Thinking Out Loud

We are almost six years removed from the COVID-19 pandemic and yet, I still see people wearing masks in public.  I have even seen folks in the office still do the mask thing.  I suppose that this is just going to be a thing for the foreseeable future.  I don’t mean to make fun of this or of the people who do it.  Perhaps, I should just be grateful that lately, I’ve been made of iron because I rarely get sick.  I was sick in 2024 for two days with cold-like symptoms.  I took some DayQuil and NyQuil both days and cleared that up relatively quickly.  At no point did it ever occur to me to put on a mask.  As we steadily approach cold and flu season, I remain hopeful that I am once again able to avoid any of those bugs that tend to go around this time of year.  I will say this though.  I’m not putting on a mask.

I always joke that I wouldn’t mind coming down with some kind of illness, a temporary one obviously, because I could use the time off from work.  I’m always at work.  I work ridiculous amount of overtime and it’s not unusual for me to work seven days a week to accrue that overtime.  I typically don’t like to take any extended leaves of absence (i.e. vacations) because in the end, this adversely affects my paycheck.  I don’t travel.  I don’t go anywhere.  I’m either at home or I’m at work.  I remember a time about a decade or so ago when overtime, at least for me, wasn’t a thing, so now that it’s available, I’m going to take advantage of it for as long as I can.  I don’t spend my money frivolously like some people do (buying a new car, traveling to any destination affiliated with the Disney brand, Labubu), so believe that I’m putting a good chunk of that money away for safe keeping.

Far be it for me to criticize others for the things that they collect, but I will never spend any money towards anything Labubu, not even as gifts.  Those figurines are ugly as shit and I don’t get the appeal.  The second biggest thing that I probably dislike about Labubu is that they come in blind boxes.  I’d kind of like to know what I’m buying before I plunk that kind of money down.  Now, I will spend money on Funko Pop! figures, which I’ve been doing now for many years.  Sometimes, I’ll open those up and decorate with them.  Sometimes I’ll buy them, keep them in their boxes, and throw in a sturdy protective plastic box.  I guess it all just depends on the figure.  Somebody at work tried to convince me that Labubu were worth the price.  While I didn’t tell her that those figurines are ugly as shit, I told her that that’s not anything on which I would spend my money.  I think she’s also one of those women who decorates her bag/purse with Labubu, like it was some kind of trophy or showpiece.  I didn’t make fun of her for it.

It seems that lately, I’ve been posting all kinds of music from YouTube.  I don’t have any motivation for doing so, other than I just feel like posting music that I enjoy listening to.

I was watching a random video on YouTube about celebrity death and Smokey Robinson (who is very much alive as of this writing) had given a very brief statement regarding the murder of Marvin Gaye, who was shot and killed by his own father.  This got me thinking about Smokey’s music, his lengthy music career, and how he looks decent today.

So, to close this entry, I leave behind the following song featuring Smokey Robinson.  If I had a favorite song on which Smokey performs, this might be it.  While Smokey is still alive, I say continue to rest in peace to both Marvin Gaye and Rick James, who performs the other half of the duet in “Ebony Eyes”.