Friday, October 13, 2017

Why I stopped writing.

I kind of stopped writing because I started to think that my stories didn't matter.

It's such a ballsy thing to stand up and say, "Yes, my story matters. It's important and I must get it out into the world and it will make a difference."

But I was depressed and couldn't imagine such things. So I made excuses. I was tired. I was working on writing that pays, writing about Joe's Mattress Shack and their new pillowtop ultra extreme bedding extravaganza. I wasn't denying the world anything of value.

Except I was. I am.

It's so easy to look at other people's stories and say, "YES! This is of value! Get this out in the world!" Like the story that Mary-Claire King tells about Joe DiMaggio babysitting her daughter at the airport. That's an important story.

But the gist of that story is that you never know what ripples a simple act of kindness will have in the world. In Mary-Claire's case ... well, you should just read the story.

In my case? Maybe somebody just needs to hear, "Me, too."

Or maybe I'm more of a cautionary tale. Whichever.

Either way, I'm getting back on the horse. I'm telling my stories, even when it hurts.

Here's what I've been up to:
  • Rehabbed our rental house, put it on the market, and got a full-price offer within an hour. An hour! Last time I tried to sell a house, it took nine months, so this was amazing. Except ... we knew we had to replace the roof. The roofers didn't tarp the roof correctly. We had a torrential rain. THE CEILINGS INSIDE THE HOUSE COLLAPSED FROM THE WATER DAMAGE. It's all so stupid. The roofing company took responsibility and it only moved our closing back a week, but My Guy and I both lost about 10 years off our lives due to stress.
    Dude. That's not supposed to look like that. Also, just out of frame? My husband and I having simultaneous heart attacks.
  • Obsessed all summer about going to the beach. It was to be my finish line after a summer of the aforementioned house flipping madness. I am one of those people who just neeeeeeds water. We were scheduled to go to Florida ... during the hurricane. When I called the hotel to cancel our non-refundable reservation, I was all, "You don't want me during the hurricane! I have no skillz!" and they were like, "You're right, we don't want you. Here's all your money back." I was relieved but ... slightly hurt.
  • Been mauled by this now-50-pound dog.
"Hey! I'mma jump on you, 'kay?"
So. Let's catch up. What's up with you?

Mega, huge, completely indebted thanks to reader Cyndi B. who reached out to say she missed my writing. Thank you.

11 comments:

Unknown said...

I say Cyndi B. did all of us a great big fat favor by telling you to "write already!"
xo

Cinny said...

Delighted to see that you are back!

Becky said...

I definitely missed you as well. I've been completely insanely busy working my four jobs, chasing a teenager and an unruly beagle while trying to live in the now insane place of Charlottesville. So I've kind had my head up my own butt for a while.

We had our kitchen ceiling fall in a few years ago - ours was due to an improperly installed ceiling fan. To be fair, the installer attached it to the straps correctly, he just failed to notice the straps were nailed in and not screwed in. I'll not fault him too much. But what a mess to clean up!

Shannan said...

I missed you, too. So glad you’re back. I’m also a firm believer in the power of “me, too” but in addition, you’ve got mad skills and your writing makes me smile and think and more. Thank you for sharing it. Also, why isn’t Erma near water?

Karen (formerly kcinnova) said...

YES!!

Karen (formerly kcinnova) said...

I think fall this year has kicked our butts and life experiences are making us doubt our abilities. Your writing is a huge -- HUGE-- gift for those of us who are lucky enough to read what you put out there. And yes, I would buy your book! Thank you for letting us know what's happening, even if it's heart attack ceilings.
I love/hate my job. I can't afford to do what I want if I don't work, but it cuts into my time of doing those things. I'd clone myself but my clone would hate me because I'd take all the fun stuff and make her do the drudge work.
Also, my favorite old lady had a stroke last month and my favorite old man died on Wednesday morning. It's 42 degrees, raining, and tRump is still President. (Can I just copy and paste this as my own blog post update?)

Andrea said...

You're here! Hooray! You and your stories are important-even if they just make someone smile

Unknown said...

Have missed you very much and am so glad you are back. Blogs like yours help keep me company, especially when there are dogs involved. Rosalind

Cyndi B. said...

Yay!! So glad to see you’re back! Your stories are important and I enjoy your writing. Wow! What are you feeding that puppy?

8 said...

I have missed your stories. Glad you are back! <3

Play Bazaar said...

play bazaar
play bazaar In the event that your feline appears to need to maintain a strategic distance from his nourishment bowl, take a stab at getting an alternate sort of bowl.