15 September 2011

Embrace Your Bad Days!

If you don't already know, I am a natural pessimist - but a practising optimist. I do my best not to immediately select the worst-case scenario for what could potentially happen (although I'm never giving up my obsession with disaster movies, sorry).

We all have bad days sometimes, I understand that. It's not the end of the world (hopefully) and if you focus on all the crap and lament your bad luck, things will only get worse. I get that. However, I find it silly that there are some people who are very clearly having a bad day and scream, wild-eyed, in response to everyone's well-meaning regards, "I'm just FINE!" as though that would convince even themselves.

Ooookay.

What's wrong with embracing the fact that you woke up late, maybe your laptop really is trying to eat the data that took you three horrific hours to compile and you've broken off the heel to your shoe? It's a bad day - not the end of the world. When someone wishes you a better day, suck it up, say thank you and move on. We do mean well and we sympathise with the crud you're desperately trying to ignore.

You're not fooling anyone.

Now, an appropriate video for your viewing pleasure:



By the way, yes, I am having a good day today, thanks!

13 September 2011

I Got Nothing But Bad Habits

Going on holiday does help unscramble the brains – as long as the holiday has moments of rest and reflection in between all the headless-chicken activities. This time, we had more rest which turned out to be a good thing. It gave me more time to realise that I give all my free-time away and I've run out of excuses not to write. That last one is more or less a revelation, because I always knew I gave my free-time to everyone else. It isn't necessarily a bad thing in itself, but it does mean that I put myself last in my laundry list of Things I Need To Do.

There is definitely a need here – mostly a want, but as the year's gone by (two years?) the fact that I have no bulk of writing material at the ready for submission turns this into a desperate need. I have bits and pieces – a few one act plays, half a story or two (and a novel that makes my heart palpitate due to heady research needs and recent missed opportunities) – but I've gone a whole year (at least) without really working this passion I keep telling myself I have.

I am easily distracted and convince myself not to write. “I'm too tired,” I tell myself once I get out of my straight job. “I already get up at butt o'clock normally! I can't get up any earlier!” I say as all the popular writing blogs/people tell us to get up 30 minutes, 40 minutes, an hour before your day starts. Write then! “I'll write later, I need some 'me time',” my most notorious tagline as I spend way too much time in the soul-sucking universe that is Facebook.

Starting this week, I'm going to break my bad (writing) habits – at least one or two to start. Yesterday I couldn't convince myself out of bed, but here I am – Tuesday morning and writing! I had even managed to get up this early on Sunday and write a bit. There is always hope.

Who knows where all this bad habit breaking could lead? What are/were your bad habits and how are you/did you break them?