazing read. I felt more emotions being drawn out of me than I've had in a long time. If you spend the money on this one, you won't be disappointed.

I also wanted to include a link to the Polaris Project, which helps fight human trafficking. After reading the book, please consider helping their cause, I know I will.

And for anyone else desiring to continue the story beyond the book, here is Jake's website

Upcoming Review

After many hours of somewhat uninterrupted reading, I've finished Jake Adelstein's book Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan.

I have a lot to say about this novel and I hope you all will join me for my review of it. I'll post it as soon as I can.

For now, sleep beckons.

Path's of the Craft

Writing is such an ambiguous term. It can be used to describe everything from the compilation of a novel, to taking notes in a meeting, or anything in between. As an aspiring author, I've dabbled in poetry, short story and am continuing my learning curve towards working on a full fledged non-fiction novel. This semester I decided to take an evening class in creative writing, something which most writers could benefit from (yes, even me... thank you all for your looks of shock and awe). In it, our instructor discussed a few of the different aspects of writing and will continue to address them more personally as we are assigned to compile works in said branches. I've always wondered what avenues I could take, in the job world, if I wanted to utilize my love for writing, so here's a few jobs related to writing that I thought I'd post up for your viewing/curiosity pleasure. This list is by no means exhaustive, but maybe it can help elucidate the industry. Click on the link if you'd like a more detailed explanation of the job outlook for each. Included below each category are little snippets BLS website. (Bureau of Labor Statistics)

1. Journalism
The work of news analysts, reporters, and correspondents is usually hectic. They are under great pressure to meet deadlines. Broadcasts sometimes are aired with little or no time for preparation. Source: BLS

2. Editing
Editors review, rewrite, and edit the work of writers. They also may do original writing. An editor's responsibilities vary with the employer and type and level of editorial position held. Editorial duties may include planning the content of books, journals, magazines, and other general-interest publications. Source: BLS

3. Technical Writing
Technical writers, also called technical communicators, put technical information into easily understandable language. They work primarily in information-technology-related industries, coordinating the development and dissemination of technical content for a variety of users.
Source: BLS

4. Medical Transcription
Medical transcriptionists listen to dictated recordings made by physicians and other health care professionals and transcribe them into medical reports, correspondence, and other administrative material. Source: BLS

5. Software Programmer
Computer programmers write programs. After computer software engineers and systems analysts design software programs, the programmer converts that design into a logical series of instructions that the computer can follow. Source: BLS

6. Writers/Authors
Writers and authors develop original written materials for books, magazines, trade journals, online publications, company newsletters, and advertisements. Their works are classified broadly as either fiction or nonfiction. Source: BLS

7. Document Translation for Foreign Interest
Translators convert written materials from one language into another. They must have excellent writing and analytical ability, and because the translations that they produce must be accurate, they also need good editing skills. Source: BLS

Driving Success

Photo found from Gary Settle/The New York Times

The author Erich Segal, who coined the phrase "Love means never having to say you're sorry," passed away this last Sunday, the 17th. I believe anyone would be hard pressed to find an adult who hasn't heard that phrase mentioned above. It will likely survive through history alongside other famous sayings for many lifetimes to come. As a writer, I'd find almost no greater honor, than to be quoted from my work like this. Though, many amazing authors have tried to come up with phrases and sayings in their work that could mimic the success of Segal's love-quote, it's probably unlikely that the average published author will ever achieve this goal. Regardless, having nigh achievable goals like this will likely cause us writers to try harder, write better and search diligently for those perfect words or sentences that hopefully leave our readers with something that they can take with them through their lives.

Are there any goals or success stories you look toward that drive you to be a better writer? Care to share them here?

Tokyo Vice: The Author's POV

After yesterday's post, I received quite a bit of deep comments from you all. Thank you so much for all the feedback; everyone knows we bloggers thrive on comments. The general rule of thumb, I found most fellow writer's going by, was don't write something you'd be ashamed of, but be true to your characters or your information. I'd have to say it's descent advice and I can agree with it, but what about guys like Jake Adelstein? He dropped by here yeseterday and posted a comment about my article (Moral & Ethical Writing) stating that in his circumstances, being an investigative journalist, he was faced with difficult decisions on what he'd be able to share in his book without burning his sources or worse, himself. It's a completely different scene, writing non-fiction vs. fiction. As I mentioned back to him, I realize that in my own case, if I expose a character, there won't be much retaliation simply because they aren't real. In his case, the people he wrote about were/are very real and could potentially make a mess of his life or family/friends' lives. Nevertheless, he followed through and shared the facts and enlightened those of us who decided to read his book Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan.

I'm about halfway finished with it at the moment, but it won't take long for me to finish it. I am loving it. Yes, it has some dark themes and yes, it takes some of us readers to places we'd never want to see or know about, but it is part of the real world that many of us are blind to. I don't have to finish this to recommend you all check it out, but only with this warning. There are some explicit sexual and violent elements in this book. It is provocative, informative, entertaining and full of witty humor. I can only hope that when my own works get published (yes I said when, not if) that they bring my readers on a journey equally as impressive as Tokyo Vice.

I'll be sure to follow up and let you all know when I'm finished.

Moral & Ethical Writing

It's a topic that's been blogged about before. It's likely come up in your own writing; I know it has in mine. The nagging question:

"Can I write this in my book, even though the subject matter is totally against my moral or ethical code?"

Let's face it, the world is full of people with a hodge-podge of belief systems on what is right, wrong and entertaining. There's no way for us as writers to entertain everyone. We are bound to step on some toes along the way, because as I said above, there are so many variations of what is acceptable in entertainment. But what about our own toes? I've found myself writing a story that, in my opinion, has an amazing concept, but gnaws at the back of my mind because it touches on some spiritual issues that are blatantly against my own belief system. I try to reason: "it's just fiction," but when I see some people take certain fiction a bit too literally, as is the case with maybe Dan Brown's hit novel (no I'm not plugging it here) I find myself asking, "but what if people try to take my story too literally?" It begs the question, "Can I write this in my book, even through the subject matter is totally against my moral/ethical code?"

I can't determine whether you should or shouldn't bypass your conscience just to get a good book written, but in my case I will have to figure out what's best for me. So how about you guys? Have you written or would you write about something that is fundamentally against your belief system or ethical code?

Riddle's Answer

So, for those of you who posted an answer to my riddle, here's the answer:




SOUND!

Congratulations Girl With One Eye, you were the first person to get it right. Not only did you get it right, but you referenced the riddle that was in mine. "If a tree falls in the forest, does it make a sound: Yes"

Thanks for all who played, I wish I had a prize, but all I can do is link back to your blog. Yay for links? :P