Good Morning, Morning.

Read Time:3 Minute, 6 Second

I am not, it must be said, a “morning person.” In fact, most of the time I roll out of bed at about 7:45am, put on some coffee, and then start work around 8am. I am grateful, especially in the strange times we’re all currently living in, to be working from home. It saves me from a 45 minute commute, for one thing. However, I will say that even though I’m not a morning person, I do like mornings.

I enjoy the feeling of mornings. There is something nice about just relaxing a moment or two before diving into work. The problem is, I really am a night owl and enjoy staying up late. But I have noticed that 4-6 hours of sleep at night just doesn’t really do it for my body any more. Which is very irritating.

This morning, however, I woke up feeling refreshed and ready for the day around 6:30. The sun was shining outside, and Siri informed me it was 52° F so I took my coffee, a bagel, and a short little book I was reading outside to the back porch. There’s something about hot coffee, a cool morning, and a nice view that can’t be beat. I wanted something suitably relaxing to listen to, so I popped Sarah Brightman’s Hymn on. The book is An Elderly Lady Is Up To No Good by Helene Tursten, which is about a serial killer in her late eighties. The contrast between Brightman’s uplifting album and the old lady’s murderous spree was not lost on me.

However, that the book was downright relaxing compared to the other book I’m reading via audiobook. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel is very good. It sucked me in right away. But, here’s the thing. I knew it was (loosely) about a traveling symphony/theater company after the collapse of society. What I did not know when starting it was:

Warning, very general/light “spoilers” ahead… although probably not a spoiler if you did the most basic research about the book… which I did not)

Said collapse of society comes by way of a pandemic. Let me tell you, I am not one of those people who feels a need to watch Contagion or play the Pandemic board game right now. I do understand the appeal. I think there’s power in and even solace is experiencing events like this in a safe way. By watching a movie or playing a board game. But my general state of anxiety is high enough it’s not something I was really seeking out right now. One thing I’ve learned about myself is that my imagination is vivid enough I tend to be a little careful about what I feed it. That being said, the book is good enough it overcame my reluctance to consume pandemic-related entertainment.