My Busy Day
Some people would
laugh at that one. I can almost hear family and friends –“You, have a busy day?
Come on, you don’t do anything all day but sit in front of that stupid
computer. You’re retired for Pete’s sake. Man I wish I didn’t have to go to
work.” Yep, that’s what I get all the
time. They just don’t know. I’ve been retired for a year and a half now. Since
I retired, I’ve dusted off an old manuscript and turned it into a book. Then I
wrote another one. You can see them both right there at the top of this blog. I’m
just about finished with book number three. Am I doing all this in the comfort
of my own home? Nope. Monday through Friday I spend at my father’s house which
is fifty miles from my house. My father had a stroke three years ago, and I’ve
been taking care of him ever since. For a time he was able to manage on his own
for a couple of days while I went home to be with my wife. Then six months ago
he was diagnosed with colon cancer and had to have surgery. It came out okay,
but he’s not in the best of shape since then. Someone has to stay with him all
the time now. We hired a couple to stay with him on the weekends so my wife won’t
forget who I am. Anyway, I do the cooking and cleaning around here and help him
when he needs it. These days he sleeps more than he’s awake, so it does give me
plenty of time in front of this computer. I don’t watch much TV and that would
keep him awake anyway. So here’s how my day goes. We get up in the morning and
I fix coffee and breakfast. He stays up for a little while, but then it’s back
to bed for him. I fire up the computer and check all my email…I have three different
accounts. I get several newsletters, so I read those first. Then I go to some
web news sites and see what’s going on in the world since yesterday. Then I
check my facebook page and answer any queries there or make a few smart-alecky
remarks just to stir up my list of friends and family to see whose paying
attention. If there is nothing there, I leave a quote or two and go about my
business. Then I check the alternative news channels and see what the latest conspiracies
are…I love those…gives me great ideas for my books sometimes. Nowadays, I also
have to go to this blog page and come up with something. Not an easy job! Then it’s
off to check on the status of my two books . So far, not much change or movement
there. Then I stress over what to do about that. By this time dad is back up
and hungry for lunch…I know because he comes rolling up behind me in his power
chair and says, “I’m hungry!” and scares the crap out of me. So I fix lunch, and then wash the dishes. He
watches TV for a little while, and then it’s time for his afternoon nap. I
crack my knuckles and get back on the computer. I have a whole long list of
blogs and websites…you can see most of them right there on the right…that I
check up on to see if anything new has turned up there. I read a few of those
and then move on. Now its time to really get busy. I open up book number three
and try to figure out where I left off and see just where those guys want to go
today. It usually surprises me just as much as it does them. I don’t use an
outline. I don’t make notes in a spiral notebook. I just sit down and let her
rip. To me that’s the fun part. I’m enjoying reading the story as it develops
right there in front of me one word at a time. I dread finishing the story.
Editing is work. I wish I could afford to pay someone else to do that part of
the process. Besides I already have several ideas percolating in my little pea
brain for the next book, and I’d rather be splashing those words all over the
page than making sure that other one is in good shape. But anyway, I try to
keep at it until dad wakes up again. He usually does around four in the afternoon
and comes in here for a snack and then more TV. Impossible to write with that
going on…he likes it loud! So that’s the time I usually read someone else’s
book or head over to twitter and see what’s happening there. The rest of the
evening I kinda bounce around between twitter and facebook. Sometimes, after
dad has turned in for the night, I will get back to writing at least up until about
ten or so. Then it’s off to my room where I will read someone else’s book until
I fall asleep around eleven or twelve. Next morning - do it all over again. It
is not the way I had envisioned spending my retirement years. And when I
started out, I only dreamed of finishing that one book and getting it out
there. I don’t know what possessed me to write another one, and then another
one. This thing has turned into another job! Not much of a money making job mind
you, but a time consuming one. So my days are pretty busy, and I guess that’s
better than the alternative. I know lots of people that retired and got bored
after a few months. So they went back to work. That ain’t happening here folks.
So see you around…I’ve got to get busy!
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