Day 1: Oliver slept in today, so Josh and I got some morning time together. I read more of Bella Grace Cozy and sent four poems to a magazine in Wales. I've had poems published in English and Canadian journals, but that was long ago.
Everything Everywhere All at Once was insane and maybe...awesome? Awesome. I didn't experience a moment of boredom. I think I need to process the movie. Going to a movie theater was great; I hadn't been to one since Josh and I saw Dear Evan Hansen in Raleigh.
I read the first chapter of An Acceptable Time to the boys. We're almost done with the series!
And I got some good news: an online literary journal has accepted one of my poems! Every acceptance is basically a miracle. I've sent out 79 pieces this year, but I have about 140 pieces listed on duotrope. I have some to retire and a lot more to send out.
Day 2: Josh and I again had a little time before he went for a bike ride. I sent three poems to a journal that rejected other poems about a year ago--time to try again! I finished reading Voracious, which is perfect if you like books and food, whether or not you can cook (I can't). That's book five for the month. I don't think I'll get anywhere near the amount I read last month:
We went to a nearby park and stayed there for two and a half hours! The sun was bright, and the wind was cold. It felt great. I enjoyed sitting on the turf, feeling the wind and sun, and talking to Josh. I did read a chapter of Running to him while we were there. Oliver happily ran up and down his favorite hill and watched the kids play.
Josh went to a hunger walk (he ran). I ate brown rice with chicken, green beans, and cheese. I continued reading Snow White and Rose Red, which has gotten interesting. I already feel behind on my YA focus though I am counting Many Waters (yes, I've decided that the Time Quintet is YA rather than young readers...Many Waters contained the words slut and easy lay. We laughed out loud). Later, I started reading The Personal Librarian. I hope it will be an easy read. Josh took four books back to the library for me.
Day 3: Monday. I read more of Bella Grace Cozy while Josh went to the gym and Oliver slept. Josh took Oliver to school and then slept while I planned submissions. I sent three pieces of flash fiction to a contest and figured out my next few submissions. I'll send at least seven submissions this week.
I've been keeping up with my Bible reading, trying to do it earlier in the day since it's still bleak (I'm in Jeremiah). I get a little down on Mondays. I probably just miss Josh since he works later that day. But I boosted my spirits paradoxically by finishing the heartbreaking Stag's Leap--so sad and so good.
Day 4: I finished reading Bella Grace Cozy this morning. One of my new dreams is to write for BG. I'll add that to my 50 before 50 list. I started reading The Very Short Poems of A. R. Ammons, a library book. Some people don't like short poems. I think they can be awesome. I generally prefer poems that don't go beyond the first page. But occasionally, I'm grateful to find more on the next page (Hey, Sharon Olds).
I sent five poems to a magazine and revised a few old poems. Revision is a lot easier with years of distance. I rewrote a couple of poems to suit a particular market that still only takes postal submissions. I need to write letters anyway, so maybe tomorrow will be a day for stamps. I now have seven other submissions planned out, enough to get me into next week. I don't think subs will be difficult during spring break; the boys notice when I get all intense working on a sub. I have a lot more reformatting if not actual revising to do. Somehow, I always have more to change or fix.
I now have 72 pieces out. That's still only a little more than half of my active work. I have a lot of work ahead. But I'm trying to pace myself and only send out one sub set a day. Steady.
Well, I threw that out the window. I sent four submissions today (including the postal submission) and planned several. It took most of the day. I'm tired now. But I'm still trying to get in all my habits for the day. Josh took Oliver to OT and brought home a burger for me. He's always trying to make my life easier.
Day 5: I sent two submissions today, one of them to a contest. I now have 89 pieces out on the town. I'd like to get 20 acceptances this year, but I'll be happy with 10. We'll see. I did get a late start. So far, I'm at 1. I got 11 acceptances last year, but I really only submitted work in January and February. I hope to stay on top of it this year. Once I get everything out, I'll shift into maintenance mode and focus on creating new work.
This morning, I started reading the current issue of Bella Grace and read a couple of chapters of The Personal Librarian. I'm quite behind on my reading, but I did read a great many A. R. Ammons poems last night. I'd like to finish the book today.
Josh did the grocery shopping today because I was sleepy. He's always trying to make my life easier. Wait, I just said that yesterday! When he got back, we put away groceries and did our third session of yoga. Last night, I ordered a hot pink yoga mat with Amazon points. Josh already has a mat. Mats will make the hardwood floor much more comfortable. We've gotten through standing poses, twists, and back bends. Oliver cannot abide by unauthorized video or audio, so we're going to have to see how much we remember on our own for the next few sessions.
Oliver's last day of school is tomorrow; then, he'll be off for ten days. Josh will be off next week too. Keeping Oliver entertained will be a challenge. We'll probably spend a lot of time at the park. Maybe I'll finish reading Running to Josh.
Day 6: I read some of Bella Grace and The Personal Librarian again this morning. I like that time between 6 and 7 a.m.
I sent seven poems to a magazine. I've almost reached 100 pending subs! I was alone this morning, so I took a B&BW Winter Candy Apple bubble bath and finished reading The Really Short Poems of A. R. Ammons. I didn't love it, but I marked a few clever poems for Josh to read.
I started reading The Book of Minutes, poems by Cathy Smith Bowers. I've read three of her books, and I've checked out the other two in a collection from the library. Cathy was one of my thesis readers, and I got to see her again when she came to do a reading and workshop at the college where I was teaching. She remembered me! I was pregnant with Oliver at the time.
I've asked the library to purchase some of Alan Michael Parker's poetry books. I own four, and the others are on order. I hope to read those soon. Alan was my thesis advisor (I went with the tough one), and I got to see him too when he read at my college. Alan, Cathy, Kathryn Stripling Byer, and Joseph Bathanti had the greatest influence on my poetry. JB also read at my college. Kay was the NC Poet Laureate when we were juniors at ASU, and she taught a poetry seminar we took. We went to her odd little octagonal cabin every week to snack and to talk about poetry. We stayed in touch with her until she died some years ago. I miss her. She once featured us together on her blog.
Oliver came home with Easter eggs and candy from school. He doesn't care much for candy except Skittles. I've had a lemon Starburst and a Hershey's Kiss. I made whole wheat rotini with asparagus and Alfredo sauce.
Oliver stayed up late last night, and we're not sure why. I hope that doesn't happen again tonight. I fell asleep before Josh came to bed. That bit of time at night is going to be important during spring break. We used to get a little time in the mornings, but Oliver has been waking up early. We're not used to staying up past 8:30. But we'll have to try to get 30 minutes or an hour together before we sleep. Josh has narcolepsy, so this is especially challenging. I can't fall asleep without melatonin or Ambien, so I can just start taking those later at night. The worst is when I delay my sleep meds so I can see Josh but he goes to sleep and I'm left alone, stuck awake. In general, though, I've been having less of the extreme loneliness that wrecked me for a while.
Day 7: This morning, Josh and I did our fourth session of yoga, this time without a video. We just timed it for 20 minutes and did all the poses we could remember. I used my new hot pink yoga mat. I read chapter 4 of An Acceptable Time to the boys.
While Josh was at work, I submitted six poems to a magazine with a theme call: Sugar. I mostly sent poems about food! I now have 102 pieces under consideration.
After Josh got home a little early, we went to the park for about two and a half hours. I read to Josh; we're more than halfway through Running. I imagine we'll spend a lot of time at the park during the break, and I'll do a lot of reading.
I reached my reading goals for the day, but I still have library books to finish asap. I have some holds coming in next week, mostly poetry, so I need to get square with the library. I need that stillness and attention.
No comments:
Post a Comment