mundane joys turned to big moments.
and hoping there are more to come!
There are moments in life that feel so mundane, but with potential. That’s what tons of my days feel like right now. It’s a hustle right now—not working a 9 to 5 (or 9:30am to 7:30pm) job, but working on so many freelance projects, BEING A MOM, and trying to get my book represented. Like I’m working for something big, but the every day—in and out—is messy and stressed about money and riddled with disappointments:
It isn’t heartbreak, but it’s life. And we go on. And then there are little things that bring little joys and you don’t think more of it. You go on.
Fourteen years ago, I was working three jobs and also trying to be a freelance writer and graphic designer. I pitched stories to so many outdoors publications, to no avail. I designed posters and t-shirts and blog banners and ads for companies and organizations and individuals around town. Payment for my services was usually some combination of booze and ski tickets. It was lots of rejection with little joys. I was broke and messy—just like today.
One day, I went skiing with a friend at Snow King in Jackson and she brought her friend—Evan. It wasn’t an instant connection, but it was a real fun. I did have a slow-mo fall off the lift, WHILE RIDING UP WITH EVAN, which was horribly embarrassing, but we laughed it off together. Real ridiculous. We even ended up on the swing-set with our skis on.
It was just a little joy in weeks of mundane nose-to-the-grindstone work. But, of course, through the next few months I reconnected with Evan and we went to a St. Paddy’s party together and the rest was history. I started wearing his shirts and writing about love and how do you know and the art I want to keep making with him around.
Fourteen years later and so much has happened and I’m somehow back in a mundane cycle of rejections with sparks of hope. On our recent trip to Jackson (see the schedule), it felt so close and far away at the same time. Do you know that feeling? Like the person you were is still there in your chest, but deeper than you remember. Farther inward than you would’ve guessed.
I visited KHOL and saw a poster on an office wall that I had designed.
Evan and I ran around Jackson (and Victor) mostly separately. He skied a ton and I skied a little, but one day we got to ski together at Snow King with Marcelline.
Her skiing song (which you can’t really hear in that video) goes like this:
“I am skiing, I am skiing
Swish, swish, swish
I’m a little ripper, I’m a little ripper
Yes, I am
Yes, I am
YES, I AMMMM!”
In very Rachel-form, I could not figure out how to ride the poma lift. (you can take the girl outta Texas…) At the end of our family ski date, Marcie wanted to go to the playground. So we did. And we did some swing skiing…
And our hearts exploded and then melted. Here, where we met and were ridiculous together, it comes full-circle as our daughter swings with us in her skis. Here’s to hoping that all our mundane hustling days are sprinkled with little joys that are secretly growing behind the scenes into the coolest, full-circle beauties.
Quick Hits:
Jam of the Week: La Luz – Strange World.
(YES, NEW LA LUZ!! I will forever hold this Shana Cleveland interview close to my heart. about this new song [in a Stereogum interview that came out today], Shana said, “The best advice a friend gave me during a time when I was feeling particularly overwhelmed and battling consecutive panic attacks was to go outside, take my shoes off, and sit with my feet on the earth. This seemed to slow the universe down in a way that made it feel easier to handle. So this chorus is something of a mantra to myself ‘we’ll be fine, just take your time.’”)
This Piece Had Me Tearing Up.
(gift link to a Modern Love… wow, my heart broke over and over.)More Interactions Like This Please.
(you know I love this randomness.)
OMG Am I A Mezcal Old Fashioned And Flaming Hot Cheetos?
(not my final answer, but I would like to know yours.)Are You Ready For Sunday?
(I still have to watch Oppenheimer. Poor Things has been my favorite watch thus far.)I Love These Cats.
(that’s all.)Mama on Fresh Air.
(if only to know yourself so well as a child!)This Is My BFF, My Husband, And Me.
(okay, stick with me, because I cannot stop laughing and/or thinking about this. Evan constantly baffles Lisa (my bff), because he doesn’t know who celebrities are and like he was the last person in the world to get a smart phone or Venmo. it comes up in the funniest ways where Lisa and I are like, “Evan, what??” so in this video, Evan is Jonathan Groff, Lisa is Lindsay Mendez, and I am Daniel Radcliffe. Lisa being like, “say something else… please say something else” to Evan is so believable and I cry-laugh thinking about us. full interview here.)I Never Claimed To Be Mature.
(guess I can’t pull this same prank on my mom any time soon now.)
Happy Women’s History Month! (unclear how to just pop that into conversation, but) I am feeling the lady-love a lot lately. Thanks for being a rad woman or loving women or at least believing in women. And believing in the little interactions of our communities and our Universe that are working towards bigger and better things. I’m here for it. And so happy you are, too.
xxo,
rachel.