When I opened my trusty laptop to write this blog it had a major complaint: Your battery is low (7%).  If you don’t plug in your computer soon, it will hibernate automatically.

Like I didn’t already know my battery was low. LOL. I tried to remember when I last had an actual vacation.  It was a trip toSan Franciscoin 2002.  I’ve been to some wonderful writing conferences since then, for example:Atlanta,ColoradoSprings, Ashville, andSt. Louis, but though they are fun they’re still work related.

Novel writing is a 24/7 job. Even if you’re not parked in front of the keyboard, what you’ve just written or what you’re planning to write is always on your mind. Like when I went to the grocery for bird seed and bought dog food instead. Sometimes I’m in the middle of the aisle staring at Kellogg’s cereal or Zesta crackers while writing a scene in my head or searching for the perfect adjective to describe a frog’s eye’s (jade-green and beautiful according to Shakespeare.)

So, in lieu of honest-to-goodness “real” vacations, I plan mini retreats. Maggie’s favorite is a simple walk in the park. We’ve watched hawks build nests, rabbits playing keep away, and children on the swing set. My favorite is my weekly retreat to Panera Bread where I order their delicious broccoli soup and a blueberry muffin. I always take the latest copy of Writer’s Digest to enjoy reading while I eat. Sometimes Maggie and I just sit outdoors enjoying the flowers, hummingbirds and the writing spider that constantly repairs her web atop the bushy lantana.

My best “power source,” however, is a few minutes daily with my Bible. I like to read a devotional first—currently it’s a book by Robert Morgan called 100 Bible Verses Everyone Should Know By Heart, and then read the Scripture reference from the devotional.

I hope you make time this week to recharge.

Blessings, Jan