It is most likely an uncommon cold. I say uncommon because I generally don’t get colds in the spring. I got the signs – my head is plugged up and feels rough. Swallowing gives me reason to pause. I’m tired.

I am drinking a lot of water and avoiding sugar. The latter has not been difficult. There was no sugar to imbibe today. I also avoided carbs and caffeine, not because I wanted to keep from getting ill but because I feel ill.

I have my fingers crossed (the outward sign of hope) that I won’t be ill tomorrow. If I am ill on Wednesday, I will cancel my medical and dental appointment and go to bed.

Last year's B-Day Picture

Overall, I’ve been feeling crappy lately. I would feel better if I knew what was wrong. . .

I do not want to spend my writing time communicating to my reading audience my physical whoas. Life and reading time is too short. But I suppose this information is important for public record. It will be duly noted somewhere that on April 14, 2025, Alys Culhane, in a 500-or-so dispatch, let it be known that she felt like crap.

I wonder about my dispatch readership. It’s pretty small, but not quite non-existent. If I knew who my audience was, and what their readerly interests might be, I would make sure that I addressed their subject matter interest.

Well, today. Up before the alarm. Got to the Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center just in time for breakfast. There were, all total, six people at my table by the time breakfast was over and the keynote speech began. Even before I attended this conference I wondered if I, who was alone, would find anyone who’d be interested in going out for lunch with me.

The keynote speaker spoke indirectly about the importance of questions. When she asked the audience for questions, I asked her what questions came to mind in putting together her presentation. I thought that this was, on my part, a pretty clever rhetorical strategy. Then I thought, well, I ought to ask someone if they were going to lunch and might I join them?

Lunchtime rolled around and people paired off with their cohorts and left the building. I just sat and watched them go and felt increasingly more despondent.

So there wasn’t even anyone who I might ask if I might join them.

I began working on a journal write – always a good idea, and in this way blew off some of my angst about not being a big fish in this very small pond. The title was, “Change is Eminent,” meaning that if I sat still long enough, that my situation would change. And it did. Lee Henricks, who is one of the founders of Big Cabbage Radio, came over to me and after I chewed her out for not ever talking to me, sat down and we chit chatted for half an hour.

In this journal write, I also questioned as to why the BLBP is a nonprofit. I did feel okay after talking to Lee. So yes, change remains a constant.

Next: 104. 4/15/25: Hmmmm