Billy the Kid was an outlaw.

Hungry for adventure, untamed and filled to the molars with piss-n-vinegar, he lived at a time when the law was enforced chaotically, often by such authorities that were, arguably, more morally dubious than he was. He was lain to rest by one of the few individuals whom the records showed as having an ounce of integrity. Pat Garett--while he felt the sting of The Kid's thorn--was obsessed, to the point that he authored The Authentic Life of Billy the Kid. I find there to be something relatable in Garett's obsession.

We--the obsessed, who trace the outlines of skeletons with calloused fingers hoping that others will see what we have--sought not to disturb their spirits, but to honor their memory. We sought to show, by reaching deep into the well, what might be drawn from out of its darkness.

-- @billytheked

Dear Muser,

Unfortunately, recent occruences have rendered the top/zaprank filter less reliable for finding singal, so I'll go by the top/zapped instead.

Here are the highlights (not in any particular order).

a saloon haikua saloon haiku

#1431606

Sky darkens slowly,
Whisper of drops on the leaves.
Rain is in the air….

in the musein the muse

Information Overload
#1428897
@Kontext asks us to tune in to our inner voice, and to stop searching without. A prescient message for these strange times we are living in.

UnPhiltered - Chapter 17 - A Rotten Uncle
#1430120
@TotallyHumanWriter's post describes a children's book project he undertook for his nieces. This one really put the amount of dedication it takes to make a go of it as a writer into perspective.

My January Writing Wrap up 🍓
#1424148
@plebpoet's method for holding herself accountable was interesting. Since reading her post, I've wondered about her, and how it has been going. I've also considered doing the same thing for myself. Very cool:

I have set a reminder on my phone that pops up each day at 9pm and it says, "write :)". Well, each day, instead of ignoring it, I'm trying to notice it. Once I notice it, I must write down the excuse I have for not writing that day. After a pattern begins to emerge in my excuses, that will be the next phase of the experiment.

[Book Review] Bonhoeffer-Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy
#1416193
@jbschirtzinger again entices us to read another biography. I can recall some time ago when I was requesting that my readers share some works in this genre. I'm not sure if this has anything to do with that, but in any case, this was a satisfying review. Definitely put Eric Metaxas on my radar.

A Winter Road Trip – Part Three
#1423483
I found @siggy47's third part to the Winter Road Trip series to be another great read. The part about Jekyll Island It gave me chills, but I'm glad R was there to diffuse the tension.

Book Review of “The Great Harvest”: And YOU WON’T BELIEVE THE TWIST AT THE END
#1425743
I loved this review by @denlillaapan's, which led me to believe we were going one way only to U-turn and send us barrelling into AI oblivion. I'm not so sure how to explain it, nor can I prove it, but somehow, when I am reading AI generated text, the inner monologue that I normally have turns off. When I am reading Den, I hear Den (creepy, right?)--not so with robots.

shy, unfinished short story
#1424165
@ek's writing was prompted some nice discussions. It seemed to be well-received by people in the comments. I appreciated the understated writing style and the meta title. I hope he keeps at his writing.

elsewhere on SN

@jasonb had a nice idea to highlight some posts that flew by our radars and it allowed me to uncover some hidden gems, like this one (#457845) and this one (#1294046)

Till next time.