February 3,  2026

I love how cats take care of their humans.  

Momiji needs EJ to reassure her that  he has not abandoned them and Willow needs to be as close as possible.  EJ  went  downstairs to get us water. Willow was on  the  bed.  She jumped off and followed EJ down and then back up again.  She has marked him as her child.  
 

I have been off the arthritis medication for over a month now. My body is so stiff and so painful to move. Basically I am only pain  free in the water or when I sit absolutely still. But I actually think that my brain is less muddy. Once this procedure is done on Friday I am going to focus on diet and foods that are inflammatory.  I will try to push the eye surgery along.  And I will try to push the house stuff along.   Maybe by September I can be downstairs and ready for a knee replacement.  

There has to be a trick to keeping one's focus on one's creative work as one goes through all of this medical crap.  I don't seem very good at keeping my perspective and maintaining a routine focusing on my projects.   I have written a play and published a poetry book in the past 3 years.  I need to own that.  I need to own  the  fact that the play is going on to the next step.  And I need to work on my next manuscript.  

Would it just distract me to go play bridge at the Senior Center or would it help to balance my life a little?  

I think  there are a couple of stories I need to write.  I'm not sure  how to center them, though.   A Queen's Narrative  has a couple of requests for submissions out that I want to respond to.  There are a few poetry journal deadlines I want to submit to.  And I'm   not sure that the fact that the car stuff is not complete is keeping me from making moves towards finishing  up some creative work, or whether my brain  can't handle more than one thing at a time.  But it is clear that LAVA took most of my head energy.  So now I have to create a routine, create a writing time.  I have to do that.  But first, but first, yeah after I....