January 13, 2026
My dad had obtained some kind of holy water and was wiping it on my wrists. He said it might tingle a bit. I was looking at a map of Christian denominations. My mom asked if I would still visit them halfway across the world. I said “Maybe?” I asked them if they had really bought land in Japan but they said it was just a seaside rental in Yokohama.
January 12, 2026
I was playing mahjong and I had ended up with a bunch of extra tiles with nothing to call. I somehow even had an extra haku. The game was moving so slowly that tiles kept accumulating in my hand.
January 11, 2026
I was taking a ferry back to Vancouver and thought about getting off at one of the earlier stops to take a trek through the woods. I would however have to wait until I’d at least crossed the border first.
January 10, 2026
I could hear my parents singing happy birthday for me while I stayed in bed. I couldn’t seem to wake up fully despite the two of them trying to shake me awake. I had to open my mouth because it just felt so dry.
January 9, 2026
I was attending a banquet with lots of people that I hadn’t seen for a long time. I was feeling very nervous and took a seat at an empty table. Eventually the rests of the seats started to fill up but when it got too crowded for someone in a wheelchair to join in, I was the first to volunteer to move to another table. I was once again alone at an empty table at the other side of the room.
January 7, 2026
It was getting late at a friend’s place and I overheard a conversation about how I was the only person who lived far away. I checked the map on my phone to see that I had missed the last train of the night. Someone commented that “[I] was bad with asking for a ride home”.
January 5, 2026
I was back in Taiwan for the winter and my mom kept asking me how I got my bike. I told her that it was just in the garage the whole time and seemed to be in usable shape. Apparently my dad had just recently bought a new bike but had to install the separately sold wheels by himself. I got onto the bike for a test ride although the seat was a little low.
January 3, 2026
I was cooking a big bowl of noodle soup for the kids when I scooped plastic seasoning packets out of the broth. My cousin said that she’d be able to get me back to my old job on a normal contract if I wanted. I told her that I’d have to think about it.
January 2, 2026
We were sitting outside of a clinic and someone asked what we thought it was for. Based on the amount of pregnant women in the waiting area I guessed that it was an OB/GYN or some related department.