I missed writing yesterday. Let’s see if I can remember anything I wanted to say. It was in my head for a second then it ran away. It must be scary in my head. Did I leave the house? I don’t think so. Google maps agrees. The weather isn’t good and COVID-19 rates are up, so I need more motivation to go out. The COVID-19 positivity rate in my neighborhood is 4.13%, One of 25 people I encounter is likely to be infected. That’s about twice the rate of the city at large. People need to take COVID-19 more seriously. New York is still better than most of the country, but our rate is increasing. The political tide is backward, they are leaning on closing schools but keeping restaurants and bars open. That might have made sense before we knew more but now we know that schools are not hot spots for spreading but bars and restaurants are. I’ve been praising Cuomo over his handling of COVID-19, he needs to step to the plate again and do the politically difficult thing. I hope that My Gentle Readers are wearing masks when the go out and not dining indoors at restaurants or frequenting bars. As a sign of that you are taking things seriously, post a picture on your social media accounts of you wearing a mask and encourage others to do so.
I didn’t say it couldn’t be a silly picture.
I tried a different variation for dinner last night. I bought Italian sausages on sale. I cooked a couple in the air fryer then served them on naan. The key is to warm the naan in a cast iron skillet with some olive oil. Naan is always good, that makes it great. I topped it off with barbecue sauce. It was delicious. I ate it while watching a virtual session. It’s a regular one hosted by Tune Supply. When we aren’t in a pandemic it’s held Mary O’s in Manhattan. I have never been there. I have been saying that I need to attend sessions for years. I have attended a few. I should be doing it regularly. For now, I can attend this virtual one. The hosts are Caitlin Warbelow and Chris Ranney. I don’t know them, but Caitlin looks familiar. I wonder if we’ve run into each other. We have quite a few friends in common. One of them is Emerald Rae who played last night and was the reason I knew about the show. She and Calum Bell were the guest leaders. I always love Emerald, at the session she shows off her Celtic side, not her singing and songwriting. She even played guitar on some songs while Calum fiddled. On others he played guitar while she fiddled. On one tune both fiddled. The other sessioners were Margot Krimmel (harp/voice), Lindsey Céitinn (fiddle), Steve Wickins (bodhran), John Walsh (guitar), Linda Hickman (flute), and Iris Nevins (harp). The concert was 48th session they’ve done on Facebook. A real community developed around it. I of course jumped in with both feet. Caitlin and Chris have a dinosaur, Avocado, on the shelf behind them. I got excited and said something in the chat and Caitlin introduced him, her, them. Caitlin said that Avocado is of undetermined gender. These are my people. There’s also a pigeon name Toast. You can still watch the session if you like.
If I’m free on a Thursday night I’ll be watching. This is something I want in my life.
This morning I had sessions with both my therapist and psychiatrist, one right after the other. There was a little trouble with the overlap. I was talking to the therapist when the psychiatrist called, and I didn’t notice his call. I had to call him back. I’m going to be on a new med. Don’t ask me what it is, I haven’t picked it up yet. It is in addition to Prozac, not a replacement for it. I am still fighting anxiety. The depression is well under control. Even with all that’s going on I’m happy most of the time.
A big part of my happiness is social contact. I’ve been talking to friends on the phone. Then I get to play therapist. I told my therapist that I’m surprised that I’m good at it, but she said she wasn’t. “Often people that have problems make the best therapists.” Then I’m qualified. So much of my therapy consists of me telling the therapist what I already know but need to say out loud, or hear from her, for it to sink in. There’s something I’ve been putting off for a week. I’m supposed to do it every day. I put it on my calendar as a reminder and every day I didn’t do it but checked it off anyway. The new rule is that I’m not allowed to do that. I knew it but I needed to hear it from her. I then promised to do it as soon as I was finished with my session. Miracle of miracles, I did. That’s progress. I have to keep reminding myself that it doesn’t matter how big the steps are as long as they are in the right direction. That’s how I keep from being overwhelmed. Maybe with the new med I’ll take bigger steps.
Wise Madness 