Total words: 1,190 (and hopefully there will be more today)
Manuscript total: 10,661
After my trip to Costco yesterday (and I agree with Jen that it was a bit of a hellscape), I thought that perhaps I would never have to go shopping again in my life — or at least not until social distancing orders ended.
But like a plot twist in a dystopian novel, I realized I’d left something critical off my shopping list.
Coffee filters.
Like any good plot twist, a red herring lead suggested that LT, who does not drink coffee or own a coffee maker, might by some good fortune have a stack of coffee filters sitting lonely and unused in her pantry. Alas, no. That hope was dashed, and thus the first “Drive for Goal / Thwart” cycle was experienced by the protagonist.
I thought I would be clever and order coffee filters drive-up from Target, but they were out of stock. So was Sprouts.
Good God, are people stockpiling COFFEE FILTERS the same way they are toilet paper and paper towels? What is happening here, folks?!
Fortunately, I found filters at Walmart. And, as an added bonus, I bought a reusable filter, which will hopefully fit my machine.
Climax and denouement.
Changing topics:
“It’s time to stop messing around!”
That was the text I got from pilot friend S today, the one I previously mentioned was feeling down over the state of the travel industry. She got a Goal Crazy planner on my recommendation and it just arrived from the magical Amazon Fairy Godmother Truck today.
I’m glad to hear her feeling motivated again, and her text echoes my own thought process exactly. I have a handful of days left of my spring break, and I’m ready to stop moping, wasting my time on iPhone games, and watching Trevor Noah followed by John Oliver followed by PBS Newshour.
Want me to sum up the news for you?
There. You’re welcome. Now you don’t need to waste time watching, either!
But back to Indiana Jones…
Anyway, I’m ready to get back into good habits of using my time wisely. I know that there’s a dystopia outside my front door, but regardless of what’s going on out there, I’m ready to get back into my normal rhythms of productivity, at least to the extent that I can. In the spirit of not being too hard on myself, I recognize that this is a hard time right now for everyone, myself included. But I don’t like the feeling of slipping into bad habits. And as long as I have the extra time to write, why not use it?
9 Comments
Les Mood · April 1, 2020 at 10:50 pm
Homemade face masks use replaceable coffee filters. That may account for the shortage.
The Real Person!
OMG, Les. I just Googled that. You’re right. That must be what’s going on.
Les · April 2, 2020 at 12:47 am
I just hope that doing our part doesn’t include drinking instant coffee. Yuck!
The Real Person!
I canNot imagine…. then we’d really be talking The Walking Dead territory.
Jen · April 2, 2020 at 2:19 pm
Without coffee we would be in “If you get in the way while I am walking, you’re dead” territory. So yes.
Jen · April 2, 2020 at 2:04 am
Jumpin’ Jesus on a pogo stick! I would lose my mind without coffee. Your LT (I always think Ladytron, like the band), does not drink coffee!?! Did you have a moment where you questioned your compatibility? Astounding. I would be driven straight into distraction without coffee, like miss the Productivity exit and crash headlong into the Bog of Eternal Puttering.
I use an Aeropress to make my morning coffee, and it has these tiny little filters that you can rinse and reuse. Imagine if there was no hot water?! I think I need to learn to do some lesbian stuff like lighting fires and camping and whatnot, because your update here has gotten me down the “What if I can’t have coffee because of societal collapse?” rabbit hole. I have enough beans to last a while, but zero survival skills apart from fighting, and that’s not really a friend-making activity.
The Real Person!
I tried to give up coffee at the beginning of all this. I had an idea I would switch to black tea in the morning.
I lasted three days.
Jen · April 2, 2020 at 2:38 pm
I smoked for about 9 years, and quit doing that 10 years ago, and I think it would be harder to stop drinking coffee. It’s like painting with oil v.s. Acrylic to me. There is just a richness and depth, and dare I say sensuality, to it that is not easy to replace. The experience is written into all of my early-morning-quiet memories.
Sarah Wiseman · April 2, 2020 at 10:19 pm
These comments are funny… As an older Brit I have that emotional relationship with tea, since when I was a kid coffee was this shite powdered stuff, and basically undrinkable. I love good coffee now, but could not live without tea… I’ve tried, and it’s…. hard….
My favourite zombie apocalypse book series features a long running never ending subplot search for coffee..I think at one point they tried something made from acorns…. I felt their pain by substituting coffee for tea in my mind!
Anyway, over here in Blighty, which is about a week ahead of you, panic wise, we seem to have toilet rolls back… Now it’s flour you can’t get, as everyone seems to be baking or something!
But, if you still can’t get any coffee filters, let me know and I’ll post you some! Lol! (I’m semi serious) it could be my proud contribution to getting book 3 written! 😊
Well done on hitting 10 thousand words! Woo!