Modest Beginnings
28/01/16 07:53
I keep telling myself that this year is not going to be one of those years where I start writing in this here journal three to fours months into the year. I don't think 2016 being a new year has anything to do with my not getting back into the groove but it may just be a convenient excuse to not buckle down and get back to business. What business that is precisely I can't say. I do it because it makes me feel good. It gives me a sense of satisfaction that I can't find anywhere else. It is entirely home grown although external influences are baked into the cake since without them it would be nothing more than ravings of a loon. So I write because I can and I'm happy to be back in the saddle even though it's only been three weeks since my last entries. I think I felt good about keeping up with the journal in 2015 and sometimes it is how much I write and not what I write that gives me that sense of satisfaction but there were successes on both fronts so that's good. I don't know from year to year what that is going to look like but any year where I didn't let a week or two pass by before writing is a good year. So there you have it.
You would think that having more time to sit down and write would produce more writing but that doesn't seem to be the case. When I was working day in and day out I looked forward to sitting down to write at specific times on weekends and never wrote during the week. It was my private time. It was always early morning before anyone was up and my thoughts were typically fueled by caffeine, the weeks events, and solace of the early morning where distractions were few and far between. Now, the weekends and the weekdays all blur together and there is confusion about what constitutes a good opportunity to write so I'm left to grapple with this new set of rules in my own way. Not writing does not seem to be an option so I am going to have to figure it out. I worry too about sounding too repetitive when it comes to those things that I follow closely year in and year out, with politics being a good example, so I would simply say while there are always new things to talk about I am more interested in finding different ways to express the same old things so that is my challenge. A new twist, a new turn, a bold face when a bold face is needed, and throwing down the gauntlet when and where I think that makes sense is where I'm heading with all of this. Need to start somewhere. Right?
Nancy has been blessed with a largely snowless winter thus far this year and that bodes well for her when it comes to driving into work on the two days she goes into Boston each week. To say that it gives her consternation is an understatement and we're typically up at 5 in the morning getting the latest and greatest before she gets out on the road. There is no question that if there is even the remotest chance that the driving conditions are treacherous in the least I will be urging her to stay home. At a minimum, I ask that she stays home until it is light out since driving in the dark on roads not yet plowed or salted is never a good recipe for success. She has the luxury of not going into work when conditions are bad and getting worse not because her services are not important but because she gives them no choice. We are more conservative than ever in making those assessments and much of that has to do with setting expectations more than anything else. Fact of the matter is that if she is willing to take her life in her hands on the worst of days by making the trip then she can never adequately make the case for not going in otherwise. All she has to tell them is that she doesn't feel comfortable making the ride in and that is that. It's worked so far but then again the winter has not been bad so she has not had to dip into the pool of goodwill too often. That can still change but we're ready for them.
I have to say that the allure of the brick and mortar experience is losing it's luster for me. I'm not sure where I turned the corner but I'm becoming a fan of having things delivered to our house rather than going out to buy them. It's a matter of convenience for the most part but when you get on a first name basis with the UPS delivery man you know you're hooked. It's no wonder online shopping has exploded the way it has. Why bother going to the store to buy a toaster when you can order it online and have it delivered directly to your house. You can do your research online and while that option also exists in-store with your cell phone or iPad it just isn't the same.
Maybe I haven't perfected the in-store experience as yet since I know they have apps that allow you to simply scan the product you're interested in and it will give you any number of options. Still, not having to go out for it works even better. I'm shocked at the number of times I see the delivery truck going to my neighbors house. I'm thinking to myself, what the dickens is she having delivered so often? She may be running an online business for all I know. As long as I don't see men coming and going at all hours of the day and night I won't bother calling Homeland Security. Maybe there are things people buy that they feel are difficult or embarrassing to purchase in person so having them delivered is just what the doctor ordered. I saw an elderly woman buying Depens diapers for adults while in Walmart yesterday and she did not look happy. Her generation is painfully clueless when it comes to navigating the perilous waters of self checkouts and online shopping so she is left to her own devices when making such purchases. I tried to appear self absorbed as I stood directly behind her in line so as not to add to her discomfort but she was steely in her composure so as not to invite further inquiry by those who might wish to engage her one way or another. My heart still goes out to her even now the day after and I don't know her from the man in the moon. We should all be so empathetic. The world would be a better place.
You would think that having more time to sit down and write would produce more writing but that doesn't seem to be the case. When I was working day in and day out I looked forward to sitting down to write at specific times on weekends and never wrote during the week. It was my private time. It was always early morning before anyone was up and my thoughts were typically fueled by caffeine, the weeks events, and solace of the early morning where distractions were few and far between. Now, the weekends and the weekdays all blur together and there is confusion about what constitutes a good opportunity to write so I'm left to grapple with this new set of rules in my own way. Not writing does not seem to be an option so I am going to have to figure it out. I worry too about sounding too repetitive when it comes to those things that I follow closely year in and year out, with politics being a good example, so I would simply say while there are always new things to talk about I am more interested in finding different ways to express the same old things so that is my challenge. A new twist, a new turn, a bold face when a bold face is needed, and throwing down the gauntlet when and where I think that makes sense is where I'm heading with all of this. Need to start somewhere. Right?
Nancy has been blessed with a largely snowless winter thus far this year and that bodes well for her when it comes to driving into work on the two days she goes into Boston each week. To say that it gives her consternation is an understatement and we're typically up at 5 in the morning getting the latest and greatest before she gets out on the road. There is no question that if there is even the remotest chance that the driving conditions are treacherous in the least I will be urging her to stay home. At a minimum, I ask that she stays home until it is light out since driving in the dark on roads not yet plowed or salted is never a good recipe for success. She has the luxury of not going into work when conditions are bad and getting worse not because her services are not important but because she gives them no choice. We are more conservative than ever in making those assessments and much of that has to do with setting expectations more than anything else. Fact of the matter is that if she is willing to take her life in her hands on the worst of days by making the trip then she can never adequately make the case for not going in otherwise. All she has to tell them is that she doesn't feel comfortable making the ride in and that is that. It's worked so far but then again the winter has not been bad so she has not had to dip into the pool of goodwill too often. That can still change but we're ready for them.
I have to say that the allure of the brick and mortar experience is losing it's luster for me. I'm not sure where I turned the corner but I'm becoming a fan of having things delivered to our house rather than going out to buy them. It's a matter of convenience for the most part but when you get on a first name basis with the UPS delivery man you know you're hooked. It's no wonder online shopping has exploded the way it has. Why bother going to the store to buy a toaster when you can order it online and have it delivered directly to your house. You can do your research online and while that option also exists in-store with your cell phone or iPad it just isn't the same.
Maybe I haven't perfected the in-store experience as yet since I know they have apps that allow you to simply scan the product you're interested in and it will give you any number of options. Still, not having to go out for it works even better. I'm shocked at the number of times I see the delivery truck going to my neighbors house. I'm thinking to myself, what the dickens is she having delivered so often? She may be running an online business for all I know. As long as I don't see men coming and going at all hours of the day and night I won't bother calling Homeland Security. Maybe there are things people buy that they feel are difficult or embarrassing to purchase in person so having them delivered is just what the doctor ordered. I saw an elderly woman buying Depens diapers for adults while in Walmart yesterday and she did not look happy. Her generation is painfully clueless when it comes to navigating the perilous waters of self checkouts and online shopping so she is left to her own devices when making such purchases. I tried to appear self absorbed as I stood directly behind her in line so as not to add to her discomfort but she was steely in her composure so as not to invite further inquiry by those who might wish to engage her one way or another. My heart still goes out to her even now the day after and I don't know her from the man in the moon. We should all be so empathetic. The world would be a better place.