Roads Go Ever On 10: Pressure ‘n Boots
💻 what I'm up to 💻
Hello. I’m impressed that you and I have made it to ten newsletters and over 10,000 words already. I hope you’re enjoying my random thoughts and, let’s be real, occasional word vomit.
I treated myself to some new Red Wing boots and they arrived yesterday. I’ve waited for these boots for months (the manufacturer’s website was broken and not accepting orders for a while, they weren’t available in retail stores). I had no way to try them on beforehand. And I don’t know, I just put a lot of expectations upon these shoes for some reason? They were a reward for moving and getting through all of that stress and they just had to fit or I didn’t know what I’d do (when the answer is simple: I would have used the website’s free returns program and tried another size).
The boots did fit though and I didn’t take them off all day after I tried them on. I love them. But it did strike me that we can put so much pressure upon ourselves and external things and get so invested in the “what if it all goes wrong, terribly wrong?!!!” aspect. I didn’t even picture a scenario where I would get the boots and they would fit wonderfully and we would live a long and happy life together. Nope. I just went straight to the worst case and how annoying it would be… and it wouldn’t have been that big of a deal if I had to return them?
In short, brains are super goddamn annoying.
In happier news I’m getting used to a new pace in my new city: hearing birdsong in the mornings and slowly realizing it’s not coming from my husband’s phone, going outside to look at the night sky and its many stars, and at least once a day saying: whoa, look at that bird in our yard! A massive hawk swooped in last week! And cardinals and blue jays! It’s not like I’m in the country. Not by a long shot. But it’s still just different in the most lovely way.
I had a couple weeks off one of my writing projects, which was a joy, and that one is heading into the home stretch. I have another one going simultaneously that thankfully hasn’t jumped into full go mode just yet but I know it will soon. I’m using my remaining free time to pour some juice into a book idea I recently had. I’m poking at it to see if it has legs or any kind of shape.
📘 my book things 📘
We’re getting ever closer to A Kid’s Guide to Fandom and The Art of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge! Here are some pre-order links:
A Kid’s Guide to Fandom
The Art of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge
Please support indie booksellers if you can!
Keep an eye out for sneak peeks of concept art from The Art Galaxy’s Edge book SOON.
And finally, if you’re so inclined, I stopped by the wonderful podcast Encyclopodia to talk about all things mindfulness.
📺 what I'm watching 📺
Flora & Ulysses
Why isn’t everyone talking about Flora & Ulysses? In my defense, I spend about 95% less time on Twitter these days so maybe everyone has been. This is a cute Disney+ original about a girl who believes in superheroes and magic and her squirrel companion who receives superhero powers. It’s very sweet and very silly, stars many DuckTales voice actors, and features Ben Schwartz as an adorable dad. Highly recommend.
In & Of Itself
The best way to watch this is to not know anything about it. Okay, maybe you can know it’s a little magic, a little performance, and a lot unexpected. Do not google it. Just press play when you’re in the mood for something heavy. It’s on Hulu.
The Muppet Show
If you didn’t know, all of The Muppet Show is finally on Disney+. I’ve only seen a precious few episodes so it’s been a treat to jump around and watch guests like Sylvester Stallone, Elton John, and Liberace goof around with the Muppets.
📚 what I'm reading 📚
The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery
Am I really over here recommending a book from 1926? YEP. It’s a tale of feeling trapped but then figuring out your own salvation and path. The descriptions of the protagonist Valancy’s imagination and also of nature are just gorgeous. The book does come with some trappings of the time period though.
Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
I’m reading this one for a book club and we’re dividing it into sections and it was so hard to stop reading where I was supposed to! I fell for the world of Orisha immediately. It’s a place that used to be full of magic but a tyrant of a king eradicated it. And now Zelie, a teenage girl has to figure it out. This West African-inspired fantasy is so captivating.
For more book recs and thoughts, follow my Bookstagram: @amyturningpages.
🐳 something whalesome 🐳
I like wholesome things and the whale emoji is cute so: whalesome!
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and their partners birthed a black-footed ferret, an endangered species, from frozen cells from over 30 years ago. It's huge and fascinating news. The most whalesome. You can read more here.
🍃 creativity corner 🍃
Here I’ll share tips and tricks that are helping me write, imagine, and/or stay productive.
Know those days when your brain is positively swimming with junk and all that junk floats to the top when you’re trying to be creative? You’re settling in to write or draw or whatever and all of a sudden all you can think about is what to do with the carrots in the fridge before they go bad (but really, if you have savory carrot recipes please send them), the emails that need your attention, whether your cats have food… it’s not helpful.
This is when a brain dump comes in handy. Grab a paper and writing utensil or your tablet. Write down all the junk and thoughts floating around in your head -- don’t act on them right now. Just write them down. Write until your brain feels free of the burden of having to contain all those to-dos and stray thoughts. Get back to your creative project. Then later you can sort, handle, prioritize all the stuff you wrote down during your brain dump. It helps me all the time.
📃 quote of the week 📃
“I've never been a natural
All I do is try, try, try” - Taylor Swift, “Mirrorball”
I’ve rarely felt like I was a natural at something. And I know that even when you have a natural gift, you have to practice and hone it. So, all I do is try, try, try. This snippet runs through my head so often when I’m trying but not necessarily getting anywhere.