When I need to concentrate, I?

No better place to collect your thoughts than the thrown.

I suppose it's an odd technique ... but I actually find going out into sector [Baghdad] helps. Everything else just goes away - no more phone calls, inane powerpoint slides, TPS report coversheets. It's just me, my rifle and some bad guys.

The break of pace?

Doing something that actually matters?

Or the good, old fashioned adrenaline rush of somebody trying to kill me?

For whatever the reason, all the nonsense boils away and a remarkable sense of clarity settles in.

Hyperactive freshmen + dorm living + lots of last-minute studying = 4am and beyond! (With requisite caffeine). Shooting for an all-nighter now...and hoping I won't be brain-dead for the test at 1pm.

Right before we had our child a couple of weeks ago, I went out into the woods by myself for the first time. I walked all day to get to camp and the whole time saw just two other people. I set up camp, started a fire and ate by 6 p.m. and was left with nothing to do between then and sleep.

I keep a journal off and on averaging maybe 4 entries a month. That night I covered three pages with thoughts and analysis of current personal and not-so-personal affairs: probably the longest entry I ever made.

The prospect of nothing to do, but wait for the night to fall, seems to have allowed me the leisure to think unconstrained by time. Instead of moving on to the next thing nagging for a slice of attention I was able to sit there looking up at the stars and the hypnotic fire.

Now, who was saying something about 3-year olds?

Definately the throne, cigarette in hand, shower running for white noise, wife keeping the kids quiet.