D&F 1/29/23
Happy COVID negative weekend! It took until Friday (one week) for my test to lose its second line, and I’m still tired. Ideally I’ll be able to ride bikes again this week, gently. Even with Paxlovid, this was a whopper of an illness, and I really hope it’s three or more years again until I get sick. WIth the caveat of not being a doctor, there is some evidence 1/3 of those ill with COVID experience a rebound infection regardless of taking Paxlovid, which is interesting. The first question anyone asked me about the antiviral was, “are you scared about a rebound?” Maybe it doesn’t matter, but I can say in my experience taking it made me feel better very quickly.
Other than picking up my weekly fish order a few blocks away, I haven’t left my house in seven days, and I’m stir-crazy so I’m sorry if this week’s newsletter is slightly deranged.
Links
- Anything can be art if you put a little sign next to it:
- The continued degradation of Twitter continues apace, and it’s great to watch one horrible man lose everything in pursuit of being a “fun mod”.
- I love public services, and trains, so the Mail Rail sounds like an incredibly good time. I’ve never been to London, but this museum is now on my list if I make it across the pond.
- If that train doesn’t suit you, can I interest you in a Toblerone, of train?
- An excellent album from Godspeed! You Black Emperor that I recommend if you’ve never listened to it. When I was in college I walked around campus and drove to and from work listening to Godspeed because it made my life feel much more cinematic. The energy of the drums and strings building and releasing is a beautiful middle place connecting classical and metal music. I don’t listen to post-rock as often now as I did then, but every time I put Lift Your Skinny Fists on my stereo I’m transported back in time.
- Every time I travel to Japan and consider living there, I look for information on how it feels to be an ex-pat there, so this article was interesting. I have a strong suspicion my living in any city besides a major one will be challenging to say the least, but I’m curious if I can create a community.
- Finally, let’s end on an upbeat note: fire the execs instead of thousands of people. I work for a company that had recent layoffs, as do many of my friends, and it’s horse shit. Not only do layoffs not lower cost, they’ve been shown to decrease productivity and profits. Capitalism isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, but I would hope the goons running things would at least want to make money.
Closing
With COVID behind me (knock on wood), I am looking forward to the limited out-of-the house activities I enjoy. I’ve read about my immune system being possibly shot for a while post infection, so I’m keeping to the outdoor hangouts I’ve done since 2020. I’m really glad my trip to Japan was without incident, but I guess my body can’t handle New York anymore. Stick with me as I rejoin the land of the living and try to regain my cycling fitness. I’ll see you in February, space cowgirls~