Some people say that recognizing you have a problem is half the battle. I say those people can take their half-assery into that battle with half a sword and stop after halfway killing half of the enemy. Those people are the ones with the problem, not me. Personally, I love just about everything about myself…including my addiction to Kickstarter. But the wife wishes I would invest a bit more time and energy into practical things such as personal grooming and Kickstarter spending restraint.
First off, shame on those of us who would judge me poorly due to my scraggly appearance…and my self-mumbling…my verbal spasms…and my “homeless-chic” fashion sense. I don’t understand why I can’t wear my hair in a top knot with a burley beard while wearing flannel, fire-hose cargo pants, and sandals with socks. But apparently society has prejudged that such a combination predisposes an individual toward raving libertarianism. (In rare cases it’s accepted that this fashion combination could be an indication of redneck environmentalism.)
Secondly, I have plenty of restraint. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a major advocate for fiscal austerity…in its appropriate time and place. (I did marry a German after all.) And for most of us, the appropriate time and place is most times and most places. But, as I’ve mentioned before, I also adhere to the “Fire-in-the-hole” philosophy which requires an acceptable routine of frivolity. The trick to maintaining a healthy balance between austerity and frivolity is to create solid hedges that cannot be overridden.
One such personal hedge states that I may purchase a half-cut, iced-tea from McDonalds for a dollar, up to once a day, any time I drive past a McDonalds when the external temperature is equal to or in excess of 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Hey, it’s a measly buck, on hot summer days, when I happen to be out and about. It ain’t gonna break the bank, and it makes me feel happy.
In regards to Kickstarter, I’ve also developed a hedge to constrain my addiction. I only invest in card and board game projects which are deemed as family appropriate and likely to appeal to my sons enough to generate “quality family time” at a maximum expense of two dollars an hour. This means that any kickstarter backed game must satisfy the following equation: total cost of game in dollars ÷ total hours of quality family time ≤ $2.00 USD. Instead of hosing away money on random Kickstarter projects because it’s fun and they’re shiny, I’m investing money in affordable, future, family entertainment.
There, see? Problem solved. Recognizing you have a problem might indeed be half the battle. But who gives a crap? I’m all about winning at life, and to do that I gotta embrace my problems until I’ve squeezed the best possible solution out of them in a manner that balances responsibility with frivolity.
Now if only I could come up with a way to turn personal grooming into some sort of competitive sport.
At the Desk This Week
I overcame an alien entity trying to eat my stomach from the inside out this week in order to pound out another 1,500 words on the third season of the Green Ones. I guess that’s what I get for not washing my water bottle for a month…and then leaving it in the car all day…and drinking from it despite the fact it might have smelled a little funky.
Anywho, I’m enjoying the plot of episode five and I’m closing in on the final climactic show down between the opposing forces. My protags are starting to come more fully into their telekinetic abilities, so instead of regularly getting their butts handed to them by the enemy, at some point I figure they’ll come up with a major win. That should be fun!
If You Wish to Start Reading The Green Ones…
[Click here to start at the beginning.]
Thanks so much for taking the time to read these scenes of Boundaries, Season 2 of The Green Ones. I’ll be publishing FREE daily scenes from The Green Ones until…I die…or something terrible happens. Seriously, I’ve got over 100 scenes written so far, and I’ll be writing more until the story reaches its natural ending. You are totally welcome to read the entire story for FREE! If at any point you decide you would rather finish the story in ebook or print format, just click the buttons below and you can do that as well. If you enjoy reading the serial releases, BUT you would also like to support me as a writer (my kids need wine!) please subscribe to my premium content for bonus scenes, exclusives, and insider access to my process. And of course, I’d be grateful if you would share this post with any of your reader friends who you think would enjoy The Green Ones. Happy reading!