Why bother?

I've been busy writing my crime novel (now at over 40 thousand words and starting to fit together),  arranging music for my chorus, and playing newly-printed piano stuff from the IMSLP website, which is a public domain for historical sheet music (and recordings). This time it was by Jan Ladislav Dussek. I remember playing little pieces of his when I was quite small, and loving them. The older I get, the greater seems my need for better organization and less sentimentality. In early classical music it's all laid out. No secret emotional language, little mystery, but lots of elegance and clarity. I normally play my e-piano for an hour or so before going to bed. It's my own personal dialogue with the past, I suppose, But it makes me happy! Dussek (1760-1812) is Mozart's generation, lived longer, but could not emulate Mozart's sensational career. However, he and hundreds of others throughout Europe wrote some great stuff. His piano music ranges from very easy to very tricky. His piano concertos are delightful. 

Thinking about these pearls of musical wisdom inspires me to draw my improvisations. Dynamic Doodling (Zentangle, NeoPopRealism...) is a visible extension of what goes on in the brain. During sleep, the brain is active. When we relax doing something we enjoy (not lolling about watching the box), we activate and stimulate parts of our intellect that are neglected (asleep?) during the stress and hassle of the everyday grind. That's how I interpret my own need to be creative on a permanent learning curve.