Who We Care About
This week's edition snuck up on me but it's been a week filled with a very heady combination of hope and anger watching events in Gaza and colleges around the country. Heartened by seeing students organize so well but devastated to see the highly disturbing news and images from Nasser and al-Shifa hospitals. It's not an original thought but it bears repeating - how the fuck are people angrier about student protests than they are about mass graves filled with bodies that have their hands and feet tied, including children and patients who were clearly mid-treatment?
Read my favorite writer on this: Now The Students Are "Terrorists"
Watching, Reading, Listening
I finally convinced Bette to watch Howl's Moving Castle. Boo ya! Fun to watch Christian Bale play an emo wizard.
I tried watching another episode of the Tourist but I don't have the attention span right now so I read recaps. It was more efficient.
Read a few NY Mag pieces this week, including a piece by Amil Niazi, a writer I’ve been a fan of for a long time. (I’ve been a fan of her husband for much much longer but that’s a whole other newsletter/era.) Ostensibly it’s about how childless people judge parents for decisions around screen time but I think it's actually about how tricky it can be to parent in public. Also a piece on a formerly anonymous gossip writer who, embarrassingly, I have been reading for years and years. And clearly will no longer.
I’ve been making my way through Emily Henry’s latest and, you know, it’s fine. Sometimes, as much as I love them, I sometimes find it monotonous to read romances back to back because of how repetitive the plots can be and the fact that it takes place in Northern Michigan is a double edged sword for me. On one hand, small city Michigan reminds me of my time in college which was pretty depressing and not an era I like to revisit. But. It does make my heart ache a little to read about Petoskey stones and dunes.
Finally, listening to some early Feist while painting and it's been a roller coaster of emotions but a welcome one (h/t neural nostalgia). Speaking of emotional, I also had the chance to explore AppalShop's Archive and share it with my mom. Fascinating.
Lifting
No gym this week with Francine on vacation.
Ingesting
Several Wegmans ice cream bars; lil skyr parfaits with strawberries, crushed mini wheat and pumpkin seeds (h/t Everyday Food on PBS circa 2011); Spencer's homemade lo mein; nachos - homemade and ordered; 40 mg Vyvanse; 100 mg sertraline; several supplements and some birth control.
Struggling
To manage my impulse control, if I'm being honest. See "Buying" and "Fixating" below.
Buying
Went on a good old fashioned Target run with Bette that resulted in some minor bathroom makeovers: shower curtains, counter organizer, bath mat. Also, Battleship, cute nail polish, etc.
Creating
A painting that I'm relatively happy with as well as, frankly, an incredible sticker-filled manicure for Sylvie.
Fixating
Panic is setting in ahead of this work conference I have to attend next week so I've been buying some Hail Marys from Poshmark (search: sweater shell, sleeveless turtleneck, sleeveless button up) and the pants I've been wanting from Wray forever. Now to figure out shoes...
Avoiding
Too many things to list.
Reader, I Pinned It
This cute but ultimately not super useful painting setup; this helpful tip for someone with large boobs who really likes vinaigrette; I will find a way to incorporate this into the house...
