What did you say?

I have absolutely no time this morning.  I've used it all up and it's time to go already.  Drat! Drat!  Did I say drat!??  Blast!
TT

Calendar cleared

I just renewed my drivers license online.  I've never been able to do that before.  I've heard other people say how they were able to do that but I was never given that option.  Until today.  I got home and recognized the envelope and thought drat.  I envisioned the long line and morning of waiting on my birthday to renew it.  I know it only has to happen every so many years but the lines are always so long.  It doesn't matter how early on New Years Eve I get there, it's always a long line.  I bring a book and then I still get antsy and tired of sitting.  I watch the little digital monitor slowly flip through the seemly thousands of numbers until it finally gets to mine.  That takes forever.
But not this year and not this time.  I'm already done.  No lines, no waiting.  It took all of a few minutes without ever leaving my spot here at my desk upstairs in my own home.  This is great.
I wonder what I should do with the morning of my birthday now that I've cleared that part of my calendar.
TT

TIme now

I still need to re-read my chapter that I revised.  It's good for it to sit a few days in between writing it and re-reading it.  That seems to work but now I'm wanting to start revising the next chapter and I still have to read the last one.  I was going to do it Sunday evening and then when that didn't happen I was going to do it last night but it didn't happen again.
Although, it was a pleasant surprise that it didn't happen yesterday.  After work, Sonny stopped by the house.  He was meeting Selma so he didn't have to go all the way home for them to do a little shopping and since our house is a middle ground they met here.  It wasn't planned for them to leave the boys with us while they shopped but we got that bonus.  We were able to spend some time with Mr. L and the Big Boy, too.  Jay took L which is what he does now.  There isn't another soul on this planet that can keep Jay's attention the way Mr. L can.  I went with the Big Boy and found an old Charlie Brown show on television.  It's been a long, long time since I watched Snoopy, Come Home.  A long, long time.  I didn't even know we had that channel.  It was a very nice evening even if things I needed or thought were pressing got moved aside.  I'll get to re-read that chapter soon enough and start the next one.
I have some time now and I don't miss one bit that it wasn't done last night.
TT 

Start

Now that I have cleared my e-mails from all the Cyber Monday information I didn't particularly need to hear about I was left with one e-mail that I proceeded to answer.  It was a real e-mail about a possible afternoon event where I would be able to give out sample cookies.  I had talked to the event planner over the phone and she was sending me follow up information. 
I wrote my reply, checked it, and hit send.  Then I noticed it came back.  I had a mail delivery failure.  I tried it again making sure I had the correct e-mail address and got another mail delivery failure.  Hmmm....well, maybe her business account I was sending it to didn't accept outside mail.  So, I guess I'll have to use the phone number to contact the planner.  Good thing I asked her for that.
So my e-mail in-bins are cleared for now.  I have a few more minutes before heading out to start my day...or haven't I already done that?
TT  

Weekend winding down

The long holiday weekend will be shutting down soon.  It's winding down quickly now and I'm glad I managed to finish a 3 mile run right before that happened.  You'll excuse me if I drip on the towel I have rolled up under my wrists at the edge of the keyboard.  This is the best way for me to sit still while I cool down enough to finally take a shower. 
I hope to spend a few minutes doing a re-read of chapter revision I finished yesterday.  I've thrown some of the rules about how the best way to do this away.  Well, I might have just stored them on a shelf up way too high for me to reach for now.  They don't seem to work for me so well.  Write, write and keep writing.  Yes.  I know.  But I found I write, write and write a whole lot more when I can take a look at what I've put down.  I've got a ton of work still to do but I'm getting it done.
So I guess I'll get cleaned up now.  It's about time to start rolling up the weekend to put it away.
TT 

Another free day

It's getting a little difficult to believe that in a month it will be Christmas.  Is it too early for me to be thinking that I'll be wrapping up another year?  That this whole of 2012 will be a part of the past?  Do I want to think about the things I've done or haven't been able to or haven't gotten to or prevented myself from doing?  It's tough to see what gets done in all that time when it seems there is still so much more to do.
But I think it might be a little premature to start going over everything.  It might take away from realizing the things going on now that can be counted.  It's another free day of a long holiday weekend.  It's a little cool now but the day promises warmer touches and brighter skies.  I'm all for brighter skies no matter what day it happens to be or how many are left in the year.  I'll think I'll take my time to enjoy my 11/25/12, whatever I decide to do.
TT 

Upside down side

It seems I'm on the upside down side of the clock today.  Instead of pulling together a few things that are going on at the break of dawn in the A.M., I'm sitting here now 12 hours later than I would usually be sitting here in the P.M.  Because of the time I'm not drinking my usual black coffee that I would be having in the morning.  I've popped open a beer instead since it's late.  It's still a brew. Wink.
And my day?  Yes.  I tackled another chapter revision.  I've managed some more laundry, a trip to the post office, bank and grocery store.  I visited the book shop to see if the December issue of the City Magazine is out yet.  Not yet.  I'll have to wait a few more days before I get to see how I might be appearing in that feature about cookies that I'm mentioned in.  The editor that was in charge of the article e-mailed me the end of last week and said, "Yep, you're in it."  And the mag had just been published so it would be on the newstands soon.  But just not yet.  Believe me, I've been checking.
I would be starting dinner about now but I got a phone call of hold off.  Dinner might be picked up instead.  So I put on my old Jack Johnson In Between Dreams album and pulled out the laptop.  And I realized I'm on the upside down side of the clock right now than I usually would be. 
TT
   

Photos or no?

So I seem to be in a predicament here with blogger about my photos.  Somehow, although I would like to post a few pictures from our wonderful meal yesterday, blogger is telling me I need to upgrade my space in picasa web photos in order to accomplish that.  It seems I have used up all my free space and now I'm at the point of no more space available to post pictures.
I figured in my files I have pictures I don't need to keep and I know I have some duplication going on but the application isn't playing nice and I haven't been able to get beyond a certain window that pops up.  It won't obey it's own command choices.  That simply means it's messed up.  I go to click my choice button of 'no thanks' or 'update now' and nothing happens no matter what I choose but I still can't get beyond to the pictures behind the pop up window.
So.  A predicament.  And I've worked on it a bit but nothing is happening at the moment.  I have a link to Thanksgiving 2010 which has some great photos of previous meals like the one prepared yesterday.  That menu doesn't change year-to-year so it is pretty much accurate.  Except this year we did our own breakfast and didn't include it on the menu.  Otherwise, it should all look about the same.  Enjoy.  
Stand in Pictures
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Thanksgiving Day 2013

Happy Thanksgiving Day!
The turkey is already in the oven and since it is a whopping 24 pounds that is a good thing.  It will need to roast for about 7 hours.  My timeline is good.  It's being cooked here at home when later it will be transported to Sonny and Selma's house where we will put all the rest of the meal together.  We will need to figure out the timeless equation of having fewer top stove burners than sides that need to be cooked.  With at least eight sides and only four burners it can be difficult to decide how to get everything timed and hot just right.  That's two to one...sounds like we need another stove.
But we will work that out.  Pour another glass of wine, salute all around, and give someone a great big hug and kiss.  Be thankful!
TT

It's Wednesday!

It's Friday!  No, it isn't, but it might as well be Friday because it's the end of my work week.  It's actually Wednesday before the Thanksgiving Holiday and I (for once) have opted out of working the following Friday.  That means I have another short work week and a long weekend.  I will only work a half day today.  Well, it's actually a full 6 hours because we are released early (two hours early) and since I arrive so early (6:30am most days lately) I will only need to stay until 12:30 to get those hours worked.

Not too shabby.  And I've already made my trip to the store to get all my fixins' for the feast tomorrow.  I'm ready.  I'm set.  Let's go.
TT

Download stats

I'm not sure you can view this status sheet above very well.  It is the inside, backdoor, dashboard, behind the scenes, information that I can access from the finestories.com website where I have published a few of the shortest works I have written.  These pieces are not even necessarily the best pieces I've written but I got carried away and put a couple out there...well, because I got carried away.
The thing that caught my eye was that I have 500 downloads total for all pieces.  That would be since 7/25/12 when I posted the first chapter of Rules of Writing.  (Then the carried away part kicked in and I posted Room for Cream? and Never Long Enough which I should have realized Never was the key word.  It wasn't a good idea to post that...although it got a few more downloads even if it was a first draft and not re-worked properly and I see where I can fix...typical.  There I go.  Again.  Edit, edit.  I can always make it better...
Then during the middle of last week there was conversation at work about how people were amazed that on the night of Halloween certain stores were making room to put up Christmas trees.  On Halloween night!  It reminded me of the poem I wrote about that...back in 2007!  And I got carried away again and posted it even though I knew I shouldn't.
You see, this writing site seems to be visited mostly by men.  This could be just a prejudice but I looked around at all the authors and well, there aren't many female names out there.  The stories that are downloaded the most and scored the highest are mainly military or fantasy or sci-fi themes.  Not all, but a good majority.  So beware the story that goes up that is 1)short, 2)written by female, 3)not a preferred theme.  So I didn't expect much activity on my stories (flash, shorts...whatever you call them).
And I wasn't expecting much of anything when I posted a Poem!  With a humorous Christmas theme!  But I've gotten 32 downloads since last Thursday...which is 5 days.  And I got feedback from one of those male readers that gave me a big thumbs up on it.  (Who actually takes the time to comment? - But he did)!
I know that number isn't anything for this site where pieces are downloaded by the 1000's and votes come in by the 100's.  But considering another female author has been posting her poems and not had the downloads...but that is beside the point.  It was only about me putting something out there again and not thinking too hard about it.  Besides, that will give me about 30 days before my poem leaves the New Stories category since I don't want to get carried away again and post something else too soon.
One other stat that caught my eye was that 5 days ago there were 430 on my homepage access count and now there is 456.  So somehow that number went up.  And I don't even remember what's on my homepage.  But I don't really want to check since that will add another number to my count.  And what does it matter anyway?  Not sure...will have to think on that one...but later.  It's a nice to know.  And any way you look at it...500 is such a good round number.

Day is over?

I am still trying to adjust to this hour change.  I know, I know, it was two weeks ago that we moved our clocks an hour but I'm still messed up.  It doesn't seem to matter to me if we lose an hour or we gain an hour I am still off kilter when it happens.  Now, yeah, I know you're thinking when am I NOT off kilter but this is a specific off kilter time for me.  It's almost predictable that I will get messed up when it happens.  And I have, yet again.  I thought I was doing okay but I realized every afternoon about 5:30pm things are...well, messed up.  It's already getting dark, I'm thinking it's really late and the day is over.  It really isn't but I can't seem to convince myself otherwise.  It's like I don't believe it.
I know I'll get used to it soon.  It normally takes about a week but somehow this time I seemed to be okay the first week and now I'm having trouble.  I guess I was in denial that first week.  Or something.  Not sure what but something.  I must have been because it usually doesn't take me two weeks to get over this time change.  But this time it has...and I've got a few things I want to do this afternoon and time is creeping up on 5:30pm when the day is over.  So I better get busy now if I want to get anything done.
Don't mind me.   Just give me a few more days.
TT

Short week

It's Monday morning of what will be a short week.  I get off work early on Wednesday and will take the rest of the week off.  I've already purchased my turkey that will be prepared and I will be making my grocery list to get all the fresh items I"ll need for Thursday.  I've asked Selma if she could take over making the pies this year.  She agreed and that will mean I will only have to bake cornbread on Wednesday instead of an afternoon of baking - cornbread for the stuffing, of course. 
I'm looking forward to the cooking.  It's a big, long, menu of items but always so good and fresh.  We keep traditional for Thanksgiving but I'm getting ideas for Christmas.  That is where we go outside the lines and test our culinary concepts. 
A short week at work and then...fun.
TT 

Poor food

I wouldn't be telling the truth if I were to say food hasn't been on my mind lately.  Let's face it...it's about that time when we roll out all the stops, go overboard, and prepare more food than any one could ever be expected to eat in one sitting.  And so much food that it certainly doesn't fit on one plate.  But that is a few days off and I'm already gearing up for the occasion.
I've taken some pretty simple meal ideas and started making them for my warm-up.  They are basic 'poor food' ideas.  At least, that is what we call them around here.  What qualifies as poor food?
Well, they are meals that are filling, in-expensive, and food that is actually good for you and...yeah, wait...they taste the best because they are home-prepared and made from scratch.  Let's start with a simple Mexican version first...

Hot Sauce:  Fresh!  jalapenos, tomatillos, diced onions simmered in water.

Hot Sauce!  Simmered down and crushed together.

Pinto Beans:  Slow cooked from dry which is the only way to eat beans.  Cooked up with onion and bacon.

Spanish Rice:  You have to fry the rice first till it takes on a brown.  Add onion, bell pepper, tomato and spices - salt, pepper, garlic, comino.

Then add some tomato sauce (a bit) and broth or...poor right?...water and then simmer.

Spanish Rice!  Fluff it up...with those fresh beans and hot sauce.  Hungry yet?

Pork steak:  Take those dried chili's and reconstitute them and blend them up.  It will make that red paste that you see beside the blue spoon.  Brown that cheap, cheap, cut of pork and the flavor is beyond.  I cut the meat off the bones first but cooked them all together to get the best flavor then removed the bones...beyond!

   So...Then I had made up another poor food menu but this one is more Italian style.  I can't believe anyone would use canned beans (not me, no, can't bare canned) so I didn't for this recipe and cooked up my own white beans - fresh from dry.

White beans:  Simmered with onion, celery, bacon until soft and creamy to be used in the main dish.



Zucchini:  Sliced, lightly dragged in seasoned flour and fried.  We ended up eating these as appetizers.  Fun way to eat your greens. 

Sausage and beans:  Main event.  I used browned turkey sausage, sweated fresh diced tomatos with fresh garlic in olive oil and added the fresh white beans.  How can something so simple taste so good?!

Sugar cookies.  Poor doesn't mean you don't get the entire package including dessert.  Plain and simple, flaky and not too sweet.  The perfect ending for perfect meals. 

Now that I'm all warmed up, I'm ready for the main event coming up this Thursday. 
TT

Earlier than usual

Today is the first day of my three-day weekend Stay-cation!  So why am I up even earlier than other days?  It's all of 4:33am and I already made coffee and checked e-mail.  My face is washed, my teeth brushed and hair combed.  Not that I'm going anywhere.  Certaintly not at this hour of the morning. 
But I was awake.  And maybe I figured since I don't have to be anywhere today (or tomorrow or the next) that I could roam the house at any hour I please.  So I did.  And I am.  Well, not exactly roaming, although I will make several trips from here upstairs to down to the kitchen to refill my coffee mug.  That goes without saying, even if I just said it.  But just to clarify, you see.  I wouldn't want you to think I bump around in the dark aimlessly.  Don't think that.  Stop.
So I am looking forward to my free day...my free Friday.  Seems I've got a long day ahead of me with the extra time I've given myself.  I guess I've already gotten started.
Smile.
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Impossible tasks

I got caught up in looking at old stuff I wrote.  No.  I mean really old stuff from long, long, ago in a time far, far away.  You know how old that is!  I keep saying I need to get it organized.  Some of it is only on old creased, yellowed pieces of paper, printed off on an old extinct dot matrix printer (Is that right?).  One of those printers that actually had the perforated circles along both edges that you could tear off and it would look like a regular piece of paper.  Anyway, I told you it was really old stuff.
So another project, I guess.  Organize and flash drive some of this old stuff.  Sure.  Like I keep saying I'll copy pieces (or all) of this blog.  But that might be an almost impossible task at this point with over 1180 posts already.  Dang.  And I remember how excited I was when I was coming up to writing 100 posts and everyone shot me down and said it didn't count until I hit 500.  Well, I guess I've hit that mark and didn't think to stop.  How do I stop?  I'm not sure I know how.
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Company benefits

I've been taking advantage of the offerings at work.  We have ITG university which offers some on-line classes from job development and communication skills to Books 24x7.  The company also offers a wellness website. 
I have already passed the foundation curriculum that everyone in our department has to take before the end of year 2013 through ITG U.  It's an assortment of classes that total 40 hours and yes, I've already taken and passed them all.  I've also taken advantage of a few of the books they offer from Books24x7.  Mostly, I've read some hmmm...what do you call them....self-help? motivational?  They are very short books filled with information I already knew, how's that.  And did I say they were short?  Very.
I was browsing their choices of books again today and found one I thought might be interesting.  It was 100 Ways to Motivate Yourself: Change Your Life Forever by Steve Chandler.  At first I thought it wouldn't be too bad to have 100 ways to motivate myself.  I can always use some motivation.  Sometimes I could use lots of motivation so 100 sounds good.  But then the idea of changing my life forever didn't sound too good.  I'm not sure I really want to change my life forever.  That's a long time, 'ya know?  What if I don't like the way I've changed it?  Will I have to get another book that has 100 ways to change my life back to what it was before?  Or 100 ways to change my life somewhere inbetween where it was and where it is?  That could get complicated and I'm not looking for a book to uncomplicate things after I've managed to read a book that complicated everything.  I also didn't think Mr Chandler's book 100 Ways to Motivate Yourself: Change Your Life Forever would really work out for me.  I noticed it was a Third Edition.  That had me thinking.  What about the 1st and 2nd Editions?  Did they not change lives?  Did they miss the mark?  What happened to everyone that read those editions and only partially changed their lives or changed them for only a temporary amount of time?  That's not exactly forever.  I think I'll pass on that book.  Especially after I've already read Attitude is Everything by Keith Harrell and The Body Language Pocketbook by Max A. Eggert.  Did I say they were short?  And filled with information I already knew?  So I went on to the Wellness website and considered listening to their 15 minute video seminar.  This month the offering is, Time Out: Not Just for Kids.
You will have to excuse me while I go sit in the corner.  But I ain't wearing the pointy hat.  Don't we have a dress code at work?
TT

TIme, time

Time, time, time, time...by the time I looked at the time I didn't have any time.  What happened to the time?  Where'd it go, what did I do with it, I had plenty and then none!  It's time to stop here and go again when the time starts again for something else.  And then I will be watching the time, or it will pass quickly or too slowly (even worse) and I will have to bide my time and then it will be gone again.  Which will mean it will be time to stop there and start again for another something.  Start, stop, plenty, none...let's get some balance here, waddaya say? huh?
Wish it was about time I could get this pinch out of my shoulder.
TT

Early morning insanity

I was up early (again).  I believe I'm still on daylight time or whatever you call the hour difference we were on before a week ago?  or was it longer?  I don't remember but I'm still up at a very early time for whatever the time really is.
I've been searching to see what my time was for the 3 miles I did yesterday morning.  My iPod didn't capture my entire run so I don't have an idea of how it turned out.  I was finally able to find my time but I can't seem to find my ranking anywhere.  Everywhere I see, it promises full results but that hasn't been the case.  So I was finally able to see my results but don't know where I fell with everyone else.  But I guess when you have a race with 25,000 participants the 3 miler section of that race isn't very high on priority lists.  That's fine.  I did well enough and the whole experience is so worth the time to do it.  I know I need to sign up for more races even if they are short distances for now.  I think it can really help with the motivation.  I'm not ready to stop this insanity that some people might believe it to be even if my times are low on the ranking lists.  Well, if you can ever find a ranking list.  But I will stop searching for that for now.  That might be where the insanity creeps in.  Or is it because I still get up too early?
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Race today

Early on a Sunday, even for me?  Yes.  No.  But I am purposely up and waiting on a text that the group is on the way to pick me up.  We are heading downtown this morning to make a 7:30 starting line.  I am cursing myself, cursing, that I didn't train for a longer run  The weather is perfect!  It's all of 68-70 degrees out.  I could go for days in these temperatures even if the race organizers are sending email tips about running in the warmer climates.  Geez.  If only I had known it would have been as nice as it is today and not the 47 degrees it was two years ago when I did the half marathon.
But the short mini-marathon they are calling this excuse for us to head down with the big dogs is only three miles.  But I'm up and ready.  A race is a race and going together is better.
Breakfast afterward while we are downtown and then back to cheer the big dogs cross the real marathon finish line.  I'm ready...Oh!  There's my text...gotta run.
Literally.
TT

Stopped cold

I have been working through the first few chapters of the first draft of my fiction doing some very necessary revisions.  I had hoped when I completed the entire first draft on 8/24/12 that I would be able to speed through the first revision of that draft and have it completed by 10/27/12.  My plan was to touch through each chapter, look for places I could divide chapters that were too long into shorter ones and deepen the story watching for dialogue and characterizations.  It was supposed to be a quick once over.  I knew I would be doing a second and third, fourth revision after that but the idea was to keep moving on it at a quick pace.  It was a good plan at the time until I re-read my entire draft.

Well, my October deadline came and went and I had started but then stopped writing the revisions.  I had to think really hard about whether there was really a story worth continuing to work on or if I should find another way to spend my time.  It didn't help that during the time I was trying to get myself to keep revising that I was told I had become obsessive and how I went on and on about writing and it was the only thing I talked about besides running, or cookies or...
It wasn't meant the way it was said but it stopped me cold.  I stopped it all.  I wouldn't say a word about any of it anymore to anyone and all things surrounding those activities were stopped.  I was a boring, chatterbox of incessant personal obsessions that no one wanted to hear anymore.  The worst part about it was it involved all the things I thought I wanted to do.  Yes, apologies were made and accepted, several times, and the air was cleared but it still left me with a lingering consciousness of not bringing these things up.  Nobody really wanted to talk about it or hear it.  I guess the only reason I figured I could get away with it here is because someone actually has to come here to visit and actually read it or not.  They are not stuck in some boring, obsessive, conversation.  They can always flip off to another site.

But there is a happy ending.  I have gone back and started running and baking and writing again.  I've gone at it at a slower pace and I don't bring up the subjects to anyone.  I feel like the chapters I've revised so far are so much stronger and better than the original first draft.  It takes a wad of your insides to know the first part of what you have done is trash but that you can actually work on it to make it better.  Some encouragement to keep going came from a few moments during that down time that I was getting rid of documents from my hard drive.  I found a copy of a piece I wrote called 600 Words and after re-reading it I realized there were things I wrote very well.  It wasn't about talking it over with anyone but seeing it all on my own.  So I took another hard look and started working again. 

A bit of time has past since that happened and I have a better perspective of it all.  I'm excited again about the chapters I've already revised and am looking forward to hitting the next chapters to fix.  Things happen for a reason and I needed the wake up call to stop and think about how important certain things really are to me.  It turns out they are all very important and worth every bit of time and energy I want to put into them.  And it turns out that is okay and good.

I have another chapter to work on and a 3 mile race on Sunday.  I haven't said a word about either to anyone...except you...unless you've already flipped off to another site.  And that's okay, too.  I have my own reasons for doing these things and will stand up for them if I have to.
But thanks for listening.
TT

Time off

I've been doing my math calculations on my vacation banks...

I would like to take both Fridays: 11/16 and 11/23 (after Thanksgiving)
off as vacation days

Then in December: 12/20 thru end of year including Monday, 12/31.

I know you don't want to know where that will leave my banks but it will
keep it below 322 hours for a short time.

Let me know if these times will work. Most Sr Mgrs are out of the office
during the holiday times.
Thank you!

The above is a copy of the exact e-mail I sent to the Director and Senior Managers about my vacation time.  Yes.  Really.
None of them had the least problem with my request.  No problems at all, none in the least.  And none of them asked how many hours would be left in my bank and how short a time I was talking about.  So there was no need to tell them that I would need to take more time in February.  That would be just to keep my bank below the maximum f 322 hours.  Right.  Yes.  Really.
So that's all settled.
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Leave it

I can't believe it's already Thursday.  It's going quickly, this week.  I was dragging a bit yesterday after work and skipped a run.  I'll make it up before Saturday and it was probably a good rest day.  I managed another solid hour of writing my revisions.  That is coming along. 
All in all, things are going quite well.  I'll leave it on that positive note since, really, that's where everything is.
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How it goes

I need another book to read.   I polished off two...no it was three...and now that I've finished the last one at lunch today I need to get another one, like, right now.  I've been searching the recommendations on goodreads.com since I only started entering the books I've read there so it could do that.  You would think after entering over 330 books I would be able to pick one that they suggest.
I didn't.  I checked and checked and looked and looked and I only ended up with a cramp in my shoulder from hunching over to read my screen and I'm not any closer to choosing another book.  And I need to be in the mood for a certain book.  I can't just pick up...   Wait, that's not true.  I can pick up any book and read it.  I really can.  If I'm not in the mood for that particular book the next one will be the opposite type of book but it won't stop me from reading the book I wasn't really in the mood to read.  I'll finish it anyway.  That's just the way it goes.  Luckily, I usually have an idea of what type of book I'm in the mood for.  Not always.  But most of the time.  At least I think I do.
Maybe not, but I'll figure it out.  Soon.  Like, probably in the next few minutes.  'Cause I have to have another book to read.  That's just how it goes.
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Why didn't I think of this before?

Another run, another hour of writing, I've cleaned the kitchen and after that I get to read.  Or maybe another hour of writing and then reading.  The thing is...I'm doing it and enjoying it.  I'm not hesitating or thinking about doing it but I'm just doing it and thinking afterward how great it is that I did it.  What a better way!
With all the thinking I do, you might have thought I would have thought about doing it this way before.
TT

Great reminder

I took five minutes yesterday morning and laid out my plans for this week.  Only five minutes.  That is all I would allow myself.  If not, it would have become some complicated, convoluted, impossible lists of chores instead of the simple 'let's see if I can get these thing done' type of list.
It has worked so far, I mean after one day.  But I've already got a head start on today as well, so that is almost two days.  OK.  Maybe one and barely a bit, but still.
I'm not only trying but starting to do these things again and that was the entire purpose of the five minute organization.  Just for those very important priorities.  The ones that should never, ever, fall off my list no matter how crazy things might become.  I remind myself of all the other things I need to do.  I should have a way to say...hey, what about the things I want to do because I want to do them?  So I did and will.  It only took five minutes.
TT 

5 minutes

It's Monday morning and I want to take a moment to group and re-group to start off the week.  I don't want to take a lot of time organizing the things I want to do but to prioritize my most important things.  These past few weeks have gotten away from me or I've allowed them to escape.  Although I have been able to get some pretty good things done there is always more.
Isn't that so like me?  It isn't that I'm not happy with the things I'm getting done but I'd like to add a few more balls up in the air even if I never learned to juggle that well.  But I try.  And there are those certain times when that works.  And everything that I have on my prioritized list is getting done.  I know I can do it.  Even if some things need to move up or down on the list.   It's just important that they don't fall completely off.  And I know a few have.
So.  To get things back into some order, I will give myself a brief 5 minutes to think about my highest priorities.  I will decide a broad value of how much I will accomplish on them this week only.  And then I will proceed without any more thought of what, where, how, when and why.  Keeping it simple and getting it done.  Because I keep trying to juggle.  It takes practice.  But if they are the things I'd rather be doing...why shouldn't I?
TT

Still dark out

I woke up and was surprised that it is darker than I thought it would be.  It's still dark outside and I was expecting more light to be streaming in through the windows.  I would have welcomed the extra light as I was waking and getting up.  But it didn't happen. 
Hmmm.  Maybe it's because it's been so cloudy.  Well, whatever the reason it's still pretty dark out.  I'll wait for more light and in the meantime I've got a few things I can do.  OK.  More than a few but I'll start with a few and go from there.
TT  

More words

I should have gotten out of the house this afternoon.  I went out very early and that seemed to be it for the day.  I managed to get myself up to my laptop and go through my revisions I had previously made to my original draft of my fiction.  I knew I had to start at the beginning again to clean up the first chapter since I didn't believe it would happen the way I originally wrote it.
It turned out once I put my mind to the job I needed to do, it didn't take that long.  But then I didn't stop.  I've been at it for at least 3 1/2 hours straight and managed to revise my original chapter 1-3 which are now 1-5.  I have the document ready to start original chapter 4 which is now chapter 6.  The funny part of doing this revision (well not funny) but something I have learned along the way is I was following my word counts too stringently before.  Word counts aren't something I am even considering as I go about re-writing chapters and splitting them so they might flow better.  It turns out (I guess this is what I thought was funny) is that I have 3100 more words with the new chapters than the ones I originally wrote even with the things I cut out of the revised chapters.
Now it's a little late, although it's only 5:03pm instead of really 6:03pm.  I'm a little stiff and need to get up.  So later.  And what a great day!
TT

A day early

I wonder if I should go ahead and move all my clocks back an hour.  I know it doesn't really start until late tonight and go into effect until tomorrow but I'm thinking I already want to take advantage of the extra time.  That would mean it's only 5:10am instead of 6:10am.  It means I got a really good head start into Saturday.
The odd part is I don't really have a lot of clocks I need to re-set.  I own so many electronic devices that automatically synchronize themselves to the proper time.  That would mean I don't really and can't actually move the clocks I use the most back yet.  And I don't wear a wrist watch.  I gave that up when the last one I owned gave out on me and I realized I had more clocks around me all time than I could possibly need.  My laptop has a clock.  My phone has a clock.  My nook has a clock.  My iPod has a clock.  My car has a clock.  It seemed redundant that I needed to also strap one to my wrist.  So I haven't.
But I'm good at pretending and so I'll be in my 'one hour earlier' day all day today and beat the crowds.  I'll do as I did a few minutes ago...it's 5:10 not 6:10....it's 10:30 not 11:30...wow!  I've got more time than I thought!  Not a bad way to go through the day!  Even if I am a day early.
TT 

End of week

Friday!  Friday!!  Finally.
I'm happy about that, can you tell?  Weather is spot-on, I made it through the long confusing week, and I have so much more to look forward to with time to spend on my own.  So many ideas. 
We have a time change coming up and I even get an extra hour.  Bonus.
I will probably go in to work at 6:30 today just to get out by 3:00.  Another bonus!  It will almost feel like working only part of the day.  I can use that extra time this afternoon after work, too. 
I'm rubbing my hands together in anxious anticipation.  Looking forward to it!
TT

11/01/12  - New start of month.  Fresh beginning.  Didn't dissappoint. 
This could be good.  Keep it going. 
TT

Sorting blank pages

As you can see...

I have a blank page this morning.  I have a million different ideas swirling in my head.  There is a little problem with sorting them out at the moment.  I have this feeling of being rushed although I have a little time.  It's a hurry up but wait and then I have more time than I think but I don't think I have enough time.

I'm more afraid of getting too engrossed with what I am doing here that I will run out of time and be late to leave for what I need to do later.

So, as you can see...it's a bit of a predicament.  But just a bit.  It'll sort itself out.

TT