I used to wake up early so I could get my training in before it was time to go to work. At 4:00 AM, you could run straight down the yellow line of Main Street like you owned the place. No cars. No people. Just you, the hum of streetlights, and the quiet confidence that …
Tag: writing
Is It Such a Bad Thing?
Doing what we love—and actually feeling it I found myself sitting with a question today—one borrowed from the book Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. She wrote that while in Italy—learning the language, enjoying the food, and more importantly, re-relearning how to enjoy her life—she asked herself: “Is it such a bad thing to live …
Stories We Wrestle With
When A Story Creates Headlocks and Dropkicks Stories have a way of drawing me in close like a headlock… and every now and then, pushing you right back out, like a dropkick. Elizabeth Gilbert does that to me. One minute she’s got me in a headlock… completely pulled into the moment, and the next, she’ll …
The Son of the Angry One
What's in a name? "That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet." — William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet I came across something the other day about my last name—Ferguson. It’s an Anglicized version of the Scots Gaelic Macfhearghus, often translated as “son of the angry one”… or “son of the …
Lowell’s Boat Shop
By The Bowlegged Blogger Weathered Beauty I attended a Holiday Open House at Lowell's Boat Shop and Museum in Amesbury Ma. yesterday. After decades of passing by this place, I finally took the opportunity to feed my curiosity. Established in 1793, Lowell’s Boat Shop is the oldest continuously operating boat shop in the United States …
The Women Who Taught Me How To Tell A Story
By The Bowlegged Blogger ⸻ Every now and then, a reader of my blog reaches out with a kind word about my story telling. I treasure these messages more than folks might imagine. But recently, a classmate, friend and subscriber asked a question that caused me to pause and reflect: “Donnie, Who taught you how …
Continue reading The Women Who Taught Me How To Tell A Story
Windows of Opportunity: Lessons Learned
Old Lessons - New Challenges For most of my working life, I lived in the rhythm of management ... people management and change management. One was about building relationships, the other about guiding transformation. Both demanded patience, awareness, and the ability to read between the lines of what people said and what they felt. As …
Tricks old dogs can learn
There are some things we learn from books and there are things life teaches us. One can assume is that the longer you live the more you'll learn. But, can you teach an old dog a new trick? I believe the answer is yes....we old dogs can learn new tricks....well, some of us. With age …
A Still Boat
Note For years, I written The Bowlegged Blogger... writing about motion. The rhythm of swimming, biking, running, and finding myself through movement. But lately, the miles have slowed (thanks to a new hip and cranky knees), and life's lessons have taken on a different effort. I used to measure myself by distance and time; now …
Mind Prober
Talking to myself always ends up with us both laughing ..... Are you at all curious what others think about you? I think most people are.... Even the most “narcissistic” people among us—those with an inflated sense of self-importance—must wonder at times what others really think of them. It’s part of being human isn't it? …
When Inspiration Knocks
“I don’t know what I think until I write about it.” — Joan Didion This quote from Joan Didion has always struck me not just as wise, but as fundamentally true. For me, writing isn’t about capturing a finished thought—it’s the very process by which the thought is formed. Until the words start appearing on …
Give your eyes a rub
Abby is off to the beach with her friend Julie and I've been listening to meditative music and observing Lanai time. I can feel the warmth of the sun helping me relax after a morning run. Lying still, eyes closed, I'm witnessing steams of color in waves that move upward. No I'm not on mushrooms, …
December 27th
Back in 2015 I fell into a dark moody place. I needed to climb out of it and get back on a healthy daily plan to improve my mental and physical well being. I rarely ever look back over old posts but in this case I believe it could help remind me of a process …
Mirror Lake……
Mirror Lake, nestled in the heart of Lake Placid, NY, is a place of serene beauty, its calm waters reflecting the surrounding Adirondack Mountains like glass. I swam its length during an Ironman competition in 2015, an experience etched deeply in my memory. Amidst the cold mountain water, I found myself beside another swimmer, whose …
The Widow’s Walk Diaries
Prologue The Widow’s Walk Diaries are a work of fiction. As most parents do, I used to read stories to my daughter Izzy at night before bed. After a long days work, many nights my prospects of staying awake while reading where, between slim and none. To keep my mind active and to capture Izzy’s …
Mistakes And Regret
Ever make a mistake that came back to haunt you just about every day of your entire life? I did, and I made it in high school. This mistake has stuck with like a wool sweater on a 90 degree day. When I tell you what I did, it may not seem like such a …
Just write something..
I've been here before.... writers block ... I keep writing but nothing seems to get published... The draft bucket if full of half baked blather. I need to get out of the house, get on the bike and get a cup of coffee. Ok, I am now sheltered away with all the other coffeehouse vagrants …
An open letter to my eldest daughter..
Katelyn Mary....This is an open letter to you …days before your 36th birthday on March 8th, 2018. I've been sitting here at my desk wondering where time has gone, while you have been busy emerging from adolescence into womanhood. Happy Birthday you have earned it! I know reading any of my blog posts would be painful to the English professor …
The Bow Legged Blogger 