Mmm, autopilot sandwiches
Oh, hi friends!
I used to work in a law office filing old cases in the basement. Sometimes I’d have an idea—a line or snippet of dialogue or beginning of something—and I’d scribble it on a legal pad and shove the note into my pocket.
Eventually I worked at the front desk, answering phones, greeting people, making coffee, ordering lunches.
One of the lawyers ordered the same lunch every day—turkey sandwich, whole wheat, mustard no mayo, extra lettuce and tomato.
How boring, I thought. Where’s his imagination?
Now I understand. That was one less decision to make.
You may not have someone named Kara who can order your lunch (although I'd do it for a fee—let's talk), but there’s probably one less decision you can make every day. One thing you can put on autopilot, from the shoes you wear to the way you style your hair to your daily cab vs. subway commute debate.
Pick one! Free your brain!
Full disclosure: Now I eat almost the same thing for lunch every day.
The Incredible Jessica James is about a struggling playwright (it's on Netflix!), so of course I liked it, but my favorite details were the rejection letters on her wall and this quote. Something I often forget.
What I Read in the Morning
Here’s a list of all the sites I visit in the morning while I drink my coffee. This takes about 10 minutes. If I’m feeling masochistic, I’ll visit news sites and Twitter, but I find that these destinations leave me motivated or inspired or with a little gem I can pillage for this newsletter.
Swissmiss (for design and random inspiration)
NYC Playwrights (calls for play submissions)
Tongal (where I play Don Draper)
The Interval (for news/interviews about women in theater)
Women and Hollywood (for news about women in film)
Lifehacker (for hacks)
A Cup of Jo (for fun!)
99U (for creativity inspo)
Alex’s site (to see his projects!)
Blakeney’s site (to read her words!)
McSweeney’s (for LOLs)
New York Times Metro Diary (for reminders of why I love the city)
The Bridge (for reminders of why I love Brooklyn)
Thank you for reading.
Love, Kara