:: anne in the attic ::

Create Your Own Countdown

:: Sunday, November 19, 2006 ::

It had to happen. In fact, I felt it coming for nearly a week before it finally overtook me. Last Saturday (just in time for the Veterans' Day holiday, which meant a rare two-day weekend for me), the plague took me down, as it has been so many others in the area lately. I stayed home Monday and Tuesday, but worked the rest of the week in a kind of sickly haze that only began to clear last night. My first cold of winter and it wasn't so bad, really. The really bad one usually comes some time after the new year, usually February. No amount of garlic and echinacea can keep that wolf from my door, so it's best to succumb completely and let the body heal by allowing it rest, fluids, and yes-- (ahem) expectoration.

During this time, the things that have been gelling in my head are as follows.

The documentary structure is slowly taking shape, though I have not moved as forward as I would like on some of the physical work. There are some things I need to come to peace with as well, and some things I need to let go of.

The EP seems trivial if I think too hard about it, but because there are those who are convinced that I need to put out a physical manifestation of my work (and because I may not ever get around to en entire CD, at least not for a couple of years), it is still on the agenda.

Family dynamics seem to have shifted some.

Friends dynamics have definitely shifted. In addition, I'm well into a pattern of winter isolation. It's not easy for me to see people right now.

There are some physical changes that I want to make to my immediate environment that involve more organization and creating a little more free space.

And then there are a couple of projects that have been in the works so long that I simply need to dive in for as long as it takes, roll up my sleeves, and finish them up already.

The past couple of days, as I have emerged from ill-health, I've managed to focus outdoors and do some clearing in the yard. It felt really good, a long time coming. I also managed, in my lying-around-recovering state, to catch a couple of films I liked ("Hacking Democracy" and "Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire"), read an entire book ("The Tipping Point"), cook some hearty food (soups and things involving sourdough bread), and plink around in a more carefree and experimental than usual way (because I knew I was in no condition to record anything, so no pressure) on the guitars. And I have had some truly quality time with the cats. All of this makes me feel pretty balanced, considering I'm still dealing with the tail-end of this cold. But sometimes it really does take an illness to slow me down enough to really appreciate some of the things I've been forgetting, caught up in the daily grind.

This Thursday I'll be spending Thanksgiving in a way I haven't done for years-- with a large group of Corvallis friends and my mother. I'm looking forward to getting back to that. I was told to bring a dessert, a couple bottles of Sheaf stout, and my guitar. Sounds good to me, something to be thankful for.

:: Anne 10:37 PM [smartass remarks] ::
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