When I was young, I was often scolded by adults for my scattershot approach to things I wanted or needed to do, (Mostly for things like drawing during my math classes, which is probably why I’m still math-weak to this very day.) I would explain that I was indeed paying attention, (and I was) but that I was also doing this other thing, which needed doing, thank you. It never really went over, but as I got older I found that my strange puttering had a name. Multitasking! And it was not only a useful skill, but sometimes the only way I could get done all the things that sat there, demanding attention. For example, while I’m writing this post, I’m also making tea and lunch, working on an embroidery, waiting for some photos to finish loading, checking on a cat or two, and listening for a delivery. Obviously I’m not the only one doing this sort of thing, not on Planet Pandemic. Everybody is still cobbling their lives together any way they can make it all work, and our concentration is still not great, and we all still have a big raft of worries we’re all floating on, trying to make it to friendly shores. It honestly makes me wonder how many people actually tackle things that need doing in a linear fashion. I mean, who has that luxury? Almost nobody I know, really.
For years and years, I’ve done what every other artistic person I know does–they hang on to a day job to pay the bills and keep a roof over their head while scrabbling together projects in between everything else. Which often meant I had a few projects going at a time. It was handy, especially if I was tired or low energy, because there was always at least one easy project within reach I could make a little progress with at least.
It’s been a useful habit, especially when I had a few projects that were almost done at the same time. There is such a rush when I can present a handful of pretty things that actually took a lot of time, thought and energy to get together. It makes me feel like I’m so much more productive than I actually am. People don’t know that the pretty yarn I just finished making had singles stored on bobbins for a week while I was busy knocking out something else. Or that the painting I just finished sat for a month on a table, while I figured out what it needed to be.
You would think, now that I’m home all the time and trying to make a go of this Arting From Home Business that these habits would change. And they have, a little. My concentration has improved tremendously, but I do have other things to distract me now, like the unmistakable sounds of a cat barfing somewhere, or a delivery, or a needful errand. I still find myself with a handful of little, half finished embroideries and a bobbin of yarn that still needs a friend, or a painting that needs its first washes put down. And I’ve’ come to accept that this seems to be my process, and this process isn’t actually a bad thing that needs to change drastically.
This last week I felt like I was less productive than the usual. I had other things that needed taking care of, and this last Friday I got my second Covid shot. I was and am beyond grateful for it, but it did knock me down for a little longer than I thought it would. But even then, I still did some spinning. It helped with my poor sore body and it distracted me from some of the symptoms. So I was a bit surprised when I actually had a few things to list in the shop, a painting to put into Redbubble, some really nice Icelandic wool that was clean and de-burred and ready to spin up and a fun jellyfish for a friend. Where did all this stuff come from while I was on the couch, binging Youtube videos and drinking gallons of herbal tea? Oh yeah. My weird multitasking ADHD self, doing a little bit here, a little bit there…
So don’t be hard on yourself if your way of doing things isn’t the way people told you it should be. Especially now, when all bets are still off and we’ve got a long way to go before Normal is a thing. It all adds up in the end. And sometimes it’s such a good, good feeling when it does…