First, I decided to try a bit harder.
And then my knee disagreed.
And then I got moody.
And then I started teaching.
And then I got okay at it.
And then I thought of my best prank.
And then the artist bailed.
And then I wrote a comic.
And then the artist bailed.
And then I thought of a different prank.
And then I laughed like a hyena.
And then I got arrested.
And then I wrote about getting arrested.
And then some people liked that.
And then my book came out.
And then a few people really liked that.
And then I joined the last comedy site.
And then I did a real, public victory dance.
And then I met a PhD student, which went alright for a while.
And then I met a nurse, which went alright for a week.
And then I met a lawyer, which went alright for ten minutes.
And then I got my first fan mail.
And then I got my first hate mail.
And then I started rowing properly.
And then I stopped eating cheese curls.
And then I became nocturnal.
And then the podcast died.
And then I snuck sci-fi into a fancy magazine.
And then I tried a cruise, which is always a mistake.
And then I tried skating, which is never a mistake.
And then I fell.
And then I kept skating.
And then I did headspins at a wedding.
And then I flew to Kolkata.
And then I did headspins at another wedding.
And then I got traveler’s diarrhea.
And then I was hung over.
And then I flew back dehydrated.
And then I designed my own seminar.
And then I turned thirty-one.
And then I had a pinched nerve.
And then it stuck around.
And then I got moody.
And then I taught two hours on Catch-22.
And then I lost thirty pounds.
And then I beat Elden Ring.
And then I changed my photos around.
And then I fell again.
And then I got better at falling.
Next time I’ll try a bit harder.
Shoutout to Amran and Michael for convincing me to acknowledge time.
This is excellent. Except for the lawyer. Never date a lawyer. I had to suspend my law license so that the woman who later became my wife would agree to go out with me.
Trigger warning: sincerity. I'm glad you're enjoying the teaching gig. Your students are lucky to have you. Three lives ago I wanted to be a college professor and I've always gravitated toward teaching. And though it sounds arrogant -- because my audience is smarter and more sophisticated than me -- I think of writing as my Jedi Mind Trick way of teaching these days.
Also, inspired by you, I bought myself a fresh copy of Catch-22 for Christmas. It's wrapped and waiting patiently under the tree.