Conversations with Calliope- Winter Doldrums

(Nantucket Dawn)

A doldrum is a period of inactivity or failure to make headway. ~Reference.com

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. What are you up to this morning?
JOE: Sitting at my computer this morning, I tried to decide what to write. Nothing came to mind except the word "doldrum."
CALLIOPE: Doesn't sound good.
JOE: That was my first reaction.
CALLIOPE: Are you dead in the water?
JOE: In the sense of not making progress, yes. However the other part of the definition (a period of inactivity) isn't necessarily bad.
CALLIOPE: You mean like taking a break.
JOE: Precisely. At least for me, pushing myself all the time leads to burnout.
CALLIOPE: Good point. How long will your break be?
JOE: Until next Tuesday when I start my AmeriCorps project.
CALLIOPE: So you plan to do nothing over the next week?
JOE: I didn't say that. I will just stop pushing myself to get things done. My brother is coming to town tomorrow from Hawaii and I plan to enjoy some time with him.
CALLIOPE: I hope he doesn't go home frozen.
JOE: It will help him appreciate the tropics. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. I wondered what became of you the past few days.
JOE: I thought you might. I took my computer in for service and thought I could use my backup computer to contact you.
CALLIOPE: What happened?
JOE: It's a long story. Suffice it to say that it took me until now to get Internet service working on my backup computer.
CALLIOPE: Glad to have you back. What's been going on?
JOE: I spent Saturday and Sunday at Honeoye Lake, one of the Finger Lakes, with Carol and friends.
CALLIOPE: A little vacation?
JOE: Very short but quite enjoyable.
CALLIOPE: Any work on your writing?
JOE: I did some reading, more of Poisonwood Bible. I also wrote in my journal but that's about it.
CALLIOPE: Where do things stand with Marital Property?
JOE: My backup copy is not quite up to date so I will wait until I get my good computer back, hopefully tomorrow.
CALLIOPE: An in the mean time?
JOE: I have some cleaning and organizing to do around the house. I think I will work on that for today. I'll talk with you tomorrow if everything is still working.
(Kitchen orchids)