And Also! Extras | Vol. 2
My comedic aspirations, good reads by great women, and fun links from around the Internet!
Thank you for reading And Also, a weekly newsletter featuring personal stories and lesson plans to help you navigate life ✨!
Welcome, welcome to the second edition of And Also! Extras, a monthly newsletter full of personal updates, reads I recommend, and things that have grabbed my attention or made me think lately — think Blogspot circa 2008.
(If you missed the first one, you can read it here ⬇️)
Life and work have been full lately — in fun ways and not-so-fun ways — so it feels really nice to keep it simple and just share some of what’s been on my mind and in my life lately. I hope you enjoy it!
Here we go.
Should I Be a Stand-up Comedian?
I met a new friend at a vision boarding party (very fun, very on brand for me!) in late January, who invited the group to her upcoming comedy showcase.
Turns out she had been taking a Stand Up Comedy 101 class at Helium Comedy Club here in Portland, and her class would be showing off their new skills a week later.
And it was such a good show! I mean that sincerely; I was so impressed by how confident everyone seemed and how funny their sets were. And it only reinforced the small dream (/nightmare?) I have of trying stand up comedy myself.
I don’t have grand visions of being the next great comic, but stand up comedy seems like a great way to stretch my storytelling skills, do something that makes me deliberately uncomfortable, and just generally have fun.
Jordan and I also watched Taylor Tomlinson’s new Netflix special last weekend, which only reinforced my admiration for comics — or really anyone who is incredibly observant of the human experience and shares it back with an audience through an engaging (and, in this case, hilarious) medium.
Is it for me? We shall see! 😏
My 100-Day Project: A Poem a Day
Speaking of activities that stretch my storytelling skills, I started The 100-Day Project again this past Sunday and decided to write one poem a day.
I picked poetry as my creative challenge, because it feels both hard and easy to me. Certainly there is a craft to writing poetry, but there is also a leniency; a sort of natural invitation to play around with the form. It feels like a true challenge, but also feels like fun!
I bought some poetry books on Sunday for inspiration (I shared one in my reading recommendations below!) — and that same night we went to see Feist in concert, which felt especially serendipitous and enjoyable because I paid even greater attention to the poetry of her lyrics and the overall performance of her words.
I may or may not share my poems publicly; for now, it feels better to keep them to myself. But I’m four days in and I’m really enjoying seeing the new stories that are taking place within this new shape!
An Actual Culinary Contribution
If you’ve read this newsletter from the start, you’ll know that cooking is not my forte. (Yes, still. Even with effort to get better!)
It’s fine. I don’t care. And I genuinely mean that! I think cooking is one of those things I’d like to enjoy, like to be better at, in theory — but in reality, I just don’t care.
Sure, I need to eat, and I do want to eat more nutritiously as I get older. I also want to make more meals for my partner, instead of offering up takeout as my culinary contribution most of the time. But I just don’t have the interest or the patience to cook well or often.
So in lieu of pushing myself to continue doing something that isn’t doing it for me, I recently bought an air fryer. I was influenced, of course — as I am with most purchases — by my brother and sister-in-law who insisted that literally anyone (including me!) could cook almost anything in an air fryer.
I immediately purchased the one they recommended, and am dizzyingly hopeful that they were right when they said I could cook a quick meal of chicken and rice, reheat pizza, even make my daily over-easy eggs for breakfast in my new magic machine air fryer!
Mostly, I am hopeful that this makes the process of cooking more palatable for me, while also letting me spend time on the activities I actually do care to get better at.
Good Reads by Great Women
I love books by women. I love books generally, of course, but even unintentionally, I tend to be drawn to the voice and stories shared by women (even when they’re writing from the perspective of a man — as Dolly Alderton did in Good Material, which I recommend below!) Recently, I have read so many amazing reads by incredible women authors; here are just a few of my favorites.
Not Funny by Jenna Friedman: I wasn’t familiar with Jenna before reading this book, but I picked it up because of my aforementioned stand-up comedy interests, and also, she’s got a great name. I’m so glad I did! This book was darkly funny and really smart. I enjoyed learning about the trajectory (both good and bad) of her career, and especially appreciated her insight on how her comedy has evolved with our culture — giving her ever more opportunities to use storytelling to influence her audience’s awareness of important topics like reproductive rights and gender politics (in comedy and otherwise!). It’s a quick and interesting read.
Good Material by Dolly Alderton: I am one of the many who will read anything Dolly Alderton writes. I absolutely loved her first novel, Ghosts, so it’s hardly a surprise that I loved her sophomore fiction effort too. But surprise! I did. And I was a little worried I wouldn’t when I found out the premise — male protagonist (a struggling comedian! wow, I’m on a roll) bemoans his breakup for 272 pages, until we get his ex-girlfriend’s brief (and resonant) rebuttal — but I did indeed still love it. Dolly articulates the female experience so well (yes, even when writing from the male perspective) and her characters always feel so 3-D; like I’m reading the diary of a friend. I already wish I had a new Dolly Alderton book to read.
I Do Everything I’m Told by Megan Fernandes: This is one of the new books of poetry I referenced earlier — and it was actually my initial inspiration to write a poem a day for the 100-Day Project, after I read about the book in Fever Dream by Christina Loff. ⬇️ As Christina noted, this book is aesthetically stunning — and the poems are as well. I’m definitely drawn to poetry that leans towards realism, which Megan does — writing about sexuality, travel, spirituality, and more.
“All I want, this very instant, is to write new material; become new material.” - Dolly Alderton, Good Material
Cultivating Your Creativity
Clearly, creativity is the theme of the month here at And Also, so it only felt right to share some of my recent reads on the topic.
The Art of You by James McRae: This is a recent purchase for me, but it immediately grabbed my attention at the bookstore. I appreciate the idea that creativity itself is not a skill, but rather, something that’s inherent in all of us — and it shows up when we make space for it.
Creative Quest by Questlove: I love following Questlove on Instagram (and am manifesting going to one of his New York-based game nights one day!), and his book is a thoughtful read on creative excellence. Might I recommend having him read it to you via the audiobook? Makes the creative experience that much richer.
1000 Words by Jami Attenberg: I love Jami Attenberg, and her #1000WordsOfSummer challenges have gotten so much creative output out of me, it’s wild. This book was borne of that initial creative idea — a growing online community providing accountability and encouragement while writing 1,000 words a day for two weeks — and it includes wisdom and encouragement from not only Jami (an accomplished author in her own right), but 50+ other well-known writers as well. If you want a sense of Jami’s style, her newsletter, Craft Talk, is a favorite of mine too.
“I’ve been writing books a long time, and it’s the same challenge every day and it’s a gift and a blessing that I’m allowed to do it, but it’s always hard. And it’s something worth fighting for. The writing.” - Jami Attenberg, 1000 Words
Taylor Swift and the Good Girl Trap - Culture Study, Anne Helen Petersen (You’ll need a paid subscription to read the full article, but I promise you this piece —and a subscription to Culture Study generally — is well worth it.)
Unique Astrological Money Blueprint. I love learning how the specific elements of my astrological chart can affect practical parts of my every day life. Natalia Benson’s astro money blueprint is a fun place to start exploring your chart through the lens of your finances!
LSU “Smooth Criminal” Dance Performance. I have no deeper Internet rabbit hole than my dance/choreography videos rabbit hole, and this one does not disappoint. (BRB, watching it again.)
Players (Netflix). So fresh, funny, and really, really sweet! I love the rom-com formula — it’s familiar and comforting and, when done well, pretty perfectly maps out a journey of self-awareness and transformation (my favorite! and yes, not often exactly how life works, but that’s why it’s entertaining!) “Players” follows the usual formula without being over-the-top or stale.
My friend, Christina, is a hilarious and brilliant creative director — and she’s offering creative project consultations starting March 12! Send her a note if you need support with a creative project.
P.S. To wrap up this month’s series on creativity, I have a fun NEW interview with a fellow creative and astrologer (!!) to share with you next week! She’ll share her insights on the 5th House in astrology (which represents creativity, self-expression, pleasure, and more!), how she accesses her creativity regularly when it’s also her work, and her advice for using your own astrological chart to tap back into your creativity. I’m so excited to share her insight and encouragement with you! Stay tuned ✨
I’m obsessed with your dog (I’m assuming it’s yours?) and love these book recs 🙌🏼 I’m accruing quite the TBR list but working on that feeling abundant rather than crushing 🤞🏼