Do I write… don’t I… do I write… don’t I… do I write… don’t I… do I write…
Of course I write… cause that’s what I do…
I read… I puzzle… and I write…
On the verge of 40, I can say definitively… I read… I puzzle… and I write…
Really… I didn’t see this coming… who knew… who would have thought I would be able to say something about myself so definitively… but it’s true… I read… I puzzle… and I write…
I have lived my life not so envious of people blessed with skills and talents (hobbies) that they could use, but often don’t, to make money. I know people who fix stuff, do hair, make clothes, plan events, can sing, etc. Their ability to do stuff has always made me question my abilities. What skills, talents, and interest do I have? Honestly, I have always listed my skills, actually hobbies, as sleeping, drinking, watching TV, shopping, and travelling… in that order. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always read and travelling isn’t a bad hobby, it’s just that other than Puerto Rico last year and Alaska in 2014, I haven’t been anywhere in a while and I tend to do the most reading on vacation. Ok, ok… I am quite cool with the entire list, but I have often wondered about myself, what skills and talents (hobbies) do I have that could generate extra income, because let’s face it… this is America, and America is about money. I thought about becoming a personal shopper, or mattress and wine tester, and I’ve been trying to figure out how to take over Anthony Bordain’s job, like seriously… this guy gets paid to travel, eat, and drink – living the dream Sir!
Today, on the verge of 40, I am pleasantly pleased with myself because I have finally found actual hobbies. Hobbies that have the potential to generate extra income… I read… I puzzle… and I write… If you read my post about reading (http://rashiamason.com/loveaffair/), you already know how much I enjoy it, but puzzling and writing… who would have thought??? I used to do puzzles as a child, but that’s because I’m an only child and my mom was sure to give me mind stimulating entertainment to keep busy. But that was then, when I used to just do puzzles. Today, on the verge of 40, I am a puzzler – I put the puzzles together. It’s just what I do. Since I started, I can’t remember a time when there wasn’t a puzzle spread across my kitchen table. I keep large pieces of aluminum foil around to cover puzzles in progress so Dottie (my cat) won’t snatch the pieces when I’m not looking. Puzzling for me is serious business. They keep me at home, entertained, and I watch considerably less TV since I’ve started. (Memo to self: Put a TV in the kitchen)
My interest in writing is totally new to me, I really didn’t see this coming. It’s no secret that I always hated school, so anything remotely related never did it for me, that includes reading and writing. But somehow graduate school changed all of that for me, I actually liked it. I liked grad school so much… I did it twice! Grad school encouraged class participation, so the more I talked in class, the better my grade. So I guess my interest in writing started in grad school with the final paper requirement at the end of each class, thirty-page papers. At first they were daunting and I just wanted to finish. But by the time I got to the third one, I learned to just crank them out… do some research, develop a perspective and present my case. Before long, 30 pages went to 40, 40 to 50. I even needed to reduce from double spaced to 1.5 because my papers were just getting out of hand. I would just keep writing. My papers would get so long that eventually I would look at the number of pages and be forced to type… In conclusion. (Even this segment is getting long, but I’m going somewhere with this.)
Fast forward to Rashia’s 2016 AWESOME Summer of FUN (http://rashiamason.com/rashias-blog-site/) when I decided to start a blog documenting my summer. When I made the decision to start a blog, I didn’t realize how much writing would be involved, but since I committed, I had to write. I eventually realized my summer project was just one really long term paper. Then at some point last summer, I made the decision to write children’s books. (I’ll get to them…) Yet this year I started puzzling and reading. One day it occurred to me that I hadn’t been writing, and there is no way I can write children’s books if I’m not writing because… a writer has got to write! And there you have it, the very first time I thought of myself as a writer. Why, because I am a writer. This is my blog and I write all the content, making me a writer.
So there it is, on the verge of 40, I know more about myself than ever. I know that I’m happy, secure, and confident. I know that I have to live my life because no one else can do it for me. And I know that if I want things to be different, I have to do different things. But I also know…
I read… I puzzle… and I write…
I haven’t figured out how to leverage these hobbies for extra income. But I’m working on it, and I’m a smart girl so I’ll figure it out. I guess it’s all a part of the journey…
On the verge of 40.
Watching you grow has been amazing! Happy 40th Birthday She She! I am loving the woman you become. May God continue to bless you always.
Big Wanna
Book club meetings and wine. (Charge)
Take pics have them made into puzzles. (Sell the puzzles)
Write the children’s books. (Sell the books)
You’re brilliant it will work.
You can sell your puzzles; that might generate income. The few puzzles we did growing up were framed as art in our room. As for you writing, you can make money by writing essays for students charge them for papers, resumes, etc. My sister does this in her spare time. I don’t have any ideas about generating income from reading. Oh wait, you can be a narrator of some sort.
Not that I got to hang out with you that much – usually a quick lunch if we were doing field work in the same area. But, I observe – and I observed you. So what could I suggest to you before your 40th? Nothing. Of course this can only be from my observations, you are very impressive intellectually, spiritually (family/friend orientation) and when you smile … killer! What can you do with your hobbies? Reading – there used to be a way to read new books and get paid for reviewing them. Puzzles – competitions or framed pieces for people who would like one. There are writing competitions and there are people who do tech writing (most do a horrible job at it), and for some real $$ – grant writing. Writing term papers. I think you should just enjoy and have fun. We discussed other ways of making $$ years ago – that conversation is fuzzy. 🙂