10 things: party sheriff, eclipse-core, decoding friendship
And focaccia! A bit of everything in my recommendations to you.
Happy eclipse eve! As you read this, we’ll be flocking to a spot along the path of totality in hopes of experiencing that sublime, once-in-a-generation moment people talk about.
You’ll hear if I emerge with some newfound cosmic discernment or deeper-than-bone-deep appreciation for the giant swirling circus we call life on earth. Knowing me, I will have ~reflections~ to share.
Here are 10 things I’ve absorbed recently.
When debating whether or not to make the drive to catch this eclipse, I kept hearing the same thing from different corners: don’t miss it. Ultimately it was a group of passionate science writers (including one with a PhD in astrophysics) that convinced me, but this piece put tomorrow’s special moment into context. We won’t see another total solar eclipse in the States until 2045. “The yawning” and yet somehow very brief “years between eclipses are a potent reminder that our time on Earth is limited.”
Conan interviewing Larry David (my favorite part was David’s pitch for a “sheriff” who breaks up dying conversations at dinner parties). Supplementary reading: how Curb Your Enthusiasm breathed new life into a chichi, hellish part of LA.
A big feature on the LSU women’s basketball coach, Kim Mulkey, an unstoppable, over-the-top firebrand with a complicated relationship history.
And Angel Reese, A.K.A. the Bayou Barbie, announcing her move to the WNBA with a dope spread in Vogue because she “didn’t wanna be basic.” Yes, I’m into sports now! You give a girl one well-performing March Madness bracket…
Jessica Dore is tired of not being real. Sometimes being real means pulling back from certain social contexts or relationships. As Dore explains, “In interpersonal life, withdrawal might be a sort of relational fugitivity that uses renunciation as a stepping stone toward reconnection and reconstruction with greater tact and integrity.”
Friendship Explained, a newsletter that does the brave and necessary work of answering the how questions about friendship (like, how do I ask my friend to do X, Y, or Z? how should I plan a coffee date we’ll both show up to? etc).
Tara Brach meditations (lol, in the ultimate meta-meditation, we return to this). Trust me and try one of her guided practices. It will lighten your load.
This focaccia recipe, which helped me make my first loaf of bread. It was delicious, and I won’t stop bragging about it! It’s also quite simple.
Some fruitful prompts for this week may be: Where was I during the last eclipse, in 2017? Where was I aching, and how was I growing then (these can be — and are often — the same)? What is the most visible part of my story right now? What are the pieces of me, or my life, that could use some care and sunshine? Where do I envision I’ll be during the next eclipse, 20 years from now? What do I hope that version of myself might feel in the moment of total eclipse?
Have a great week and take care (Annie tells me the astrology is challenging these days, and some recent house issues definitely reflect that!)
Isa
Rummaging is written by Isa Cueto and edited by Annie Cappetta. To support our little homemade, hand-crafted, artisan newsletter, subscribe and share.