The joy of doing nothing
And the healing energy of a couch
Hello friends,
Last weekend, I skipped Memorial Day barbecues, beach trips, or pool parties for a solo weekend on my couch.
That said, there weren’t too many of the aforementioned festivities to be had as it was also very grey over Memorial Day. LA has been experiencing a serious case of May Gray this year…and it seems to be looking like June Gloom will be similar.
As Carrie Fisher laments, “You had a date on national holidays” after Sally breaks up with Joe in my textbook on adult life (When Harry Met Sally), I often feel like I have to be busy on holiday weekends. Maybe it’s the social media age we live in where people share their carefully curated celebrations, the multitude of articles promoting ‘15 dishes for your perfect Memorial Day Barbecue’, or the memories of holiday celebrations that are an amalgamation of actual events and stories I have constructed. Whatever it is, not having “holiday” plans generally brings on restlessness.
As I have gotten older, I have become more and more comfortable with sitting still.
Those who know me well are probably laughing at that statement because sitting still is something I don’t do very well.
Case in point, I am booked wall-to-wall solid every weekend in June. And, I’m still adding things to my calendar (all of which I want to do…I’m also learning to put boundaries and to say no when I need to).
Recognizing that, I tried something out of the ordinary (for me anyway). I spent 2 days at home, and I only left to buy sugar because I wanted to bake banana bread and a trip to the plant store to adopt my new daughter Calliope.
It was delightful.
In my last newsletter, I wrote about my love of cozy mysteries, and this week could have easily been the same as my weekend was consumed by 3 seasons of my new obsession, “Candice Renoir”. The show is a French mystery procedural, with a super competent at her job but a hot mess at love main character who is recently divorced with four kids.
Between the idyllic French coastline, the incredibly sexy will-they/won’t-they relationship, and the added educational benefit of my French coming back, I can’t pull myself away from this show.
It’s been a while since I have gotten so wrapped up in a piece of entertainment that I lose myself to the world. Perhaps not since high school, when I spent the better part of a semester re-watching ‘Under the Tuscan Sun’ (which, coincidentally has beautiful foreign vistas and a main character who is recently divorced with a new lease on life).
As much as I love to live my life out of my home and in the present, it has been kind of nice to slow down and escape to another world for a few days (especially as the anxiety of this current world seems to be ever-present).
I’m learning to love a quiet retreat—it makes the festivities that much more fun.
Ten Things This Week
As mentioned, my current obsession is Candice Renoir.
I’d be remiss not to shout out the queen of ‘scorned divorcée discovering a new lease on life’ roles, Diane Lane. First in Under the Tuscan Sun…
Then in Must Love Dogs
And, for a more dramatic take, Unfaithful
And an earlier version, A Walk on the Moon.
Lest this becomes a Diane Lane appreciation post (though never opposed to that), a shoutout to the book Under The Tuscan Sun, which is very different, but equally as enjoyable.
If the whole ‘woman discovering herself while traveling’ appeals to you, and you somehow missed Eat, Pray, Love…you should read that.
Though, my favorite Elizabeth Gilbert book is the fictional City of Girls.
Followed closely by the creativity manifesto, Big Magic.
And, I haven’t read it, but I should probably Wild by Cheryl Straid, especially since it’s sitting on my desk.
Till next time!
- Melanie