www.inkthinkerblog.com — My name is Kristen King, and I am a piler. (I’m also a stuff-it-where-I-can’t-see-it-er, but that’s another post.) Back in 2008, I posted about this um, piling quirk of mine on the now-defunct Biz Chicks Rule, where I confessed to having a “File Box of Doom” that I moved around my office but never really addressed. Over that summer I worked through the doom and ended up eliminating it entirely. But now the pile is back, and bigger than ever.

Ladies and gentlemen, meet the Chair of Misfit Papers and Office Supplies.

If you look closely, you can see about a week’s worth of newspapers mixed in with papers I need to file, half a dozen project notebooks, several unopened packages of pretty file folders, my day planner (clearly getting a lot of use!), an ethernet cable, and my iPhone earbuds. Buried in the wreckage of my office is also a pair of scissors, a digital camera, and a couple dozen expired coupons, as well as some I hope to unearth before the use-by date passes.

I’m setting my timer for 15 minutes and I’m going to do a speed sort to at least get things organized and try to put away a few smaller piles. Once I pull out the newspapers and office supplies, it should be much more manageable. Right? Right?

What’s your dirty little office secret? And what are you going to do about it?

Contents Copyright © 2006-2014 Kristen King

Are you having trouble keeping all the balls in the air? Tell us how you know!

www.inkthinkerblog.com — Blame it on the weather, the economy, your cold, your spouse, lack of sleep — Whatever the reason, some days just don’t go as well as you’d like. Today, for instance.

Here are clues that you may need to stop multitasking, or maybe just take a nap.

1. You’re finishing lunch when you realize that there’s peanut butter all over your iPhone.
2. You just finished a call with your boss / client / repairman with, “Love you, bye.”
3. On your way to get more coffee, you realize you left a trail of Post-It notes on the floor behind you last time you refilled. Which leads you to realize that there were Post-It notes stuck to you in several places. Oops.
4. You clear your morning for a meeting you realize only later is happening next Monday.
5. You spend 10 minutes talking about a project with a co-worker before you realize you’re actually talking about two different projects.
6. You spend 15 minutes racing back in from the car several times for things you forgot on your way to run an errand that takes less than 10 minutes.
7. It takes you about 10 minutes to realize that the dog looks funny because he chewed up a black ink pen.
8. It takes you about 10 minutes after that to realize that your reading pillow looks funny because the dog chewed that up, too.
9. You repeatedly open a new e-mail and then freeze because you forgot who you were writing to and about what.
10. …

Fill in No. 10 for me, peeps. What clues you in to the fact that you’re just out of it? Leave a comment with your suggestion, and a funny story about it if you feel so inclined!

Contents Copyright © 2006-2014 Kristen King

www.inkthinkerblog.com — I think I just found the best line in a job ad ever.

The “employer” is seeking a co-author for a novel set in apocalyptic times, with an obviously religious title. In addition to basically saying that they have a title and nothing else (he or she wants the “collaborator” to do all of the research plus write “dialogue and action”), this poster has very clear expectations on who may and may not respond to the ad:

Beginners please do not apply. Remember God watches…

Yeah, God is watching me roll my eyes at you right now, jerk.

I had forgotten how entertaining online job boards can be. Ahh, the good old days. Is this nostalgia I’m feeling? Or just that second glass of wine on a “school night”?

Contents Copyright © 2006-2014 Kristen King

Kristen and Pickles the pug can’t wait to get back into the swing of things here at Inkthinker!

www.inkthinkerblog.com — Namely, that Inkthinker will be picking back up within the next week or so! This past year has been a real doozy for a number of reasons that you may or may not want to know, but suffice it to say that I’ve been in maintenance mode for most of it. And poor Inkthinker has suffered the brunt of it! But we’re gradually getting back to normal, and I’m missing all of you something fierce.

In 2011, you can look forward to some new regular features as well as some old favorites:

• What I’m Reading – Wherein I provide ongoing commentary and reviews of my current favorite and least favorite reads, as well as recommendations for what you may enjoy.
• Ask Inkthinker – Wherein I answer your questions about writing, communications overall, and freelancing.
• Typo Alert! – Wherein I mercilessly mock awful writing and published errors.
• Writing Quotes – Wherein I share and comment on brilliant and sometimes not-so-brilliant words on writing.
• Thinking in Ink – Wherein I discuss my current writing projects and share some prompts and exercises to help get your creative juices flowing.

Not sure yet of the schedule, but there will be one and I’ll let you know when to expect new posts.

Thanks for all of the supportive comments and e-mails from my kind and caring readers. You guys are amazing.

Much love,
Kristen

Contents Copyright © 2006-2014 Kristen King