In today’s Journal
* Quotes of the Day
* MLB Opening Day 2023
* Of Interest
Quotes of the Day
“These would-be censors are monsters. And they will always be with us because the two most common things in the universe are hydrogen and stupidity.” a misquote attributed to Harlan Ellison
“I don’t so much mind that they pirated it, but what does honk me off is that they never get it right. They render it dull and imbecile by phrasing it thus: ‘The two most common things in the universe are…’ / Not things, you insensate gobbets of ambulatory giraffe dung, elements! Elements is funny, things is imprecise and semi-guttural.” Harlan Ellison
“There is more stupidity than hydrogen in the universe, and it has a longer shelf life.” Frank Zappa
“Chance favors the prepared mind.” Louis Pasteur
In a rare occurrence, nothing about writing today.
MLB Opening Day 2023
Welp, the 2023 Major League Baseball season will go on without me. The vampires have managed to suck all the fun out of it. It was already, as sportscaster Howard Cosell once bemoaned, “Two minutes of excitement crammed into four hours.” Now it’s far more boring.
Baseball (at every level) used to be fun for me. Like a truly good cigar, it was a relaxing, enjoyable way to spend time doing nothing. Unlike a cigar, it lasted 3 to 4 hours or longer. Which was fine. It was only once a week or so, after all.
In addition to the other goofy changes the organization has levied on teams in recent years, now (according to an article in 1440 Daily Digest) “certain defensive shifts—where infielders take positions based on a batter’s hitting tendencies—have been banned…” (see https://www.mlb.com/rule-changes-2023).
Oh. Well good. We wouldn’t want to allow defenders to use their knowledge of a particular hitter’s tendencies and set up an adequate defense, would we? Maybe all infielders should be required to wear boots that weigh at least 10 pounds each. That would rid the game of even more of those pesky “good plays.”
What’s next? Participation trophies and an end to the championship series so nobody is left feeling bad? Why not just go back to T Ball so pitchers can’t use their wiles to slip pitches past hitters. That isn’t fair, is it?
All professional team sport should have only one hard rule—a firm salary cap that’s far below the current obscene levels, say 1 million for 4 years—and only one general guideline: You put up your best offense and I’ll put up my best defense and let’s just play the game.
Talk with you again soon.
Of Interest
See “How To Get Away With Murder” at https://killzoneblog.com/2023/03/how-to-get-away-with-murder-3.html.
The Numbers
The Journal…………………………………… 440
Writing of Wes Crowley: Deputy US Marshal 2 (WCG9SF4)
Day 1…… 3231 words. Total words to date…… 3231
Day 2…… 2990 words. Total words to date…… 6221
Day 3…… 1805 words. Total words to date…… 8026
Day 4…… 2025 words. Total words to date…… 10051
Day 5…… 1451 words. Total words to date…… 11502
Day 6…… 1886 words. Total words to date…… 13388
Day 7…… 2002 words. Total words to date…… 15390
Total fiction words for March……… 12304
Total fiction words for 2023………… 65128
Total nonfiction words for March… 19930
Total nonfiction words for the year…… 61260
Total words for the year (fiction and this blog)…… 126388
Calendar Year 2023 Novels to Date…………………… 1
Calendar Year 2023 Novellas to Date……………… 0
Calendar Year 2023 Short Stories to Date… 2
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)…………………………………… 72
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)………………………………… 9
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)………………… 219
Short story collections……………………………………………… 31
Disclaimer: Because It Makes Sense, I preach trusting your characters to tell the story that they, not you, are living. See https://hestanbrough.com/the-daily-journal-archives-gifts-dvds/ for free stuff on writing.