Week A. I was getting up at around 0645. The pattern of the working week was similar to most weeks. I finished work at the same time. On an evening it was an exercise in some MBA stuff, Mass Effect 2 and continuing with notes and ideas for my Space Fantasy experiment. All good.

Week B. Is surprisingly similar to Week A. It involved getting up at the same time. It involved doing similar things. It involved finishing at the same time. The evenings involved a general lethargy, zero MBA stuff (though I am ahead to be fair), minimal Mass Effect 2 and certainly nothing significantly imaginative such as my Space Fantasy experiment.

What's the difference between the two weeks? A complete lack of 'mental space' in Week B and also the fact I was working from home in Week A.

What's interesting thing about the two weeks is the only difference is literally the location. The work was no more or less interesting in either week. Obviously, despite getting up at the same time and finishing work at the same time, I do have a 45-minute journey when working in the office, but I don't think this is a significant factor. Hell, in Week A, I was also dealing with the stress of trying to arrange a gear box from a series of parts dealers like Watto from Star Wars: Episode One. I'm half convinced there is something about the office, it seems to induce the same 'mental fatigue' as being in meetings (assuming one is actively contributing and thinking during said meetings).

What this results in is a distinct lack of a valuable resource: mental space. It just vanishes completely, like a vampire has sucked the capacity for it out through my nose. This isn't a good thing, as it represents life just coasting by with no real value to it. The reduction to complete banality and the inability to engage in any sort of imaginative activity on an evening is intensely frustrating, whether it be the MBA, a computer game or role-playing game stuff. It represents a loss of momentum. It doesn't have to be volumes of text written, tens of studies read or anything like that, just active thought and the odd note. Momentum gets lost and it makes it harder to get started again. It's even creates a small barrier to re-entry for Mass Effect 2, never mind tasks that need more active engagement. It's not insurmountable, we're not talking about a weeks lost training for an extreme marathon or anything, but still, momentum is good.

On a gaming front this is one big difference between gaming before and gaming now, and it's what actively needs managing. I never had a problem with finding mental space before, for one reason or another, and my general life was full of continuous inputs that helped with the momentum. My life was mental space and imaginative input rich. Hence the strategies to try and solve the input problem and set aside time. Still, when a week like this week happens, it hits pretty hard.