Another year has come and gone. CAMPER is now going on 18 months, he surpassed the one year mark and is now trying to walk. Which is pretty cool to watch. He is also trying to speak and rambles on in baby-babble for long periods of time, especially when he is upset over something and needs to get it off his chest.
Erin and I have spent the past year in Massachusetts. During that time I took all of the tests for Massachusetts Teacher Licensure and passed. This was a bit of a surprise. Out of the three tests I knew I would pass two of them. When I got word that I passed the third I was surprised and excited and I know Erin was as well.
After a little less than six months as a graduate student (Masters of Fine Art in Creative Writing), I feel that things are finally clicking. I head back to school two days after Christmas. That goes through the New Year. I am actually getting excited for the next residency, meeting new people, seeing the ones I now know, and building that writing community that will (God willing) allow me to move forward as a writer.
I did start a couple of writing projects that I am a little excited about and that others are far more excited about. When I am in a position (meaning I have written a hell of a lot more) to share I will. One of the things I’ve learned over the past months is, first, to ask, “Why?” something exists within the context of what I am writing; and, second, that I am really bad about completing things that I start.
As a result of the past year, I think I’ve become frustrated with the state of politics, the state of the economy, the state of my life, and the state of the kinds of jobs I seem to be getting. Presently, I am working in Loss Prevention and even though the nature of the job is enjoyable and educational; the amount I am paid and the stress of the position don’t really work for my overall sanity. Regardless, it pays the bills.
In any case, the past year has been good and I think I need to be better at writing on my blog. I have an app on my iPhone that allows me to update and I should use it more. Going into the next year, I am hoping for a better job. To teach somewhere. And to finally do what I keep putting off – writing something that should be published and then be paid to have it published.
I realize there isn’t a lot of coherence to this. Consider, though, that it is an update and for anyone who still comes about, the coherence will come in time.
John Hattaway | smokingpen | Alicia Grey | Clockwork Princess | Cassandra West
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