Thursday Thirteen: Procrastination!

Besides perfectionism, procrastination is my next biggest issue. Way back in college, it used to be a running joke that for me a study break was when I took a break and studied. I’m finding similar issues these days as I find myself reluctant to face certain truths or balk at actually writing them down. I don’t recommend any of these methods, but maybe it’ll help you recognize your own self-sabotage tactics.

13 Signs You May Be Procrastinating

1. You catch yourself humming as you go to gather laundry and you HATE doing laundry.

2. You noticed a speck of dust and rush to grab the feather duster and proceed to run it over every surface in the house.

3. You obsessively check your email. Discounts on Viagra and the possibility of your non-existent eBay account being compromised are beginning to look interesting.

4. You find yourself jumping up in the middle of a sentence to go check some minute detail because you were just reading about it and want to get the quote exactly right.

5. Balancing your checkbook becomes your highest priority even though you just did it yesterday. It MIGHT have changed.

6. You need to go check if there are any new posts on your favorite forum, RD always delivers when you need a distraction.

7. You find yourself drinking more water, not because you’re necessarily thirsty, but it means more trips to the bathroom to “think”. Oh, and the plants are probably thirsty too.

8. You play with the fonts. See! It looks better that way… courier is too icky. Times New Roman is boring! What you need is a fresh look at your writing… how about something to put it in context? Regency Script, Copperplate or even FUTURA?

9. Hmmm? Was that your stomach that just growled? Snack time is always good for a few extra minutes.

10. That song playing is driving you nuts! The shuffle isn’t shuffling randomly. You swear it’s picking out favorite songs just to annoy you.

11. You catch yourself staring at the phone, willing it to ring. Maybe the kids forgot something at school. That’ll burn a half hour or so to find it and then drive over and back.

12. You must have some bills floating around on your desk that haven’t been paid. What starts out as a hunt for one unpaid bill, turns into a marathon desk-organizing mission.

13. It’s only Friday, but you’re already pondering what to put in next week’s TT. Hey, if you do one a day for a week, you won’t have to worry about them for a while!

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!

1 Gina Ardito	2 Heather	3 Susan Helene Gottfried	4 Carrie Lofty
5 Unusual Historicals	6 Debbie Mumford	7 Deb Logan	8 Rene Lyons

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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

Thursday Thirteen: You Go, Girl!

13 Things I Learned From
Romance Heroines

1. Always make sure your slippers and reticule match your gown.
2. Corsets weren’t worth the trouble, the best heroes like real women with curves too.
3. True love always conquers all, even if you didn’t recognize it at first.
4. Men like to be argued with — it catches their attention better than simpering.
5. That feisty old lady with the cane? Listen to her, she’s the brains of the bunch!
6. Alpha males can be tamed, housebroken and taught new tricks!
7. It’s not a house party until someone is forced to get engaged!
8. The best scents to wear are lemons, roses and lavender.
9. The best men smell like soap, sandalwood and linen.
10. Curling irons have only slightly improved in 200 years.
11. Phaetons, Porches — same difference. It’s all about the horsepower.
12. The man who appears to be your worst match is likely the best, unless he’s the villain.
13. Your toes will only curl for the right man, and they’ll curl every time, ifyaknowhattamean.

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!

1 Seeley deBorn	2 Rhonda Stapleton	3 Paige Tyler	4 Jennifer Shirk
5 Morgan St. John	6 Jennifer McKenzie	7 Heather	8 Gina Ardito
9 Debora	10 Tempest Knight	11 Unusual Historicals	12 Carrie Lofty
13 Susan Helene Gottfried	14 Kate Willoughby	15 Savannah Chase	16 Debbie Mumford

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Thursday Thirteen: Bad Hero, Bad!

13 Things A Hero Should Never Say…

…when the heroine has just impulsively confessed her love and blurted out those three little words…

1. “No, no, no. This was just supposed to be about the sex!”
2. “Me too! I am great, aren’t I?”
3. “Why does every girl I kiss say that?”
4. “Huh? We’ve only been living together for, what? Ten years?”
5. “Me or how I make you feel, baby?”
6. “My wife’s not gonna like this.”
7. “What? Do I know you?”
8. “Why? I killed your kittens, stabbed your brother, ruined your sister, and have kidnapped you and have been holding you hostage for a week. Women!”
9. “Mmmmm…. I love you too, Monique. It was Monique, right?”
10. “Hold still, you’ve got something in your teeth.”
11. “What? Come out of there so I can understand what you’re saying.”
12. *belch* Pass me another cold one, babe. Dammit! Interception!”
13. Zzzzzzzzzz!

Links to other Thursday Thirteens!

1 Jennifer McKenzie	2 Lorelei James	3 Amelia June	4 Seeley deBorn
5 Adelle Laudan	6 Heather	7 Tempest Knight	8 Savannah Chase
9 Robin L. Rotham	10 Elle Fredrix	11 Debbie Mumford	12 Morgan St. John

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Life, Interruptions, & Plans

This cartoon from the Punch magazine by John Leech in 1847 shows life hasn’t changed that much in 160 years. Everyday details intrude upon the creative space of the would-be artist.

Perhaps September wasn’t the best time to try to focus on a new project or hobby. With the start of the school year, I was ecstatic to discover I had all day between 8:30 am and 2:15 pm to myself. However, in practice, this time is nibbled away as the kids forget things at school that have to be brought to them — glasses, violins, binders — all things they can’t live without.

The fifth grade teachers have instituted what they call a “No Rescue Policy” where the kids aren’t allowed to call home for these forgotten treasures. They can only hope that the desired object magically appears where it needs to be at the right time. Somehow, this feels like even more pressure on me rather than teaching them to be more responsible.

September has also been a busy time for DH with work and travel. It seems like he’s been gone more this month than he’s been home. He comes home today to leave again on Friday for Tokyo. This leaves me little to no time in the evenings to even try to catch up on writing time missed during the day because there’s homework to be done. I really need to instill the “If I have to work, so do you” ethic in my kids.

I haven’t been dropping in on the live chats on Romance Divas much the past couple of weeks either. I feel guilty for that, but I don’t have anything in my head that I can sit and write about for 20 minutes right now. Excuses, excuses. I’m quickly running out of them. I’ve got some plans, but they’re mostly in the sit and think about it stage. Digesting information and techniques takes time. I need to wrap my head around them so I can absorb them and then be able to work with them.