32 september 2019
Whoever said that the definition of
insanity is doing the same thing over
and over again and expecting different
results has obviously never had to
reboot a computer.
—William Petersenon the phone said,
“Am I keeping you
from something?”
I replied, “I have to
leave for tai chi.” “ O h ,”
she said, soundingintrigued. “What
country is that in?”
—Linda PlattMy paramedic
team was called to
an emergency. Before
we took the patient
to the hospital, I had
a question for his wife.
“Does your husband
have any cardiac
problems?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said with
a note of concern.I was on a business call
when I realized I was
late for a class at the
gym. I must have
sounded rushed,
because the woman“By the way, I’m taking off the first two weeks of September.”mortgerberg/thenewyorkercollectionAll
in a Day’sWORK