Time on my hands could be time spent with you.

The other morning, I was shocked to come upon a crow flying away from a bunch of angry, upset sparrows. The crow had a sparrow in its beak, and feathers were flying everywhere. I suppose the crow decided to eat a fledgeling. I had no idea crows were interested in eating living things, let alone other birds! I still like them, though I feel bad for that poor sparrow and their family.

Scenes from my commute last week:

There was a man on the bus listening to a Star Wars novel, without headphones, so all of us got to hear a conversation between Luke and Obi Wan at 7:30 in the morning. I was more amused than I usually am about when people don’t wear headphones/earbuds, probably because it wasn’t loud music.

Another time on the bus, there was a guy holding a thick, brown rolled cigarette that smelled more like a cigar. He was holding it for the most part, but he did put it in his mouth a few times. He thought he was sly. Thankfully I haven’t seen him again. I might have to give him a dirty look if I do. Smoking is gross, and it’s rude to do so on public transit where people can’t get away from it.

And then, of course, there were the preppy college boys (probably freshmen) who were loudly talking on the Metro, joking about the Real ID poster and how they could steal the example person’s identity. They talked about school stuff, but I tuned them out after a while because I was tired and it was eight in the morning. They acted like their dads knew people at their school, which explained a few things.

Who knows what kind of people I’ll see the rest of this week? In the morning, I mostly try to rest since it’s so early, but on the Metro after work, I get reading done. Yesterday I finished reading Mona At Sea, which is a book I got as a comp for my Nerdfighters novel that I have not given up on. Today, I’m going to read Superfudge by Judy Blume as a palate-cleanser. I don’t think I’ve ever read it, but it’s a classic.

The time to read is nice, I just wish I had more time to spend with Luis. It’s only about an hour later when I arrive home, but that hour used to be a nice little hour for us to relax together after work. We get straight to chores and cooking dinner as soon as I get home now. Is it silly to miss having time to be lazy?

He’s helping me edit my It’s A Wonderful Life-inspired novel, which is so nice. He makes me think about things in ways I didn’t previously consider. That’s what a good alpha reader should do. Most alpha readers don’t then cuddle on the couch and watch TV with me, though. He’s the Superior Reader.

My writing is going well. I’m sitting pretty at 20,000 words as of today. I’m taking my time and it feels good. I keep thinking I should use Pacemaker to keep track of my writing goals, but I’ve been using my Google Calendar to keep me on track and so far I’m doing well. My motivation is just… writing every day makes me feel good and if I skip a day, I feel guilty. I don’t need a special website for that. (No offense to Pacemaker, though. It is very helpful in the right instances.)

Can a website take offense?