Pam Smilow Midnight mixed media on canvas 52” x 80” $8500

three things we love

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Ann LaMott Thoughts

Ann Lamott's Thoughts on her 68th Birthday:

"I am going to be 68 in six days, if I live that long. I’m optimistic. Mostly.
God, what a world. What a heartbreaking, terrifying freak show. It is completely ruining my birthday plans. I was going to celebrate how age and the grace of myopia have given me the perspective that almost everything sorts itself out in the end. That good will and decency and charity and love always eventually conspire to bring light into the darkest corners. That the crucifixion looked like a big win for the Romans.
But turning 68 means you weren’t born yesterday. Turning 68 means you’ve seen what you’ve seen—Ukraine, Sandy Hook, the permafrost…Marjorie Taylor Greene. By 68, you have seen dear friends literally ravaged by cancer, lost children, unspeakable losses. The midterms are coming up. My mind is slipping. My dog died.
Really, to use the theological terms, it is just too frigging much.
And regrettably, by 68, one is both seriously uninterested in a vigorous debate on the existence of evil, or even worse, a pep talk.
So what does that leave? Glad you asked: the answer is simple. A few very best friends with whom you can share your truth. That’s the main thing. By 68, you know that the whole system of our lives works because we are not all nuts on the same day. You call someone and tell them that you hate everyone and all of life, and they will be glad you called. They felt that way three days and you helped them pull out of it by making them laugh or a cup of tea. You took them for a walk, or to Target.
Also, besides our friends, getting outside and looking up and around changes us: remember, you can trap bees on the bottom of Mason jars with a bit of honey and without a lid, because they don’t look up. They just walk around bitterly bumping into the glass walls. That is SO me. All they have to do is look up and fly away. So we look up. In 68 years, I have never seen a boring sky. I have never felt blasé about the moon, or birdsong, or paper whites.
It is a crazy drunken clown college outside our windows now, almost too much beauty and renewal to take in. The world is warming up.
Well, how does us appreciating spring help the people of Ukraine? If we believe in chaos theory, and the butterfly effect, that the flapping of a Monarch’s wings near my home can lead to a weather change in Tokyo, then maybe noticing beauty—flapping our wings with amazement—changes things in ways we cannot begin to imagine. It means goodness is quantum. Even to help the small world helps. Even prayer, which seems to do nothing. Everything is connected.
But quantum is perhaps a little esoteric in our current condition. (Well, mine: I’m sure you’re just fine.) I think infinitely less esoteric stuff at 68. Probably best to have both feet on the ground, ogle the daffodils, take a sack of canned good over to the food pantry, and pick up trash. This helps our insides enormously.
So Sunday I will celebrate the absolutely astonishing miracle that I, specifically, was even born. As Fredrick Buechner wrote, “The grace of God means something like, “Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are because the party wouldn’t have been complete without you.” I will celebrate that I have shelter and friends and warm socks and feet to put in them, and that God or Gus found a way to turn the madness and shame of my addiction into grace, I’ll shake my head with wonder, which I do more and more as I age, at all the beauty that is left and all that still works after so much has been taken away. So celebrate with me. Step outside and let your mouth drop open. Feed the poor with me, locally or, if you want to buy me something, make a donation to UNICEF. My party will not be the same without you."--Ann Lamott

Amazon Unionizes

Two best friends succeed in forming the first Amazon Union in Staten Island.

During the height of the pandemic, we all talked about celebrating essential workers who stayed on the job and serviced us--the grocery store workers, the bus drivers, the nurses, online warehouse employees--people who provided critical services when we needed them most. Christian Smalls, a Staten Island assistant manager at Amazon, became very concerned that Amazon wasn't doing nearly enough to protect workers from Covid-19, whether on personal protection equipment or social distancing. He decided to lead a walkout in March 2020. It got him fired the next day under the guise of his violating social distancing himself. State attorney general Leticia James accused Amazon of unlawfully firing Smalls for speaking out on safety issues...

Long story short, this unlikely pair went up against Jeff Bezos, huge sums of money and a campaign of union busting and misinformation and they won! Listen to Amy Goodman's interview with the pair--two ordinary citizens who stuck their neck out and won. Watch this movement--the New York Times thinks it is ushering in a new era.
Many of us rely on Amazon, and these two union founders have vowed this is just the beginning of protecting Amazon workers rights across the country.

The Temptations

Owen Williams, the only surviving original member of the Temptations.

I am not usually big on musicals but saw Ain't Too Proud, the story and love letter to the Temptations when it made its start at the Berkeley Rep a few years ago pre-Covid. I loved it! It has finished its run in New York but now goes on tour to many cities around the country. Check out the schedule to see if it is coming to a city near you. I highly recommend it as it weaves the drama of their lives into their incredible music and dance! Here is a preview of the show. And if you want to be uplifted, listen to this playlist of all their greatest hits. And for those who want to go deeper into the history of these motown wonders of the 60's, here is a documentary about all the original leads.

Charity of the Week:
Amazon Labor Union

Products of the Week

About The Author

New York City based contemporary artist, Pam Smilow created the creative lifestyle blog “things we love” in an effort to foster a sense of community during times of isolation and reflection. To read more about her and her art, visit her website and check out the essay written by the Hammond Museum's Frank Matheis entitled The Sophisticated Innocence of Pam Smilow. And by the way, let me know in the comment section what you think of the new haircut...