Welp, the boxes are unpacked (mostly) and the house is clean (kind of). I’m sitting in an office that is workable. For years I’ve wanted an office with a door—a dream that seemed unachievable in the apartment dining-area-turned-office corner I spent five years. Now, friends, my lovely void, I have TWO. Two doors. One leads to the living room where living and naps (mostly naps) happen. The other leads to the kitchen for sneaky snacking. For all this house’s quirks and horrendous disasters that we are discovering almost daily, it’s worth it. It’s worth it for these two doors. Fight me.
Just kidding.
But seriously. Life has been busy and it isn’t slowing down any time soon. But as things are ever evolving as we get used to this new normal, I’m finding time to make time for what really makes me happy: this. Well, not so much this as in blogging, but writing. And by new normal, I don’t just mean being a new home owner. This corona biz has everything a little bit crazy. My job is listed as “essential,” which is both a blessing and a curse. On the bright side, I still have a job. In case you didn’t know what my daytime looks like, it’s usually a lot of Walmart eyeballs and phone calls. But that one is only open for four short hours every day, so that means that I get shoved out into the store I thought I had escaped from five years ago and help out where they need me. Another bright side: overtime. Overtime is a cursed word in the corporate world, but when so many people don’t come in because they are sick or they are afraid of getting sick, well, maybe it just isn’t so bad after all.
But Manda, the collective void asks, why is it a curse? Well, friends, I work in the Midwest, where the gun-toting Bud-chugging meth-using populace watches tornados from their front porch and get fucked up on Saturday to repent on Sunday and judge anyone who doesn’t conform to their lifestyle when they show up to work on Monday. It’s not really that bad. But it feels like it during a pandemic.
“Fuck six feet apart, fuck face masks, and fuck the democrats!”
If these people were the picketing type, that would be their chant. Unoriginal and asinine. Perfect combination for the majority of the Midwestern type in which I reside amongst.
Sometimes I think that I don’t fit in. 😉
Rant aside, the whole essential employee whatnots is bad because by the end of my shifts I’m exhausted and the mere thought of doing anything but watch mindless television is panic-inducing.
But, my dear void, that was BEFORE I got the office up and running and in working order. It’s my happy place. In this chair, at this desk, is where I thrive, and I’m so ready for it. Not only for the story writing and blogging and whatnot, but for writing quick little articles on Textbroker for some extra spending cash. Lord knows I need it now more than ever. So there’s that.
And now, a little update, because if I tell you, I’m more likely to follow through with it. I want to work on a few things on this page. You know, the layout, the theme, organizing, linking the things that help me sell stories better, all that shit. I still want to do book reviews, but I might do them on a once a month basis instead of biweekly. For the other post, I think I want to show off things I’m working on, whether it be story-wise or house-wise or wedding-wise or fuck, just life-wise. That way, you get my awesome shitty opinions on books AND get to see the person BEHIND that shitty opinion. All the fun shit. J
That’s enough from me for now. How about you? What have you been doing lately? Pick up any new hobbies? Or are you “essential” like yours truly?
Manda Kay Writes 