Adapting to New Routines

Seven years ago, my wife and I bought our first house together. It was a small starter home that needed a lot of work but we saw potential. One of the many planned improvements on the home was to add a small office in the unfinished basement. This little space for myself would allow me to smoke cigars indoors while I worked on various projects.

When that small office was built it immediately began seeing a lot of use. It was especially nice in the winter. With a little electric space heater I could have a warm place to enjoy a cigar while many of my friends stood outside, shivering, while enjoying their cigars.

Over the years I developed a routine. While listening to the low whirl of the exhaust fan I would light up a cigar, sit down at my computer, and begin to write. I was able to knock out a great number of blog posts and articles in that space (not to mention videos reviews and podcasts).

Now that my family has moved and I no longer have a cigar scented space to call my own, I’m finding it very difficult to write. The whirling exhaust fan has been replaced by the sounds of traffic. As a type this I can hear a neighbor in the distance running a leaf blower. Sitting under a tree, I’ve had a number of leaves fall on me. While it may sound peaceful, perhaps even beautiful, I haven’t adapted and it all becomes on giant distraction.

Things around here, as well as Stogie Review, have been a bit slow but know that I’m trying. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve sat down, just this week alone, and stared blankly at an empty page. The ideas haven’t come. Without ideas, the words don’t follow.

Maybe I’m trying too hard? Maybe I need to just accept this change and embrace it? Whatever the solution, I’m hoping I find it soon and the creative juices begin to flow once again. I miss writing and hope that this little post will be the first step towards getting back some sort of blogging normalcy.