My Affliction

Hyperopia: not simple farsightedness, but the inability to enjoy the present because one is overly worried about the future. It can lead to regret about lost opportunities.

Harm in da Arm

My arms have finally stopped shaking! I had rehearsal this evening that turned out to be 1.5 hours of almost (seemingly) nonstop crawling around on the floor and scurrying on all fours. We are supposed to be like spiders/Spiderman in our comic-book-themed dance. Strange, particularly in writing, but true. That was a lot of arm work in general let alone after two weeks off. My arms were a bit tired right after, and I had to stop at the liquor store on my way returning to my apartment to acquire the goods for my hosted wine night. I went to the Village Bottle Shoppe to peruse the wines. Such shoppe I had passed many thousands of times in the past four years but never entered. they have a fairly small and limited selection of liquids to please oenophiles, but what I found would suffice. I decided to go with Rieslings (which was my original intention if possible) based on the selection. The shoppe had eight different kinds that I noticed, six of which were $10.99 or less, so I went with those six. I had to carry those six bottles back to my apartment, which turned out to be a magnificent feat of bicep-based strength I never realized. I never thought I wouldn't make it; I knew I would persevere. Yet, I also knew there would be consequences. Will I be able to lift my toothbrush tomorrow? Will my students laugh as I gesture with fingers only as my arms dangle at my sides? These questions remain unanswered.
Anyhow, I got at least one brand most Americans will probably recognize at this point - Yellow Tail from Australia. That was the cheapest at $6.99. The next is from Chile at $7.99, then two from the area of Germany where Riesling originated at $8.99 and $9.99, and two from the Columbia Valley in Washington state at $9.99 and $10.99. Funny that the two domestics are highest in price. The other two I did not buy were a lot more expensive at about $14.99. I did not get a "ringer" to confuse the already impossible quest to identify wine club wines. I don't know what it would be but I am now thinking with at least 10 people plus myself it might be wise to have that extra bottle. We have a few indulgent drinkers. We are a very responsible group though; a truly lovely bunch. I will make sure no one attempts to the bus einsteigen.
No weirdly shaped bottles or even particularly ornate labeling at this shop I'm afraid. One interesting thing about these wines I got, all Rieslings of moderate to medium sweetness, is that they range in alcohol content from 8.5% to 13.5%. Not a big number in toto, but that's a pretty good range when it's over a 60% increase in alcohol content! I did not realize such a range existed within one kind of wine.
A review on these selections to follow, if my memory holds out after the brain floats on a golden Riesling river that hints of peaches, apples, and the faintest touch of cinnamon.

Skin Mountain

I have what could be termed a zit on my forehead. It sits high and could be covered by a well-placed sweep of the hair falling at an angle from the bangs position. Yet, for now, it sits exposed. It is, shall we say, large. But I am quite lucky because rather than revealing itself a monstrous, writhing, and greasy mound of pus bulging from beneath skin burning with the bloody glow of inflammation, it more closely resembles a bug bite. It is like a medium-diameter though prominent bug bite and I prefer to treat it that way. Don't touch! Stay away! Let it cool and recede and the body will work its magic to tackle the poorly-armored foreign beasts that established this bastion. The mountain will be overrun, my misguided bacterial friends, and there is nothing you can do but wait and weep.