I have only so many hours:minutes a day to devote to writing. Some days are more than others. At the same time, I have only so much mental stamina:physical stamina to apply to those hours:minutes. Sometimes the two don’t align. This weekend they didn’t fully align. After yard work Saturday morning, the first I’ve been able to do since the ehrlichiosis flare-up happened, I felt good. My knees hurt a little, but not too much. I ate, rested, did a few chores inside, then went to The Dungeon to write. Alas, physical tiredness overwhelmed the gray cells, and I got less writing done than I’d hoped. This continued into Sunday.

For the weekend, I think I added somewhere between 3,000 and 4,000 words to “In Front of Fifty Thousand Screaming People”, bringing the word count to around 52,400. It was good to get past the milestone 50,000, but there’s still a long way to go. At 5,000 words a week, I won’t finish until around October 15. That’s just the first draft. I’ll then have rework and rework and rework to make it truly ready for submittal. Of course, by that time I hope to hear from the agent who has the partial.

Unfortunately, to achieve that much production given the disruption in the hours:minutes/mental:physical continuum, I had to neglect other writing chores. I neglected this blog and An Arrow Through the Air. I had to neglect freelance article writing. I’ve quit proposing articles to Buildipedia.com, even though that pays fairly well. I’ve quit writing for content sites, even though that pays a little. The content sites are not a big deal. I miss the money from Buildipedia. I also miss regularly posting to the blogs.

I’ve also neglected any follow-up work to Documenting America. I started on what might be the first follow-up work, The Candy Store Generation, as well as on a second volume of Documenting America. I’ve also pretty much given up on promoting the volume I’ve e-self-published. Sales have stalled in August after a promising up-tick in July.

Then there’s all the household things that aren’t getting done because they won’t get done if I don’t do them. Such as the over that only half works. Such as the microwave that no longer gives us full power. Such as the place way up at the top of the chimney, 30 feet off the ground, where the siding has torn away. Such as the skylight that’s leaking. Such as the painting that will be needed once the skylight is fixed. Such as my various piles of papers that aren’t as neat or hidden as they need to be. Such as the pile of bills and receives that need to be filed. Such as twenty other things I’m forgetting.

Time. There ain’t enough of it. To whom much is given, much is required. Unfortunately, I may be pretty much out of much.