The rucksack of supplies and why it’s stopping you from writing

And enjoying the view…

Did I tell you we’ve bought a van? 

It’s not a fancy thing, so if you’re imagining a groovy camper-van stop and imagine a builders van instead.
And it’s not the van in this picture either, our van is the kind with a sticker on the back that says ‘no tools are left in this vehicle overnight.’

That kind of van. 

Did I tell you we’ve bought a van? 

It’s not a fancy thing, so if you’re imagining a groovy camper-van stop and imagine a builders van instead.
And it’s not the van in this picture either, our van is the kind with a sticker on the back that says ‘no tools are left in this vehicle overnight.’

That kind of van. 

We bought it for two reasons, one because we need it for the business, but also because we want to be able to chuck our bikes in the back and go off on adventures.

Which is what we’re doing for half term, so there may not be a free newsletter in a few Fridays, depending on how the road trip goes.

So this week, we took it out for a bit of a test drive on the motorway. We wanted to check it was alright going at 60mph and see how we all felt about it.

That’s when we realised one of the doors doesn’t shut properly.

It’s only a tiny thing, but when going at high speeds, the air blows back and it sounds like you’re on a jet plane and sitting near the engine.

Not ideal for the week of travelling we’ve planned.
So our conversations these past few days have been with the garage trying to get the part that will make the door shut completely, and, lots of heated discussion about my husband’s idea of using gaffer tape. That will apparently, ‘work just as well.’

I’ve my fingers crossed for the mechanic, but I’ll let you know how we end up.

The other thing we realised, is that when all three of us are sitting up front, there isn’t much room left for snacks, books, entertainment devices, etc. Which was at first, a big blow to my little girl.

Mostly on long car journeys, she watches a film, or does some kind of drawing or reading, or listens to an audio book and usually she has this big rucksack filled with all her ‘supplies.’ 

When we got in the van, both of us sitting close together, we found there was no room for her rucksack of supplies and she had to pick one thing that could fit in the small glove compartment.

It was tense. 

The choosing and trying to persuade me that I didn’t need a full seat to myself and could easily share it with her rucksack.
In the end she picked her iPad along with her headphones and looked forlorn as the rucksack was put back in her bedroom.

We started the journey and she went to get out her iPad and then stopped as we all marvelled how different the view is in the van.
So high up.
You get to see everything and have a good nosey as you pass people in cars on the motorway.

The radio was on and we had a chat.
We had a singsong. We talked over and over about the jet-engine sound and if it was bearable. 

After a couple of hours we got back home and not once had my daughter looked at her iPad or missed her rucksack of supplies.

When I pointed this out, she was amazed.

And here’s the thing, if we’d had room for her rucksack, she would’ve taken out everything in it and used them all.
Five minutes on reading, ten minutes on colouring, etc. I know this because at the end of most journeys, her stuff is all over the backseat and we have to tidy it up.

But because it wasn’t there, she didn’t use it. 

And what’s more, she didn’t miss it. 

She didn’t miss what she didn’t have, and I think it can be the same for most things, but especially when trying to be creative.

I know that when I’m writing, or planning content, if I have a rucksack of supplies to help me, I get hardly anything done. 

If say, I have a few books on writing craft that I can dip into for inspiration, along with watching a few videos from other people on how to write, along with my fancy new notebook that’s a bit too nice to write in, along with essential research that I need to do on Google…  

If I have anything other than my keyboard, or pen and paper, I’m not very productive.

So if you have a rucksack of supplies, and yours could be snacks, drinks, music, a smelly candle, a fluffy blanket, your cat, social media, your dog, the right playlist…

All those things that you think you can’t work without. 

Try taking them away.

See how it feels creating without those supplies. You don’t need them for every journey. Put constraints on yourself. 

Don’t have unnecessary distractions, because chances are, without them, the view will be different and you’ll get so much more done.

Have a great weekend,

Zoe x