Muse on the Go

I often wish that ideas for blog posts popped into my mind the way my new calendar appeared at the perfect time - express a need for them, and they will come. Often, a snippet occurs to me and I file it away in my drafts, hoping to revise it and shape it into something more than unspecified ramblings, but invariably, when I return to these nuggets of wisdom, I find them not so wise. Still, I keep them there, metaphorically collecting dust, as a sort of security blanket, a talisman to keep blank pages and the anxiety they inspire at bay.


The other day, someone asked me what I do in my spare time. Without hesitation, I replied that I didn't have spare time. Therein lies a large part of my problem. A mind that's constantly in motion doesn't have time to create ideas for blog posts - or anything else.

Lately, I've been trying to create pockets of quiet time. One of the easiest times to do this is when I am alone in my car. Last week, the intersection of a quiet drive and the hands-free voice memo feature on my cell phone yielded a wonderful return on a music-free drive: two blog post rough drafts.

Turns out that I sometimes blog better out loud than at the keyboard. And, while this will come as no surprise to those who know me and the volume of words I am capable of uttering in a single conversation, I'd never thought to blog on the go before.

Of course, if I fill my drive with words, even if they are my own, this begs the question of whether or not I've actually achieved my quiet drive. Quiet? No. Creative? Yes. Peaceful? No. Productive? Yes.

In the end it all comes down to priorities and balance. Sometimes, when the muse shows up, you need to visit with her, even if a quiet drive is all you really want.