Writing With Abandon

Reflections and ramblings about life as an educator, writer, reader, knitter, and over-thinker. Trying to do the writing only I can do.

Today I woke up not too inspired, so I tried the 4-4-4 slice format that Iโ€™ve seen at arjeha and Persistence and Pedagogy: 4 minutes to write about 4 things within 4 feet of you. Hereโ€™s what I ended up with:

My silk Drowsy eye mask that I got after going to Cuba with Reeta. Sheโ€™s always worn an eye mask, but this one was something special. Silk, plush, and no ear straps, aka. no pain. I treated myself to one as soon as I got home, and now wear it every night. It keeps my curls in tact. P jokes about how I wore it on our first sleepover. โ€œWell, goodnight!โ€

Hydrocortisone cream on the nightstand because the eczema on my knuckles always acts up when I travel, especially if the weather is different from Miami.

My kindle with about 9 or 10 library loans on it. Do you know the trick for keeping library loans as long as youโ€™d like on your kindle? If not, Iโ€™ll let you in on the secret now: as soon as you deliver the books to your kindle, put it on airplane mode. Then, even when they officially get returned to the library, theyโ€™ll remain on your kindle until you read them!

The blackout shutters, wooden with slats, a typical feature of almost all brownstones in New York. They block out all the light, turning my bedroom here into the perfect cave, pitch black until Iโ€™m ready to wake up.

And there goes the timer! One more minute to reread and clean up, and then Iโ€™ll turn on the light and add some photos.

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13 responses to “4-4-4”

  1. Ana Valentina Patton Avatar

    Haha, P’s comment!!
    My favorite though, was #4; those windows have such character!
    I like this format, I might save it ๐Ÿ˜‰

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Amy Crehore Avatar

      Do it! Itโ€™s great when you find yourself in a bind.

      Like

  2. kiropa1 Avatar

    Love the mask, obsessed with the window!!!!

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Elisabeth Ellington Avatar

    Also completely obsessed with the window! I had no idea historical shutters were so beautifully designed. Just lovely! I appreciated how the addition of photos turned this into a kind of photo essay. I like this format a lot and always find the slices it produces intriguing to read.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Amy Crehore Avatar

      I enjoyed the format too! While not exactly a slice to practice writing craft, it was a nice challenge to give a descriptor or quick story to each of the four things.

      Like

  4. Victoria Sola Avatar

    Omg! Those wooden windows are a must. So nice to have darkness in the room, although I love sunlight most of the time.

    Also, today I might give this format a try someday!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Victoria Sola Avatar

      Ignore *today๐Ÿคฃ

      Liked by 1 person

    2. Amy Crehore Avatar

      Yesss you should!

      Like

  5. Jessica Carey Avatar

    thanks for the kindle tip!

    Liked by 1 person

  6. giannaoleary Avatar

    I loved this format! Also I RAN to put my kindle on airplane mode

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Amy Crehore Avatar

      I thought Iโ€™d told you this tip before!! ๐Ÿ˜‚๐Ÿ˜‚

      Liked by 1 person

      1. giannaoleary Avatar

        I think I was still figuring out how all the kindle stuff worked and I missed that

        Liked by 1 person

  7. Amanda Potts Avatar

    Those shutters are beautiful – I had no idea! And I had no idea about the Kindle trick either – life changing. ๐Ÿ˜‰

    Liked by 1 person

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