So, you may be asking yourself - or maybe not - how is it going after week one of the grand experiment? You know, the one where I try to slice 20 hours a week or so from my work schedule and still maintain my sanity. Well, I can tell you how it's going from this perspective. I'm going crazy.

It's not that I haven't found enough to do to fill my schedule. The hours I usually work at the Star Eagle have been taken up by all kinds of household tasks: cleaning, emptying the cats' litter box, dishes (a lot of dishes), garbage, making coffee, and laundry (a lot of it) have filled my time quite nicely, thank you. I'm sure Eli, my 17-year-old, appreciates the meals I have been preparing for him as well, and I believe I'm doing myself a favor by cooking three square meals a day.

But, I'm still getting a little case of the cabin fever. Why, just the other day, I found myself looking forward to a trip to the dentist - so much so that I even took a trip to the barber, just to prepare, only to find out Leo is out of the office until at least March. Who can blame him? If I could be out of the house and to a warmer climate until then, I don't think I'd be battling cabin fever or looking for something to do.

I really admire anyone who can crank out a column on a weekly basis, people like Mark Domeier, Al Batt, Dick Herfindahl and the like. As I've been told numerous times throughout the years, I wish I could write like they do. In fact, if I had a dollar for every time I've heard that, well, I'd have a lot of dollars by now.

But the truth is, it's hard to write a column every week. Even with all my spare time, this one does not come easily. If the words of a boss I once had, writing a column is easy - as easy as it is to cut open a vein.

Actually, it's not that difficult, as long as you have the inspiration and the ideas. Coming up with ideas can be tough, however.

One thing I have tried awfully hard to do is to stay out of Reed Waller's way. He appears to have embraced his new role at the newspaper, and I can say with all honesty, it made me smile the other day when he referred to Troy Thompson as, "My new sportswriter," rather than "Your new sportswriter," or even "Our new sportswriter." Troy comes to the Star Eagle with a game or two under his belt, having worked for the Rochester newspaper, and though I'm sure the Swami (Dale Kugath) will be missed by many, including myself, we're hoping Troy will step up and fill the ticket nicely. We haven't asked him yet if he's willing to write a column or two, but I wouldn't bet against it.

But back to the house. It has been years since it's been this clean, and keeping it clean is high on my agenda of things to do not only in the near future but the far distant future as well. I plan to keep it spic and span, with maybe a little help from Spic and Span, and maybe even Mr. Clean.

And then there's ESPN. Is there anyone else out there who leaves it on their TV screen 24 hours a day?

It reminds me of a refrigerator magnet I once had, displaying a '50s model clad in '50s-stye lingerie, with the saying, "No matter how she tried, Violet just couldn't compete with ESPN."

And that reminds me of a baby born in Albert Lea several years ago who was lucky enough to be named "Espn,"  by his parents. I think you pronounce it "Espen," though I'm not certain and not sure I want to be. It's a good thing I didn't think of it when my kids were born.

One thing is for sure. I don't know how much longer I can hold back before returning to the Star Eagle on a full-time basis. After all, there's only so much kitty litter to go around. And this house can only be so clean.