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LISTENING TO A few years ago I was headed from Atlanta to Charlotte (for what has since come to be known as the best meal I’ve ever had at a Cracker Barrel) so I threw together a playlist to keep me company on the drive. I had been reading a lot of Kerouac and listening to Jay Farrar and Ben Gibbard’s musical tribute to his book Big Sur, so the playlist was made up of songs that fit that feeling. I remember driving up I-85 that morning and passing the exits for Athens, thinking about how, for whatever reason my playlist seemed to fit the feeling of the city too. (Maybe it was all the Jason Isbell…) Little did I know that one day I would find myself living here, listening to that playlist with a new fondness. READING IN Over the last couple of months I have been devouring books. Among them are two I’m still reading in: Pema Choron’s When Things Fall Apart and Cole Arthur Riley’s This Here Flesh (possibly the most beautiful book I’ve ever read, but more on that in a future newsletter); and one I finished: Dr. Galit Atlas’ Emotional Inheritance (more on this one below). The three of these work so well together, eloquently complementing each other. I love when that happens. When there is a synchronicity to the conversations I’m having, the podcasts I’m listening to, the books I’m reading, and so on, I know I’m onto something; I know that I’m headed in the right direction. THINKING ABOUT A few weeks ago after being bored and taking a hiatus from most of my podcasts I decided to go back and see if there were any good episodes I had missed. I came across an episode of We Can Do Hard Things with Dr. Galit Atlas. The episode is all about intergenerational trauma, and how the experiences of our parents and grandparents - even those experiences unknown to us - influence our DNA and shape us on a cellular level, entering our subconscious in ways we don’t even realize. I was unfamiliar with the concept of epigenetics but became immediately fascinated. I purchased Dr. Atlas’ book (above) the same day and read it in less than a week. You can catch the podcast on Spotify or Apple. CRUSHING ON I am always in awe when a photographer creates a unique and compelling self-portrait. It’s one of the areas I feel like I struggle with most. In fact for me self-portraits are probably the hardest images I ever take on, so I have incredible respect for photographers who can do it successfully. My friend Aaron has done exactly that, creating one of the absolute coolest I think I’ve ever seen, and the image is currently being displayed as part of the city of Roanoke’s Year of the Artist self-portrait series. Aaron creates stunning images no matter where he points his lens, so you should definitely check out his work. (You might even see someone you recognize. Maybe.) And because you all know that I’m constantly crushing on the work of my friends Pete Morelewicz (aka Print Jazz) and Caroline Q. Murphy it would be a travesty for me not to tell all of you Virginia folks about their upcoming show, Candy Coated Dreams, which opens this Friday night, 5-9pm at Libertytown Arts Workshop. They both have some beautiful new pieces to share, plus there will be a band AND rumor has it that there may even be a sweet surprise when you get there.
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