A good afternoon.

Today, because I was invited to read at the City Art Meltdown--between fifteen and twenty writers, reading for five minutes each--I spent the afternoon working on my two poems.

Back when summer, by which I mean "the period before the teaching starts," was winding up, I told myself that I would be able to find time to write several days or several hours a week. That has yet to happen. I am not giving up hope yet, but so far...so far, the teaching is occupying a fair amount of the space. I am going to have to work harder to find that time, to make that time.

But today, because of the reading, I spent a few hours working on a couple of poems. Revising poems. A very satisfying few hours. I worked in my office for a couple of hours, printed out my drafts, and went home. I told myself a story about how I needed a nap, and I set my cell phone alarm for forty-five minutes later, and closed my eyes, which felt very, very tired.

Two minutes later, I sat up and took out one of the poems, and read it several times aloud, editing as I went. I made those changes on my laptop and printed it out again.

I still think this poem--the Tom Jones poem, for your information--probably needs more work and more trimming. But it was in good enough shape to read, I think, and it was good to spend the time with it.

Now my task is to look at my calendar and make notes about where I can find an hour here, an hour there, to spend more time with writing.