Wallowing in Winter Whining

Did you ever have one of those days where you had absolutely nothing to say, and not one interesting idea to blog about? And it’s not like you don’t have millions of things you could talk about, or share, or poke fun at….and yet, for some reason you don’t have any desire or energy to put the effort into it? Well, if not, congratulations! You are simply an amazing individual, and should therefore feel free to go along your merry way without reading another word of this. (I mean it. Not another word.) But for those of you who may occasionally suffer from what some might refer to as “writer’s block,” kindly proceed this way. (Good, that’s one paragraph down.)

Personally, I usually have several topics on hand to blog about at any given time. As I think of things to write about, I jot them down on one of the many pads of post-it notes that pepper my desk. That way, if there should ever come a time when I can’t think of anything to write about, I would simply peel off a post it and jot down my thoughts on that particular topic. That was, of course, before the post-its started separating from their pads, thus becoming small individual pieces of paper that would get mixed in with the stacks of mail or work projects or junk mail or anything else that happened to come across my desk, and for some reason, remained there in a collective heap. The eventual result would be post-its that inadvertently attached themselves to the bottom of something I was throwing out, or they accidentally got between two pieces of paper that went into some file that I’ll probably never look at again for at least three years. (But boy, when I do look at it, I’m sure that missing post-it will give me a really great idea for a blog posting. Unless it’s something topical, like my thoughts on Paris Hilton, or the cancellation of “Dirty Sexy Money”---both of which I hope are no longer relevant or remembered.)

So I could certainly blame my lack of inspiration on the missing post it notes, or any of a dozen other excuses I could come up with to explain my predicament. (None of which would be the direct result of anything I did wrong, of course.) But I think there’s something even more sinister at work here. Something that seeps into your body around this time of year, causing you to feel even more tired and listless than usual. And if you work at home like I do, and don’t need to venture out into the world on a daily basis, than the monotony of your environment on a cold, particularly bleak winter week can make you feel like Jack Nicholson in “The Shining.” It’s not exactly a full-blown case of Winter Blues, but it’s not general Slovenliness either. It’s some grey area in between, where everything literally feels gray.

And I’m not saying I don’t have distractions. The presence of two new kittens in the house has certainly kept me quite entertained, so it’s not like I’m ever bored. I just hate the winter. I hate not being able to go outside and sit in my backyard. I hate having to put on layers of clothes just to go to the supermarket to pick up that favorite ice cream I’ve been craving. Only once I’ve been out in the freezing cold for a good half hour, ice cream is probably the last thing I’m likely to eat.

So what’s my point in all this? Don’t worry, I’m getting to that. (Patience, please!). I’m just bitching about my least favorite time of year, and how it can make me particularly lazy when it comes to writing my blog. I have so many other things to do, including filming and editing my little videos, and playing with the cats, and going out with friends, and…the list goes on and on. In other words, I have plenty to occupy my time so I’ve sort of let the writing portion of my blog slip a little in the last few weeks. And instead of updating every three days, I’ve started updating every four, or sometimes five (shocking, I know). So anyway, for anyone who might have noticed this inconsistency in my posting habits (and for the two of you, I thank you), I apologize. And that, my friends, was the entire point of this posting. (Which just proves that I can pontificate on practically anything---once I find the right post it note, that is.)

But that’s just me. Are you having any trouble when it comes to your writing efforts in the winter time?