Space

I'm on a mission to find it.

This is my current work environment: 

I gave up my actual office nearly six months ago to create a dedicated guest room for my mother in anticipation of some of her more lengthy visits. And while I was happy to do so, the lack of a quiet space to spread out and work has admittedly created no shortage of problems. 

My desk, which is falling apart on one side, is now pushed against one wall in what is literally the intersection of our family room, dining room, and hallway. With three kids and a large dog, it is so unbelievably loud and distracting that I often find myself on the verge of tears as my frustration and impatience shoot like a rocket into the stratosphere. When I relocated, I had to condense an entire 9x10 room into the space of two tiny drawers. My actual desktop is so small my work has spilled over onto an end table wedged in between my desk and the couch, as well as the dining room table. Needless to say, we rarely eat at in the dining room anymore because my junk has spread like a virulent mold on every flat surface. We've resorted to eating in shifts, and more often than not I eat at my desk, alone, with my plate perched on my lap. My kids eat wherever they can. Suffice it to say, they've gotten pretty good at fending off the dog. 

Did I mention that our main living space is not quite 1200 sq ft? Free space just doesn't exist. The rooms are so cramped that a guest-room / office is not an option, nor is moving my desk to my bedroom. Our downstairs "dungeon" is made up of the older kids' bedrooms, the laundry room, the furnace room, and a cramped and dingy common space where old toys go to multiply and eventually die. 

The glamorous life of a writer? I think not. 

I'm feeling the pressure of working on three books simultaneously in what few stolen moments I can find, and my lack of privacy and (relative) quiet is making it feel next to impossible.  I'm edgy and cranky. My stomach is knotted. I'm constantly yelling at my kids to "BE QUIET!" and "GO SOMEWHERE ELSE!" And that's not the kind of mother I really am or want to be. I've even (gasp) considered giving up writing for good because, what's the use?

Something's definitely got to change.