2022 Wrap-up. Wrap wrap wrap-up. (No one asked for this either!)
The Week in Selfies: 12/28/20 - 1/3/21
A Happy New Year to all who celebrate. And a Grumpy New Year if that’s more your vibe.
I am continuing on with the subscription donation project. The organization for December/January is The Trevor Project. If you are new here (welcome!) or need a refresher, you can always find more details of the project on my About page. And if you want to be a matching donor, let me know.
This newsletter means a lot to me. If you are connecting with the work at all, please consider clicking the heart button and/or leaving a comment. And, if you are looking for a fun New Years activity, might I suggest sharing this newsletter with your friends, loved ones, and enemies?
Here we are, another year upon us. And much like gift guides, year end wrap-ups tend to be very popular. So, I’m going to jump on this bandwagon.
No one asked for this. And it’s gonna be a weird amalgamation of things. You. are. welcome.
Poetry
I receive 2-3 poem-a-day newsletters at any given time. Out of all of them I received to my inbox this year, my favorite is Why Are Your Poems So Dark by Linda Pastan.
Part way through the year, I started sending monthly haiku salons to paid subscribers. Here is my favorite haiku I wrote, from the pirates month:
Sharpen your swords, me
hearties, my heart hurts to beat
and I can’t stand it.
Books
This was a year of reading a lot more nonfiction than normal as research for a play idea. These are bit niche in nature but if rituals about funerals and death are your jam, these two might be of interest:
American Afterlives: Reinventing Death in the 21st Century by Shannon Lee Dawdy
From Here to Eternity: Traveling the World to Find the Good Death by Caitlin Doughty
TV/Movies
I probably don’t even need to name the show I had a *mild* obsession with, but I will because it’s heartfelt and funny and queer. And it’s so validating to watch two people discover themselves and their ideal love later in life than what is considered the cultural “norm.” Yes, it’s Our Flag Means Death. And yes, I still love it.
For those of you who are Bob’s Burgers fans, I will also say that I think this current season is incredibly well-written, funny, and heartfelt. So, if you’ve fallen off the wagon, now is a good time to hop back on. This year’s Christmas episode is particularly good.
I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention Severance. Dan Erickson, who I know from college, is the creator and a writer on the show and I am just so damn excited and proud of him. Plus it’s a great show. It has really psychologically scared the pants off me. Dan, you are very good at your job.
My friend and old roommate introduced me to the movie Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga over Thanksgiving weekend. I feel like this movie has really flown under the radar and I tell you what, it’s fun and heartfelt and funny.
Well, I guess we know the name of the game for me and media this year was heartfelt.
Home
I made it a goal to buy a few things for my apartment that made my life easier including a lamp for near my desk to brighten up the dark winter days, a new shower curtain that is not super fake plastic-y, and a lap desk for doodling and letter writing while watching tv purposes.
Newsletters
Not only am I a writer of a newsletter (this one, the one you are currently reading) but I am a major connoisseur of them. I read a lot of good ones but that list of all of them would be very long so here are a few I particularly enjoy and/or learn a lot from:
Sap
The final category of this roundup is sap. And it’s a category to say, once again, thank you so much for joining me on this newsletter journey. I am really glad I launched this this year. During a long unemployment and constant existential crises about my writing “career”, this has been a great exercise in sticking to a schedule, writing about anything that strikes me, and trusting that people are reading and excited to be here with me. A special shout-out to those who let me know they are reading and what it means to them. And thank you all, from the bottom of my heart, for being here.
Here’s to more time around the sun.
Monday, December 28, 2020
Thanks therapy!
Tuesday, December 29, 2020
Someone asked me if I like to cook when they saw this pin. It is a Mean Girls reference.
Wednesday, December 30, 2020
Pre-New Years fanciness.
Thursday, December 31, 2020
The banner says it all.
Friday, January 1, 2021
Another visit to friends.
Saturday, January 2, 2021
A little new year clean out.
Sunday, January 3, 2021
New year, same ol’ me.
This week, paying subscribers joined a monthly haiku salon about tea. If that sounds intriguing to you, consider becoming a paid subscriber.