It was Good to be Seen

It was a real pleasure to be back in the Library today, and to feel like I was once again a functioning part of life outside my own little world. Two weeks trapped in my apartment was way too long. There are two expressions or idioms that come to mind that describe how I was feeling: stir-crazy, and cabin fever. Stir-crazy usually refers to the feeling of being stuck or trapped somewhere for so long that you feel like you are going to go crazy if you don't get out. Cabin fever is an expression that means pretty much the same but originally comes from a time 200 years or so ago when it was common for people who lived in northern New England or in the mountains in places like Colorado or California to be stuck in their cabins for most of a winter because of the snow and the cold. Sometimes people would literally go "out of their heads" and do truly crazy or insane things, including killing friends and family. This kind of craziness was blamed on being trapped in a cabin for a long time, and so it was called "cabin fever." Now, I'm not saying I was ready to do anything crazy or harmful, but being stuck at home for two weeks is too long. Particularly when you are sick and can't do much anyway. Let's just say another day or two and I would have been trying to get Edgar to teach me how to fly.
And so, there is a line that has been used in more than one movie where a man says to a beautiful woman, " It is good to see you." The woman then says, "It's good to be seen." Today it was good to see everyone, and, it was good to be seen. It is much more fun to be part of the world, than to watch it from a distance. Until next time, be well and stay out of trouble.