Layla Rose's Blog

Writing Effectively When You Have ADHD

Dealing with ADHD in all its forms can be a challenge, but when you’re a creative type, it can present its own set of unique and special problems.
And if you keep reading past the effective writing ideas, I’ll share some of my favorite helpful sites, as well as ones which give me inspiration for (mostly) creative writing.According to ADDitude Mag, as of 2013, an estimated 11% of school age children are diagnosed with ADHD.
As an adult with ADHD who is extremely fond of writing, I’ve found some effective, and some not-so-effective, ways to cope with the unique way that my brain works. Here are a few of the things that work the best for me.
1.  Whenever I have a daunting task, be it a big project, a story I want to work on, an article I want to begin, or whatever, I begin by taking a deliberate break. No, I don’t mean mindlessly checking my Facebook and liking things. Or dusting something that’s collected a layer of dust. I mean doing absolutely nothing. Deliberately. Yes, I mean sit still and wait. Just like you’re at the DMV or the post office, only sitting preferably. Set an alarm if you have to. Watch the clock, but don’t do anything. close all your screens and apps on your computer, put your phone or tablet down. The only thing that I allow myself to do during these deliberate breaks is sip water and vape. I do nothing else. Sounds simple doesn’t it? If it helps, think of it as a sort of Zen exercise. The art of doing nothing. But this is an effective way to get started, give my brain the needed break it needs, and get ready for the upcoming task. Let’s say I look at the clock and it’s 9:50 pm, I am determined to write for 2 hours. I give myself 10 minutes. Saying that I must start at 10 pm, no later. The first time you do this it may be difficult because you feel like you’re wasting time just sitting there doing nothing. But imagine all the ways and times you do nothing, or very little, and are unaware of it.
 2.  Start when you say you will: No matter what. If the phone rings, ignore it. If the cat jumps up on your desk, put her down, and keep going. Let no distraction daunt you from the task at hand.3.      
 Play music. I find that music evokes feelings and emotions and allows my mind to reflect, ruminate, and wander. This is a good effect because it can often stir the creative juices that I need to get myself geared up and ready to work. Although I have those intense moments when I have to pause whatever I’m playing because I’m trying to get phrasing just right or trying to remember something pivotal to my article, story, or plot.
4. Make Lists: Write down lists of ideas, topics, article titles, headlines, business and marketing, etc. I personally use Microsoft OneNote to keep track of (most) of my writing ideas, it’s helpful because I am able to sync it across all my devices (computer, tablet, & phone). Personally I’ve been using a planner since high school, which is, what is fast becoming, a long time ago.
5. Carry some paper with you. Don’t just rely on tech. As a writer, technology isn’t always the most reliable thing, sometimes the phone is slow, or maybe the battery died because you forgot to charge the phone. There’s no replacement for paper and a pen or pencil. You don’t have to recharge a notepad or wait for it to boot up. Sometimes I find that waiting for OneNote to load on my tablet takes so long that I’ve forgotten what I wanted to write down by the time it’s up, running, and ready. I have lost a few ideas that way. Hopefully they’ll come back to me someday...
This could be #6 but it doesn’t really pertain to writing, but more about your taxes and finances. Having any sort of attention problem or executive function disorder means being disorganized, a large amount of the time, so using a free scanner app or scanning receipts and important documents into your computer and saving them in their own folder could be pretty helpful, just in case tax season comes around and you lost something. If you want to know more about how to file taxes as a freelancer, check out Careful Centsand sign up for her free tax course. It’s simple, easy to understand, and inspirational. It takes the fear out of doing taxes.
So if you have, or think you may have ADHD, don’t be discouraged about striving to achieve your dreams. There are plenty of success stories of women who’ve overcome great odds and achieved their goals and ambitions. There are a few famous men who’ve certainly achieved success, wealth, and abundance despite certain limitations.
Also apparently average people can get a taste of what it’s like to have ADD. According to Wired“jumping between digital documents impedes understanding”. Well, I hate to be the one to say this, OK maybe a part of me doesn’t, but welcome to my world. Now regular people can, and apparently do, get a taste of what it’s like to be unfocused all the time to varying degrees.Tell me what your techniques are for dealing with things when you’re stressed or when life is simply too much? I’d also love to hear from other creative ADDers. Can’t wait to read your comments!
Layla Rose
The Goth Writer’s Awesome Blog
Follow me on Twitter @TheGothWriter#ADHD #writing #freelancewriting #productivity #remote

1.     Bait the hook – you wouldn’t bait a fish hook with this...           Fish don’t like potatoes. You have to figure out what bait to use before you can expect to even try to catch anything. Or to put it simply learn what your audience wants and figure out how to deliver it. In a way that is unique to you. That would be your unique selling point.


      2. Cast the line – This is how you get out there, get noticed, get seen. You cast a line so that people know you’re there. This is probably the most time-consuming step. You have to market yourself. This often takes more time than the creation of your content.      3. Wait for bites – Sometimes it’s just a matter of time, sometimes you get bites right away, sometimes you have to be a bit patient.
      4. Check the line – If you’re not getting enough bites, or not getting any bites, then you check the line and make sure it’s solid, secure, and cast again. That means looking at similar sites or blogs that are talking about the same subjects. See what they do, if you’re stumped, ask for advice. Find a forum that has what you want. Search and learn.
      5.   Reel them in – When they start biting, you reel them in, set up your freebies to give away, get your email list going, put all your juicy tidbits together so that the fish will bite and keep biting every time you cast off. Be personal and human in your contact with potential clients or customers. They want to feel that they’re talking to a real human, not a machine.
Then you’ll have a complete and beautiful bounty every time. And you know by bounty I mean money.Remember that determination, being good at what you do, and learning from your mistakes will get you farther than not trying anything. Don’t be afraid to fail forward, engage, and keep learning on this journey called life.
I enjoy making proclamations, so here’s one: What I value: learning, acceptance, compassion & empathy, eco-conscious living, healthy holistic lifestyles, good food, and healthy decadent recipes. There are many more that I could add to this, but this is enough for now. I just wanted to end on a positive note, because I heard Henry Winkler speak at a Yale University commencement and he said:
“Never put a period on a negative thought.”
I hope you enjoyed the post. And I hope that you’ve gained something from my writing: entertainment, amusement, or information. Please check back soon and subscribe to my blog until I have email subscriptions up and running.Take care!Layla Rose: The Goth Writer

Yes, I said it. Even scams can be an inspiration. Think about the ones that you nearly fell for, or didfall for. Why? What did they say that was convincing? What did they do or say that made you think, hey maybe this is for me?
So this post is about all the April (as well as other months) fools that intrude on us. Recently I decided to place an ad on Craigslist for my VA Services, and was inundated with replies. So many potential clients, most of which I knew right away were bogus. But they’re not always that easy to spot.
One day I woke up to about 15 text messages, despite the fact that I’d explicitly stated in my ad that I only wanted phone calls or emails.
I’ve not relied solely on Craigslist alone, I’ve also looked on sites like Reddit, LinkedIn, and UpWork. But even legitimate sites have been overrun with scam artists. Many scams are obvious, many are not. Recognizing scams, as opposed to genuine opportunities, can be a bit like spotting a Z-Brick façade vs. a real brick house. From far away they look nearly identical, but the closer you look, the more you notice a pattern forming.
The difference between what these scammers do and what I, and many of my fellow freelancers, do is that we deliver what we promise. Or we try our hardest to do so. Because as sole proprietors, entrepreneurs, and freelancers we want repeat clients. It’s out we earn our living. We also value our reputation in the business community. We aren’t simply after one big score so that we can move on to the next mark. Any company that has, and offers, value will keep doing so over time.
These schemes often cast a wide net, prey on the desperate, and even claim to represent actual companies. When I see these, I immediately report it to the company that they’re claiming to work for. With one individual I let him know that I’d contacted the company to verify that he was authorized to represent them in some way. Needless to say, I never heard from this potential “client” again.
You may think that you’re immune or don’t frequent places where these types of fraud happen. You may even consider yourself tech savvy as I do.
So in honor of April Fool’s Day, I’ve decided to share a little bit of my experience with scams. The following red flag list is comprised of things that I’ve personally experienced or come across as a freelancer. These ethically ambiguous people prey on you when you’re desperate or needy. That’s when a sole proprietor may be more vulnerable as we all have bills to pay, and things to buy.But I decided that it was also an inspiration because they are so good at their pitch. Some of them are too obvious, but many of the ones that I’ve almost fallen for had a very clever pitch. So I decided that we could possibly learn something from these pitches. Think about the effective techniques that they’ve used and use some of them for yourself, without exaggerating of course.  But then set yourself apart by following through, delivering what you promise, and offering the premium service that you’ve set out to. There are a few that I’ve read, received, and almost gotten involved with, that were so well done, I was almost fooled. Some of the warning signs to look out for:
·         Refusal to talk on the phone, insisting on text only communication – And when you question them, they claim that they’re out of the country and international phone rates are too high to pay for. If they’re successful enough to hire a freelancer, they can afford to buy international minutes for their phone.
·         Insist on doing business by email only. This is another one. They bait you with brief, vague offers of a job that you’d be perfect for, then you ask them for more details and they tell you that it’s simple, only a few hours per week, and that they will pay a much higher than average rate for one task only. This is usually people pretending to have real estate that they want you to advertise for. Then they send you all the details. If this happens, politely tell them that you have to verify that they’re authorized to act on behalf of this realty company and I guarantee that they will ghost you.
·         They seem too eager to hire you. It’s like the roles are reversed. They’re trying to sell you on working for them, not the other way around. Most jobs are not that easy to obtain, aside from multi-level marketing, and commission-based businesses, but they have nothing to lose. If you earn, so do they, if you don’t, then they’re no worse off.
·         When you look up the company, they’re in another country, like Italy for instance. Wouldn’t an EU country hire an EU employee? It’s not impossible that they’d hire someone from the US or Canada, as many companies do broaden their scope for international markets. But they are likely not even associated with that company at all. If you think something is off, contact the company, go with your gut.
·         The job description is very vague or the job doesn’t seem quite too good to be true, requires special equipment and/or software which they promise to provide, but when you accept the position, after several correspondences, they send you official-looking checks in the mail for very large sums of money. They hound you about when the funds will be available. Don’t spend any of it, if you did deposit the checks. Alert the bank. But don’t deposit them at all. This is a way to get as much as possible. Many times the bank temporarily credits your account, they’ll take whatever they can get most likely claiming that it’s a deposit on equipment or special tools for the position. They also say that part of the payment is a portion of your salary. No job I’ve ever had paid me before I began. That’s not how jobs work.
·         They offer you a job but say you’ll be paid by wire transfer. This is a red flag right away. They will claim that they sent you a large sum of money and it will arrive at Western Union or MoneyGram, but that there’s a fee because it’s an international transfer. Firstly that’s not how money transfers work. The person sending it pays any fees up front. Secondly, you have to pick one: Western Union or MoneyGram, not either. It doesn’t work that way. Despite our advances in technology, most people don’t really know how wiring money works. This is wire fraud, plain and simple. If you pay that fee you will never see any money or hear from the other party again.
·         Someone asks you to wire them money to begin working for you. Now I’m usually just focused on freelancers looking for clients, but some of us also outsource our work when we have a large workload,  many of the above things may happen, but they’ll ask you to wire them some money, they’ll have a convincing excuse, setting up accounts to manage their tasks, or something equally convincing, but they’ll disappear, along with your money.
·         You get an email offering you the job, just reply to accept. This happened for a job I found on LinkedIn. Also got a private message from a real user on there, but her account had been hacked. They also use real companies with fake people claiming to work for that company. Go to the website, look at their career page, contact them if you’re not sure. Then report it to LinkedIn as being a scam. They’ll look into it. They pride themselves on being a reputable and trustworthy site for the business minded individual. Don’t be angry with them. It’s not their fault. Hackers hack and scammers scam.Insist on being paid by PayPal, Zelle, Square, or Google Wallet. Those are the most trustworthy ways that I know of. Personally I wouldn’t accept a check unless the company is Pepsi, Nike, or NBC Universal. And if you’re hiring, insist on using these options to pay the freelancers. Most credible freelancers use or have accounts with one of the aforementioned sites.
Last, but not least, if you have been fleeced out of a large sum of money, report it. No matter how vague the information that you have. The FBI’s website has a tip page. Even if you’re not sure where they are or whether they used a real name or not. The more people who come forward about these types of scams the better; these aren’t just a nuisance, they’re illegal.
FBI Tips Page
Don’t fall for these fools’ scams. They’re the fools. Not you.
Here’s some more info about scams and how to avoid them from a fellow VA in the UK
*Please don’t feel bad or embarrassed for falling for a scam. They prey on your desperation. Desperation for money or something else you need. That’s how they make so much money. I have a case in the DA’s office of Florida for a company that offers to buy a time-share for more than you want to sell it for. It’s embarrassing to admit, but I fell for it. They did have some kind of high fee, that I borrowed from a friend of mine. They sent me a check in the mail, I didn’t think twice about receiving the check b/c I was selling something. That company was found guilty of racketeering and possibly mail fraud. These are federal crimes. If they were able to catch any of those predators, they are probably in federal prison now.

No, I’m not talking about being catty. I mean deliberately taking a devil-may-care attitude towards the haters and nay-sayers. You know the ones: they deride, discourage, and find fault with nearly everything and everyone. They probably write only one-star reviews. Remember Mikey from the Life cereal commercials? They’re little Mikeys. For all the ones too young to have seen the commercial, it was significant that he liked this cereal because apparently he hated everything, so of course he’d hate this too, but *spoiler alert* it was an exception. Except for these modern-day Mikeys, there’s no Life cereal for them. They just hate everything.
There are times when everyone wants something and/or everyone seems to have something negative to say about a comment you've posted, or they misunderstood you in some way. This is when I decide to look to my cat for inspiration.
Also recognize scams. As a freelancer we can be especially vulnerable. We make our income primarily from our own home, often working remotely. You not only have to learn to ignore too much criticism, but also excessive praise.
Here’s my cat: a blue and cream tortoiseshell who has plenty, of what we cat lovers call, tortitude.

Here are 5 Ways to Have Cattitude.1.    Know that the people who find fault with everything, don’t get joy from anything either. Revel in, and be grateful for, your joy.                                                                               



 My cat staring at the flat black thing that takes attention away from her
2.    Realize that they’re probably not the sort of people you’d want to associate with anyway. I found my cat Darragh on the street, she barely acknowledged any other people, she only came up to me, even gave me furry fives. She knew instinctively who to trust and who to avoid, which leads me to my next item… Which she still does.
3.    Trust your instincts: Nothing threatens freelancers more than scams, sometimes people using too much flattery and being too nice is a red flag. Recently I’ve noticed an increase in job email spam/scams. Ever since I updated my resume on one of the popular online job boards, I’ve had an influx of all sorts of amazing offers telling me how impressed they are with my resume and how I’m the perfect fit for some position that they’d like to offer me. I’m apparently so impressive that I don’t even need to be interviewed. All I have to do is call them to start working right away. That’s amazing! NOT! Reality Check: Not even the president of the United States can get a job without applying for it. OK yeah I know he’s elected. But he’s had other jobs before right? And you should be especially cautious about the shipping scam. It isn’t just a scam, it’s illegal.
Darragh sez… “No way.”
4.    Keep working on your voice and style no matter what anyone else says. I can’t apologize for my individuality any more than I can for my hair or eye color. I was hesitant about my penchant for controversial subjects and my unique tastes, preferences, and choices, but now I’ve learned more, gotten better at doing what I love, so I know how, and when, to let my freak flag fly.
Darragh sez…“With only one eye I can still see” It’s the emotionally blind that don’t see anything.
5.   Don’t respond in anger. No matter how inflammatory a comment or critic, just wait. Wait until you have the patience and calm to properly address the individual. Or simply ignore them. Some people want to get others riled up, that’s why they’re called trolls, they come in and only want to stir up trouble, blunder around from forum to forum and thread to thread instigating drama amongst the tiny human crowd.
Darragh sez…“I’ve got this…”
We all have moments that seem overwhelming, when life seems too difficult. There are times when all your comments seem to be misunderstood and everyone seems to be confrontational. But remember all the positive interactions, keep calm, and maintain an attitude of Cattitude.
Hey, maybe Darragh needs her own Twitter account, since she has so much to say, what do you think?
Tell me how you handle haters. Do you give them links and evidence to teach them why they’re wrong, for the factually challenged ones? Or do you simply ignore them? Refuse to engage? I can’t wait to hear all of your interesting and creative ways to handle the not-so-friendlies on the interweb.
Layla Rose: The Goth Writer#freelancing #blogger #writing #furrygirl #Cattitude

*Note: If you click the link to my website, please be patient as it’s a free site and not optimized to load very quickly. I do apologize. But as soon as I’m able to monetize more I will be upgrading soon.

Alternative Lifestyles
A Treatise on the Goth Subculture How did the Goth scene first get started? It arose as an off-shoot of the punk scene of the late seventies and early eighties. When the punk scene first started, the punky look (spiked Mohawks, brightly colored hair, safety pins, and ripped up clothing) would later evolve. So the Gothic style, subculture, style of dress, and music was a development born out of, change, like many things that have come before. And perhaps many more which will come after.
Personally, as someone who prefers and enjoys the Gothic style of clothing the most, I’ve always dreamed and imagined that it would become more mainstream, more accepted, and more commonplace. Even though many alternative-minded people do enjoy being different standing out, and being on the fringes of society, at least outwardly. Many of us do not, or at least we don’t enjoy the attention, but would just like to be accepted and seen as individuals.

While it will likely never become mainstream or trendy to be Goth, you see many more Goth fashion accessories and clothing in mainstream stores today, or as we like to refer to them, mundane. Could it be gaining ground in mainstream society? Or is it simply a trend destined to rise and fall like many trends and styles? Some of my best Goth clothes have actually come from regular stores, not specialty ones. Why Goth? The Goth fashion is a style that is probably my favorite look on the planet. Why am I drawn to it? Why do I like it so much? What makes someone gravitate toward alternative styles of dress? Why would someone choose to have blue or green or pink hair instead of all the colors that nature allows us to be born with?

I really can’t answer that. I don’t know why we have the preferences that we do. Maybe some of it is genetic. Some of it perceptual. I don’t think that why really matters as much as most people think. What matters is who we are as people, not what we wear, how we style our hair, or what music we listen to.
How Did I Get Started? I first began going to Goth clubs at the height of the scene in the mid-nineties. 1996 to be exact. There was a time when there was literally a Goth venue for every single night of the week. Yes, even Sunday. I worked at night, but every night that I wasn’t working I went to a club of some kind. My then crush, is the one who took me to my first Goth club. It was a Sunday night, pretty low-key, barely anyone was there, as it was the end of the weekend. But I thought it was the most magical and interesting thing that I’d ever seen. Everyone’s clothes were so elegant, unique, dark, and beautiful.
The crush that I had at the time, whose name I am not mentioning here for privacy reasons, for simplicity let’s call him Toby, also worked at a Goth clothing store. I loved to go in there and look at beautiful clothes, most of which I couldn’t really afford. I think that they had layaway though. I still have a few of my clothing items from then. Sadly, most of my specially Goth store purchased clothes have worn out and/or need to be mended, dyed, or altered in some way. I really miss being able to buy beautiful things. I bought my velvet cape, not from a Goth clothing store, but from a boutique in 1996. The store had silk velvet capes in black, royal blue, and burgundy (I think). It was expensive, but worth it. I have it to this day and it is in great shape. It is also quite warm being made of real silk. Velvet was originally, and still is, made of silk or rayon. Velvet that is not is actually not velvet, but usually velour (synthetic, as well as usually – but not always – stretchy) or velveteen, which is made from cotton.
So when I first started going to Goth clubs and the subsequent years in between, I was often met with stares, insults, and taunts. I’ve been harassed on the subway, even called devil while waiting in line to get into a club. You name it, it’s happened. I’ve even heard from some European acquaintances that when they go out “Gothin’” as an ex-boyfriend of mine used to say, they would have to cover up because they were afraid of physical attacks.

This is probably the most urgent aspect to this discussion: physical taunts and attacks. People, no matter what they look like, do not deserve to be attacked, reviled, or verbally insulted. I’ve found myself, over the years, often toning down my look, mostly because I do not want the negative attention that it brings me. This actually makes me sad. Then there are times when I simply can’t keep it in. I have to get all dolled up, makeup and all. Another reason for toning it down over the years has also been because getting all Gothed up is a lot of work. Sometimes I don’t have the energy for that level of glamor or couture.
The Future of Goth There is a Goth club in every state of the country, except my home state of West Virginia. There is one in Alabama and Louisiana, but not in WV! I actually thought about what it would take if I ever went back there and opened one. But there really isn’t any market for it there. I hope to bring the Goth scene into the 21st century with understanding and compassion. I’m just like you. I just like to wear different clothes, makeup, and hairstyles than the rest of society.
Some people consider the Goth Scene dead in NYC, but I’m not sure that’s completely true. I have recently relocated to Newark, NJ which has the only Goth club in NJ. I haven’t been in several years. But plan to go very soon, at which point I will probably also write a follow-up piece about it.

I will note any changes to the music, the scene, the crowd, and the venue. I’ve noticed over the years as many other Goths age, get married, have children, and settle into their adult mundane lives, they go out less frequently. But as a childfree Goth, I do not have any desire to leave the scene completely. I wish that I could do it every weekend again. I wish that I could afford all the beautiful clothes that I love and see. Some of the clothing stores that I used to drool over in 90s are sadly gone now. But the internet has become a mecca of Goth fashion. So, even though the scene may have scattered and faded, as people have grown up, the style will never truly be gone from the world. It is my intention, not for others to adopt the style, but for them to be more accepting of it as a whole. Remember, we don’t get to choose what our preferences are, but only whether to express them openly.
*Note* If you’ll check out the links to fun Goth stuff, you’re sure to find something interesting which will lead you even farther into the world of the Gothic subculture. Still being dark without being sinister...
Goth Links & Info: A History of GothFairy Goth Mother Some of the most beautiful and expensive Goth clothes that I’ve ever seen!Good Goth – more affordable Gothic fashion.Sophistique Noir – Goth fashion for the mature.Gothic Style – Jewelry to go with all those lovely clothes!Gothic.netGoth.netNew Goth CityGothic SubcultureThe Bauhaus Song as the catalyst.The International Goth Club Listing.The NYC Goth Scene (what remains): Absolution

The Shame Game How the Poverty-Stricken Fare  Poverty is like a disease. It spreads. It infects. It hurts. It wounds and it degrades the sufferers life. Anyone who’s never experienced poverty can’t imagine the lows, the sadness, the despair, and the hopelessness that living below poverty brings with it. Many people out there might be saying, just get a job or get a better paying job or go to school to get a degree so that you can get earn a higher wage. The poverty-stricken among us are the new denigrated invisible ones in society. You can’t see them because in the Western world they probably look just like you, wear nice clothes (they often obtained before becoming poverty-stricken), and manage to present themselves in the best light. You’d never know it to look at some people that they are often worried about where their meals will come from, worried about which bills they’ll have to forego paying, and worry about how they’ll manage to get through another month without enough. Most of the people who say that money isn’t that important have probably never truly been poor. Being on the lower end of the tax bracket is lot different than not knowing if you’ll be able to afford food. Being unable to get out to find a job because of an illness, can leave you feeling discouraged and doubting your worth as a human being. Having to rely on government subsidized, and often negligent, medical staff which are overworked, have too many patients, and simply don’t have the time and/or energy to focus on your properly in order to treat you, can also be discouraging.

According to feedingamerica.orgthe current poverty level is at 14.8%. It seems absurd for a nation with so much wealth, bounty, and opportunity to have any impoverished people whatsoever. But the notion that people choose this lifestyle still pervades some minds. Perhaps they wish to absolve themselves of responsibility by turning a blind eye to others’ suffering. But here are the facts. No one chooses poverty. OK, that’s not true, very few people choose poverty, probably less than 1%. Poverty strikes people in many walks of life and for many reasons. Sometimes, more often than not, it is the result of suffering a debilitating illness or injury. When this happens there are many stages that one’s life goes through. Not just the stages of grief for the life that you’ve lost, but the stages of degradation, shame, and guilt as your life and circumstances fall into disrepair around you. When faced with the prospect of only ever getting about half to three fourths of what you need every month and only about 60% of the food that you need, if you’re receiving food assistance, you’re stressed out constantly. You’re perpetually worried, confused, and unhappy. You often feel like a failure. If you’re able to manage to be a little more productive and find something that helps you to function better, you find yourself struggling and striving to get ahead or to simply catch up.
You notice that there are no budget tips, investment opportunities, or financial advice for poverty incomes. Do you know why? Because there are no ways to manage it. There are no ways to utilize or stretch or make your money last. It simply doesn’t. Month after excruciating month. It simply ways on you and inundates your life with uncertainty.
This isn’t meant to be a political debate, but a human one. How can we as a society grow, prosper, and progress when so much of our population suffers needlessly? How can we incorporate true reform? True change? Change that matters not just to individuals, but to society as a whole? As you can see there are burgeoning questions, but few answers.
A Case of Need, Not Greed 
How is justice served by the proliferation of poverty? Can reform be a step away? These answers are never simple. We can read and study sociology and socio-political trends for days and we can insert links into articles about how we feel either way, for or against, conservative or liberal. But that’s just talk, rhetoric, and philosophy. It does little to change the state of society as a whole and how it sees the poverty-stricken. Seeing people for something other than what they are. Many conservatives feel as if the impoverished are greedy and wish to gain more social services out of some sense of entitlement, but this is simply not the case. Most people are simply desperate. If someone is so poor they worry about money, would they not then want more? If they’re unable to work, or earn too much for fear of being cut off from the (very little) benefits that they do receive, would it not stand to reason that they’d be needy, not greedy? For maybe it is not welfare and social services which need to be reformed, but the mindset of those who do not go without. Can social change really be possible in today’s economy? Can the minds of some capitalists be steered towards compassion and charity. Perhaps just one person reading this can be inculcated toward a culture of community, compassion, and compromise to build a better civilization and a better society.

That's My Basement!
Why are Basements So Creepy?

So why are basements so creepy? Basements aren’t even all over the country. Some places can’t have them because the land isn’t solid enough. Or strong enough. Or something. Many people in coastal towns may not have even experienced the horror that is unfinished basements. If you google the words “creepy basements” and then click on the image search, you’ll come up with a plethora of fun and horrifying images. Some of them are clearly props for movies, but the vast majority of them seem like genuine photos of someone’s actual creepy cellar.

Comedians have spoken about this phenomena, people laugh about it, some people even have to wear a mask in order to brave the moldy terrain of their basement to do laundry. Filled with cobwebs, wooden beams, chains, moist stone walls, dark spaces, exposed pipes, water heaters, furnaces, dust, and last but not least stairs without risers, our collective living arrangements are a mystery. Basements are meant to be a structural aid. And in colder climates the foundation must be below the frost line. With the advent of architecture, engineering, and design, it seems so absurd and laughable that we’d be faced with images like this today. With all that we’ve accomplished in the realm of architecture, why is it that basements remain an unfinished, creepy mystery?


Why do basements exist? Besides the structural and foundational reasons of course. If it were structure only, they’d just be solid and filled with concrete or big deep wells in the ground. But it just so happens that they’re often used to store things. Ugly things. Dirty things. Things people may not have a garage in which to contain. And things which would be too large, messy, or smelly to store in a closet. Things like auto supplies, motor oil, chainsaws, gas cans, washing and drying machines, as well as tools, miscellaneous equipment, and industrial products. Many of the items that we keep in our basements, we probably shouldn’t be keeping in our homes at all, but that’s our basement!


Why do some places not have the dreaded cellar? Well according to McCain Construction, there can be a few reasons. The water table is too high, the ground is too hard scrabble, meaning too rocky to dig into. And sometimes there’s too much sand, that’s one of the reasons for lack of cellar dwellings in coastal places with lots of beaches. For the search why are basements so creepy, there really aren’t any definitive answers or explanations. And in searching for why they’re unfinished, one only comes up with mostly reasons for and against finishing them, the costs, DIY concerns, and options therein. It’s not really a mystery that is easily solved it seems.


The creepy image search on Google was quite fun. One of them even had what looked like stains on the wall and stairs. I’m going to assume that those stains were motor oil or some other sort of industrial product. Yes, that’s certainly what it was.


Check out uglyhousephotos.com for an interesting perceptual illusion picture of a basement. I’d like to propose a game. Everyone sends in their respective creepy basement photos and then I’ll scramble them up, post them in a slideshow and then everyone has to try and match up their name with their basement, by saying “That’s My Basement!”. If you’d like to get started on the creepy basement game, please email me some photos of your creepy basement and I’ll post them in a follow up blog and make a fun matching game out of it.

8/30/16 Tuesday
A Contrast on CensorshipWe now live in a culture of anonymity. Thanks to the internet and so many choices of social media platforms, we now have the ability to discuss, comment, harass, insult, and debate freely and instantly with others who are miles away. How does censorship affect our online lives? What does censorship mean to us in the digital age?
Censorship is a pretty touchy subject among many people. If you even mention the word, some people may become instantly riled up. With people online bandying about terms like thought police, SJW, which stands for Social Justice Warrior by the way, we see a wide array of opinions surrounding this hot topic.
According to the Beacon for Freedom of Expression censorship has existed for thousands of years. It was introduced in ancient societies as a way to control the population. It was used to control what they knew, the information that they had, as well as to supposedly shape the character of the people in its respective society.
Euripides said of liberty and freedom of speech:

This is true Liberty when free born men Having to advise the public may speak free, Which he who can, and will, deserv's high praise, Who neither can nor will, may hold his peace; What can be juster in a State then this? Euripides

As we can see, even our ancient philosophers were thinking about censorship, freedom of speech, and the ability to express ourselves effectively. It has been ingrained in us from very early times to be aware of our communication and our ability to communicate with each other.
You can’t really talk about censorship without talking about online communities. These things go hand in hand as our society is continuously evolving toward expanded abilities to reach out in electronic ways. We delve into the online world of communication by first examining our goals, desires, interests, and preferences. We choose who to interact with, what groups to join, as well as what topics to read about and comment on. Communicating about common interests often stirs debate, criticism, and good-natured arguments. But the other side of this is the frequent encounters with trolls which many on the internet have had the displeasure of experiencing. Unfortunately the internet is filled with those among us, for whatever reason choose to intentionally and deliberately antagonize the forum, message board, or comment section that they participate in. These social pariahs are the ones for which many of these seemingly restrictive rules were probably intended for.
But even reasonable and passionate people populate the internet arguing about many subjects, both simple and complex, taboo and mundane. So what does this mean for censorship? Where do you fall on the censorship debate? Is there good censorship and bad? Is there censorship that is effective, positive, and beneficial? Or is all censorship a method meant to silence, control, and restrict its audience?
IMDb, a long-standing and well-known database for finding information on actors, musicians, and even some pop stars has forums and a variety of message boards in which you can participate. You can sign up for a free account and participate in the message boards, discussing a wide range of entertainment-related subjects. There are even tools to create lists of your favorites, polls for others to take part in, and quizzes with fun topics on popular movies, TV, and actor trivia to answer. But this online database has its limitations. They have conditions which you must abide by in order to discuss these topics. They have strict rules against profanity of any kind. They have a ban on all profanity, on hate speech, abuse, etc. Some of their rules often seem a bit arbitrary though, like most online forums, there are strict rules against certain language and words, but not the intent, nuance, and or proliferation of rude and hateful speech which sometimes falls outside of these guidelines. As wonton body-shaming and fat hatred proliferate the message boards, any mention of race or observations of same may get your posts and comments deleted by an administrator. While it is a very varied source for debate and discussion of all things entertainment related, it has its downsides and flaws. If you do happen to use profanity, it won’t block your post it will simply replace your  word with a “beep” that’s right any swear words will be replaced with *beep*. So you can still pretty much figure out what I was trying to say with this statement in the the message boardsfor the series The Night Of.


Netflix is another well-known brand in the realm of entertainment. With its wide selection and variety of TV shows, movies, documentaries, and even some web series converted to long-form video, they’ve got a very unusual and strict set of regulations which must be adhered to in order to post and write a review. Despite having movies, which while labeled as “steamy” and “romantic”, are little more than erotica, however when you write a review you are barred from using words like sexy, erotic, naked, and they even (for some reason) disallow use of their own website and company name in reviews posted on there. Yes that’s right! You’re not allowed to use the word Netflix  on Netflix. But if you scroll through to older reviews, you may catch a glimpse of words like sexy or naked or even Netflix in a Netflix review, but after a certain point, they’re no longer tolerated. It makes one wonder how they arrived at this odd, and strict, set of criteria and conditions for their website. If you take a look at many of the reviews. They often fall into a category of what we’ll call, a bit language and image sensitive, so it is perhaps these folks who have a very low tolerance for any perceived harsh or profane language that these rules are for. The ones with the most sensitive sensibilities are often the ones who complain the loudest. There are many reviews on there which seem, let’s be honest a bit puritanical and moralistic in their overly judgmental proclamations and viewpoints.
I wrote a few reviews for Netflix, some of which I ended up having to completely reword as a result of their strict maxims.
Censorship presented to keep certain material away from children is usuallymet with agreement. While others may question it in adult-only circumstances and environments. Perhaps we don’t need strict censorship rules of any kind, but an assessment of ourselves, our motivations, as well as our ability to argue and communicate effectively, both online and in the real world.
Tell me what you think about censorship? How do you think it affects our lives with so much online activity?

5/19/16 Thursday

I thought it was time for a lighter toned subject. I will invariably alternate between serious subject matter and more fun topics. As life is about balance. No one can be serious or silly all the time. I’m a big fan of many TV shows and books. And as such, I love to write about my favorite characters. While there is very little chance of being commissioned to write licensed media tie-in fiction, it is probably one of the most fun types of things to write. Fanfiction, for those of you who do not know, is when you write a short story or some other form of work based on the characters and universes created by someone else. These types of stories are also really easy to write, as the characters have already been developed, you already know how they behave, how they speak, you just have to come up with some clever adventure for them to go on.

And when it comes to Sci-Fi and supernatural-based fiction the sky is pretty much the limit. People do write anachronistic crossover fanfiction as well as alternate universe stories. If you don’t like what happened at the end of Lost, then change it. Or if your favorite show was cancelled and ended on a cliffhanger, write the ending yourself. I’ve actually decided that I’m going to do that for one of my favorite shows. I’m confident that I can write a conclusion to wrap things up that will be very satisfying, if not for a wider audience, at least for me and those that read it on FanFiction.net.



Tell me if there’s any show that you’d love to read or write about? Have you or anyone you know done this sort of writing? Let me know either in the comments or by e-mail: gothwriter111@gmail.com.

6/25/16 Saturday

In the wake of so many mass shootings as a result of violent gun users, these irresponsible, terror-inducing, fear mongers, and not law abiding citizens at all, I decided to delve a little deeper into just what is involved when it comes to owning and buying a gun, as well as the statistics on gun violence and accidental shootings. I was raised in WV. A place that is very pro-2nd amendment. My grandfather had a shot gun and my mother had a pistol. While I have only known law-abiding citizens with guns, I have friends who have had the opposite experience, ones for whom the only guns they’ve seen were in the hands of criminals. I think that’s a shame, as much of our experience is what shapes our views on a particular topic and with something as touchy as guns and the right to buy/own one, whether concealed or not, it’s a big debate. My stance is this: I look at guns, collecting, owning, and using them, as a hobby like any other hobby (i.e. fishing, golf, etc.) and to that end believe that everyone has the right to partake in that which interests him/her. However, I do believe, since guns are dangerous and potentially deadly, there should be restrictions and requirements in place to A.) keep guns out of the hands of criminals, violent offenders, and those that wish to or are planning to do harm and B.) ensure that we are knowledgeable, responsible, sane, and safe regarding their use. I’m not a firearm enthusiast by any means, never got into them despite where I grew up.

I can remember going to a local store, it may have been Kmart, honestly I don’t remember, and hanging out in the gun section. I haven’t seen a “gun department” in a long while. But the gun section was right next to the fishing rod section, it was totally normal. Not something that was just for rednecks or survivalist types, just everyday citizens could go up to the counter and see a gun. Many gun enthusiasts heartily quote the 2nd amendment when gun control advocates suggest stricter requirements and restrictions regarding gun purchase and ownership.

The 2nd Amendment’s actual text:

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
The wording, meaning, and intent of this simple statement has been debated and re-interpreted many times over the last two hundred years. And many have wondered if it’s even relevant in modern times given its original intent. In the years after the War of Independence many of the states began to draft many of their own constitutions individually. They wanted a new nation, a nation that was wholly separate from the tyrannical monarchy of Britain. Many people in that time, before and even after the Revolutionary War, were afraid of tyranny and looked at the right to bear arms by each state, as well as its individuals, as a go-to measure in case they were called upon to stand in as a militia or a makeshift army. It was originally a means of protecting themselves against potential oppression. In that context, and for those times, it is understandable that they would need something that would, not only grant their citizens a new sort of freedom, but ensure that everyone’s liberties were protected. Our founding fathers probably never imagined that their simple words would inspire such passionate debate.

So I was wondering about the gun laws, restrictions, or lack thereof in this day and age, and it occurs to me, not being a firearm enthusiast myself, that I know very little of what is actually required to own a gun anywhere. My mother never took her gun anywhere, it just stayed in its box. But I knew from very early on that it wasn’t a toy. She let me hold it when I was about 12 or so. That’s a rite of passage, for some kids, if they live somewhere remote enough. Some get to even do a bit of target practice. My mom said she’d have let me if we’d lived in a more rural an area, but she was too afraid to allow me to given that we lived in a residential area with many neighbors and too many things could go wrong. A very responsible gun owner decision on her part. She wanted to take me somewhere much more remote where I couldn’t accidentally shoot a person or pet. I was honestly relieved, as I didn’t really feel all that interested in handling it any further. I’ve still never fired a gun to this day. Although I’ve read that it is a thrill and rush to fire one and it releases endorphins. But gun shooting doesn’t work like it does on television. They’re powerful little machines. Yes it is essentially a machine. Something which shouldn’t be played with, mishandled, or handled while under the influence.

So let’s see what I found out about guns and responsible gun ownership. I now reside in the Garden State, New Jersey, which happens to have some of the strictest gun laws in the country. For instance, here, a BB gun is considered a real firearm and you must have a license/permit to have one as well. If one is found in your possession and it is unregistered you will be arrested. Period. And the process by which one must obtain a handgun is pretty intense. One of the things you must provide is a good reason why you need a concealed handgun in the first place. They also require that you can demonstrate that you know how to actually use the gun. That was one of my 2nd biggest questions in my mind, and perhaps should be for others as well, as far as gun ownership goes. Do they know what they’re doing? Can they handle a gun? Do they know about its recoil? Guns on TV don’t recoil because they are firing blanks or aren’t real guns, they’re props for film purposes. Can they clean it without shooting themselves in the foot? I know some gun enthusiasts would argue why would someone who didn’t know how to use a gun want, or even buy one? Lots of people do lots of things out of desperation. You also have to have a mental health background check in the state of NJ. Gun permits from outside NJ are not accepted. They must all be registered here. But there are several states that accept NJ permits and licenses.

I decided to take a look at upcoming gun shows for my state:

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Looks like there aren’t any gun shows coming up in my state of residence. Let’s check NY shall we?

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There are a lot of gun shows coming up in NY it seems. Now if my finances would allow, I’d go a step further and actually check one out, but as it stands, I’ve got to stick to being a lurker on the internet. I’d be very curious as to the atmosphere and overall energy of a gun show. I’ve been to other types of shows. Most notably the New York International Auto Show held at the Javits Center in NYC. I wonder why none of the gun shows are held there? Maybe people in the city aren’t as into guns as suburban dwellers?

NYC’s process is long, tedious, and a bit expensive. The expense and extremely long wait time could deter people from buying a handgun out of anger or revenge.

I see here many long wait times and tedious forms and background checks, but few people are addressing the issue of gun responsibility. It doesn’t matter whether you want to shoot skeet or protect your home or you just collect guns because you think they’re pretty. You should have lessons, go to a shooting range. I have to have a license that says that I can drive a car. They won’t let me drive an automobile without a license and with a learner’s permit I must be in the presence of a person who has a valid license. A car is a deadly machine, a gun is a deadly machine. Of course this is the conundrum, the criminals that are shooting people are a major part of the problem, as well as the rampage killers who somehow manage to get ahold of weapons and kill a large amount of people all at once.

Connecticut is open carry. CT gun laws. But they urge you to not carry it out in the open in a place where it may alarm people. Can’t imagine why that is…

So in what state is it easiest to buy a gun? According to Newsmax, Alaska, Florida, Idaho, Kentucky, and New Mexico do not require a permit to purchase a gun, only to carry a concealed firearm. What seems to be lacking here is any sort of standard in conditions, restrictions, and or requirements.

Here are the states with the strictest gun laws. The paperwork required is often complicated and tedious to fill out.

Here is a good explanation as to the difference between assault weapons and the semi-automatics. These are the ones that most mass shooters seem to be using. Since this debate is often centered around gun control advocates using the term “assault weapons” interchangeably with the actual machine guns which are capable of rapid fire, whereas semiautomatic rifles are fire per trigger pull. You have to pull the trigger again to make it shoot again. So for the sake of argument I’m refraining from using the term “assault weapon” to describe a semi-automatic rifle as many of my fellow liberals have done. I’m addressing guns in general: owning, purchasing, laws to obtain them, etc. No sensible person is suggesting that anyone needs or could reasonably use a machine gun capable of rapid fire. It is for soldiers with military training, not the general public.

Mother Jones seems to have addressed various loopholes in the legal requirements that we have in place regarding background checks and obtaining a firearm. It’s somewhat surprising and alarming that the BATF doesn’t keep track of online gun sales, as of this article, which was published in 2013. And as of this article many people have managed to skirt the background check requirement by buying a gun online.

So obtaining a gun, as we’ve seen, can be pretty easy in many places. So let’s see how our violence and statistics as a result of those laws plays out throughout the U.S.A. I’ve seen several people suggest, well outright say, that the gun violence is actually worse in the places with the most strict gun laws. Not according to the Brady ranking report. It’s the opposite. Perhaps they’re considering overall crime, as it relates to violence in an urban environment. A place that is densely populated will often be more violent and have more crime in general. But to say that there is more gun violence as a result of gun restrictions is unfair and unfounded. Brady state rankings of gun violence. You can see a big correlation between the states with the strictest gun laws and less gun-related deaths. This is statistical evidence based on a 2013 study.

Many of the gun enthusiasts argue that a so-called CDC1 study dealing with gun violence didn’t find any such correlation, but it could be argued that that study was incomplete and they were treading carefully politically speaking as there has been much debate for the CDC even being allowed to do any studies related to this matter. You can read more about that here. The argument is that the CDC is there to research diseases, while that is true, why ban them from doing it at all? Why not have another entity do the research? While the ban has been lifted, it is still a controversial subject and one of seemingly political motivation. It seems that even the CDC is not immune (pardon the pun) to having to tiptoe around politics.

They don’t have the funds to undertake such a study according to The Washington Post. Then if more study is needed, find someone else who can and will do the study to the satisfaction of both sides of the argument. Statistics can be, and often are, skewed at times to give us the perceived results that the person writing wishes to convey. So the more a subject is studied, by impartial parties, the more we can understand said subject, as well as the correlations and causations therein.

There seems to be a reluctance on the part of the gun enthusiasts to allow any funding for the research to gather more data regarding gun violence, and a push from the liberal, gun-control constituency for transparency regarding gun violence and safety. What there needs to be is a sit-down agreed upon resolution to this problem. No one is arguing that the 2nd amendment is there. No one has said that the government should take away anyone’s legally owned guns. There has never been any suggestion of taking away everyone’s guns. The background checks and other restrictive safety measures are meant to keep all of us safe, gun enthusiasts and non-gun enthusiasts, not to impede your ability to legally own a gun as a law abiding citizen.

With the added stress and worry about accidental shootings, a woman who intended to make a safer gun, was threatened and intimidated by other gun enthusiasts. You can disagree with her or dislike her product and/or idea, but to publicly humiliate her is uncalled for. They’re not gun enthusiasts, they’re just bullies, plain and simple. Treating a fellow American who is just looking out for the safety of others like herself as well as them is egregious behavior. Her interests were to come up with a solution that would protect all of us, not just those that would do us harm but those who could take our gun away. It would make it so only the owner could fire the gun. Even though I’m not a gun enthusiast, that sounds like a pretty cool gun.

It turns out the smart gun wasn’t successful being sold here in the US, there were too many concerns as to the technology’s reliability. If it fails when you need it, then you’d be in big trouble. They need to greatly improve on this technology to make it comfortable, reliable, as well as convenient for the gun owners. Remember conservatives, it isn’t all gun rights that most gun control advocates want to remove, but the ability to harm ourselves and each other, whether accidentally or intentionally. This sounds like a good remedy for accidental shootings, if for no other reason. No kids getting a hold of it and even if they did they wouldn’t be able to fire. How many accidental shootings occur because no matter how much gun safety people have knowledge of, we are all human and make mistakes? This could put a stop to those sorts of mistakes and injuries. If you don’t believe Daily Kos, then here’s a fact sheet with some more statistics involving accidental gun shootings and fatalities. And more recent info from the Gun Violence Archive.

This venture has been very illuminating. In researching for this article, I found a lot of interesting facts and information, as well as statistics. I’m probably most stricken by the lack of regularity, as well as the countless stories of accidental shootings as a result of gun recklessness and negligence. In the end I found that the laws regarding guns and/or their control or restrictions to be very diverse and scattered. The rules regarding the requirements for gun ownership are so varied that it isn’t any wonder that people are confused, confounded, as well as even angered over them. Simply having a constitutional right to something isn’t enough, when it comes to something that is dangerous, one must be accountable for the use, handling, and responsibility that comes with an interest like firearms. I’m not anti-gun, nor am I anti-individual rights, very much pro-rights as it happens. I believe that we need intelligent, fair-minded, reasonable, and rational discourse between entities like the NRA and gun control advocates to truly resolve matters like this. As well as to find a solution that is best for everyone, both gun enthusiasts and non-gun owners alike.

Friends, fellow Americans, both liberal and conservative, as well as in between, I’ve attempted to address this issue from a place of reason and balance, while still informing you of my stance. Let me know how I did. For more information about gun ownership, please see the following for the rules of your state regarding handgun laws: If you choose to own a gun, be a responsible gun owner, be a law abiding citizen:

· Hand Gun Law · NRA – Offers a pretty clear & concise drop down menu of states & the type of gun carry laws for each · Gun Safety Rules – Thanks once again to the NRA for this sound advice. Always follow these safety rules! Always! · Instructions & Courses – Learn before you own · Gun Laws General, first section · 10 Pro-Gun Myths – A fun little fact-filled list of things that a lot of gun-enthusiasts mistakenly believe, for some reason
OK tell me what you think about gun laws. Should they be federalized? Should each state be more responsible in their efforts to control who gets to purchase a gun? And let me know if I got a fact or statistic wrong, I’ll happily edit and update, as I want this to be as factual and helpful as possible. Hit me up in the comments with some noise. Please be civil, not just to me, but to one another as well.

CDC Gun Violence “Study”1

*Personal attacks will not be tolerated. All comments are moderated.