Weekend or Weak-end?

Hello Friday, my good friend.  You have come to test me once again. 

You offer me the promise of two days where I can write.  I know that I should begin tonight.

However, chores and off-put work also need to be done.  And, I can easily be distracted with the promise of a little fun.

Will I find the work ethic to keep my end in a chair? Or for another weekend, will my word count be bare?

(I apologize to all of the poets in the world for this entry). 

Trials and Tribulations

It's that time again.  I have trial.  Why is it that every time I get seriously deep into my writing, a trial pops up demanding that I keep unconscionable hours at the office?  Are the writing muses testing my patience by throwing these obsticles in my way?  Are the legal gods telling me to hang up my pen and paper because my only talent is being a royal pain in the patoot?

I need at least forty-eight hours in a day to get done everything on my "to do" list.  Laundry calls (or I could just go buy new underwear), floors need to be mopped (then again, there are throw rugs), calls beckon to be returned (if they really want to speak with me, they will call back, right?), and I have the glaring word count to be met each day.  Oh, and I think I need to eat a meal or two (worry not - if you have seen me, you know I can find my way to food).

I know the adage that if you want something done, give it to a busy person.  Well, I am the busy person.  Please, don't give me anymore.  My plate is full.  Seriously.  It looks like I hit a workload buffet. I am good.  I don't need another serving.  Really.  

So, as the clock ticks closer to midnight, I contemplate the need to write while working.  I love to write.  It is fun. The escape is  far more enjoyable, for me, than going out to a movie where I am limited to someone else's imagination. But work keeps the lights on and food on the table. Why do I write?  Is it because of the trials and tribulations at work, or despite of them?  You tell me.

So It Shall Be Written, So It Shall Be Done

I love making lists. When I sit down, pen in hand (because a list can only be properly made with a pen in one hand and notepad in the other), the rush and excitement of the list take me away. Actually following the lists is a horse of a different color. Once the list is made, it loses its luster. Rather than being the certification of my ambition and responsibility, it taunts me and acts as an albatross hanging on my refrigerator.

For this reason, I have vowed that any lists from this point will consist of short term, attainable goals. The biggies won't make it into writing, at least not yet. I need the rush that comes with marking things off the list. Am I settling for mediocrity to have the highest goals on my list be "write 100 words each day" and "do two loads of laundry a week?" If so, at least the list won't wind up in a crumpled ball sometime around March.

So, in the spirit of setting attainable goals, this is my "to do" list for 2010:

1. Write 100 words a day for 100 days

2. Do 2 loads of laundry a week

3. Keep a list of everything I eat

4. Read at least one book a month

5. Post on this blog at least once a month.

It is now written. Will it be done?