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On Monday I went to bed ridiculously early. I do this sometimes when I am feeling meh. Around midnight I woke up and couldn’t sleep. As I listened to the loud traffic outside: which I actually like––my apartment being right next to the highway––I realized with a start that my paper proposals were due next week and that I was still uncertain what to write about. Nor had I done any real research!

This threw me off balance and I started to panic. I got out of bed––it would be impossible to sleep in that state of mind, even have a few new pimples to show for the stress.

I had to make some changes. The first thing I did was to log off of Facebook so it’s not always in my face––stalking is now postponed. I also had to work out a way to minimize my obsession with Mawusi. You might be surprised how much time I spend on that little shop. Also, I got rid of my laundry. It had been sitting there for weeks. Then I had to make sure everything was well organized, including my closet. This may sound weird, but I often have strong urges to clean and sort out my closet when I am writing a paper, hence it is important to remove all distractions. I have picked the topics which I find exciting to write on. And I’ve started writing yesterday. As everything is due today’s week. I think I will pull it off.

Why am I here? I think I can handle blogging and working on a paper. It is not as big of a distraction as the shop, or a messy room.  But if it becomes a distraction, I will cease to be here until it is all over. How do you get ready for a paper?
—
Jane