The Winnah Is...

As you recall today’s post is number 200. Woo hoo!  I have posted nearly every Sunday for 4 years.  To be honest, I’m pretty impressed with myself. 

As you know from last week’s post, to celebrate this momentous occasion, I’m giving away a 6x6 oil painting. According to the rules,  the names of those who commented this past week were deposited into a hat, from which Handsome Husband has agreed to pluck one lucky name.

I'm just plain giving it away! You didn’t have to sign up for new windows and siding, car Insurance, or lower mortgage fees.  All you had to do was poke the comment button. How easy was that?

Handsome Husband draws a name from his hat. Notice the lovely pastel painting behind him? It will be part of an exhibit titled "Land Marks" which will show at Stuhr Museum in Grand Island, Ne. from Feb 17 through April 1st. More on that coming soon...

Without further ado, clamor or tumult, the winnah is…

Vickie!! Vickie, email me at patricia@pscarborougharts.com and tell me how to deliver your brand new painting!!

(And by the way, thank you all so much for commenting in such delightful and kind ways)

Many of you have been very supportive and complimentary of this accomplishment.  I appreciate your kindness and interest.  Several readers have asked how I have managed to pile up so many thoughts and ideas.  As my friend Sheila said to me recently, “Inch by inch is a cinch. Yard by yard is hard”.  That pretty well sums up how I managed to write 200 blog posts. 

That is the secret to my accomplishment. I wrote them one at a time.  That may sound like a Big Duh; try it though. Imagine sitting down to write 200 posts.  Kind of make you shaky, doesn't it?

Now imagine sitting down to write just one. Its doable. In fact, its doable 200 times.

 And here’s another secret:  I don’t worry about how good my post will be.  (You may have noticed that already.)  If I burdened myself with the specter of my high school English teachers grading my blog posts I’d never get beyond the first word. My hands would turn to ice, sweat would trickle from my brow and my brain would cease to function.  I write because I enjoy it.  Putting thoughts into words has helped me figure out a few things.  I write about what I know, or what I think I know and hope you'll be forgiving. You are invited to read what I’ve shared, or go wash your car. Either way, my goal is to poke the publish button by 9 pm Sunday evening. 

The 9pm Sunday limitation comes from the fear that if I didn’t corral myself with a time frame, I would never  actually get the job done. Oh sure, I’d think about it a lot, and probably even get a good start on a post, but my experience tells me I’d be distracted by important issues like birds outside my window, or looking for that sock I lost last week.

Another secret? I’ve got Handsome Husband in my camp. When I’m tempted to skip a week, or re-post an oldie, or simply run away from home, HH offers ideas, support, and patience. Thank you, sweetie.

Books and essays have been written about how to accomplish a task or reach a goal, and most of them come down to this essential nugget:  Take a breath and just do it. 

And I did.

200 times