Office Grand Opening

camper office day 1
Wednesday is Casual Day at the office.

I officially opened my new office today! Literally. It’s a pop-up camper in my driveway. I unfolded it myself and set up a workspace with an aluminum camp table. I can’t see how this could be anything but a win-win situation. No more fighting holiday traffic, no more interruptions, no more distractions. No more bathroom, either, but I’ll deal with that issue when it arises (in about an hour, unless I drink more water than usual).

I’m endlessly grateful for my current reality. In a previous version of my life, I’d be gearing up for overtime and anticipating a Christmas shift of at least eight hours, if not twelve or even twenty-four. I’d be tucking in my uniform shirt at 5 a.m. and driving across the bay bridge to pick up my ambulance. Instead, I’m in a tiny camper, doing what I love. And, thankfully, there are still people doing what I used to do, which is hopefully what they love.

Christmas is a few days from now, and I’m getting excited. It’s always a sad time if I allow it to be— a time to reflect on the past and grieve extra hard about people I’ve lost— but a little bit of the sting is calmed this year by Roo. She’s our $15 pound puppy who will enjoy her first Christmas on Sunday. We plan to take all three of our dogs to my parents’ house, and I’m certain Roo will get into something, if not multiple somethings. I want to put a bow on her head and take a picture. I want to kiss her snout and tell her how much I love her. I want to celebrate her young life and all her energetic happiness. She’s full of the purest kind of joy, and I’m counting on her to make Christmas as lively as I know she can.

camper office
Looks like an office to me.

I’m rolling along on my book goals, accomplishing some of them and retooling a few others that proved too ambitious. I haven’t had time to work on essays or articles lately, but I have a few slated for publication next year, so that takes a little heat off my backside. I don’t have a set number of bylines that I want to have each year, but I don’t like more than a few months to pass without having something published. I’m ridiculously excited about using the camper as my office and hope it will boost my productivity. If nothing else, it’s saving me a bike ride to the park or a truck ride to the library. I need to figure out a way to stop the rattling of the camp table, though. Maybe it’s already time to order new office furniture. I wonder if my accountant would call it a business expense?

Song in my head: Pay For What You Get by Dave Matthews Band

2 Comments

  1. Love your office! What a great idea. And when you love to write, having a dedicated, workable spot is heaven. Does your dog go with you? My cat has a bed velcroed to the top corner of my desk (It got a little dangerous sliding off the desk, hence the velcro.) She loves it when I’m at my desk, and I love having her with me. Her predecessor slept on my desk as well. But, my desk is just located in an ordinary house–but the space is all mine, and the cat’s. Your blog is great. I am so proud of you.

    • admin

      Great to hear from you, Jennifer, and thanks so much for the kind words! I would love to bring Roo out here, but she’s too wild and would probably eat the camping mattress at this stage in her life. She’s still a puppy, although we estimate she’s close to a year old now, and I very much envision her at my side in the future. Our other two dogs are older and have no interest in leaving the comforts of the couch in our house. Great visual about your cat and her bed! 🙂

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *