Ah, the life of a freelancer — 20-hour days, PR people who can’t remember the name of the company they’re repping but are pretty sure that if you have a home office you’re not a “real” writer, and editors who’d be rioting in the streets if their direct-deposit paycheck was delayed by two hours but can’t see their way clear to pay you in a timely fashion. This past Xmas season I had one of them inform me that I ought to have bought him a present for the holidays, to keep the work coming. I bit back the urge to tell him sure, expect my present around June — accounts payable’s a little slow lately. Why did I hold back, I wonder?