I Get My Ass Kicked For Not Writing

After seeing Dipti, I called up Jason and Layla, friends of mine from the grad program at OSU. They recently had (well… recently being over a year ago) a beautiful baby girl, Miranda, and I stopped by to see all three of them. Jebus. It’s been ages – the last time I saw Miranda, she was a small little ball, sleeping away in a cradle. Now – she’s walking around, laughing, talking, responding. It made me feel old and out of date. But listening to Layla and Jason talk about her progress, about how they are able to "see the ideas form" in her eyes… it made me, albeit briefly, want to have kids.

I brought my camera with me, but for some reason balked at taking pictures. Possibly because of my conversation with Juliet, possibly because I’m still new to picture taking… I decide against taking pictures while hanging out with Jason, Layla and Miranda. To me, it seemed coldly intrusive, and I chose instead to just enjoy their company. Who cares if I didn’t document the visit?

When Jason and I start talking shop, the inevitable question between writers arises: "How’s the writing?" I tell Jason that I haven’t written in over a year, and he nods. I mention that, by visiting Columbus, I’m hoping to get a nice ass kicking by talking to all my writer friends. This is what he says:

Consider your ass kicked then. I wake up at 4:30 AM three times a week. I jog around the complex, take a shower, and sit down in front of my computer by 5:30 AM. I have a kid. You have absolutely no excuse.

Jason’s drive and dedication is impressive, to say the least. I need to find that kind of drive, that kind of passion… I need to harness my energies towards a regimen, a schedule. I need to focus.