The Procedure (Weeknotes

Goings On

I’ve been really busy with work and with teaching, and there doesn’t seem to be a lot of time for fun things lately. But a few things happened, I guess, so here goes.

🥘 On Tuesday I enjoyed a nice dinner with friends who were in town on business. I’ll be seeing them again in a few weeks when we fly out to their place for the weekend.

📺 After dinner I went home and watched the vice-presidential debate. I felt dumber after listening to the conveyor belt of sweeping generalities and brazen lies from JD Vance. Had it not been for the group chat on Discord with Adam and a bunch of other omglollers, I’m sure I would have switched the television off after only a few minutes.

🩺 After a fair bit of procrastinating, I took Friday off work to get my first colonoscopy. The prep was unsavory, to say the least, but wasn’t terrible. Getting wheeled around in a hospital bed is a humbling experience, even if it is only for a low-risk, routine procedure. The people who took care of me that day were all top shelf, and they made me feel like a VIP. I’m so grateful to the people who work as healthcare providers. It is such an important vocation.^[1]

Reading

🤡 Just as Trump is a stupid person’s idea of a smart businessman, JD Vance is a rich person’s idea of a poor person. So says Tim Dickinson in his Rolling Stone piece, “J.D. Vance’s Stolen Valor: ‘He Puts on Poverty Like You Put on Makeup’”. Are the people of Appalachia falling for it?

💻 As I started reading Tyler’s “How to Monetize a Blog” I smiled at its cleverness. I see what you did there. I even laughed a little. But then, the more I scrolled, the laughter turned to muted grunting and moaning as the pain of what the author had in store revealed itself. I closed the browser tab, having collected yet another emotional scar.

🗝️ After watching the trailer for the upcoming film adaptation I rushed out to read Conclave by Robert Harris. It was definitely more about the journey than about the destination. The ending didn’t shock me they way the author probably intended. In fact, it seemed rather anticlimactic. But the movie has some great actors, so I’ll definitely go see it. I might even be inclined to read another of Robert Harris book someday.

Watching

🦈 We’re still watching season 4 of Only Murders in the Building but I honestly couldn’t tell you why. It’s completely jumped the shark and it’s not even mildly amusing any more. Where did the joy go?

🚁 We finished season 1 of The Old Man and are now starting in on season 2. I feel like they need to wrap this one up soon.

I hope you have a good week.