This is the first post on a new blog that will be all about….well, I don’t know. Just stuff I have on my mind, for what it’s worth….

HELLO OUT THERE…

                  If you followed my previous blog, which was mostly political, you know I ended it for a variety of reasons. I said at the time I wanted to do other kinds of writing, without knowing exactly what that might involve.

                  I just know the other day I was sitting on my patio thinking I had a lot of “stuff on my mind.” That’s when I decided that might be as good a name as any for a new blog.

                  I have no idea where this is going, or if anyone out there is interested. But, I don’t know how many people were that interested in my previous blog.

                  Here’s the thing about people who write. We do it because: A. We like it; B. We think we have something to add to either artistic or public discourse; C. We have egos. Yes, we do like to show off a bit. Either we think we have a certain flair we want to show off, or ideas we think are a cut above and, dammit, people ought to listen.

                  Item C is interesting. To a large degree, I am an introvert. That will come as a surprise to people who have seen me “on stage.” I do like to perform. It goes back, I suppose, to being raised by an actor/director and uttering my first words on the stage at Wilmington College when I was seven or eight years old. I was hooked and while I never pursued a stage career, I did end up writing and later doing a lot of public speaking.

                  But, when I go off stage, I like solitude. I like quiet. I’ve often felt most actors are, at their core, introverts. Acting allows them to step for a moment into another body and to…well, act. And, if the audience boos or claps too lightly, it’s easy to say the rejection is not for the actor but this temporary body they inhabit. Of course, if the applause is raucous with cries of bravo, it’s all about them! I speak from experience.

                  At any rate, I write like painters paint and musicians play. I like it. Using language to paint pictures or create a song without note interests me. And yes, often I think I have something to say although the worth of what’s said is always determined by those who read it. And yes, to C, I do like a compliment every now and then.

                  So, I do have stuff on my mind and as it is an odd grab bag of things. It may come out as a long rambling, a vignette, a poem, a short story. Who knows? And if you get a paragraph in and go “yuck,” that’s fine. “Yuck” is a perfectly acceptable response. Not every painting, song or piece of writing is for everyone. It must resonate with where you are at the moment you interact with it.

                  Also, I think I’m looking to find simplicity as I get older. This blog site has no bells or whistles. Just the printed word. I always have been fascinated with all the things you could do as tech developed but now, I just want to be basic. Simple. So, no pretty graphics, no inner pages. Just some words….

                  I guess that’s about it for an introduction. We’ll see where this goes.

                  Rich Heiland is a retired journalist and semi-retired consultant, trainer and public speaker. During his journalism career he was a reporter, editor, publisher, college instructor, part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team and a National Newspaper Association Columnist of the Year honoree. He also writes the intodementia.com blog about his wife’s dementia. He lives in West Chester, PA and can be reached at [email protected].