Days of Broke and Sober

Attentive readers will recall that I recently received the prestigious Dionysus Award for drinking every day last week.

It is a new week now, and as I look at my bank statements I suddenly recall why I stopped drinking every day of the week.

...Yes, friends, I am broke.

Those blessed institutions, Food Stamps and A Woman From The Local Parish Who Sends Me And My Roommate Gift Cards To The Grocery Store Every Month ensure that, unlike last year, this year being broke does not mean I will not be eating. I will eat and eat well, I just won't be able to drink or smoke cigarettes.

Until the 15th.

How many days is that?

Today is the 7th. 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14.

8.

8 Days of Broke and Sober

What will I do to fill up this time???

...

...

...I don't know either.

I was about to despair, but then I thought: "I've got it. Let's BRAINSTORM!"

So, here are some things I may do with the 8 Days of Broke and Sober:

• Heal. During the Week of Drinking Every Day, I barely ate food. This is because I was taking Cymbalta (by the way, I'm not doing this anymore) and its primary side effect was the loss of my appetite. A week of no nourishment but alcohol and tobacco has resulted in I am sick. During the 8 Days of Broke and Sober, I will eat a lot and the food I eat will be healthful, and thusly will I recover my power.

• Clean. My place is a wreck. You should see my fucking bathroom. I did my laundry on Saturday, and my clean clothes are just kind of piled on my bedroom floor. Underneath the clothing there is a trail of coffee grounds leading from my coffeepot (on the stand by my bed, of course) out to the kitchen.

• Read. I've been doing this a lot. Let's do it more! When I last left Paradise Lost, Satan had returned to the Garden to make a second go at it. Will Adam and Eve be strong enough to resist temptation???? We'll find out. I also started Stranger in a Strange Land for the fourth time since I've been here, and this time I'm actually getting into it. It's pretty long. It should last me a while.

• Brood. I really would rather not but somehow I think it might happen.

• Write. I would absolutely love to return to the sci-fi thing I was writing before I left Pittsburgh, but somehow I can't seem to. I have so many ideas and no ability to pull them off. Maybe I'll have someone take a look at some of this stuff and see what they think.

• Blog. Obviously I am going to do this.

• Watch Babylon 5. Let's see. I have seasons 2, 3, 4, and the first and last episodes of season 1. A whole tv series is kind of like a project, and a series like Babylon 5 especially. I can blog about it, and make this even nerdier.

• Play Sports. There was lots of talk at the bar Friday night about such things as frisbee, kickball, and volleyball. Perhaps they will happen. [Update: I see Teacher Mike has sent an email suggesting ultimate frisbee tonight. Hmm...]

• Drink. Maybe I will spend the last of my cash on a bottle of Jameson.

• Work. Now there's a novel idea...