Life as a Domestic Cat (Week Sixty)

05/08/2021

Life as a Domestic Cat (Week Sixty)

This week, as I ran through the park, where the azaleas were in peak bloom, I thought about the end of lockdown. It was just a few weeks away, at least officially, but I felt more nervous than excited. Despite being vaccinated, I still felt leery of the virus, like it was only a matter of time until we faced a new and even deadlier wave. I didn't feel this way all the time, but the fear was there, like an itch or even a craving. Why was I being so pessimistic and cautious?

I'm not saying I would have ever chosen this option had it been presented to me, but being locked down has given me a greater appreciation for a more habitual, calmer mode of living that I fear will be lost if I return to society. In short, I've turned into one of our cats. I'm sort of kidding, but I'm sort of not kidding.

The outside world seems manic to me: everyone going somewhere, doing this, buying that, and documenting it on social media. All of the articles offering new perspectives on the hard partying people have on tap for this summer. People describing trips they've recently taken -- on airplanes! -- or are planning to take. While a part of me is attracted to mania, recognizing this attraction sounded a cautionary note: be careful what you wish for.

I get agitated watching the world from the sidelines: do I really need to be in it?

On my runs, I've noticed that most runners still wear masks. A smaller number don't, and a third category -- to which I belong -- have the masks on, but keep them around our chins unless passing another runner or group.

We put up our respective masks for a few seconds before taking them down again. Sometimes we nod at each other with a kind of fear and understanding.

Posted at 02:24 PM in Expression, Science Projects | Permalink

Comments

Wonderful photo essay and topic. I also don't want to go back to old days. I like the beauty of making-do (although I have recently been shopping online for lots of stuff to make me more comfortable cycling, and stuff I really needed, like pajamas. Okay, I don't need the Van Halen t-shirt, and all the other new novelty tees I bought to replace worn out ones, but things like that also bring me joy - and I use them.)

Posted by: Debra D Dylan | 05/12/2021 at 03:14 PM

Thank you, Debra -- I disagree: you *need* that Van Halen t-shirt, in the same way I need my favorite Terrace House (RIP) t-shirt :)

Posted by: Matthew Gallaway | 05/12/2021 at 04:59 PM

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Music: Death Culture at Sea and Saturnine

Listen or download songs and records from my indie-rock past with Saturnine here and Death Culture at Sea here.

Music Video: Remembrance of Things Past

Watch the rock opera Remembrance of Things Past written and performed by Saturnine and Frances Gibson, starring Bennett Madison and Sheila McClear.

Video: The Chaos Detective

The Chaos Detective is a series about a man searching for 'identity' as he completes assignments from a mysterious organization. Watch the first episode (five parts) on YouTube.

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Expression//Reaction//ScienceProjects

05/08/2021