Writing With Abandon

Yesterday, Lauren’s slice about trying to get her roommate to slice made me smile. What her roommate thought wasn’t relatable actually was incredibly relatable to me — working from home and walking around the apartment to get steps in (which both helps your legs from going numb and your smart wearable from buzzing at you to “get up and move”). This isn’t the first time that I’ve commented on someone’s slice about relating to what they think/feel/do.

It got me thinking about other things that seem completely mundane or normalized to me, but might be relatable to other people. A moment of connection. A “me too!” moment that helps them feel seen.

So here we go. Can you relate to any of the following?

• Waking up in the middle of the night to pee
• Waking up desperate to pee in the morning, even though you already peed in the middle of the night
• Waking up congested (especially during spring) and needing to blow your nose
• Your dog climbing into your bed the moment they realize you’re “up” (this might be before your alarm goes off)
• Using your phone as your alarm and checking your notifications first thing even though you know it’s the worst thing for you
• Playing the NYT games every morning, in the exact same order every time
• Worrying that if you do not play the NYT games in the exact same order, something might be “off” about the rest of your day
• Keeping a bullet journal that’s not as used as it once was but is still your go-to planner method (though you’re open to other suggestions, as you did use Moleskine half planner half notebooks for many years)
• Moving items from yesterday’s to do list to today’s, day after day
• Getting the “Time to stand!” Apple Watch notification, even though you’ve been standing for the last twenty minutes (when are they going to change this measurement to include standing without arms swinging?)
• Walking around the apartment with arms swinging or moving your body around vigorously — kicks, arms flailing, squats — until you get the “You did it!” notification
• Starting one task and getting distracted when an email or text comes in
• Talking to your dog as a means of talking to yourself throughout the day
• Singing as a form of communication (especially effective when annoyed or giving redirection to children)
• Catching your reflection in the mirror at one specific time of day where the light hits just so, and noticing all the small dark hairs that need plucking
• Getting more and more chin hairs as you get older (why, universe, why?)
• Saying hello in the exact same way to the doorman every day, then wondering why you sound like that
• Not drinking enough water
• Scrolling on Instagram even though you promised you wouldn’t (self control is hard)
• Looking at your phone while you’re walking, even though you know you shouldn’t
• Thinking in “should”s (I should call ___ more, I should work out, I should make my own dinner instead of going out tonight)
• Overthinking future events that you have no control over
• Being extra snappy when hungry around your loved ones
• Thinking about what to pack for upcoming trips way too far in advance (key word: “thinking” — no real action taken)
• Rewatching a show you’ve seen all the episodes of instead of watching one of the ones on your list of shows to watch
• Opening the door to the fridge to look inside at what’s there even though you know what’s there

I could keep going forever but I’m going to stop there as I’m getting hungry for breakfast now!

What’s something mundane or normalized that you do (and perhaps have sliced about) that someone has connected with?