Day Six - Strength, Stubbornness and Perseverance

Word Count - 15094


I knew coming into NaNo this year that it was going to be a difficult year, and so far, I have been pretty much on. I'm having to pick and choose my battles, force myself to write, and jealously guard the little bit of quiet I can manage. That's life in a motel, me the homeless NaNo writer.

It all started about a year ago with an innocent hiss and pop, followed by the lights in two bedrooms going out. That little thing started a two month war with our landlady that ended up our getting evicted the end of February. No great loss, the woman was a sea-hag that we had nicknamed Gestapo Gretchen within a week of moving in. This woman blamed us for damage to her roof, even though the insulation was old and worn out, even though the area was not properly ventilated, it was our fault because we left a door partly open.  She even accused us of giving her dog pancreatitis.  Finally, when one of her repairmen damaged a door, she had "proper cause" to kick us out. We left gladly, not realizing that without her reference it would be next to impossible for us to get into another apartment.

We've been living here since May. We don't mind parts of it. The free internet, clean towels, toilet paper, and HBO are the best part. The worst, living with only a microwave and a single room, a bathroom and what we call a Bath-chen - two sinks, a tweensy bit of cupboard and some storage space under the sinks. Enough to hold a crockpot, a deepfryer that doubles as an electric frying pan and the cooler we use to store our dishes. I am dreading the upcoming holidays - I have learned to perform some seriously amazing cooking miracles, but I don't think even Harry Potter has enough magic to pull off Thanksgiving dinner with a mini-fridge and a microwave. Oddly, I'm not as worried about Christmas, ham can be microwaved and we have room for a Christmas tree.

I knew coming into November that NaNoWriMo was going to be difficult - I seriously considered scraping it all together. But at a time when nothing else feels normal, I needed something, just one little thing. As hard as I have been trying, it is anything but.  The distractions are derailing me, and they are unavoidable. Sharing a room with a 20 year old who lives for the TV, cars in the parking lot, the highway - all enemies of a writer with ADD.

But I refuse to give up. Other NaNo's I have worked in ideal circumstances, I have been able to lock myself away in a quiet room and pound out 50k without batting an eye.  This year I do not have that luxury - this year will be a true test of my NaNo chops - my true test as a writer.

I believe with strength, stubbornness and perseverance, I can pull this off. I can do it -

I will do it.