A Collection of Daily Wisdom by Dennis Sylvester Hurd since September 2003.

For a living I teach practical English. All courses taught in my department are grounded in functionality. Each class activity is designed to enhance English skills for use in the fields of business and technology. Nary a figurative nor rhetorical device shall be seen. I guess I do define myself by this role.

Please don't lump me into the same category as others called teachers of English. I feel no absolutely no affinity with those who must impart the intricacies of English as literature as part of their teaching duties. How utterly impractical for all but a precious few!

There are, however, literary parts of me. There are, of course, past parts which help to define me. My knowledge of Robert Frost is due to growing up as a New Englander. My background is a major component as to why I understand the following poem. I'd be hard pressed to find an old stone wall running through a forest around these parts. Yet when I close my eyes, I assuredly picture any back road as a corridor between rocks placed carefully into position decades ago.

Labels: literature, New Hampshire

I imagine that even the most prolific of writers do not do so every single day. That's why creating a blog is a bit of an unnatural situation. Back in the fall of 2003, I made a decision that would impact my life indefinitely.

Well let's be honest, the future remains unseen. Without a doubt, I have surely impacted the last 167 weeks of my existence. Taking a few minutes every single day to write down something has been as much of a blessing as a burden, at least personally. Although no single entry has been vital, I cannot help but believe that the summation of all these musings do actually add up to something.

Even if unread by friends, I have committed feelings and ideas to a more lasting form than a fleeting thought. A great deal of life flies by quickly so having reference to some of it seems important. This could be important because of my present stage of life. Yet, I do not see others in my age category doing likewise. I have always considered myself special but shouldn't everyone?



I'm not one who'd be comfortable attempting to create poetry or literature. To me it seems as if those avenues of expression are uncomfortably useless and ultimately exchangeable. My words and pictures are a simple attempt at personal creativity and record keeping. Maybe.

Labels: blogging, literature

I was inspired by this morning's inclusion of a viewing box. As well as a graphic, one can hold a piece of text too. I have decided to add a story that has helped to define me. I loved science fiction, even as a kid. I struggled with Asimov, but found Ray Bradbury's writing style approachable. We used to have Prize Speaking when I was in high school. I don't think I ever did especially well but when learning something by heart, it stays there. To be more accurate, it stays in one's head, I guess.

I have already placed one of these memorized stories in this blog. It is Poe's The Cask of Amontillado. I recall trashing an entire section of that wonderful tale while in front of an audience. I'm sure I could do much better nowadays!

Now, I'd like to add this Bradbury classic.



Use the scrollbar in order to see the entire text.

Labels: literature, sci-fi

Some people tuck them away as if embarrassed by their presence, but a PC belongs in the living room. That is where I can utilize the Internet`s 24-hour-a-day access to the world. I can painfully remember when I had questions, at a location where, or a time when, there`d be no way of investigating. It was not long ago but it sounds absolutely primitive!



This text was actually sitting on a high school web server in New York. As a student, I once memorized, The Cask of Amontillado. Isn`t it fairly easy to re-learn something you've once committed to memory? Perhaps I'll take an opportunity to save this short story as audio. I could use my best, announcer-type voice and post on my eJournal and images someday.

Labels: library, literature