The Freedom Life is about ideas, observations, and the personal things I write because I want them out of my head… or simply just because.
“Do one thing every day that scares you.”
That line is from Baz Luhrmann’s Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen); a ‘song’ I loved in 1997 for its profound and comforting words. (I’ve written ‘song’ like that because it isn’t one, really. It’s just Baz Luhrmann reciting a speech over a generic backing track). I don’t find those words profound or comforting now –…
“Can I ask how old you are?”
Asking someone else’s age is a bold thing to do. Not necessarily because it’s seen as rude (though I don’t know why, really). It’s because people tend to ask, “how old are you?” without preparing themselves for an answer they didn’t expect. I was at a meal recently with some people I didn’t know. A…
A roomful of assumptions
Who first came up with “assume makes an ‘ass’ out of ‘u’ and ‘me’”, I wonder? Did they feel smug as they made the connection? Did they hug themselves with barely-contained glee, anticipating the oohs and ahhs that would surely emanate from the boardroom come Monday? They must have done, because whenever anyone says “assume…
What do “family values” mean when you’re old and childfree?
“I’m looking for someone with strong family values” is the mainstay-sentence of most TV dating shows. Mostly, this is because everyone on TV dating shows is young enough to start a family, which they NEED to want because that’s the default “happily ever after” story everyone recognises. (Nowhere in any fairytale, or Disney movie, or…
Observations about observations
I’ve been re-visiting my David Sedaris Masterclass lessons over the past week or so. David teaches ‘Writing with Humour’, and as he’s one of my favourite humour-writers, he’s a suitable person to learn from. One of the things David teaches is to be “tuned in to the world”, which means observing its bizarre everyday happenings. …
Introducing The Freedom Life
You might have noticed that I already have a ‘proper’ blog. (If you haven’t, it’s housed under the ‘Blog’ tab on my website). I’m starting a separate one because I write about lots of different things, which don’t behave when they’re all smooshed together. My website is supposed to promote my professional writing and writing…