Everything New is Old Again

Our camp in Confluence has always been my own personal writing retreat. After a week of missed writing opportunities, I look forward to a couple of days away to boost the old word count.

Such was this past weekend. We arrived at the campgrounds by 10AM and settled in. After a short bike ride to loosen up after the drive (and to check the river conditions for my fly fishing hubby) and some lunch, Hubby headed for one of his favorite fishing spots, and I unpacked my laptop.

Which is when I had one of those slap-myself-upside-the-head moments.

I’d forgotten to pack the power cord. Yes, I said a few choice bad words. Followed by a few more. I hadn't even fully charged the battery. So I had very limited computer time for the next few days.

But once I calmed down, I found a bright spot in my gloom. Instead of staring at the computer screen trying to conjure up words, I turned the gadget off and pulled out my notebook and purple pen. (I love funky colored inks!) For the next two days, I brainstormed on paper. Roughed out the next few scenes in longhand. I sat and THOUGHT about the scenes and the characters. Not only did I come up with some ideas that I believe I’d have missed by simply trying to increase the word and page counts, but I also realized there were a few gaps in logic in the previous chapter.

When I wasn't writing—literally, in pen on paper—I was reading. I couldn't decide which book to grab on my way out the door before we left home, so I had my Nook with me. I remembered my power cord for it. The problem is the cord I brought was the one that charged it through the computer. Thankfully, I had enough of a charge on it to read an entire novel and part of a second.

I learned three lessons this weekend. Never leave home without packing the laptop’s power cord. Never leave home without a good old fashioned notebook and pen. And never leave home without a real honest-to-goodness BOOK. Because gadgets are great, but sometimes there’s no substitute for those things that don’t require electricity.

Comments

Cheryle said…
So you ended up making lemonade, eh?
6/6/11, 5:08 PM
Ayleen said…
"Sometimes there’s no substitute for those things that don’t require electricity."

Amen.
6/6/11, 5:37 PM
Annette said…
Yes, I did, Cheryl.

Amen and amen.
6/6/11, 9:42 PM
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