Fore and Aft
This year has seemed a little back-to-front. Suddenly we had some summer--just when the calendar started hinting at autumn, and I'd resigned myself to doing the indoor things that needed doing. Like that writing thing.
Still, we're happy to have had the chance to finish some important-but-unglamorous projects that required manual labor.
Adjusting to the weather always always always tests my (metaphoric) flexibility. If I have a morning blocked out to get through the revisions on a story, and the day dawns rain-free and temperate, going outdoors requires actual physical wrenching. I force myself upstairs to put on the mud-covered jeans and denim work shirt; I force myself outdoors: "Just bring back one load of stuff from the little place, and then you can quit," I tell myself. (Then I test my physical flexibility, which is also not naturally great.)
Sometimes that one load really is all I do. Sometimes I do more. But I do something. And 99 times out of 100, I enjoy the action itself and the knowledge, later, that I am closer to finishing that project.
Now it really is time to turn toward those indoor projects (though there are still a couple of outdoor projects on my list, fingers crossed, rain rain stay away). This morning, the temperature was in the low single digits C/thirties F (we've already had a couple of days of frost here and there), and we're looking back at a productive season, whatever you want to call it, and (I hope) ahead to another one. In whatever order the seasons want to come.
Meanwhile, a few updates.
All the work we did to update the guest room was enjoyed only a couple of nights when my sister was here. The guests who originally inspired us to get going on the project at the last minute had to reschedule their vacation when most of Minnesota had to deal with flooding in June. On the up side, the guest room's done, and clean! And I learned all that metaphor stuff about writing! Which I'm still learning and practicing daily!
I wrote about the freedom that comes when I incorporate art and play into my days. Sarah Selecky calls it "crosstraining" in this great post, here.
And speaking of play, I recently saw the local theatre's production of Ain't Misbehavin' (which has been held over for another week!). My sister had seen a production in the 1980s and shared the music with me, and I've always wanted to see it live. It was really fun! And if you're familiar with the show, and wondered (as my sister and I did) just who was this Mr. Wallace who planned the world in which the nylons will bloom again, go here. I considered Mr. Wallace recently, when I put on tights for the first time in awhile.
And now, because it's not actively precipitating at the moment, I may go see what outdoor tidying up I can get done. Happy writing!
Still, we're happy to have had the chance to finish some important-but-unglamorous projects that required manual labor.
Adjusting to the weather always always always tests my (metaphoric) flexibility. If I have a morning blocked out to get through the revisions on a story, and the day dawns rain-free and temperate, going outdoors requires actual physical wrenching. I force myself upstairs to put on the mud-covered jeans and denim work shirt; I force myself outdoors: "Just bring back one load of stuff from the little place, and then you can quit," I tell myself. (Then I test my physical flexibility, which is also not naturally great.)
Sometimes that one load really is all I do. Sometimes I do more. But I do something. And 99 times out of 100, I enjoy the action itself and the knowledge, later, that I am closer to finishing that project.
Now it really is time to turn toward those indoor projects (though there are still a couple of outdoor projects on my list, fingers crossed, rain rain stay away). This morning, the temperature was in the low single digits C/thirties F (we've already had a couple of days of frost here and there), and we're looking back at a productive season, whatever you want to call it, and (I hope) ahead to another one. In whatever order the seasons want to come.
Meanwhile, a few updates.
All the work we did to update the guest room was enjoyed only a couple of nights when my sister was here. The guests who originally inspired us to get going on the project at the last minute had to reschedule their vacation when most of Minnesota had to deal with flooding in June. On the up side, the guest room's done, and clean! And I learned all that metaphor stuff about writing! Which I'm still learning and practicing daily!
I wrote about the freedom that comes when I incorporate art and play into my days. Sarah Selecky calls it "crosstraining" in this great post, here.
And speaking of play, I recently saw the local theatre's production of Ain't Misbehavin' (which has been held over for another week!). My sister had seen a production in the 1980s and shared the music with me, and I've always wanted to see it live. It was really fun! And if you're familiar with the show, and wondered (as my sister and I did) just who was this Mr. Wallace who planned the world in which the nylons will bloom again, go here. I considered Mr. Wallace recently, when I put on tights for the first time in awhile.
And now, because it's not actively precipitating at the moment, I may go see what outdoor tidying up I can get done. Happy writing!