Ideas come from the strangest places.

I am not sure exactly where this idea popped up from, but I do know I was pacing a floor. So, I would assume that it was probably when I was bored at work. Yes, I get lots of ideas while bored at work.

ANYWAY...It was the start of an idea.

Like a good camp fire it just needed some time, and some space to breath, before the flames caught and the idea took off.
Those flames caught me while driving home from a doctors appointment today. It was a rough draft and only in its most bare form, but it was there.

Que the pestering of my wife.

In every writers carrier, I believe, they come to a point where they have a great idea, but it is missing something special. I know I can count on my wife for those times.

I will be honest, she loves that I can make up stories, she doesn't care for the idea of making her own...yet, but that might come in time. However, when I need a fresh new thought on something, I can rely on her to come up with an idea that my own twisted imagination wouldn't have imagined. She brings me back to a level of reality that can be very important for a writer in the field of fiction. She did that again today.

Skip time forward about three more hours, with the kids asleep, the house clean (ish) and 300 words later I had a very rough drafted outlined. I can see this story sitting around the 30-40k mark and it is a story idea totally new to me.

I intend to research it and see if I am wrong.

So, I have pounded out some words on a doc file, my hand joyously moves to hit the save button and I realise I have no idea what this title will be.
It is a good thing I have great friends on twitter. Their words come back to me even when they are offline. FIND ANOTHER WORD!
I have an idea in my head but it sounds terrible, cue thesaurus.com and viola! An outline for BREATHING SPACE has been born. Now all I need is the time to write it and make it happen.

A little about someone I love deeply.

So normally I blog about whatever is on my mind. In reality, this time is no different.

This particular blog is going to be about the woman who means the most to me in the world.

My wife. *To be known as 'C' to protect the innocent.*

Ever since I met my wife almost 8 years ago I have noticed she is different than other woman. Yes, of course she is you say. Well, this time it is more true than you might think, and it was only just last week that we found out how different she really is.
She would try to explain to me how her mind worked. A troubling area to be sure, for a man can never really know the inner workings of a woman's mind. Yet, I did my best to understand regardless. She dumbed it down for me by saying that often when she would see something, someone, or hear a song, the stimulus isn't important, it would trigger a ton of memories tied into that 'thing'. The best way to think of it would be looking at the very same computer screen you are seeing this on, and having a whole bunch of computer windows popping up with every different area of stimuli. Often those windows would just open more windows and your computer (mind) would be overcome with a myriad of thoughts, images and memories.
Pretty hard to take in right?
So my response was, well stop thinking about it! (a pretty typical male response, it would work for me, being able to turn off my brain with ease) Thing is, she can't. I stumbled across what she actually has.

Hyperthmesia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperthymesia

Yes, she really does have this. Now before you start thinking, whoa whoa whoa, there is no way anyone can have that. Check it out a little deeper. It is rare, and she isn't a full blown case. I can't give her a date for her to recall every little detail on. BUT, there are 1000's of days that she can remember.

So what does that mean you say? Well, here you go. It means that when someone did a kind act, she remembers what was said, by who, wearing what. If it was raining that day, what time of day it was, what song was on the radio, all of that is in there.

On the flip side...

If someone wronged her, let her down, was a snob, ignored her, gave the silent treatment, put her in their 'bad books' called her a name... ANYTHING. She remembers it, to a T. What they were wearing, the color of their hair, what stuffed animals were arranged in the background. Everything.

I love my wife to death. When I said the words 'I do' I meant them from the bottom of my heart and I will live my entire life dedicated to making her life happier, and better. So how do I do this when people of the world today care only about themselves, and the thoughts of others are pushed aside on a whim? It is very hard. You see, those things that most people can ignore, shove aside, forget all together or even kid themselves into thinking never really happened. When you do it to C, they aren't forgotten. The words can cut deeper than any blade can, and the cuts take a very, very long time to heal.
How will I protect my wife from people that don't care?
I will care even more.