Ginger Tea and Songs in the Dark

I have found my go-to pick-me-up for this edition of the lockdown. Listening to music in the dark while sipping ginger tea. This already a part of my daily routine, but it wasn't until today that I discovered its pick-me-up powers. Last night was a bad night for some reason. I managed to sleep but not very well. usually, I am able to shake off a bad night when I wake up and get moving in the mornings, but not today. My nagging shoulder pain has gotten worse in the past few days after a few weeks when I thought it was getting better. Things are a bit frosty between a close friend and I, and, of course, this edition of the pandemic shows no signs of ending. I had a reasonably productive writing session today and also went for a walk with a friend, but neither could lift my spirits. So, I made myself a cup of ginger tea, put a Glen Campbell playlist on Spotify, got into bed and switched off the lights. I had discovered Glen Campbell around grade 12 when I found an ancient cassette tape with his songs which belonged to God knows which family member. He and John Denver were my introduction to country music. This was in the pre-internet days when our universe of music was quite limited, especially in India which had just begun to open its doors to Western popular culture. This turning into a post about music which I will save for another day, so suffice to say that Campbell's and Denver's music offered some solace during a forgettable few years of my life. Since I have become even more of a sucker for nostalgia since the pandemic began, listening to the songs and soaking in the memories they brought back, gave my mood the boost it needed. And, some day, I have to write about why I find sitting in the dark so relaxing.