If We Were Having Coffee . . . (Monday Edition)

If we were having coffee, I’d order myself two coffees before I even sat down to chat.

Getty stock image.

I’d tell you how much I hate waking up on Monday morning and not having my Monday posts scheduled. That happened to me today — has been happening to me a lot lately, and there’s been absolutely nothing I could do about it. I have my fingers crossed that things might actually level off for me this week and I can get back to blogging more consistently. I was able to post so much through the spring and summer because I have a knack for time management and I was, for the most part, able to stay ahead of the posting schedule. My problem lately is that I just haven’t had any time to manage, and when I have had a little time, my energy level has mostly been so low that I’ve spent it zoning out or sleeping.

My life has been so strange and hectic since mid-July that I’ve had to change my lifestyle a bit just to keep up. I’m sleeping more, drinking less alcohol and caffeine, and eating more sensibly than I have in ten years just to get through the day right now. Hopefully some of this stuff will turn into good habits over the long term, but I didn’t do it out of concern for my health. I did it because I had no choice. It was find some extra energy or drown.

On Saturday, I took my grandson to his first college football game. It was Boy Scout day, so he got to walk around the field and see himself on the Jumbotron before the game. It was a very memorable experience for him, I’m sure, and I was happy to take him, but the walkaround meant showing up to the game two hours early and standing around in the 4 p.m. heat for a couple of hours. By the time the kickoff rolled around at 6:30, I was already exhausted. He loved it, though, and I was happy to be able to share that first stadium experience with him. Once the sun went down, it was a perfect night to be in an outdoor arena, and I got some nice photos.

I’d thought I’d spend the day yesterday writing this post and a Doctor Who review for Part Time Monster, then catching up with some folks on the social media. Silly me. I slept until noon and spent the entire rest of the day binge-reading on the couch. Since I started blogging about 10 months ago, I’ve not read more than 20 pages of an actual book in a day, and rarely more than 5. It took me part of the spring and most of the summer to read a 1,000 page history of the Medici. I knocked out a 750-page Stephen King novel  in two days over the weekend. And I don’t feel guilty about that at all. For the first time in more two months, I feel refreshed. Really refreshed. The only thing I did this weekend that I haven’t been doing for most of those two months is read a book.

So I suppose along with eating better and sleeping more regularly, I need to pay more attention to my reading habits.

And I need a Saturday all to myself soon. I need to spend it writing blog posts and tweeting. That’s the only way I’m ever going to get back ahead of the schedule.

If We Were Having Coffee 8

If we were having coffee . . .

I’d tell you I was crazy-busy this week, but I got tons of things done. I had to adjust my writing schedule a bit to work in 2,000 words that I realized on Sunday I had to publish this week. I had to let a few things go to take care of that, but in the end I got it done.

I’d tell you I have three guest blogging commitments to write for in the next month. One’s a social media post, one’s about comics, and one’s about fantasy fiction. I have the first one drafted and the introduction to the second one written. I’ll let you know where they’re being published once I get them finished and figure out when they’re running. I’m thrilled about all this. I’d planned to be doing guest blogging already. I think it’s a good way to reach readers who would never hear of you otherwise, and it’s good for the blogger you give the post to because it gives them content from a fresh perspective.

I’d tell you my friend Jeremy, who’s a regular Sourcerer contributor, has made some real progress with his own blog, Quaint Jeremy’s Thoughts, recently. He’s posted contributions from three other bloggers this week, and I could not be happier for him. Jeremy’s consistently Sourcerer’s most-read writer, and that blog would have an entirely different character without his input and his contributions.

And I’d tell you we had another post from Part Time Monster autoblogged this week. It was one of mine this time, and I’m not even going to link to it or say very much about it. Nothing to be done, really, but it rankles me.

I’d tell you that as you are reading this, I’m probably at Chuck E Cheese with my grandson. I’m not the biggest fan of Chuck E. It’s as loud as a casino and as chaotic as a crowded swimming pool. But we do what we must for the people we love 🙂 And I’d tell you that I’m proud of the progress we’ve made getting the grandson interested in reading. We’re into chapter 4 of The Hobbit now, and I’m beginning to think we might actually make it through.

He had a trip to the library this week, and as he was browsing for his own books, he spied a Star Wars graphic novel and demanded to bring it home for me. Because, as he said, I am “the best reader in the world and Star Wars fan zero.” It tickled me that he chose Star Wars for me, and I’m proud of the consideration for others that shows. Once I get the guest blogging squared away, I’m planning to write a post about my experience teaching him to value reading.

Then I’d ask “what’s up with you?”

Raising Readers Monday: Board Games that Build Readers

I wasn’t able to get a post together for today, but I love this one. “Raising Readers” is one of my favorite blogging projects. If you haven’t checked out Katey’s blog, you should give it a look

kateywrites

I love those moments when young kids suddenly realize they can read something – like the Exit sign over the door, their name on a birthday card, the word “zoo” on the billboard out the car window. These sight words read in context are their first steps into reading confidently, into recognizing words that are meaningful and useful to them.

Context is an important part of learning to decode new words and recognize familiar ones. External motivation – call it “reward” if you like – is also important to early learners. Many kids are not motivated to work on reading skills just because Mommy or Daddy says it’s important to learn to read. They need a GOOD reason – like being able to tell which bathroom is for boys, or if they should push or pull the door.  Another great motivator is being able to play a fun game!

My…

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