Hola Darling Ones,

How are you? It been ages since I’ve written. My silence is funk related. Current events + personal economic insecurity makes Jodi a dull girl.

There’s about three half-written posts in the hopper, but I haven’t mustered up the gumption to finish them. I will though, because I’ve been spending every afternoon for the past two weeks arguing with Jason Isbell in my head and the world needs to know about it. Plus, maybe if I get it out of my head maybe I’ll stop.

But that’s not why I’m here today. Today I’m gonna tell you about two things I’ve started doing again. These were things I did all the time pre-stroke and it it’s taken me two years to get back into the habit.

1. Listening to music on my headphones
I mentioned how Sister #4 gave me some bitchen Sony cans. What I didn’t mention was that I stopped listening to music on headphones for a long time.

Whatever the stroke did my brain it interfered with my ability to enjoy music being pumped right into my skull. Part of that was due to people stopping by unannounced right after my stroke and scaring the shit out me because I couldn’t hear the garage door over the music. Part of it was just because — maybe it was too much?

Regardless, now whenever I fire up Euryale (that’s my laptop) to work or write I pop on the cans and it is familiar delight. It doesn’t take away the wooshiness in my head or the tremor in the Floppy Scoop, but it does make me feel like my old self.

2. Tending to the Sadness Garden
In its heyday the Sadness Garden contained dozens of plants and took up space in three of of Supergenius HQ’s rooms.

Along with my money and balance, the stroke took a lot of my plants. RIP Peggy, Stan, Joanie, Heather, Heather, Veronica, Ann, Nancy, and Janine. Plus a bunch I can’t remember the names of.

In the early days I didn’t have the capacity to give them the care they required. While my mom and sisters tried, they were more concerned with keeping me alive.

This week I spent some time getting my garden in order. I cut back Cub, the monstera; started what may turn out to be an avocado tree orchard; and gave one last shot at keeping Eleanor IV alive. I don’t have high hopes for her.

I’ve vowed to cool my jets when it comes to plants and keep it contained to the one cart and the two giants (Trevor, the lemon tree and Cub). This means I’m now accepting a Pilea Peperomioides and a Tradescantia Nanouk. Feel free to send them.

In good news, my retina doctor has lengthened the time between the invasive eye treatments. I only have to go every 12 weeks now, which is nice because for awhile I was going every 4 weeks. The bad news is my vision will never be undistorted again. He said that last time too, but I always ask doctors a few times in case they were mistaken the first two times I asked.

Keeping the status quo,
Jodi