Stream of Consciousness

Writing whatever comes to mind. The sounds from outside – the cicadas (or are they tree frogs? I never know), the occasional passing car. Nothing else. I’ve been watching the football game on TV for an hour but really don’t know the score because I haven’t really been watching it but rather reading while having it on in the background, as I usually watch sports on TV, as background noise. I’ve been aching more of late, sitting too long or getting up, walking stairs. Maybe it’s the weather, maybe it’s just age again – how can you tell? Last weekend I had three days in a row with a bad sore throat, thought I was coming down with a bad cold or sinus infection. But I went fishing and biking for three days and the sore throat disappeared altogether. I have no idea how the human body works. Or doesn’t. I walk three to four miles most every day. Used to jog that long, but had knee replacement surgery three years ago, so have backed off to walking. But fast, a hard walk, with walking sticks to take pressure off the joints and increase the cardio. The Saints just scored and are apparently “right back in it,” 21-17. I’ve been coughing this evening for some reason. Why am I writing this? It’s just an exercise. I’ve been told it has some purpose. But I don’t know what that purpose might be. Maybe I’m supposed to stumble upon a topic, a subject of some interest or significance. If so, it doesn’t seem to be working. No stumbled upon topics or subjects of any interest or significance whatsoever. Maybe that’s why it’s called “free writing” – it’s free of any purpose or significance or interest – free of any meaning. Or reason for reading? But if there’s no reason for reading, why would there be a reason for the writing? Might there be a topic of interest here? A sort of meta-topic? No, this is just drivel. It’s an exercise I used to years ago have my students engage in at the beginning of most every class. I think it was something I read about in a textbook, or maybe something one of my colleagues recommended. Get the juices going, and all of that. But neither I nor my students ever found it to be anything other than an empty exercise. Nothing much ever came of it. And nothing much is coming of it now. There’s a timeout with 2:44 left in the half.