Go Take a Walk

“Every day you can create a moment of rest by daydreaming.”-Tricia Hershey, the Nap Bishop.

Hello, friends,

I just listened to Ezra Klein’s recent interview with Michael Pollan, whose new book A World Appears: A Journey Into Consciousness explores the very nature of consciousness. What is it? He doesn’t find out, even after writing the book, but the conversation was fascinating. Among many interesting ideas, I was particularly taken with some terms the child psychologist Alison Gopnik coined––“lantern consciousness” and “spotlight consciousness”––for describing the different modes we might be in at any given moment.

Spotlight is when we’re focused on something, as I am right now, (mostly) trying to explain this to you in a coherent way. I am aware of my grammar, my brevity (or lack thereof) and little else at the moment––not the sleeping dog at my feet, or the puppy barking outside, not the shockingly gorgeous day, the leaves greening on the beech trees, the maples budding, the hyacinths rising from my garden. I’m just focused on trying to make this newsletter interesting to you.

The other form, “Lantern consciousness,” is what kids do naturally. When he was three, Johnny could sit for hours at the front window watching the cars and trucks go by. When a rare motorcycle passed, he would reverently whisper, “Tessa!” as if he’d just encountered an exotic bird, or a celebrity. It’s what we do when we’re walking in the woods alone, without our AirPods glued to our ears. Random thoughts occur, insights and ideas, though I also suspect some kind of cranial hygiene is happening when we’re in this state. When I’m writing a song or working on a new piece of my novel, I have to go into a kind of trance, which just looks like me staring into space. Not even thinking, really. The thinking comes to me. I’m more doing what Johnny did: just waiting patiently for the motorcycle to come by.

“The space of our interiority for this kind of thinking is diminished because of our technological distractions,” Pollan says. Sure, but I distract myself from the perpetually bad news by working my butt off, learning Italian, watering my plants and seed starts, training our puppy, brushing the dogs’ teeth, and some other less healthy activities. Like buying things online.

There’s something so seductive about thinking of something you want/need, doing a brief web search, and then tapping your trackpad or touching a little button to get it. It’s so much easier for us to capture our prey now than it was 10,000 or even 100 years ago. But in the old days, if you captured something, you ate it. If you made something, you used it and when it broke, you mended it or made a new one. Now we capture tiny vacuum cleaners, spray bottles, massage guns, “indoor” shoes, books we think we ought to read, a second pair of our favorite pants so that when the first pair wears out and the manufacturer stops making it, we’re covered.

Not only that, every single item I acquire demands something from me. Sometimes it’s a small thing, like finding a space for it in my drawers or refrigerator. But if it’s a book, I have to read it. If it’s a musical instrument, I have to maintain it. If it’s an appliance, I have to learn how to use it, and then I have to fix it or find replacement parts when it breaks, or clean it using the only-made-for-this-appliance gizmo, which I can’t find because where do you store such a thing?

Even digital purchases take up space—those ebooks burn coal and clog my phone’s memory. Software slows my laptop down. And don’t get me started on all the obsolete tech in my attic.

I wrote, then deleted, an entire blog post about my recent debacle—buying a pair of boots from an ad on a Google search, which turned out to be shoddily made, the wrong size and color and—surprise!––made in China, though the company (Jennifer & John Charleston) claims to be from the US. Trying to return them, I was directed to the small print on their website—I’d have to pay shipping and customs to send them back to their only factory—in China. Buyer beware, indeed. I wrote the company; they offered me a 10% refund and suggested I regift the boots.

NO ONE WANTS THESE BOOTS! IF I PUT THEM ON MY CURB WITH A FREE SIGN THEY WOULD SIT FOREVER IGNORED AND UNCLAIMED.

But instead of chalking it up as a ($93 minus $9.30) loss, smacking myself a bit for my stupidity and cupidity, the terrier in me just would not let go of the matter. I wrote the Massachusetts AG, the Better Business Bureau, the FTC, my bank, and also the company again. (They upped their offer to 20%, which seems to be their limit.)

So much time wasted when I could have been staring into space, which is my number one job as a writer and musician.

Now, let’s all go for a earbud-less walk in search of green.

Love, Nerissa

PS and/or come to my Summer Writing Retreat! There will be a surplus of staring into space, I promise. And you will also write a lot. See below for details.

For anyone in or near Concord, MA on Monday April 20 (Patriot’s Day), our own Tammy Rose has created a Performance in Place as part of Parade Day. Expect some visitations from historical figures and some Thoreauvean disobedience.

Congratulations to Amy Mittelman, whose book Dames, Dishes and Degrees: Faculty Wives In America (Cynren Press) is being published June 16. There will be a book launch party at Amherst Books on that date at 7 pm (where our dear Sean Norton presides!)

Join me for a transformative week dedicated to your writing. Whether you’re diving into a PhD thesis, starting a children’s book, revising your manuscript, or simply craving the camaraderie of fellow writers, this retreat is your escape.

• Deep Focus: Delve deeply into your project with uninterrupted writing time.

• Creative Inspiration: Surround yourself with a community of writers in beautiful, serene surroundings.

• Diverse Opportunities: Work on anything from poetry to songwriting in dedicated indoor and outdoor spaces.

• Flexible Participation: Join us in person or via Zoom; all group discussions will be accessible online.

• 9:00 AM: Gather in Little Blue (and on Zoom) for a brief discussion and an optional writing prompt.

• 9:30 AM – 11:30 AM: Dedicated writing time.

• 11:30 AM – 1:00 PM: Family-style lunch break with an optional walk around the picturesque Childs Park.

• 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM: Afternoon writing session.

• 3:00 PM: Sharing hour for those who wish to discuss their work.

• All-Day Access: Coffee, tea, light snacks, and seltzer.

• Lunch: Could be anything from shrimp jambalaya to massaged kale salad to smoked salmon/goat cheese frittata, or bring your own lunch to store in the studio refrigerator. A microwave is also available.

• Explore: The retreat ends early enough for an evening in Northampton, just 1.3 miles away. Catch a show at Iron Horse or Parlor Room, or an independent film at Amherst Cinema.

• Inspiration: Exercise your muse in our awesome, vibrant, artsy city.

• Connection: Build new friendships and grow within a supportive writing community.

• Relaxation: Enjoy the peace and beauty of Northampton in the summer.

Take this opportunity to fully immerse yourself in your writing and rejuvenate your creative spirit!

September Equinox Retreat will be the weekend of Sept. 18-20.

The per-day option for either retreat is here.

Read more about Jim Dine’s Two Big Black Hearts.