At our last book club meeting, I saw my friend wearing a pair of fingerless gloves. I remembered that at one point, I wanted a pair too, but forgot about it. So I went ahead and ordered myself a pair.
I found them pretty convenient. When I go to the park before lunch to read a book while walking, they keep me warm, while not obstructing me from turning the pages or using my phone. It's around 2°-5°C outside, not cold enough to wear proper gloves, so these are perfect.
I ran into another friend of mine, showed him my gloves and told him how much I like them. And I was like, "You know, in a sense, I look like a hobo in an American movie." You probably know what I'm referring to. Imagine a scene in a movie set in New York, where a homeless man is warming his hands over a pile of burning trash in a trash can. At least I hope you can picture it because my friend couldn't — he looked at me like I was crazy. "What are you even talking about?" Uh, whatever, man. Maybe I'm just weird. I can't actually think of a single movie with that scene. Did I make this up?..
A few days later my cousin's daugther gave me a ride. I asked her:
"Did you notice my new gloves?"
"Yeah..."
"What? Do you not like them?"
"Uhh, not really..."
"Why not?"
"You know how in American movies..."
I burst out lauging. "Do you think I look like a hobo?"
"Kind of!" She laughed too.
I've never felt so validated in my life! And it's a nice feeling — to relate to someone with some obscure detail or association that others just don't get. I'm glad I have people I can relate to.
Haha, I'm glad you could share the feelings with somebody. The finger-less gloves are quite common here, and I've knitted some. I'm surprised that it's already 2°-5°C there. Stay warm and enjoy reading! By the way, what are you reading now?
@yumiyumayume I'm reading stoics at a slow pace. I just finished Epictetus's "The Discourses", which was hard to digest at first, so it took me several months to read. Now I've started Seneca's "Letters to Lucilius".
Usually for our book club, we read some fiction, but this month we decided to discuss self-help books, so i'm also going through "The Happiness Trap" by Russ Harriss.
I love this post, and it made me realize something... the reason your written English is so good is that you always write about yourself, your experiences, your feelings and not "articles" about procrastination and study methods, so the things you write about are heartfelt and relatable to yourself, and so you transmit them very genuinely on paper. An important language lesson for everyone! Bravo!
@BalaGi Have you read "Meditation" from Marcus Aurelius? That's my bible! Understanding stoics is very difficult, but his book is very easy to read. I highly recommend!
@yumiyumayume Yes, "Meditations" is the one I started getting into stoicism with. I think I liked Epictetus more, even though it's harder to understand. I should definitely revisit Marcus Aurelius though — those books are not the ones you read once and forget, and, having read several other stoics, I might experience it differently.
@BalaGi Thank you for sharing. I've never read Epictetus yet. I think you are right about that those books are not the ones you read once and forget, and, having read several other stoics. We definitely find something new every time we read.