NaNoWriMo Day 6: A test of my endurance

Why no NaNoWriMo Day 5 post?  The short answer is that I had no access to my computer and didn't really fancy typing 1,667 words on my smart phone.  The long answer is that my husband and I spent the day moving furniture, tearing up carpet, moving furniture again, tearing up more carpet, etc., etc.  Couple this with the fact that the contractor was painting what is currently our office, and let's just say that by the end of the day, I was to be found half-conscious on the couch watching 30 Rock on Netflix.

Today also saw me doing a fair amount of physical labor, but before NaNoWriMo began we decided to take on major home improvement projects, so I'm not going to let the disorder and chaos of my house be an excuse for not rocking this year's NaNoWriMo.  I'm such an overachiever that, not only will I write a whole novel in one month, I'll do it while my house is ripped apart for two weeks out of the month.  How's that for dedication?

Here is but a snippet of the 2,030 words I wrote today.  Oooh, intrigue!  Tomorrow, I'm shooting for 4,000 words.

***

“Head Engineer Andersen was right to turn her in for such a crime,” Dara said firmly.  “Though I’m not sure why you told me.  It’s probably best to forget that such a person could ever have been a Ballast.”

“Yes,” Letizia said.  “Head Engineer Andersen is always extremely attentive to his duty.”

Though these were the right words, the way Letizia said them and the look on her face confused Dara.  It was almost as if Letizia disapproved of Andersen’s actions—but that couldn’t possibly be correct.  Dara assumed that Letizia had been born and raised a Ballast, just like herself.  After all, it was highly unusual for anyone to either go from being a Job Creator to a Ballast and it was almost completely unheard of for someone to go from being a Core to being a Ballast.  Given this, Letizia would have been educated just as Dara had, would know her place in society and her duty to the Job Creators.

“And don’t we all strive to be attentive to our duty?” Dara asked.

“Of course,” Letizia said.  She smiled, but Dara thought it looked somewhat forced.  “I simply thought that sharing this story with you would help you to give you a clearer picture of the sort of person Head Engineer Andersen is.”

Feeling increasingly uncomfortable, Dara replied, “Thank you.  It did help me to better understand that Head Engineer Andersen is a man of the utmost integrity.”

            “He is indeed most attentive to the needs and wishes of the Job Creators.”

            “Can I get you some more tea?” Dara asked abruptly.  She was eager to end this particular line of conversation.