I'd rather have another haemorrhage than go through another month like this one! Apart from the occasional birthday card, I've done absolutely nothing in paint for weeks - fortunately, I was able to keep drawing, but I couldn't even take the very good advice offered in response to my last post, to try a 30-minute painting to get the brain back in gear. I couldn't think what to paint - which is plainly daft, since I have around 20 years' worth of sketches, files full of my own photographs, and live in a fairly paintable spot, although I do sometimes long for the drama of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall... the Isle of Wight was once described (by J B Priestley) as being like Hampshire in miniature: and that's about right; we don't, on the whole, do drama - not Snowdonia or Glencoe type drama anyway.... But it wasn't that - I've had this sort of thing before, and suspect most of us have: given a commission, I'd be able to do the job; but for the last few weeks I've had zero enthusiasm to do anything of my own volition. Tried all the usual remedies, or rather, I THOUGHT about trying them; change of medium, different subject.... but there was always something else to do; a letter that needed to be written, call that needed to be made; website that had to be visited; the time I've wasted on the Guardian Comment is Free forum - what on earth for ... it's one of those small worlds which has no relevance to anything going on outside it. But it was wonderful displacement activity... while arguing with some other time-wasting twerp, I couldn't do any painting. However: light is dawning. I'm going to have a go at a small oil or two; get some more canvas when I can afford it; join that art club I've been putting off joining; ease back into things. And also write my e-book ... at last. Don't know about you, but if I'm not working on a painting, I get very anxious, restive, irritable - neurotic is probably the word! I think though that there are times when maybe the best advice is just to give oneself a holiday and not try to force things. While I'm no one's idea of hyperactive, I'm really not very good at not painting - even so; perhaps another haemorrhage isn't, on reflection, quite the happy alternative I suggested when I began...... What do you do when you walk right into a block, and can't get round it?