This is one of those nights where I don’t quite know how to start. What I tell my students to do in these situations is to just keep writing, letting the brain declutter until you find that thread of reason and inventiveness that wants to make its way to the page. This doesn’t always work–as a teacher and a writer. Occasionally the tank is dry and all you are left with are the words around the edges of sense that are barely worth sharing.
What I can talk about is my own life. I’ve struggled as of late to produce any valuable writing. I have lost my muse and am left to chart new entry points to the well of stories. My new plan is to sit amongst people and take stock of the lives and movement around me. While writing happens locked in an office, ideas come together on the streets, where people love, cry, argue, and misbehave. So I am taking it upon myself to explore AZ and take advantage of what the city has to offer me. I suspect I’ll be pleasantly surprised.
See, while NYC is unparalleled for its stories, people often come to AZ as an escape. Phoenix is the Vegas you actually settle down in. It exchanges slots for poorly imagined mcMansions and youth soccer leagues. On this quiet lamplit streets live people who are often running away from something or towards a particular vision of the American dream. I wonder where they came from and what about here–this sedentary life–is so compelling.
Some Thoughts:
- Watched Saturday Night Live for the first time in a decade and it really was outstanding. Dave Chapelle reemerged and brought a Tribe Called Quest and Chris Rock with him. He was funny and poignant on the subject of the election and did a god job to ground things in perspective. Never doubt the healing properties of a good laugh.