I guess that once I'm sitting in front of a computer, it
doesn't really matter where that computer is located. Sure, there are some
software differences, and maybe even the keyboard may have a slightly different
feel (and I haven't done any extended work on a Macintosh for ages) but
just as most pencils are pretty much alike, once I've started working in
front of the screen, it's pretty much like home. True, I'm not used to
having a cat jump into my lap as I type, but there's certainly nothing
new or different about being the only person awake in a dark house late
at night, and not noticing that I'm continuing to work much later than
I'd intended. I can't pull down books from the shelf and find a reference
which is perhaps normally at my fingertips, and I don't have the hints
and suggestions that simply having those books around me seem to call up,
but I can still check an online dictionary or thesaurus, run a search,
and even access my bookmarks which I keep on the web for times such as
these. I even find myself running out of the shower after having shut down
the computer and finally started preparing for bed, looking for a slip
of paper on which to jot down an idea which came to me while the water
was running. It may be a different shower, but it brings up the same thinking
process. And then the question once again presents itself: if what I'm
ultimately doing is recreating my surroundings so that they're more and
more like home, am I defeating my purpose in trying to write a column while
away from home?