I’m lucky enough to have a job that I feel really passionate about. Reading all the other blogs, I realise things could have turned out a lot worse. Even on the days when I’m not propelled out of bed by the need to go and write down some important ideas, I know that when I get into the office there won’t be any superiors breathing down my neck. I can chatter as much as I like, and if I’m tired I can just sleep in: my perfect way to have the three day weekend that everyone should be entitled to.

But it’s not altogether without it’s difficulties. Sometimes sleeping is the way to take your mind off it. I mean: Today I spent all morning trying to fix one section of my chapter, expanded it by a thousand words, and then deleted all the new stuff after a couple of cheese sandwiches for lunch. Then I had to stay back late and fix everything until it was in a zenlike state of harmony, otherwise the weekend wouldn’t happen. This kind of work is all mad flashes of inspiration, then long hours of trying to make sense out of what’s on the screeen. Worse, in the middle of it all, I have to hope and pray that I’m keeping it real and not just confusing the issue or playing games. So while it’s not a boring job and it does go somewhere, it has a bad habit of taking over your life. At least with me, anyway.

But… there’s only ten thousand words to go before I can relax for a while. It’s not that much, really. In the mean time I’ve decided that I’m going to start writing some more songs now, so if I get a band or just go solo I’ll have something to play. Each song has to conform to a set of reasonable standards:

1: It has to be somewhat boppy. I’d like really boppy songs, but I’m taking it slow.

2: It has to be amusing.

3: It has to contain a reference to the Violent Femmes.

That’s it. I think it’s a good formula though, and if I’m not concentrating on being pretentious and just push the ‘amusing’ angle I should have the first few off pretty soon. Yay!