“Mom! You’re weeding!” Gleek announced with astonishment.
“Am I not allowed to weed?” I asked while pulling grass from a flower bed.
“You just haven’t done it in a long time.”
She’s right. I haven’t. I think the last time I sat down to weed was sometime in the fall. But today I found myself with a space of beautiful weather and all the urgent tasks waiting on someone else. Come Monday I will be busy again, but today I am not. So I weeded a little. Then I came inside and was a fiction writer for the first time in months. I revised a story and sent it out to an editor. I spruced up my website by making all the information on it current. I even collected materials for panel discussions and a reading. Yes, I get to do a reading at ConDuit right after I give my presentation.
My first thought on the reading was that I would read my picture book and then read other people’s picture books to fill out the hour. This plan was based on the fact that I only have the one published work. But then I realized that I have more than that. I can read an essay or two. I can read “Immigrant” from Ages of Wonder. I can also read the (recently completed) technomagic Spiderwick-ish chapter book about a house elf who loves video games. I can read some of the stories off of my website. In fact I realized that I am going to have to pick and choose because there is too much for me to read it all in 30 minutes. This makes me happy. Now I get to engage in the normal writerly nailbiting worry that no one will show up at the allotted time.
Today also contains Kiki’s 14th birthday party. She has amazingly cool friends. They’re all sitting around drawing pictures while watching a Doctor Who season one marathon. Then they all went out to sushi. After that, they’ll be back for more Doctor Who. After dark they intend to play Blink out in the back yard. I like this kind of party. Kiki did all of the planning and preparation for it. All I have to do is be in the house so that there is adult supervision.
I feel a little guilty for having such a slow-paced and relaxing day when Howard is stuck in his office coloring until his eyes bleed. I shall have to use some of my relaxation to make the house a cleaner and nicer place so he can be happy when he emerges.