"Ghost Guy" by Richard F. Yates

[Sharpie and felt pen on found cardboard with digital embellishments and color. 2020.]

Okay folks, TRUE CONFESSIONS time... I'm considering this little ghost guy a bit of a self-portrait, at the moment. We're both blue, both drifting somewhat aimlessly through the night, and a bit listless!

I've always been a nervous fellow, full of anxiety and worry. Terrible sleeper, neurotic, obsessive... It turns out, however, that harboring ALL THAT ANXIETY for decades was dangerously close to killing me! Two weeks ago, I ended up in the ER with a 220+ blood pressure... BUT here we are, despite the SCARE, still alive and kicking! (Unlike my little ghost guy.)

However, as with all brushes with Eternity, some LIFE changes had to follow, and I am now heavily medicated (for both anxiety and high bp), and I'm no longer allowed to eat any of my favorite stuff anymore (like gas station chicken strips, extra-cheese pizza, chips, and all that wonderful sodium.) The positives are obvious: I'm not about to have a stroke. There are a few negatives, however, including DROWSINESS and a bit of a dip in my powers of motivation. I used to wake up, bright and early, and bounce around the house making noise and bugging all the folks who weren't "morning people." (Mostly my wife.) NOW, I gotta drag myself out of bed, take a handful of pills, and TRY not to sleep the whole day away!

Luckily, I've got some motivational techniques that seem to be working. (TO-DO LISTS, primarily...) It is definitely HARDER to get myself to the drawing table than it used to be, and it's more difficult to READ without it becoming a NAP, but...it's better than the alternative!

Sorry Ghosty, it's going to be awhile before I can join you on your nightly drifts!!!

---Richard F. Yates