Party, Party, Party

 Quaint vignettes from my charming rural idyll!

I seem to have picked up another pet teenager!  Pet Teenager #1 grew up and moved to Las Vegas, which she is in the process of taking over.  This new one is just another neighbor kid who started coming by because of my garden also.  I shall refer to her as Occasional Teenager.  Just a nice, friendly kid who stops by every now and then to say hi and see how I'm doing.  It's so weird!  Really nice, but...of all the things I thought being older would bring me, Pet Teenagers was not one.  

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James Joyce is really annoying.  He can fuck right off.

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I am making a conscious decision this Winter to exercise and get outside when I can. Last year when the monsoon season began, I basically stayed inside all winter flat on my ass writing and studying, which made the subsequent Springtime Rush out in the garden excruciating!  

By the end of Summer, I'm usually in pretty good shape.  I still build up biceps that rip my t-shirt sleeves 

This is totally a picture of me.  Really.

and I'm flexible enough to not just touch my toes, but lay my palms flat on the ground.  You don't use it, you lose it.  To go from a high level of activity to sudden dormancy is not good, which I suppose should go without saying. (Can you say 'severe constipation'?  Then go run outside and scream it in the middle of the street ten times! I'll stay here and enjoy that mental image.)  To spend an entire winter on your ass is super de duper extra no good.

I'm seeing the benefits of my new regimen.  Even if it's just doing exercises indoors, the improvement in my mental health in particular is marked.  Whoda thunk it?  All this time doctors really did know what they were talking about.

Gotta exercise those brain cells as well.  So, I girded my loins and delved into the world of 20th century poetry, which is way, way, way, way out of my comfort zone - because it is way, way, way, way out of my comfort zone.  I was pleasantly surprised to find out that there's a lot of stuff out there that is not only readable, but beautiful and enjoyable too.  Will I be forsaking my beloved Beat Poets anytime soon? Not on your amphetamines, buddy.  But I've found out a new thing, and gone in a new direction.  Now even my brain cells will have little biceps that rip their little t-shirts too!

I decided to take a more active role in Good Reads, too.  I have three books going at any given time, not including the nonfiction articles I read online, so that's been a pick and choose proposition.  But it's also a form of social media on a higher level of discourse than "Here is a picture of some clouds" and "I hate the Tories" ; or, as they call it, Facebook.  I just started 'The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius' because I  know how to party.  We'll see how that goes.  Gotta be less annoying that Joyce.