Back among the living...

Whew! I'm back. Finally. After spending the better part of the past 10 days either sick with that bad flu that's going around, or trying to recover from it, I've not been online much. I'm just now poking around and trying to catch up. I was off work a few days during this time, but attempting to read blogs or websites, or trying to actually do some writing myself was literally impossible. On the rare occasion that I did have the energy to come to the computer, the words quickly blurred on the screen and headaches soon followed. The only energy I could muster was just enough to get me through my work day. By the time I got home, the computer was the last thing I wanted to see. Yikes! This was a tough bout of something, folks!

But I'm back among the living and feeling more like myself today. And it's about time! I feel like so much time was wasted when I could have been writing, or reading about writing, or writing about writing in this here blog. :) Sheesh. But I did come up with several interesting ideas floating around in my head (and written down on paper!) for new stories, poems, and writing projects. Most of them may not come to fruition, but at least I don't feel that it was a completely unproductive, doing-nothing-but-feeling-sorry-for-myself week. I managed to have a couple of bright ideas and that's better than nothing.

I hope all of you can avoid that nasty virus, and that the remainder of the winter season finds you happy, productive, and germ free! Hang in there, spring is just around the corner.

Not enough time in the day....

Ok, I'm ready to admit it. Providing my writing the time it needs and deserves is going to be challenging. With a full-time job (and then some), taking a Formal Logic and Reasoning course (did I mention I haven't had any math or reasoning since high school?), keeping up the house (the laundry does not do itself!), and spending time with my family (yes, they also want a piece of me every once in a while), it's difficult to put together the blocks of quality time I need to write, to research, and to read. I'm not whining. I'm simply stating what has now become clear to me and in so doing, hoping it will not dampen my enthusiasm for and excitement about writing but instead will urge me to have patience and persistence instead.

Now that I have that off my chest, though, I would like to tell you what I have accomplished during the past couple of weeks. Writing may not be happening at the speed of light around here, but it is happening. I've submitted a poem to a university literary journal and will be submitting a short story to them this week as well. I've polished a short story written for my fall creative writing class to submit to a short story contest sponsored by our local big-city newspaper. I've revised two flash fiction pieces and will be researching some online literary journals for submission of those, and I've written another poem.

So, I am making headway albeit slowly. More importantly, I'm having fun and learning an awful lot about writing and writers. In the meantime, my job is secure, I received an "A" on my first exam in the logic course, my laundry is caught up, and my hubby still wants a piece of me. :) I'd say....so far, so good.

From time to time...

Every once in a while we all need to just get away. To spend a couple of days doing only the things you truly want to do or that make you feel good, and to spend a bit of that time doing absolutely nothing at all. My hubby and I got away to do (and not do) just that this weekend. The occasion was our 4th anniversary, but after the typical stress of the holidays, getting back into the hectic swing of another semester at work and in my classes, and a sudden onslaught of frigid weather, it was the perfect time for a little breather.

We didn't go far. We didn't need to. Just being away with no agenda, no time constraints, and nobody expecting any work to be done, was far enough. We laughed, we lounged, we talked, we snuggled, we ate, we read, we slept, we shopped. Then we woke up and did it all over again. It was a wonderous weekend and it was just what I needed.

Tomorrow, I'll return to work and my class refreshed and tranquil. And I'm turning my attention again to my writing. I have a piece I'm thinking about writing to submit to a small literary publication put together annually by the university's women's center. I have a poem ready to submit, but would like to submit an opinion essay as well. I worked out a mental outline for the piece this weekend, made some notes in my journal, and am now anxious to get started on it.

So, I hope this entry motivates you to take that day or two to get away, to relax and rejuvenate yourself. Like me, you probably need it and you, too, deserve it.