Boring books make good bedtime stories. Today is July 8.
Despite an insomnia-filled night, I woke up an hour earlier than I had the past several mornings. I had been dreaming about moving into my dorm room. Apparently in my dream I only needed to bring one suitcase to live out of for a semester. I have a feeling reality will be slightly different than my unconscious mind, though. I’m not sure if I woke because of the warm weather, sound of birds or simply the climax of my dream (which I think involved pizza) but I was glad to have the extra hours in my day.
A reminder went off on my phone telling me today was my friend’s birthday. She and I met two summers ago in Canada and hit it off. She’s a few years younger than I am, but she’s bright and clever and had a free spirit. I remember spending the better part of a day last summer when my family was in the country walking around and exploring with her. I brought a camera and did an impromptu photoshoot, but my settings were wrong and all the images turned out tinted blue. Nevertheless, I still have one photo I like where she is smiling and talking, looking out at the water.
We hadn’t talked in about a year because our emails and text kept glitching when they’d send, but today when I reached out I learned she’d gotten a new phone. We texted for a while, but because of the time difference we had to end sooner than I’d have liked. I’m going to try to do a better job of keeping in contact this year than last. I have a bad habit of falling off the face of the earth when my life gets hectic, but I’m working to fix that bad habit of mine.
In the spirit of staying connected, I got around to answering an email from my electronic pen pal. She’s wanting to become an ER nurse, and I think she’d make an amazing one. Her work ethic and curiosity are unparalleled, and I’m so glad we’ve kept in contact these past five years. I’m honestly not sure if I could pick her out of a lineup at this point because we only correspond via email, but I know she has a heart of gold and a brilliant mind. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for her. I’m sure she’s going to change the world.
Missouri’s unpleasant heat and humidity deterred me from spending too much time outside today. Instead I fell into the rabbit hole of browsing for a good show or movie to watch. I finished the second season of Graceland (another FBI show), watched a few episodes of Supergirl and started and stopped at least five other series. I couldn’t seem to find anything entertaining or stimulating. I even went back and watched a few episodes from my old favorites like Sherlock but nothing held my attention.
I finally gave up browsing and decided to continue reading Lord of the Flies by William Golding. I’m not sure if I just haven’t gotten far enough in the story yet, but most of the characters seem self-centered and selfish. I don’t like them, and most of their decisions seem to be wrong. My opinion may change as I keep reading, or I’ve simply become too old to appreciate the story, but at the moment they’re all a bit annoying. I wonder if I was such a frustrating early teenager? Probably. Regardless, I’d like to think I’d have been a bit more competent and work with more urgency if I suddenly found myself stranded in the middle of nowhere. In reality, I’d likely have no idea what to do, but I’ll allow myself to pretend I’d be some sort of survivalist who could make a lean-to out of dead branches and fend for myself. I hope I never have to put my idea of what I’d do to the test.
Tomorrow I need to sign up for my move-in slot in my dorm. I hope they’ve fixed the system so I can complete the task in five minutes instead of 50. I’m going to attempt to get to sleep early so I have plenty of energy and can troubleshoot any of the problems I might encounter. If I can fall asleep before my family starts banging around as they get ready for bed, I might have a chance.
“There’s power in looking silly and not caring that you do.” ― Amy Poehler
How did you spend your 113th day of social distancing? Let us know in the comments below.
