Time for bla-de-bla-de-bla-de-bla.

So, my friend Steve keeps asking when I have time to write all this c#@%. At times it’s not easy. But most of the time, it is. I’ve been getting up at 6, wide awake, and with ideas burning through my head. The kids don’t get up until 7, and we all don’t have to be gone until 8. So I’ve got a solid hour, sometimes more.

I hate drawing first thing in the morning. My hand isn’t warmed up yet, and I too often create crap, or ruin something I’ve already started that would’ve come out fine if I just left it alone until the evening, thank you very much. That’s when I typically start two or three trains of thought that will eventually become blogs. See, blogging for me is different than journaling. Journalling is about recording today. For me, with blogging, I can develop two or three strings at once, organizing my thoughts in each one until I have what I consider an idea, or at least a thought that I’m willing to put out there. And the good part for me is just the exercise. In addition to this form of journaling, I’ve also written several letters to people that I didn’t intend to send, and been able to progress on a couple of the short stories that I’ve had languishing for months, now, if not years. (Okay the ones that sat for years I’ve tossed. I think I’m better than that now. I hope I am, anyway.)

I also ran down to the nearest Big Box (forgiveness requested) and picked up a big pack of tiny notebooks, 20 in a pack. The notebooks are the size of my hand, and fit easily in a breast pocket (if I don’t mind the nerdy look. But hey, if I’m man enough to wear a pink shirt, I can handle that). I keep one at my computer at home, one in my car, one at my computer at work, and I try to always have one in my pocket. The rest float around in the ether, turning up here and there, seemingly always to hand when I need one. They move from location to location, interchangeably. This gives me the freedom to write whenever I have an idea, capturing what I’m thinking about for later inclusion in one of the blogging docs, or a twist idea for the stories, or a new direction or thought that will become a new blog. I’ve had a lot of thoughts lately. So I’ve had a lot of energy, and a lot of waking time. And a lot to say. It’s been a good thing, if you’ll pardon my Martha-ism.

I used to be this way with sketching. I’d have a sketchbook with me at all times, even if it was a tiny one. I did some of my best illustrations from the scribbles in those. But these days, as I said before, I can only draw under special circumstances. I need a board on my lap, a pencil and a sharpener, an eraser, paper, and then the time. Oh yes, the time. But I can write anytime. I’m going to bed, staring up at the ceiling, and I’m writing. I’m driving into work, and I’m writing. I’m watching my kids watch a schlocky movie that holds my interest only periforally, and I’m writing. The problem is recording it. With the little notepads and an abundance of pens everywhere, I think I have that solved. Except for the driving part. Haven’t quite licked that one.

So, what I’ve found is that you make time for things that are important. I make time for my kids (though with each year they seem to have less time for Dad…). I make time for my wife. I make time for my work, or rather, my work makes time for itself, if I want a paycheck. And now lately, I’ve been making more time for writing.
Okay, maybe this one wasn’t very interesting. But I still found time to write it.