THE CHALLENGE OF 'CHANGE UP'......

 AWAKENING AT THE 'REGULAR' 5AM, I JOURNEYED DOWNSTAIRS TO MY ALMOST INCOMPREHENSIBLY CONGESTED KITCHEN, WITH THE INTENTION TO PREPARE THE 20-STAGE B'FAST THAT I HAD JUST DREAMT OF......NOTICING ALL THE DETAILS OF THE MORNING 'ROUTINE'......THIS SEEMED TO BE A LOOPING OF MOST, OTHER, MORNINGS......THE GRINDING OF COFFEE BEANS; THE LIGHTING OF CANDLES IN THE DARKENED ARENA; THE ORGANIZING OF INGREDIENTS; WARMING OF SKILLETS; THE PREPARATION OF MERLIN'S B'FAST....AND HIS ROUTINE RUN THROUGH THE KITCHEN.....CHECKING HIS FOOD/WATER BOWLS, ON HIS WAY....BEFORE DASHING TO THE LITTER BOX FOR HIS MORNING 'DUTY'.......SUDDENLY, I WAS ANNOYINGLY AWARE OF THE EXACT REPLICATION OF THIS ROUTINE AND, AFTER PREPARING A MUG OF CAPPUCCINO AND RIPPING OPEN A  'SUSTAINABLE ENERGY'  CRUNCHY PEANUT BUTTER CLIF BAR, RATHER THAN TOIL TO PRODUCE AN ELABORATE B'FAST.....STILL 2 HOURS BEFORE SUNRISE.....DESISTED, AND SAT IN A CHAIR.....CAT ON LAP,  DOING HIS 'ROUTINE' FUR LICKING/GROOMING, & 'CAT LITTER-BETWEEN-HIS-TOES' CLEANING, BEFORE FALLING ASLEEP, ACROSS MY LAP....WHILE I CONTEMPLATED ALL THE 'THINGS I OUGHT TO DO, BUT USUALLY DON'T'.......AN EVERY MORNING 'REGULAR' SEQUENCING......I WANTED TO BREAK THIS ROUTINE BY CHANGING ALL OF THIS UP!   HOWEVER, EVEN THE THOUGHT OF THIS PRODUCED A HIGH LEVEL OF ANXIETY...EXASPERATED BY THE MORNING 200MG CAFFEINE  'FIX'.....THE SUGARY WHIPPED CREAM FOAM AND A 100MM BALKAN SOBRANIE SMOKE INHALATION.....SUCH IS THE CHALLENGE OF ANY DEVIATION, BY HUMANS.....OR, LIKELY, JUST ABOUT EVERY CREATURE......AS THE MORNING SUN ROSE....SITTING ON MY BACK PORCH....ANOTHER ROUTINE.....FINISHING A SECOND CUP OF JAVA....ANOTHER ROUTINE....AND SMOKING A MARLBORO RED....FORTUNATELY, NOT A REGULAR...BUT FREQUENT....ROUTINE....I WATCHED SOME LEAVES UNFURLING TO THE MORNING SUNLIGHT, BIRDS AWAKENING TO CHECK OUT THE DRIVEWAY, WHERE I, ROUTINELY, TOSS BIRDSEED, OLD BREAD AND CRUMBS FROM THE TOASTER....AND ON AND ON........LIKE A COMPLICATED CLOCK, MADE OF THOUSANDS OF TINY PARTS....ALL SERVING TO INDICATE THE 'RIGHT TIME', AS THOUGH THERE WERE 'A RIGHT TIME'....CHILLED A BIT BY THE 45F MORNING AIR, I RETURNED TO MY 'ROUTINE MORNING'.....WABE ON THE RADIO, AS I RE-ORGANIZED THE KITCHEN COUNTER TO MAKE ROOM FOR THE DELAYED B'FAST THAT I HAD DREAMED OF MAKING, EARLIER......THEN, I RECONSIDERED ALL OF THIS ORGANIZED RAMBLING THAT WAS REINFORCING BRAIN NEURONS TO 'FIX' THEIR CIRCUITS.....ISN'T THAT WHY ALL THINGS DEVELOP 'ROUTINES'?   FRUSTRATED, I RETURNED TO 'UNDER THE COVERS' OF MY WOMB-LIKE BEDDING TO WATCH "5 MILLION YEARS TO EARTH', THE ALAN QUARTERMAINE SCI-FI MOVIE.....WHICH SEEMS....SO APPROPRIATE FOR THIS MORNING......HAVING, ONLY YESTERDAY, EXCAVATED A ANCIENT TRILOBITE THAT WAS, IN ACTUALITY,  NOTHING MORE THAN A GLOB OF CONCRETE/MORTAR MIX WITH A WHEEL BARROW IMPRESSION ON IT......ALL OF THIS WORD-WRAMBLING IS, OF COURSE, JUST ANOTHER 'ROUTINE' NOTE-TAKING FOR FUTURE ASSIMILATION INTO A LONGER DISCOURSE ON 'DE RERUM NATURA'.........