Dear Patrons and Guests,
I have decided to take a brief hiatus from posting my science fiction novel. For some reason, I am having a block, as writer’s call it. Perhaps it was a lack of interest from my readers, or perhaps I am just at an impasse. At any rate, I am going to table the novel until I get more inspired. It was a great start, I think. I have always loved attempting to predict the near future. I am a science buff and I like finding out what is on the cusp of being invented, not to mention, what society might look like in 20 or 30 years. Now that I’m almost officially a senior, and almost retired, and will get Medicare in a year and a half, and social security a year after that, 30 or 40 years is the probably the best I can hope for with current life-saving technologies being what they are, and with my genetics, and so forth. It’s very strange to think that my time is limited to such a finite amount, and it seems like such a short stint, but that’s a reality we all have to live with, isn’t it? Anyway, when I think about the future, it’s not just my future anymore. There’s a future, hopefully, for my kids and now, finally, for my grandkids. Yes, I am officially a grandmother, albeit the child is in utero until sometime in late December, but it is a potentially viable human in its own right, should it decide to grace the world early.
Anyhow, with the election over, (except that the sitting president refuses to leave the White House because he is in denial of his loss – but not to worry – he will be escorted out by the military – a ridiculous way to leave, in my opinion, but if that’s what has to be, then so be it), a new day is dawning. And for the first time since I moved to Arizona in 1991, we have gone BLUE. Yes!!! Except that – it’s not over. There are literally millions of people who voted for this man and I can no longer be quiet about it. If you don’t agree with me about my politics, feel free to have a conversation with me. It’s too raw right now to write about in detail, so I’ll leave that for another time. I feel like I’ve been pounded and punched and thrown about for the past 4 and a half years, and I’m needing a mental and emotional break.
Maybe that’s the problem. Maybe that’s the block for me as a writer. Let’s see…there’s been – my back being herniated for almost 5 months and I had to relearn how to walk (I’m back, by the way, to walking 2 or 3 miles at a time – but I may never be able to hike vertically again. I’ll take it, though.) Then, there was the pandemic – a once in a lifetime (hopefully) event, but pretty daunting. Oh, but I’m not done. The race to turn the White House and the country blue. And the election. And the constant noise of the president, even if you didn’t want to listen. I mean, the freaking president of the United States, the leader of the free world, posting ridiculous rants on Twitter every day, cheering on the Neo-Nazi groups, and on and freaking on. I’m exhausted. But wait!
I went back into the classroom. First several weeks of preparing to return to work, with new information every day about the changes that we would endure, almost hourly. Finally, teaching online a new group of students for a month. Kids! Who know nothing about learning online, which is …well, I wrote a story about it – you can read it on this site. And then, we went back in a hybrid model. And then, we went back full time, with kids who don’t always wear their masks properly. I love my job, but I’m out there in the trenches, which might be nothing, or it might be the most dangerous thing I ever did (well, not as dangerous as riding my motorcycle 100 miles an hour in the dark, or at 50 miles an hour with my eyes closed – but I was in my 20s and y’know, stupid.)
It’s just that this virus is like a terrorist. Almost worse than the domestic terrorists – the white Supremacists in America . My daughter had to come live in my house recently, which makes me very happy and it’s a lot easier being around each other when we’re not doing the marathon visits (she lives in another state). However, I’ve relegated myself to the back of the house so we don’t infect each other (she has lung issues), and we haven’t been able to even touch each other – no hugs – but I have hugged her in my dreams at night. It’s all so very weird.
But, I rant. For those of you who agree with my politics (and by that I mean my ideologies about life), I promise even longer, more comprehensive rants in the weeks to come. So, since this website/ blog has been my solace during this very trying year (the soul would have no rainbows if the eyes had no tears – not my quote, but a darned good one). Actually, I might post more than once a week if the mood strikes. I want to hold my feet to the fire (it has gotten quite chilly here at night anyway) and force myself to write on the regular. If you are a writer, you know how important that is. And if you are a writer, since it is November, I urge you to check into NANO WRIMO – a writing competition that happens every November. I participated once, but I did it in July (I drum to my own beat). Read the book “No Plot No Problem” by Chris Baty. He explains it all and talks about the necessity of deadlines. It makes a whole buncha sense. My favorite phrase that he created is, “exuberant imperfection”. Read the book.
Anway, I’ll keep writing and keep posting, but the content will change each time. Maybe. It would be silly to say maybe not, because isn’t that the point of the term maybe. It implies ambiguity. And with that thought, I leave you until next week. Ta Ta, my friends.
With love, Robin Jill
