Been a few months since I threw down a comfort inventory. More than a
year, in
fact.

1. Somebody’s birthday
   
   p-r-e-s-e-n-t arrived this afternoon in a U.P.S. truck. I doubt it will
   be a surprise, considering she had on a humongous smile and made the baby
   sign for "What can Brown do for Is.?"
2. I have been draftertating. I started in the hardest place–the
   section I understand the least. I write on it for a couple of hours each
   day. And then I have worrying spells during which I fret that it’s
   mostly shit (say…65%). But I press on and write some more.
3. Ph. landed a bona fide job today. He interviewed on Monday
   and got the call today. Orientation in just a couple of days.
4. This is week seven of the eight-week term for the course I am teaching
   online this summer.
5. D. picked up a can of Static Guard for me when she was running a few
   errands this afternoon. Ever since the move, each time I sit down at
   the computer, I pass along a static shock. Fzzt! Can’t be good for the
   delicate components. And I hear that the dissertation phase of a PhD
   program is an especially lousy time to have computer failures. Maybe if I
   could just sit still I wouldn’t have this problem.
6. I
   have a web cam connected to my laptop. It reports to me that I look
   like this tonight. And I had an email from the parent of a player who was on
   the basketball team I coached in K.C. a few years ago. He’d
   
   Googled me. Checked out the Flickr spread with Is. and the rest of
   us. Know what he told me? It appears I haven’t aged since I
   moved to Syracuse. Oh, but I have. Most definitely, I have.
7. In preparation for a Friday afternoon meeting of my program’s job seekers, I have roughed together a job
   letter. It is unlikely that I’ll apply to any jobs this year, though,
   considering that we’re not going to scoot off to a new city for Ph.’s senior
   year of high school.
8. Speaking of Ph.’s senior year, they’re building new outdoor athletic
   facilities at his high school this summer. Last night we took a call
   from his coach who asked whether it would be possible for us to attend a
   district "Facilities Committee Meeting" at the board office this afternoon. 3:30 p.m.
   "Yeah, sure." The whole point of the meeting: one of the nabors to the
   project once saw someone on an ATV stop and take a leak in the woods
   adjacent to the new sports complex. As a result of this act, he wants
   a six-thousand dollar fence extension added to protect the suburban wildlife
   from this sort of hooligan behavior. When asked whether anyone in our
   row had any comment to make, I had none. Neither did Ph.
9. Ph. netted a pair of goals in his soccer match on Monday evening.
   They won 6-0 even though they started the match with just six players.
   Not such an even match, I guess you could say.
10. Is. has a toy that plays a MIDI version of
    
    this tune.