Rolling brownouts

This week I've gotten the question three times. I've gotten the question all my life.

"How do you do it all?"

I don't watch television much, for a start, and I don't like doing nothing. I don't like board games, or playing cards, or watching baseball. I don't like small talk. So, I've got time for lots of other stuff. Running a business. A radio show or two. Blogging. Cooking. Family stuff. Town meetings. Reading. Writing.

I'm not the busiest or most accomplished guy or gal I know.

But this week, after the third question, it seemed to get to me.

I'm two week behind on the novel I'm blogging. I open this blog to write and, well...nothing happens. And that doesn't happen. I usually can't seem to keep my fingers from flying over the keyboard on just about any topic.

Writer's block? Burnout? Brownout? Exhaustion?

Maybe I need a week or two off. But that won't come until August. Maybe it was the eight years of Bush, and that threat finally lifted. Maybe it's the damned economy.

Tonight I watched the neighborhood chimney swifts whirl and soar, before they dove to their roosts for the night. I love watching them. My boys love watching them. When the mosquitoes came out, we headed inside.

I feel like a chimey swift. Compelled to loop and soar until I fall into the blackness of sleep.

Life is short and we only get one shot. Like Warren Zevon sang, "I'll sleep when I'm dead." But right now I'm really tired, Warren.