inch

the inch. think about it, really think; about life an inch away from the rest of your universe.

what would you see? what would you do?

we distance ourselves from reality, insulate ourselves in fantasy; oh yes, i do it too, dear readers. but it's easier to keep the world at arm's length when your arms are a little longer.

if you couldn't hold it all off, what would happen? would it be overwhelming? would it be scary? would it be invigorating? the inch could change everything.

as a people we seem to enjoy a self-image of being detached, disilluioned and disenfranchised - wise after the fact, cassandraic in our sage predictions, but safely powerless to actually take responsibility. watching the news, nodding wisely, and saying, "yup, told you it would all go wrong."

what if we couldn't keep that distance? what is it like for the non-observers, those who can't get that sense of perspective, those who are within the inch? just as a mental exercise, try to think about it. try to release the comforting grip on jaded cynicism. be within an inch of something - really be there.

overwhelming? scary? invigorating? let me know.

weekly

i'm going to dial things back a little.

don't worry, it's a very little little. i'm good at fine-tuning.

in my initial flurry of enthusiasm, i quite literally lived at the keyboard for a few days - it's too far to make that commute every day. but my work as a tiny observer (t.o.) is very important, and duty calls.

but don't worry, dear readers, i will make time for you.

i will make the trek across that vast and trackless expanse, i will brave that seeming rough-weave infinity. for you, i will cross...the office carpet. weekly.

for you, dear readers. for you.

sanctum

i found a new place, and i am just so excited! it's perfect.

i was living behind the decorative crenelations on the kitchen hutch before, and yeah the view was great, but it was a really inconvenient location. the commute was really rough, and there was this asshole mouse living beneath it that smelled bad and was really aggressive. it was getting to be kind of a rough neighborhood.

but a bunch of paperbacks were cleared out of the living room bookshelf yesterday, and now there's this big shiny new set of encyclopedias on the bottom shelf. they must be a subject of some pride, because when they got shelved, they were front-lined...that is to say, lined up at the front of the bookcase, not just pushed into the shelf until they touched the wall behind them. which means there's this perfect little space behind them, right by the outlet-access hole, aka my new front door. and the best part? these are encyclopedias. they're never going to get touched again.

like i said, perfect.

key of b

it may be

a bit of a surprise for you to hear

but i love to type

compared to longhand it's a breeze

there's only one thing i bemoan

the b key sticks

excess

i found a peach today.

it was a little overripe, and nobody wanted it.

i ate a lot, ate until i was sick. and a little bit after that.

i'm not sure if it was excessively aged, or just excessively eaten by me, but this peach was the peach of excess. practice moderation, everyone. otherwise you make peach-sick, which attracts squirrels.

candle

things really came to a head yesterday.

the nights are getting colder, and even though i've been sleeping in a woolly sock (yes of course it's clean) it still gets a bit nippy.

and outside? one time? i saw a bee curled up all frozen in a flower because it had gotten too cold to fly and it had just died there. sometimes i worry that could happen to me.

so when i went to get a drink of water from the condensation on the window, and it was all frozen at the edges, i decided enough was enough.

it took me all day, but i found a matchbox and brought it back to my sock. then i knocked a tealight off the mantlepiece display, and rolled it all the way back too. i've been putting this off because it's so hard to get up to the mantlepiece; you have to climb this textured wall weave, it takes ages.

but it was worth it! this evening i wielded a match with some (if i may say it myself) dexterity, and am now sitting cozy 'round the fire. i know i will sleep well tonight; hard work and a warm bed are a potent combination.

umbrella

it was raining today, and i went for a walk around a puddle. the scenery was lovely, but every time a raindrop fell on me, it almost knocked me down! then a leaf fell on me, it was really scary. but then i used it as an umbrella, so really this is a story of personal triumph in adversity.

the part where it caught a puff of wind and i got blown into the gutter is not important.

write

sometimes, it can be hard to just pick up a pencil and just go for it. believe me, i know. that shape plays hob with my center of gravity; i won't even mention the penmanship.

whatever's holding you back - the laundry, the tv, even your own worries or self doubts - defy them, and take ahold of that pencil. put it to paper. go for it! if i can do it, you sure can.

it doesn't matter if what comes out can even be used for anything - you didn't surrender to the part of you that says "but..."

and that's important.

proportionate

it's true, the world is a big & scary place. trust me, i know. there's a lot of big problems that need solving, huge numbers of people suffering. it's all a little overwhelming. fortunately for you, i'm no stranger to daunting tasks. why, once i almost made it all the way across the park down the street. but then there was a dog.

so don't worry, i'll take care of you, and give you a much-needed sense of proportion. and then, your life won't seem so bad.

because at least you don't have to hide from birds, or plan a three-day expedition to get upstairs.

it can always be worse.