Up On The Roof

It’s just after 11:30pm here on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, and I’m tapping out this blog post on my iPhone, in the dark, while pearched on the roof of our house. The “trades” (that’s what we here on the islans lovingly refer to the Trade Winds that blow in off the Pacific ocean) have returned and are blanketing our sleepy little town in all their fresh ocean breeze goodness.

Over two and a half hours ago I sat down, on the sofa in the living room with my laptop like a normal person, with the sole purpose and intention of writing the first blog post on a new blog/business we’re launching. After staring at that blank, taunting screen for a few minutes, I noticed a little number “3″ sitting quietly along side the “Plugins” link in the WordPress sidebar.

“I’ll just do those plugin updates quick.” I thought to myself. Well of course that led to some plugin update problems; a “Thesis” (Thesis is the WordPress theme powering this site) update that I remembered reading about; some additional exploration around the spiffy new WordPress 2.7 Control Panel; and the obvious thought that I should update my own blog software, and switch it to Thesis, while I’m in the groove of these other updates. Astute readers will have already noticed that my last post on this, my personal blog, was 362 days ago.

“It’s the new year. I’m going to start posting on my personal blog again and I should get it updated and ready!” I cleverly convinced myself.

So, why am I on the roof, at 11:57pm on a Sunday night,in the dark, tapping out these words on my iPhone?

Sometime over the past 4 years while living in this cute little house, I discovered that I get a lot of great ideas on this roof. Mostly at night. I’m not sure why? Perhaps it’s that, at night, our friendly, close-quartered neighborhood is quiet? People quiet. Quiet except for the occasional car and the rustle of the trades wandering through our giant mango tree and the broad-leafed palms in the neighbor’s yard. And it was on this very roof, on a night not unlike this one over a year and a half ago, that the original idea for our new business, the one I’m supposed to be writing about, burst into my brain.

So with my laptop’s battery now depleated from all the downloading and uploading and FTPing and refreshing, I decided to head to the roof with my iPhone to tap out a few inspired ideas that, no doubt, will be delivered to me…

Instead, I end up writing this meandering post to my severely neglected personal blog?

You see, here’s the Good News and the Bad News about the roof: I have no control over what is “delivered” to me. Sometimes it’s company changing ideas. Sometimes it’s just stars playing peek-a-boo behind the clouds and jet planes bound for the Mainland. And sometimes it’s just a string of words, tapped out on my iPhone, in the dark, while everyone else in in my Windward neighborhood sleeps.

And the trades.