Brain Damage

Kyle, Adam and I were talking yesterday, during a road trip to Wisconsin, and I pointed out that my wife was worried about me, in part because I'd left the toilet seat up, which I hadn't done once during almost 20 years of marriage.  She's worried my behavior may be different since the accident, organically different, and I think the toilet seat is a sign.  I disagree - perhaps consciously different. If anything, I feel pretty relaxed, and yet, more focused, lately.  Organized is a good word.

I posited - to Adam and Kyle - whether it wouldn't be amusing to leave the toilet seat up now and then, just to have a bit of, admittedly dark, fun.  Kyle thought I should actually take it up a level and put ketchup on my food now and then, and maybe have some mustard or salad dressing.  All condiments to which my aversion is well known.  The only thing more unlike me would be to show up wearing overalls and humming "Come on Eileen."

So now this is just a test to see if she reads my blog.  Otherwise it might be random toilet seating.  At least until Eryn falls in.  And a bit of ketchup on my food when she thinks I'm not really paying attention to anyone.

Ironically, this morning, we were at breakfast in Woodbury at The New Woodbury Cafe with Ming and son and Cookie Queen.  Ming Jr. (I use Logan's name elsewhere, so that's just a nice way not to call him Fourth Place, although he did point out I'm currently "Last Place") offered me a bet to eat some ketchup.  Albeit after trying to bet me I couldn't eat a container of jam or some creamer.  I don't think he has this bet thing quite figured out yet.  Or perhaps it's less about getting me to do something crazy and more about making me jump like a monkey at his beck and call.  I had to think a long time before disagreeing to take his money, and in the end it was his mother wanting to quash his gambling behavior that really swung the decision.  Opportunity one lost.

Symphony

I haven't really gotten around to downloading Christmas pictures yet, so instead I'm going to ask a question I've been meaning to pose for a while. A few times a year, say three or four, I find myself sitting around and a symphony starts to play in my head. Nothing I've heard before. Never the same one twice. A fully-fledged, all instruments, sounds like something you'd hear on the classical radio channel, piece. If you gave me a tape recorder at that moment, I could hum all the individual strings and woodwinds and percussion (et al) lines making up the whole.

Until recently, I never thought too much of it. And then I reconsidered that maybe it's weird. So does this sort of thing happen to anyone else? Do you find yourself in-mind of a new classical tune, or some painting that should make it to a canvas but doesn't? I suspect it's my brain just exercising some neurons I haven't been mindful of on a day-to-day basis, but I'm fascinated to know if it's common, or if there are variations on the theme, or if some psychologist knows what causes it.