I have nothing to blog about. No creativity left in my soul. No urge to do anything more than crawl out of bed and sit under the fan in my family room. Okay, so that's a tad extreme; I'm dressed and at work, but you get the point.
Why do I feel so blah?
It's so hot. And it's not just 90 and hot, it's 105 with a heat index of 115. Humidity with the ability to soak skin in sweat the instant you step outside is the water cooler topic of the hour.
Writing is a struggle for me in the summer. (I can hear the yeah right's coming from many in my writing group) Me and my family love the outdoors, we love theme parks, camping, hiking, exploring new towns, etc. BUT it's too hot to do most of those things. I get about ten e-mails a day from my county, telling me to stay indoors because the air quality is not good.
So I do.
But if I stay indoors, so do my kids and that means I can't write. Sure, I can try, but I may only accomplish writing ten words before Child Number 1, 2 or 3 has some desperate need of my attention.
I'm trying to figure out what the difference is between the winter and the summer. Why my kids don't bother me as much even though they can't go outside in the extreme cold either. Why distractions just don't happen when the temperatures dip below forty.
For one, I think we aren't as active, so therefore I can sit down and write without worry we'll spontaneously get up and go somewhere. But I think the main reason is the light.
Yes, I said it: the light.
The winter days are shorter, darker, filled with gloomy skies, leafless trees and lots of drab. Sigh. I long for those days.
No, I'm not depressed, but something about all that sparks my creativity. Sparks my need to imagine other worlds and magic and death. Gosh I do sound dark. I'm not. I just long for the winter, the peace it brings to my household, the many hours of writing time.
Soon the leaves will turn, the skies will gray and I'm sure I'll complain at least once or twice for the summer, but on a day like today, I cannot imagine why.
Friday, July 22, 2011
Humidity
Friday, July 22, 2011
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Funny, I can barely write in winter, with the lack of light and the bleakness. Perhaps it's that the shivering throws off my typing. But there is something terrible about this humidity, which feels like it would make more sense in a steamed shower than filling the outside air. I always think gills would help the situation.
ReplyDeleteI can write just fine with these temperatures. Just as long as I sit in front of the ac and dream about being a polar bear.
Loved that Krystal echoes a lot of my own thoughts and feelings. Kids are like homing pigeons the way they can always find you no matter where you are lol. Just a pity they can't sense when you need some space. I think the more I try to spend time away from them the tighter they cling on. Yet if we are all in a room & I have nothing to do no one wants or speaks to me. Go figure??
ReplyDeleteI think the reason we write better in the winter, is because of the sense of hibernation-as if we are burying ourselves away to recharge and write in the dark.
ReplyDeleteBut that heat sounds intolerable - so with children, heat, work, and god knows what else, don't be so hard on yourself.
Here's hoping a cool breeze will arrive and whisk your words onto a page!!
So you dream of being a polar bear, but write better if you aren't. Funny!
ReplyDeleteAnd, much the same in my house. If I'm not needed, I can be sure the instant I whip out my laptop, someone needs something from me.
You will long for the days when your kids need your attention regularly. You will say I wish I had one more day of them being small and needing me to help them with something. Before you know it they will be teenagers and think they already know everything. Suddenly they won't listen to a thing you say. Then one day you will wake up and they will be all grown up and while I am not a writer, I doubt any amount of writing or anything else, will be able to fill the void. Cherish every waking moment with them. Please don't wish away the time. The writing will be there but they won't be. :) - Love you. Kathy aka Krystal Wade's much older sister.
ReplyDeleteOh, now, Kath you make it sound as if I don't love the little brats...I mean precious darlings. I do. Very much so. :-) I don't wish away the time, just the heat. It's soo damn hot.
ReplyDeleteOh, and I'm pretty sure they don't listen to anything I say now.
Love you too!
I love winter. When all is still, dead quiet still, I can feel, rather than hear, my characters talking to each other, almost as if can only exist when I die a little. Summer provides distraction and the heat rots my brain.
ReplyDeleteHowever, now that I live in Las Vegas (which for a new england boy is a shock), there is no winter. only hot and hotter. and then hotter still. I search and beg for inspiration and for one damned person to acknowledge I exist.
Hey Krystal -
ReplyDeleteI'm going through a similar phase the past few weeks. I'm not writing. Although you have defined your dilemma, I haven't completely identified my own. I was thinking about sending you an ice berg but that takes away the fun activities you and your family enjoy during only a few months each year. The Chicago heat has been just as you mentioned but I don't think the heat is my issue. My mind has been so focused on getting published/ self-publishing, I can't think straight. I get it back soon and so will you. Try a Slurpee at 7-11. Maybe that will cool you/cheer you up. :P
Mmmm, Charlie, great suggestion, but I think I'll have a margarita instead. YAY!
ReplyDeleteIt's very hot here, too (heat indexes in the triple digits). Yuck! I pretty much assume I'm not going to get much work done during the summer months (I've got three kids, too). That way, I don't disappoint myself. LOL!
ReplyDeleteHere's to hoping it cools down soon!
While the darker, dismalness of winter can affect our moods the hot sun can drain the energy from you like leaving your vehicles headlights on all night. Besides, unlike the summer heat being just miserable, there is something cozy about winter … curling up with a good book or your writing in front of a fireplace while it’s lightly snowing outside. Kids are mellow; they seem to be more content to cuddle up rather than rambunctious. And there is something magical about freshly fallen snow that I liken to a blank writing page, I just want to run out and make tracks in it. One I do with snow shoes, the other I do with the flow of a pen.
ReplyDeleteI miss my muse Krystal! I apologize for being so distant or in my case suffering from Hermititius. It has been an emotional few weeks with the spreading of my brothers ashes and I’ve been physically and emotionally exhausted working extra long hours and huffing it to work on my bicycle. I must say, though, I’ve lost 20 pounds somewhere along the way. That’s worth its weight in gold.
Mel
It's overcast today, and not supposed to be AS bad. 105 is way better than 133, right?
ReplyDeleteOpening up my book now. We'll see how far I get.