I have a lot of very good reasons to explain my absence.
But I can pretty much sum up all my reasons in two words: BOOK DEADLINE.
What this means is that I’m going to be totally unreliable with the blogging for the next six weeks or so. I’m trying to work on the book in whatever little pockets of time I can find (last night, for instance, David and Alex went to Scouts, and I started a blog post that got up to around 1500 words, at which point I thought, Oh, I believe we will go ahead and call this the beginning of a chapter). Plus, my real job – which takes up a significant chunk of my day – is extra time-consuming during this part of the year. And since my people developed what may be a lifelong aversion to the phrase “Hey, do y’all want me to just pick up something for supper?” when I was doing this whole book thing the first time, I am trying to be intentional and mindful about the purchase and preparation of things like fresh vegetables and real-live bacon and substances that aren’t French fries.
But you know what’s neat?
Why, I will be glad to tell you.
When I was working on the first book, David and I laughed about how much more social it made me. It was sort of ironic considering that I am never more content than when I have changed into a t-shirt and yoga pants and I know that I don’t have a single thing on the calendar for, like, FOUR DAYS. But when I was smack-dab in the middle of A Little Salty…, I craved face-to-face conversation like crazy. So once-ish a week I’d run off to meet up with a friend who was passing through town, or I’d go to supper with girlfriends and talk for hours, or I’d ask somebody to meet me at Starbucks so we could visit before I hunkered down for some writing. There was even one time when I met my friend Pattie for lunch, and – I kid you not – we stayed in that restaurant for five hours (we were there so long, in fact, that we tipped two different waiters). It’s almost like the writing made me crave the sound of other people’s voices (other than the ones that run around in my head, of course), and I’ll be doggone if the same thing hasn’t happened this time around.
So here’s the neat part – or at least it’s neat to me. That whole phenomenon is totally at work again, and I’m starting to think it’s the Lord’s protection against isolation because staying in my head so much can make me a little, um, weird (I feel certain that my husband will vouch for me on this one). Last week I got to sit down with one of our neighbors and talk for two hours – something that is oh-so-rare. Then this past Friday night, my sweet friend T-Riels (that is not in fact her real name; it’s just what we called her in college and continue to call her even now) was in town for a soccer tournament, and we went to dinner and laughed our heads off. Sunday after church my fellas and I went to lunch with one of our most favorite families before they drove home to the town where they live now. My friend Katy will be in town tomorrow night – she has some work stuff here – and I’m going to get to hang out with her for a little while. And then this weekend I get to see some friends who have known me since I wore high-top Reeboks with peasant skirts (oh yeah I did – it was my nod to edgy when I was a senior in high school, never you mind that I was about as edgy as a butter knife).
It’s weird. Because under normal circumstances, I’d probably be completely overwhelmed by All The Activity. But as it stands, I’m just as tickled as I can be.
So. That’s all a very long-winded explanation of what’s going on around here: lots of writing and lots of time with my people. As far as the interweb is concerned, I’ll still be on the Twitter and the Instagram (they’re mighty fine ways to document my ongoing obsessions with sunrises, sunsets, and Hazel the dog).
(For example.)
(I can’t help it.)
(It’s like a sickness.)
But. For the next few weeks, I’m gonna try to put most of my words into the book instead of here.
Please know that this entire strategy will be flung STRAIGHT OUT OF THE WINDOW if anything even remotely memorable happens with Mississippi State sports and/or American Idol.
I’m mighty grateful for y’all.
Love,
Me
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