The morning was bright. Birds were singing in the solitary tree jutting out of the concrete next to his mezzanine floor apartment. Children were playing happily on the slides and monkey bars on the small patch of cemented park-like space in between his building and the next.
The man was absolutely determined as he got out of bed. This morning he would write. Nothing could stop him from writing.
He sat on his favourite spot on the couch.
Not like he had a choice. The rest of the couch belonged to the dog.
Problem was that the pillow was not quite parallel to the back of the couch like he always liked. He needed his back to be absolutely straight while he typed. Not that he had a problem with his back. But he needed to sit exactly so his left elbow was just short of the left armrest and the coffee table was within reach so he could put his legs up if he wanted.
The dog was more adjusting than him. But then, the dog was more of a thinker. He needed to type.
So the pillow was taken care of.
But oh! The sunlight was streaming through the window. How could he see the screen? How could he work without adjusting the blinds?
But wait! As he was about to get up and go to the window, the light fell on the keyboard and illuminated a speck–a crumb that had fallen on the hapless edge of the key H at a precarious angle. Just about to fall through the crack!
He had to lift the laptop, turn it at various angles, blow on it, poke it, shake the whole thing! Hrrmmmpppfff. Finally the dog, having gotten very curious, rubbed his nose against the keys and that took care of it. Gone. Back to couch.
Noooo! He had forgotten about the sunlight and the blinds. Get up again.
***
Finally.
Open word processing document. Start typing.
The
Now that’s a good word. A great word.
But should he check his Facebook status for a few seconds? What if a witty retort needed to be positioned at the right place at the time time for maximum effect?
So Facebook was opened. Colourful pictures of Fall leaves on the top of the feed. This warranted a comment. “Nice!” A few likes and “Thanks!” to be taken care of.
All done. Back to document.
“The man ”
Not bad.
***
Oh! Why was the tea cup empty? The creative imagination could not get beyond The man at this rate.
Go back to the microwave for another cup. Wait two minutes. Milk, sugar, stirring, balancing tea and bringing back to couch.
***
Pillow adjusted again.
Room too dark.
Blinds opened again.
Keyboard cleaned better with a soft rag.
***
Type.
WRITE.
The man who
The man who would
The man who would write
Nah! Better. Better.
The man who would write perfectly
Now that’s a better title.













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