Week 35, 2026: The x factor

The start of the week is slow, mindful. I try a few of my go-to cures for loneliness (reading, telephoning, audiencing at an arts show) but it really wants to be my friend so I give up shaking it off and try to befriend it back. I’m lucky to have the public library, faraway friends who miss me, hope. Fabrics and garments use up a large portion of my brainpower, which help. The ancient Egyptians often buried people with bread, beer and linen (the afterlife essentials). I’d be so happy if I turned up to the function (the afterlife) in a 100% linen dress and knew I had dinner sorted. A big part of my week went to trying on jeans at the mall. One of those times, a girl came up to me as I was holding a big stack in my hands and asked where I’d gotten my cotton pants. They’re from Marks & Spencers, I said, feeling flattered that a girl who works at the pants store liked my pants. She had never heard of Marks & Spencers before, which caught me off guard because I'd spent many hours of my…