Monday. . .

[rolanni]

Today is Steve's birthday, the celebrating of which we are deferring to the trip to Niagara/Binghamton.  The trip is also my birthday celebration, and! last year's anniversary-of-the-legal-marriage and this year's anniversary-of-the-legal-marriage.

Today, there is vacuuming and vacation packing.  This is a Trip in Three Parts, so packing is. . .interesting in its way.  Usually, we throw the things we'll need at the convention in suitcases, pack a train case, hand over the suitcases to the nice baggage experts at Amtrak and worry no more.

Since we'll be driving to Pittsburgh and overnighting on the road, I have packed an overnight bag, and will today be packing the purple duffle with the items that will be required on the vacation and homecoming leg of the trip.

Tomorrow, I will pack con clothes, since they are more susceptible to wrinkles than cargo pants, polo and denim shirts.

And so it goes.

I need to check my tablet to make sure that I'll have enough to read.  Fifty books on the to-be-read shelf.  Is that enough?  Maybe I should take a couple paper books to be sure I don't run out?  No, wait!  We'll be at a convention.  If I need books, I'll be able to stock up there.  Phew.

I'm really looking forward to this trip:  the convention, of course, and then the meandering road home.  I'm especially pleased to be approaching this whole segment in a state of not being depressed.

On that front, I have backed out of the last application of antidepressants, and am continuing with meditation, which has been helping decrease the noise in my head, even though I'm probably the world's worst meditator.  I'm using the guided meditation at Headspace, which I like very much, even though the occasional assertion that "thoughts are just thoughts" baffles me.  I mean, yes, thoughts are just thoughts, but I'm in the business of turning thoughts into stories, so I'm accustomed to giving thought some weight, so to speak, in my life.

I'm continuing to cut down my exposure to toxic persons, which is, sadly, an on-going task. I've cut back my presence on Facebook and on Twitter, which also helps decrease the noise in my head. . .which is not nearly as frightening as I thought it would be, having lived my whole life with a noisy head.  Maybe that's what's meant by "thoughts are just thoughts."

So, that.

For those who missed the initial announcement -- there is a new patron-only podcast up on the Lee-and-Miller Patreon page -- here's your link.

Also!  Steve and I have unlocked three earlier podcasts so that they can now be enjoyed by everyone.  Go to this link, and scroll down.

And that, I think, catches us all up.  Time to get out the vacuum cleaner and wake up all the cats.

Comments

[martianmooncrab]

Happy legal anniversary and the observance of Steve's birthday

[reedrover]

Fifty books on the to-be-read shelf. Is that enough? Maybe I should take a couple paper books to be sure I don't run out?

I totally understand this sentiment!

[filkferengi]

Happy birthdays, and anniversaries, and all! I'm looking forward to seeing y'all at Confluence.

[kk1raven]

Fifty books on the to-read shelf is only enough if one of them is the one you want to read at a given time.That's my explanation for why my to-read pile is taking over my home and why my Kindle is relatively full.

I find that decreasing my exposure to toxic persons is definitely good for my mental health. That's part of why I do LJ and DW rather than Facebook and Twitter as well as why I try to limit my in-person contact with certain people .