Ever since I was an undergrad in Austin I've been on a high-news diet. And I've always cared about politics. I've stuffed envelopes, phone banked, even walked door-to-door for candidates. I even trained in anticipation of being arrested at a March on Washington. (I wasn't.) I usually know about the major events of the day and what the east-coast intelligentsia think about them. But not today, not for the immediate future. Though I don't know for how long. I am taking a break. I'm not reading the NYT. No TNY. No Guardian... I'm on a news cleanse.
I heard someone comment that my reaction is simply denial, but I don't think I agree. For me it a question of how I spend my mental time. When I read something, lets say the what and the why of an event, it enters my daily repertoire of things to think about and talk about. It occupies space in my life. And I've given the news a lot of this space. So I've decided to take back some of that space, at least for a little while.
But let's not talk of love or chains and things we can't untie, your eyes are soft with sorrow, Hey, that's no way to say goodbye. Leonard Cohen
Hydra doesn't need any celebrity associations to be worth a visit. That said, the island is associated with Leonard Cohen (who died this week). Hydra was where he met Marianne Ihlen, who inspired songs such as "So Long, Marianne" and "Bird on the Wire." Which brings back memories of high school when friends of mine, avid fans who knew the words to all Cohen's songs, introduced me to his music.