The Lonely Study Space

Lubbock, Texas. 7:40 p.m. The only sounds in the bar reviewer's living room are the swooshing of the ceiling fan and the tap tap tapping of the keys on her laptop. Somewhere in the distance she hears her text message vibrating. Who is bothering her now? That's how she sees all outside telephone communication these days - as a bother. Unless, of course, SHE initiates it out of sheer desire to procrastinate. She sits there again - staring at her screen and wishing she hadn't procrastinated today like she did. Everyday it's the same story: Wake up, drink some caffeine, get a good start on learning what needs to be learned, break for lunch, and then the momentum is gone. She tells herself that tomorrow will be different but it never is. It never is. These days, she finds herself more distracted by things that should not be occupying her mind and time. She is on the outs with her boyfriend and hasn't spoken to him for several days. He has made no attempt to contact her, and she refuses to contact him. After all, if he really cared, wouldn't he fight for her? Shouldn't he? So if he doesn't care, then maybe she shouldn't allow this extraneous influence to affect her progress. Too bad she has never been the kind of woman to be able to shut off her mind.