Thursday Thirteen reasons to procrastinate...

I went through a whiny phase because it was easy to do. It was easy to get overwhelmed with everything going on and some of my writing buddies are going through the same problems. But I read a post recently that had me motivated...for a whole day 1/2! So this is where my Thursday Thirteen skips along...

1....It's raining outside. My brain goes into dream mode when I hear raindrops falling.

2....Hubby coming home and I need to at least "look" like I have things under control so he won't freak out and "worry" about me.

3....My oldest gets out of school tomorrow.

4....The dogs need a bath. It's raining...

5....Everyone's taking vacations and it makes me feel the need to get ready for ours...No? It sounded good to me.

6....My little one needs more attention since we cut out naps...I miss them a heck of alot more than he does.

7....I need to clean the house. I must need a break if I'm more willing to clean than write...ughhh.

8....My characters are on strike and refuse to speak to me.

9....The piles on my desk make it hard to type.

10....I've got instant adult conversation distracting me now that we moved closer to Mom and my aunt. It's all their fault! They are bad influences and keep bugging me to go to the Farmer's Market.

11....Rosie freaked out on the view and is blaming her cohost for the fact that she is overweight and gay. I got a little distracted way up here on my soapbox. Come on Rosie...any more excuses for what's coming out of your mouth? She's upset cause she made a comment insinuating our troops are the real terrorists and now supposedly her cohosts won't back her up...and she's surprised. But she is saying it's cause she's fat and a lesbian...what in the hell does that have to do with the fact that she spoke without realizing how many patriotic people would be offended. Didn't her own show get canceled for ratings? I know The View's ratings have gone way up but everyone I know quit watching it because of her inflexible views. If you don't believe in her view she speaks louder and is demeaning cause everyone who doesn't go along with her is wrong, stupid, naive...she likes to call people names. We called that a bully when I went to school.

12....The sun is about to shine...

13....Plain and simple ~ cause I feel lazy and rebellious.

I have all the good intentions. I want to write, I need to write but I don't want to. Go figure. Maybe I'll come across something else to get the motivational juices flowing. Tomorrow I'll post the eight random thingies about myself I owe Ms. Jennifer. Make you guys wonder one more day about

4 more days...Kris gets to go through London on the way home...

BooHoo

I looked back on my previous posts and feel like I'm a big ol' crybaby. So...I'll throw away my pacifier and kick myself in the buttocks. (I like that word ~ reminds me of Forrest Gump) I was trying to do a fly-by of blogs and friend's sites to see how everyone is doing and ran across a post by Jules Bennett on the Pink Ladies Blog. The blog post title indicated it was about dreaming a common dream ~ publishing, but from the follow up comment posts...I got alot more from it.

I've been so freaked out lately with all of the changes and feeling overwhelmed with trying to take care of everything with dh so far away. BooHoo! Some of the ladies responding were talking about having 5-6 kids and miscarriages and life happens crap. How can I feel sorry for myself? I need a big kick from someone...just kidding Jennifer. (She just went on vacation and will come back revitalized and energetic ~ she might actually kick me) I owe all of you a big apology! I'll cowgirl up and get back to work. Maybe not as fast and efficient as I would like, but I'll make it work somehow.

I know we all have roadblocks and life happens...most of us deal with it in the same manner. But. I need to write, for me and my sanity. Some of you can relate when it comes to kids and family issues, but we also need to force a wedge of time for ourselves. Even if it's only 15 minutes a day. What's funny is when I try to limit my time for writing I seem to always lose track and get in some productive time.

We've talked alot about motivation but I feel it's also important to encourage making time for ourselves. I know. It's so easy for me to get caught up in our family chaos...but I also feel so much better when I make time to do what's important to me mentally. Whether it's a hot bubble bath and reading a good book from my TBR pile...or a power surge of writing frenzy.

Tomorrow I owe Jennifer a tag response. I believe it was to list things about myself that you guys might not know...you already know I'm a whiny-baby so let's see what else I can come up with...

Just a few hints:

Guilty

Of alot of things...BUT. I need to get my priorities straight. I finally got the move over with but of course everything is still in boxes and I'm slowly working my way around. I don't feel very motivated though, what i DO feel IS plenty of guilt. I worry with the puppies being outside during our monsoon weather pattern...I worry about whether or not this was the right decision...the boys are doing great but running around wild in the chaos...Mom thinks it's one big slumber party and wants us to spend all of our time downstairs with her or going out to eat constantly. She says she didn't realize how lonely she was until we moved closer. Maybe I'm still just a little tired and overwhelmed by the mess.

I need to write. Even if it's just an outlet to let my thoughts from exploding in my head. I need to follow my commitment with my crit partners, I've gotten so far behind. But I need to push and finish my manuscript. I need to do it for me. This is where the guilt really comes in to play. I want to just tell the world to stop for awhile to let me write. How do I make the decision as to the importance of my responsibilities? I know my faith and family come first...but my writing IS my job now. I was a working mom for years...I don't remember telling my boss I had to take a day off cause I couldn't find the box my underwear was in, or the little one's Ninja Turtle van he says his guys can't live without.

Guilt...all the way around.

I'M DONE!!!!!!!

I'm finished. I'm done...stick a fork in me. Finito (sp?). The move is over. Wait...does that mean it's time to put the crap up and organize? Waaaaaahhhh. I've been crying alot lately. I can't count the broken nails, stubbed-toes, bruises on my shins, broken glasses (baby decided he wanted to help carry). Who the heck gave him the box with my good wineglasses? Sorry...didn't wear my contacts and couldn't see the writing clearly. My bad. At least I have two good ones left. I'll have a glass tonight to celebrate and save one for hubby. Shooooot girl...I did all the work. Hubby can get his own when he gets back, that other glass will be gone before bedtime.



Now. Can I reach out to the real world again? My arm is sore but I think I'm ready for an adult conversation that doesn't have a moving word attached. Is that possible...to write I must use verbs. It communicates an action...right...write? Sorry. I'll put the wine down.



Sorry. I got distracted again. I heard a beautiful voice singing on tv and Mom was watching the Oprah show so I stopped to see who it was singing. It was a 14 yr old boy with a killer voice. Reminded me of Luther Vandross. I couldn't hear the actual words until I heard the phrase..."Oscar Myer wiener." Okay...I put the wine down. He was singing the Oscar Myer hot dog song. Guess he won the jingle contest this year? Okay...that was what we call a happy crying. Ya know how sometimes you are just so tired, or frustrated and something triggers a laugh that turns into tears?



No really. Crying is an action verb? Write? Ok. I finally sat down and checked email. Ugh. But when I decided to reward myself and read through my favorite blogs, I came across my friend's ~ Jennifer Shirk. Somebody spank that girl, she made me cry! I always love to visit her blog because she makes me smile. Daily. Even when she's being serious. Because most of the time I can relate with what she is saying. She listed me as one of her top 5 blogs that make her think.



WOW! What an honor to know someone...one person, gets me. Whether she believes in what I'm venting about or not is not the issue. And it doesn't matter. She has an open mind and a sense of humor. They say Southern women have quirky humor. I think as long as we have a sense of humor it doesn't matter where we're from. Even during the hardest, meanest time in my life...facing Stage 4 colon cancer with my mom. She and I were cracking jokes and she was laughing at her toenail polish two days after she had come out of a two week drug-induced coma after her cancer resection surgery. The nurses were either in tears laughing or giving us dirty looks. Long story that I will share with you one day when I need an inspirational push. She was awesome. She is awesome...sorry Moms, she is still alive and running circles around me. I wonder if she'll slow down next time around if I bop her with my wineglass? Not gonna do it and waste whats left. Anyhew, there I go again. Doesn't take much nowadays...Jennifer.



She is my circle. My group that I blog with is full of funny, intelligent and creative writers. They each have their own special uniqueness that I adore. They each have their own path and views along the ride we are sharing. But Jennifer of course...she gets me. She of course will be my numero uno....Top 5 Blogs That Make Me Think.



1...Jennifer Shirk ~ Me, My Muse and I Most mornings she will share a tidbit that interests her. Sometimes it is from a favorite blog or author friend. On other occasions it may just be a joke or a funny. It always makes me smile or nod. Which also shows why she is usually one of the first places I go when online.



2...Chicki Brown What an inspiration this woman is to me. She is a bottomless well of cool information. Just today she had me drooling over another man...sorry hubby, honey. Not really. Just saw some pretty eye-candy. But she always has great articles or links when any of us need a push.



3...Real Writers Don't Vacuum Another writer seeking the publishing brick road. I hadn't heard of her until I started venturing out on blogs listed on my favorite blogs...Jennifer. Cynthia Brayden-Thomas is the author and she is definitely on my list of must reads. I have read her postings and sometimes I can really relate. She has an open mind which I can appreciate but I agree with what she has said because she often looks at something from various angles.



4...Romancing the Blog This has to be one of my favorite because there are so many different issues discussed. Even if a particular author is venting it is interesting. Why? Because I love to see other angles. Different views. I like to explore.



5...Debora Dennis-Mills And last but not least... an author I also met thru Ms. Jennifer. I enjoy her posts and they often have me thinking about the incredible writer's life. It's another one that has me nodding.

Thank you Jennifer for the tag. Thank you for making me think when my brain was so exhausted. I'll snatch and run with the only tiara I've ever won!






Now...if you have been tagged...

1. If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think,
2. Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme,
3. Optional: Proudly display the 'Thinking Blogger Award' with a link to the post that you wrote.

Hope your brain won't hurt as bad as mine did. I have so many sites I enjoy visiting that it was hard to choose. Right off the bat I would've chosen all the girls from my circle. Have a great hump day...