Autumn; Not Sleeping; Clothes Shopping - Part II; Tirade - Edith Piaf;

What better way to describe autumn than with Shakespeare's line from "Hamlet," Act I, scene 1:

"But, look, the morn, in russet mantle clad, Walks o’er the dew of yon high eastward hill."

This year the trees all seem red. Not flame red, but a muted, watery red. Most likely, there will be a sudden burst of other colors, and then a vast windblown scattering of leaves.

Another night of not being able to sleep until early this morning and then only with the help of a Alprazolam (Xanax) and a Clonazepam (Klonopin). I'm really not, or at least I don't think I'm, a major-duty druggie. I've had the bottle of Xanax since September 1, and I'd have even more of then if one of the cats had not pawed the pill box and spilled about a dozen.

If I can't sleep, I can always cruise the Net until I get tired. Or write long tirades.

"This is something that I rarely do - shop for clothes." Or so I said last night/this morning.

I liked the long-sleeve tees so much that after lunch I stopped by Hudsons to buy some more. Hudsons is in what I think use to be a supermarket. It has moved around several times and places in this area. It certainly does not spend any money on decor, inside or out. And the fluorescent bulbs leave a lot to be desired. I have trouble seeing from one side of the store to the other. The pricing is weird. It looks like an item may have originally been priced at $10, then the price increased by 50%, but on sale for a 40% discount.

I headed back for the boxes of tees, but they were gone. I did see the jackets, but only about half were left. Then I noticed that the boxes had been moved to an alcove in the back.

The boxes were huge. A family of four could easily take up residence in one on a cold wintery night. As I dug around, I'd decided I only wanted tees that were at least 4XL. After much digging, it struck me that the shirts were color-coded by sizes except in a few cases. The greens were extra large; light blue, large; pink, medium. I finally came away with four: two maroon; one red; and one dark blue.

I've seen a commercial for something that I've repressed because I was so shocked by the use of an Edith Piaf song in the background. I'm not sure the song because the only Piaf recordings I have are on vinyl, and there's something flaky about my turntable. You plug it in, and the platter starts rotating and refuses to respond to any commands.

One does not use a Piaf song in a commercial. It would be like Mozart's "Requiem" for a panty hose ad.

PAX!