Mouse brain

When I get busy at work my brain turns into a little mouse brain the minute I get in my car to drive home. Sometimes the mouse brain causes small problems, like when it takes a week to process that the dvd on the passenger seat needs to be returned. Other times the mouse brain does silly things, like ignoring an entire page of problems in a GRE practice test for a class. The mouse brain is generally benign, but it pulled a stunt last week that had the potential to be pretty mortifying.

I was making dinner on Tuesday night and bent over to pull something out of a cabinet when I heard a loud riiipp! The jeans I was wearing had some small holes near the back pockets so I patted around but didn't feel anything unusual. The mouse brain immediately forgot about the noise. Two days later I was at the cat shelter changing from my work skirt to a t-shirt and jeans when I discovered the source of the ripping noise. (I've marked the end and beginning of the rip in the picture - not exactly something you can fix with a safety pin.)

I had nothing else to wear so I put on the jeans and got ready to scoop some cat litter. It wasn't too bad since I was working in the back with one other person rather than in front with 7 or 8 other people but cleaning cages involves a lot of bending over and kneeling on the floor - prime butt exposing activities.

Luckily, work has slowed somewhat so my real brain can function in the evenings. The mouse brain is really looking forward to taking over all non-academic work once I start grad school.