Prep Time!

What I've been up to lately!

I have not written a blog post yet this month, and the obsessive-compulsive part of me is really bothered by this. I had promised myself to write at least two per month, and at this rate I will be breaking my promise to me. I break my promises to me regularly, and I always experience deep regret. At times like these, I am nostalgic for my Catholic days, when a quick visit to a dark confessional, pouring out my heart to an invisible man behind a little screen, would yield forgiveness (after the appropriate number of penitential Hail Mary’s, of course) and a fresh new beginning. Instead, I lug my failures around with me like a ball and chain, because for some reason the weekly Lutheran Order of Confession and Forgiveness doesn’t count as much to me (in church, we all just say we’re sorry without going into gory details aloud—isn’t that cheating a little?)

So, to begin: mea culpa. There will be only one post in October, 2019, and you’re reading it. What? You didn’t notice? And don’t much care? Wow! I am both relieved and insulted! But, I hasten to add—there will be 30, count ‘em 30 posts coming up in November! So I am not being a literary slug after all, I’m just—pacing myself!!

For the past three years, I have written a post per day each November, just because. Like any deadline, this enterprise seems eminently doable 11 months earlier, but now, with the next month staring me in the face, I am all anxiety. I look back on the subjects of my previous 331 (!) blog posts since 2011 and think: why did I waste those great ideas on those so-so missives? I could definitely do a much better job now, in 2019, on my passion for cooking Rachael Ray recipes or “My Day in Tweets.” But alas! Those topics are all covered.

Luckily, I have begun a new venture, and inspiration is on the way. I now teach memoir writing workshops; part of each session involves choosing from a list of prompts, and then writing a short piece. My students have really gone to town on some of these suggestions, and written great stuff. Why not give these a whirl?

Here are a few of my options, looking ahead:

QUESTIONS FOR HEAVEN

WHO ARE YOU OUT OF CONTACT WITH? WHY/HOW?

PACKING (IF YOU HAD FIVE MINUTES TO LEAVE YOUR HOME)

A SCAR

EVER BEEN VICTIM OF A CRIME?

THANK YOU NOTE TO AN INANIMATE OBJECT

WHAT MAKES YOU JEALOUS?

FAVORITE (AND LEAST FAVORITE) HYMN

LIFE BY TENS (EVERY DECADE)

YOUR RULES FOR LIFE

That takes care of 10 days anyway! And I’m positive more ideas will occur to me as time goes on! In the meantime, I have embarked on my rigorous pre-marathon regimen, which includes: less sleep, more caffeine, and daily finger exercises (those digits take quite a beating every day as I type).

November, here I come! Join me!