✍🏽March Writing Workshop is live! Grab your spot here (Sunday, March 27, 10am - 12pm PST). Our February cohort had less people than usual and it was so cozy and special that I’ve reduced the overall capacity so please be sure to sign up in advance.
Questions? Ask. I’m here and I’d love to hear from you.
Good morning, and happy as possible Friday to us all.
Today, a humble ode:
I’ve been shopping at Canyon Market in Glen Park since I moved to the Excelsior in 2014 which means that yes, I’ve been way overpaying for groceries for the past eight years, but also, that I know almost every single person who works there by name, and getting to chat everyone up when I cruise in to pick up a few things two-to-three times per week is one of the folded-into-my-daily-life touchpoints of delight.
On Tuesday I went inside and something felt off. I couldn’t quite place it in the first thirty seconds or so that I was there, and then it hit me: the majority of workers were mask free. FACES! I had a tiny internal freakout and then ran over to the deli counter and exclaimed LOOK AT ALL YOUR BEAUTIFUL FACES as a solitary tear rolled down into my mask, which I promptly took off as we all stared and smiled at each other and I there was this momentary sense of shared holy shit, FACES! and even now I am verklempt recalling it.
Setting aside the possibility (cough probability) that we are prematurely dropping masks, y’all, it was so special, and I’m just ridiculously grateful, and maybe it’s spring, maybe it’s finally swimming out of the backwater of a breakup, but damn, I am jonesing for everyone.
I know so many things are terrible and awful but if you wanted to drop a moment of DELIGHT (humble! delight can be so humble) into the comments below I sure as hell would love to hear it. This isn’t to bypass the terrible and awful but instead an invitation to connect to the truth that good things abound all around, at the same time.
Sound off? C’mon…
Ok BIG LOVE to everyone. Stay informed AND stay fortified.
I adore you forever,
xxoo dani
Alright y’all, embracing the truth that I rarely watch anything so sharing some extra reads instead:
📖Read: In honor of the Oregon Trail shoutout in last week’s post, here’s a little history of how it was created. The title does its best to inject some drama: “He Created The Oregon Trail…And he didn’t makea penny.” (emphasis mine because haha).
📖Read: If you were wondering about where to find some expert advice on sober dating, well, it turns out that I am your mujer. Just please don’t ask me how to get, like, a second date, or avoiding red flags, etc.
📖Read: HELLA DRAMA unfolded this week over on the local live Peregrine falcon nest cam. Queen Annie is back, y’all, after having an unprecedented flyabout, and I am OBSESSED with how experts are anthropomorphizing the situation:
"It’s like they are an almost-new couple that has to get to know each other again, to start talking to each other, and to go through the necessary rituals so that she’ll start producing eggs, and he’ll respond in the right way,” Malec tells Berkeleyside. "They might need some time to get comfortable again."
Also in the link is a sweet little video of the falcons’ head bobbing mating ritual. Spring! It’s springing.
📖Read: For my writerly boo boos: If y’all aren’t subscribed to George Saunders’ substack (I know, we’ve reached peak substack), well, I wish all the fancy literary people were as generous and kind with their expertise as dear George. Kerry forwarded me this one about “The Avoidance Moment” and it was so helpful to read, particularly as I dive back into a short story I started back in grad school.
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"one of the folded-into-my-daily-life touchpoints of delight." yes. resonates. me too I have those. A few moments of delight: dropping off my kids at school and seeing and talking with the parents, teachers, kids, that make up the community we joined this fall. Those brief conversations fuel me for the day these days. I went to a Barre3 class (masked) IN PERSON last week for the first time in two years. It felt so freakin' good, just delicious. And it felt so good to be out.in.the.world in the evening in a city I used to spend time in during my 20s. Made me feel ALIVE. Inspired me to make a plan to meet friends for a class there and go get bagels or "drinks" (if a night class) or whatever afterwards. Yay! <3
"one of the folded-into-my-daily-life touchpoints of delight." yes. resonates. me too I have those. A few moments of delight: dropping off my kids at school and seeing and talking with the parents, teachers, kids, that make up the community we joined this fall. Those brief conversations fuel me for the day these days. I went to a Barre3 class (masked) IN PERSON last week for the first time in two years. It felt so freakin' good, just delicious. And it felt so good to be out.in.the.world in the evening in a city I used to spend time in during my 20s. Made me feel ALIVE. Inspired me to make a plan to meet friends for a class there and go get bagels or "drinks" (if a night class) or whatever afterwards. Yay! <3