October is the best!

Last week was good. I had a schedule change at the day job which at first wasn't ideal but turned out well. I did laundry and dishes, picked tomatoes twice, and we even got the back steps water sealed, which we should have done last year but time got away from us.

The numbers are 25 hours and 4,634 words, plus I got two e-books up on Kindle. A lot of those hours were spent finding cover art and formatting. I'm not fast yet, but I'm getting faster. Sadly, there are no sales yet but it's as much about the experience at this point. I'm finding that I work better in chunks. I can get 2-3 hours in at a stretch, but I have to take longish breaks. The morning is most productive for writing, and the evening is better for administrative tasks. For the morning shift, I have to bring a cup of coffee and a big glass of water up with me. I also seem to be more productive when I start with the bible study lesson for my small group, and when I use TV as a reward.

Each week I feel myself letting go of the day job a little more. I'm going to put in a little extra time in the next couple of weeks working with my replacements to hire another person or two. We have a coworker who may or may not be staying with us, but we really do need another person. Our schedule is pretty tight and if someone wants an extra day off, it causes trouble. Plus I'm the only person available for the Tuesday day shift. That could change next semester when everyone's class schedules change, but I don't know if it will. We need to fix that. If nothing else, I need back-up. I don't have plans that will keep me out of town on Monday and Tuesday for the rest of this year, but next year is different. We will be in Florida or driving almost half of January. In February I'll be away for several days at a retreat. We're thinking about going to San Diego in March for a few days to see the in-laws. I need back-up at the day job!

So that's where I am heading into the week. My plan is to carry on as I have been, and to pick a day next week to take off and visit my grandmother. When I saw her at her birthday party she told me to hurry up with Blackbirds Third Flight so she could read it. How do you argue with that?