Gifts for Writers

It’s that time of year when it’s easy to focus on being thankful and grateful for the people/things/insert-whatever-here in our lives.

And to be sure, I am. It’s been a wonderful holiday season and I can’t take it for granted. Life can be so fleeting. Which lends itself to me being even more thankful.

You may know that now that I’m finished with school, I have more time to focus on stuff outside of the day job. Naturally this includes writing.

[Tweet “You know what I’m thankful for? Gifts conducive to good writing.”]

1. A supportive family.

Hubby’s family and my family support my desire to write. They know I love to learn, that I’m curious, and that I walk around tripping over things because my nose is in a book. Or I have to put eyedrops in my eyes to ward off eyestrain because I do get a lot of screen time on account of my writing and networking habits. That is a gift.

2. A supportive network of friends.

Since November of 2011 I have engaged in serious online writing. It’s looked different at different times: sometimes I focused on HubPages. Sometimes I focused here. Sometimes I focused elsewhere or didn’t even do online writing but journaled offline. Through it all, I have met incredible people from all over the world. Who follow your blog. That is a gift.

3. A warm fuzzy robe.

If you know me at all, then  you know I’m perpetually cold. Gifts that allow me to write in comfort are infinitely appreciated. So, my mom sent me a robe. To sit in comfort and write in. You have no idea how warm and soft the thing is. And it makes for warm writing bliss.

Fingerless for typing.

4. Heated mittens that connect to the computer.

Oh yes, you read that right. Many people’s hands get cold when they type at the computer. My fingers turn into blue sausages that get stiff like they have rigor mortis. So, I have these gloves that plug into the USB port of my computer and heat my hands up. They’re fingerless for typing, but can cover them to make them into outdoor mittens. I could totally be the poster child for heated gloves.

5. A space heater.

Not only do the fingers get cold, but when you sit in a chair for long periods of time, let’s face it. Those little toed-tootsies get cold, too. Not to mention the fact that I have to sit in a cold part of the house to do my business. It’s just the way it worked out, in terms of the layout of the house. To offset the cold, hubby got me a space heater for Christmas. It’s my new best friend. My other one died. Yes, died. It caught fire inside itself and burned to death. It was really sad. But now I’m glad. I have a new best friend. Don’t turn those things on and leave them unattended, folks!

6. Lots of tea.

People all over must know that A) I’m not a coffee drinker and B) That I’m perpetually cold. Because other teachers at school, hubby, and Secret Santa pals all brought me tea. It’s incredibly warming and yummy!

7. Electric kettle.

I’ve talked about these before. But electric kettles heat your water up in 90 seconds or less. Except mine is about five years old and it’s starting to die. Perhaps I could solicit an electric kettle company to sponsor me by sending one and I’ll write rave reviews on how they allowed me to change the world – by writing – because their kettles kept me nice and warm. In fact, I should write to all these companies. They have no idea how many writers are out there that want these things. Ha!

8. Moccasin Slippers.

My mom is a veritable lifesaver. Not only did she send me a robe, but she sent me some slippers that I will use forever and ever. Amen. This is another way I can stay warm as I write. The fur lining envelops my feet like a parka. My feet must stay at a comfortable 97 degrees. Just the way I like them.

9. Hershey’s Kisses with Almonds.

I came across this article that mentioned how people from other countries think milk chocolate in the US tastes like it has sour cream, or has otherwise gone bad. I make no apologies for my love of milk chocolate. Of course, it’s all in moderation. I don’t eat bags of it or anything. Three or four a day. You know, for brain fuel.

10. Pure Focus.

That’s the name of an mp3 track that I listen to daily as I write from BrainSync.com. It’s 60 minutes of scientifically engineered music. When I put it that way, it sounds horrible, doesn’t it? No, really, it’s actually really wonderful. It’s meditative music that includes binaural beats and gamma waves that improve concentration. Holy moly it makes a difference! On days I don’t listen, in an hour, I might do 1,000 – 1,500 words. When I do listen, I’ve topped 2,000 words in an hour. You can almost feel your brain going giddy with concentration energy.

 

For all these things I am thankful. These are things that I use daily for my writing addictions. And I’m so incredibly grateful that life is a little sweeter because of all of them. See? It doesn’t take much to make this girl happy.