1. Morning walks. There were some chilly ones this week. Cold but quiet and beautiful.
2. The season of lights, generosity, good food, and rest. These are all of my favorite things about this season. Since so many of my family and friends live in Oregon, today I’m going to spend the day wrapping presents and packing them to be ready to ship, while playing holiday movies in the background — some of the ones I love to rewatch are Elf, Scrooged, Single All The Way, Die Hard, Love Actually, lovehard, Jingle Jangle, Let It Snow, and Home Alone. Tomorrow, we’ll go pick out a tree.
Christmas 2020
3. Good friends. It’s especially import to me, since I prefer staying home and being alone. The friends I have are kind, smart, creative, and funny — the best kind of humans. Also: take pictures with your friends. I’ve loved and lost people and don’t have any pictures of us together and that’s a particular kind of heartbreak.
4. Practice. I wouldn’t still be here without it.
5. My tiny family, tiny home, tiny life. They might be tiny, but they are everything, the whole world to me.
Bonus joy: music, listening to podcasts, my infrared heating pad, Wild Writing with Laurie and our “coven,” small group training with Shelby and the gang, the hydromassage chair, the pool, the sauna, my weighted blanket, the tiny computer/camera that I call a phone, an internet connection, true crime, down pillows and blankets, a warm shower, clean laundry, groceries, pay day, snow tires, electricity, clean water, heat, a white noise machine, chocolate, broccoli, roasted brussel sprouts, balsamic vinegar, walnuts, caramel, vaccines, painting, making art with Mikalina and Janice, texting with Chloe’, Mike Birbiglia, writing in the morning with a hot cup of coffee, sitting in the morning with a cup of green tea and my weighted blanket across my lap, hugs, laughing, naps, reading in bed at night while Ringo and Eric sleep.
1. Tim Conway reveals joke that made Harvey Korman wet his pants on ‘The Carol Burnett Show’. Growing up, this was one of my favorite shows, probably the origin of my love for comedy, especially from funny women. I loved when they broke character and made each other laugh (this skit in particular), which may be the origins of my love for bloopers and gag reels.
3. Watch: Lioness, four cubs create ‘cutest traffic jam ever’. “Recent footage captured in South Africa’s Kruger National Park shows a momma lion gracefully leading four cubs along a paved road while tourists follow closely behind.”
5. Kindred Official Trailer (2022). (video) “Based on the best selling novel by Octavia E. Butler comes FX’s Kindred, all episodes streaming 12.13. Only on Hulu.” Octavia Butler is one of my favorite authors and I’m so excited they are starting to adapt some of her work to film, and the trailer for this looks so promising, so good.
7. Studying the genetics and evolution of dogs’ friendliness. “You’ve heard of survival of the fittest, but a scientist at Duke University says the term that may best describe dogs’ evolutionary success is survival of the friendliest.”
8. TikTok star Noodle the pug dies at age 14. “Noodle won over the internet with nearly daily videos of a game called ‘no bones.’ Graziano would hoist Noodle out of his bed and if the pug flopped back down, it was a ‘no-bones’ day, warning people to take it easy and avoid risks. If he remained standing, it was a ‘bones’ day, encouraging people to take risks and indulge.”
14. Meet Shauna White Bear, moccasin maker. “‘I don’t believe it’s cultural appropriation if you are purchasing from a Native artist,’ she said. ‘You’re supporting us.'”
16. Tarot Prompts for Writers. “There’s no better place to find inspiration than a character-driven tarot spread.”
17. Portland Japanese Garden is ablaze with fall colors. “With winter weather looming, it seems that fall has come and gone much too quickly. Perhaps one of the most beautiful places to see the fall colors on display is at the Portland Japanese Garden. If you weren’t able to get there this year, take a look at this video by OPB photographer Brandon Swanson, who captured the serenity and beauty in this special place.”
18. Ron Finley Project. “The Ron Finley Project is teaching communities how to transform food deserts into food sanctuaries, and teaching individuals how to regenerate their lands into creative business models. We envision and want to facilitate a world where gardening is gangsta! Gangsta: projecting strength on one’s own terms, hip, cool, innovative, revolutionary, resolute, vital, the cutting edge.”
19. Wisdom from Jami Attenberg: “Being alone is helpful for the creative process but we need to know we are loved, too, and not entirely alone in this world, that when we emerge from the creative cocoon there will be someone there waiting for us.”
25. Climate Action Starts in Your Own Hometown. “Turn your city into a climate sanctuary, lobby your elected officials, and try out these other ways to make change globally by acting locally.”
29. Stop Trying to Be Productive. “Jenny Odell, author of ‘How to Do Nothing,’ wants you to stop giving into the pressure of getting shit done.” This article is from three years ago, but during this season in particular it’s still relevant.
Open Space Practice, (AKA: A Thousand Shades of Gray) 