What If?

When the cure for the blahs is furry and staring you in the face.

My short history on this Curmudg Substack shows a person with experience in a few fields, knowledge about some others, and a generally apolitical stance. (Note: I say “shows”—doesn’t mean I am).

It also shows a person of some bravado, not hesitant to implore opinion or strategy. I don’t feel that way today. Maybe it’s because I’ve been mostly breathing the same air in the house and not getting out much, as I continue to heal from knee replacement surgery. Maybe it’s because I’ve just spent the last two hours on the internet, reading up on more world maladies than my brain can handle now. It felt easier in the moment than writing a Curmudg column. Ugh. Wrong.

Maybe I’ve just hit an emotional wall.

Whatever it might be, today I bring you no bravado, opinion, or strategy. Instead, a few “what ifs,” and let you take it from there. As in:

What if I can’t worry about all the problems of the world?
Would they still exist? Would they know I wasn’t paying attention?

What if I choose just a few—maybe 3—problems and focus on them?
Would it be helpful for those problems?

What if I choose to blithely radiate above all the mishegas and focus solely on the really important stuff, like: what is it in potato chips that makes it impossible to eat just one?
Would I feel better?

The answer to all three: doubtful.

So, here’s the plan: one step at a time.

I’m going to do something positive that has a definite effect on someone. I’m going to grab my cane (pro tip from my PT: use it even if you don’t need it—people are nicer to others when they see a cane.). I’m going to hobble to Sprouts and buy our dog Peasley some chicken. And when I get home, she’ll greet me at the door like it’s the best part of her day—as she always does—then smell the chicken and be out of her furry little noggin’.

After that? Maybe I’ll read. Maybe I’ll just sit still and admit that, for today, a wagging tail is enough—and be grateful for the grace that got me here.

Just a thought.

TL; DR: Big thoughts, small acts: buy chicken, wag tail, call it a win.