Relaxation

For the moment, I find myself at a comfortable place with the workload of my dayjob. For the past 2 weeks I have been working 10 or 11 hour days, leaving me with little time for anything else. But today, I had the blessing of working from home, which meant no one could randomly stop by my cube and talk to me. I didn't have a 40 minute commute each way to eat away part of the day. And I got to sleep an extra hour. That was slightly marred by Tiberius peeing on the bedroom floor, because I was too lazy to get out of bed earlier to let him outside (he's 7 months and mostly potty trained). But aside from that, the day was good. I got a lot of work done (not that I haven't been otherwise), and I felt I was at a place where I could log off at 6:00 instead of 7 or 8, or later. (My normal quitting time is 4:00.)

I cleaned my desk. It serves 2 purposes. A desk for the days I get to work from home, and my writing space. I was piled high with books, papers, and clutter. I organized it, cleaned the dust, and it feels much more harmonic now. Cory is playing Halo 3 online with some friends, so I have the entire evening to myself. I took a hot bath, long enough that the water cooled and I had to refill it with hot water. I finished a book I had started weeks ago. And it was only 8:00. Feeling refreshed, I sat down at my laptop. Not my work laptop, but my Mac.

At our Saturday writing session (which I will write about in another blog) I had written the scene I had been dreading. It came quickly and easily. I read it to the group. I had ideas to make it better. So I sat down at my Mac, and edited it. One step closer to finished The Moonlight Cafe. Now I have 2 interviews to find time for. One I believe I can set up in the evening, as the gentleman is retired, but the other must be done during the day, as I don't want to intrude on this lady's personal time, and my questions relate to her job. That will be the tough one to squeeze in right now. But once I talk with her, I can write the last scene (or 2) that needs to be written. The other interview will let me verify facts, and true up a few items. Finish the editing, and the novel will be complete. I am aiming for the first of the year for it to be complete. I have 4 days off for Thanksgiving, and the entire week between Christmas and New Year. I plan to edit a lot during those times. The new year will find me madly sending out query letters. If I dare to hope and dream, 2009 will find me with a contract, or at the very least an agent.

It's 9:20. I'm going to go play with the puppies. They miss me from all the work I've been doing lately. The night is a bit chilly, but perhaps I'll bundle up and take them for a walk. Tiberius still needs to learn to walk politely on a leash, so walks with him are not much fun right now. Time and patience. That's all dogs require. And love, of course.