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Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Time Wrangling or Dog Biscuits?

Why is it that fall seems to bring that rush of too much to do.  Maybe it's not the same everywhere but here on the prairie it seems that whether you have kids or not, whether you farm or not - we're all affected by the cries of back to school and rush to get the harvest in before the weather turns for the worse.

For  me, I'm hearing the cry of getting a story done that has languished way too long.  It's been a year
that's been slightly disjointed, fragmented by the demands of life.  And that, for now, is as good an excuse as any.  Although I suspect that the story might have fared better if I streamlined my writing life. 

Streamlined.  Maybe organized is a better word.  My old methods of jumping in here and there working on one project or another has, as the volume has escalated, caused chaos.  The chaos is headlined on my computer, let's call her Old Faithful.  She's been keeping me company since 2007 but now the battery is weak and her body is sagging.  I'm parked at my kitchen table, afraid to leave the safety of a solid surface and a nearby electrical outlet.  I'm cleaning up five years of files before transferring to a new computer.  In the meantime, I'm hoping no one jostles my shaky power connection as I sheer the chaos of over-bulging files and realize that when in doubt - save might not be the best option.

It's been a year of splitting my attention between a number of projects.  And instead of dividing my time equally, I found myself spending too much time with one while leaving another lie.  And that's where organization comes in - time slots.  Can I write more than one story at a time without losing momentum on another?  I know I will do it, have done it - just not efficiently.   I suspect there is a better method.  I'm still scratching my head on that as I continue to delete and move but I suspect that the answer lays beneath all those stacks and stacks, of really unnecessary files. 

Sigh - oddly the state of my computer files reflects that of the life of my current protagonist.  Irony or what?  

But, it's been a long day and so as not to get it together all at once I'm going to move on to something a little more relaxing.  Making dog biscuits.  I see a shaggy head look up at the mention of one of his favourites.  So here it is, Rourke gives them a triple star.  Of course, he is only one dog and he does have slight favourable leanings to the cook:

Rourke's Salmon Biscuits
1 can salmon (about 200 grams)
1/2 cup water
pinch of dill
a dash or two of lemon
a dash of pepper
bake at 325 - flip the cookies after thirty minutes
and continue to bake for another half hour.
Turn off oven but leave cookies in the oven until it cools.  
Cookies will harden just a bit more

And for this first Wednesday in October, the recipe is the best bit of writing procrastination I have to offer.  

Ryshia


7 comments:

Unknown said...

Oh your baby is so cute! Good dog-dog.

I can relate to your post. I have a lot of writing balls in the air, a couple projects just dying for me to give them a little attention and two temporary jobs coming up that need preparation and medical issues on the home front. A big AUGHGHGHG!

Phew-- I just try to tackle one thing at a time, don't panic and trust myself to get at least the necessary things done. Ha!

Julie Luek
A Thought Grows
Co-host IWSG October

Amanda said...

The salmon biscuits sound great - and I love Rourke - he's adorable!

Ryshia Kennie said...

Hi Julie - somehow it all seems more manageable to know I'm not alone trying to manage too many things at once.

Amanda - the salmon biscuits have the thumbs up from a few of Rourke's "friends" as well. So if you have a pooch give them a go.

ilima said...

I think moving forwarded, no matter what speed, it what counts. Rourke is so cute!

Ilima Todd (IWSG co-host)

River Fairchild said...

Love your header - the great wall. I want to go there next!
I know what you mean about the rush of fall, although I don't understand why it's happening to me at all. The days spent in my office should all feel the same with no one in school and the rhythm of life remaining constant but it doesn't. Maybe it's the pressure which comes from holidays looming?
River
Seasoned With Words

Ryshia Kennie said...

ilima - I agree - keep reminding self that it is all forward motion.

River - I find closing everything up for winter - cleaning off, putting away and then yes the looming holidays - all make the rush not go away.

jessika fleck said...

I can definitely relate! I've got several projects going on right now and am a "finish one, move onto the next" kind of gal. My brain hurts when I try to ping pong write! If you come up with some groundbreaking method, please share ;)

And, adorable doggy!