PTO'd...

I’d like to tell you about how much my life has changed in the past few years. Some of this has to do with writing but I assure you it’s not fit for posting on the other blog. After all, it also has to do with Vicky.

Vicky and I were on the phone yesterday and she was telling me about how her Paid Time Off (or PTO) hours would be increasing because she’s been at her job for a long time. Vicky often tells me about how well she’s doing at work and I congratulate her because I really think she’s doing splendidly.

But, beneath all that, I feel a kind of envy, a jealousy, because I know I’m not going to reach that point. I’m not going to be at a job that long. It’s just not in the cards. My days of working in the corporate world appear to be over. I lost my chance.

As I thought this, another thought crept in – a realization.

I’ve got several books available online with more coming out this year. I’m having three plays produced this year. More things could be coming down the line; it’s only May!

I realized that now that I am devoting my time, my life, to writing I have no need for Paid Time Off! And if I ever did have Paid Time Off, odds are I wouldn’t take it! I’d stay home and write!

Most of this is due to Vicky. If it wasn’t for her hard work, my writing career wouldn’t stand a chance. I’m not making that much money from book sales, after all! Not only should I be happy that Vicky is doing well in her job, I should be grateful – and I am!

Once I realized this – once I understood that my life for the foreseeable future, at least, will be devoted to my writing career – the idea of PTO seemed silly. Time off? From writing? Why would I want that?

Somehow, when I wasn’t looking, I became a writer. And that's something I never want to take a vacation from.