Dear Diary

A 3743-post collection

Catching up

I've cleaned all my vinyl singles and it's looking like there was never a lot of dust in them to begin with. Doing the LP's is going to take longer, because I have to be more careful with them. I've given myself the goal of two per day, there.

I have read through the finished chapters of Rael so I don't have to plough through them en masse when the book is finally done.

I'm just not arting this week. Sorry.

I am trying tea with Actual Cream(tm) in an effort to boost my personal energy levels. It works most of the time, but sometimes, I just need coffee.

Xylitol has definitely been identified as the culprit in my intestinal upset episodes. Looks like I'm back on to Stevia as a sweetener until something else better comes along.

I'm blaming my lifelong allergy to alcohols of every variety. Xylitol, as the 'ol' suffix indicates, is a sugar alcohol, and may be doing things to me because of that.

The creamy tea hasn't worked, this morning. So I may be taking a coffee later on. And my brain is scattershot, so I'm doing a Q&A for Tumblr instead of buckling down and doing the things that needs must be done.

I'm strange, that way. Can't really focus, so I might as well take my time on the things I have to do. I'll reward myself with some gaming when it's all done.

If it's all done in sufficient time.

Moving on

I didn't get around to half the things I had to do, yesterday. Huge shock. I'm still a bit on the weary side, but I'm determined to wear down all the big projects. Nibble it to death like a mouse.

The problem is the three other people piling it up like a tip truck.

I just gotta keep going, though. Move forward and keep doing the things that matter.

The kids are doing well. They're organised enough to have play time in

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Can I skip today?

Monday wore me out. Tuesday, likewise. I am not built for extended travel. If I'm going long distances for extended periods of time, I need like 12 to 24 hours to recuperate after the travel, please.

Today, after two days of hither and yon, after going through the emotional wringer, after coming home after all that and still wringing a piece of coherent story out of my addled brain... I want nothing more than to retreat into a pillow-fort of solitude and

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Funeral, today.

I don't know when today's Instant will be published, but I'm doing my best to see that the flow of fiction remains largely uninterrupted.

I'm on support duty, today. Propping up those I love through their time of trial. And according to my brain, it means bringing along enough tissues. Which means all of the carry packs I have left, because I overcompensate.

Yes. I know. I'm mental. I can deal with that.

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Crowded Days Ahead

Chaos is seeing her shrink, today. We're all going to a funeral, tomorrow. I have no idea what Wednesday holds, but it's bound to include looking for more Beta-readers for Beauties, and possibly working on Chaos' very first book. I should have the time by then.

I need to figure out a way to make an iced coffee that I can tolerate, because there's no way I can drive as much as I'm driving, this week, without caffeine. One that will (a)

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New toys

Beloved bought me a vinyl turntable, yesterday. While I was out with Chaos and gently stewing in my own juices, Beloved was rearranging the front room to include surround sound, once more1. Beloved, who claims to be tone deaf, has turned into an audiophile overnight.

So now I own a record player that doesn't take twenty minutes to warm up2 and is compatible with most of the other technology in the house. Plus there's a chance I can bootleg save

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Social Obligations

Chaos is attending a party, today. This is a chance for me to network with other Parentals, and social interaction practice for a chronic introvert. No, not Chaos. Think again. Yep. Me.

Chaos is going to be fine. She'll just leap in while I'm still solving five-dimensional social conversation math. I'll wear my little SPG gear pin just in case there's a fellow Steampunk nerd there. I always have high hopes of making a new, nerdy friend.

And if someone asks... and

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Slow start

Since nobody gets out of bed before 5:30 anyway, I'm re-setting my alarm to that time and not waking up early for half an hour of heartbreaking inertia. And that's all I have this morning. Inertia has me in its wicked claws today.

I woke up at around 3 and tried and failed to get back to sleep. A combo of Beloved's snoring and the various little annoying lights in the room kept me awake. The phone makes the body lotion

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Struggle to juggle

I think I should probably try to do a "head space" comic per day. As well as the other stuff. I've learned I can only handle animation in small doses, so maybe five frames a go is my limit. And I still haven't posted the progress pix for the latest art piece I'm working on.

I know that it looks like a bag of suck at the moment, which is why I haven't posted it.

Bag of suck or not, I feel

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Murgledy...

I know I'm getting to sleep. I know I'm sleeping the night... but it's not working as much as it used to. Maybe it's the change of seasons. Maybe it's the time I spend reading in bed. Maybe I just need a coffee. Whatever it is, I'm not as fully "charged" as I'm used to.

Which means I'm back to functioning on low battery.

I know how to do it... I'd just rather not. You know?

My shrink gave me more homework,

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So much to do

I'm still doing the read-through of Beauties, and aim to get to the halfway point before the end of the day. Each chapter takes fifteen minutes away from other things.

Other things like writing my Instant, or working on the first five hundred words of the new book, Rael. And I haven't even written the nut notes.

They'll evolve as time goes by.

I've always needed nut notes to keep things straight. As I introduce people, I'll take notes.

And everything is

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Road trip!

I'm off to MeMum's today. To deliver a few things, sort out her compy troubles, and possibly help with whatever happens to be happening at the time. It's a long and tiring trip for me, and I don't expect much creativity to be done today.

As it is, I am hurrying to get the Instant done so I can be on my way,

I've only done a read through of one chapter of Beauties. It takes a lot of time and focus

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...dagnabbit

Good news: I have found a way to do an efficient read-through of Beauties before I send it off to my dear, dedicated Beta-readers.

Bad news: It sucks balls and takes an age to do.

The method? I get my computer to read my book to me and follow along. Chapter by chapter. I have to take the time to devote myself to this so that my Betas have more to enjoy and less to do. Y'all should be backup to make

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Yoiks and Away, I guess.

Before I wanted to write a draft of the very polite letter I sent to the most recent A2B, I thought I'd check in on their website to see what their responses were likely to be like in the first place.

if we are interested in discussing possible representation, we will contact you by email or phone—typically within 6 weeks.

The time limit has run out. They haven't contacted me. So...

I pick another A2B and try again. At least the

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Welp. That worked.

I scanned for news about the International Women's day and the global women's strike that was supposed to happen, yesterday. Not a sausage, as Bluebottle would say.

Hopefully, things are better in other places. Maybe some certain people will see the advantages of paying people equally for all the invisible work that gets done.

It could turn out two ways, really. The whiter percentage of the population could be just fine with a 27% pay gap, think they have enough rights already,

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