Quick Post - An update

I'm writing this on my wife's kindle. It's an older model and only has an onscreen keyboard. Not that that's a problem.

I've written several things, including a few blog posts from my phone, which is a lot smaller. I'm used to my phone though, accustomed to it and I feel a bit clunky and awkward here so it's taking me a little longer to write.

I don't have much experience using any type of tablet, which may sound strange to most seeing as how utilized just about everywhere these days by everyone. I've wanted to get one for sometime, but could never justify forking over the cash. My wife has had this kindle since before we started dating and I never really played on it or tried to use it until now.

I like it, but I feel like if I were to get one I'd want it to be just a bit larger because I'd probably be getting it primarily to write while I wasn't home. Something smaller than a laptop with a decent battery life and a keyboard. I used to have a netbook until early this year when it met an unfortunate end. I don't think I'd redo it. We recently purchased a computer, which is part of why I started blogging again, and I really like it, but I can't take it with me to write other places and I feel other places is where I do my best, or most productive, writing.

I can write here at home and often do, but I'm also easily distracted by things in the house so something I could take with me would be great. For now, however, I'll make do with what I have and be grateful for it. After all, it's more than what many others have.

I've been thinking about that a lot lately and I expect I'll be writing about it here within the coming days. It may actually be something interesting. Maybe even something that's worth reading. I don't know. We'll have see.

I believe I mentioned in my previous post that I had submitted a short story to an online literary magazine. Late last night I received a response. A form letter, the story was rejected. To be honest I wasn't expecting such a quick response, I've submitted a handful of stories in the past to different magazines and had to wait weeks to months in some cases to hear back. This was less than a week. I'm actually impressed at how quickly I received my response.  

What I did expect was the rejection, and while it is always disappointing to be rejected, I am excited to keep moving forward and continue submitting stories for publication. 

It'll happen someday, until then, I'll just keep writing. 

Be seeing you.

Sick Holidays and Getting Better

This past weekend was a bit of a bust.

I'd been planning for quite some time on going out of town and enjoying the three day weekend with family. Instead, I spent most of the weekend in bed, somewhere between almost conscious and zombie. Some time mid last week I got hit by a bus of a bug and from one day to the next I found I couldn't breathe, my head felt like an over filled balloon and I had a fever that came and went like the wind. My throat felt like I'd unsuccessfully attempted to swallow hot coals and somewhere between the body aches and the teary eyes caused by fist sized balls of phlegm I coughed up and then gagged on because, of course, they didn't want to let go of the back of my throat, I found that, once again natural, herbal remedies are awesome and nothing beats NyQuil for an entire nights sleep. 

But during those few days of bedridden misery, in which I filled the hours watching social media like a silent creeper (but doesn't everybody) and watching westerns on Netflix (Django, The Homesman and Shane), I did not forget about this blog. I even attempted several times to write something for Sunday and never managed anything all that coherent, but I did feel guilty. While I'm aware that not many people read this blog and the only person who does so regularly is probably my wife (bless her soul, I've managed to convince her I'm somewhat talented at writing, I hope she never wises up to the fact that I'm just making stuff up) I did promise to update at least once weekly. That wasn't necessarily a promise just for whatever readers I may or may not have, but was, in fact, more a promise to myself. I want to write. I enjoy writing and this past year I've spent far more time thinking, reading and listening about writing than I have spent time actually writing. Which doesn't make sense. If I want to write, then I need to write. And so this promise to keep updating this blog is a promise to myself to take time to write.

And so here I am, writing for me. And for you, if you want to read it.

I'm finally getting over the sick, now that this holiday weekend has passed and I'm trying to catch up on things. Set goals for myself and plan for the future. There's a baby on the way, there are student loans that need paid and budgets that need updating. There are things that need to be bought, to be fixed and to be put away. There's so much to do and sometimes it can feel overwhelming and I think we, as people, often forget the most important things in life because of the things that life demands. And so while I will definitely work on those things that need doing, I will also strive to remember the most important thing. And that's to live life. Family, friends and dreams.

Which brings me to this, as you may know, or have probably guessed, one of my dreams is to be a professional writer, preferably an author of fiction. I have, in the past, submitted short stories to literary magazines, but it's been a long time since I've done so. Today I submitted a newer story to an online fiction magazine. I don't expect it to be picked up, but I'm proud that I submitted it. I'll be submitting more in the future. 

Until next time.