January | 2015 | hillbillyzendotcom

Hillbilly Zen – The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get

07 Jan 2015 12 Comments

by hillbillyzen13 in Finding Zen, Inspiration, Music Tags: Advice, Brain, Classic Rock, Joe Walsh, Rocky Mountain Way

I asked for help with a tagline, and got more than I expected from mlewisredford. In addition to some excellent advice, he included this in his reply, which in turn sparked a couple of brain cells that survived my misspent youth. Crank up your speakers and rock out.

Hillbilly Zen – “Say Your Name” – Blogging 101

06 Jan 2015 7 Comments

by hillbillyzen13 in Finding Zen, Life, Writing Tags: Blogging 101, Die, Eat, Exercise, Heaven, Hell, Taglines, Titles

Today’s assignment: edit your title and tagline. Make your readers’ first impression a good one!

I’m happy with my blog title, but adding a tagline is a possibility. The tips included in this Blogging 101 assignment are helpful; give your readers an idea of what you’re about, make it unique, etc.

Most of you guys have been with me for awhile and you’ve never steered me wrong, so I would greatly appreciate your ideas on this subject. There are three options:

No tagline, just the header (like it’s been up until now).

“Heaven doesn’t want me. Hell’s afraid I’ll take over.”

“Exercise. Eat right. Die anyway.”

These aren’t terribly Zen, I know, but they’re representative of where my head is right now. You all know me just about as well as anybody, so…what do you think?

There’s a fourth option, too – if you’re so inclined, suggest a tagline of your own choosing. I look forward to hearing from you, and I’ll post an update with the results. Thanks, everybody!

Hillbilly Zen – “Introduce Yourself” – Blogging 101

05 Jan 2015 11 Comments

by hillbillyzen13 in Life, Writing Tags: Animals, Blogging, Blogging 101, Dorothy Parker, Farm, Granny Clampett, inspiration, People, Writing

Today’s assignment: write and publish a “who I am and why I’m here” post.

I was so excited to start the Blogging 101 course, eagerly anticipating the first assignment. So….why did I get a cold knot in my stomach when I saw what it was? Because I have to write about myself. Just me, not my farm or the critters or a friend or music or whatever. I’m in all those posts in one way or another, but in a supporting role, not the lead one. Writing exclusively about myself produces major heebie-jeebies and makes me wish I hadn’t quit smoking weed. On the “About” page, I mention how much I love writing even though it sometimes ties me in knots. Types of trees are mentioned, but nothing really about myself. This has turned out to be a good thing, since this past year has involved some honkin’ big changes in my life.

So…who am I? A cross between Dorothy Parker and Granny Clampett. A well educated hillbilly, in other words. Not quite as cynical Ms. Parker, but every bit as feisty as Ms.Clampett. One of my favorite cousins sent me a tee shirt for Christmas that declares “All I care about is my farm and my animals. Oh…and like maybe 3 people.” That pretty much says it all.

I’m here because blogging gives me that bizarre combination of pleasure and terror that I mentioned before. I have chosen to live alone in the middle of nowhere, so there’s definitely a social component. It’s a way to connect with some truly brilliant, funny, quirky people who inspire me. That’s the crux of why I blog – while certainly not one of the truly brilliant, I’m occasionally funny and definitely quirky. I hope that someone somewhere will be inspired by one of my posts; whether it’s to snort and roll their eyes, or burst into laughter, or just consider what they’ve read and gain a bit of a new perspective.

Due to those aforementioned changes, I have the blessing/curse of more time to spend writing. Now it’s up to me to get off my happy ass and maintain the motivation….