Living in New England, there’s an amnesia that kicks in about now. You forget all of winter’s misery as you find yourself suddenly surrounded by a green, glowing landscape. It’s a bit like being Dorothy wandering into the colorful world of Oz. This sounds like hyperbole. But I’ve lived most of my life in these parts and come March, there’s no amount of cocoa and cozy reads that will really, fully banish the winter blues. So when summer finally hits? There’s a mad dash to squeeze every last bit out of June, July and August.
Some of that looks like biking for ice cream. Sitting outside early mornings and writing. Of course, staying up far too late reading. I also might have to head up to Portland, Maine for this Winslow Homer show. But there’s also a lot of work juggling at the moment. So the weeks are screaming by like a freight train.
But a few things:
Coffee shop sketches: I spent last Saturday doing yard work, so heading out Sunday seemed like a fair trade. On the left is the finished page, on the right is about five minutes in. I find blank pages overwhelming, so my trick is to start with one sure thing. In this case, it was the building across the street. I used that to anchor the page, then began working out from there. And yes, I did drip an iced latte all over the bottom left hand corner. The markers are this brand (a birthday gift last year).
Detective Hawthorne: On a scale of 1-10, how excited am I about a screen adaptation of Anthony Horowitz’s Hawthorne books? That would be an eleven.
Writing and Rejection: I’m almost finished with The Adventures of Miss Barbara Pym. If you’ve ever struggled with unrealized creative dreams, this is the book for you. A successful writer, Pym’s career came to a grinding halt in the 1960’s, when editors deemed her work passé. Reading about Pym’s drive to create in the face of personal and editorial heartache was fascinating, as were the passages about cultivating inspiration. A caveat about the book: I’m uncomfortable forming an impression of someone based on their youthful diary ramblings and college antics. I’d have rather had a broad overview than a blow-by-blow look at Pym’s Oxford years. But that’s just my two cents. Also, I’m going to burn any college writing and delete my old Livejournal, now.
Listening: If you don’t care about sleeping at night, Suspicious Minds and its examination of AI is wild. And The Redefector is a great listen, also. Deadlines mean I’m burning through podcasts rapidly, so if you have any recommendations, send them my way!
Time Travel: Haunted Homebody is my new favorite Instagram account. It’s delightfully analogue and anachronistic. A time machine that would travel to my childhood would be great, but this account is a close second.
So what’s inspiring you? What book has you flipping pages way past bedtime? Song you have on constant repeat? Thing you can’t stop drawing? I’m all ears.
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