Thrill-Seeker? Risk-Taker? A Spider's Tale
Thrill-Seeker? Risk-Taker? A Spider's Tale
Or, Here's A Bunch of Stuff That Inspired Me This Week
Itsy Bitsy
As I write this, there is a tiny translucent spider that keeps descending from the ceiling, dropping down within an inch of my face, and then scurrying back up it’s little lifeline, over and over.
He’s got balls, this one. Dancing on the edge, a thrill-seeker1, always pushing the limits. How far can I go? How close can I get?
Little does this daredevil know, I’m not the type of person who kills bugs. I’m the type of person who just hopes they go away and…
HOLY SHIT IT JUST LANDED ON MY KEYBOARD
And then, WOOP right back up his little string! And now he’s gone!
Was that all he had wanted? To taunt me? Could he sense that I am not a spider-killer, just a spider-disliker? Or was it something more?
Maybe he had he been an adventurer out to conquer the unreachable summit otherwise known as my laptop?
Or an adrenaline junkie looking for his next high?
Oh! Or, maybe he was an explorer striving to reach the bottom of the ocean? Was this like The Abyss and I’m his alien?
...
Wow.
ADHD is really amazing, guys.
Please enjoy a collection of curios that have recently crossed my path below:
A Song I Had Forgotten
You know how sometimes a song just… hits you? Like, square in the chest, like BAM!, but, like, in a good way?
That happened to me this week when I heard this for the first time in ages. I mean, these lyrics, come on:
Do you realize
That everyone you know someday will die?
And instead of saying all of your goodbyes
Let them know you realize
that life goes fast
It's hard to make the good things last
You realize the sun doesn't go down
It's just an illusion caused by the world spinning round
Pet Psychic
“Also, I like it when my mom wears bright colored socks. They look good on her.”
The above is a DIRECT QUOTE from my friend’s cat Rico, as relayed by a sought-after animal communicator. Rico, who just turned 18, hasn’t been doing so well lately and after taking him to the vet, my friend wanted to find out how he was feeling.
He talked about her socks, and which music he liked best that she played, and why he didn’t like to go into one room downstairs (it smelled like mold). He told her that the selfies they take together are the best and that it would be cool to have a picture of himself on a t-shirt or a flag.
He said he wasn’t afraid of dying.
More For Your Ears
Books on tape! Remember those? No? Shutup.
Anywho, audiobooks are great fun when they are read by actual actors who are giving a performance. I get them through the online library app Libby because I’m too cheap to buy things these days. These three are great books on their own for sure, but I would argue that listening to the audiobooks might actually be a superior experience.
You guys, if you like mysteries even a little bit, get over the dumb title and listen to this already. I mean, Spielberg loved it so much he’s got Chris Columbus directing the movie with Helen Mirren, Ben Kingsley and Pierce Brosnan and they are separately writing a whole new story with the characters to do a PLAY VERSION. It’s that fun.
I just listened to Book 2 and it was, dare I say, a delightful romp.
The Streep just MURDERS this book with the most amazing (holy shit that damn spider is back AGAIN, I’m just going to ignore it) reading. It’s a juicy tale about a woman recounting her earlier days as an actress to her grown daughters and honestly, Meryl’s read totally elevates the story.
Lincoln at the Bardo - read by Nick Offerman, David Sedaris, Carrie Brownstein, Susan Sarandon, Bradley Whitford, Bill Hader, Megan Mullally, Rainn Wilson, Jeff Tweedy, Kat Dennings, Jeffrey Tambor, and Keegan-Michael Key
There is seriously nothing like it. (FYI George Saunders also has a wildly successful Substack if you want to check it out).
Ice Cream On A Hot Summer Day
Is this a groundbreaking recommendation? No.
Is Salt & Straw, specifically, a hot new take? Not in LA, no. It’s already insanely popular. But I had some this week and it was so delicious I felt like shouting from the rooftops anyway. They have flavors like fried chicken and smoked mac and cheese (are these actually good? No idea! But I applaud the creativity!) but also traditionally yummy sounding things like strawberry coconut sorbet and apple cider donuts.
Women of Wrestling
I went to a taping of W.O.W, Women of Wrestling, as one does, and got to see lots of women in bonkers outfits pretending to hit each other. It was a blast.
However, this then led me down the internet rabbit hole to discover Japan’s Pro Women wrestling and that… is a whole ‘nother level, my friends.
Behold:
These women actually FLY!
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
I had heard about TMS a few times before, but I finally decided to stop pretending that I knew what it meant and look it up already. From the Mayo Clinic:
“Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a procedure that uses magnetic fields to stimulate nerve cells in the brain to improve symptoms of major depression. It's called a "noninvasive" procedure because it's done without using surgery or cutting the skin.”
At first I thought maybe it was like electric shock therapy but then I read:
“unlike electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), TMS doesn't cause seizures or memory loss. It also doesn't require the use of anesthesia, which puts people in a sleep-like state.”
Modern medicine, folks. It’s amazing.
Dogs Are The Best
Here’s a video that proves it:2
I need to mention that WordHippo offers “sex pest” as a synonyn to thrill-seeker and I’ve never been more curious.
In case you were wondering, the spider is still here.