Up to Date

Well...

I haven't been a very dedicated blogger lately.

I don't know what it is. Maybe the new format just isn't as appealing to me. Maybe it's well-earned fatigue from juggling a big workload. Somehow, I just lack the intention and the motivation to write anything good.

Maybe I was simply in a bit of a rest phase. The big fundraiser is over. Huge sigh of relief. It did indeed raise funds. Not a terribly huge amount, but certainly sufficient to be worth its time. More important, from my point of view, it was smooth and organized and lacking in terrible disasters. As the planning consultant, that's what I got paid to make sure of.

While I enjoyed the months of work that led up to the big day, I found the time immediately before, during and after the fundraiser exhausting. It was almost too much responsibility all on me. Since this nonprofit continues to fire/lay off all its most capable staff, and to drive away donors and volunteers, I wound up being accountable for more details than ever before. As I said, it came off well, but I was quite, quite done with it by the time we were through!

Losing all those job-related duties leaves me with a hole in my work schedule. So far, that's okay. The gap coincides perfectly with the beginning of summer vacation, and gives me a bit more time to spend with my family. I certainly haven't felt a lull in the last week; quite the opposite in fact as I strive to catch up on my assignments for my other clients that got pushed aside. After I finish this, I hope to sit here for the next four hours or so and knock out four more (simple) proposals.

I can use the extra time this summer for many good ends. I'll look for new clients of course, always fun and interesting with new possibilities. I have many projects I want to accomplish around the house - some clean ups and some organizational/intellectual. Our family will spend tons of time together. We want to be low key. Not too much fun, not too much spending. Some tasks, some local amusements, some day trips to Los Angeles, Hollywood, Pasadena, Palm Springs, San Diego - really the list of options is long!

I hope to have time for some personal goals. More yoga is definitely in my plans. I rarely make time to get to classes now, and sometimes when I teach, I am still overcome with waves of grief that my beloved studio no longer exists. I miss practicing there with a physical yearning.

I also will turn back to my own writing. Of all the types of writing possible, the one that interests me most right now is writing for children. If I could pick anything to have published, I would choose to be a children's author. There is to me something magical about the simplicity and possibility of stories for the young. They seem to live and continue in a way that most novels and nonfiction do not. To that end, I purchased several helpful guides to children's writing and publishing. I'll study and write and see where I can get. I have the opportunity to take another online class starting next week. Haven't decided yet if I will or not. I like the structure and LOVE the teacher -- and I know he would let me focus on children's stories regardless of the official assignments -- but I don't know if I want to commit to the weekly deadline/writing time. (Plus the cost). I might prefer to keep it looser and work to my own schedule. We'll see.

So, I made myself a snack just now, a late lunch to nibble while I work. Reaching into the cupboard, I thought, Ah, there's my work wineglass. Then I thought, Really?! Did you really just think THAT? The summer may devolve if I'm not careful. :)