March Madness

Today is the first Wednesday in March, which means Insecure Writer's Support Group blog hop. (Gee, I hope I am still on the list!)

I'm having a hard time getting focused. Currently on my computer there are four WIPs that at any time I could finish up and start editing, but lately all I feel capable of is existing. My energy is at an all time low and creatively my mind is all over the place.

Every story line is different, so you think I would be able to focus on either saving my action hero and his wife from the mad bomber who is chasing them, or help the poor soul I've left floundering in a morass of negative emotions due to personal angst. Perhaps I could work on my werewolves who are being encroached by humans and are looking to move to the wilds of Canada to live free, or send my alter-ego into the fray to fight against darkness and tyranny.

Or perhaps, I'll grab a bowl of cereal and sit in the recliner watching back to back episodes of "Cheaters" and wondering if my helpful hubby needs stalking, I mean watching.

Wow, I need a break.

I need to sit on the beach with my toes in the sand contemplating the tan of Joey the Cabana Boy as he brings me another virgin Strawberry Daiquiri. I need to stare into the horizon and wonder at the magnitude of our world and our place in it. But perhaps, most of all, I need peace in my life.

I have a teenage daughter going through the pains of first love, a grown son with a touch of hypochondria, and a husband so ready to retire he spends as little time in the office as he can get away with. I need something. I'm not sure what it is, but the feeling of being put upon is growing by the day. If things don't reach equilibrium soon, there might be an incident which may or may not land me on the 6:00 news.

Don't get me wrong, I love my family. Maybe this is just a mid-life crisis rearing its ugly head, but my writing is suffering and I'm looking for answers not more questions. Some days my heart feels it will explode from the effort of remaining smiling and pleasant.

But don't forget to keep an eye on the headlines - after all, I am a writer. I kill people in my head everyday. The real trick is to not do it in real life.

Spring is Teasing Me and I Don't Like It!

Yesterday it was hard to believe it was the second day of March. The sun was shining, birds were singing, gnats were swarming, and everywhere you felt the anticipation Spring always brings to our little corner of the South. The high was nearing 70, and all seemed right in the universe.

Yeah, right.

Today, again, it is cold, rainy, windy, and we are under a freeze warning for tonight. So much for Spring, Winter is not going gently into that good night. Instead, it seems bound and determined to hold on until the last possible moment, guaranteeing no early planting or easy weather.

That's right, folks, it's tornado season down here in the land of the Boiled Peanut.

I've lived through hurricanes, him-a-canes, snow-canes, and more but the thought of tornado season always fills me with dread. They strike anywhere and at anytime. It's like waiting for your mother-in-law to show up with her crazy sister to set up residence in your basement. I would rather face two Katrina's than one tornado. But that's just me.

I will sleep with one ear tuned to the weather radio, waiting for that annoying blast of the tornado siren to send us all downstairs to the laundry room (our only windowless room). Until the winds blow constantly from the south and the cold weather and snow are only distant memories, I will keep a weather eye on the horizon and stay close to shore in case of emergencies.

After all, it's only 110 more days until summer!