Posting about coffee to go during the Civil War

I'm posting over at Slip Into Something Victorian about how Union soldiers kept coffee in their provisions while on the go.

And you can still check out my latest post at the The Black Rose blog of The Wild Rose Press about how I love my new NOOK!

Interruptions...interruptions...

I'm trying to zoom ahead with my latest writing project. I'm enrolled in a summer book challenge with the hope of completing the first draft of a new novel by Labor Day.

I'm doing rather well, so far, I've written over 20,000 words for a book that I hope will total at least 80,000, but there's always something to interrupt the flow.

First of all, my son brought home a new puppy. Our old dog, Kelly, we had to put down over a year ago, because of bad hips. While this new little puppy he named Chase, is real cute, he does require a lot of care. I'd gotten used to being dogless over the past year, so this is a big learning curve for me.

And this week, I got work in for my second job, manuscript typing. I have to complete typing a full-length novel in the space of a couple of weeks. In the summer!! But I need the money, so will try to work everything in. It just won't be easy.

Blogging at Slip Into Something Victorian

I'm blogging today over at Slip Into Something Victorian about how war often brings forth new inventions and innovations in civilian society.

Variety Brings Results

I work out for about an hour in the morning five days a week, but recently I haven't been seeing or feeling results. My youngest son, studying to be a personal trainer, told me I had to vary my workouts. You see, muscles grow complacent when you do the same old workout day after day and you hit a wall, where you stop seeing results.

He told me to vary the amount of weight I lift, vary my workouts--I now do weight training two days a week, ride my exercise bike two days and follow an aerobic dance DVD mid week. I also bought two new DVDs that, although they work the same body parts, vary in their routines, thus giving me results that will help me sculpt and keep the flab from coming back. He also told me to switch the workouts back and forth by day, or week, so I'm not doing the same workout consistently. This also keeps me from being bored and I look forward to my workout each morning.

It got me to thinking how I do the same thing with my writing. Although I started out writing American Civil War, I added in some paranormal and am now working on a few post-Civil War projects as well as my first science fiction romance. I also vary between long and short pieces, from novel length, to novella, to short story. Variety keeps my writing fresh and also keeps me motivated. I don't get blocked and if I do inevitably get stuck on a project, I move to another until I'm excited about the original project again.

I think variation in my writing keeps me fresh and motivated.

So, tell me, do you vary anything in your life, be it writing, exercise, or anything else that seems to be going stale? If you do, share it here.