Greetings, Internet! Hope everyone is staying as safe and sane as can be. Holy moly, we’re at week thirty! I started back at Push to Walk, got my flu shot, and finished “Hannibal” just in time to binge the last season of “Schitt’s Creek.” Daily summaries below!

Day Two Hundred and Four (10/2/20)

• First time back at Push to Walk since March. Gosh, I’ve missed everyone. It’s a bit surreal working out with a mask on, seeing everyone else wearing masks, and having a slight feeling of claustrophobia because there are more people in a room than I’ve seen in quite some time.
• Got dumplings with my mother (we got them to go, because the ‘Rona). Then split a cookie from Burdick.
• Skyped with a college friend!
• Total number of days outside: Sixteen.
• Currently feeling: I don’t have much of an opinion on POTUS’ hospitalization from the ‘Rona. He didn’t follow CDC guidelines and his perpetual crisis mismanagement (including his rampant opposition to masks) is a significant reason why America is not even done with its first wave yet. It shouldn’t be surprising that he got it. And fine, there are already theories out there that maybe he doesn’t have it and it’s all a publicity stunt to garner a sympathy vote. Time will tell if that’s the case. Just vote the way you would’ve voted if he hadn’t gotten it, and wish him well. Speculation on whether or not he actually has it will only unnecessarily eat up your time and mental energy.
• Currently looping: Alicia Keys’ “If I Ain’t Got You.” It’s just piano and vocals. And it’s amazing.

Day Two Hundred and Five (10/3/20)

• Finished “Hannibal”! The last two episodes blew my mind. Such a good series. Gorey and violent. But so good. And now to watch the last season of “Schitt’s Creek”!
• Got my flu shot! And now my shoulder is hella sore.
• Oh gosh, I forgot how painful my shoulder gets post-flu-shot. Every time I wheel around my apartment I let out little “ow”s.
• Why couldn’t I have gotten this shot in a part of my body that doesn’t feel pain?!
• My mother was driving my sister, brother-in-law, and niece back to LIC from Brooklyn, so she stopped by briefly to drop off some pie. I love pie, even if it doesn’t alleviate deltoid pain.
• Number of times outside: Seventeen!
• Currently feeling: Friendly reminder to the people on Twitter (not that any of them read this) that describing POTUS’ diagnosis as “karma” implies that those who have already been infected/died somehow also got some form of karma (i.e. they deserved it, too). I understand that for most people, that is not your intention. But we live in a world where people tend to justify other people’s misfortunes by believing some higher power had a hand in it, or that there was some grand ineffable plan that required certain individuals to suffer. No one likes being told that some higher deity wanted them to suffer (particularly when they’re, you know, suffering). So if you’d like to be a bit more considerate in how you discuss disease in general, don’t describe it as karma. Describe it, in this particular case, as an unsurprising outcome of POTUS’ own reckless behavior, because at least then you can point to specific concrete actions that led to his getting infected. (Honestly, Trevor Noah said it best.)
• Currently looping: Regina Spektor’s “Us.”

Day Two Hundred and Six (10/4/20)

• Did the FES cycle. Caught up with “The Great British Bake Off” and started the final season of “Schitt’s Creek.”
• Feeling so tired and sore. This is normal post-flu-shot, but still, meh.
• Catch-up phone call with some of my favorite HGSE people! #triotime
• I have a blister on my finger from barre chords. Ow.
• Attempted to record the guitar part of a cover. I think I have something? I’ll give it a listen tomorrow to see if I’m happy with it.
• Currently feeling: Wanted to start getting into livestreaming, so I listened to someone’s livestream. It was livestream with like, so much reverb. It has like, a candy feel to the music, if that makes sense. It felt unnatural. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been using reverb in my vocal mixes for the past few months, but not enough that you could hear it (with the exception of the opening to my “Bring Me to Life” cover because I have zero instruments backing me up). If I can hear your reverb for the entire song, I’m probably not going to like your entire song. #rantfromsomeonewhojuststartedlearningaboutaudiomixingover
• Currently looping: Gerard Way’s “Hazy Shade of Winter” (feat. Ray Toro).

Day Two Hundred and Seven (10/5/20)

• Did arm exercises while watching “Schitt’s Creek.”
• Recorded the guitar and some vocals for this week’s cover. The timing of the guitar is off. Should’ve used a metronome.
• Guitar lesson! Got some ideas for the cover. Then was encouraged to write a Halloween song. We shall see how that goes. Also am now looking into getting a MIDI controller because I don’t have a keyboard.
• Recorded backup vocals for this week’s cover. Just need to record the flute, and we should be good to go.
• Currently feeling: It’s okay not to feel sympathy for the president, while still hoping that he doesn’t die.
• Currently looping: Florence + The Machine’s “Howl.”  It mentions an “autumn moon,” so it’s a fall song.

Day Two Hundred and Eight (10/6/20)

• Did the FES cycle. More than halfway through the last season of “Schitt’s Creek.”
• Well, it finally happened. My quarantine hair clogged the shower drain.
• Attended a Zoominar that went over on time. It’s the most charming thing at the beginning of a Zoominar for an elderly professor to ask, “Is this a webchat?” I think people were somewhat annoyed at how this went over time, because the professor running it said he was going to pour himself a whiskey about two hours in.
• Recorded the flute part for this week’s cover. Then re-recorded some guitar, because the timing was off.
• Tutored Latin. Reminded me of when my undergrad thesis advisor tried to teach me Latin pronunciation and I thought, “Oh my gosh, he’s so smart, I’m never going to get to that level.” And now here I am.
• Currently feeling: That feeling when you read about women with disabilities and their dating lives, and how often men reject them and you know the rejection is purely ableist. I mean, clearly it would never have been a good fit (because that sort of guy would totally leave his able-bodied partner if they acquired a disability, so, the guy was never in it for the long haul to begin with), but it still stings. Reading about their rejections made me recount and relive some of my own. Unfortunately, it’s too late at night to make myself some hot cocoa and watch “The Addams Family” to make myself feel better (Gomez and Morticia Addams are couple goals).
• Currently looping: Ben Rector’s “It Would Be You (Acoustic)” featuring Ingrid Michaelson. It’s so cute. For reals, it’s like “sharing an oversized fleece blanket with your imaginary boyfriend on a couch while you rewatch ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’ and sing along to ‘This is Halloween’ complete with all the cartoonish voices” cute. I realize that was oddly specific. Whatever, the odds of that happening would make even Han Solo wince, so let a girl dream.

Day Two Hundred and Nine (10/7/20)

• Did some arm exercises while watching “Schitt’s Creek.”
• Recorded the video for the cover going up tomorrow. Apart from one section where maybe I should’ve tinkered even more with the audio volume, I think it sounds all right.
• Lol, I lost three subscribers today. Going to guess that’s because larger channels are just cutting out the subscriptions they only used to get an extra subscriber thinking that I wouldn’t notice. Believe me, I’m unsubscribing to you, too.
• I tried to write a Halloween song. I was reminded of Colin Meloy’s ill-fated “Dracula’s Daughter” and laughed at myself for about a minute.
• I have finished “Schitt’s Creek.” So much happy crying.
• I am watching the VP debate solely for Kamala Harris’ facial expressions. And for the tweets.
• Currently feeling: Repeating to myself that my covers aren’t trash. My covers aren’t trash. My covers aren’t trash. This happens far too often the night before I decide to post a cover. And yes, this is how seriously I take my hobbies. I can’t stomach the possibility of doing a bad job on anything that gets put out into the world (Virgo ascendant, am I right?). But also I probably rely on external validation too much, when the more important thing is, am I happy with what I’m posting? And yes, yes I am.
• Currently looping: Arctic Monkeys’ “Do I Wanna Know?” Heard an awesome cover the other day, but I hadn’t actually heard the original.

Day Two Hundred and Ten (10/8/20)

• Did the FES cycle.
• Posted my cover of Florence + the Machine’s “Howl.” It’s got such Halloween themes.
• My mother’s here! She brought peaches. There may be a pie in the near future.
• Therapy! Before therapy, my mother left my apartment to make some returns. She came back about half an hour into therapy (i.e. a zoom call in my room), was standing in my living room wondering where I was (even though I told her when my session was), and started yelling, “Hello?!” to which I replied (again, from my room, with the door closed), “I’M IN THERAPY!” My therapist lol’d.
• There is peach pie!
• Looking at MIDI controllers. It’s happening.
• Absentee ballot has arrived! I was planning to vote early, but I guess I could also just mail and then track my ballot.
• Currently feeling: I think I’m supposed to have a zoom meeting with my advisor at some point this month. I should probably get through Gregory’s Life of the Fathers a bit more quickly. But I also want to learn how to use a MIDI controller.
• Currently looping: Sara Bareilles’ “No Such Thing.” 

Thanks so much for reading! Stay safe, wear a mask, and make sure you’re registered to vote!