It’s been an expensive week for me. My laptop, which had survived many overseas trips, adventures and stories, finally decided to give up. After three hours of me trying to restart it and getting nothing but a flashing icon I knew that I had to shell out for a new computer. So I am typing this from my (refurbished) new MacBook Pro. I almost went back to Windows but, for what I wanted, the prices were very similar. My new laptop arrived on Thursday and, although I hate parting with money, it has been well spent.

Then I had a dentist appointment on Friday the 13th. Now, like many people, I have a fear of the dentist. Surgeries and braces aside, I had an incident with a dental nurse when I was younger where a needle was broken in my gum. So, because of this fear I hadn’t seen a dentist in seven years and, although I brush and floss every day, I have nine…NINE…cavities. This is going to cost a fair penny but we have broken it down into four small visits, which I am mostly fine with.

Before you think I have terrible teeth I have to point out that some of my fillings are a result of a titanium plate that I have which has dug into my teeth and the others are due to higher acidic saliva…just call me a xenomorph…(I know their blood is acidic but yeah…) Most of them are tiny but there are a couple that will need a serious filling. Needless to say, I am feeling very anxious. My dentist is brilliant but I haven’t had a numbing injection for a filling since I was a kid and I might have to get one or two for these fillings. I hate needles near my mouth – which is ironic as I’ve had tattoos and blood tests and IVs galore in my time on this earth. Anyway, I have my next appointment on the 7th of November so I have plenty of time to save up some money and work on my needle anxiety.

In other news it is getting closer to NaNoWriMo – National Novel Writing Month. Every November people from around the world take on the challenge to write 50 000 words in a month. I first started participating in NaNo in 2011 and I’ve “won” every year since. Basically you write with abandon and, eventually, edit your work until you think it’s publishable. I haven’t been successful on the second part of that but this year I am going in with a plan. Normally I just write without a plan (write by the seat of my pants) but this year I am hoping to be a little more focused with where I am going with this novel.

I really enjoy writing with no real fear of anyone else ever reading it though I do want to be a writer. I just need to get my focus on and work on removing the procrastination bug. There is something about watching words appear quickly followed by characters, worlds and so much more. I think I am even going to write a post about NaNo prep.

So, for now, I am going to leave you with a picture of my current view as it is a beautiful sunny day.

Peace and pancakes

Jaime