January 17, 2019
Notes from Summer: JILLIAN & I WERE REUNITED AND I LOVE HER! SO MUCH! I spent a week in New York City & only cried on the plane ride there. I grow stronger every day.
Notes from Jillian: SUMMER CAME TO NEW YORK AND I GOT TO SEE HER. Wow! I love my friend! Also, it’s been an entire year since I moved to New York and started my current job. ALSO, I’m moving into a new apartment.
I’ve never recommended something metaphysical before, but if there’s anything I had a lot of exposure to in the past week, it’s this: seeing people I love who I had not seen in a long time, remembering how much my heart ached the last time I saw them, and feeling all of that melt into joy. Keeping in touch is powerful. Honestly, fuck “if you love me let me go”—people can be their whole selves while still being part of you, too.
– Summer
I put off watching this show for so long for the stupidest reason: everyone else was telling me to watch it and I didn’t want to do it out of spite. Usually I try not to be this person, because there’s nothing cool about refusing to enjoy things that everyone else likes, but I was genuinely worried that The Good Place was overhyped. I didn’t want to be disappointed and end up being the one freak who doesn’t like best show on television (an extremely Too Online ™️ mood!) but it turns out there was nothing to worry about. Because it is the best show on television and I love it! You were all right. No further questions.
– Jillian
Not to be dramatic but Marwa Helal is the best poet I’ve ever read? This entire collection is brilliant, but I particularly enjoy the middle section, Immigration as a second language. The way she pushes genre is aspirational; this is true throughout the collection, but the awareness of language the poems possess is disarming & productive–the poems know they are poems and know they are making up for the failure of language in the failing language. It’s heart wrenching even in the most straight-forward moments. Marwa is amazing and I am so happy to be alive the same time she is producing work.
– Summer
This is partially a recommendation for Netflix’s new show Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, partially a recommendation for the best-selling book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, and partially a recommendation for Marie Kondo herself, who is just a wonderful human person. None of us deserve her!
– Jillian