It turns out that all this talk about getting excited and making things, uh, got me excited to make something.

I don't remember the precise moment this hit me, but I'm pretty sure it happened during one of those times I felt stuck on a story or something, and decided to get out of my office and take a walk. These walks are a fundamental part of my creative process, a time when I let my mind wander away, confident that it will come back with something cool.

During this particular walk, I was thinking about my plans for 2010, what I'll do with my podcasts, and getting excited to do more work on Memories of the Future Volume Two.

That's when my mind ran off like a dog chasing an idea through the forest, returning a few minutes later with something awesome. If I were to create a dialog to dramatically illustrate the way it all came together, it might go something like this:

My Mind: DUDE! OMG! This is going to be so cool!

Me: Okay, I'm listening.

My Mind: We're going to make a mug that goes with Memories of the Future.

Me: Tell me more…

My Mind: On one side, it will have those beautiful space jellyfish that Will designed for the cover.

Me: I love how those look.

My Mind: Everyone does. Will did a great job with them. Now listen, because this is what takes this mug from cool to awesome: On the opposite side of the mug, it says:

Tea,

Earl Grey.

Hot.

Me: Holy crap, My Mind! That's awesome!

My Mind: I know, right?!

Me: High five!

My Neighbor's Kid: Why did Mister Wheaton just slap himself in the head?

My Neighbor: He's a writer, honey. They do weird things like that.

And … scene.

When I got back to my house, I e-mailed the idea to my friend Will Hindmarch, who did the cover and interior design for Memories of the Future, Volume One. About 2 hours later, we'd built the mug and put it into a store at CafePress. I remember saying to Will, "I think this is awesome, and I don't know if anyone else will … but who cares? It's a 2 hour project that has great potential, and if I'm the only person who wants one of these mugs, so what? I'll have one, and I'll be happy."

I vaguely recall Will saying that he thought more than one person would want to have one, but I'm not entirely sure, so I'm not going to quote him. I'm sure he'll chime in here if he wants to add to the historical record. (Edit: Will says, That's pretty much how I remember it going, with the enthusiasm and the hope that people would like it and the glaven. Except that I remember gasping and saying, "That's magnificent!" when you said it should say "Tea, Earl Grey. Hot." on it.)

Now, I'm going to restate something I said on this week's Memories of the Futurecast: In just two hours, my friend who lives on the other side of the country and I created something that anyone in the world can get, if they want it. We didn't have to invest anything other than a little time (and, honestly, Will did all the hard work; I just came up with the idea and tweaked the final specs a couple of times.) I. Love. Living. In. The. Future.

Okay, enough backstory. Here's the 1000 words that matter:

If you'd like to purchase a Memories of the Futuremug for your very own (or as a gift for the luckiest person you know), you can head over to make it so at my Memories of the Futureshop at CafePress.

Please note that, in addition to Earl Grey, the Memories of the Futuremug is suitable for other types of tea, various kinds of coffee and other hot beverages, pencils, or pudding.