My soul is weary with sorrow;
strengthen me according to your word. (Psalm 119:28)

Flashlight in hand, I progress slowly down each step, toward the dungeon in which I keep my soul. Repeating drops of condensation drip, drip, drip and echo off the cold, dead walls. The scent of urine and defecation permeates the air, and intermingles with a poison must.

I loathe this place, which reeks of hell and depression.

I approach the cage. My keys rattle against the thick, steel slats, as I wrestle with the heavy padlock.

John Stossel recently published a short piece in The Freeman about ideas having sex. This naturally explains the most lucrative business sector ever seen on the Internet: idea porn.

So, when I shared this article on Facebook, and fellow fiction blogger and Star Trek fan Neil Shurley re-shared it, I thought of that Star Trek: The Next Generation episode, “Timescape.”

(Not really, but it seemed like a good segue.)

I’ve been going through a baptism of chaos. Been working on a summer software-development project–summer turning into autumn–a project with too many harrowing twists and a too-soon, hard deadline.

I’ve been putting into this project as many hours as I can fit, plus some that I can’t. Because I need to earn enough money to buy a new car (or at least a new-for-me car). Because my old Saturn no longer drives, and will never drive again. (That’s a long and amusing story, which I absolutely have to tell in another post. I have pictures, too.)

I have a daughter to drive to school in the morning and pick up in the afternoon. That’s the only family responsibility I have consistently respected. That doesn’t stop people from asking favors. Everybody wants a piece of me.

Life has been so hectic that I haven’t had time to breathe.

If you’ve not appreciated the joy of shopping for interview clothes, you’re missing out. And if you think that this joy is just for women… Well, you unfortunately may be right. Women have so many more clothing options. Not only can they wear anything a man can wear, they get to wear skirts, capris, dresses, and even stirrup pants. (But please, ladies, don’t do that.) And accessories! As a man, I can wear a ring and watch. If I want to be bad, I can wear a crucifix around my neck, or maybe a stud earring. If I want to be formal, I can wear a tie. But the girls get to play with jewelry, scarves, handbags, shoes, and just about everything else. And women can get away with colors and patterns that would just make us guys look gay. Yes, women get to have all the fun and creativity.