Jamie Reidy shares his top 5 biggest distractions at work.
I work from home. A lot of writers use coffee shops as their de facto office, since their are so many things at their houses or apartments that can steal their attention.
For me, that’s the very reason I sat home: too many shiny things for me to handle in coffee shops. People watching-wise at Starbucks, I’m like a crow in a room full of disco balls. Knowing I can’t be trusted to stay focused in public, I have a set routine in my apartment.
But that doesn’t mean I stay lasered in all day. You may be surprised that I don’t list music, TV or the sofa; I’ve steeled myself against those siren calls. Unfortunately, I’ve got other soft spots.
Here’s my list of the top 5 distractions I face, in descending order:
5. Porn – It’s amazing how often youporn.com suddenly appears on my laptop screen.
4. Whiny kid across the street – This 12-year old brat needs a spanking. I realize he has had it rough – his dad ditched them years ago – but enough with the, “I don’t wah-ant to go!” Dude, I’ll take you someplace and you ain’t coming back, got me? Listen to your mom, shut your fucking mouth and get in the cah-ar.
3. The fridge. This one is truly embarrassing, as there’s nothing in my refrigerator. I do the shopping, so I am well aware the my major appliance holds only beverages (ice tea, lemonade, beer, club soda and tonic water -gotta have mixers – and chardonnay) and condiments. So, what exactly am I looking for when I wander to the fridge, open the door and bend down to see every nook?
2. Porn – Did I mention that yet? Sorry, I’m a little distracted.
1. Windows – The glass kind, not the Microsoft product. I live at the beach (not that you can tell from my tan). I also have a view of the beach and ocean. The only food place on the beach is located just down the street from my apartment, meaning that every high school kid hangs out there. Have you seen teenage girls lately??? They grow ’em different in So Cal.
GMP readers, what are your biggest distractions at work?
Photo by: smlp.co.uk
lol
Umm… You forgot to mention that your co-blogger calls you and rambles endlessly while trying to remember what she was calling about. Oh wait! Now I remember! I was calling to tell you to write a list.
Hahaha. I’m so funny.
Co-workers. By far. There’s no end to the wonderfully creative ways humans can distract each other.
Emily, the novelist Jonathan Franzen writes in a spartan, TV/telephone-free office on a computer from which he has removed all internet access!
This is a good list! But pretty much everything can be a distraction when working from home; even the laundry starts to look like more fun than doing what you’re supposed to be doing! I had to give away my TV when writing my thesis for fear of failing out … you have to make your house as boring as possible!
Perhaps it might be more fun to add some more roller-blading or surfing or outdoor activity (with all those beautiful SoCal girls hanging out) to your work day…it might help your writing if you are invigorated by your awesome surroundings! [I used to live in SoCal—so I do know the mental benefits of roller-blading or biking along the beach!]
Just a joke, HeatherN.
Yeah I know, and I mentioned that I realized it was a joke, but it still makes me uneasy. Jokes like that just sort of perpetuate the idea that men are all sleezy, sex-crazed, dogs…and that’s a problem. Plus, there are really sick people out there (men and women, mind) who do what you were joking about. I have gotten used to your sense of humour, so I recognized it as such…but without, like, a little caveat there mentioning that it was just a joke, it didn’t sit well with me. Heck, even with a caveat it might not sit… Read more »
Okay, sorry to rain seriousness all over your fluff parade…but now I’ve got myself thinking…
Like, what about a joke like that do you find funny? I don’t mean that snarkily, I’m actually curious.
Pretty funny post, though you forgot to mention Facebook, like Justin said. 😉 Though, this bit here made me uncomfortable: “Have you seen teenage girls lately??? They grow ‘em different in So Cal.”
I was a teenager girl in So Cal, and even a joke, the idea of someone watching me without my knowing about it gives me the heebee jeebees.
Plus they don’t ‘grow them different’ in California. They just have warm weather (meaning more bikini-weather) and thus more pressure for teenagers (women and men) to worry about their appearance. It’s a problem, actually.
Ha! Thanks, Justin. But that’s just my bald dome.
It’s the sparkle beneath.
Facebook and, frankly, your posts on the Good Feed Blog, Jamie. You’re like a shiny disco ball.