Musings & Thoughts for Saturday, May 18, 2024, or: Workweek Ends with a Washout Day…and Now the Debate (To Write, or Not to Write) Begins

Late Morning/Midday, Saturday, May 18, 2024, Madison, New Hampshire

Hi, there, everyone. It’s a gray-shrouded and sometimes wet spring day here in northern New England. Currently, the temperature is 64°F (18°C) under cloudy skies. With humidity at 65% and the wind blowing from the west-northwest at 5 MPH (8 Km/H), the feels-like temperature is 68°F (20°C). Today’s forecast calls for cloudy skies and scattered light rain during the day. The high will be 64°F (18°C). Tonight, we can expect mostly cloudy skies. The low will be 52°F (11°C).

Yesterday, I hoped and planned to work on Reunion: Coda, but it didn’t happen.  I woke up much too early, and although I had a good breakfast, took my lunch and rest break just a few minutes later than usual, and sat back down at my desk promptly at 2 PM, I was too tired and unfocused to write.

Maybe I was just tired. Maybe I need a change of scenery. Maybe I need to socialize and not be in one place, 24/7. Or maybe I am putting too much pressure on myself to produce a novel worth reading. I don’t know; it could be all of those things. The fact remains that I didn’t add a single word to the manuscript yesterday – and I’m not happy about that.

So, as I write this blog post, I am debating with myself over what I should do today. Do I follow my usual weekend routine and try to rest and relax? Or do I try to work on the novel, even if it’s just for an hour or two? I honestly can’t make up my mind.

And, to be honest, the weather today is not helping, either. Although I’m glad that the precipitation we’ll be getting will “only” be scattered light rain and not Florida-style thunderstorms, gray skies and chilly – by my standards, at any rate – temperatures affect my mood, and not in a good way. I am cheerier and more productive on clear and sunny days – even cold ones! – and unfortunately, it is neither clear nor sunny today.

Realistically, I don’t think I’ll be able to produce too many new words today if I decide to work on Reunion: Coda. I might be able to start Scene Two of Chapter 17, but I don’t see myself writing a complete scene like I did on Thursday. (Granted, Scene One is short even though it is complete. But I had more energy and enthusiasm two days ago than I do today.) We’ll see what happens this afternoon when I return after lunch, but I have a hunch that I’ll opt for taking the rest of this cold, gray, and wet Saturday off.