Traits of a True Friend
With age, friendship becomes less about unquestioning loyalty and more about recognizing honest, caring support. A true friend offers truth without judgment and remains present through difficult times.
Pablo SMC
Object Dependency
Feeling unwell, the writer reflects on what they cannot live without, dismissing necessities as too obvious before naming coffee as an essential daily ritual for work and social connection.
Artificial Amphibian Amputation
As a child, the writer lost a beloved wind-up frog in the snow, finding only a crushed foot. Though eventually replaced, the experience shaped lasting memories and contrasts with today’s disposable toys.
Arbitrary Life Metrics
The writer rejects career, wealth, fame, and family size as success measures, calling them arbitrary. Instead, they believe success is simply found in giving and receiving love.
Useless Vocabulary
The writer apologizes for repeating a favorite useless fact: “overwhelmed” and “underwhelmed” both mean being thoroughly whelmed—essentially, capsized by either a wave’s crest or trough.
Terrifying Page Turns
The writer reflects on a frightening book, “Nuclear War: A Scenario” by Annie Jacobsen, emphasizing the catastrophic aftermath of nuclear war, including famine, disease, and massive loss of life, eclipsing traditional horror narratives.
From Where you Go, You Must Return
A round-trip ticket. That’s the element of this prompt that really sours the fantasy. I may go to a place, but I must also return. There is no permanent escape from the doldrums of the place I know.
Audio Composition Epiphanies
The writer reflects on two transformative songs: “Sleep To Dream” by Fiona Apple, articulating pain and heartache from bad relationships, and “The Great Pumpkin Waltz” by Vince Guaraldi, shaping their musical taste positively.
Save That Daylight, You Might Need It Later.
Once again we have failed to do away with the absurdity of Daylight Savings time. There are individual state and local governments who have elected to stop observing this pointless tradition, but the federal Government, at least inits current incarnation, can do nothing but grift, so of course this arbitrary hour shift continues. Cows don’t … Read more
An Entire Life in Just One Sentence.
The author reflects on their life philosophy, questioning its simplicity and coherence. They summarize it as, “It may never get any better, but do try not to make it worse,” acknowledging their struggle to follow this guiding principle.