Is it just me? - blamebrampton

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19 January 2011 @ 10:09 pm

Is it just me?

At work, I am a one-woman accomplishment machine, who can build a story in a few hours, creates systems out of thin air and makes things work.

At home, I'm not. I'm starting to wonder if it is my brain conspiring against me, so, a poll!

Poll #1669623 Is your brain a tiny bit recalcitrant, too?

Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All. Participants: 94

When you have a long list of things to write, does your brain ...

View Answers

Start with the most difficult, work through to the end and continue systematically

5(1.8%)

Start with the most interesting, work through to the end and continue systematically

12(4.2%)

Start with the easiest, work through to the end and continue systematically

7(2.5%)

Start somewhere, work a bit there, a bit somewhere else, a bit all over the place, finish eventually

46(16.2%)

Come up with a BRILLIANT plan for something entirely different

52(18.3%)

Book a holiday to Alsace

18(6.3%)

Devise the perfect filing system for all your notes and reference books

35(12.3%)

Decide that you immediately need to clean the house

44(15.5%)

Decide that the suburb needs a good dust while you are at it

19(6.7%)

Fall asleep

46(16.2%)

70 comments | Leave a comment

70 comments —

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( 70 comments — Leave a comment )

ant_queen on January 19th, 2011 11:18 am (UTC)

I selected 3 :P I will generally start somewhere for bit, then something will prompt me on other project, so I'll hop over to that for a while. And when I get stuck I resort to cleaning the house (or laundry, my perennial favourite thing to do when I can't think of anything else, there is always a load of washing that needs doing) or reworking the filing/referencing system.

And sometimes I'll be working on lots of things at once, then see they are all part of some master plan and pull them all in together in the hope of creating a theory of everything (or policy of everything, which is more my thing). And then when it isn't 3am and I'm less high on caffeine I realise that it doesn't really work and I should revert things back to their original component parts. But progress is still generally made in a roundabout way.

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:14 pm (UTC)

I would expect no less, you are not a simple ant! And yes, I sometimes find that cleaning actually sorts the story out in the back of my head so that I can go back and write brilliantly and quickly, so I suppose it all does work towards an end in a roundabout way -- if only it did so more quickly!

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vertelemming on January 19th, 2011 11:23 am (UTC)

You forgot the most important option: Spend six hours organising your todo list, start on the top item with gusto and energy, get distracted five minutes in and forget about it for six months.

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azurelunatic on January 19th, 2011 11:39 am (UTC)

Yes.

But on the plus side, I am a walking advertisement for Hiveminder.

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:16 pm (UTC) (Expand)

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azurelunatic on January 19th, 2011 02:52 pm (UTC) (Expand)

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mayela_delarue on January 19th, 2011 12:57 pm (UTC) (Expand)

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:18 pm (UTC) (Expand)

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:15 pm (UTC) (Expand)

treacle_tartlet on January 19th, 2011 11:24 am (UTC)

My brain is as scattered as my poll selections, and about as useful. For instance, it has decided today that, in order to write the fic about the chefs and the smallholding and the London restaurant, replete as the subplots are with gossip columnists, Weasleys, and porcine hijinks, what we really need to learn about is...cricket.

*glares at Noe, Femme, and Wemyss*

Edited at 2011-01-19 12:20 pm (UTC)

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:20 pm (UTC)

I will always happily talk about cricket, you know ;-)

And you're not scattered, you're a complex and unique individual. With procrastination issues. It's why we're friends. (BTW, Porcine hijinks, is this code for more pig porn?)

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treacle_tartlet on January 19th, 2011 07:48 pm (UTC) (Expand)

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clovis_t on January 20th, 2011 01:36 am (UTC) (Expand)

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treacle_tartlet on January 20th, 2011 01:41 am (UTC) (Expand)

quatrefoil on January 19th, 2011 11:29 am (UTC)

In my defence I should like to point out that I have some legitimate research that I need to do in Alsace, though not for my current project. OTOH, my current project is a distraction from another project which was a distraction from another project etc., and ultimately from the project including the Alsatian research, on which I gave a paper in 2005. Eventually my procrastination leads me back to where I started.

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:21 pm (UTC)

Even as I typed that, I thought 'I am bound to know someone who has a legitimate reason for going to Alsace' ;-)

And yes, I hear you on the looped procrastinations!

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sesheta_66 on January 19th, 2011 12:05 pm (UTC)

Also investigate all sorts of things to do on vacations (across Canada, Britain) though not Alsace. ;D

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:36 pm (UTC)

I know what you mean, for me it's a sudden urge to practise Italian. In fact, just tonight I organised my language books.

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dysonrules on January 19th, 2011 12:35 pm (UTC)

Start somewhere, work a bit there, a bit somewhere else, a bit all over the place, finish eventually.

And in between that add "surf web", "make cookies", "wander around the house", "make jewellery", "do random tasks".

It's surprising anything gets done, actually. *sigh*

Note to self: Stop trying to write at 4am.

Edited at 2011-01-19 12:36 pm (UTC)

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:12 pm (UTC)

It's surprising anything gets done, actually. *sigh*

Note to self: Stop trying to write at 4am.

I would say something wise and helpful here, but it would be a complete lie as I am guilty of both these things.

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jad on January 20th, 2011 01:32 am (UTC) (Expand)

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dysonrules on January 20th, 2011 03:09 am (UTC) (Expand)

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jad on January 20th, 2011 03:18 am (UTC) (Expand)

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dysonrules on January 20th, 2011 03:25 am (UTC) (Expand)

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jad on January 20th, 2011 03:31 am (UTC) (Expand)

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dysonrules on January 20th, 2011 03:41 am (UTC) (Expand)

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jad on January 20th, 2011 03:52 am (UTC) (Expand)

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dysonrules on January 20th, 2011 04:03 am (UTC) (Expand)

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mabonwitch on January 20th, 2011 06:33 am (UTC) (Expand)

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dysonrules on January 20th, 2011 12:38 pm (UTC) (Expand)

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dysonrules on January 21st, 2011 12:35 pm (UTC) (Expand)

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:37 pm (UTC)

Well, by then you're obviously exhausted!

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franalan on January 19th, 2011 12:55 pm (UTC)

I procrastinate. A lot. Which is why I ended up watching ever single episode of Criminal Minds when I was meant to be writing my dissertation... It's all about the last minute rush and panic of looming deadlines.

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:39 pm (UTC)

I just thank the universe that the internet was enormously crapper when I was a student. I had to sleep with a computer science professor just to gain access to email for one degree. It was a time of simpler distractions (mostly trying to find a shaggable computer scientist ...).

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mayela_delarue on January 19th, 2011 12:59 pm (UTC)

I've lost all ability to structure my work. I wish I could sleep under my desk half the time.

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:40 pm (UTC)

That's the annoying thing: at work, I am godlike! I can do six things at once and they all turn out splendidly, even if I know I will need to double check numbers five and six because they were done with half a brain.

At home I start something that I really want to finish, then do a bit of physio, play with a cat, knit, post to lj ... wonder why my thing remains unfinished ... Why do I leave my Mad Skillz at work?

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i_autumnheart on January 19th, 2011 01:54 pm (UTC)

I couldn't possibly work on the things on the todo list. I might finish it, and then where would I be! The horror!

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blamebrampton on January 19th, 2011 02:41 pm (UTC)

You'll still have the embroidery ;-)

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florahart on January 19th, 2011 02:18 pm (UTC)

8a: Decide that you immediately need to clean the house, but then also apply the same set of principles to that task as well, so you end up with assorted clean shelves and objects, a pile of laundry, the trash full until the taker-awayers come Tuesday, and nothing resembling tidiness in the shared areas. And, thanks to the brilliant plan to do something else entirely aspect, possibly also rising bread with no clean loaf pans to put it in, a random cake that no one but you will eat but which serves 12, and, I dunno, a monkey.

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blamebrampton on January 20th, 2011 02:52 pm (UTC)

HEE! I know that feeling -- I have often apologised for the house being in a disaster, because I am tidying ;-)

Hurrah for a monkey!

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hanson_phreek on January 19th, 2011 02:31 pm (UTC)

I'm an organizer, so my brain loves to "devise the perfect filing system for all your notes and reference books" all the time....no matter what I'm doing. Some people call it OCD and I might just agree...

But aside from wanting to organize everything, I like to start easy. It lets me get into things and build some confidence. And then it's easier for me to do the hard stuff.

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blamebrampton on January 20th, 2011 02:53 pm (UTC)

My books and CDs are in perfect order. My notes are diabolical. I may need to borrow a bit of your brain ...

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hanson_phreek on January 20th, 2011 03:28 pm (UTC) (Expand)

auntpurl on January 19th, 2011 03:01 pm (UTC)

Where's the "read H/D porn on LJ" option?? *is confused*

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jad on January 20th, 2011 03:21 am (UTC)

^

*also, Merlin/Arthur porn

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blamebrampton on January 20th, 2011 02:54 pm (UTC) (Expand)

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blamebrampton on January 20th, 2011 02:53 pm (UTC) (Expand)

hollyxu on January 19th, 2011 03:42 pm (UTC)

I put 'decide that you immediately need to clean the house' because 'bake 2 cakes, 1 pie and make enough potato pancakes to feed an army' was not an option... :P

My brain generally hops around until it finds something interesting to nibble on, at which stage I am generally cooking and letting my brain do its thing. Unfortunately, when it comes to actually writing the damn thing, it starts to procrastinate. And fall asleep.

... If you figure out a way to circumvent this, please tell us.

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blamebrampton on January 20th, 2011 02:55 pm (UTC)

It's really because Mr B hasn't cleaned the kitchen in weeks and there is not enough room to cook. I have been living on fruit and ice-cream since December!

I will let you know if I solve the problem :-)

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eanelinea77 on January 19th, 2011 06:07 pm (UTC)

Mine were: Start with the most interesting, work through to the end and continue systematically, Start with the easiest, work through to the end and continue systematically, Start somewhere, work a bit there, a bit somewhere else, a bit all over the place, finish eventually, Come up with a BRILLIANT plan for something entirely different, Fall asleep

Sometimes I get motivated to do one and won't stop until the Heavens and the Earth quake with my awesomeness. Other times, it'll be years, not months before I go back to something and actually get it out of the way.

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blamebrampton on January 20th, 2011 02:56 pm (UTC)

Oh thank goodness I'm not the only one who gets up to years in the tardiness stakes!

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eanelinea77 on January 20th, 2011 06:08 pm (UTC) (Expand)