I added a 3lb bucket of Elmer's Glue Glassy Clear Slime with 5 sets of slime add-ins to my delivery order, and when 6 yo Winn arrives shortly to stay the night while his parents go see Billy Strings in Athens, we're going to play and play and play with it! And then we'll do some Legos, and then I'll watch him play Minecraft and I won't have a clue what he's doing. Then I'll cook dinner for him at McDonald's, and we'll come home and watch Star Wars and eat movie theater microwave popcorn. I'll be delightfully too busy to pick up my phone; God bless the power of grands! Love ya! Nina 😊
For most of my life things, big and small, have just happened…some good, some bad, some scary, some global, some local, some personal, some overwhelming and on and on. But this past year it’s been everything all at once, non-stop, one slap across the face after another. Last week I just couldn’t take any more. It’s not that I don’t care. I care too much. But, I’m 84, a month from 85. A wise friend once told me that this is not a dress rehearsal, there will be no do-overs. Today might be all you have so you have an obligation to make as much as you possibly can of it, a great day. So, I fit in a short amount of the horror that is us right now and then I go for a walk with my dog, or read a book, an actual book, and thank God that I’m still here having this wonderful day. Letting the miserable people in power right now steal the joy gives them a win they don’t deserve. I mean they are collectively the dumbest, most evil and inept people ever. They will fail at this. I may not be around to see it, but they will. And now for dinner with my husband.
I've been back since, but I remember visiting San Francisco in late 2021 and hearing Hunter Pence's recorded voice welcoming me back to the city as I waited for a MUNI train. I may be biased because I associate that place with good college memories, but it made me feel warm inside.
Taking a twenty-minute walk is a thing I do regularly.
I wrote a poem a day in December. I'm not a huge poem guy, but I dabble in it from time to time. But learning something over a 30ish day period - writing words down on paper and putting them into a notebook to keep has been a fun project that doesn't mean much more than to find time to slow down and create something.
The poem a day project is just an idea of learning something new that doesn't have to be too much of a task - it's something you can do for yourself and then engage with people when they ask you what you are up to - it changes the narrative.
Like "Hey, what's new?"
"I spent December writing a poem a day. I found out I don't write poetry well, but I'm reading more poetry, and now I don't know when our Xavier Musketeers have a game because we are awful."
These are all good strategies - I’ve been following many of them myself. Along the lines of put down your phone: I’ve found setting daily time limits for my news and social media consumption immensely helpful this year. It’s vital to stay connected, both in terms of current events and with your friends. But after a certain point you’re not learning anything new. You’re just force feeding yourself horror and wasting time that could be better spent. At the very least it’s time I could be doing something better for my own mental health.
My other life hack that I have both used and tried to spread around: schedule the next one before you leave the current one. This has helped me stay regular with monthly band practice, monthly music club, monthly coffee/brunch with friends, etc. Maintaining regular non-screen time with family and friends is really good for beating back some of that ever-present anxiety about the world.
Also - that Ratboys record is indeed stellar. I was late to the game with them, only getting hip with “The Window,” and even then, a year later. I’ve got a ticket to see them at Off Broadway here in STL next month. Can’t wait!
Good piece, Will. I'm in my late-40s and only last summer started to have anxiety and panic attacks for the first time. That was never something I'd ever dealt with, or thought I'd ever deal with, though something that has afflicted other members of my family. But, if you'd told me a year ago that I'd be having anxiety and panic attacks, I wouldn't have believed you.
I'll probably never know exactly what caused it, though I suspect it's a mix of factors - worries about my kids and their futures, boredom with my job, frustration with the state of America and the world, physical stuff (not hydrating or eating enough after long runs), brain chemistry changes, aging....probably all of it.
I've made a number of changes, but one of the things I've found that has helped the most for me has been leaning into my friendships, trying to be more social and engaged with others. Especially as I've started working from home more often, I've realized how much of my day is spent alone and in my own head. Getting out and talking to friends or acquaintances has helped with that, even for like 2 minutes waiting for my son's practice to end. Exchanged a couple texts with a college buddy over the weekend and decided just to pick up the phone and give him a call. Goes to a couple of your points.
As an aside, it is wild how many folks out there are going through it right now, especially people in our age bracket.
I enjoy feeling like Oprah ("You get $25! You get $25!) when one of my many newsletters finds another organization to support in Minneapolis. My most recent: a t shirt with heart Minneapolis in the Mary Tyler Moore font (from a group called Justice for Minneapolis on Bonfire) and a donation to The Salt Cure Restaurant Recovery Fund through the Minneapolis Foundation.
Coffee, every morning, without fail. It's my 30 minutes of alone time to read, write, or, sometimes, answer e-mail.
Every month, I give up something or add something to my life. January was dry. No alcohol. February, I'm writing in a gratitude journal every day.
Reading, for pleasure. It's a must for me.
Lately, I've been watching reruns of The Rockford Files before bed for no particular reason. I stumbled upon them recently, a show I hadn't watched since I was a kid. Guilty pleasure. Part silly, party funny, each mastery wrapped up in a bow at the end of each show. I wish life was that simple.
Get outside. I am a runner. It helps me stay sane if I am running regularly.
I added a 3lb bucket of Elmer's Glue Glassy Clear Slime with 5 sets of slime add-ins to my delivery order, and when 6 yo Winn arrives shortly to stay the night while his parents go see Billy Strings in Athens, we're going to play and play and play with it! And then we'll do some Legos, and then I'll watch him play Minecraft and I won't have a clue what he's doing. Then I'll cook dinner for him at McDonald's, and we'll come home and watch Star Wars and eat movie theater microwave popcorn. I'll be delightfully too busy to pick up my phone; God bless the power of grands! Love ya! Nina 😊
For most of my life things, big and small, have just happened…some good, some bad, some scary, some global, some local, some personal, some overwhelming and on and on. But this past year it’s been everything all at once, non-stop, one slap across the face after another. Last week I just couldn’t take any more. It’s not that I don’t care. I care too much. But, I’m 84, a month from 85. A wise friend once told me that this is not a dress rehearsal, there will be no do-overs. Today might be all you have so you have an obligation to make as much as you possibly can of it, a great day. So, I fit in a short amount of the horror that is us right now and then I go for a walk with my dog, or read a book, an actual book, and thank God that I’m still here having this wonderful day. Letting the miserable people in power right now steal the joy gives them a win they don’t deserve. I mean they are collectively the dumbest, most evil and inept people ever. They will fail at this. I may not be around to see it, but they will. And now for dinner with my husband.
I've been back since, but I remember visiting San Francisco in late 2021 and hearing Hunter Pence's recorded voice welcoming me back to the city as I waited for a MUNI train. I may be biased because I associate that place with good college memories, but it made me feel warm inside.
Taking a twenty-minute walk is a thing I do regularly.
I wrote a poem a day in December. I'm not a huge poem guy, but I dabble in it from time to time. But learning something over a 30ish day period - writing words down on paper and putting them into a notebook to keep has been a fun project that doesn't mean much more than to find time to slow down and create something.
The poem a day project is just an idea of learning something new that doesn't have to be too much of a task - it's something you can do for yourself and then engage with people when they ask you what you are up to - it changes the narrative.
Like "Hey, what's new?"
"I spent December writing a poem a day. I found out I don't write poetry well, but I'm reading more poetry, and now I don't know when our Xavier Musketeers have a game because we are awful."
remember to bring your heart back.... (if you know, you know)....
These are all good strategies - I’ve been following many of them myself. Along the lines of put down your phone: I’ve found setting daily time limits for my news and social media consumption immensely helpful this year. It’s vital to stay connected, both in terms of current events and with your friends. But after a certain point you’re not learning anything new. You’re just force feeding yourself horror and wasting time that could be better spent. At the very least it’s time I could be doing something better for my own mental health.
My other life hack that I have both used and tried to spread around: schedule the next one before you leave the current one. This has helped me stay regular with monthly band practice, monthly music club, monthly coffee/brunch with friends, etc. Maintaining regular non-screen time with family and friends is really good for beating back some of that ever-present anxiety about the world.
Also - that Ratboys record is indeed stellar. I was late to the game with them, only getting hip with “The Window,” and even then, a year later. I’ve got a ticket to see them at Off Broadway here in STL next month. Can’t wait!
Good piece, Will. I'm in my late-40s and only last summer started to have anxiety and panic attacks for the first time. That was never something I'd ever dealt with, or thought I'd ever deal with, though something that has afflicted other members of my family. But, if you'd told me a year ago that I'd be having anxiety and panic attacks, I wouldn't have believed you.
I'll probably never know exactly what caused it, though I suspect it's a mix of factors - worries about my kids and their futures, boredom with my job, frustration with the state of America and the world, physical stuff (not hydrating or eating enough after long runs), brain chemistry changes, aging....probably all of it.
I've made a number of changes, but one of the things I've found that has helped the most for me has been leaning into my friendships, trying to be more social and engaged with others. Especially as I've started working from home more often, I've realized how much of my day is spent alone and in my own head. Getting out and talking to friends or acquaintances has helped with that, even for like 2 minutes waiting for my son's practice to end. Exchanged a couple texts with a college buddy over the weekend and decided just to pick up the phone and give him a call. Goes to a couple of your points.
As an aside, it is wild how many folks out there are going through it right now, especially people in our age bracket.
I enjoy feeling like Oprah ("You get $25! You get $25!) when one of my many newsletters finds another organization to support in Minneapolis. My most recent: a t shirt with heart Minneapolis in the Mary Tyler Moore font (from a group called Justice for Minneapolis on Bonfire) and a donation to The Salt Cure Restaurant Recovery Fund through the Minneapolis Foundation.
Coffee, every morning, without fail. It's my 30 minutes of alone time to read, write, or, sometimes, answer e-mail.
Every month, I give up something or add something to my life. January was dry. No alcohol. February, I'm writing in a gratitude journal every day.
Reading, for pleasure. It's a must for me.
Lately, I've been watching reruns of The Rockford Files before bed for no particular reason. I stumbled upon them recently, a show I hadn't watched since I was a kid. Guilty pleasure. Part silly, party funny, each mastery wrapped up in a bow at the end of each show. I wish life was that simple.
Get outside. I am a runner. It helps me stay sane if I am running regularly.
Find your local ukulele orchestra. Here's mine: https://youtu.be/TjR5bUeI3WQ
I was going to ask when we'd get your take on the Klosterman book, and now I see you've interviewed him about it. Great!
Hope you find the time to grab a bite at Gott’s in the Ferry Building.