How to Be 50: Part I...

In three days, I turn 50. To many approaching this milestone, this is a daunting prospect. But I'm genuinely looking forward to it. I think my fifties will be a good decade because my head is in the best place it's ever been and I think I'm getting back to my best in terms of creating again. 

There are several reasons for this: I am not working in a disgracefully stressful job; I have no immediate money worries; I am spending lots of quality time with the Missus and we remain ridiculously happy together; I am back into a solid routine of martial arts training and loving learning new skills in no-gi BJJ, wrestling and MMA; and I have several writing projects on the go that I'm really excited about. 

I'm in a good place. Even the looming prospect of a potential return to work later in the year cannot damped my spirits.

The writing is also going really well. I have just finished the first draft of a script for a graphic novel I'm doing with an artist friend, I have a short play idea to finish about a murder, then I have rewrites on two plays to finish before embarking on a new idea. I am daft excited about the latter. It's a real chamber piece with just four characters and I'm already seeing the scenes and the conflicts.

Who knows? I could write something that lands big-style yet.