“You mean there’s a catch?”
“Sure there’s a catch,” Doc Daneeka replied. “Catch-22. Anyone who wants to get out of combat duty isn’t really crazy.”
There was only one catch and that was Catch-22, which specified that a concern for one’s own safety in the face of dangers that were real and immediate was the process of a rational mind. Orr was crazy and could be grounded. All he had to do was ask; and as soon as he did, he would no longer be crazy and would have to fly more missions. Orr would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if he didn’t, but if he was sane he had to fly them. If he flew them he was crazy and didn’t have to; but if he didn’t want to he was sane and had to. Yossarian was moved very deeply by the absolute simplicity of this clause of Catch-22 and let out a respectful whistle.
“That’s some catch, that Catch-22,” he observed.
“It’s the best there is,” Doc Daneeka agreed.
- excerpt from Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
I’m working on some goals for this year. They’re very basic. I want to read more, cook better, and exercise regularly. Oh, and I also want to write a review of my progress with these goals every week. Here’s what last week looked like.
- Reading - I made use of my Boston Public Library card for the first time and checked out Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. I’m currently on page 159 of 453. It’s a crazy book and it took probably the first 75 pages till I could adjust the authors style and actually follow what was happening.
- Cooking - Here come the excuses. I was actually away most of last week and didn’t get much of a chance to cook anything new. One dinner that I particularly enjoyed was a simple hamburger and sweet corn on the grill. On my bike ride home at night, I generally pass by at least two houses where people are outside grilling, and naturally by the time I get home, I want nothing more than a cheeseburger. So was the case last wednesday. The burger was pretty straightforward, but the corn I coated in butter, old bay, and black pepper before I tossed it on the grill. It was really simple but produced the nicest sweet corn I think I’ve ever had.
- Exercising - Again with the “i was away…” excuse. I went to the gym once and got out for a run twice. On a related note, I’ve been doing squats every time I get to the gym, however, I always get the notion that I’m not doing them correctly. So, yesterday I got the bright idea to consult the internet and found a video to give me some pointers.
