time and change, on a leash

sunrise:  5:19

I have experimentally signed up for 24 hours of connectivity with a local “hot spot” hub on a nearby island. It is a bit of a sacrilege in our island household to introduce the internet. We have no TV, no internet, and sometimes even spotty cell phone service. It’s part of the allure.

Simplicity. Back to basics. Life in the here and now, present tense. Cards, books, walking, lugging supplies in wheelbarrows, bird watching, rock scrambling, writing, cooking, talking, household projects, splitting wood.

But – I am committed to this writing project. It is my job, my work, my commitment. I’d like to post every day or two at least, in order to keep my sense of continuity and connection to the task. And besides – I have to hike to the shore to get a signal, so I can’t linger on line in the house! So I will skulk around the corner with a guilty conscience while I connect myself to cyberspace.

Back in Rachel Field’s day, she depended on the regular mail to send out manuscripts and receive work back by mail, boat and walk from the dock. She spent her hours of work in the back studio room, typing away with a woodstove keeping her warm. I doubt she would have hauled her typewriter out onto the rocks to do her work. She was a serious professional who focused diligently on her several hours of work most every morning. But - if she had had the opportunity to exchange work with her collaborators and her publishers in New York right away, would she have taken it? I believe she might have. Then she would put down her laptop and go pick more berries, or gather more mushrooms, or visit friends across the way.

 

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This fine healthy doe stood and faced me for about 5 minutes before going on her way yesterday. The blueberries have been scarce this year on the island, and I think she and her cohorts may know the answer why.