I have to get some work to an exhibition half way across the country. It will necessitate two if not three trips - one to get the work there in one piece, a second to attend the private view, and perhaps a third to collect if it doesn't attract any buyers. Courier companies are hugely expensive and dispatching by any other means risks the possibility of loss or damage. The gallery owners may not be that enthralled with unwrapping my goods, minus my presence. Oh, the ongoing trials and tribulations of getting your work into a show! So, a road trip (or two) beckons, but I am hoping the change of scenery will lift my spirits.Today my work looked at me more than I looked at it. I did less than hour and then had to answer the calls of other duties; writing letters, printing off some photographs, making phone calls. Are all artists so easily diverted? Each free day I have to devote to painting, with a fresh brew of strong coffee in hand, I create a list of tasks I hope to accomplish by the end of the day. They call it time management, but if I am to be any good at this task, I need just those organisational skills to draw up the list in the first place! On advice, I once kept a time log. It took me half an hour to create it, all neatly word processed and printed! I was filled with self-loathing when I realised at the end of the day that I had spent two and a half hours perusing eBAy.I love eBAy, it's an antiques market, a junk shop, a bargain basement, a warehouse clearance and car boot sale all rolled into one lovely muss of interesting stuff right on my doorstep (I could even buy a car or van!) - no time on it is wasted. One just needs to have an objective and a budget beforehand - never forgetting to check the feedback and prior sales patterns of sellers and buyers -checking out the the competition. If they are a regular sniper then you will have to snipe back accordingly, biding your time until the very last few seconds, when the desired prize can finally become yours. Enough already! I am wasting even more time talking about it! More important matters are calling...