Thursday Thirteen

I am easily aggravated lately. Let's see if there have been 13 aggravations of late.

1. A poetry journal that I've been publishing in for the last several years sent me an email telling me they couldn't afford the postage to mail me my "contributor's copy" so would I please send them $10. That's not paying me a contributor's copy. That is me paying them. I won't submit to this publication again; I don't care how good its reputation is or used to be.

2. My hand is a constant aggravation because I can't get the swelling to go down and I'm not sure what is wrong with it.

3. I can't play my guitar because of my hand.

4. My county Board of Supervisors has apparently never met a rezoning proposal it doesn't like. Wayward, unplanned growth doesn't make for a healthy community. It makes a mess.

5. The local daily newspaper gets worse every week. I suspect we're on our last year of subscribing. I will miss it, but I'm not paying more for less.

6. The local weekly newspaper isn't even worth looking at. What a waste of trees. How depressing. And sad. I mourn the loss of the Fourth Estate.

7. We bought Sam's Club Member's Mark brand batteries a while back. They do not last long. We went back to Energizers, although I actually think Duracell is the best battery. I couldn't find any of those.

8. My local CVS seems to be having stocking issues; I'm having a hard time finding things in there now. They were the best place to look during much of the pandemic but not so much now.

9. Covid cases are up. We're in a high transmission area. Are people taking precautions? No. Does this aggravate me? Yes. I do have to go to the grocery store sometimes. I never understood why wearing a mask was such a big deal. Personally, I have had fewer colds and been much less ill since I started wearing a mask. Since I like not being sick, I will continue to wear one.

10. I have a new mole on my side and the darn thing itches constantly. It's so small I can barely see it, but its itch is as big as my entire side. Which is pretty big since I'm overweight.

11. The doctor's scale said I weighed as much as I weighed when I was in there two months ago, but my scales tell me I have lost 5 pounds since the end of June. I think I will believe my scales.

12. Friday night Melissa Etheridge will be performing within driving distance of me, but I won't be going to see her yet again. I can't believe she's been this close twice now and I haven't been to see her either time. Apparently, my desire for personal comfort and health outweighs my desire to see one of my favorite musicians. But damn. Blast you, Covid!

13. I'm actually aggravated that I am being aggravated by so many things at the moment. And such silly things, too. Life things, everyday things. I need a chill pill, I think.

___________________

Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while, and this is my 766th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.