Hello there. You’ve found my newsletter, This’ll Have to Do where it’s the roaring (20)20s and I’m just tryping* my best. Thanks for joining the party. There are a lot of snacks.


JUST THE FACTS, Y’ALL
This’ll Have to Do
is personal essays, memoir, musings, photos, lists, probably some jokes, maybe some favorites, possibly a poem or play or two from me, Samantha Cooper.

It’s a grab bag of topics! Should I be more focused? Nah, I have a lot of stuff to talk about.

THE ORIGIN STORY
This newsletter has a couple of origins.:

  1. As you very likely know, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, on my 33rd birthday — March 11, 2020. Of course, it was/is weird for all of us — a confusing time with very little to hold on to. So, I decided to make a real effort to document my existence during this purgatory. I started taking a daily selfie on March 23, 2020. I stopped taking them two weeks after my second vaccine dose on May 15, 2021.

  2. The name comes from during the Isolation Holidays of 2020. It was the first holiday season I had been away from my family…ever, I think. So, I was leaning. in. hard. (Mostly likely in an attempt to circumvent any and all feelings™.) I made an Isolation Holidays handbook with input via Google forms (I love anything that’ll make a spreadsheet) from my dear friends. And I sent this holiday card which is the epitome of me “this’ll have to do”-ing.

And thus, because of these two disparate but also very connected things, a newsletter was born.

CURRENT NEWSLETTER HAPPENINGS
The main components are:

  • Weekly Edition: sent out every Sunday and is the epitome of “musings”. Topics run the gamut so you are always in for a surprise! (F + P)

  • The *Tryping my Best moment of the week: sent out occasionally, at random, and mostly discusses some of the times I was just tryping my best (P)

  • Monthly Haiku Salon: sent out on the last Tuesday of the month and is where I share haikus I’ve written inspired by a word picked by paying subscribers (P)

Free (F) subscribers will always get the weekly edition. Paying (P) subscribers will also receive the weekly *Tryping my Best moment of the week, monthly Rejection Haikus and possibly some more bonus content.

UPCOMING HAPPENINGS
Here is a teaser of some of things that will both be happening in my life and I’ll be exploring on the newsletter:

PAST NEWSLETTER HAPPENINGS
Weekly editions from March 11, 2022 through May 14, 2023 were round-ups of the selfies I had taken during the early part of the pandemic. Take a look for a walk back in time.

WHY YOUR READERSHIP MEANS SO MUCH TO ME
For many years, I’ve said that I’m a playwright (writer) with a day job. Being a full time writer is the ultimate goal but for now, day jobs help me live. This newsletter is a real attempt to actively be the writer part of my goal. Subscribers to this newsletter help support that mission. Paying subscribers help fund that mission. You all have my eternal gratitude.


MONTHLY SUBSCRIPTION DONATION PROJECT
In the month of May, I decided to make a donation to the National Network of Abortion Funds in conjunction with newsletter subscriptions. In a time when it is easy to feel like there is nothing to be done, this felt like a small way to do something. My minimum starting donation which means the total donation was $127 ($132.08 with covering transaction fees). We also had four matching donors, which brought the overall total to $1635.

This seemed like a good way to continue to do some sort of action item, so I have decided to continue with this newsletter donation project. Here’s how it works:

  • For every new free subscription I get in a month, I will donate $1.

  • For every free subscription I get in a month, I will donate $5. (It can be a new subscription or a conversion.)

  • As for now, the minimum donation will always be $25* and the additional donation will build upon that.

I have at least two donors who have committed to being continuous matching donors, so the donation from any subscriptions will always go a little bit farther. If being a matching donor is something that interests you, let me know.

Donation History*
May 2022: National Network of Abortion Funds - Donation: $127, Donation with Matching: $1635
June 2022: National Center for Transgender Equality - Donation: $75, Donation with Matching: $300
July 2022: Indigenous Women Rising - Donation: $60, Donation with Matching: $180
August 2022: Stop AAPI Hate - Donation: $30, Donation with Matching: $90
September 2022: Las Fotos Project - Donation: $55, Donation with Matching: $165
October 2022: Heart of Dinner - Donation: $55, Donation with Matching: $220
November 2022: Native American Food Sovereignty Alliance - Donation: $60, Donation with Matching: $240
December 2022/January 2023: The Trevor Project - Donation: $55
February 2023: The ALS Association - Donation: $55; Donation with Matching: $220
March 2023: Apocalyptic Artists Ensemble - Donation: $65; Donation with Matching: $130
April/May 2023: Lupus LA - Donation: $60
June/July 2023: due to being laid off and needing some time to recalibrate, the project is on pause until (probably) August

Running total: Donation: $697, Donation with Matching, $3115

So, if you fancy this newsletter and love a good cause, please consider sharing with your network or making a social media shout-out.

UPDATE (1/17/24): The project is no longer on pause…sort of. Due to ongoing and honestly, debilitating unemployment, making donations are on pause. However, I am still picking organizations (one for every two months) and keeping track of money owed and when I am once again in a position to donate, I will be catching up. For reference, these are the organizations due donations:
August/September 2023: Entertainment Community Fund - To Be Donated: $35
October/November 2023: Museum of Chinese in America - To Be Donated: $35
December/January 2023-2024: Radical Monarchs

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*Throughout this project, the baseline has gone up and down depending on my employment status. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out and ask.


Thanks, as always for reading and being at my party. I’m hanging out on LinkedIn or my website if you want to talk business. Drinks are in the kitchen, food is on the table, and my gratitude is all around.

*tryping
adjective
when you are trying your best but not quite making it.

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just tryping my best

People

she/her queer writer, playwright, and theatre maker based in queens, new york. morbid. beautiful. practical. instagram & tiktok: @samjeancoop https://www.samanthajcooper.com/