Do You Want Something to Do?
I’m at a loss for words. Not out of shock or confusion but because I simply cannot find the words to accurately describe my disdain. I’ve been really focusing on myself for the last few weeks, doing eat pray love things and whatnot. However, I have to say, it’s a little hard to focus when there is harrowing news being shoved in your face every minute. News that impacts the fate of my country but also my individual life and well-being. I can’t even worry about democracy when it keeps occurring to me that I could be out on my ass with the snap of a 50+ year old incel’s finger. It’s all very sickening and disorienting but as we know, this is the point.
All I know is the conflicting commentary isn’t helping. This is not the time to be telling people to buy gold. Let’s put that in the bin asap. It’s also not a time for the blame game. Truly there were so many horrible decisions made by so many people that got us here that I wouldn’t even know where to start. For one, what is done cannot be undone. All we can ever do is move forward so I thought I’d give people a few actionable items for free. Things to do to prioritize our sanities and our communities. I’m very much in a “don’t get sad, get ready” kind of mood.
Make Friends - I can’t stress this enough. This is actually number 1 on the list of things we can all do right now that we should be doing. Make some damn friends. IRL, especially. Community isn’t a flowery concept we throw around when we talk about organizing. It’s a group of individual people that ALWAYS have at least one thing in common: they’re friends. They like each other and they hang out and they talk. This is a crucial step. All of the influential revolutionaries and freedom fighters you look up to weren’t loners. They had friends and they built coalitions around them. At the very least having someone to look in the eyes and talk to is something you should want to do for yourself.
Put The News Down - Yes stuff is happening and being informed is important but it cannot be every second crisis. Every minute “breaking” in bright red bold text. Do you have any idea how burnt out you get after just a week of that? It renders you completely useless in the long run which is actually the point. Don’t let these people colonize your mind and free time.
Girl, Go Read - Articles, fiction, essays, plays. Read and also if you hate a book you’re reading, don’t try and force it then get annoyed with the whole process and rage-quit reading. This has happened to me way too many times when I could’ve just… picked up a different book… Also, reading here on Substack counts. I didn’t see it this way but it is. Count your completion wins.
Find a Workout - We have to get physical and live in our bodies. I was a step away from a crashout when I started boxing 2 weeks ago. Now I’m making plans to go more and I can still maintain a hold on all that rage and bitterness I feel. Punching helps. Plus, I want to be shredded. I can be shallow too.
Keep as much of your money as possible out of the plutocracies’ hands. They don’t deserve every penny. They’re using it for HGH and bad filler anyway. In addition to buying an entire country. Horrendous.
This is what I’m doing and in the next few weeks I will be adding more. More than anything, the feeling of empowerment that I get from these is worth any diminishing return I may receive. I think that’s the most important part.
“Girl, go read” BUT ACTUALLY