I woke up with a plan in mind (getting caught up with my reading), then turned right around and did something else (almost finished a writing project on my blog). I need to get over a quirk I have with editing my own writing: after writing it, then re-reading it, then starting to edit it, I gradually back away and quit because I start to notice the quality of my style start to deteriorate. I need to remind myself it’s the purpose of editing to shore it up. Also, the first draft was written completely by my right thumb on a smartphone in various states of agitation, inspiration, disconsolation, and determination, so a) I know there will be glitches, but b) it’s hard to return to some of those states.
However, almost finishing the project brought me a sense of relief and relaxation I hadn’t felt in over a week. I lay down on the bed, put on headphones, and listened to an album by Orlando “Cachaito” Lopez, a master bassist and composer (the son of one, too) from Cuba. It felt great not to do anything at all, not to think at all about what I had to do, and simply absorb the thrum and throb of Lopez’s playing. I slept for about five minutes in the middle of the album, but that was welcome, too.
At Nicole’s suggestion, we watched the documentary Forks Over Knives, which looks at the benefits of a plant-based diet and the dangers of an animal-based one. She thought I might be bored with it; I actually found it exciting, and recommend it. The footage of the meals alone–their sheer color!–was very motivating to me. However, being reminded of the changes in the standard American diet since the early twentieth century just fed my suspicion that this country is slowly killing itself, and not just via the plate.
Streaming for Shut-Ins:
I can’t locate a great Cachaito full album (check the comments), but perhaps you’ve not heard a recording by The Sun One? This album offers a little bit of everything he was about, and the band? Hoo boy.
The Overeem Farewell Tour: Dispatches from the Public School Trenches 