I had this really great idea this morning while in my car on the way to work for a killer post. What was it about? Heck if I know. Can't remember. I'm pissed.
For a while, I tried writing notes while I drove. Yeah, I know, but watching people run out of my way was entertaining. But I gave it up because I kept losing the notes and the bumps weren't helping my handwriting.
So I got myself a tape recorder. Great idea, you say. Occasionally I get them. This was working very well. But since we moved, I don't know where I put it and it's fuckin' pissin' me off, God damit.
Ewe, just missed by the thunderbolt. I better go to bed before I blaspheme any more. Tah. And sweet dreams.
You know Natalie Goldberg addressed this particular issue in one of her books (I think it was Writing Down the Bones but it could have been Wild Mind). Anyway, she said, sometimes you get the idea for a beautiful poem when you're out for a run and you spend the rest of the day trying to remember it and write it down. And she says, forget it. The poem is passed. Do not look backwards trying to retrieve the shards of a good idea. Instead, have another one. And another one.
ReplyDeleteArt springs eternal in the human breast.
It IS bloody annoying when that happens, isn't it? The number of times I've had to backtrack on my day just to figure out what brilliant post idea it was. "Lessee... first he said this, and then I said that, and then we did this and we did that, and we were here..."
ReplyDeleteAnd the kicker is that when I've finally pinned it down I usually find that it wasn't that wonderful after all.
These days I just save any quick ideas as text message drafts on my phone. But I can do that cos I don't drive.
Jenn - I had to let it go. I'm practicing.
ReplyDeleteJay - My eyesight is about as good as my memory. I can't see the friggin' little buttons on my fancy phone. And the gestapo are about to make doing other things while driving illegal, can you imagine. Like you should pay attention when hauling 3000 pounds of metal around.
man, it's annoying! last night i had this awesome opening line for something i had to write and this morning...total blank.
ReplyDeletei do what jay does. write it as a text message and save it in my drafts folder on my phone. i also do that for movies i wanna watch, books i wanna read and songs i wanna download.
but yeah, tis not a very good idea to do that while you're driving. luckily, here in bangalore, i'm always stuck in a traffic jam, so i could write a book if i wanted to, while driving.