Procrastinating...yet again!

Today is the big day I've been waiting for...somehow or the other, I will need to crank out 4,000 words for a term paper and then get down to editing it. Did I mention do you that I have exactly five 1,000 word bylined articles to write within this month? Add a termpaper, two big tests, essays that need to be revised, essays that need to be written and what kind of an image to you get in your head? Someone swamped with work and absolutely no time to breathe? Someone who is probably drinking gallons and gallons of coffee? Someone who is really moving their ass and actually getting down to it?

Now, I really, really admire people who actually do work when it's necessary, but here's what I did today. Woke up in the morning, lounged around, had a meaningful conversation with grandmother about cataract operations, had a whimsical conversation with father about cigars and Caipirinha, had a quiet conversation with dog, because well, the dog just couldn't be bothered to move out of my way. Then I lounged around for a bit longer and decided that it would be the moment- the defining moment when I'd just write. And that didn't happen. Ate an abnormally large breakfast and then read some blogs and began to follow some organisations I admire on twitter. I even struck up a conversation with one of them and hope to interview and take a look at the kind of work they do next month. Except, poor Wilkie Collins remained largely unignored.

Sheer Stupidity

How many of you do this? or am I the only one who is this daft?

Thought 1 in my head : Wilkie Collins is a capricorn. Loktar class acche.

Thought 2 in my head : Susan Sontag is a capricorn. Mohilar class acche.

Thought 3 in my head :What did T.S Eliot say about Wilkie Collins? That he was one of the first novelists who wrote about detective fiction. I thought that was tantamount to this incident :

Thought 3 leading to shady anecdote :

I was in a swanky bookstore and a friend of mine had wanted me to take a look at the amazingly nice covers of that particular publication. I was admiring the the design of the book, when I chanced upon a blurb which read " An amazingly good read - Famous author." And to think that people are actually paid to write blurbs.

Thought 4 : No icecream in the fridge. Broke till december 10 ( when I'll get paid and feel relatively rich for a couple of weeks.) Desperately look for money. Whine to boyfriend about having no icecream in the fridge.

Read more blogs. Read the wikipedia entry on The Moonstone. Actually finish reading half the book. Go to sleep. Chide myself for being loser and escapist. Go to sleep anyway.

Awoken by a loud sharp knock. The boyfriend has icecream :D Eat sloppily and sleepily. The boyfriend leaves. Thanks to meaningful discussion, I now have a thesis statement for my paper. Eureka!

Ma asks what I'd like for dinner. The mother and the father have a wedding invitation. I say, in my characteristically vague way, good food. I love pleasant surprises, this shouldn't be too hard.

Contented, I finally get down to work. Promise to myself that I will not check mail. Check mail anyway. Discover that there are twenty five mails that I need to respond to. They will all be tended to, but later. One mail says that my piece has been accepted for publication. Feel relieved. Remind myself of the things to do. Decide to read and end up reading Tinkle. And now I'm blogging.

What have you been doing?  Procrastinating, working, having fun or doing all three?

Comments

Arse Poetica said…
It is difficult to reconcile to this post. All my illusions are shattered. What do I do now?
CheshireCat said…
"Go to sleep. Chide myself for being loser and escapist. Go to sleep anyway."
The story of my life, as you're well aware. I went to the frigging Film Festival on Sunday, when I hadn't written a word for Monday's paper; came home in the evening, lounged around and watched re-runs.

Do I even need to say that I heart this post? :)
Anushka said…
Hey, you're So right about the blurb thing.