Because I have a meeting with my thesis advisor tomorrow and should be writing up an outline of some sort, of course all of a sudden I am overtaken, with a manic intensity, by the very pressing need to scrub my bathtub. I think I’m a pretty good housekeeper, but there are these stubborn little spots of mildew here and there around the edge of the tub that refuse to go away no matter what I do. Bastardos!! This evening, in my windowless bathroom, a fruitless once-over with Professional Strength Tilex Instant Mildew Stain Remover was followed by a session of Anti-Bacterial Soft Scrub with Bleach Cleanser (Hazardous to Humans & Domestic Animals), and then, with gritted teeth, a bout of Comet Heavy Duty Cleaner with Disinfectant. Each time, after I washed off the foamy suds, the mildew remained. Bloody bloody bloody. It’s as if I’d said to the mildew, Buh-ring it, and then the mildew looked me back in the eyes and said, Oh, it’s been buh-rung.