Much to feel good about this week. I gave Sarah authorization to use my Costco card, and she found everything on my list (got groceries for herself as well). Nancy gifted me with some cherry tomatoes, a container of antibacterial wipes (cherished currency), a loaf of vegan carrot-banana bread, and four ripe mangos (which I peeled, cut up, and put in the freezer to make sorbet). I finally signed up for a Hulu account, mainly because of all the miniseries based on books (High Fidelity, Little Fires Everywhere, The Handmaid's Tale, Normal People), and have already binge-watched the first two... :-)
So, as is tradition, five items below of beauty, interest, and humor to brighten your day/weekend/week. Enjoy!
~ Tonight! (5/15/20), ElizaLive, Let's Get Political, Live Facebook Stream, 5:30 p.m. Central Time: Over the years as things in the world and our country get more divided, I have been motivated to write socio-political songs. I’ve been slipping them into my records more and more confidently as I have slowly educated myself. This Friday on ELIZALIVE I will choose from my now fairly-long list and pick a variety of songs and perspectives. Please let me know any requests you have that fit the theme. ~ Eliza
~ So You Had a Bad Day… Here are some tips to pick yourself back up again, regain some dignity and soldier on after the lousiest of days.
~ Elmo's Dad Sends a PSA to Overwhelmed Parents at Home: "You Are Doing an Amazing Job": Our beloved Sesame Street pals are social distancing right along with the rest of the world, which means Elmo's dad, Louie, can sympathize with all the families staying home. In a sweet PSA published on April 5, Louie applauded moms and dads for their tireless efforts to keep their kids healthy, safe, and entertained, but acknowledged this time can be "overwhelming." He encouraged parents to take a moment for themselves: listen to a favorite song, stretch, or just breathe.
~ Smash a Coronavirus Piñata. You’ll Feel Better. If you cannot join, beat. Such is the resolve of creative people bashing piñatas to defeat a pandemic (or at least, excise some of their feelings about it).
~ Photographer Has Been Taking Free Family ‘Porchtraits’ to Capture SweetSilver Linings During Social Distancing: Rather than letting social distancing keep him from his passion for photography, Dave Puente has found a way to join local families in celebrating the silver linings of quarantine. The photographer from Minneapolis, Minnesota has been taking free family portraits that document the joyful part of community members being at home with their loved ones—and he does it all while simultaneously respecting social distancing guidelines.
SONG: All Day Long by Chloe Langford and Paul Langford
BOOK: A Mindful Year: 365 Ways to Find Connection and the Sacred in Everyday Life by Aria Campbell-Danesh, Seth J. Gillihan
POEM: Japanese Aquarium Urges Public to Video-Chat Eels Who Are Forgetting Humans Exist by Sonia Greenfield
hey eels aka carpet of
writhing grass aka sinews
of sea floor aka silver speckled
& smiling sand spitters
the world has gone
bonkers & even humans
can forget humans exist like
that tiny grandmother whose
white hair looked like a moon
jelly bobbing in the dry
ocean on the other side of
your glass she’s gone now &
the nurse in subtidal scrubs
that soothing blue is gone too
hey eels we have a sickness
rippling through this sea
of humanity so I’m taking
a Zoom meeting with you can’t
roll up to your window & smile
back can’t be jostled by
a family of seven edging
me away from my vantage that’s
how we are we humans we’re
just like animals hey eels I like
how you duck into your home
in the sand how you suck
yourself into your safe space
and now humans are doing that
too sucking into our safe
spaces & shrinking away from
faces coming too close
which is to say I’m just like
you hey eels beyond your
invisible walls beyond the four
walls beyond your aquarium
beyond the teeming of Tokyo
I hear wildlife is reclaiming
its spaces that pumas wander
the streets that waterways are
becoming more uncluttered by
the detritus of human indifference
hey eels every time I would take
my son to see you he would sit
by your side & I think he saw
something of himself in the way
you’re alone in your hole & in
the fear that guides your hiding
hey eels it’s where we all are now
QUOTE: “Think of a wave: it washes onto the shore, and then it rolls back. Likewise, each of your activities has a backside of stillness. To be with people, you must be alone. To listen, you need silence. To exercise, you need rest. You do not need to inflict rest, silence, or aloneness. You can simply surrender to your existing urges for these essential actions.” ~ Veronika Tugaleva
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