The Hazards of the Unforeseen

I'd ask whether life has ever handed you something you did not expect, but it would be a stupid question. Unless you are Nostradamus, it's happened today... or at least this week. My life is filled with the unexpected.

Right now my existence is permeated with it. I had eye surgery, which, unexpectedly to me but not to the eye doctor, it seems, meant I could drive in a week but would have to read large print EVERYTHING for the next 4-6 months.

My kids, only one month into school, have proven they cannot properly handle their classes without my constant nagging and looking over their shoulder. So they are behind. Again. And I have to refocus them ALL DAY to help them get caught back up.

My house is in need of its final overhaul, remodeling the last remaining ugliness. Unfortunately, that involves ripping down wallpaper and refinishing spots on the wood floor. The wallpaper alone has been a beast--the dining room alone took me FIVE DAYS to tackle.

I could whine more, but I won't. I just use these unexpected events as an excuse most of the time. An excuse not to write.

Not productive, I know. You don't have to tell me. Just as I don't have to remind you about all the unforeseen hiccups in your life. So, my vision still a bit blurry, I rip down wallpaper until my fingernails disappear, spackle, stretch my aching shoulders, and wait for NaNoWriMo.

Yet my hope is unchanged. I WILL get this remodeling done. I WILL see fine within the next few months (already I can write this without enlarging it on the screen, and that is GREAT news!). I WILL find a way to make sure my kids stay caught up AND still have time for my own pursuits. I WILL get my priorities back the way I want them, and not the way I have to place them for now.

This will pass. This is temporary. I WILL start my agent search very soon...

As soon as I get the last of this damn wallpaper down.

Killing Time? Or is Time Killing Me?

Before you read any further... bear with me. My eyes have been lased barely three weeks ago, and I have trouble seeing computer screen writing, so I will likely write with a few errors.

The thought occurred to me, yesterday, that I should be depressed because my eyes will not, at this point, allow me to work on my novels... or work on my plays... or read for more than a few minutes at a time. My goals were to get my Thomas novel #3 done in September, revise #2 in October, and write #4 in November... but I know now that such goals are impossible, at least until I can comfortably write for hours on my laptop.

Of course, since I don't tend towards the woe-is-me-whine-fest that seems a plausible notion at this point, I am making the best of the time while I wait. The hubby and I are readying our house to sell (we already put our house in Washington up for sale, and its contract is pending), so I've decided to concentrate on the activities I CAN do with my eyes as they are. Whining is such a waste of time, after all.

I've already ripped down the wallpaper in two bathrooms, leaving me wallpaper in one more bathroom and in the dining room to tear out as well. (Note to would-be wallpaper putter-uppers: DON'T DO IT!!! If you have EVER had to tear down wallpaper, you would never put ANY up again, I promise!) I have several floors to patch up as well, sanding and re-staining, and then lacquering. Each one of these will have to be done carefully, in steps. Once I've patched the de-wallpapered walls, I'll need to prime all the bathrooms and then paint these as well. If I'm too worn out from going up and down the ladder, I'll replace door hinges (most of the house uses brass, and I'll need to replaced the hinges with steel or brushed nickel--SIGH) and door knobs.

But it can't all be work. Thankfully, I can also sew at this point, too, and Halloween is close enough that I can work on costumes. Crystal wants to be a creepy broken china doll (cool!), and Brandon wants to be Lich King (I didn't know who that was, either, so here's a picture:)

Thanks to Justin Currie on Deviantart.com for this rendering of Lich King!

Even my own costume needs finishing (since I started it last October but was distracted by my kids' costumes)... I am dressing up as a woodland faerie, complete with knee-high suede boots and pink flowers. Given my eye status, I might ask Crystal to sew the pink flowers on the costume, in exchange for sewing hers... but it's all bound to be fun.

I assume, if you are reading this, that you have not just had eye surgery. but perhaps you have something else getting in the way of what you REALLY WANT TO BE DOING. So what? Shift gears, try something new instead, and just do SOMETHING. Feel free to browse through possible stuff, find a new path, and just play. You may find your next great adventure.

Now I am off to mine.