So many unwritten things

I've got several topics of many unwritten posts in my head. It's a writer's dream or nightmare, depending on which way you look at it. 

Some pretty flowers from Toowoomba.
Unrelated to this post except that it
reminds me about some of the beautiful
things I've seen while travelling around,
and have been able to take photos of.
I'm taking my camera on this trip,
so hopefully there'll be some nice photos
to share with you at some point.

I'm shocked to realise that I've only published seven posts in October, I guess this makes the eighth. That means I've just surpassed July and September. Rarely in the last nine and a half years of blogging have I written so little.

The fact is, I've been busy, probably too busy. If I haven't had time to write, I've been recovering from being overly tired or I've been sick. But if you've been reading what small amounts I've managed to get up here, you'll know that. There's also been a bunch of stuff this year that I just couldn't share in this public forum, and that's clipped my wings a bit.

The crazy-busy metre is about to go up a notch, I'm afraid. I'm flying to Singapore tomorrow evening for a International Christian Writers and Editors conference. That's from Sunday to next Friday when I'll fly to Perth (closer to Singapore than it is to Brisbane) and meet David and our two younger boys. 

In Perth we'll be visiting five churches, most of whom have supported us for the last 20 years, plus a mission prayer group and an OMF meeting. Eleven meetings in total, over ten days! My guess would be that I'll probably have time in Singapore to write, but Perth will be more difficult, although most of the meetings are on the two weekends, so during the week will be easier. We'll be back on Nov 12, and I'll breath a sigh of relief that this "big rock" of our home assignment is completed.

In the meantime, for the record, here are some things I've been thinking about writing on:

• friendship
• Australian bush dance (acutally, I might get this one done in the next 24 hours)
• boundaries
• grief
• about this conference I'm going to
• Christmas on home assignment
• internally judgemental
• When are you next coming to Australia? (I just wrote a short bit about that in our prayer letter that I sent out this afternoon)
• Kid's newsletter (which has completely fallen off the rails)
• the books I've been reading: Awe by Tripp, Making Sense of God by Keller

So you see. Tonnes of material. Just no time or frame of mind to get sorted in my head and down in a form that's in any way presentable.

But for now: it's off to packing on this stinking hot spring day (forecast around 36C, but very dry at 25%).  Let's consult the weather of my destinations: 

Singpoare weather: excessively humid (>85%, so currently feels like 31C) but not stinking hot (forecast temperatures around 28C), however I will mostly be inside in their famously cold air conditioning. But, as it's a professional conference, I can't wear jeans all week. Hmmm.

Perth weather: it's jumping around between high teens and mid to high 20s, but is dry (today 50%). With lots of up-front events, I also can't be too casual in my clothing most days either.

Sounds like layers are the thing! But now I've got to do it! (We've got a breakfast meeting tomorrow, so there won't be too much extra time to spare...sigh, it's going to be a long day.)