Catching Idle Butterflies

Off my arse.

Whew have I accomplished a lot these last two days, and I did most of it sitting on my arse.

Yesterday and today I rewrote about twenty pages of my second manuscript. On my second drafts I don't merely edit, I retype the entire thing from scratch. Sometimes I get better ideas that I don't get by merely cutting and pasting an existing document.

I also like my revisions for my first manuscript. I printed it out and went through it again, making some minor grammatical revisions. I also found quite a few boo-boos such as typing the wrong name of a character. How is it I missed that after 10 edits?!

I printed out my synopsis for "Killer of Minds" and plan on tackling that after I make my revisions to the manuscript. I'm not entirely certain the literary agent who I'm working with now will take me as a client, so I'm preparing everything for the writer's conference during February.

Their website ( http://www.christianwritersguild.com ) lists agents, publishers and magazines slated to be there to meet with writers. I can make up to three 15 minute appointments. In checking out the list a few minutes ago, one agent accepts all genres of fiction. The other two I'm certain won't.

One ain't bad, though, that is if I can make it to the sign up sheet soon enough. Last year was a nightmare. There were far too many conferencees and not enough editors, etc. Out of the seven I chose, I talked to the last three on my list. One ended up being the agent I'm trying to schmooze right now, so it worked out. Still, I don't want to deal with another stampede like last year. I'm simply not rude enough (or big enough) to push my way through large crowds trying to beat everyone else.

Today I decided to get off my arse and go shopping. It wasn't the shopping I was interested in so much - as I already noted in a previous entry it's not a favorite endeavor of mine - but getting some walking done. Walking outside was too depressing. The weather was warm, but kinda cloudy and absolutely no snow. Everything is so dry, brown and dead-looking. Being in a mall today where the crowds were minimal yet perhaps some good deals to be had was far more appealing.

I stopped at Foot Locker and purchased a new pair of walking shoes for an astonishing $75 and insoles for $10 (on sale from $20). That's a chunk for me, but in the last year I've come to realize the importance of good shoes. Last summer every time I walked to work, my calves hurt worse and worse. I knew I was out of shape, but to not improve with more walking was very strange.

One day while playing frisbee with Rufus, I accidentally threw it into our neighbor's yard. After getting permission, I retrieved it. I was stunned to find after walking less than 100 feet, my calves were killing me. Something was definitely up. I removed my then tennis shoes and put on a pair of more comfortable sandles. What a difference that made! I not only walked 100 feet with no pain, but to test my new theory, I walked to work the next day. As I suspected, my calves didn't hurt.

The pain was caused from wearing bad shoes!

I bought my new shoes for several reasons: My sandles will do me no good in below freezing weather, my knee (got arthritis in my right knee from a never-fixed injury in high school) and calves told me today my hiking boots don't work no more, and I need to walk to work again. My arse, my legs, my feet, and my recent incessant laziness is telling me to . . . well . . . get off my arse!

Walking to work in below freezing weather is no big deal, because it's only six blocks. I've done it a few times already, and boy did I feel good.

Would this be a New Year's resolution? Perhaps, but not because it's the New Year. Nope, I'm just tired of sitting on my arse, and so is my arse! Hmm. I wonder if I should write standing up from now on . . .