Standing at the Trailhead of Winter

I've a new lover in my bedroom. My beautiful new bike leans against the wall on my side of the bed. Hubby even carried it up for me, set it against the wall. It's awesomeness amazes me and I just want to sit on the bed and stare at it. For awhile this afternoon, I wasn't sure I was going to be able to make it to the bike shop before it closed. A couple of wayward students didn't follow the directions given to them two weeks ago and weren't ready to turn in the portfolio when they were supposed to. Rather than draw the line in the sand and say I'm sorry but you didn't follow the directions, I allowed these students to take the time to finish up what needed to be completed. So I sat there, watching the minutes tick by, growing more and more annoyed as the afternoon wore on. I've not experienced that degree of agitated anticipation in quite some time. This weekend is looking favorable for a ride, and at this point I don't care what the temp is. As lon...

Now that I'm on day five of no class, no students, no papers to read and respond to, I feel myself becoming restless. Especially after yesterday, a day of not leaving the house. At all. Not even to just open the door to stick my head outside. My one day hermit experience was bliss. But one day is about all I can do. Work in Progress My day of staying inside was productive, though; I finished my latest short story, the one that started out in a very different direction from where it ended up. I knew I wanted an older woman, late 60's maybe early 70's, to be the main character. I knew I wanted her to have set up a garage sale. After that, I had no clue where to go. The story started out with her daughter bringing over things that didn't belong to her, and the person the items did belong to showed up, seeing all her things for sale.  I just didn't know where to go from there. I decided to get rid of the daughter, let the story flow from the older woman, her memori...

I did it. I bought the dream bike. I've looked at bikes, I've read all about different brands of bikes, and I decided to just go ahead and take the leap. So cheers to me for having worked the extra bit I did this semester to make my dream bike become reality. The only downside is the bike won't be ready until Monday, and the weather over the weekend is supposed to be mid 40's with lots of sun. Perfect for riding. Perhaps I'll go out on my trusty hybrid these next two days, before I switch over to Dream Bike, and try to get in the 47 miles I need to hit 1000 miles since May.

After the one meeting I had to attend on Friday, I returned home, changed into total, uber woobie clothes and relaxed, staying that way for the larger part of the weekend. The head/chest cold that has made its way around campus and even within my own home tried to attach itself to me, and it did for about two days, but with all the rest, all the emptying my mind of all things work, the cold didn't have much to cling to. I really think that was the shortest-lived cold I've ever had in my life. Being able to just be, indulge in total body-mind rest, whooped that cold good. A small part of me does feel guilty for not getting some writing completed, and some workouts in, but that part is so small I was able to squash it easily. This week's work is minimal since I front-loaded my semester, and while I wasn't a happy camper while plowing through all the papers, all the student work coming in during that time, I'm now ecstatic at having nothing to do but my own work this...

That was the question Hubby put to me yesterday. Without thinking too long, which would only have made my must-be-humble quirk kick in, I said of course that makes me a writer. Someone else determined my work was good enough to be put into a print publication that will be shared with a larger audience. In a way, it's no longer mine. The story belongs to those who read it, who, hopefully, enjoy it. To me, that's what writers do--share their world for the pleasure of others. All I've been thinking about is how the second editor to see this piece liked it enough to want it. The first editor declined it but did say he very much enjoyed the theme of the story. And everyone who has read it has just simply liked it. Each person that I've seen read it came to the end with a smile and a satisfied nod, like the story had the just-right ingredients to make it pleasing at the beginning, through the middle, and even the end. Like that perfectly seasoned chili, not too spicy but no...

Finally. An acceptance letter. And while the magazine is a small one, probably one most people haven't heard of, it's still a magazine, and my short story will be published in its January/February/March 2011 issue. This will be my first short story publication credit, my second publishing credit overall. It's a start. And good timing, too. This Thursday I'm participating in a faculty reading at my college. I had already decided to read this particular story, and now I can begin by saying the story has been accepted for publication. I've never been in this position before, being able to say something I'm sharing with the audience gathered for the reading will actually be offered to a wider audience in the not too distant future. I've been thinking for some time now that in order for me to have any credibility in the classroom, teaching writing, I need to write and publish. My thinking is now a reality. What a great feeling.

The Jingle Bell Run went okay. I lost track of my colleagues who were a part of my group. In fact, I only saw two of the six of us before the start of the run. I ran alone for the first two miles, at which time I decided to walk for a bit. One member of the group caught up to me then and we finished the race together. I crossed the line at 33:30, which is one minute 14 seconds faster than last year's run but four minutes slower than my PR. I expected a slower time today. I just haven't run that much since August. After the run, I took the bike out for a ride. My whole mindset while riding is so different from when I'm running, though I will say my mindset today while running was actually pretty good. I wasn't there for competition. I was there to run for a good cause, get some exercise in, and just enjoy the weather. But when I'm on the bike, I can push it and love every second of it. If the wind is blowing 20 mph, I don't mind a bit. If the course has two mile ...