Samhain Publishing Ltd Weblog

Managing Idiocy, er, Time

The summer schedule always throws off my writing schedule. Heck, it throws off my life. I must now devote myself to my children 24/7, as opposed to dropping them off at school. The little monsters, er, buggers, must be constantly entertained or they get creative, and not in a good way. I have boys, so “creative” often devolves into “destructive.” By nature I’m a lazy person and I’ve always worked best under deadlines, guidelines, and rules. So now I must find ways to instill self-discipline if I want my house to remain intact and finish the darned book I committed to write by early July. If you’re like me and need help “organizing” thought, here’s a glimpse of my life as I try to make do.

How I compress real work in little time. Step One. Wake Up.

Today’s schedule of events:
0600 Turn off alarm
0615 Turn off snooze
0702 Get stepped on by 4-yr-old as he crawls into bed
0735 Wake to insistent nagging of 5-yr-old
0740 Morning ablutions
0800 After feeding children, nag them until they get in the ^%$#@!! car
0815 Switch lanes to manage slow-as-molasses traffic, only to arrive at destination behind that ^%$#@!! SUV that refused to do the speed limit (Note: Watch the negativity before Karma kicks you in the keester)
0830 Still arrive on time to drop kids off at church (Vacation Bible School), drive to local coffee house
0845 Grab coffee after waiting for a new pot and head to ASU library to work
0905 Sit in empty reference section, turn on the muse, and type. Wonder why the ^%$#@!! WIFI doesn’t work on my laptop in here, and consider how best to post to the Samhain weblog without connectivity.

You’ll note the multiple uses of foul language above, all of which were said internally. However, it should be noted that the more coffee I drink, the more tolerance I have for idiots—myself included—and thus, the less internal cursing.

Now that you’re all caught up, I’d like you to know I have another two hours before I have to leave the library to get my kids. That’s two more hours of work I can now get done on a manuscript I’m halfway finished that’s due in a week. With less time to write, when I do get the time, I find myself working harder, faster and smarter. Why is that? Because there’s no spare time to fiddle with the Internet, watch the grass grow, or consider the monstrous fur balls whizzing around my hardwood floor, thanks to dogs that won’t stop shedding. Now this week is different from my typical summer days, because this is the week of Vacation Bible School, where the kiddies have fun for a few hours and I get some refreshing, much needed time to myself.

How do you get anything done if you have kids? If you don’t and you’re stuck behind a desk all day, when do you write/read/work on YOU between keeping up the house, working at a day job, and running errands? Is less time more for you, or do you need a ton of hours during the day to get things done to make your heart happy?

Curious…

Wish me luck, and pray I have another cup of coffee before I throw my computer through a library window.

Marie