I had work scheduled for the weekend, but body and brain informed me recovering from heatsickness took precedence. It wasn’t so much the heat itself as having to leave the house for multiple hours during the worst of it, and not enough coolness at night (despite air conditioning, a truly modern marvel) for recovery. I hit bottom on Friday, and the following two days were a lot of hand-over-hand struggling out of the pit.
Still exhausted and a bit shaky, but temperatures are reasonable for sleeping again and I should be able to get some easy morning running, which will do me no end of good. The bluejays are screaming before dawn, too, which they don’t manage when it’s indecently warm. So, good signs abound. Especially the cool breeze flooding my office window at the moment.
I finished Zygar’s The Empire Must Die; there were a few things I hadn’t heard before in there as well as plenty of context. The footnotes describing parallels in Putin’s rise to power as well as the repeating mechanisms of repression were interesting too. It was refreshing in particular to see both Rasputin and Lenin treated without sentimental horror or hagiography. Next up is the third volume of Elric stories.
It was good to spend some time just…reading, even if I’m nearly mad with the desire to get back to work. Several scheduled things are having to shift as a result of illness and the Chihuahua of Real Life humping my ankles, both metaphorically and otherwise. The high-level wildfire smoke moving overhead is beginning to fray, which will cut down on mucus membrane irritation; tonight should be even better for decent sleep.
What I want to be doing today is getting the army together in Highland War and a major suspense-turn written in Gamble. Both have been hanging fire for a couple days, with only 200 words apiece. Plus there’s that short story I want to start building, based on Mel Tillis’s Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town (probably the Kenny Rogers version), as a companion piece to Jolene, Jolene. Those stories might have to go in a self-published anthology since I don’t have time to chase submissions in ill-paid short fiction markets, but we’ll see. I had plans to finish the collab story (the Pocky one) during last week’s canceled Friday Night Writes, so that’s another bit of work impacted by stupid corporate-fueled climate change.
The frustration will (hopefully) fade as soon as I’m able to run again. Worst of all is the feeling of working so hard and getting precisely nowhere, which is damaging for anyone. It’s been…difficult, lately. Even my patience is beginning to get a bit moth-eaten at the edges.
Coffee is soaking in. Boxnoggin is beginning to stir; he’s adapting to the new drip-instead-of-espresso routine, and has been very understanding of my need to stop and rest during walkies. I try to time it while he’s interested in sniffing something particularly fragrant, so he thinks he’s getting the better end of the deal. The very heart of negotiation: letting the other side think they’re getting the best bargain.
Monday might have me catching up entirely, but I wouldn’t bet on it. The best I can hope for is amelioration. In that case, I’d better start soon.
See you around.