signifieds butt heads with the signifiers

today i stayed home from work & slept for three hours on the couch in the middle of the day. it was delicious. i was cold but i had packed my couch blankets so i zipped myself up in my down sleeping bag and woke up sweaty and thirsty. i barely talked to anyone all day and that was exactly what i needed.

moving forces you to examine your stuff in a different light. do i need/want/use/like this enough to carry it to my new place? i have a large goodwill pile already, sweaters i haven't worn since i moved in two years ago and books i didn't even enjoy the first time, let alone foresee ever opening again.

old photographs are surprisingly easy to let go; the ones i keep are mainly family photos and mainly i keep them to avoid the guilt that would surely accompany throwing them away. when i look at old photographs, i often feel i'm examining someone else's life, and not really mine at all. it's disorienting. the important people and places i remember, because i was there. and i generally prefer the images of my mind's eye.

what i can't let go of are old journals and notebooks. they are juvenile and cringe-inducing, but apparently words, or whatever they contain and convey, are rather dear to me. i guess this is not a surprise.