New bio: “space mermaid sparkle goth”
and new profile photo:
(If you, too, are obsessed with manatees and need to dress like one, a quick search for “manatee kigurumi” should help you out.)
Hi friend.
I am also grateful that I have a repeatable process of making and sharing work. Every day has been the same for the past three years: I write in my diary, and (almost) every day, I post something to this blog. Something private, and something public. And then every week, I send out a newsletter, and eventually enough days stack up that I can put out another book.
I want this, too. I am going to work on developing it.
I have been embracing this week the fact that our collective current lifestyle is not a temporary, crisis-mode situation. For my family, anyway, this is how life will be for at least the next three months. And because during those three months I intend to complete my data collection and analysis for my dissertation, I’m having to shift both some things about my work space (for example, putting a door on it) and some things about my headspace (for example, recognizing that self-care and household tasks deserve attention just as much as my dissertation does). I want to feel less frantic. I’ve reached a point now where I feel comfortable trying to figure out what I can do to make this time easier for our family. Now comes the balancing act of giving myself grace without using this as an excuse to continue to act like we’re on a very depressing vacation.
I do want to get back to writing about my research process, in my very me way. I want to write about the things I’m learning trying do deal with my presumed fibromyalgia, and the ways I’m trying to harmonize self-care and parenting. (Hint: It involves doing Cosmic Kids Yoga during my mom time instead of trying to use some of my work time to squeeze in Yoga with Adriene.)
I’ve been crocheting up a storm, dreaming of an endless supply of mandala blanket patterns because they seem to be the antidote to boredom. Also if my family gets tired of having them around, they can sell for a pretty high price. I’m going to make them either way, so I’m not worried about getting an hourly wage for them. (True story, if a crocheter received minimum wage for their time, plus the cost of materials, every time they sold something, mostly no one would buy crochet. Designing patterns is where the money is.)
I’m always fascinated by people’s creative processes and writing advice, and maybe I’ll read more about those and share them. I’m also planning to read more essays and published diaries in the near future.
What fascinates you? What have you sort of always been interested in, but only recognized that interest recently?
Have a lovely the rest of your Thursday. Or Friday, I guess, if you are many timezones away.
💙
K