A study in contrasts
Oh, hi friends!
Why does a weekend feel so good? Nothing distinguishes a Saturday from, say, a Tuesday, other than you (probably) not having to go to work. If every waking day felt like a Saturday, would they eventually stop feeling like a ‘weekend’?
Why does a shower after a hike or a run or a day at the beach feel so good? You’ve taken thousands of showers in your lifetime. What makes these ones stand out?
Why does eating a fancy meal in a restaurant taste so good after eating a packed lunch every day? Does it really taste better or is it good because you didn’t make it yourself?
Contrasts are necessary to create highs and lows. So if you’re having a bad day, or a fallow creative period, or wondering ‘what’s the point in trying hard anyway?’ try to hold on to the fact that it’ll make the eventual high that much sweeter.
What will you perform?
Photo by Monica Silvestre from Pexels
“It is kind of really fun to work on this,” said Mr. Hall, who has never made a commercial before. “It’s liberating to be released from any preoccupation with whether or not what you’re doing is profound.”
Michael C. Hall starred in Skittles Commercial: The Broadway Musical over Super Bowl Sunday and really seemed to enjoy the process! Even though the theater-ad hybrid seemed goofy to some, sometimes it's nice to do something not for accolades, not to plumb the depths and darkness of our souls, but simply...for fun.
Also, Skittles are good.
Oooo. Kara-catnip! 12 highly successful people on the best way to avoid burnout and stay creative.
My friend Lindsay B. Davis interviewed playwright/showrunner/genius Theresa Rebeck and my head exploded.
I don’t watch basketball but I read every word of this story about Boban Marjanovic. A master class in profile writing. A taste: “Boban likes to cup his left hand over his right one, the one that has swallowed yours, and his palms are surprisingly soft and cool, creating an asteroid-sized cocoon with the bouncy texture of a Casper mattress. It was so nice, I wanted to crawl inside and take a nap.” Gosh, that's fun.
Freelance writers and journalist-type folks will get a lot of value from the newsletter Where to Pitch by Susan Shain!
Netflix is adapting theater for film, starting with American Son. Hi, welcome to the future.
Oooo. Very helpful round-up by my friend Erin McReynolds! The 5 best places to submit your short stories. I've never written a short story but now want to? Sometimes having a target is all you need to start.
Mmhmm. Need to do this. Multiply your time by asking 4 questions about the stuff on your to-do list.
Wow. Check out this incredible apartment tour. My running friend Rachana has 300 plants!!!
A clean and simple app to track your habits.
And for the most heart-rending story of the week: ‘World’s loneliest duck’ dies on tiny pacific island that loved him *sobs uncontrollably* (h/t Dos Toros)
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Thanks, as always, for reading.
Love, Kara