Nor’easter
Currently reading:
Monstrilio by Gerardo Sámano Córdova
Burning Down the House: Talking Heads and the New York Scene that Transformed Rock by Jonathan Gould
Out There Screaming, edited by Jordan Peele
An American Sunrise by Joy Harjo
The Shards by Bret Easton Ellis [audiobook]
Books finished this week: 0
Library updates:
As I started drafting this missive, I was hiding in my bed while rain poured down and the wind seemed to be hellbent on ripping branches from the many, many trees across from my apartment. I found myself longing for softness and coziness all weekend——which I’m sure wasn’t a unique hope this weekend, given the storms we were promised.
I do regret canceling most of my plans, as the nor’easter hasn’t seemed as strong as expected. But I don’t regret the rest. After more or less clearing my schedule, I had great plans on Saturday morning of all the things I would accomplish this weekend——finish reading a book, finish editing a story, put in some hours on a writing project, work on edits to make my work week easier.
And I, uh, really didn’t do most of that! But after a busy week, I think I needed to just spend most of the time propped up in bed and then watching Phantom of the Opera. (Patrick Wilson, it’s forever and always, babe.)
Anyway, as an update from what I shared last week about my writing habit, I’ve kept up with it, finding time every day to get down at least my promised (to myself) 100 words. I’ve been trying to get up earlier and get my writing done in the morning, before I head to work, and I can actually get a lot of work done in even ten or twenty minutes. I also hit my quota one night while slightly tipsy and awaiting a train at Grand Central.
Partly, it’s dedication. It’s also fear of failure, that I’ll drop the ball one day, lose all momentum, and never write another word. I’ve also just learned about myself that I work best on a deadline, fitting in the work to be done around a million other things.
It’s unfortunate, then, that I really do prefer doing absolutely nothing whenever possible. But we work with what we’ve got.
Closing thoughts:
Stay inside, stay dry, stay safe.
