Today I noticed the room getting a little brighter during a brief break in the clouds

On weekend mornings, I start by lighting a mosquito coil. I am the only one in my family who gets bitten by mosquitoes easily, and I hate it when they get inside the house. Everyone else is indifferent to them; they don't close the glass doors all the way, they don't notice when the screen door is left ajar, and they even chat with the neighbors while leaving the front door wide open. You shouldn't underestimate those gaps. Mosquitoes get in so easily.

I place mosquito coils in two spots at diagonal corners on the first floor of the house. I stack two spiral coils and hold the lighter to both tips at once. I've analyzed that lighting two at the same time saves on lighter fuel, and stacking them makes them burn each other, which speeds up the ignition process. Human history is just a collection of individual histories. It feels wrong to keep these little bits of personal life wisdom to myself. I think I might publish an autobiography in my later years.

While lighting them, there's just a flame, but once I blow it out, the smoke fills the air all at once. I could light them outside the front door, but I always do it inside with the door closed. That's because I keep the mosquito coil tin next to the shoe cabinet. If I light them inside the entryway, the entryway fills with smoke. Obviously. I'll leave things like this—repeating the same mistakes every day—in my autobiography, too. Whether or not to include them in an autobiography shouldn't be judged by oneself. I'll leave the judgment to others in the future. Surely, it might even be appreciated as a charming quirk.

I open the door immediately to let the smoke out, but inhaling some of the insecticide is unavoidable. I like to think of the scent of the mosquito coil as a kind of aroma, but inhaling a large amount at once could lead to some sort of acute disorder. So far, I seem to be okay.

Inhaling some of the insecticide causes symptoms like mild motion sickness or a headache. It settles down once I go outside and breathe in the fresh air, but a mild sense of motion sickness lingers for a few hours.

On weekend mornings, I start with a strong cup of black coffee. Chronologically, it's coffee after the mosquito coil. While still feeling a bit motion-sick, I pour drip coffee into my mug. This is the real aroma. The fragrant scent, along with the hot steam, pierces the center of my brain.

If I get motion sickness on a long trip, I don't drink much strong coffee. By that same logic, drinking drip coffee while under the influence of mosquito coil insecticide is not recommended.

I don't know from personal experience what it's like to be punch-drunk, but I can imagine that this is what it feels like—my brain feels temporarily rattled.

If someone asked me to remove mold from the bathroom right now, I'd better say 'maybe next time' and turn them down.