ramping up and scaling back

Everyone likes to schedule amazing events in October. You know? It's the happy time, I think. No significant holidays that could interfere with planning, unless you're one of the unfortunate souls who actually celebrates Indigenous Genocide Day (aka Columbus Day), and of course Halloween, which isn't until the end of the month. Everyone's 'around' because they've already done their summer vacations, they're in their 'occupied' time at work and at school, and they're saving their traveling and break time for Thanksgiving and the thick of winter. And because October traditionally signals the gloominess up ahead (that is, if you live in Minnesota), we are unusually primed and excited for whatever vibrancy we can get a hold of, which usually comes in the form of awesome events.

And there are a great many happening right now. Lecture series, conferences, concerts, shows, activism gatherings, spoken word performances, fundraisers, films, dances, plays, heck, even the meetings planned in October look particularly scrumptious. It's really a joy to witness this much activity, all concentrated in one month.

Well, I have a shoe to drop. There are a great many things happening right now in public, but also in private, and they are mostly not the enjoyable kind, but I am doing them nonetheless so that I do not freak out come November and December, when the lethargy of the coming winter really puts me in the procrastination mode. And after making a few lists of those tasks, and weighing them against my general available time to do them, I discovered the other dropped shoe.

Namely, that if there are awesome events happening this month, I will have to bow out of almost all of them.

Oh, don't get me wrong. There will still be another Monochromatic Meal of the Month and I'm all aboard for it (the color orange won't know what hit 'em). And of course, Up In Arms, tonight at 8 pm at Macalester (Kagin), which will draw a big crowd but I will still be doing last-minute recruiting for it today. And when Bao and Juliana's little one comes through, I'll be cooking up a storm to save them some meal-making stress. And if anyone ever wants to arrange a happy hour or maybe a soul food night out at Brasa or what have you, you know I won't resist.

But otherwise I will have to say a lot of 'No' to your invitations. Know this isn't a slight against anything or not wanting to hang out with y'all. Just have to lay down some boundaries. The best thing you can do is not pestering me when I say 'no' the first time around, as that will get me guilty and annoyed pretty fast. No, the best thing you can do is just go to these events with a good crew and a big-ups attitude, and take whatever joy you can get for all it's worth, as that will translate back to me one way or another. I'm serious. It really does work that way.

Now, as the feller Kev always says, it's back to the mill.

See you tonight at Kagin for Up In Arms.