Thoughts From Another Day 004

I went to see Everything, Everywhere, All At Once recently, and I genuinely think it’s my new favorite movie. It’s a fun, sci-fi adventure where the main character discovers she has the power to access the memories and skills of different versions of herself from other dimensions. But it’s also a story of family, love, and generational trauma, of depression and nihilism, but also of empathy, kindness, and the fullness of life. It was astoundingly beautiful, hilarious, and exciting.

10/10 highly recommend.

Handmaid’s Tale / The Testaments

Handmaid’s Tale

like the giver but about sex

trying to “protect” women but just 100% turns them into objects

removes the beauty and partnership from marriage leaving it cold and dead

poignant look at trauma and how past weaves into the present and the present is numb

“it didn’t happen that way either. I’m not sure how it happened. Not exactly.”

creates so much shame

juxtaposition of night with commander vs night with Nick. Nick even gets a name

The Testaments

“One person alone is not a full person: we exist in relation to others.”

"an interrogation of faith and institutional religion, how it affects how we view ourselves and others and the world around us, even in ways that we might not realize, and how hard it is to deconstruct beliefs that we have incorporated into who we are, both harmful ones, and harmless ones, and what that can feel like for someone."

-  HelloFutureMe Book Review

Genuinely useful and insightful. I think I've internalized a lot of these tips already as I've been actively working on getting better at small talk, but seeing it spelled out like this is hugely helpful.

One of the stranger things about training brand new nurses is explaining how to min max small talk. It feels very weird to coach people on how to chat.

simple poem 003

My head feels heavy and my body’s full of lead slowly poisoning itself and going mad I feel like I could sink my fingers into my skull, and rip out a piece, like a chunk of cake pull myself apart the pieces don’t quite fit as they are like a jigsaw forced into place where it doesn’t belong

The Ten Thousand Doors of January

A gorgeous, aching love letter to stories, storytellers, and the doors they lead us through. Absolutely enchanting.

When I saw this book at the library, I picked it up off the shelf because I remembered someone telling me it was their favorite book they had ever read. But this quote above (that was on the back of the book) was what convinced me to check it out and take it home.

This book was absolutely gorgeous; one of the loveliest books I’ve ever read. The prose is flowing and poetic, wrapping you in the warmth of the beauty of written language. The plot is a story within a story that twist in and around and through itself in interesting and exciting ways. The main character is a girl who’s grown up with conditional privilege, and must now discover and learn what it means to be strong. It is a story full of love - not only romantic, but also of friendship and family.

10/10 absolutely recommend.

[gripping the sink] perfectionism does not help me avoid embarrassment or shame. perfectionism is in itself a form of shame. when i struggle with perfectionism i struggle with shame. when i struggle with perfectionism i struggle with shame. when i struggle with perfectionism i struggle with shame

He was a capped jug; the contents there for sure. Rain on the outside didn't stir the brew.

Ray Bradbury

from the short story: Powerhouse

simple poem 002

why do I feel so stuck when I have so many choices and tasks that can move me forward?

I fear that at my default level I do not truly want to live; merely exist in comfort and continue to get by.

Same Energy

Sources: Fantasy High S1E16 & The Unsleeping City S1E17

Empathy without accountability is a shortsighted attempt to relieve suffering.

Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence by Anna Lembke, MD