Sunday Writing on the Last Day of January 2016

I accomplished a great deal in January 2016. On Saturday, January 30, I finished the first story in the 44 short stories I am writing in 2016. The first story titled The Prophetess Enters the Garden was over 1,000 words. I plan to start the second story today by choosing the prompt to use. After I chose the prompt then I need to write between 50 and 100 words on the story. In addition the to story, I wrote a couple of poems, several blog entries, and reviewed numerous stories or poems.

In February 2016, I plan to write at least four stories for the 44 short stories in 2016 challenge. I plan to write 1,000 plus words for each story. In addition, I am participating in two blog challenges on writing.com. I am planning to make an entry in this blog two or three times a week, but I may that may be over extending my self especially during the first two weeks of February. I will definitely make one entry a week if I cannot accomplish more.

I have five medical appointments during the first two weeks of February. Two of those appointment are in the first week, so it may be difficult to accomplish the goals I have set. That does not mean that accomplishing those goals are impossible because the more difficult accomplishing a goal the more it stretches my creativity. It also prevents me from descending into depression because I do not have time to be depressed.

Push the envelope
Stretching my writing muscles
Creativity

 

Friday Writing Through Depression

Another Friday,
but today I am depressed:
Why am I depressed?

I can't answer that question this early in the morning. I wasn't depressed when I woke up. I managed to get up out of bed and zombie walk out of my bedroom. I managed to take one of my morning pills, but the other I forgot to take. Since I have to take it on an empty stomach, I'll have to wait until Saturday morning to take it. The pill I forgot is a once a week pill I have to take, on an empty stomach between 4:30 and 5:00 AM. The only excuse I have for not taking is is that I didn't check my daily schedule after I got out of bed.

Another Friday
I'm writing through depression
I'm writing toward a smile.

I think I'm going to start printing my daily scheduled goals and appointments off the night before so that I have a hard copy in front of me. All though the pill I can put in my datebook which I take to the bedroom with me when I go to bed. I put the pill on the schedule I make for the week, but I didn't put it in my date book. I know that isn't an excuse and I'm not sure whether it's a good reason.

Another Friday
planning next week's schedule
transferring to my datebook.

 

Midweek Reflections on Writing, Sleeping, and Cellphones

Weariness sets in
Eyes attempt to stay open
I yawn stretch and yawn

It's difficult to write when I'm sleepy. The problem is that if I lay then then I'll be wide awake. I'm tired because I didn't sleep well last night and then didn't eat a proper breakfast before I left the house this morning. I didn't get enough sleep because my cellphone got turned off somehow and I couldn't get it turned back on.

No comforting phone
clutched in my right hand last night
so I couldn't sleep.

That probably wasn't the reason I couldn't sleep because I normally don't sleep well at night anyway. However, the idea does make a good poem. Right now I would like to turn the computer off and take a nap; at least I would If I could fall asleep when I sit down on the couch or laid down in my bed. I could probably sleep if I turned on the television, but I don't want to do that until I've finished some of my writing projects today.

Monday Motivation: 44 Short Stories in 2016

I've accepted the challenge to write 44 short stories in 2016. This means I have to write a 4 short stories a month between February and December. If I decide to do NaNoWriMo this year it could be more; however, I don't think I'll participate in National Novel Writing Month. I could change my mind as November approaches, but right now my plan is to write the 44 short stories plus several poem.

Forty-four stories
Each of five hundred plus words
I'm pushing myself

I didn't find out about the challenge until January was half over. When I discovered it on writing.com, I had to think about whether I would accept it. After some meditation and contemplation, I decided to accept the challenge. In addition to the challenge I have a novel I want to finish and one I want to edit. If I change my mind about NaNoWriMo then I will finish the one of the unfinished novels I have started rather then beginning a new novel.

I'm pushing myself
beyond my perceived limits
into the unknown.

 

Success Saturday: I Survived the Third Week in January 2016

Survival success
A reason to celebrate
I am a survivor.

That title certainly sounds as if I had a chaotic week. While I wouldn't call the week chaotic, I wouldn't say it was boring either. The week feel somewhere between exciting and interesting. This is the second week I have slept in my bedroom on my mattress. I think I'm getting more sleep, but I don't know how well I'm resting. I think the problem is the pillow. I'm used to sleeping on a couch so I've been using the arms for my pillow and putting my feet up on the magnetic pillow I have.

Sleeping on a bed
With my pillow under my head:
Does it encourage rest?

Now that I'm using the bed and sleeping on the mattress, I'm using the magnetic pillow for my head. The problem is that I don't have anything to put under my feet when I sleep. I think I would get a little more rest is I put something under my feet or my legs to raise them a little. I can't put my pillow because I can't sleep with my head on my mattress, I have to have a pillow or something under my head and something under my feet or legs to raise them.

Pain interferes with sleep
My lower back and osteoarthritis
Life is not pain free.

I hope this entry makes some sort of sense because I'm almost falling asleep while I'm writing. The problem is that if I sit or lay down to take a nap I'll be wide awake and unable to sleep. Oh well, I figure something out by the end of the month. Since I just put out close to $100.00 to renew my license plat, I can't afford to purchase another pillow until February.

Survival success
A reason to celebrate
I am a sleepy survivor.

 

Tuesday Writing: Where do I get ideas for stories and poems?

Someone ask me where I get my ideas for my stories and poems. This is the first in a series of weekly articles to answer this question. One of the places I get ideas if from television. I especially like to watch the History Channel because the shows are interesting and encourage research. Today, Tuesday, January 19, I watched a show about giant rats.

Are there giant rats
Big as large dogs or house cats
Roaming our basements or sewers?

As I watched the show, the narrator talked about the possibility of ordinary rats evolving into super rats. These are gigantic rats the size of a dog or a large house cot. The show discussed what researchers were doing to investigate the reports of witnesses who said they saw huge rats in the sewer or basements of one of America's largest cities. I have not made up my mind on this subject because no giant rats were captured; however, I do think the witnesses saw something that frightened them. It is possible for rats to evolve into huge creatures and it makes a good plot for a story or theme for a poem.

Do witnesses exaggerate,
out of fear,
the size of the rats?

 

Sunday Writing on the Third Sunday of January of 2016

It is the third Sunday in January 2016, I have already written a couple of items and reviewed several pieces on writing.com. I have several more words to write before the end of the day. It is about 11:24 AM Pacific Standard Time and I have just awaken from a short morning nap. I stopped writing to eat breakfast and then fell asleep while I was watching something on television. I started to read another chapter in The Hobbit, but when I could not concentrate on what Bilbo and company was doing. I turned on television to see what was on and I fell asleep.

Television show
played while I took a short nap
music through my dream.

Happiness is getting enough rest to write without any problems. Since I do not sleep all the way through the night a nap helps me to get enough rest. I know I am supposed to lay down and take a nap; however, I usually sit on the couch and doze for short periods at a time. I am going to post this now because I have more reviews and writing to do before I eat lunch.

Thankful Thursday: A Writer's January Gratitude List

Today I am thankful...

01. ...for my past lovers because they have shown me that I am a survivor while giving me ideas and themes for short stories or poems.

02. ...for the new Gregorian year because it gives me a chance to review my goals and prepare myself for celebrating my New Year on March 20, 2016.

03. ...for Depends© because they do not show under my clothes which means I can wear them with any outfit I have when I leave the house.

04. ...for Auto Zone because the employees ore polite and helpful when I stop there to purchase fluids for my car.

05. ...that my checking account is not overdrawn today.

06. ...for they crisp January weather because it encourages me to write winter haiku.

07. ...that I was able to write a short story and poem this week.

08. ...for my compression stockings because my legs feel better when I wear them.

09. ...that I lost two pounds.

10. ...that I have an internet connection in my apartment because it allows me to easily research information for stories and poems.

Tuesday's Writing List: The Beauty of A List - A Poem

List are beautiful because
they give the list maker the power
to focus on the moment
or to express gratitude.

List are beautiful...
even when
I leave the grocery list
laying on the kitchen counter
or in the printer
it helps me remember
that I need
to purchase cranberry juice,
eggs and sausage
for tomorrow's breakfast.

List are beautiful
because they remind me
of what I have to accomplish
or have accomplished
today.

List are beautiful...
even when the only list I make
is a poem.

Sunday Writing Speculations on the Second Sunday of January 2016

I survived 2015, so does that make me a year wiser or just lucky. For me, 2015 was an interesting and, somewhat, stressful year. It was not as stressful as 2012, 2013, or 2014, but there was little bit of stress because in 2015 I moved from a studio apartment to a two bedroom apartment. Also, in 2015 a friend of mine moved into the apartment with me so now I do not have to worry about housekeeping.

I know that 2016 will be interesting if for no other reason then it is a national election year. Elections years are always interesting, stressful, and, for me, creative. For some reason my muse finds national election amusing which I suspect is a good response to all the election rhetoric. At least, finding the process and political ads humorous helps cut down on the stress that always accompanies a leap year election.

I do not know who I am going to vote for because I am register nonpartisan. That means I am unaffiliated with any party and am considered an independent. I like being unaffiliated with any party because it lets me look at all the candidates from both parities in a relatively unbiased manner. All though, in this election, some of the candidates are making it damn hard for me to keep an unbiased opinion. Once the parties have decided on who is running in the general election then I will decide who I am voting for. I will not state that in t his blog because I do not think that is my own business.

Election year rhetoric
sometimes makes me laugh and cry
both at the same time.

That is my first election year poem. I will be writing a longer poem on this subject sometime in the next few weeks. I want to finish it before the primary election in Nevada. I am not sure of the date of that election today because it really does not matter to me when that election is help. I am more interested in the general election in November.

Friday Questions and Answers: A Free Verse Poem

Friday
what was I supposed to write today?

Was I supposed to write
a flash fiction story?

Was I supposed to focus
on a poetry form?

Which ever it was
will not be written today?

Whatever it was
it won't get written today
because this afternoon's
quiet tranquility
has gotten in the way.

I meditate upon the silence
wondering if
I left my muse
in this morning's Tai Chi class.

If I did
then she will find
her way home
before I go to bed
tonight.

Midweek Writing Reflections: I Write When I Cannot Sleep

Half way through the week
and I can't sleep
past 2:00 AM.

I woke up at 1:15 AM because I heard something hit something outside and it made a loud booming noise. I got up, wandered through the house for a few minutes and then went back to bed. I laid there for about ten or fifteen minutes, but could not go back to sleep. I got up, turned on the computer and began to write. After making an entry in my writing.com blog, I took my morning thyroid tablet and then did some reviews.

When my alarm sounded, at 4:00 AM, I turned the coffee maker on. While the coffee was brewing I went back to the computer and finished reviewing the Editors Picks in this weeks spiritual newsletter. I just poured myself a cup of coffee so that I could make this entry. I guess I really do not need coffee to write because I write a good response to this morning's blog prompt, but coffee tastes so good while I'm writing. Taking a sip of coffee between sentences or paragraphs helps me think about what I want to say next.

Tuesday's Writing List: What do I have to finish this week?

1. Dear Me letter listing goals for 2016.
2. King Winter's Snowboarding Resort - a short story about a ski resort between 300 to 500 words.
3. Poem for a writing.com contest.
4. This week's reviews.

Four things is all I can think of right now. I know that I will have more as the week advances, but these things have the highest priority right now. I believe that once I get those four items completed then I will find something else to write about.

Sunday Writing Speculations: Overcoming Writer's Block - A Poem

Three days into the New Year
with new goals chosen
to overcome Writer Block fears.

What will the coming
days, weeks, and months bring?

Will I accomplish everything
that I have set out
to write?

All I can do
is put one letter after another,
building words,
phrases,
sentences,
and paragraphs.

If I keep writing on
then I don't have to worry
about Writer's Block.