Dazed and Confused

Reading in bed last night and I fell asleep early; earlier than I have in years. I'm usually a late-to-bed, late-to-rise person, an owl rather than a wren. Midnight, I'm usually still rattling around.


Yesterday started early, fetching a repaired laptop computer at the mall three days before Christmas. Even mad dogs and Englishmen avoid the mall at this time of year, so I went early to get in and out before the lemmings arrived. 


Then there was a long slog on the book-in-progress, new stuff, cut-and-paste, rearranging this 'n' that. This was followed by a nearly a two-hour drive to get to class, all the loons on the road blocking my path and–I am certain–actively trying to smash me. 


Then there was a harder-than-usual workout there, even plyometrics, who expected that? 


And I was fasting, because I usually do that on Thursdays, the breath mint notwithstanding, so it wasn't as if I didn't have cause to be tired ...


But: What this resulted in was walking up two hours earlier than my norm. And I was awake, couldn't drop back off.


So, get up Steve. Pad down the hall. 


I sat down at computer and went into work-fugue,  and when I blinked and looked around, three hours had zipped past.


Great for getting pages in the done column, but given the time I started, it spaced me right out. I'm not used to being up at such an ungodly hour, putting work in the basket  before the sun even comes up. 


Had an online appointment I missed, unaware that today was Friday, and still haven't gotten around to eating anything yet. 


Then again, given the various sprints I've been making through the draft, it looks as though the week off to visit the folks in Louisiana won't affect the delivery date of the novel to Ace next month. (I tend to cut deadlines pretty close, but I seldom miss one.) So, I'm almost through the first draft of CUTTER'S WARS: The Ramal Extraction. And it's going pretty well, if I do say so myself. It's not the Matadors, but I expect fans of them might find something to like in this one.


If I don't get back here before Christmas, I hope you and yours have happy holidays. If you can be with somebody who makes you smile? Go for it ...