There is a rhythm to writing and the more you do it the easier it becomes.
Lately life has been getting in the way of my words so I have found few minutes and moments in which to sit down and share these words you read here.
In a perfect world I would be say that the time away has helped me to recharge my batteries but the fact is that this is not so. In some ways I am more distracted and it is harder to focus the way that I want to on these words that I wish to write.
These distractions are part of why I haven’t written my eBook yet and why I haven’t figured out whether I am going to move my newsletter from AWeber to Mailchimp or another email service.
But your buddy Jack isn’t just a daddy blogger who writes about bad blog posts or ways to get back at bad roommates.
I don’t know about you but that is one of my favorite songs. It is one I can relate to and there is a good chance that I might use it for inspiration to write one of my stories.
Music is a never ending source of inspiration for me. If you are among the 17 long time readers you know this. There is always a song playing inside my head and often one playing on the stereo next to me.
If you invite me to your home I will always be interested in seeing what books music you own. There is magic in music and it is the kind of magic that I want my children to experience.
And I suppose it is fair to say that magic is part of why I write and why I am interested in other things that create moments filled with magic.
Three Things I Want To Do To Make More Magic
- I want to take some time off to go to culinary school to become a chef.
- I want to take photography classes.
- I want to be paid to get back into shape.
We’re going to jump on number three because I know that is going to be like an ear worm that some of you can’t get out your head. I almost wrote that I want to have sex for 368.5 days straight but that would send some of you in a different direction than getting paid to get back into shape.
OTOH having sex like that might very well take care of getting back into shape, but let’s not get caught up in that.
Instead let’s focus. I am serious…focus.
A man is allowed to have some dreams and I think it would be very cool for someone to pay for me to get back into shape. That would be my job and it would come with a personal chef and trainer.
Sadly it is not a real likely prospect so I need to make a few adjustments which is part of why going to culinary school would be cool.
Most of you don’t know that I like cooking and that it is not unusual to find me at the stove making a meal. I can do more than barbecue and bake, but I am intrigued and interested in the idea of learning how to do much more than I know now.
I am a guy who uses the Braille method of cooking. Most of what I do is by touch and feel. Ok, sight is involved too and we are all grateful for that.
My family likes my cooking as do most people I have cooked for, but that doesn’t mean I can’t learn more or become better. So why not do it.
I see a correlation between writing a story and cooking a meal. I like the idea of creating and they both have that in common.
Photography
I like taking photos and most of mine are alright intermixed with some pretty good, but again it could be better. Not only that these posts and stories that I tell would be so much stronger with the right artwork supporting them.
Not to mention that it ties in with my desire to create and tell stories.
Or maybe what I should be saying is that I see more possibilities that I want to turn into opportunities. Life is short and I am pushing harder than before to make mine into something offers many more magical moments.
I don’t need these things I mentioned to make magic and neither do you. Really all you need to do is open your eyes and be ready for them when they come, but I figure that even though I can make them happen without there is no reason not to try and include them.
I am Focused
It may not seem like it, but I am focused and actively working towards these things. What about you?
I feel more focused in my writing than I have in a long time. I’m okay with where I’m with my blog, and where I’m going right now with it. I’m fortunate because I don’t have to make money blogging. This is good because I’m sure I curse too much anyway and I have no plans on changing that.
Since my surgery in March it has been very difficult to get back to working out. Weight isn’t really an issue for me, but being fit is. I keep having false starts when I think I’m back on track, but then I take a week off and have to cajole myself all over again to get up and move. It is just too easy to be lazy.
Hi Chloe,
Cursing isn’t necessarily the kiss of death for blog sponsors. It is all about the eyeballs. If you get enough of the “right kind” you are set.
Are you having trouble exercising because of complications from the surgery or is it just a lack of motivation?
I now know I am weird (but focused most of the time). I actually discovered I loved cooking a few years ago – and i am all about making the plate pretty – it is my way to meditate.
I’ve got some unlikely goals, too, and am working towards them, Jack. I love yours. One of mine is to continue taking Spanish classes. Sigh.
Good luck with yours! Always a pleasure to read your writing!
I don’t think you are weird at all. I know a lot of people who like to spend time working on the presentation. It is just not my favorite thing to do.
Spanish is a great language to speak. My parents used to speak at home when they didn’t want us to understand what they were saying.
I would think that living in India would lend itself to being at least bilingual.
Those are pretty terrific goals! And I like how two of them surprised me even though I’ve been visiting here for a couple of years now. Culinary school and photography classes, huh? Do we have the next food blogger on our hands here? Or just a Jack of All Trades? 😉
As for the being paid to get in shape one, this might sound crazy, but check with the psych. department of your local universities. When I was in school, the psych. dept was always looking for (minimally compensated) volunteers to take part in health studies – weight loss, quitting smoking, why not getting in shape? Maybe it’s a non-starter, but you never know…
Hi Kristen,
There are always a few “secrets” to roll out and share when the time is right. I don’t know if I would be a traditional food blogger, but I can’t say I wouldn’t either.
I like creating and making things that people enjoy so food and photography just fit. Jack of all trades might be a good description…one day.
Anyhoo, that psych department is solid. I hadn’t thought about it but I have definitely seen the ads and I bet that Craigslist might have a few to check out too.
would you believe that today we both wrote about not being focused and recharging? and mentioned sex? lol. and food. hahaha. i however hate cooking and absolutely love that my husbands cooks pretty darn well. sadly, he cooks only on Sundays these days. love this video Jack. Never saw it but definitely know the song.
There are two things about cooking that irk me:
1) I hate cleaning up. Hate doing dishes with a passion.
2) Sometimes I find it tedious to and make the plates look “pretty.” I am more interested in taste than appearance.
I think meditation is great. If it helps clear your mind and ease your heart it is a wonderful way to go.
Wait, you’re focused? I beg to differ. When a man zeros in on sex in the middle of a blog post, we know that’s not focused; that’s a tangent. No way, Jose. with an h rather than an e.
Funny how locked in on one little part of this post. 😉
I have finally begun working out again but I have to say I’d be a lot more motivated if I were being paid 4 million like Jessica Simpson! Perhaps we should approach Weight Watchers as regular (and therefore relatable) folk who would gladly lose weight for only a couple hundred thousand!
I am with you. $4 million would be all the incentive and then some. If I had that kind of cash I can assure you I would have more than ample time to make that work for me.
Ya know, I have thought about contacting some companies and offering to use myself as a real, live example of how their product works.
Sometimes I think it would be an interesting experiment and sometimes I think I just don’t need to share that kind of thing here.
I love to cook!! One of my long term goals that I have written down somewhere is to master at least 25 Italian/ American dishes that I grew up eating. I’ve gotten about 7 or 8 down pat, and I figure it’ll take me some time to get em all down, but this goal is very much about the oh so tasty journey.
I usually listen to my music in my car. As you might guess, it’s a little Bruce heavy, but I have some other favorites as well: Eagles, Sinatra, Steeley Dan (Aja…so great). I just love the older music. Looking more and more like my favorite song of all time is “Year of the Cat” by Al Stewart. Remember that song, Jack? It’s just such a complete song, every instrument sounds dream like…
Paid to get in shape is a dream we’d all like, I suppose. I still have a plan to get in my best shape ever by 50. I’ve got 6 months to go. I’m doing it but I need to ramp up the intensity. I’m working the heavy bag, jumping rope, shadow boxing with dumbbells…experimenting on cutting the minute rest to 30-45 seconds. That should do it, right? 🙂
Hi Joe,
I love your goal but I wonder if it would require adding time to the workout. If it was me, I would definitely have to. Can’t try all those recipes without eating them too. 😉 Definitely a worthy goal.
I had forgotten about Year of the Cat, really can’t say when I last heard it, but it is solid. I love the beginning. Was it used in a movie, really sounds like soundtrack material.
All of the other artists you listed are on my playlists too. I listen to a lot of Sinatra late at night, helps me mellow out.
I love working on the heavy bag. It is great workout. Do you use Kettlebells at all?
I had sex 368.5 days in a row………unfortunately, 367 of them were by myself………doh….
Cooking is cool and I really love it. The wife doesn’t like me messing up her kitchen so I don’t get to do as much as I’d like; but like blogging, I’d like to kick it up a notch.
So many moving parts and so little time it seems; one foot in front of the other, right?
I haven’t written in a long time, Jack. I haven’t been reading blogs a lot either. For me there are phases of pondering and imagining while doing mindless work and other things that interest me. But, like you, I still feel very focused…just not forced.
It’s sort of like baking. Just because you can’t see it baking it doesn’t mean it isn’t there doing what it’s supposed to be doing.
Spices and herbs are things I’d like to learn more about. But pay me to exercise and I’d jump ship quickly. I don’t know why!
Hi Betsy,
I like that analogy. Baking is good, requires a bit of patience but it is a good thing. You get to mess around a bit with the ingredients and sometimes you come upon that secret spice/combination that makes everything into something special.
Spices and herbs would be interesting to learn about. There is a lot of them out there and I imagine if we knew more about their capabilities it would be quite interesting.
Focus. I lack that in almost every situation. Lately, my mind tends to wander. I find most people irritating or just plain boring, so I tune them out. No one is really interesting anymore . . .
Hi Brian,
I suppose the first question is whether it bothers you or not. It is not really my business, but I am curious. I hear you about people. I like most, but I find quite a few of them to be tedious, which is part of why I like being a curmudgeon.