a bumpy shift into summer gear

I'm having a bumpy shift into summer gear. It seems this happens every year--I think, I really won't worry too much about working or being productive this summer, and then I go and launch some new project. I forget until it's upon me that such things create whole new categories of work all their own. Then the chorus begins: Why do I even bother doing the work to get these words into the world? Who will even care? Then I ask, will I do it for six people? Yes. How about for one--one person for whom this work will make a genuine, swear-to-God difference? Yes. Yes, I will.

So I'm looking at ways to rearrange everything else on my agenda so I can release this new book well. So the effort can make its difference however and to whomever it will. It's just hard for me to loosen my grip on the other things I was playing with--you know the feeling?

I'm also switching modes in my off-work time, now that I have both girls with me all day long. I'm playing exactly two games this summer. First, I'm ready to have a break-through in play. This is something I forgot so long ago, and while I've let my girls give me occasional lessons, this summer I am poised to be their apt pupil.

My second game is to think of creative uses for all the packaging waste that comes with our food. Is anyone else disturbed and annoyed by how much glass, plastic, and cardboard comes in and out of their abodes every week? If I found even a few creative ways to use these otherwise discarded items, I would be a happy woman indeed.

You might notice a change in tone here on the blog as I take some time to write about many of the things I think about when I'm not doing conceptual work. I'll keep you posted about my two games (and please leave any suggestions you may have in the comments), and a miscellany of other things. Just pretend we're sitting side by side on the beach, chatting under a small umbrella, and that should be just right.