Tag Archives: blogging

Traveler’s Block

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Traveler’s Block

“Writing about a writer’s block is better than not writing at all”
Charles Bukowski

Today I have nothing.

I have written about packing and not packing, carry on luggage, check in luggage, travel clothes, travel companions,  souvenirs, my bracelet collection, my Starbucks collection, my good luck charms, LA – where I live, Manhattan and Brooklyn where I am from, places I love, places I hate, my mother, my dog, people who have died, animals that have been killed, airports, airplanes, stewardesses, airport security, things I’ve learned from traveling and not traveling, hotel rooms and things Ive left behind in them, travel addiction, people who think they are black, superstitions, proverbs and quotes from around the world, movies, books, children’s books and songs that have inspired me to travel, food, restaurants, turkey burgers, acting like a tourist, not acting like a tourist, tourist traps, tourist attractions, holidays, traveling alone,eating alone, random photos, being a godmother, travel etiquette, third world countries, countries that have changed names, countries not to travel to, misspelled countries, auto-correct, photography, art, urban art, music, world affairs terrorists and should you blame your parents if you are one,  philosophy, spirituality, religion, prejudice, meditation, things to say and not say to a world traveler, places I haven’t been to, bucket lists, top ten everything, travel problems, imaginary places, movie locations, trip planning, weddings, World Cup, Olympics, first world problems, blogging, Nellie Bly, touching strangers, things i like, things I dislike, the 100th monkey, coffee, sunrises, how to avoid the paparazzi, travel tv shows and people in the world.

I don’t know why they call it writer’s block. I have idea block. I could start reblogging pieces, post other writers, post more instagram photos, read more books and think about writing. I could hope that this is only a temporary setback, go out and do something and then write about it – like move to Spain, go to a wedding in Africa or perhaps the new Broad Museum in LA.

Fly safe,
JAZ

Why You Should Read My Blog (If You Travel And If You Don’t)

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Why You Should Read My Blog  (If You Travel And If You Don’t)

“When asked, ‘How do you write?’ I invariably answer, ‘One word at a time,’ and the answer is invariably dismissed. But that is all it is. It sounds too simple to be true, but consider the Great Wall of China, if you will: one stone at a time, man. That’s all. One stone at a time. But I’ve read you can see the motherfucker from space without a telescope.” Stephen King

 I’m not paid to write my blog which in our society makes it undervalued by many of my friends and family. It hurts my feelings when my friends or family can’t be bothered to follow it or read it sometimes. I’m not referring to everyone. Some of them are very supportive. On the other hand the blogging community is friendly, informative and generally cheering for you to succeed.

Travel is my passion. I am writing about what I love to do and what I see in the world. I do a lot of research before and after I travel so my facts are always checked. I love reading other people’s blogs because I want to know what they loved about where I am going. Though I read everything, I’m less interested in what paid travel writers have to say. I go for the passion.

You definitely shouldn’t read my blog for the photographs but I’m getting better. There are some seriously amazing travel photography blogs out there like beautifulIceland@wordpress.com., http://www.bulldogtravels.com     and http://dalocollis.com. They write well too and I want to go everywhere they have been. I like people who write from their heart not for their audience.  I like blogs  about navigating spirituality, literature, poetry and life from https://bobbiblogger.wordpress.com, mitchteemley.com, http://leonarddurso.com, https://michelleazar.wordpress.com. and http://stephaniebarbehammer.net. I like this blog called https://animalcouriers.wordpress.com, They transport pets around the world.

Writing is something I never thought I would be doing.  It  has changed my life and how I track the experiences in my life. It forces me to become more observant of the world around me and articulate my life and my decisions. It’s an interesting exercise in how much you want to reveal about yourself to others. I started revealing very little and now I tell more of my story from time to time. I realize that It is helpful to put your story out there. There are a few times when I’m writing about myself that I feel  l’ve lived an important life and have something to offer others. If nothing else, my story is “in the cloud” for posterity.

Thanks for reading and fly safe,

JAZ

Ten People Who Can Not Help You Put Your Blog Out There

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TEN PEOPLE WHO CAN NOT HELP YOU PUT YOUR BLOG OUT THERE

“For us there is only trying. The rest is not our business.”

TS Eliot

1. THE PEOPLE AT THE APPLE STORE.  Apple techs are very accommodating with all things Apple.  Blogs are not Apple…yet.

2. YOUR COMPUTER GUY. He is very helpful with all computer related issues, such as how your computer works, how it is connected, servers, printers, keyboards,  etc . Blogs are not that.

3. FRIENDS.  They have trouble signing up for my blog.  My friends are very supportive if they  can figure it out.  They are annoyed when I beg, plead, whine, cry or ask them to tell their friends to sign up.

4. KIDS. My kids have assured me that they are not computer literate. They are not like other people’s kids who help them do all things technical. They would love to help if they could.  It is so weird because they  seem so technically savvy with their own stuff.    My daughter calls me the “the blog bully” because I ask people to read my blog all the time.

5.WORDPRESS.  They could be helpful if I knew what a widget was.

6. SIGNIFICANT OTHER OR SOMEONE YOU ARE DATING – “I don’t read blogs” –like it is some strange secret religion that only members know to use.

7.PARENTS  – If you are young, your parents have no idea what this is. I’m sorry to blow this for the rest of you, but there is no internet in the afterlife. If there was, my mom would help me.

YOUR KIDS’ FRIENDS OR FRIENDS’ KIDS.  “We don’t blog.” Like “We don’t eat red meat”.

YOUR NEIGHBORS  “You would be great at writing a travel blog – no – I don’t know anything about how to go about doing it.”

ANYONE YOU KNOW PERSONALLY.  Humans that I know personally, do not blog or know anything about it.  My virtual cyber friends do.

So for those of you who do read this blog, thanks very much.  I am having so much fun writing it and I have no idea how you find it.

Fly safe,

JAZ