2020 is over! Yeah!
by Hank Quense
So, 2020 is in the past and good riddance. I decided to summarize that year. Perhaps the analysis will lead to uncovering some truths.
- Once again, the Pulitzer Prize Awards Selection Committee ignored me and my writing. That’s more than 20 years in a row. One has to wonder if the Committee is biased against writers born in New Jersey.
- None of my books made it to the best seller lists. Is self-publishing to blame?
- During the year, I never won a big lottery prize. I plan to investigate if not buying lottery tickets all year is somehow related to the lack of winning.
- Self-isolating means not going to the barber shop. The other day, I hacked off a few inches of hair. I’m sure the wound in my right ear will heal just fine. There wasn’t that much blood.
- I am not scheduled to receive the Presidential Freedom Medal. That’s good. If I’m offered one in the few remaining days, I’ll refuse it like Bill Belichick for pretty much the same reasons.
- The New York Mets and Giants continue to be painful to watch. Some of the commercials are more interesting than the action on the field. Wait ’til next year!
- Zoom meetings, compared to meeting in person, are pretty boring.
- I’ve noticed self-isolation can grow on you. After a while, it seems natural to stay in and going out seems strange. An end to self-isolating will require strength of character to adjust.
- The pandemic continues to rage around here and people continue to go in the wrong direction in supermarket aisles. Perhaps those shoppers could be charged higher prices. Or maybe their coupons could be rejected.
- In times of crisis, an incompetent, uncaring government makes the situation worse, not better. Unfortunately, this crisis is much more serious (and deadly) than the ineptness of my favorite sports teams.
- Swimming laps while wearing a face mask is akin to waterboarding. I strongly advise against it.
2021 Resolutions:
- None
For vacations, Hank and Pat usually visit distant parts of the galaxy. Occasionally, they also time-travel.
Besides writing novels, Hank lectures on fiction writing, publishing and book marketing. He is most proud of his talk showing grammar school kids how to create a short story. He used these lectures to create an advanced ebook with embedded videos to coach the students on how to create characters, plots and settings. The target audience is 4th to 7th graders. The book’s title is Fiction Writing Workshop for Kids.
Hank’s Amazon PageCreating a Story
How to Self-publish and Market a Book
Comments 8
I really enjoyed the zoom meetings, esp the ones with friends. My old school buddies and I met every Friday night on zoom during the lock-downs, for “cocktails and pigtails.” We’d basically not bother with make up and we’d gather for virtual drinks. I saw more of my friends this way because of the lock-downs that I do normally.
Author
My cousins and I are still meeting on zoom calls as often as we can. I hope I never take those moments for granted.
Author
We have four large grocery stores near me and for the first time yesterday, I noticed the arrows at La Comer. Were they always there? They don’t exist at Mega or Chedraui. Not sure about Walmart, but I don’t think so. Of course, I noticed I went down several isles the wrong way. I’m pretty sure no one saw me. I understand now why I didn’t win the lottery.
I go to in-person meetings with an iPad. I can play solitaire while everyone thinks I’m taking copious notes.
Normally, I’d scowl at the wrong-way shoppers, but no one can notice that if you’re wearing a mask.
All but one of our supermarkets gave up on one-way aisles.
My resolution for the next two years is just to survive.
I didn’t make it a resolution to survive but it is a goal
That last one is good!
The one before it – prepare for worse.
And I don’t know. My in-person meetings are really darn boring. At least with Zoom, I can either play a game or watch television while in conference.