Sycamore Press October 2024: Staying Grounded

I’ve been thinking a lot about the ground this month. Maybe it’s the whirlwind of work and personal activities to juggle, the Sisyphean washing and resoiling of dishes and laundry, or the unrelenting heat. For me, these have all been dizzying, disorienting. In that haze, I want to grasp for something solid and immovable. Something like solid ground. My feet firmly on it — that must mean I’m not upside-down, at least. That perfect tenderness, the way the giant Earth pushes against me, nudging me skyward with just the weight of my body, nothing more. And the cool, stone tile floor. Ahhhh…

I’m actually sitting on the floor as I write this. What, you thought I was speaking figuratively? C’mon, this is a newsletter, not the monthly poetry review! Oh, speaking of the news, it’s been a busy month (and I even have an ~exciting surprise~ to share), so let’s get into it!

The only thing in him that was thinking was the sound of his own shoes echoing in the head that the sun was now tranquilly igniting.

— Clarice Lispector, The Apple in The Dark (transl. Benjamin Moser)

General Life Updates

Did I mention that it’s still really hot? We got a brief respite earlier in the month, but we’re back in the thick of it now. It’s so much worse when it feels like it should already be over. At least we’ve been treated to some cool evenings.

Oh, right, the ground! There are a couple of stories there. Remember my offhand mention of some new shoes last month? They are actally “barefoot” style shoes, and my two pairs in that style are basically all I wear now (in terms of shoes, that is). They’re not toe shoes or anything (although I have taken to wearing either toe socks or tabi socks underneath), but they are thin, flexible, flat, and — crucially — foot-shaped.

I can’t endorse any health claims made about such shoes (some of which got Vibram, makers of the infamous “five fingers” shoes, in legal trouble years ago), but I love taking in that extra bit of sensory information with my feet as I walk around. It’s kind of something I’ve been getting into, walking. Doing it mindfully, even playfully, feels nice. Oh, and the shoes have helped advance my quest to un-bunch my toes. I want another pair of grasping appendages, dangit!

In case there was any doubt that I’m in deep with this hippie bull crap about my body’s relationship to the ground, there’s also this business about sitting on the floor. Sure, I’d seen some stuff online to this effect. People with no furniture in their houses and stuff like that. But just trying it for a while while sitting and doing a crossword on the coffee table drinking tea was enough to sell me.

I experimented a little more at work with an ottoman, and, before I knew it, I’d swapped my desk at home for our coffee table (oops — more room for yoga in the living room, I guess!) and my desk chair for two books topped with a comforter, ha. It all amounts to the perfect height when I’m kind of squatting down, but of course I also sit in all kinds of crazy positions now which would be impossible in most chairs. It’s weirdly perfect for me. One kind of ancillary benefit to this setup is that it makes it both easier and more enticing for the cats to approach me while I’m on the computer.

Sitting at the computer with my new setup, I found myself wanting to recreate that same comfort and simplicity in the cyber realm. This is tough these days: it feels like there are maybe three websites out there, and they all feel exploitative at best and actively hostile to my existence at worst. But the demise of the brave (and, admittedly, ill-fated-from-the-jump) social media upstart Cohost saw much of its user base rallying around blogs and RSS feeds. And that intrigued me.

RSS and Atom feeds, which are found all over the Web but mostly ignored in this age of algorithms and internet oligopolies, let you aggregate updates from all your favorite websites, blogs, and even specific YouTube channels or social media accounts, into one place. It’s pretty nifty stuff, and it’s reconnected me to a part of the Web that seems almost hidden when every Google search seems to output nothing but lazy listicles and other such slop. So many passionate people are sharing their thoughts and creative work on websites that don’t suck — if we could only find a way to pay attention. Hey, that makes me think… I should start a blog!

I started a blog

Surprise! The new digital home for my personal musings and creative expression can be found at www.sycamoreblog.org. There’ll be a variety of stuff on there, including my walking blog The Walkabout, which is more or less what it sounds like. I also have a section for talking about the various weird little things I get into.

Having this kind of structure makes the new site much less intimidating to update than my now-defunct Neocities page. I promise this one will see regular updates (though The Walkabout is on a bit of a pause pending better weather). Don’t believe me? Subscribe via RSS to keep an eye on updates! I’ll also mention new posts here in the newsletter, which is by no means going away!

Anyway, I hope you’ll check out the website. I’m really excited about the various directions it could take. If you’re a hardcore fan of the newsletter, this could be a good way to get your fix in between installments.

Arts & Entertainment

In spite of all this exciting stuff, I haven’t always felt myself this month. Many times, I can’t say that I even felt particularly good. Whether it’s a cause or an effect in this case, my reading slowed waaaay down. Part of this is because the book I’ve been reading had quite a slow start (I feel like I’m repeating myself here, which can’t be a good sign). But things are picking up. I’ve been better about journaling these past couple days too, for whatever that’s worth.

For some reason, I’ve been on a big They Might Be Giants kick. Not even like crazy deep cuts or anything. Honestly, it’s been a lot of Flood. Maybe part of the appeal is that the They Might Be Giants Wiki (This Might Be A Wiki) is such a great website where I can easily find myself browsing for hours. (Sorry for harping on websites again.) This reminds me that Steve Roden’s delightfully spare 2003 album Light Forms has made an excellent soundtrack for late-night rabbit hole exploration.

Some good news is that we got to take in some Real Life art this month, both at art gallery openings (I’m told it’s the season for that right now) and at an awesome zine fest we attended!

By the way, Sonora is going to have a piece featured in a local art exhibit soon! I am so excited and proud. Put that good stuff in the gallery!!

Reflections

..”Put that good stuff in the gallery?” My words aren’t with me so much right now. It’s getting late. I didn’t even mention that black lentil and broccolini dish I made! Oh well. This newsletter has gotten too long anyway. I would go back and edit it down a bit tomorrow, but I can’t keep myself from releasing it spur-of-the-moment in the dead of night.

Maybe it’s because I know the feeling of being up late feeling lonely. Waiting for something, anything. A call out of the dark. A friendly salutation. Something to break that fog of isolation, to remind you that there is a world and other people out there and a sun shining down on another part of the planet, always. Usually it doesn’t come. Sore eyelids sooner or later kiss together. Our dreams give us something to chew on (for better or worse), and scramble us up a bit. And then it’s another day. But maybe, for you, this can be the friendly salutation to smooth out that transition into sleep, into tomorrow. I hope so.

Goodnight! Sweet dreams! And, to the rest of you, have a great day!

Yr Friend,

N