Picking Up the Pace

As I mentioned earlier, before I could have any hope of resuming the productive routine I’d gotten myself, I had to weather a veritable storm of life changes.

To kick the whole thing off, I had to sell the house I’d lived in for 14 years, which was at least 4x longer than I’d ever lived in one place before. When it sold more quickly than I expected, I had to move out abruptly, cramming an unbelievable collection of stuff (and collectibles) into storage. Then, not knowing where to move to, I bailed to Europe for six weeks, leaving the famed Bernadette in the care of friends. I spent that time walking miles a day, trading fat for muscle with the help of some push-ups and sit-ups, and curing my back pain almost totally. In the process I lost about 12 more lbs., putting me a good 30+ under my peak of grotesquery a couple of years ago.

After various wacky adventures, meeting new and old friends and burning a couple of bridges along the way, I returned to find that the problem of where to move to had not gone away. (For the record, America’s Nuclear Landfill—Nevada—is still home, but I needed another place to spend some time.) Stabbing in the dark, I found Portland to be a suitable venue in which to finish my book. Then the real moving hassle began. Three different accommodations in quick succession, endless furniture and housewares shopping, and multiple trips back and forth culminating in an interminable drive involving an RV and a frightened, morose runt of a Burmese cat.

And then there were the dental problems: two root canals, several crown replacements. Joy by the boatload. And my old career is refusing to leave me alone as completely as I’d envisioned.

Most of that is settled now, except for the parts that aren’t, and I’m writing this from a Starbucks across from Powell’s famed bookstore (which I haven’t been in because I only read on a Kindle now). This is one of a handful of suitable coffee shops I’ve located in the area, and the only one thus far that’s in walking distance.

Unfortunately, the deliberate breaking of my writing habit went a little too far, and I’m finding it quite hard to get things started again.

More on that to come…