—I’M GOING TO GET INSPIRED, DON’T NEED TO BE THIS TIRED

  

… Dear Diary, I am so sorry for the forthcoming gibberish. Truly.

 

…Woke up at 2 am yesterday. Everything was black, black, black and even blacker than that for hours. 

Sometimes I actually like it, being up when everyone’s not. But around five in the afternoon, it always really kicks my ass.

 

…”Gabrielle” by Brett Eldredge always gets me.

 

…I think trust and safety are the most important ingredients to any relationship, and they’re both hard to come by.

 

…In the wrong light, everything looks worse.

 

…Big day tomorrow, I think, I hope.

 

…Thinking back at the height of the pandemic now feels a bit like slicing a very important vein.

 

…Ken Meech, I hardly knew him, but he died at 63, nonetheless... 

 

…What do you do with a 62-year-old man who doesn’t think he is, who believes he’s still 16 or 9?

 

…What’s it mean when you get more Junk mail than real mail?

 

…Never get a Rex Orange County song stuck in your head, or it will never leave.

 

…I still think this is the greatest masterpiece I’ve ever seen/heard…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7_jYl8A73g

 

…Sometimes when I write something that I think has potential, or is deeply personal, it’s as if I’ve left a trail of my blood all over the keyboard.

 

…Someone’s got an answer somewhere.

 

…If you don’t believe anything someone says, isn’t that the same as calling them a liar, like repeatedly?

 

…And I could blame everything on you. At least you know that’s what I’m good at…

 

…I need some new shoes. How about you?

 

…I know I can’t keep going on like nothing’s wrong, yet I do.

 

…When I need an antidote to the blue, after I’ve played one too many sad songs, this is my go-to for trying to upright the ship…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4WakhVy-RI

 

…Each night and day, I watch the waves, but they never watch me back. They’ve got better things to do.

 

…This is not how I expected things to go.

 

…I guess we all lose a lot of friends along the way, but it’s never very fun.

 

…She had me at Heads California…

 

…I wish I didn’t need it, but I do.

 

…Maybe there’s a better way to do this.

 

…Most times I think, “Fuck. John was just 50.”  F  i  f  t  y.  I mean, how is that even fair?

 

…For a while I went to this church I really loved because the pastor seemed flawed and real. At the one-year anniversary, he spoke on stage drinking a beer. After the Newtown massacre he said, “When people say, ‘God needed another angel,’ it makes me want to puke. God doesn’t need another fucking angel.” It’s the only time I’ve ever heard a pastor say Fuck in church. He was my hero for a time, until he wasn’t. 

 

…Paint a wall, learn to dance, call your mom, buy a boat, drink a beer, sing a song… 

 

…You should see my office. Dayammmm.

 

…“When you believe in someone, you can change their world, you can change their future.” David Ortiz at his Hall of Fame induction

 

…I keep hanging up pictures of the past to block out the sun, and there’s probably something wrong with that.

 

…I pay pretty close attention, but I probably shouldn’t.

 

…My son and I were to go to Rainbow Kitten Surprise last Monday night, but late that afternoon it got cancelled because the lead singer needed to take a break from touring for “mental health” reasons. It was a disappointment, but good for him for taking care of himself. We should all be so self-aware.  

 

…Baby, I got a plan. Run away as fast as you can…

 

…Some things come apart a lot easier than you expect.

 

…It’s really something, to be a part of such a supportive writing community…

Len! Thank you! I've been meaning to tell you...I read your ekphrastic piece, "Colony" to my workshop participants at the Flash Fiction Festival. It's amazing as are you: https://www.ekphrastic.net/.../john-bradley-ekphrastic...

 

…These things eat at your bones and drive your young mind crazy…

 

…I listen. I just can’t seem to apply it.

 

…You’re a really good liar, but that’s okay.

 

…I usually look a little better than this, but really, I was just searching for a place to be alone.

 

…I’ve got a best friend who’s in very bad trouble and I can’t do anything about it. I don’t ever want that phone call to come.

 

...I’m happy to see a little bit more happy back in your life.

 

…This is supposed to make me feel better about myself, but sometimes it’s just the opposite.

 

…I thank the Lord there are people out there like you.