July 1st is the perfect time to begin something new. Half of the year is over, so even the most committed and focused people have long since lost their enthusiasm for the resolutions born on January 1. Looking back through the posts on this blog, I am reminded that my inner fire was squelched on January 5. Perhaps this is why of the five goals I laid out for the year, only one has been accomplished. As for the remaining goals, one is not now, nor was it ever, realistic. The other three I suppose are still possible but they seem pretty unlikely, plus, I am feeling distracted and unsettled so it seems like now would be a good time to start something new. Otherwise, I’m going to lose my freakin’ mind.

Idea
July to June

Objective
Keep a log of 4 different activities in my life for one year (July 1, 2010- June 30, 2011)

Trackables

1. Miles pedaled on my bike

2. Beers consumed
3. Words written
4. Miles run on my own two feet

Point
None

Well, maybe there’s a point. I either currently spend or would like to spend a lot of my time doing the four things listed above. These are things, I believe, that make me happy. So why not see how much I really get to do them in a given year? Seems like it could be a tool to give me some perspective on just what I am doing with this life of mine. And right now, perspective seems like a very good thing.

I’ll be keeping track of my totals on a separate blog. Because if there’s one thing the internet has taught me, it’s that you can never have too many half-ass, poorly designed, self-indulgent blogs floating around cyber space. If you want to follow along, you can view the results here, or access the site in the right sidebar at any time.

Tags: july to june

Today I called in sick to work so I could drive up to Seattle with Kabluey. I had a legitimate reason for making this decision, but that didn’t keep karma from rearing its ugly head. Not more than fifteen minutes after I sent the “K8 = sick” email to my boss, I felt the start of a sore throat.

Now, to be fair, I often feel the start of a sore throat. I tell myself that I am a strong person. I like to think that if my body were not so adept at fighting illness, I would surely be bedridden right now, all fevered and shivery, instead of just irritated by a mild sore throat. It’s possible, though, that the opposite is true- that I am not strong at all, and instead fall victim to every single germ that crosses my path, and am just lucky that the viruses I encounter are not powerful enough to fully take me down.

I can tell you, though, that I feel just bad enough to prevent me from doing anything productive with the day. I really wanted to spend time doing some writing, but that hasn’t worked out so well. It didn’t help matters that after dropping Kabluey off at her office, I drove around for 30 minutes trying to find a good place to park/pee/eat/use wi-fi. I don’t spend enough time in Seattle to really understand where I am at any given time, and I’ve lived away from San Francisco long enough to have lost all of my city driving skills. When I finally found a Starbucks (well, actually I found 700 Starbucks, but this one in particular had easy parking and lots of tables near power outlets), I sat down and tried to fire up the computer. Turns out Starbucks doesn’t have free wireless Internet. So, I paid $3.99 for 2-hour access. Thirty seconds into my online session, the connection timed out, and I couldn’t get back online (unless I wanted to pay again). I left the Starbucks in a fit of rage, complete with cussing under my breath as I gathered my stuff, returned to the car, and continued my frustrating quest to find a place to relax and write.

Now, after a brief stop at a Seattle’s Best Coffee, where they do have free wi-fi and I was able to look up nearby establishments, I am camped out in an Irish bar, drinking a frigidly cold beer, and lamenting the loss of motivation to do anything at all of value with the rest of my afternoon. I usually find time alone in bars to be pretty productive, but aside from the aforementioned sickness/frustration there is another factor at play- I don’t actually know what I mean I say I am going to “do some writing”.

As riveting as this account of my pointless day in Seattle is, I don’t anticipate a growing audience for topics involving speculation about the strength of my immune system. When I think about writing, I naturally consider novels, but while I have written a few short stories, I don’t think fiction is my strength.

(Side note: I have been at this bar for almost an hour and a half, and my beer is just now heating up to what I would consider a normal serving temperature. I really don’t know how they got it so freakishly cold to being with).

So, I guess the thing I have to decide is– what am I going to write? I’m a fairly disciplined person, and I know I can force myself to sit down and write on days I don’t want to, as long as I have a direction. I’m not much of a planner, but knowing the answer to the above question will hopefully prevent countless hours staring at a blank computer screen (unless I have a tiny sore throat, in which case the day is obviously shot).

Tags: writing