A long time ago a friend ripped this photo out of a magazine for me. You know the one. It's floating all over the internet now with Tina Fey's new book. She smiled and said, "This is what I imagine you look like while trying to get work done with Zach at home."
Not too far off. I always try to limit my working to when the kiddos are asleep and/ or Doug is home unless I am really slammed with a deadline. Or those times when a show asks for a last minute re-write or a quick something or other that is not too far off. And even when Zach is out with Daddy and Naia is asleep, the scene is something like this.
Baby attached to boob, in arms, typing, and wishing so badly that the ice tea would float from the galley to the settee on its own. And I laugh and wonder if the people at home who have TV's and watch
DIYNetwork's Run My Renovation or whatever show I happen to be working on at that moment could ever imagine that the writer is sitting on a sailboat, without a TV, and a baby in her lap nursing, with a boy who pops in now and again to ask "What's HE doing? What tool is THAT?"
And of course the answer is no. The viewers are just lapping up the brain candy on the tube. And often when I am in the thick of it I LONG for an acutal office space within the boat or any space with a door that I can close. Instead I find myself muttering, "Mama's at work right now, go ask daddy," when some Saturday morning dilemma comes up. He stares at me, "Mommy, that does not look like work to me. You're watching movies!"
But I am so grateful for this scene. I am so grateful that I am able to keep my foot in my career waters. I am so grateful that the folks I work for (who used to work for me in some cases) are flexible and open minded enough to make this work so that I can earn some money for the boat, keep my creative juices flowing, think like a grown up, and still be home with my babies.
