Turning the big FOUR-OH


I'm not really big on celebrating birthdays. Not because I'm anti-fun (although I probably am *waves curmudgeonly fist*) but because it seems like it depresses people more than it cheers them up. Sure when you're eight and it's all presents and birthday cake, hell yeah let's do this thing! But when you turn forty, that's just a giving you a glimpse into the darkness of your own mortality. You take stock of your life and realize you'd better get cracking before it gets away from you.

*cue mid-life crisis*

 I turned forty on the fifth of February. It hasn't caused a sudden breakdown nor do I particularly notice a difference between this one and the last dozen or so. The hair has silvered and I seem to have replaced peaceful slumber with...ummm...not sleeping but that's about it. I have my goals: write stories, lose weight and live to become the world's oldest mammalian lifeform. Beyond that, I don't particularly care about being forty any more than I cared about being twelve.

 However, I received a card for my birthday that cracked my crabby shell and brought a big smile to my face. It was highly unexpected and very thoughtful and it came from the TWITTERVERSE!!

 A lot of people malign Twitter but I can't. As a writer, it has provided me with piles of useful information, links, advice, contacts and suggestions. More importantly, and most unexpectantly, it introduced me to an incredibly generous group of people that I wouldn't normally get to interact with and whom I now consider friends.

My birthday card from the Twitterverse was a reminder to me that I know some really cool people. It has also shown me that I've somehow, disguised by a Spartan helmet, managed to infiltrate other lives across the internet to the point where they perhaps consider me a friend, and that is a nice feeling for this old coot.
Happy Birthday ME!!
So, a heartfelt thank you to @Valeriebrbr @kdmccrite @jennifergracen @KarenDeLabar @CathThackery and @LoganAlberts

 And yes...I'm getting it framed. 


 GSY


Comments

  1. UnknownFebruary 11, 2013 at 10:19 AM

    That is soooo awesome!! Hooray for Twitterverse!! :D

    ReplyDelete
  2. ProfeJMarie (Janet Rundquist)February 12, 2013 at 6:36 PM

    I've never feared getting older, so birthdays have never bothered me and I actually loved turning 40 - but I also think it has a lot to do with where you are in life. I love my life right now, so even 41 is still great. :D

    I love that you have discovered the good in Twitter. You get what you give, and obviously you've given well. Welcome to the top of the hill!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Lisa (aka) FrenchFebruary 12, 2013 at 8:18 PM

    Awesome Gus!!Happy belated Birthday! No worries after 40 they stop counting ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. GusFebruary 12, 2013 at 10:40 PM

    Thank you Karen, Janet and Lisa! You three are further examples of why twitter has been a positive experience for me.

    I appreciate you stopping by the blog and for all your support. :)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Selling your book or selling your soul?

Image
Snobbery and hubris from the traditional publishing world bred some hurt feelings on the self-published side of the industry. To ease the pain, "Selfies" like to point out that they maintain control over their work and don't have to sell their souls like the "Trads" do. I don't think many believe that argument completely, but there's a lot of self-satisfaction in the idea of being in complete control of your artistic vision. This mask of creative integrity has morphed into a widely held conceit that we Selfies can write anything we like and, once our genius is recognized, we can reap the benefits of redefining the publishing industry. Only, that almost NEVER happens. Sure, the internet is awash with stories of this person who made seven figures self-publishing, or that person who was writing a chapter at a time on their blog and now their book is a movie. Yes, it happens...to those two people. Generally, the rest of us struggle. One of the ...
Read more

Questions for Spartagus.

I'm trying to be a writer (you may have heard mention of this fact a couple thousand times already...lets just pretend this is the first time) and writers need an audience and an ability to connect with them. So, I'm gonna try something different in the blog this time. I struggle to talk about myself in any meaningful way to strangers. I don't know you and you don't know me so, for the most part we are strangers. I show up on Twitter and tweet some mundane fact about myself: "I like cheese!" or, find myself chiming in about movies, cracking wise or ruminating about the size of the universe.The bulk of what I "talk" about is in short, sharp blasts on Twitter and that's lead me to wonder how much of a connection I'm making to the people I interact with through the myriad of social forums. I'm not the most social of animals since I do not find myself in the least bit "special" or "interesting" so find it hard to fat...
Read more

Bright Lights #1 - Valerie Haight - Happenstance

Image
 As promised, today I begin a new series of interviews with a diverse group of writers I've met on my internet journeys. The first head on the chopping block (volunteer) is Valerie Haight. Valerie is a prize winning, contemporary romance and suspense writer from Arkansas. Always supportive of other writers, she was one of the first people on Twitter to extend the hand of friendship to me and the first (and still only) person to ask me to post (guest blog) on their website. I am hugely honored that she has finally relented and agreed to come over to my wee blog and talk to you all (or y'all...whichever is more appropriate lol). So, without further ado, I'd like to introduce the first "Bright Light" in this ongoing series: Valerie Haight GUS: Hi, Valerie! This is a very exciting time for you in your writing career.  Now that you're nearing the release of your first novella, which part of the journey has surprised you the most...
Read more