[[Welcome to my weekly writer’s diary where I’ll share my “Woot Woot!” moments and the not so “woot woot” moments of my writing world. And, yes, I might even share the occasional musing or two about reading and writing, two of my favorite things!]]

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Dear Diary,

            It’s Thursday ~ 01/10/13 ~ and…

I want to be like both characters in Aesop’s fable, The Tortoise & The Hare.

Let me back up a bit.  For those of you unfamiliar with the basics of Aesop’s tale, the hare challenges the tortoise to a race. Certain he’ll run rings around the much slower tortoise the hare takes a nap, only to wake up and find the tortoise has slowly, methodically kept moving until he’s crossed the Finish line.  The moral of the story is that slow and steady will win the day.

In principle, this works. I’m trying to be slow and steady as I recover from surgery and the holidays and a host of other things.  I finally took Christmas down a couple of days ago, but the house looks too much like a bear pit without the holiday sparkles to hide the dust and debris. I’m now able to sit at my desk for a while, rather than lounging on the couch with my feet kicked up all day.  I’m even beginning to work my way through some of the business projects that have languished over the last month of inattention.

But, like the hare, I’m chompin’ on the bit to launch into a foot race. I have a suspense novel I need to finish. I have a short story for Valentine’s Day lurking in the corner of my mind. I’m gearing up my promotion efforts. My personal blogs need some attention, too.  I have so much to do that I’m longing to pick up speed to get it all done, especially with another surgery date looming on the horizon.

I guess I keep expecting to bounce back like I used to when I was younger, way back when I could fit into my figurative Wonder Woman outfit.  I know that lifestyle was not good for me – I can chalk up many of my current health issues to those years of eighteen-hour days – but I do wish I could accomplish now what I accomplished then.

Mentally, I want to sprint. Physically? I’m stuck with a slower pace. I know I’ll get back to full speed again one of these days, but that wasn’t much comfort when I made the decision yesterday to put my Valentine’s Day short on the back burner. There is simply not enough time to write the story, not if I want to get back to work on Killing Secrets. I’m not even back in my writing chair every day.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m doing amazingly well recovering from my knee surgery. And I am beginning to pick up the reins of my writing again.  It’s just taking more time than I had hoped, and I’m eager to put this part of the healing process behind me.

Now, if I can only figure out how to plod steadily through everything like the tortoise, write fast and furiously like the hare, and still find time to take a nap, I’d be golden!

See you next Thursday — and a New Year — for another rousing entry in Karen’s Diary Drop-In….