The Fine Art of Juggling or Scattered Writer Brain

Hmmmm. I have an interesting and, unfortunately, not very compatible list of writing thingies going on:

1) Major rewrite of a large project that I'm collaborating on with a group of five—count 'em FIVE!—other Filipinas. This has been in turns a fun, plodding, fascinating, frustrating, but ultimately valuable experience for me as a writer. As our publisher notes, the project is not what it should be yet, and so we are tackling an overhaul. An overhaul that I'm already enjoying, by the way. I changed the POV I was using, and things are quickly coming together.

2) Achiote Seeds! Over the weekend, I found myself making lists of words I'd like to use for these short pieces. This is something new for me, and I confess I've never taken words on such a careful test drive before. "Isthmus?" Maybe. "Almonds?" That works. "Aubergine?" Nah. "Placid?" Double nah. "Bound?" Ooooh, bound.

3) Various writing tasks related to our upcoming fancy schmancy school auction. This is my fourth year, so I have most of my text put together, but I also do layout for this particular thing, so I have plenty of squinting at the screen to look forward to, plenty of obsessing over fonts and placement and la di da. Plus multiple trips to the printer who, though a perfectly nice man, seems to have signed some pact with the devil to NEVER EVER SMILE. At this point, it's become a challenge of bizarre proportions. For my next attempt, I will perform my unique take on the cabbage patch or roger rabbit or...let's see...lawn sprinkler. That should do the trick. Or, at the very least, maybe he'll give us a discount.

4) Grant writing. Okay, it's been awhile since I scored a grant for Latino outreach at the school, and I. Need. A. Victory. Projects include a continuation of the speaker series, a family literacy project, and a full-time liason. It's maybe a bad sign when just typing those three things wears me out. I will re-commit fully mid-month when the auction is over and we're done counting our many ducats.

5) This one is sorta hilarious. I've been asked to teach "Living the Life of a Writer," which is a program with a set curriculum from The Noyce Foundation. And, um, I'm teaching it to Lea's KINDERGARTEN CLASS. Oh, lordy. It cracks me up. I'm not sure exactly what I'm in for, but a 2-inch-thick curriculum binder awaits me.

That's all from Nesting Ground HQ, my dear ones. I'm now off to tackle items 1 and 3...