1. Lingering birthday love. Some because a few wishes and gifts came in the days after, and some because of the gorgeous flowers that remind me every day when I sit down at my “desk” that somebody loves me.
2. Practice. It remains constant, even as everything else is constantly shifting and changing.
3. Good food, leftovers. The winter holidays are just our tiny family in our tiny home, but that means that everything we cook for those special meals on those days are our favorite things — exhibit A is the picture above: Eric’s apple pie.
4. Vaccines. Eric and I scheduled our boosters for next week, as the news reports yet another variant. I’m glad we have access. I’m glad there are people who worked really hard to make that happen. I’m glad for all the other people who got vaccinated, wash their hands and wear their masks. I’m glad for all the people working in health care to support and try to heal all of us, even those who made a different choice.
5. Morning walks. This week, we got to go together one morning, and next week we’ll be back to our regular schedule for another couple of weeks. Because Eric was with me, he could stand behind me and get Ringo to look at him while I got some good pictures of the boy.
6. My tiny family, my tiny home, my tiny life. Eric was on fall break this week and it was really nice to have him here. It also made it really clear how much more bonded Ringo is to me now that I’m the one who’s home with him most often. I kept teasing Eric that he’s my dog now, and one night when he wouldn’t stop bugging me, I told Eric, “you can have your dog back now.”
Bonus joy: roasted veggies, my new best friend: the hydromassage chair at the gym, texting with Mom and Chris, hanging out with Calyx and Chloe’, other people’s dogs, that corner of the couch, good TV, listening to podcasts, cooking, getting in the pool, sitting in the sauna with Eric, training with Shelby, my new therapist, my nutritionist, apple pie oatmeal, writing, reading about writing, rubber bands, twist ties, bread, getting a massage, health insurance, calendars, online shopping, naps, reading in bed at night while Eric and Ringo sleep.
1. Things That Don’t Suck from Andrea Gibson, “It’s common to look around and take inventory of what sucks. This is one poet’s quest to uncover what doesn’t, and what shifts when we shift our attention.” I was going to share two of their recent posts, but when I saw the list of all of them I thought reminding you that this exists, in its totality, was the better share.
2. Good stuff from Anne Helen Petersen: An Academic-Turned-Critic Explains Her Path and How Our System Revenges Rest. I am continually amazed at how prolific this author is, crafting and publishing multiple pieces a week that are deep, thorough, and thoughtful, and so well written. HOW does she do that?!
3. Good things on Rita’s Notebook:Winter’s Coming and Ka-Boom. So much of what Rita is contemplating and sharing is so relatable, big thoughts shared quietly allowing the reader room to consider their own reaction.
8. Blanked verse: the power of erasure poetry. “Poets have been constructing new work by selectively redacting others’ texts for decades, but Instagram and our political moment have spotlit this startling technique.”
9. Intermissions from Austin Kleon. “A zine about the fun of watching half a movie now, half a movie later.”
10. 100 Notable Books of 2021, “The year’s notable fiction, poetry and nonfiction, selected by the editors of The New York Times Book Review.”
13. All The World’s a Stage on The Moth. “Ready the spotlight and raise the curtains! In this hour, performers, sour notes, tough critics, and a unique take on Mary Poppins.” I was particularly interested in Liz Phair’s story. I wore out my copy of “Exile in Guyville,” back when I had exercise bulimia and would spend two hours on the treadmill/elliptical up in the loft of the old Gold’s Gym in downtown Salem.
15. Her 1840s rainbow farmhouse renovation. (video) “Kat (or ‘Katwise’ as she’s known on Etsy) fell in love with a dilapidated 180 year old farmhouse and spent years renovating it into a rainbow, psychedelic wonderland. In this video, she takes us on a full tour, showcasing secret rooms, wild decorations, crazy collections, and, of course, her homemade sweaters which paid for the entire project.” This whole video series, Tiny House Giant Journey, is worth spending some time watching.
16. Secret Life of a Children’s Party Princess. “I thought a summer job at the Princess Academy would be a carefree escape. But I learned some hard lessons about real life while playing make-believe.”
19. These Influencers Found the Zillow Houses We Love to Hate on The New York Times. “Online listing sites offer a window into what is possible, but the social media accounts that lampoon them give us the chance to ogle what never should have been.”
22. 11 Black Comic Artists You Should Know. This is an older article (from 2016) but I didn’t know any of these artists so thought you might not either.
Open Space Practice, (AKA: A Thousand Shades of Gray) 