Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Random Thoughts - Full Circle


Mark and I are way behind on our word count
 and we're not particularly thrilled with either story we're writing.

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My computer is so slow, it's positively maddening.

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Slept like crap yesterday - all of us.
Let it be known that once you start having kids,
you stop getting good regular sleep.
People talk about sleepless nights with babies.
Oh it's not just babies.
It's ALWAYS.

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Max couldn't sleep because the wind was SO loud
(it really is crazy loud in his room when it's windy).
Kate had a bad dream.
Once she woke me up, I couldn't sleep for an hour
(and I had just fallen asleep - 
you know how you shake all over when you get woken up
 right after you've fallen asleep?).
Then my mind raced on and off all night.
I was daydreaming about ways to infuse chamomile into 
various foods and drinks.
And Mark got calls every hour all night long.
And - get this:
we had gone to bed early to get a good night's rest.
That'll teach us.

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Made myself a scrambled egg this morning.
It was not good.
Eggs only taste good when someone else makes them.

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We have kids staying over at our house
5 of the next 7 days.

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5 of the next 7 days.

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I better get cracking on that chamomile thing.

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Why do I always want to blog more when I'm supposed to be writing a novel?

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Also, I started Fangirl, because I have a huge love of Rainbow Rowell
and no self discipline.

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Our kids talk to us A LOT.
I'm not complaining - I love it.
I'm just saying you really notice it when you're trying to write
50,000 words in 30 days.

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Today we have so many things going on
(sometimes multiple things at the same time)
and I'm looking ahead and seeing
how very behind I am on, well, everything.

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I also keep finding "To Do" lists.
Sometimes it's fun to find them and see things you can cross off.
But it's also discouraging to find them
and see how many things you have neglected to do.

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And this isn't because of NaNoWriMo.
That's an added bonus.
That's supposed to be the fun in all this stuff to do.

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Except that I'm not loving our stories.
They have potential and good parts,
but I haven't hit a stride with either of them yet.

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I'm hoping that writing this blog post
is like a warm-up writing exercise that really gets me going today,
because we are ridiculously behind on our word counts.

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8 comments:

The Magic Violinist said...

Hey, I was like 5,000 words behind one day and I caught up. ;P And if I get writer's block, I'm completely stuck! You and Daddy can help each other out by switching stories. You can still catch up!

(I just noticed that you have my blog button. Apparently not every writer has a great attention to detail.)

Emily said...

I hate sleeping poorly. Sorry about that.

Scrambled eggs make me gag unless I have something to it them with--toast or something.

Anonymous said...

I quit eating fried, scrambled or boiled eggs a while back. They're just too boring. I just add extra bacon to fill in any empty space in my breakfast burritos.

I only remember to do "To Do" lists when I realize I've forgotten that thing I needed to do at least three times.

Anonymous said...

I'm so with you on the sleep thing. My mom has always said that once you have kids, you never sleep well again. Even when the kids are grown and living on their own. Ugh.

To Do lists: I'm a huge list maker. I started in college because it gave me a huge sense of accomplishment to be able to cross things off. I've never stopped. There are upsides to it, though. I have often lost important things but been saved because I had written things down on little scraps of paper all over the house. Once my flash drive died in April. I had kept all of my students' grades in a file on that drive. For the whole semester! Luckily, I was able to find almost all of them on various pieces of paper throughout my house. This is also why I do not like doing a major clean-up of my house. I always regret throwing things away!

Word counts...don't worry about 'em. It's supposed to be a fun endeavor, and isn't the idea to get motivated and thinking?!

Kids sleeping over: well, your kids will be busy and occupied with friends, so you and Mark will get some uninterrupted sleep!

LMW said...

I agree with Seventytwofishes on all accounts, especially the word count. Don't beat yourself over the word count. I'm sure it's not the point of the month of writing, but just remember quality over quantity is best.

I like eggs over easy with toast. Like Emily, if I eat scrambled eggs, it has to be with toast too.

Dave said...

I find that unfinished to-do items were probably not that important to begin with, so don't sweat it.

Dr. Mark said...

And now another book you've been wanting to read arrived! Hurray for self discipline!

Boquinha said...

Yeah, attention to detail - that's Max's thing. And mine. Not so much yours and Daddy's. :P

Emily, Mark and Max don't like eggs. Kate and I love them. They're so easy and yummy! I agree that they're better with toast. They don't make me gag, though. Is it a texture thing?

Jimmy, you, too? Where is the love for eggs? You all need to come visit and we'll make you eggs using local, farm-fresh ones and re-convert you.

72fishes, I've heard that. Wow, I always think of you as a really good purger, not as someone who has difficulty throwing things away!

As for the sleep - as long as they settle down and go to sleep. They have amazing staying-up stamina and some of them get up too early for as late as they get to bed sometimes! Fingers crossed!

LMW, mmmmm, dippy eggs! I'm starting to have cravings with all this talk of eggs. :P

Thanks to all for the words of encouragement about word counts and to do lists. It's been good to hear. I appreciate it. Feeling better about it today - Mark and I have some tricks up our sleeves.

And yes, a new book! HURRAH!