Getting stuff done…

Sort of.

I told myself that today is the day that I get back to it. That I start the projects I’ve been planning since the idea of getting off active duty and popping out a puppy first germinated more than a year ago. Also, the day that I get back on the glide path of finishing the projects that I’ve been working on, both writing and otherwise. The day started with me out of bed before 8 a.m., showered, fed the baby, coffee’d and even read a few pages in Anthony Everett’s book, Augustus, which, like his account of Cicero, is entertaining, well-researched, and a good example of narrative non-fiction, a genre that I never thought I would enjoy as much as I have. (Quick aside: This preference began when I hit 30, and is yet another sign that as I get older, I’m turning into my Dad …)

I’m finding that the key to getting things done with a newborn, especially now that hubby is heading back to work, is to attack things in small doses, and take the long view. I may not be able to practice the long sessions that I know need to be practiced to recover any semblance of proficiency on the piano we bought for Christmas, but a little here and there can go a long way. At least LJ will have a chance to grow up listening to her Mom and Dad make music. And, when she is a few months older, I can start building on the exercises which so far fit into the 10-20 minute segments where she is content to sit quietly in her little carrier and let me hammer out some solfeggios…

The same with writing. For example, each of these paragraphs has been typed in one sitting, with tiny walking breaks in between. On the one hand, I’m going to have to spend a little extra time re-reading to make sure that I’m making sense and not rambling mercilessly … but on the other hand, that little walk we do gets the blood flowing, and is actually turning out to be quite helpful in both invigorating the mind and making sure that I’m not sitting for long periods of time. Also, the need to condense the writing of words into a short period of time does wonders for the old word count.

So, in addition to breaking projects into infant-sized bites of progression and taking the long view, the other thing that is helping me get stuff done is this baby carrier (or rather, I should say, carrierS, because we have two that work for different things in different settings.) I find it frustrating, yes, because I want to do ALL THE THINGS RIGHT NOW, and one of the reasons I’m blogging this is to remind myself that things have changed, and there is a way to make them happen, but I, too, must change in order to get them done.

In the meantime, I’ve got a baby to spend time with (and seriously, I could sit here and just watch her and do absolutely nothing else but love her), huge stack of books to read, a piano and some guitars to play, some wonderful winter sunshine to take advantage of, and hey, these articles, short stories, and novels won’t write themselves. I shall kick myself off the intarwebz, hook up the pups, and head on outside.

Peace!

 

 

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