Syllabus #27

Let's dive straight into it this week.  Face first, just the way I like it.

50 Shades of Beige

Last week we learned about Cat-vent calendars, and I'm not trying to rush the holiday season or anything, but this hot sauce advent calendar is almost certainly going to happen in my household.  I put cayenne pepper in my oatmeal (pictured above, with kefir, peanut butter, apple chia seed jam, and a liberal coating of cinnamon) just to give you a picture of where I stand on spice levels. 

I agree with everything this article says, including designating Walton Goggins as a national treasure.  That man is the Billy Bob Thornton of supporting actors.  There's always an edge of uncomfortable, cocky, creepiness that is consistent across his roles, but otherwise he becomes so fully absorbed into his characters you forget he's an entirely different human playing a role.  Also, I dare you to hear the song Misbehavin' even one time without getting it permanently and irretrievably lodged in your brain on an endless loop.  I'm two episodes behind, so I really need to get my ass in gear before I'm exposed to a spoiler.  I'm guessing it ends with the rapture happening, but Jesus is actually Jonathan Van Ness and he just fixes Judy's awful poodle hair and everyone walks away with a lot more questions than answers.

Just reading this article made me tired.  It made me grateful for labor unions that advocated for a standard 5 day work week for so many workers, for one.  It also made me profoundly glad that I've chosen to spend the majority of my working life in the public sector, specifically in education.  I know that many, if not most, classroom teachers work well past dismissal time as well as on weekends.  Also, we don't get paid nearly enough, so many teachers with families to support have 2nd jobs or summer jobs.  But as I read this article on the last day of Fall Break, I have to acknowledge the amount of downtime we enjoy relative to other industries.

This hits me where I live.  I want the big piece, the corner piece.  Do I ask for it?  No.  Do I pretend I don't like cake and turn down even a sliver so I don't start with a few bites and end up eating 9 more slices?  Yes.

Yes, but have you met MY dog?  The article closes with the suggestion that cat ownership is also correlated with positive cardiovascular health outcomes, so "if you're really serious about living a long life, you should get a dog and a cat to cover all your bases."  If that's true, then I hope having two cats cancels out the deleterious effects of living with Charlie so at least I'm at a net zero here.

Alright, that's it for this week.  At the time of writing, it's Tuesday night and I'm scheduling this to post on Thursday morning.  So when (not if) something insane happens in the world in the next two days and I fail to mention it here, it's not for lack of awareness or giving a damn.  It's just a very busy week and I don't have time to dwell on whatever nuclear holocaust almost certainly went down on Wednesday, ya dig?

P.S. If you live in Nashville, it's not too late to catch part of the Eastside Comedy Festival, now through October 20th!