Friday, April 7, 2023

Writing Under Duress

 I thought I had my day planned out so that I could get lost in Molly's world.  But then everything changed.  It started when I noticed that the heat on one side of the house wasn't working.  Then for reasons I won't go into, my son brought Jakey and a dog over.  The dog was just to be a visitor, but for an unknown number of days and she doesn't get along with our two cats.  She's a medium sized and looks like she has  a Jakey Russel head on a Beagle body.  She's not some little puff ball that can be picked up. 

The room I work in is on the side of the house where the heating wasn't working.  Although the weather has warmed up, with no heat to take the edge off, my room is cold.  And also so small that I feel claustrophobic if I close the door.  The door open seems to give the message that I'm available anytime somebody wants something or has something to say.  Or is hungry or is a dog on a leash rushing up and putting her paws on my lap.

I didn't give up on my plan and made a valiant effort, but I barely got through a couple of paragraphs.

Day 2 with Jakey and the dog, I got up extra early, thinking everyone was asleep and I'd be undisturbed.  Just as I was about to take my coffee and go to the computer, Jakey showed up with the Roku remote and said it didn't work. There was a little arrow on the back showing the panel that covered the battery area, but it was resistant to my efforts until I discovered a little button to push, but even then I had to use a nail file to get the back off.  Batteries changed, Jakey went off to watch his-- I started to call them shows, but there really Youtube things that have no plot.

The dog had spent the night in a room with a closed door, but  apparently during the night one of the cats tried to open it which explained why there was a barricade of IKEA bags blocking the door.  And the cats were locked in our room.  Just as I was about to try and make a move to the computer again, my soon came in with the dog on the leash.   He let her out in the yard and thought she'd be happy staying there, but she plunked down in front of the door (it has a glass pane so I could see it) and after a couple of minutes started to scratch our recently painted door.

In an effort to do something related to my manuscript, I went looking online on my phone for some crochet information.  I found a Youtube video describing what I was looking for.  It was maybe a five minute video, but I couldn't get through that without being interrupted with food demands .

By now hours have gone by and my coffee is long drunk, when I finally make it to the computer.  And now I have to try to let it all go and pick up where I left Molly before someone takes advantage of the open door and shows up. I can't speak for other writers, but my family is always oblivious to the fact that I'm doing something when they stand behind me while I'm at the computer.  Any minute Jakey will show up needing something or the dog on a leash looking around for the cats.

The one good point is that the sun has been out for awhile now and given off enough warmth to take off the worst of the chill.

7 comments:

Patty said...

Good morning -- Sounds like you had a lot of interruptions -- amazing how family seems to think Mom is always available, no matter what. My son, who is an artist and works from home, has that problem, also -- he says he has resigned himself to the fact that when his wife and son are home, he's not going to get anything done in his studio.

My late husband did a lot of woodworking projects in the garage and was in the habit of knocking on the door between the garage and kitchen and expecting me to come running to see what he wanted. One day he'd done it several times and I decided I wasn't going to pay any attention -- soon there was a knock I ignored, then a minute later more frantic knocking. I opened the door to find him holding his hand in the air, blood dripping from a bad cut on his hand. A rush to the emergency room and several stitches later he decided he'd quit the expectant knocking and would ask if I was available.

My daughter's dog is a mix of chihuahua and Jack Russell terrier -- a bit too hyper for me but she absolutely adores him. She also feeds feral cats that happen onto her property -- right now there are only three around but there have been as many as 20. During cold weather she even put heating pads in boxes on her porch so the cats would be warm, then she got a huge PG&E bill -- decided the cats would have to make do with boxes of old towels!!

I'm almost finished with the multi blues, solid royal blue and teal crocheted blanket -- shouldn't brag but it is gorgeous!! Years ago, I painted our master bedroom teal and the adjoining bath a lighter shade of the same color -- used purple towels -- love the color combination

Schools are closed today for Good Friday so my son and grandson are bringing lunch -- fish dinners from Culver's.

Enjoy your day with family and Molly --

Linda O. Johnston said...

At least some of your interruptions were dog-related, Betty, so I can identify with that and appreciate them. But I hope things improve so you can work as much as you want!

Sally Morrison said...

Your day sounds a bit like one Molly Pink would have. I'm re-reading all of the Molly Pink books and I'm now into #6. Barry is a bit of a pain sometimes. I'm really looking forward to your next book and finding out what if anything happens between them. I can't quite decide what I'm hoping for.

Hope your weekend is great! Cheers!

Betty Hechtman said...

Patty, I bet the blanket is beautiful. I hope you enjoy the fish dinner and have a wonderful weekend.

Betty Hechtman said...

Linda O. Johnston, things are okay with the dog being here. When I saw her before she was always hyper, but is much calmer after a couple of days here. She and the cats have stayed separate, so no problems there.

Betty Hechtman said...

Sally, I thought it all sounded Mollyish, too. This dog isn't a stray, but I have taken in stray dogs and cats. Sometimes found their owners and other times they moved in for the rest of their lives.

I have heard from readers who favored Mason and some that favored Barry. All I will say is that her life is a bit tangled up in this book.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Maria said...

Thanks for the time and effort you've put into this blog