In everyday life, one says one is �experiencing technical difficulties� when glitches with computers or other technical equipment get in the way. If one�s everyday life is getting in the way of one�s computer time, is one experiencing reality difficulties?

This week has been fraught with realitydifficulties. Sunday�s difficulties involved teaching, attending Day-Hay�s family Hebrew class in place of Mr. Philately who was off judging (what else?) philatelic exhibits, going on a very boring girl scout field trip, and the impending onset of a migraine. Monday�s difficulties involved a school board meeting that went from 7:00 p.m. to almost 11:30p.m. and a migraine. Tuesday�s difficulties involved school board interviews for a new business administrator from 6:00 p.m. to almost 9:30 p.m., an escaped silkwormand hysteria both of which are still on the loose, and a migraine. Is anyone else seeing a pattern here? (No, I don�t mean the migraine. If I could figure out how to give up migraines, I�d do it immediately.) I think I�m overscheduled. My real live is interfering with computer time.

I�ve been managing to update this journal somehow. I�ve managed to read my e-mail but the longest response I�ve managed to any of it is one �Wonderful!� to my youngest sister. I don�t keep up in forums. I have read only a small fraction of the journals I normally read. I haven�t even managed to do laundry. (Oops, I�m getting confused. Laundry is a reality difficulty---but wouldn�t it be more fun online?)

I think I need a scheduling diet. �Hello, I�m Plankton and I�m a meeting-a-holic.� No, meetings are only part of it. Cutting back on meetings is like cutting back on potato chips. It helps but it won�t do the whole job. �Hello, I�m Plankton and I�m a do-it-all-aholic.� No, not much better. While I can type such things, I doubt I can say them. I�m not even sure I�ll have time to say them in between telephoning to re-arrange doctors� appointments for the girls.

You�ll notice that I have not suggested giving up the computer---not even once. If I had technical difficulties I could understand a technical solution. But I�m having reality difficulties. The solution has to be in real life. Real life will just have to conform to the needs of my computer time.

But, if someday it doesn�t work and you come to this page and find a message, �THIS SITE IS EXPERIENCING REALITY DIFFICULTIES. PLEASE STAND BY� at least you�ll know what it means. It means I�m off overdoing again---as opposed to just being �off,� as usual.

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