Happy Sunday, friends! I hope you hare having a restful weekend. This past week was really stressful and overwhelming, if I’m being honest. I think I’ve mentioned this before, but I generally avoid gratitude lists. This isn’t because I’m not a grateful person, but because it can be used as a dismissive tool when someone is anxious or depressed. I saw it on Reddit recently – someone made a sincere post asking how they can find joy when the world is a little scary and the news is always dark. Someone wrote a scathing comment about how hard their grandparents had it (side note – didn’t everyone’s grandparents struggle?). The commenter suggesting WRITING A GRATITUDE LIST insteading of whining about it. So invalidating!

I’ve avoided it for a long time because the act seemed too close to toxic positivity for me. I guess I could make a list of things I am grateful about, but I really just want to talk about my feelings. WHY CAN’T WE DO THAT INSTEAD? But I have found that it helps when I feel overwhelmed and super anxious. I mean, it’s not a panacea. I don’t think of things I’m grateful for and my anxiety or overwhelm immediately evaporates. I’m not magically a lighter person afterward. But it does remind me that I have a lot of good going on, even if I am having a hard time seeing past the deadlines and vet bills.

So here are some good things I’d like to remember from this week:

1. Pets being cute as hell

Last night Mittens overheard my brother talking on speakerphone, so she stole the phone from the couch and ran to the cat room with it. I don’t think I’ve laughed that hard in a long time.

2. My stand partner said, “We’re in the same age range, right?” during our last rehearsal.

“How old are you?” I asked.

“Twenty-five,” she responded.

I told her I was flattered but had close to 15 years on her. I’m not going to pretend I look like I’m in my twenties anymore, but I’m turning 40 in July, so it was a really nice compliment!

3. Conan O’Brien Must Go. His travel series came out Thursday and it is hilarious. My only quibble is that it’s only 4 episodes – that’s way too short! I really hope there’s a second season. It definitely gave me the travel bug – I’m lucky enough to have visited two of the countries featured in the series (Ireland and Argentina), but I’ve never been to Finland or Thailand! I want to goooooo.

4. This Paste Magazine critique of Taylor Swift’s latest album, The Tortured Poets Department, is a masterclass of a critical deadpan. It opens with, “Sylvia Plath did not stick her head in an oven for this.” OH NO THEY DIDN’T. (I am not a Swiftie. I do like some of her work but it is not a fandom I am drawn to. I have listened to just two albums. Red is great. folklore is a little boring but I was obsessed with this song in 2020). Also, the byline had to be kept anonymous for this review to protect against unhinged fans. But according to this Reddit post, writers on Twitter are getting harassed anyway! GO OUTSIDE AND TOUCH SOME GRASS, PEOPLE.

5. Yesterday was pretty rainy and cozy. I have a hard time slowing down and relaxing. (I recently told my therapist, “I feel like a piece of shit if I sit on the couch for too long because I feel like I have to get up and do something.” Her eyes widened and she started scribbling.) If it’s sunny outside (like it is today!), forget it. Relaxation is going to be nonexistent. But yesterday forced me to slow down. Husband and I are trying this new tradition where we visit a new coffee shop and work on a crossword puzzle. The coffee shop we went to yesterday didn’t have a copy of the Austin Chronicle to do a crossword, so we purchased a book of New York Times crossword puzzles and brought it home. It rained lightly outside as we turned on Pink Floyd and made cups of tea. It was very cozy.

After 30 minutes of staring at Puzzle #1, we had only solved a couple of clues. Since Moon Pie is the literary sort, we asked for her help in solving the puzzle. Moon Pie reminded us that she doesn’t speak English.

After struggling through the clues, I was like, you know what? There’s no shame in starting small. I dug out a crossword puzzle book I’d purchased years ago but had never used. The clues were almost insulting compared to the NYT crossword (“THIS IS THE SOUND SOMEONE SUFFERING FROM ALLERGIES MAKES”) but at least we could finish it without feeling too dumb.

Well, I guess I’m going to find stuff to do! I can’t sit on the couch for too long! It is my curse. I hope you spend your Sunday relaxing without too much guilt.