There’s a weird thing about trying to get a workday’s worth of work done on a Saturday. I can go into it with all good intentions and then lose focus. My mind wasn’t quite into it today, but I kept slapping my own face (figuratively) and kicking myself in the rear (ditto) to keep moving. I poured down enough coffee (literally) to keep me from dozing off. Until some time in the middle of tomorrow afternoon, probably.

The trouble with the caffeine solution is that it makes me want to move faster than my mind is capable of working. It’s like a truck with no brakes careering down a steep grade. At some point you have to look for a soft place to land, even if you’re maybe just a little tempted to ride it out and see where it takes you. Momentum is a great thing for getting where you need to go, as long as you still have your hands on the wheel.

What I ended up doing today was work until I realized I was beyond the point of diminishing returns. As soon as I’m working in a way that will create more work for myself, I know it’s time to give it up. Besides, at some point it occurred to me that I still have tomorrow, and, as far as that goes, Monday. It’s not as if the world will stop and punch me in the eye if I don’t do it all today. (Of course, thinking that way is also an easy way to lapse back into slackerdom.)

This flurry of activity as the year draws to an end is made all the more difficult because of cash flow problems created by some decisions the Boss made at the end of November. If you pay some bills ahead of time, and then end up with not enough money to pay other bills later, you might be in trouble. You’re definitely making life more difficult for the guy who writes the checks (that’s me). And so, even if you’re visiting your ex-girlfriend’s daughter in Texas (I know; I don’t get it, either), you’d better check in before it’s too late. The company is in no danger of going under, but I think I am.