Brushing Off Invisible Spiders

I got my second Covid vaccination and now I have the predicted 'flu-like symptoms'. I haven't had this sensation in a long time and I am against it.

We always look at our past selves and think 'How did that person think they were old? I'm old now, and that person didn't know how good they had it.' Of course, in the future my older self will think the exact same thing about me.

Which leads me to conclude, that we are all old. Ever since we hit 30 we are ravaged by time. These pains in my back are only milder due to the damage to my nerves. I have been old since I was 29, now I'm just willing myself not to decompose.

We have a little spider that hangs out near the fruit bowl and I assume grabs fruit flies. During the winter he's learned that he can sit near the teapot to get warm. Yesterday there was an accident and he ended up in my lukewarm tea. After some care and attention he was rescued and dried out and this morning he's back on the kitchen bench where he belongs.

phew

I just learned a wonderful French phrase 'Je m'incruste' that translates as 'I encrust myself'. (It doesn't sound great in English) You use it to embed yourself into a conversation that you're not a part of. It's a confident signal to the group that 'You have arrived and wish to be welcomed to the group'. A slightly faux-egotistical announcement that you are the jewel that the crown was been waiting for.

We don't have that in English. In English you sneak up quietly and wait for permission from the group. This permission is silent. If you're lucky a person on either side will make room for you. As often as not they will remain still.

I love that the French have a way to casually announce their arrival. J'aimerais qu'on ait ça.

I'm taking a work break for a week and a half. Just hanging around at home doing all those little chores that build up over time. A little cooking. Maybe some drawing. Read a novel. Perhaps I should try to avoid killing time on my computers, though they are my favourite things to kill time on.

There's something truly disgusting about businesses sending you birthday messages with some marketing "deal". This is my celebration. How dare you try to manipulate me today.

I've suddenly got a lot of people asking me to do things and I am very much out of the habit. It's not hard to say 'No' but most of these things are things I'm not averse to. My calendar is rapidly filling up and I'm getting a real sense of anxiety.

I think I don't like committing to stuff, and I used to commit to stuff all the time. The hardest thing is that the thing I hate more than committing to stuff is cancelling commitments. Perhaps I wouldn't be so anxious if I knew I could happily cancel without letting myself down.

I'm much less impressed by the NASA 'copter than maybe I should be.

It feels like when Apple provided widgets and people thought it would be super useful but it turned out only to be valuable in very specific situations.