Whassup, Wednesday?

Here’s what I’m up to…

Last time I wrote on Wednesday I was packing for a two-week vacation which was a) fantastic and b) seems like a lifetime ago. As I sat down to write this I had to revisit that bit to refresh my memory on what was up “way back” then. It struck me that in some ways these Wednesday posts are accountability posts—I have some degree of obligation to report on progress. But then it hit me that posting weekly is enough accountability and I don’t need to build pressure into that pressure by worrying about my progress or choices since the last report. So anyway, reminding myself that I’m here out of choice, and that the obligation and accountability is about commitment and not pressure has me feeling relaxed and at ease as I dig in on what’s going on with me and my free time.

What I’m Reading

I started and finished (and loved!) The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles. It was a great call for vacation reading—a whopper of a book but not a hard read, and the kind of story I like best, a big, sweeping tale with great characters and lots of emotion. The kind of book that you hope becomes a movie not necessarily because you’d want to see the movie but because you want to see who gets cast in what roles and whether “they” pictured the characters the same way you did.

I’m *still* reading No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention. I like it a lot, but it’s a business book so it’s my side read, plus there’s something kind of depressing about books it (and other books like it)—when you see all this great stuff other people are doing, see how clear the benefits are, and then realize your day-to-day is so (SO!) far removed from it, it’s bit of a bummer. Of course this is where self-reflection works wonders because when I re-focus my attention on what I am getting out of what I’m reading and what I can do differently as a result I feel so much better. And then I bet the farm on that one smooth stone of hope, skip it across the water, and create a ripple…that maybe will join up with another bunch of ripples and turn the tide and create a sea change. Maybe. Right? All I can do is try and so I do. Like I said, it’s a good read, and one I’ve been picking up more regularly since vacation. I’m hoping to report on it’s completion soon.

I started reading The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. I’m reading it on my Kindle, which imparts a certain “fine”-ness to the experience (old-school book lover and proud!) but that notwithstanding the story is an interesting one (with some depressing overtones thus far) about one of my personal favorite fixations—in a life of circumstance and choice and chance and coincidence, how many different paths could we have gone down, and how different (better?) (worse?) might things have been? You know I often consider this notion, and it’s why I watch the (below-average) show Ordinary Joe, why I like the movie Sliding Doors, and also probably why I cry *every* time I hear the song For Good from Wicked: The Musical. That all said, I am not fixated on it from a “What if…?” standpoint but rather from a “How did I get so lucky?” one. It’s like “of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world…she walks into mine.” What good fortune bestowed on my by the powers of the Universe that all of the circumstance and choice and chance and coincidence has led me to this spot, this moment, in this life? Knowing that for me there is no other possibility in each and every moment is the best possibility of them all. And what’s better than that?

And speaking of all this possibility, I’ve been revisiting this piece from the Times on the regular lately. It’s a perspective that really resonates with me on a number of levels and captures the extreme concerns that bookend my brain—time as a finite resource in a world full of infinite possibility. While the focus of the article is on the “depressing math” of life, it also includes this, which is what I’m hanging my hat on:

I found this visual to be motivational, moving, and inspiring. Because what’s more inspiring than possibility?

What I’m Watching

I’m gonna start with The Bachelor to get it out of the way, because I watched this season right to the end. And while I’m not apologetic about watching I’m not particularly proud of this viewing choice either, but everyone needs a show that they care enough to want to watch but don’t care enough that it’s ok if they fall asleep in the middle of an episode. For me, this is that show. If you didn’t follow, the gist of it is that Clayton fell in love with one woman and “fell in love” with two others (had to hedge his bets) and after the dust of a lot of drama settled, Clayton ended up with his beloved Susie. But the unexpectedly interesting part of the story for me was how the castoffs really seemed to support and care about each other, how they propped each other up, and how they ultimately called Clayton to task for his manipulative and gaslighting ways. So while going on a national TV show to “find love” isn’t what I’d choose, I did sense a certain small turning of the tide in terms of how these women advocate for themselves. (That said, when you go on a show that’s a dating competition, well, what do you expect, actually?) But anyway…Gabby and Rachel are the two new Bachelorettes and I hope together they find love, though presumably not with each other. (And my other guilty pleasure, Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, has wrapped for the season, though I have the three-part reunion in the can for one of these nights when I’m home alone.)

CODA. The movie. Sigh. So. Good. Yes, there’s a faction out there who thinks some of the characters were too annoying and/or the plot was too convenient/tidy for their liking, but regardless of that faction, I thought it was awesome. But that’s all I’m gonna say. No spoilers. It’s on Apple TV+. If you have it, watch it. Form your own opinion.

It was suggested by one of my not-so-fond-of-CODA friends that I watch the documentary Audible on Netflix, a film that follows a deaf high school football player through a stretch of his senior year. I did that last night and I liked it. Didn’t love it but liked it a lot. That said it’s only 40 minutes long and I encourage you to watch…it was less entertaining than CODA (by design no doubt) and because of the fact that it’s a documentary it definitely stirs up a different kind of emotion and empathy, highlighting how hard it must be to go through this loud and boisterous world as a deaf person. So now that I’m typing this, I realize it’s probably not a movie that viewers are expected to love. But it’s definitely one to make you think, to give you some feels, to highlight privilege, and to remind us what we take for granted. Worth a watch, for sure. A different side of the coin than CODA. And because so much of it is subtitled, it will put you to the test—you have to keep your eyes on the screen, only one screen, if you want to follow along. Both a challenge and a blessing in this distracted society.

It’s March so it goes without saying that I’ve been watching a lot (lots!) of basketball. March Madness, baby! So many close games, so many upsets. On the men’s side, it’s all about those Peacock underdogs from St. Peter’s in NJ. And on the women’s side, for me it’s all about hoping upon hope that UCONN gets bounced. Never liked them.

I continue to watch Jeopardy though not rabidly (as in if I miss an episode, I just move along). I’ve come full circle on Ken Jennings. He should be the officially official full-time host.

And now, in the spirit of saving the best for last…I was friendmailed into watching Dickinson (Apple TV+), as in “I’ll watch CODA when you start watching Dickinson.” And so I started. Holy crap. What an insanely smart, funny, well-done series with exceptional casting and a brilliant soundtrack. There’s some pop culture anachronistic stuff which might sound hokey or like it shouldn’t work but is genius IMO. It’s so good. I was not-quite-but-almost binge watching when I learned that it’s only three seasons, so I slowed my roll so I could savor it. So. Good. Highly recommend.

What I’m Watching Bonus, Exclamation Point (because we all know the ! Is the middle finger of punctuation!): I have really good friends who recommend shows like Dickinson and have have other really good ones who send me bonus content like this:

Does it get any better than that???

What I’m Listening To

I had a blast on St. Patrick’s Day listening to XM28’s all-Irish all-genre programming. I heard the song Seventeen Going Under by Sam Fender a few times, which I didn’t mind because I really like it. Maybe because it takes me back to when I was 17 (and 18 and 19 and 20 and…you get the gist) and going under and ends up with me feeling gratitude for coming out on the other side. Or maybe I just like the vibe.

Yesterday coming home from the gym I heard this peppy new number by Weezer, A Little Bit of Love, and I immediately felt a little bit of love for the song. You know why? Because Weezer is right—a little bit of love goes a long way. I’m not in the car much anymore, so new songs come at me with less frequency than they did back when I commuted every day. (Remember those days?)

Anyhow, that’s what’s going on with me. I hope you’re enjoying whatever you’re doing, including the extra daylight—summah is coming. Thanks for being here, as always. Love you too.