1. The day before last I was so despondent I couldn't even pull my head out of my own ass. Then, last night I forced myself to be productive and I was in an undeniably good mood. I worked on things, I dispensed advice--I even made chip dip. Today I am somewhere in between.

2. I stepped out tonight for a cigarette and was a bit startled by a couple of kids down the block riding around on scooters. Why weren't they inside with their middle-aged benefactors, farting audibly in front of the television set? At around 6PM we around the neighborhood all step outside for a brisk walk. Some people have dogs and some people with dogs are the nasty sort of people that don't clean up their dog's poo. The industrious opt for a jog. Then, by 9PM or so the doors are all locked and the lights at the front of all the houses are put out and we've all retreated into our respective bedrooms. I'm no harsh critic of suburban life, but it's a great contrast to those evenings spent in that apartment on Landfair with the boys, sitting in the living room conversing and debating late into the night, exhaling cigarette smoke comfortably out the windows. There, the late night scooter-ers of the world would not have been so puzzling.

3. Bringing him up suddenly, my sister said his presence "commanded silence." A strangely accurate observation for my sister, who does not usually trouble herself with the ambiance of a given social situation.

4. I enjoy numbering my thoughts, it brings order and makes me feel less scatterbrained.