By David Himmel

• Fall is always in such a rush to get here. Spring refuses to leave. Summer is a fair-weather friend, and winter is a drunken old bastard with an axe to grind.

• Because no country will accept Americans past their borders, secession is the new “I’m moving to Canada.” COVID-19 has killed a lot of us. I’m thrilled it hasn’t killed our ability to shit out platitudes and empty promises.

• You don’t realize how easy it is to slip into an existential catastrophe until you’re over forty, half-drunk, half-stoned watching YouTube videos late at night.

• Consuming the art of others is the only surefire way you’ll ever be inspired enough to produce your own.

• I try really hard not to debate, negotiate, or argue with my toddler. I take the same approach when dealing with Trump supporters. They’re similar in their oft inability to recognize the facts or give any credit to the idea of sharing. With them, it’s all “Me! Me! Mine! Gimme!” But sometimes, I can’t help myself and I engage. And when I do, my toddler and the Trump supporter often get the upperhand because both are so insanely exhausting and infuriating that I concede. “You know what, fine. You can have the whole bag of goddamn goldfish. And you—Trump supporter—you can have the goddamn country. I don’t care. I’m taking the dog for a walk. Leave me alone.”

• When you feel out of place in place, it’s imperative that you make some kind of drastic move toward a more comfortable kind of chaos.