Technically the last day of NaNo, 2012

…I mean it’s the official final day, hours, minutes, seconds of frenzied writing for a lot of people.  I’m glad I finished a couple days early.  As tired as I am tonight (worked 12 hours today and still didn’t come close to getting everything done) I think I would have been struggling to finish.  Woohoo!!  Maybe I’m finally learning some life lessons…like, oh I don’t know, don’t procrastinate?  I think part of the allure of procrastination is the big adrenaline rush you get when you’re faced with an emminent deadline…okay, okay…that’s not really why I’ve procrastinated in the past…yes, I’ll admit it…it was laziness.  There, are you happy?  It’s taken me a while, but I’ve learned to start on projects early (or at least on time), so I’m not so stressed out when faced with a deadline.

Oh, and Spook reminded me, in a very soft, reasonable voice, that I’d neglected to let everyone know that she’s also an IU fan…

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Ahh…NaNo completed!! I’m a winner~

Yep, I finally managed to complete my 50,000+ words for the month of November.  I had meant to sit down for 3 sessions today, but ended up not getting any writing done at all.  Then I sat down at around 6 pm and knocked out around 5000 words.  And it was actually a really good stopping place.  There are several more scenes I want to add.  I kind of left out about two years of that little boy’s life.  My plan is to have that novel be about the first five years of his life, then write the next one encompassing his growing up years.  Hey, it’s good to have a plan, right?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I feel a sense of accomplishment and, yes I’ll admit it, relief that I finished.  A big sigh of relief.  Now maybe I can clean my house.  Because when you’re working so many hours six days a week, then writing almost every night, something has to give.  For me, that was housework.  So I have some catching up to do.  Too bad I didn’t do a better job training those crazy cats to clean house.  They may not be much on housework, but they do like their basketball…Scout joined me watching the big game last night.  And yes, for any of you out of touch with college basketball…the Indiana Hoosiers won once again!  Oh yeah!

Hoosier kitty

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NaNo, Day 27…so close, so very close…

Bits of Me… Stacked (Photo credit: smittenkittenorig)

Ahh…yes, less than 5,000 words to go!  This has been a challenge, more so because of the time of year the challenge has taken place than the actual writing itself.  Not that I’m saying the writing has always been easy, but sitting down to write after working 12 hours adds another layer of difficulty to it.  But I’m just about there.  So close…Tomorrow is going to be the day, I can feel it in my bones…or maybe that’s just exhaustion I’m feeling in my bones, my muscles, my brain…nope, nope…it’s the approach to the finish line I’m experiencing!

And for anyone who was curious, concerned, or just plain interested…the zone vice president didn’t stop by our store for a visit after all.  And the thing is, we were looking really good…and at this time of year, that doesn’t last long.  One day is all it takes to sell out an entire side counter and then have to figure out what to fill it with…So yeah, I was maybe a little disappointed and a little relieved…but there’s always the next time~~

Now, who’s ready for some Hoosiers basketball???

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NaNo, day 26 and corporate visitors

hold-a-meeting (Photo credit: bettyx1138)

I’d only been home from work for a short period of time when the closing manager called me to tell me that our district manager had called him and said that he was picking up our zone vice president at the airport tomorrow morning and that they would most definitely be coming to our store…yikes!  Wish me luck, I need a good visit.

I was pacing back and forth, nervous…then decided to sit down and write anyhow.  I’m glad I did.  I somehow managed to write enough to get me over 44000 words!

I don’t really have a lot to say, very nervous about the visit tomorrow, ready to be finished with my NaNo challenge…going to try to get a little sleep tonight.  Hopefully I won’t be awake tossing and turning all night tonight.

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NaNo, Day 25…the end is in sight

IMG_0859 (Photo credit: OkayCityNate)

After working another long day today, I came home, did a few things around the house, then sat down to watch my Indiana Hoosiers play a little bball  (yes, they did win…not even close).  I had already started writing before the game came on, did a little more during halftime, then finished it up after the game ended.  Finished the day with over 2000 words.  I’m starting to think I’ll be able to finish on Wednesday, my one day off work.  (Hmm…unless we get a visit from one of the bigwigs, then I may not get a day off work…oh well, I’ll deal with that if and when it happens…no need to obsess about something that may not even happen, right?)

The writing was pretty easy again today, maybe because this is a scene I’ve played over and over in my mind.  Anyhow, I’m definitely going to hit that magical 50,000 word count mark in the next few days.  Ahh…and then I think I’ll sleep for a day or two!

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Just about made it through the Thanksgiving weekend and NaNo day 24

English: DC USA, Target, Black Friday (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Today was another wild and crazy day at work…ya just gotta love retail the weekend after Thanksgiving!!  But we’ve almost made it through the busiest weekend of the year.  Of course, next weekend will be busy too.  And the weekend after that…But I’m starting to get a glimpse of that light at the end of the tunnel…The district manager stopped by for a visit again today.  Thankfully, he said we looked good, everything is full and things are going well.  So, maybe just maybe, this will be a good thing for my future with the company.  Keep your fingers crossed, okay?

I was so tired when I got home last night that I couldn’t write one single word.  But I think I kind of made it up tonight…almost 3000 words…and some decent stuff, I think.  The  stomach-churning kind of good, if you know what I mean.  What I’m writing right now is really one of the biggest, most emotionally draining scenes in the entire book…I’ve thought about this for quite some time so it’s nice to actually get it underway.  It’s not finished, not by a long shot, but I’ve got it sounding the way I’ve imagined it…and that has put a smile on my face.

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving.  Started your shopping yet???

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Happy Thanksgiving on this 22nd day of NaNo

Thanksgiving Day Greetings (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Thanksgiving is here.  I hope everyone is enjoying a peaceful day with family and friends, good food, maybe some football and parades.  As for me, I’ll be going in to work pretty soon…boo!  One good thing about it, the day will be so busy that it goes by quickly and I’ve got just the best crew working with me today, so that makes it much nicer…sure does help to be the one making out the schedule..heehee!!

I went in to work yesterday morning at 5 am, worked until 2:30.  Then I went home to try to get a little rest before going back in at 6 pm to help set the ad, at least I thought I was going to go in to help…kinda worked out a little differently than I’d planned…oh well, after Christmas we’ll be doing some major training of our associates so more people are capable of doing what needs to be done.  Just a little side note there…

Anyhow, after finishing the ad set and getting out the doorbusters for today, I finally made it out of the joint around 11:30ish…a 15 hour work day…wow!  That’s…I…oh my…that’s way too many hours for this old body to be working.  Now, I’ll be going in at 3 this afternoon.  As much as I hate to do it, I have to stop at Kroger to pick up bread and ice for my associates…can’t forget to take in the ham I baked…someone might like a nice juicy ham sandwich on their break tonight.  I know I will!

I wonder if customers will be lined up on the sidewalk when I get to work…there were a few out there last year when I went in…funny what people will do to get a bargain or two…Hey, I did do some shopping today…on Amazon!  Got a lightening deal watch for myself…I think that’ll be my Christmas present to myself.

I am so glad I did all of that extra writing earlier in the month.  My cushion has all but evaporated, but at least I’m still on schedule to finish on time.  I did sit down and write a little over 1000 words today.  I was actually on a roll when Chris called.  He was driving to the store where he’s filling in as manager so we chatted while he drove (I know, I know…distractions aren’t good while driving…).  So, as far as NaNo goes, I’m at 37,600 words now with a little over a week to go.  I’m going to have to force myself to sit down every evening for a while since I’ll only have one more day off work between now and the end of the month.  But I’ll get there…it may not be early, but I will reach 50,000 words by the end of November!

Hey, Happy Thanksgiving!!  Gobble, gobble!

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I’m thankful for day 20 of NaNo

nanowrimo, goal day 20 (Photo credit: paloetic)

Seriously, I had a good day of writing today.  It was one of those days when the writing is easy, words form without a lot of effort, you don’t have to give it a lot of thought.  And I ended up with a little over 2000 words, still have that little cushion to help me as I continue working toward that 50,000 word count.

Once I finally got out of bed today, I forced myself to make the trek to Kroger to purchase a few more things for our Thanksgiving work feast…bottled water, bottled tea, soda, chips, candy, snack cakes and crackers, and a big old spiral sliced ham (which I did bake this evening…the house sure smells good).  I dropped everything off at work where young Chris told me the district manager had called for me.  So I meandered toward the office, talking with customers on the way.  When I called Steve, he told me we had a conference call scheduled for this afternoon and wanted to know how things were going.  We chatted for a few minutes then parted ways, he to make the trip to Illinois, me to check on the schedule…another call-in to try to find a replacement for.  I got all of that taken care of, added a few more shifts to use up the hours that I had left over, gathered all of the requests-off and schedule info so I could work on the schedule at home later in the day.

Then I went back to Kroger, the one closest to where I live, to pick up a few things I needed for home.  I finally made my way home with half an hour to spare before the conference call got underway.  After participating in the 40 minute conference call, I got the ham in the oven, laundry in the washer, dish water run, and finally sat down to eat something.  After working on the schedule for a while, I did a couple more things around the house then decided to get down to the business of writing.

Whew! One of my work buddies told me I looked tired…hmm…I wonder why?!  What a great day off!  What did you do today?

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NaNoing despite it all…

English: Indiana Hoosiers logo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Another twelve-hour work day…and still didn’t get everything done that I wanted to do…but then, when do any of us ever manage that, right?  I’m scheduled off tomorrow, but I’ve been debating whether or not I should go in for a few hours…If I do, I won’t have another day off until the middle of next week.  I need to work on the schedule, but I can do that from home.  And I sure would like to sleep in…no alarm clock, no leaving the house in the dark and coming home in the dark.  I’ve almost convinced myself to take the day off.  I’m going in at 5 am Wednesday, working with my downstocking team, going home to take a nap, then coming back in around sixish to make sure the ad gets set completely and correctly.  So…a day off tomorrow?  I sure would like it!  What to do?  What to do?

I’ve been so tired after working, that I’ve skipped a few days of writing here and there…still ahead of schedule on my NaNo novel…not by a lot, but still…I sat down to write tonight, planning to get in about 1000 words.  I feel pretty good that I managed to write almost 1700 words, despite being tired, despite being stressed, despite being a little nervous about work.  Writing somehow makes just about everything run a little smoother.

And now that my Indiana Hoosiers have won their game tonight, I’m giving some serious thought to heading upstairs to bed.  ‘Night, all!

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Twas the Saturday before Thanksgiving…

Thanksgiving Day Greetings (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

…and day 17 of NaNoWriMo.  And what a wild day it was.  We went in to work at 6 this morning.  Yes, that was kind of like sleeping in for me.  We got quite a bit done before opening, then it was nuts from the get-go (now where does that phrase come from?  Guess I’ll have to google that one.).  The good news is, I didn’t fall off of any ladders today!

After not writing at all yesterday, I knew I was going to have to spend a little time at it tonight.  I’m not sure I managed to write anything worthwhile…no, let me change that.  I’m pretty sure everything I wrote tonight was crap (that one’s for you, Simone).  Seemed like I was just going through the motions to add to my word count…and that’s not cool.

I’m so glad I had those few days of intense writing when I was able to get ahead on the word count, because I know, for the next week, it’s going to be difficult to find much time to devote to it.  But hey, that’s why I tried to jump out fast.  I knew what the month would be like.  I mean, after all, this isn’t my first rodeo.

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