Welcome to the 8th installment of My Week In A Nutshell. It should be the 9th but last weekend turned into a total writing fizzer. Not for any particular reason, beyond having the headache from hell. So today we pick up where last we left on. It was a dark and stormy night as lightening lashed the castle walls;

Real Life/Work Life

Again I’ve made the decision to combine the two. I’m rapidly coming to the realisation that outside of work I don’t really have a real life anymore. I commute, I work, I commute, I sleep. Repeat five days a week. Weekends, you can replace commute with wash laundry and work with clean house. The one big piece of news from my “real life/work life” this week is I quit smoking. I’ve written about what brought about the realisation I was ready to permanently stop smoking in It Was A Year Ago Last Tuesday at my other blog Living Sober. Today may only be Day 3, but I’ve not had a craving for a cigarette yet and while I assume they will come sooner or later, the joy I feel each time I realise I’m not smoking will be the shield I use to prevent myself giving in.

At this rate having ditched both excessive drinking and now smoking, I’ll need to take up a few more bad habits to quit in 2013 if I’m to have anything to write about at all.

Reel Life:

Last night I watched an old favourite of mine: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.Calling it an old favourite, I’m talking about the movie. I’ve never read the novels by C.S. Lewis on which the films are based. I vaguely remember a BBC TV show from when I was a kid about this story, but I can’t for the life of remember whether I liked it or not. There’s something about the story, a timelessness, a sens of belonging that has guaranteed it has become a classic. While I was watching it last night I had the thought “Sometimes the legacy you leave is the love you give freely to others with no strings attached.” It would be wonderful if I could one day leave a legacy like that. Whether in film form, novel form, or just in the hearts of the people I love.

Online Life:

My online life these days seems to centre around Twitter. I’ve sort of given up on Facebook. All it seems to be is people sharing funny pictures. While I like the funny pictures, I miss the days when people had to think for themselves and make up funny things to share, rather than just click a button and share something that has nothing to do with their own creativity. I’m as guilty as everyone else for doing it, although lately I’ve taken to sharing cute kitten pictures and glorious sunrises.

Writers Life:

It’s a writers life for me. During the week I write marketing copy and conference agenda’s. Its hot. Weekends, I write blog posts and sometimes, if I allow myself the time I may write a scene from a movie or a story. Lately it’s all been work. Even on weekends, I’ve spent the majority of my time doing the work I don’t have time to do during the day. A friend of mine told me last weekend I need a work/life balance. I’ve heard of those. But I’m beginning to think – as you get older – a work/life balance is an absolute myth. I think it’s one of the reasons I’ve really taken to posting my Indie Spotlight feature each Saturday. I don’t seem to give myself the time to write my own dreams into reality so if I can help others find the funding to make their dreams a reality then I’m sort of giving back and maybe one day I’ll be given the gift I need, time.

BodyTrim:

For all the success I’ve had so far, I’ve been pretty lazy with the BodyTrim experience these last couple of weeks. I’ve not put on any weight, but I’ve not lost any either. I’ve got no one to blame but myself. I’ve slipped back into grabbing take away from the shop next door because I’m there and back in 3 minutes rather than the 10 it would take to walk to the fish shop each day. Now that I’ve quit smoking I need to be extra careful I don’t buy junky food for lunch. I don’t want to put on any weight now that I’ve ditched the cig’s. This week is all about healthy food, no carbs, and no Cola. Just a cleansing week to reinvigorate my desire to lose the extra kilos.