- - - - - -
Yesterday, like the day before, I spent the entire day writing. And, like the day before, none of it was for NaNoWriMo.
This is getting comical. Who would have thought the impetus of a deadline would have so powerfully motivated me to do other stuff? But that’s what happened; I started off with a little “God Save the Queen” revision - wanted to get that out of the way before I buckled down - and then seriously got into it, and kept on going. The original story was about 8,600 words; I’m now past the 10,000 mark, and I’m barely two-thirds of the way through the second chapter (only, by my mark, it’s now Part 4, with at least one more full chapter to go).
I’m not going to abandon something while it’s hot, but I can see the pitfalls here. I drill with my unit Saturday and Sunday (unlikely to get much writing done those days), and just like that I’ll be down to twenty-five days in the month, with 50,000 words still to go. So, adjustments have to be made.
At the library, I’ve now reviewed all the Farsi lessons I’d already done, and am ready to break into new ground, but in the meantime I said the heck with it and ordered the software directly from Rosetta Stone. If in fact I am given the DLPT in January, I want as much advance preparation as I can get. Besides, I enjoy language study, and I already have a good foundation in Farsi, and Rosetta Stone is easy, and - as I’ve noted before - I may wind up having a direct need for fluency in Farsi.
Or possibly not. My unit just passed on a call for volunteers to deploy to Bosnia. Starting in mid-January, either six-month or one-year tours, and I don’t know if that means that you have your choice or that the length of the tour hasn’t yet been decided. I find that I like going on deployment, and I like coming home again, and after three or four months I’m ready to go back on duty. I came back from Iraq in April 2004, and was at Fort Bragg to study Farsi by the end of August. Following my Afghanistan tour, I’ve been back five months already, with two more to go before I even have a chance at my long-term dream of going to DLI, and I’m getting a little edgy.
Besides, Bosnia. Overseas service, in a relatively settled theater … I’m interested.
There are only two significant arguments against it. First, it would further delay the already-delayed opportunity to go to DLI. I truly, sincerely yearn for that, and they’ve said they’ll send me, and I hate to put it off any longer than I have to. Second, my daughter is supposed to be back in the States for five weeks in May; I could - probably - get leave time, but not five weeks’ worth, and I want to see her as much as I can while it’s possible. (Of course, DLI would likewise interfere if I get it, so it’s pretty much a toss-up.)
I suppose, if you’re going to have a problem, too many choices is a good one to have.
Yesterday, like the day before, I spent the entire day writing. And, like the day before, none of it was for NaNoWriMo.
This is getting comical. Who would have thought the impetus of a deadline would have so powerfully motivated me to do other stuff? But that’s what happened; I started off with a little “God Save the Queen” revision - wanted to get that out of the way before I buckled down - and then seriously got into it, and kept on going. The original story was about 8,600 words; I’m now past the 10,000 mark, and I’m barely two-thirds of the way through the second chapter (only, by my mark, it’s now Part 4, with at least one more full chapter to go).
I’m not going to abandon something while it’s hot, but I can see the pitfalls here. I drill with my unit Saturday and Sunday (unlikely to get much writing done those days), and just like that I’ll be down to twenty-five days in the month, with 50,000 words still to go. So, adjustments have to be made.
At the library, I’ve now reviewed all the Farsi lessons I’d already done, and am ready to break into new ground, but in the meantime I said the heck with it and ordered the software directly from Rosetta Stone. If in fact I am given the DLPT in January, I want as much advance preparation as I can get. Besides, I enjoy language study, and I already have a good foundation in Farsi, and Rosetta Stone is easy, and - as I’ve noted before - I may wind up having a direct need for fluency in Farsi.
Or possibly not. My unit just passed on a call for volunteers to deploy to Bosnia. Starting in mid-January, either six-month or one-year tours, and I don’t know if that means that you have your choice or that the length of the tour hasn’t yet been decided. I find that I like going on deployment, and I like coming home again, and after three or four months I’m ready to go back on duty. I came back from Iraq in April 2004, and was at Fort Bragg to study Farsi by the end of August. Following my Afghanistan tour, I’ve been back five months already, with two more to go before I even have a chance at my long-term dream of going to DLI, and I’m getting a little edgy.
Besides, Bosnia. Overseas service, in a relatively settled theater … I’m interested.
There are only two significant arguments against it. First, it would further delay the already-delayed opportunity to go to DLI. I truly, sincerely yearn for that, and they’ve said they’ll send me, and I hate to put it off any longer than I have to. Second, my daughter is supposed to be back in the States for five weeks in May; I could - probably - get leave time, but not five weeks’ worth, and I want to see her as much as I can while it’s possible. (Of course, DLI would likewise interfere if I get it, so it’s pretty much a toss-up.)
I suppose, if you’re going to have a problem, too many choices is a good one to have.