My 5 favorite places to write
Shhhh, it’s really only 4
As part of a blogathon theme day, participants are encouraged to write about our top five places to write. I don’t think I have five. Let’s see:
On the couch in the family room. Except it’s really an old futon in the basement. Also Netflix is on, so I’m not really writing, but the laptop is open and I’m really thinking hard about it every once in a while.
Kitchen table. The place I go to write shopping lists, which totally counts because Mr. R is all about the lists. I’ll yell, “I’m going out for milk!” and he’ll respond, “Did you make a list?” Then I’ll get huffy and say, “What, do you think I’m some kind of moron who needs to write down ‘milk’ before going to the store? Just to be safe, how about you put up a sign next to the toilet that says “Wipe your butt.”
Sounds kind of stupid until you realize that nine times out of ten I still come home without the milk.
The living room. There’s no TV here, so I have a chance. Still, there are too many distractions for it to be practical. People walk through, cars drive by the window, something shiny flickers in the light and I’m gone. If I really don’t want to write, I’ll do something crazy like unload the dishwasher. The only writing I do here is of the e-mail/Facebook variety.
Bedroom. Where I am writing right now. I think it helps that there aren’t many distractions. Also, people leave me alone here. Maybe that’s due to the sense of privacy and boundaries I’ve instilled in my family, or maybe it’s the razor blades I scattered in the doorway.
My bedroom is also where I do my morning pages. Morning pages are something I first learned about in The Artist’s Way
OK, three pages of writing, no problem. I need to put out the donations before Purple Heart gets here. And register for the CSA! Damn, and what am I going to do about the blog today? I wonder if I can get a guest post with only three hours notice. Have to use the bathroom, but will not stop until three pages are complete. Whoa, is that infected? I really hope I don’t have to sub in a third grade classroom today. Are the children up already? I was counting on another 10 minutes. They sound like elephants coming down the stairs, and you know they’re going to be hungry. Wow, I can actually hear the urine missing the toilet. Screw it, today is obviously a bust. Might as well get up and start the coffee.
Slightly better than what I get while watching Netflix, but not by much.
Creative Commons photo courtesy of mikeymckay.
I’m learning more from Blogathon than my brain can process right now, but I’m furiously scribbling away in a notebook. I love the idea of Morning Pages. Starting June 1, I swear.
Ha! You crack me up! I love your stream of consciousness writing, although you might want to find a substitute for the word “stream,” seeing as you haven’t gone to the bathroom yet and all. I keep telling myself I’m going to try the longhand thing, and I even bought an artist’s pad. I think the pad is somewhere among the mountains of dust under the sofa. I should probably retrieve it in case something happens to me. If I don’t have a particular story in mind and try to just write, I’m so embarrassed for myself and would be mortified if something happened to me and my husband’s hot new wife found the pad while she was doing that thing — you know — cleaning.
You had me laughing at the sign near the toilet about remembering to wipe …and still forgetting the milk…oh how I can relate- about the milk, not the butt.
I’ve never heard of the morning pages- but yours had me roaring..I’m getting the idea you are a bit ADD…and then some! Love your post!!!!
I’m newish to your blog, but this blog marathon thing sounds taxing, possibly because the only marathon I’ve completed involved “Modern Family” or “Parks and Recreation.”
When I’m home, I always write in my living room, sitting on the couch with a cup of tea (usually.) It’s by my sunroom so the window can be open (when it’s nice) and there are minimal distractions, although I still find things to distract me.
As for the bathroom, when I was little we had a little cross-stitched sign that read: “If you sprinkle when you tinkle, please be neat and wipe the seat.” Good advice, eh?
Yikes, guys, I see some crazy typos and editing fails in this post. You all are so nice to ignore them.
Tia, I’ve got so many hopes pinned to June, when this is over. I’ve also learned a lot from this month, more even than when I participated last year. I hate that so much happens in the middle of May that keeps me from participating much with the other bloggers.
Carol, you’re ambitious. I pick the ugliest notebooks I can find so that I’m not afraid to fill them with complete garbage.
Anjuli, you picked up on the ADD thing, huh? Thanks for laughing.
Abby, I read your blog today and laughed about your bug issue. Heh, you should show those little bastards my blog tomorrow, when my guest writer will talk about eating their relatives.
Whew! I’m just relieved “The Bathroom” wasn’t on this list ’cause I’m using your laptop right now.