June 26: Swell, For a Change, Tiger Tail

I went around the room, very quiet and all, looking at stuff for a while.  I felt swell, for a change.  I didn't even feel like I was getting pneumonia or anything any more.  I just felt good, for a change...

One of the few moments in Catcher where Holden actually is at peace.  He's walking around his little sister's bedroom, and he feels "swell."  The two times Holden reaches happiness in the book occur when he's with or around Phoebe.  She's like a tonic to his troubled, teenage heart.

I've been having a pretty good day, for a change, myself.  Considering last week, which was just this side of contracting bubonic plague, today has been swell.  I'm not saying I haven't had my share of problems during the hours preceding this post, but, for the most part, I haven't been sucked into the black hole of despair that I was inhabiting last Wednesday.  Not bad.

I'm supposed to focus on my worries today.  It's Worry Wednesday.  However, I don't really want to tempt fate.  If I'm not in the dumps, I'm not going to backtrack into the swamps, hunting for something to be depressed or anxious about.  That's like grabbing the tail of a tiger and hoping it doesn't turn around and bite off my face.

So, Saint Marty's sorry.  He wants to keep his face intact today.

Someone's going to get bit in the ass, no matter what