Every time we see Jeanie headed for the front door with her journal, her netbook, or her coffee cup, we go out the door and make an immediate right. That’s where our front office is located, and it’s our favorite place to work.
In fact, we’d be out here year ‘round, except for the fact that Jeanie hates to have to shovel snow off the front porch in order for us to find a place to sit, and she absolutely refuses to type wearing mittens. Sigh.
So imagine our delight now that the temperature is up more days than down, and we can once again make liberal use of the front office.
While we do occasionally get distracted when the recycling truck rumbles by, and we absolutely have to take a break when the mail is delivered (to get our two biscuits from the mail lady), Jeanie usually manages to get a fair bit of work done in the front office.
We think that having a regular place to write – and using it – is very important. When you find the right place to write – whether it’s on the front porch, at a desk, on the kitchen table, or even at the local Starbucks – stick with it. Get in the habit of going to the same place – or places – every time you write. It doesn’t take long for a dog to learn a new routine.
In fact, it only took one time of Jeanie writing on the front porch for us to take her right out there the next time we saw her near the door carrying anything that remotely resembled writing materials. It took Jeanie a bit longer to catch on, but it seems that old “dogs” really can learn new tricks. And once Jeanie recognized that writing on the porch was making her more productive, our front office was established!
With the two of us serving as bookends to keep Jeanie on task, we can spend hours outside in the front office. The key is to make sure that Jeanie has everything she needs when she gets out here – netbook, pens, paper, water, and coffee – so that she has no excuse to get up from her chair until she gets some work done. “Butt in chair” time, it’s been called. We like to call it “pups on porch” time.
We hope you’ll join us again next week for another “Biscuit Break.” We’re keeping our paws crossed for continued warm weather!
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