I’m working on this essay, and I can’t decide if it should be serious, or if it should be humorous, or if I am able to thread the needle.
This is all the head work, the biggest part of the process. It doesn’t emerge fully formed, but it coalesces in my mind before I start to type. Then, when I finally do sit down at the keyboard, I just add in the typos, and a little more context than anyone would want. I have a lot of source material to draw from, in this particular case, and it’s all serious. But I want to be mindful of not being a clucking do-gooder with too much serious tone. Heavy tone probably ruins the point. Who wants to read that guy. Also, there’s going to be an issue of understanding in this piece that’s now coming together in my mind. While I’ve been assembling likes and anecdotes and research on it for some time, I am close to overthinking it. Which means it is almost time to put typos to ideas, and out-of-context notions within the confines of the context.
What I think I’m saying is that I need a better writing process. And also about 36 hours in each day. And two unflappable copy editors.
A funny thing happened today. I rode my bike on the trainer. Hated every second of it. One day off, I guess, was not a sufficient recovery from overdoing it last week. So I stopped at 15 miles and resigned myself to trying again tomorrow. Maybe. If I feel like it.
It could be the basement view. It might be the many steps to get back up after a ride. It could be that I haven’t fueled well these last several days.
Whatever it is, I need to get better at it. And soon.
Anyway, there wasn’t much more to today, a day which crept up to 43 degrees, which will be something we can’t say again until mid-February at the earliest. I think this is the year I will utilize the 38-and-under protocol I implemented when we moved north. Roughly, the wording of that agreement said, when it gets to 38 degrees, I don’t have to go outside for anything non-work related if I don’t want to.
Also, there’s a winter storm coming this weekend. So I’ll be outside shoveling snow at some point in the next few days. But, after that, the 38-degree protocol will be observed.
Don’t read that as grouchy, but rather, pragmatic. Much the same as many of us heard from our parents about how there’s nothing good that happens after midnight, nothing important is going to be going on outside at 37 degrees, or colder, either.
Cheery pragmatism, with a great degree charm.
