LYRIC O’ THE DAY:
If I could hold them in my hand, I'd make them understand
I'm not a haunted mind
I'm not a thoughtless kind
--Late at Night, Buffalo Tom
It's the last day of my vacation, and I am trying to focus.
I have a cup of coffee, a bottle of diet coke, a sweating glass of unsweetened tea, and some LaCroix coconut sparkling water to accommodate any and all beverage desires. I have snacks, ranging from the salty to the sweet. The bathroom is just around the corner, with its pristine and inviting cushioned toilet seat. I will need it soon.
Supper’s in the crock pot and the water logged meat needs no attention for another three hours. Kids are at day care. Hubs is killing insects out at the farm.
Yet I stare at my manuscript, mind blank except for a nagging voice that tells me I should go clean out my underwear drawer, because that may help me fill this plot hole. As sick as it sounds, cleaning and organizing things is my guilty procrastinating pleasure. There's nothing like alphabetized CDs and a color coded closet to soothe my aching prefrontal cortex.
Perhaps my home needs feng shuied? The flow of creative energy is stifled, I know it. I should shampoo the carpets; move the couch. Damn, these seaweed snacks are surprisingly tasty. If I do Kegels, will that increase the duration of "pee-free" periods?
JULES! FOCUS!
In my daytime job, I am involved in the quality improvement drive in healthcare. One thing that comes up over and over with medical errors is the tendency of humans to become so absorbed in a task that they miss other vital issues happening simultaneously. They call it selective attention--and this is a little video to exemplify it:
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So that makes me think. . .
Maybe I'm being too focused on being focused. Or I need to feed my muse some bananas.
What do you do when you need to focus?
