In Sixth grade our class awarded one of our fellow students with the title of "Nicest Kid" or something like that. It was not a popularity contest, and even still I did not win. I wanted to win. I even thought I was going to win, but another student did. I can remember the student's face, but not his name. He deserved to win. He was a nice guy.
I did not learn my lesson. My wife described me this way, "If you have the choice between being nice and being funny, you choose funny." She wasn't wrong. In fact, I found myself so amused and well described by the statement that I used it to describe myself for quite a while, though I always attributed it back to my wife.
What can I say? I like to be funny. Humor is an essential part of my life.
However, increasingly I think about what type of man I want to be. What kind of example do I want to be for my children? And the answer that I keep coming back to is that I want to be nice. I want people to describe me as "the nicest person I know". Not because I want the praise, but I wish I could be that good to other people. I wish I could be so selfless. I'm a selfish person.
One of the nicest people I know is my father. He is not perfect. He isn't perfectly nice either. However, when I think of him I think about how he treats strangers. I rarely see him fail to hold doors for other people, to let other people go ahead of him, to pick up people's dropped items, or to help them with a joke and a compliment. He is always striking up friendly conversations with the people around him. And it's not just when it is convenient. I have seen him go out of his way to help other people. At times, it seems like my father is actively anticipating what the people around him or going to need. It's amazing.
And while he does that, where am I? I'm in my head. Thinking away and not helping.
I don't have any deep thoughts for the blog this week. There are no insights that I have gained. I think I mostly wanted to mention something that I admire in my dad. It's one of the ways I wish I could be more like him. So, thank you dad for being such a great example to me.
Sunday, January 24, 2016
Sunday, January 17, 2016
My New Obsession...
For years I've loved to cook. I can trace back my joy of cooking to early in my life, though it wasn't until after I got married that I really started to learn how to cook. That's a story for another day. When I've talked about my love of cooking there has always been an accompanying clarification. "I like cooking...except dough. Me and dough don't get along."
2016 is the year that changes. I am going to conquer my problems with dough through sheer exposure.
The desire to change that probably started with Netflix. Yes, Netflix. Don't judge me. You've been there too. In this case, my family and I had started watching food shows together on Netflix and after going through several classic Food Network Show (and some not so classic shows) we sat down and watched "The Great British Bake Off". It was enthralling. My wife and I have discussed how we wish American competitions would emulate their style more. It wasn't hyped, it wasn't false tension, it wasn't forced drama. It was a bunch of people in a tent doing what they loved--baking. And they did some amazing things.
I don't think I'll ever get to the level that the contestants were at, but it was fun watching what they created and I felt the desire growing within me. My wife and I looked up cook books written by the shows host and I ended up asking for "How To Bake" by Paul Hollywood for Christmas. My wife was gracious enough to get it for me and I started reading through it.
From my earlier research, I knew that this book was not converted for an American audience. Measurements are given by weight instead of cups and in grams instead of ounces. Temperatures are in Celsius. Liquids in milliliters.. This was actually an attraction instead of a deterrent. I already own an electronic scale that can do grams and ounces, a probe thermometer that can measure in Celsius (plus google to do conversions for oven temperature), and any good liquid measure already does milliliters anyway. Measuring in this fashion is often more accurate than our American cups so would lend to a better product. Needless to say, I was excited.
As I flipped through the book on Christmas morning a realization came to me. This was the book. The cookbook I had been seeking. Finally, in my hands I held a cookbook that I would master. Every single recipe. There would not be a single recipe I would skip. I would go through them one by one until I had mastered the art of baking and completed the book. It had recently become a goal of mine to find such a cookbook and now I had it.
Later examination would reveal that some of the recipes were less appealing than the rest, but I had already committed myself. This is going to be that book.
That is what I have been doing for the last 18 days (mostly on the weekends...baking takes time). I have been working my way through the book. Thus far I have really been stuck in the first chapter: Basic breads. This has included basic white bread in a loaf and as a cob, wholewheat bread, focaccia, crumpets, soda bread and today, barm cakes. The barm cakes we used as rolls for sloppy joes and they were delightful. All of it has been delightful. I'm adding sticky notes into the book to help me adjust the recipes as I go along.
For example, every recipe needs a little extra liquid (and he mentions it might). I'm guessing that's because of the dry climate I live in. The soda bread was the only failure (not fully cooked). It's a fun learning experience and I'm enjoying the hand kneading. It really helps gets the stress out and I like the exhausted feeling in my arms by the time I'm done.
So that's 2016...the year of baking. I'm sure I'll blog about it some more before the year is out. But if you're going to be stopping by let me know. I'll make something special for you.
2016 is the year that changes. I am going to conquer my problems with dough through sheer exposure.
The desire to change that probably started with Netflix. Yes, Netflix. Don't judge me. You've been there too. In this case, my family and I had started watching food shows together on Netflix and after going through several classic Food Network Show (and some not so classic shows) we sat down and watched "The Great British Bake Off". It was enthralling. My wife and I have discussed how we wish American competitions would emulate their style more. It wasn't hyped, it wasn't false tension, it wasn't forced drama. It was a bunch of people in a tent doing what they loved--baking. And they did some amazing things.
I don't think I'll ever get to the level that the contestants were at, but it was fun watching what they created and I felt the desire growing within me. My wife and I looked up cook books written by the shows host and I ended up asking for "How To Bake" by Paul Hollywood for Christmas. My wife was gracious enough to get it for me and I started reading through it.
From my earlier research, I knew that this book was not converted for an American audience. Measurements are given by weight instead of cups and in grams instead of ounces. Temperatures are in Celsius. Liquids in milliliters.. This was actually an attraction instead of a deterrent. I already own an electronic scale that can do grams and ounces, a probe thermometer that can measure in Celsius (plus google to do conversions for oven temperature), and any good liquid measure already does milliliters anyway. Measuring in this fashion is often more accurate than our American cups so would lend to a better product. Needless to say, I was excited.
As I flipped through the book on Christmas morning a realization came to me. This was the book. The cookbook I had been seeking. Finally, in my hands I held a cookbook that I would master. Every single recipe. There would not be a single recipe I would skip. I would go through them one by one until I had mastered the art of baking and completed the book. It had recently become a goal of mine to find such a cookbook and now I had it.
Later examination would reveal that some of the recipes were less appealing than the rest, but I had already committed myself. This is going to be that book.
That is what I have been doing for the last 18 days (mostly on the weekends...baking takes time). I have been working my way through the book. Thus far I have really been stuck in the first chapter: Basic breads. This has included basic white bread in a loaf and as a cob, wholewheat bread, focaccia, crumpets, soda bread and today, barm cakes. The barm cakes we used as rolls for sloppy joes and they were delightful. All of it has been delightful. I'm adding sticky notes into the book to help me adjust the recipes as I go along.
For example, every recipe needs a little extra liquid (and he mentions it might). I'm guessing that's because of the dry climate I live in. The soda bread was the only failure (not fully cooked). It's a fun learning experience and I'm enjoying the hand kneading. It really helps gets the stress out and I like the exhausted feeling in my arms by the time I'm done.
So that's 2016...the year of baking. I'm sure I'll blog about it some more before the year is out. But if you're going to be stopping by let me know. I'll make something special for you.
Sunday, January 3, 2016
Happy New Year
At Thanksgiving I started learning a new language: French. Simultaneously I started refreshing my Spanish. I used Duolingo to do so. One of the great things about the site is that they reward you for keeping up the daily practice with Lingots--an online currency you can use to buy bonus lessons, tests, or extensions on time to complete your lessons without breaking your streak.
My streak made it up to 36 days. Which was just amazing. I even maintained it over Christmas with limited internet access and having to work from my phone through the mobile site (it was not fun, let me tell you).
Unfortunately, something went wrong communicating with Duolingo on the last day of my vacation. Before going to bed I did my required number of lessons and earned my reward for building my streak. Logging on the next day from home and my streak mysteriously vanished. Some of my work from the day before had not logged properly (apparently).
Needless to say, I was a little broken hearted to see my streak vanish into nothing.
Here's the worst thing--I let it get to me. I walked away from the program and haven't reached my goal since. That's a shame, and it's all on me. It's just a silly little thing on the internet, but I let it rile me and affect my progress.
And I can't help but think about how many times I've let small disruptions in my habits break me apart and set me back to zero. How many times has a single day of missed exercise thrown me off exercising for months at a time? How many times have I stopped writing, because I missed a blog post?
I'm only failing if I let myself fail, and I've been letting myself fail a lot.
So here's the resolution for the New Year: Don't let little misses become major setbacks. Keep getting back up. Do it again. Get better. Keep trying.
Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go practice my French.
Tuesday, December 22, 2015
Visions
I have visions. I believe that I have said this before. If you read my blog it should not be a revelation to you.
I have visions. Lots of visions. They are my constant companion.
Previously, I have talked about how these visions are the inspirations for my writing; I turn scenes in my mind into words on a page. If done correctly these words will then recreate an approximation of the vision for the reader, for no matter how perfectly I craft my words you will never be able to perfectly describe the vision. There are too many details that are lost in translation.
Today though, I want to write about theatre. Theatre is an odd experience: Players collaborating to create great works which they will likely never see. I do not get to experience my visions recreated on stage because I am an actor inside of them. I help bring them to life, but am impossibly placed to experience the impact of the creation.
It is possible to record, but it is not the same. It is like trying to look at yourself in a mirror with your eyes closed. If your eyes are truly closed you cannot see yourself in the mirror. A photo or video does not recreate the experience. You will never look into the mirror with closed eyes.
For this reason, I want to move beyond being an actor. I want to direct. I want to create my visions and be able to see the fruit of the creation from the outside, to be separate from the work that was created. Visions. Obsessions. They are in my head. Sets, costumes, sounds, actors. All the aspects of a performance echoing inside my head bidding me to create them. Actors cross the stage, gesture with an arm, tilt their head just so. I have seen it. Sometimes I have seen some of you on the stage of my mind.
I have visions.
Currently, I am thinking of a show (I won't say which), but I can picture the staging. The lighting. The sound. The actors faces are blank, still to be cast, but I know where they are on stage. And I want it. I want it to be real. I want you to see what I see.
Maybe someday you will.
I have visions. Lots of visions. They are my constant companion.
Previously, I have talked about how these visions are the inspirations for my writing; I turn scenes in my mind into words on a page. If done correctly these words will then recreate an approximation of the vision for the reader, for no matter how perfectly I craft my words you will never be able to perfectly describe the vision. There are too many details that are lost in translation.
Today though, I want to write about theatre. Theatre is an odd experience: Players collaborating to create great works which they will likely never see. I do not get to experience my visions recreated on stage because I am an actor inside of them. I help bring them to life, but am impossibly placed to experience the impact of the creation.
It is possible to record, but it is not the same. It is like trying to look at yourself in a mirror with your eyes closed. If your eyes are truly closed you cannot see yourself in the mirror. A photo or video does not recreate the experience. You will never look into the mirror with closed eyes.
For this reason, I want to move beyond being an actor. I want to direct. I want to create my visions and be able to see the fruit of the creation from the outside, to be separate from the work that was created. Visions. Obsessions. They are in my head. Sets, costumes, sounds, actors. All the aspects of a performance echoing inside my head bidding me to create them. Actors cross the stage, gesture with an arm, tilt their head just so. I have seen it. Sometimes I have seen some of you on the stage of my mind.
I have visions.
Currently, I am thinking of a show (I won't say which), but I can picture the staging. The lighting. The sound. The actors faces are blank, still to be cast, but I know where they are on stage. And I want it. I want it to be real. I want you to see what I see.
Maybe someday you will.
Sunday, December 13, 2015
A Week from ...you know.
Technically, the next week is called Tech week, but the name that I hear it called more often is Hell Week. Tech week will be different for each person, and I know that my experience in community theatre is different than the experience in professional theatre.
When I started acting in high school we did not have tech week. Rehearsals were typically during school hours. Then we went home. We did two shows; life was beautiful. I won't say that our production value was poor, but our light and sound systems were minimal. That made tech weeks (almost) nonexistent. What we lacked in fancy staging we made up in enthusiasm (I'd like to think we did).
After high school I gave up the scripted stage for improv comedy. This meant weekly practices that lasted two hours, rarely longer. Tech consisted of knowing how to play music clips between games. Okay, there was a little bit more, but not much. A solid ten minute training for the tech person would prepare them for their roll. We would show up an hour before performance time, set up, and then just roll with it. Two hours later we're done and headed home. Easy peasy.
Community theatre has been much different. It is a major time commitment. For a lark, I thought this post would step through my upcoming week. In doing this, I do not want to give the impression that I am unhappy or complaining about the week. Truth be told, I am quite excited. Eager even. Likewise, I am not trying to indicate that I have a worse week than anyone. I know many people will have had tech weeks much busier than mine will be. Many people will be busy without having a tech week. Please, don't play the comparison game; I am giving you a window into my life. Also, I like to predict the future!
Monday
6:30 a.m.--Wake up. I feel fortunate. I know people getting up much earlier. This will give me enough time to get ready and be at work on time. I'll work 8 hours.
3:00 p.m.--Go to the library. Monday is library day in my family. We're not perfect, but we rarely miss. It's that important.
Approx. 4:00 p.m.--We arrive home from the library. Now I have a chance to get all the daily things that I would like to do, but rarely accomplish. This list includes: help with homework, practice my mandolin, practice French and Spanish, exercise, write, sing, tidy up around the house. Assume that list needs to take place everyday. It doesn't, but let's pretend it does. Monday, it's not going to happen. I'll accomplish a few things before grabbing my costume and mandolin and leaving for rehearsal that night.
5:00 p.m.--I will be dropped off at the Orpheum Theatre after less than an hour at home. This is 75 minutes early for rehearsal, but my children have a school showcase. I am unable to attend rehearsal and the showcase which means I am missing the showcase. It's my son's first. To make sure they arrive on time I am early.
Note: Doing theatre at Christmas typically means that I miss school events for my children. I consider this the biggest downside to doing theatre. Break a leg son!
Fortunately, Monday night the Orpheum will be holding auditions for two shows so I will audition, then eat dinner (hope I packed one at 4:00!). If I have enough free-time I will do the writing I didn't have enough time for earlier, but more likely I will run lines with cast members.
6:15--Rehearsals start. This will involve getting into costume, fitted with a microphone, mike checks, handing out new props and costumes, and going over specific scenes that the director feels need to be tweaked/improved. The "scratch band" will likely be one of the parts we run several times. After this introduction we will begin running the show from top to bottom. There will be minor pauses throughout to fix light and sound issues. When I am not onstage I will be in a darkened backstage area unable to talk. I will go over lines myself, but most of the time I will be watching and listening to what is happening on stage to make sure I am ready to do whatever needs to be done.
10:30--Rehearsals will end. They might end sooner, maybe later, but this is a fairly decent estimate. I will get a ride home and go straight to bed.
Tuesday
Repeat, except the part about the library. I'll likely be kicking myself for not finding a moment to exercise during the day. I will resolve to do better today.
3:15 p.m.--Arrive home. I'll do some push-ups and sit-ups to make up for the lack of exercise on Monday. See the list above for all the other things I will try and do.
5:30 p.m.--At the Orpheum early again so that my oldest daughter can make it to her school festival on time. This is the second event of the week that I will be missing.
6:00--Rehearsals start. They'll run exactly the same: 4 1/2 hours of practice, tweaking, repeating until rehearsal is done for the night. It will be incredibly fun. It will also be amazing to watch the transformation of the show with all the special effects and costumes almost completed. There will be stops and starts as necessary, but fewer than before.
Wednesday
Repeat. Again. The toll of the first two days will start to build on me and I'll hope that maybe today I will be able to have a nap. It won't happen; worse, I'll make myself do some working out and end up more exhausted than before.
6:00--Dress rehearsal. Just like Monday and Tuesday with the exception that we do not stop. The show runs without interruptions like we are going to perform it. This will likely be the first complete performance. It will also be the only time we perform it this way without an audience. After going through the show we will probably be finished a little early, which means we will go over some rough patches. I will be home and in bed close to 11:00 p.m.
Thursday
Opening Night!
But first, another complete day of work. This one starts thirty minutes earlier than any other day. I will be exhausted. I might cry.
The show starts at 7:30, but cast and crew shows up at 6:00. We spend the time getting into our costumes, getting microphones on and checked, making sure props and set pieces are where they are supposed to be. Then we will try and get into character and wait for the show to start. Two and a half hours after the show starts we will be finished. We'll spend some time greeting the audience before heading downstairs to change out of our costumes, reset props and set pieces and leave the theatre.
There will likely be a gathering after the show. Being Thursday, I'll say the cast goes to Buffalo Wild Wings (now I'm just predicting the future). There's a large chance that I'll excuse myself in favor of going home and sleeping, but I'll likely get talked into going along. I'll hit bed around midnight.
Friday
Last day of work for the week! That will lift my spirits and help me muddle through. The day will run fairly identical to Friday after that. There will definitely be a cast gathering after the performance as most people will not have to work on Saturday. This time we will go to Applebee's. I'm not a huge fan of the chain restaurant so I politely excuse myself and go home to get some rest.
Saturday
A chance to sleep in. If the weather is good I'll rake the back yard which is desperately in need of it after snow brought down all the leaves off of the trees.
1:00--Arrive at the Orpheum to prepare for the Saturday matinee. Show starts at 2:30. We'll be done by 5:00. My children will be at this show so I will talk to them afterwards. There will be much excited family times. I will drive them home and immediately turn around to go back to the theatre for the evening show.
This time the cast will opt to go to Depot Grill. It will be a smaller cast party because everyone is getting exhausted.
Sunday
No time to sleep in, because I will need to go to Church with my family. I will present a lesson on Christmas to a small group of 5 year old children. I'll end church in time to go home and grab lunch before heading to the theatre for the final show.
Four hours later I'll be done with performances, but we will still have Strike. Fortunately, there are no built set pieces so we won't have to dissemble anything. Mostly, it will be collecting the prop and costume pieces that belong to each of us. The company putting on the show owns the theatre and this is (I believe) the last show of the year. That means no pressure to get things out so the next group can get in. With all hands on deck I believe that Strike will take less than an hour. That puts me home in time for dinner with a few hours left of the day to put in my weekly blog before going to bed.
Summary
As I look back, most days there isn't much happening. It's just the same two things over and over again. Work and show, work and show. However, it adds up to very little free time. Here's to Tech Week! Sometimes it is nice to have no time.
Note: I've received notice that the weather is turning bad. That likely means no raking on Saturday. It also increases the chance of no work due to poor road conditions. That could be a blessing. All other predictions stand.
When I started acting in high school we did not have tech week. Rehearsals were typically during school hours. Then we went home. We did two shows; life was beautiful. I won't say that our production value was poor, but our light and sound systems were minimal. That made tech weeks (almost) nonexistent. What we lacked in fancy staging we made up in enthusiasm (I'd like to think we did).
After high school I gave up the scripted stage for improv comedy. This meant weekly practices that lasted two hours, rarely longer. Tech consisted of knowing how to play music clips between games. Okay, there was a little bit more, but not much. A solid ten minute training for the tech person would prepare them for their roll. We would show up an hour before performance time, set up, and then just roll with it. Two hours later we're done and headed home. Easy peasy.
Community theatre has been much different. It is a major time commitment. For a lark, I thought this post would step through my upcoming week. In doing this, I do not want to give the impression that I am unhappy or complaining about the week. Truth be told, I am quite excited. Eager even. Likewise, I am not trying to indicate that I have a worse week than anyone. I know many people will have had tech weeks much busier than mine will be. Many people will be busy without having a tech week. Please, don't play the comparison game; I am giving you a window into my life. Also, I like to predict the future!
Monday
6:30 a.m.--Wake up. I feel fortunate. I know people getting up much earlier. This will give me enough time to get ready and be at work on time. I'll work 8 hours.
3:00 p.m.--Go to the library. Monday is library day in my family. We're not perfect, but we rarely miss. It's that important.
Approx. 4:00 p.m.--We arrive home from the library. Now I have a chance to get all the daily things that I would like to do, but rarely accomplish. This list includes: help with homework, practice my mandolin, practice French and Spanish, exercise, write, sing, tidy up around the house. Assume that list needs to take place everyday. It doesn't, but let's pretend it does. Monday, it's not going to happen. I'll accomplish a few things before grabbing my costume and mandolin and leaving for rehearsal that night.
5:00 p.m.--I will be dropped off at the Orpheum Theatre after less than an hour at home. This is 75 minutes early for rehearsal, but my children have a school showcase. I am unable to attend rehearsal and the showcase which means I am missing the showcase. It's my son's first. To make sure they arrive on time I am early.
Note: Doing theatre at Christmas typically means that I miss school events for my children. I consider this the biggest downside to doing theatre. Break a leg son!
Fortunately, Monday night the Orpheum will be holding auditions for two shows so I will audition, then eat dinner (hope I packed one at 4:00!). If I have enough free-time I will do the writing I didn't have enough time for earlier, but more likely I will run lines with cast members.
6:15--Rehearsals start. This will involve getting into costume, fitted with a microphone, mike checks, handing out new props and costumes, and going over specific scenes that the director feels need to be tweaked/improved. The "scratch band" will likely be one of the parts we run several times. After this introduction we will begin running the show from top to bottom. There will be minor pauses throughout to fix light and sound issues. When I am not onstage I will be in a darkened backstage area unable to talk. I will go over lines myself, but most of the time I will be watching and listening to what is happening on stage to make sure I am ready to do whatever needs to be done.
10:30--Rehearsals will end. They might end sooner, maybe later, but this is a fairly decent estimate. I will get a ride home and go straight to bed.
Tuesday
Repeat, except the part about the library. I'll likely be kicking myself for not finding a moment to exercise during the day. I will resolve to do better today.
3:15 p.m.--Arrive home. I'll do some push-ups and sit-ups to make up for the lack of exercise on Monday. See the list above for all the other things I will try and do.
5:30 p.m.--At the Orpheum early again so that my oldest daughter can make it to her school festival on time. This is the second event of the week that I will be missing.
6:00--Rehearsals start. They'll run exactly the same: 4 1/2 hours of practice, tweaking, repeating until rehearsal is done for the night. It will be incredibly fun. It will also be amazing to watch the transformation of the show with all the special effects and costumes almost completed. There will be stops and starts as necessary, but fewer than before.
Wednesday
Repeat. Again. The toll of the first two days will start to build on me and I'll hope that maybe today I will be able to have a nap. It won't happen; worse, I'll make myself do some working out and end up more exhausted than before.
6:00--Dress rehearsal. Just like Monday and Tuesday with the exception that we do not stop. The show runs without interruptions like we are going to perform it. This will likely be the first complete performance. It will also be the only time we perform it this way without an audience. After going through the show we will probably be finished a little early, which means we will go over some rough patches. I will be home and in bed close to 11:00 p.m.
Thursday
Opening Night!
But first, another complete day of work. This one starts thirty minutes earlier than any other day. I will be exhausted. I might cry.
The show starts at 7:30, but cast and crew shows up at 6:00. We spend the time getting into our costumes, getting microphones on and checked, making sure props and set pieces are where they are supposed to be. Then we will try and get into character and wait for the show to start. Two and a half hours after the show starts we will be finished. We'll spend some time greeting the audience before heading downstairs to change out of our costumes, reset props and set pieces and leave the theatre.
There will likely be a gathering after the show. Being Thursday, I'll say the cast goes to Buffalo Wild Wings (now I'm just predicting the future). There's a large chance that I'll excuse myself in favor of going home and sleeping, but I'll likely get talked into going along. I'll hit bed around midnight.
Friday
Last day of work for the week! That will lift my spirits and help me muddle through. The day will run fairly identical to Friday after that. There will definitely be a cast gathering after the performance as most people will not have to work on Saturday. This time we will go to Applebee's. I'm not a huge fan of the chain restaurant so I politely excuse myself and go home to get some rest.
Saturday
A chance to sleep in. If the weather is good I'll rake the back yard which is desperately in need of it after snow brought down all the leaves off of the trees.
1:00--Arrive at the Orpheum to prepare for the Saturday matinee. Show starts at 2:30. We'll be done by 5:00. My children will be at this show so I will talk to them afterwards. There will be much excited family times. I will drive them home and immediately turn around to go back to the theatre for the evening show.
This time the cast will opt to go to Depot Grill. It will be a smaller cast party because everyone is getting exhausted.
Sunday
No time to sleep in, because I will need to go to Church with my family. I will present a lesson on Christmas to a small group of 5 year old children. I'll end church in time to go home and grab lunch before heading to the theatre for the final show.
Four hours later I'll be done with performances, but we will still have Strike. Fortunately, there are no built set pieces so we won't have to dissemble anything. Mostly, it will be collecting the prop and costume pieces that belong to each of us. The company putting on the show owns the theatre and this is (I believe) the last show of the year. That means no pressure to get things out so the next group can get in. With all hands on deck I believe that Strike will take less than an hour. That puts me home in time for dinner with a few hours left of the day to put in my weekly blog before going to bed.
Summary
As I look back, most days there isn't much happening. It's just the same two things over and over again. Work and show, work and show. However, it adds up to very little free time. Here's to Tech Week! Sometimes it is nice to have no time.
Note: I've received notice that the weather is turning bad. That likely means no raking on Saturday. It also increases the chance of no work due to poor road conditions. That could be a blessing. All other predictions stand.
Sunday, December 6, 2015
Sunday posts
I think that the best time for me to post will be on Sunday. I have a lot of free time and it will be much like writing a letter. An open letter. Just like all the open letters that have been posted on Facebook.
Oh dear...
I guess I'll just have to live with that. <--That sentence used to start and end with the words "I guess". That's why we edit after we write! What it really comes down to is that I'm trying to keep my writing habit alive, but don't want to work on Sunday. That means no working on potentially publishable materials. However, writing for my friends and family would be acceptable. Plus, it allows me a goal of one blog entry every week. I'll draft the post early on Sunday and then I'll edit it before bed. That probably means that if you're following this you shouldn't look for the new posts until Monday morning.
This gives me practice editing and allows me to maintain my writing habit. Win/win!
So, here's the thing: I spent the last week updating my blog pages to account for my three new WIP. I haven't completely abandoned my old WIP, but they are all on the back burner until a later time. Those pages have not been updated, yet.
I think three is a reasonable number of projects to try juggling and they'll break down like this:
One Novel
One Stage Play
One Collaborative Project
I think this will keep me incredibly busy without giving myself too much work. Here's the problem: I've got a lot that I want to write. I mean a lot. Inspiration struck near the end of NaNo and I know have another novel that I want to be writing. I mean, I really, really, really want to be writing this novel. That's how excited I am about the premise (sorry, no spoilers). However, I have this sinking feeling that if I walk away from A Name Among Names before the first draft is finished that it will never get finished. That means I really need to focus on finishing that project even if I am a little less excited about it. I don't want to be in the habit of leaving projects unfinished.
Stage plays? I have Speakeasy well under way, but I also have at leasttwo three other stage plays that spring to mind when I think about potential projects. All three of them get me incredibly excited and I can see actors on stage, sets in my mind, lighting...the visions are dying to get out.
The collaborative project is the one saving grace. I don't have a lot of people beating down my door to collaborate with me. This project can take as much time as it needs and I reasonably expect it to take years. Having an eye on the long-term can be so helpful for pacing.
There we go. That's what my life looks like. These are the projects that I hope will make me truly independent for employment. The projects that will allow me to sell some works, get an agent, and beginning living off of my own creativity, which I've wanted to do for most of my life.
Oh dear...
I guess I'll just have to live with that. <--That sentence used to start and end with the words "I guess". That's why we edit after we write! What it really comes down to is that I'm trying to keep my writing habit alive, but don't want to work on Sunday. That means no working on potentially publishable materials. However, writing for my friends and family would be acceptable. Plus, it allows me a goal of one blog entry every week. I'll draft the post early on Sunday and then I'll edit it before bed. That probably means that if you're following this you shouldn't look for the new posts until Monday morning.
This gives me practice editing and allows me to maintain my writing habit. Win/win!
So, here's the thing: I spent the last week updating my blog pages to account for my three new WIP. I haven't completely abandoned my old WIP, but they are all on the back burner until a later time. Those pages have not been updated, yet.
I think three is a reasonable number of projects to try juggling and they'll break down like this:
One Novel
One Stage Play
One Collaborative Project
I think this will keep me incredibly busy without giving myself too much work. Here's the problem: I've got a lot that I want to write. I mean a lot. Inspiration struck near the end of NaNo and I know have another novel that I want to be writing. I mean, I really, really, really want to be writing this novel. That's how excited I am about the premise (sorry, no spoilers). However, I have this sinking feeling that if I walk away from A Name Among Names before the first draft is finished that it will never get finished. That means I really need to focus on finishing that project even if I am a little less excited about it. I don't want to be in the habit of leaving projects unfinished.
Stage plays? I have Speakeasy well under way, but I also have at least
The collaborative project is the one saving grace. I don't have a lot of people beating down my door to collaborate with me. This project can take as much time as it needs and I reasonably expect it to take years. Having an eye on the long-term can be so helpful for pacing.
There we go. That's what my life looks like. These are the projects that I hope will make me truly independent for employment. The projects that will allow me to sell some works, get an agent, and beginning living off of my own creativity, which I've wanted to do for most of my life.
Thursday, December 3, 2015
Two Years Already?
I mean, I know it has been a while since I blogged but that really caught me by surprise. I had forgotten most of the renovations I had made on the blog and now most of them are out of date. I'll have to work on fixing that. Just one more goal to throw onto the pile.
Let's start with this: Why am I back at the blog after two years? Well, why do I ever keep coming back. It popped into my head and I decided to roll with it. However, the bigger reason is that I just finished NaNoWriMo successfully for the first time since trying it back in 2009. Granted, I had more time than I usually do, but a success is a success.
Now I want to keep it rolling. I've got a lot of writing projects going and it is time to finish them. Then publish them. Then start some new ones. And I want to talk about these things. And complain a little about the problem of having so many things that I want to write and not knowing where to start.
So that's what I'm going to do. I am going to keep writing. I am going to take control of a life that seems out of control. I am going to update this page and keep it updated. And hopefully soon people would be looking for this page because they read my novel and they want to know a little bit more about me and what's going on. They want to know when the next book will be. So, maybe this time will be the time.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)