From the most recent 2 hour autobiographical writing workshop:

“I had a blast! Mr. McNease’s workshop was a revelation. His ability to quickly break through writer’s inhibition and get you to simply write is refreshing.  He quickly set my mind at ease! Highly recommend him.” – Al

“I thoroughly enjoyed your workshop for Guided Autobiography. The exercises were fun, and I enjoyed sharing with others in the group. I came away feeling less daunted about this sort of writing. It does not have to be a huge work. It can be fun and entertaining, a way to tell stories about life, that in the telling may unearth new thoughts and perspectives.” – Val

I conducted another 2 hour autobiographical writing workshop and they loved it! I’d donated this to the Uniteraian Universalist auction held several months ago for our congregation. It was at our friend Doris’s house. Our other friend Kathi, who only comes to visit once a year, was completely surprised: she had no idea we were doing this, and I even doubly suprised her by saying I was meeting with a client and had to go out for awhile when in fact I went to Doris’s house to prepare.

I keep getting very positive feedback on the workshops and my ability as a facilitator. My third (or fourth or fifth) act is going very well.

And yet, he persisted

This is the space at Bucks on Bridge Coffee Shop in Lambertville where I can now do in-person workshops! The collective Soupcon took it over and I joined. This is going to be a busy and exciting year for me. This was today’s 2 hour guided autobiography introductory workshop. They liked me (they really liked me)! But seriously, I learn so much from doing this, and it’s a privilege to have people share their lives in this process.

By Jim Miller

Dear Savvy Senior,

When should someone with dementia stop driving? My 83-year-old father has some dementia issues but still drives himself around town pretty well.

Concerned Daughter 

Dear Concerned,

Most doctors agree that people with moderate to severe dementia should never get behind the wheel, but in the early stages of Alzheimer’s or other types of dementia, driving performance should be the determining factor of when to stop driving, not the disease itself.

With that said, it’s also important to realize that as your dad’s driving skills deteriorate over time from the disease, he might not recognize he has a problem. So, it’s very important that you work closely with his doctor to monitor his driving and help him stop when it is no longer safe for him to drive. Here are some additional tips that can help you.

All times are eastern (New Jersey) – 2 Hours
Register at the links below

NEW FOR 2025!

IN-PERSON WORKSHOPS IN LAMBERTVILLE
NEW HOPE ADULT WRITERS GROUP
CLINTON ADULT WRITERS GROUP

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 7
Guided Autobiography 2-Hour Complimentary Introduction (free)
9:00 am – 11:00 am
Location: Soupcon at Bucks on Bridge
25 Bridge Street, Lambertville, NJ
Please specify the workshop or group in your subject line!
RSVP (LIMIT 8)

EVERY 2ND  AND 4TH TUESDAY
Adult Writers Group
6:00 – 7:00 pm
Location: New Hope Free Library
93 W. Ferry Street, New Hope, PA
Please specify the workshop or group in your subject line!
RSVP

The following is just a tapas plate from my Mark McNease On Topic Substack. Every Monday musings you can subscribe to HERE. It’s free!

First, a big hello to new subscriber Steve! We encountered each other on Bluesky. Steve is a very nice addition to the Tree House. At this rate I’ll have to get a contractor in soon and expand the place. Anyone know a good elf?

From the Editor’s Desk

I wonder if this should be called ‘From the Trenches,’ considering what’s happening to the country.

When is a friend not a friend?

Something I struggle with is the sense of betrayal and mistrust I now feel toward anyone I know who voted for Trump. There are people in my life who made that choice, and yet I know them as ‘good’ people who don’t display any malice. And yet … and yet … I feel like a Jew may have felt in 1933 wondering who among my neighbors and friends would protect me, and who among them would direct the Gestapo to my door.

I won’t ask them, but I can’t shake the feeling that I already know. It’s one of the many reasons I left Facebook: my life, our life, is precious and I won’t put it on display for anyone who isn’t appalled that Black history and experience is being erased from our federal government. Spanish-speaking Americans, and their language, are now of no consequence to the regime. Women’s reproductive freedom is something we once imagined. And LGBTQ lives no longer matter in any way.

CHAPTERS 1-10

CHAPTERS 11 – 20

CHAPTERS 21 – 32

NOTE: This audiobook was made using a synthetic male voice (AI). If you don’t like that or it troubles you, skip it! No professional audiobook narrators were harmed in the production of this audiobook, since I can’t afford to hire them anymore. This is for people who enjoy the story regardless, and for me because … writing is hard work.

Narration provided by Wondervox.

I am so excited to bring one of my favorite stories to life for your listening pleasure… a novella, actually, that had an incredibly long gestation in the recesses of my imagination. I’d put it off as an audio option because the voice technology I use wasn’t quite good enough. Now I think it sounds terrific. Yes, it’s AI/synthetic voice. I would never pretend otherwise. So fasten your headphones, and let’s get this dark, dark party started.

About Fatal Mistake: A Harry Hell Novella
Buy the eBook Direct and Save! 

The year is closer than you think. The world has collapsed under the weight of its own insatiable needs, leaving shattered cities where those who still have anything fight to keep it that way, and those who don’t are a constant threat. It’s a danger that must be contained through a tightly controlled society where everyone is observed and everything is kept in its place. Harry Hellerman and his twin brother, Elliot, enter this world three minutes apart. By the time they’re teenagers, they’ve been surrendered to Control to be molded into the perfect assassins. A boy named Harry Hellerman enters, and a man named Harry Hell emerges: a killing machine of the highest order.

Actually, we can

(Photo: Clinton, NJ, library writers’ group)

Among the many talismans spread around my work (sacred) space is a simple wooden block with the words, ‘Actually I Can’ on it. It’s been a reminder every day that life isn’t over till they put a small hand mirror under your nose to make sure you’re dead. Until then, as Saul Bellow said (and Anne Sexton quoted in her Pulitzer Prize winning book of poetry ‘Live or Die’), “Live or die, but don’t poison everything.”

I’m living as fully as I can. The photo is the Clinton New Jersey Library adult writers group I just started facilitating last night. I don’t call them students. I prefer ‘participants’ for everything I’m doing. I even said last night, “I’m not a teacher. I’m a facilitator.” I want to facilitate other people’s creativity and desire to express themselves. That’s what I hope to be and do. This past year (2024) the universe showed me a different road to take if I was willing to let go of some of the baked-in ideas I had about who I am and what I can do.

I love to teach (I’ll allow myself to use the word in this context). I love sharing my 50+ years of experience and skill. And I love being good at it! My favorite part of book readings was the conversation with the audience afterward. People kept telling me I had a talent for talking to people, that I become animated and enthused speaking about writing, and they were right.

It invigorates me. It challenges me. It humbles me (as much as I’m willing to be humbled), and it reminds me that I have something to offer even now.

Let go, let goodness, and don’t be afraid of being someone new … that person, with those talents and gifts, was there all along.

Rec Room: Jazz Maestro Kurt Elling and the Sounds of Perfection

One of the takeaways from our latest cruise to the Caribbean was my introduction to virtuoso jazz singer Kurt Elling His music was on the lounge playlist, and the first time I heard it I stopped whatever I was doing and asked myself, “Who is that?” I immediately Shazam-ed it (the popular app that let’s you identify any song you hear playing) and was introduced to Elling’s very seductive, masterful jazz vocalizations. While I can’t say I’m a jazz aficionado—I’ve never spent much time listening to the genre—I can say this singer had be obsessed. There’s something about his voice and his delivery that keeps me going back for more.

Elling has long been considered one of the premiere male vocalists in modern jazz. His ability to blend traditional jazz forms with contemporary influences has earned him the kind of respect reserved for the greats. Let’s take a look and a listen …

If you’re like me, and there are millions of us, you simply cannot reconcile yourself to staying on Meta (Facebook, Instagram and Threads). And while there is no Faceook shaming here – I understand how spectacularly Meta has been in making itself seem indispesable to our lives – it is dead to me. I, too, thought for years that I had to stay for family and friends, but the reality for a long time was that I only saw posts from about a dozen people, and very few ever “liked” mine or engaged with me in any meaningful way. Facebook wants us to pay for that by “boosting” posts. Uh, no.

I somehow made it 50 years without Facebook, and guess what? I haven’t missed it for five minutes. There is something deeply illusory about social media, and the people who create it know this.

Given that I enjoy dispensing pearls to swine and other creatures I value for their intelligence (pigs are really smart), I’m on Bluesky, and I have reactived my Tumble for photos. If you didn’t know, Tumbler has been around since 2009, but it’s not really microbloggng. It serves peole whose attention span is longer than an influencer’s. I’ll use it for photos only for now, since I have … a website! Enjoy!

– Mark