Sunday Shit Talk: On the importance of doing jack shit

Being vs. doing & some good shit I read (that you can, too)

Good morning!

A glorious sunset from somewhere glorious

I’m signing in from a sacred place of respite. I don’t get to them often but when I do, I try to focus on the matter at hand, which is doing jack shit. Jack. Shit. Nothing, nada, zip. Just sleeping, eating, daydreaming, and focusing on my bodily functions. Maybe reading. Seemingly hypocritical I know, as I sit here clutching a cup of hotel espresso, still compelled to spit some bars that might resonate with you despite the void that beckons—a void devoid of agendas, expectations, requirements, a void of time to fill just as I choose.

You see, the grind of the gig economy has had me in its clutches for almost a third of my life. I don’t remember the last time I went somewhere without my laptop. Last summer, I pried myself off a chaise on an Italian beach to Zoom with a Hollywood actress (alright, Michelle Monaghan) because junkets happen when they do and when you have bills to pay and quotas to fill, you do what you’ve got to do. We had a lovely conversation (she said she wished she were in Italy, too), I woke up the next day before everyone else to crank out the piece, it ran without issue, and all was right with the world.

Don’t get it twisted—I’m not bitching—this is first-world bullshit. But I’ve been thinking lately about how time with our loved ones is a gift we can’t get back. I’ve also been thinking about how good it is for the brain to just be without having to be something to someone somewhere. So, I’m going to get back to doing nothing but before I do, I’d like to share some compelling things I came across this week:

On the topic of junket interviews, the Blake Lively controversy continues. Everyone and their mother are coming for her for being tone-deaf, promoting her brands,

and hyping up her lewks when the film she’s promoting, It Ends With Us, is centered on a domestic abuse plot. She reportedly wrestled for control from co-star director Justin Baldoni by ordering her own cut of the film, and she pays too much for her Valentino jeans (um, take it up with Valentino?). I’ve not seen the film nor have been obsessed with all the hubbub (though, admittedly, I’m a long-time Serena Van Der Woodsen stan) but, from my PR-minded periphery, this whole thing could be wiped clean if she just hosted a fundraiser (virtually or whatever) for a non-profit supporting victims of domestic violence. Right?

The Cut did a cool series on pet ownership and I loved how this piece by Madeline Leung Coleman explored whether or not we force our pets to live too long. Having been there myself, the decision of whether or when to end the life of another living being is a heavy and difficult one and I was glad to read something thoughtful about it.

The talented writer Michael A. Gonzales wrote this incredibly moving tribute to his late wife, Lesley Lenore Pitts, on Oldster 25 years after her sudden passing. You can practically smell her perfume and you’ll sure as shit wish you knew her and had witnessed their love in real time. What a glorious tribute to a remarkable woman. We should all be so lucky to be so loved.

Finally, ICYMI, I interviewed the wonderful writer Nicole Treska about her debut memoir about starting over in New York after growing up in Boston amidst a family history of poverty, crime, and addiction called Wonderland for the last MUTHR, FCKD. Believe me when I say SHIT, that was a good read. She’s a queen among women adept at a masterful turn of phrase and we had a really good time. Please consider checking it out if you haven’t already.

I’m out! Now for breakfast…and breathing,

xx

MF