Chicken’s Corner: A Losing Popularity Contest

We’ve returned from band camp, and, to my surprise and confusion, all the things that were on the to-do list before we left are, unpleasantly, still on the list. Were my stationery elves not busy doing things like cleaning the dust bunnies out under the bed? Picking up more kitty litter? Making major renovation decisions? More things seem to be added daily, including the gloom of imminent dental work. The receptionist at the endodontist was asking invasive questions about sensitivity and pain and how urgent it was to get in, and I was trying to balance sensitivity and pain with how little I want this dental work done and how long I can put it off for, because of course that’s the most effective way to deal with dental problems. I’ve gone back to eating crunchy Cheetos over the kitchen sink, Michael Pollan, eat your heart out.

I spent the week trying to catch up, photos of all the new things, back to school prep, trying to find all the library books we need to return. I’m not quite caught up, but I did spend a nice soul-restoring hour last night adding to the new-books-for-the-shop list, which overlaps quite nicely with my new-books-I’d-like-to-read list. I am nothing if not overly ambitious about the amount of stationery it’s possible for me to use and the number of books I can read. What good is it to open a stationery shop if you can’t dream a little?

In any case, what I really came on here to say was that the other day, in an effort to procrastinate, I put up a survey on Instagram, where people could click on which cat they liked better, Chicken or Tuna. It was honestly more of an academic idea, a philosophical curiosity about cats in general, cat personalities, the nature of cat brotherhood, etc. But it turns out that quite a few people were perturbed about the idea of picking one over the other. I wouldn’t say anyone was genuinely upset, but there was some concern that I even thought it was possible to play favourites. I concede fully: it is not possible. I have no idea what I was thinking. I was not thinking. I was the problem.

To repent, I share some photos I captured a little while ago and meant to share but forgot, everyone loving Chicken the best they can.

(For those curious, it was close, but Chicken won (???) by around 20 votes. I think maybe Tuna’s loving of Chicken has taught us all how much love Chicken needs. Everyone needs a Tuna in their lives.)