Another Week: Number 150

We are back on Central Standard Time. That first Sunday sunset creates some anxiety, and it takes me a week or so before my body clock resets, but I consider the time change a necessary glitch. Staying on Daylight Saving Time would mean an 8:22 sunrise on January 1, and staying on Standard Time would bring sunrise at 4:13 in mid-June. Both are nuts.

Speaking of nuts, Sunday’s Chicago Bears game at Cincinnati was one of the craziest rollercoasters of all time, before finally ending in a 47-42 win over the Bengals — for once, a thoroughly entertaining contest that didn’t end in heartbreak.

As temperatures flutter down, waves of wind and light rain have been passing through, and I have been using the better days to prepare for winter: distributing Nicotiana seeds, mowing up the autumn leaves, and setting the snow shovel near the back door. On Monday, I acted on a longstanding urge and bought ten bags of composted manure to spread among my flower beds. That’s a lot of compost to pull through Stein’s on a little cart — but barely noticeable on the ground once it’s distributed. Oh, well.

On Tuesday, reading the supplementary essays for Light in August, I needed to look up William Blake and find out who he was. Holy mackerel.

Wednesday morning, I woke to find I had somehow pulled my shoulder while sleeping. A little later, I listened in as Solicitor General D. John Sauer argued before the United States Supreme Court for Donald J. Trump’s haphazard tariff regimen. It was rough going.

Wednesday night was the full Beaver supermoon. Thursday morning, the birdbath was iced over for the first time, and I listened to Natasha Lyonne on Good Hang with Amy Poehler. I really like her a lot.

Also on Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to block people from choosing their gender on passports, removing one of the main worries that keeps so many of us up at night. Meanwhile, the government shutdown continues, more than 42 million Americans are without food assistance, air traffic controllers are not getting paychecks, and millions will soon lose health coverage.

On Saturday evening at my mom’s, we watched Raiders of the Lost Ark, which she had not seen since it was in the theaters. I have seen it a few times since.

I walked 7.09 miles this week.