As I look at the current date at the calendar, I am blown away with surprise. November 18th. It has been nearly one month since I left for Banff, Canada, and nearly two full months since my last day at my most recent paid job. Two months unemployed, and one month since I left for “the” trip of my entire year. You might be wondering, “what the heck has Natasha been up to?” 

Most people express discomfort with the idea of being intentionally unemployed because they claim they would not know what to do with the long hours of each day. I have yet to experience this. Since I first resigned from my job at Google five years ago (wow, I know) I have had probably around 10 stints of unemployment periods. About half those did include significant volunteering time, always outside of the United States, and all of them include travel, spending time with loved ones, and making new friends. Although I did write the majority of my manuscript while in New Zealand, bought my website and filled it with most of its current essays while on a solo road trip around our National Parks, no other stint has been as productive and treated as if I still had a full-time job, as this current one.

Now that I have you at the edge of your seat, I will finally tell you what I have been up to…

…I have been throwing spaghetti at the ceiling! Nearly everyday of the last two months.

Hah, sounds like a great two months, right? Can you imagine me, sitting in my adorable woodland condo, just sitting in a big cozy brown faux leather chair, with a big bowl of spaghetti on my lap, and gently hucking each individual strand up above my head, with a mischievous smile?

While on my big trip to Banff, Canada, at the Banff Centre International Film and Book Festival, a new friend of mine shared this expression, this beautiful metaphor with me, after I gave her a short explanation of all the self-imposed deadlines and “to-dos” I had on my list,  even while on my trip.

“You’re just throwing spaghetti at the wall.” I chuckled, but did not nod, slightly perplexed. “You’re throwing spaghetti and seeing what sticks,” she continued.

“Ohhhhhhh! Yes! I am! That is a perfect description of what I am doing!”

In the month from returning from Dan and my epic backpacking trip from Carson Pass to The Rubicon Trail, to the day I returned from Banff, I have done the following to build my writing career:

• Written, practiced, and delivered an elevator pitch about the manuscript I have written.
• Designed, paid for, and gave out, my own personal business cards that say, “Writer” along with my name, and my website, instagram, email, phone number, and “Dirt and Tears.” 
• Submitted a short story to the Wollongong International Short Story Prize.
• Submitted three essays to the ROAM Awards, even after hearing about it only a week before the deadline, while already on my trip in Canada.
• Submitted four short stories to The Dirtbag Diaries, after editing them for about a full month, and listening to the podcast, dreaming of getting one of my stories on there, for two years.
• Submitted a video application for a speaking opportunity at Creative Mornings Sacramento to talk on the topic of “Silence.”
• Applied to be a Coalition Snow Ambassador, to hopefully increase my chances of getting articles in their magazine, and also to continue to use my skills and passion to bring the community together.
• Continued editing my manuscript, now only 40 pages away from the hard copy edits. Next will be the digital copy edits.
• Built up the courage to talk to and truly connect with published authors and journalists who were on the main stage at the festival, current writers in the Banff residency program, athletes and activists who are leaders for diverse and underrepresented groups in their sports, world-renowned alpinists, and staff who have, or are currently, running particular areas of the literary programs at Banff.

I have no idea if that list is impressive, or if it is even complete, but it sure does make me feel proud. Because the thing is, these are all facts. The end points. The execution of pressing the “send” button. However, there is a lot more to this whole throwing spaghetti on the ceiling business.

1. I have to make each individual strand of spaghetti, from scratch.
2. I have to find the ceilings to throw the spaghetti at.

Each strand of spaghetti is something I have created. Whether an email, an elevator pitch, a business card, a video, or a short story, I do not just have all of these strands of spaghetti sitting in a bowl in my lap. Secondly, part of my continued journey navigating this writer’s maze, is finding the places that might be interested in my work, and always, editing my work in order to meet the requirements of each place.

Mind you, I am in no way complaining here. This is what I love. The journey. The search. The hard work. Honestly, the more I have contemplated this adventure as a writer, the more I realize it is simply another common thread in my life. My core values are connection, authenticity, and exploration. Writing is all three of these values. My absolute main goal of writing is to help others feel less alone in this world. Moreover, more recently as I have been forcing myself to connect with others in the writing community, and other creative endeavors, I have enjoyed even more of an array of meaningful connections. My style of writing is incredibly vulnerable, and lends its style from nowhere. It is 100% authentically me. Lastly, writing allows me to explore the inner depths of my heart and mind, to share the beauty of the cultures and places I have explored, and to explore a career path. A career path which is the first career path I ever really wanted, besides, of course, being a professional baseball player when I was nine years old.

This is it. This is my career. Just like all of you who have decided on what you wanted your career to be, I am putting all of me into this. Time, money, energy, commitment.

In six days, I will begin a winter job, and I am quite excited about the new opportunity and what I might get to experience from it. Also, I am very focused right now on ensuring that I keep this writing inertia moving forward consistently throughout the winter.

Today, I am inviting you to help me. Help me through the spaghetti on the ceiling. How? Here are some options:

• Follow my website and instagram, and comment on them.
• Help me make the spaghetti by offering to critique my work while I am editing it before submissions.
• Help me find the ceilings to throw the spaghetti at, by sending podcasts, contests, magazines, or anything else where you feel my work my fit.
• Introduce me to any contact in your world who might be able to help me get my work out in front of the eyes who need to read my words. Who will benefit from my words.

Maybe you have an idea, or a contact, that could help make spaghetti stick.

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