Have I Told You ..?

Happy Birthday to the pilot :)

The pilot has a big '0' birthday tomorrow. Sadly he'll be in an Alan Partridge style motel somewhere near Luton between flights (the glamour), but we'll celebrate later. The photo is an old favourite taken when we met at university (if it's disappeared by the time you read this, you'll know the pilot has read the blog for a change and told me to take it down :). I don't know about you, but half the time I still 'feel' nineteen, twenty and it isn't until you meet someone that age and see how young they are that you realise quite how old you are ... The pilot was smart, fun, sexy, well travelled - he still is and twenty years on today's clip is for him - (Van was singing when he proposed). So, Happy Birthday Mr Pilot.

There's something about the '0' birthdays that make you reassess everything isn't there? Picasso once said the key to contentment was figuring out what you are capable of doing - and then only to do half of it. You wonder if he followed his own advice when you look at how prolific he was. I don't know about you but I've always been hopeless at this - I have always tried to do everything myself (run home, business, write, take care of the kids ...). I've finally figured out Picasso was right, it doesn't add up and I'm making some changes.

There's a six week window of opportunity (not including half term), before the big summer break. It's a last chance to really focus before the kids are home full time until September. I've taken the decision to put aside book three for now - there's over 100,000 words complete of my Spanish Civil War love story, it's almost done. But there's this new book I've been wanting to write for a while - the idea excites me, the story, the characters are all there and this feels like the time to write it.

Book one is still 'out there' - the word is publishers are unwilling to take a chance on debut authors right now. The contracts are going to established authors. I said today to a friend that hoping to get published is like unrequited love. When you want something so much for so long, eventually you reach a point where you think either 'to hell with writing, I can do better than you! Painting was good to me - that'll show you! I'll go back to Art!' or you raise your game and concentrate on being the best you can be. My lovely friend encouraged me to stick with it. She said getting published is just like falling in love - it will happen when you least expect it. What do you think?

TODAY'S PROMPT: Psychologists reckon it takes six weeks to change your behaviour patterns and break old habits. Six weeks is a good length of time to achieve anything from writing a big part of a book (a minimum of 2000 words a day would give you upwards of 84000 words), to losing a stone (2lbs a week). So who's with me? Let's see what we can achieve in six weeks before the kids break up for the summer. What do you want to give up? What do you want to do more of? Do you want to start on that writing project you've been thinking about, or get exercising so you look more Allegra Hicks than Demis Roussos in a kaftan this summer on the beach? Whatever it is you have been wanting to do, let's do it. Why not focus on two or three goals you want to achieve, and give yourself six weeks to do it? Let's check in each Sunday - everyone can update how they're getting on in the comments, and I'll plan out some posts about different ways to achieve your goals. No need to spell out what it is you're trying to achieve if you don't want to, but in my experience having a group of friends cheering you on or commiserating with you is the best way to keep you moving step by step towards your goal. What do you think - anybody in?