Today classes started. I survived, but I’m completely exhausted. All day long there was noise and bustle. In the morning I was working out the last-minute details for some student worker training I’m co-coordinating, planning library sessions, and answering emails. All afternoon I was sitting at the reference desk. And then in the evening the president of the college hosted his beginning of the year garden party, so I went there to eat shrimp and chat with people.
Now I’m lying on the couch in the gathering dusk soaking up the silence and the stillness. Even getting left-overs for dinner seems like an insurmountable challenge. I can’t bring myself to turn on a lamp, listen to music, or even turn on the TV. Instead, I’ll lie here for a while listening to my cat breathe. Only once I’m able to contemplate dinner, or a lamp, or even scratching my itchy ankle… only then will I let myself think about and prepare for tomorrow.
It’s always that darn itchy ankle that gets me moving on evenings such as you describe.