where the hell is this Godot
The other day, I zipped up to New York and swam from Manhattan to Statue of Liberty on the 20th anniversary of 9/11. Unexpectedly, it was a liberating and thrilling experience. (If you think I’m crazy for doing this, not only did my brother do it with me, but he went to work right afterwards while I snored away in his apartment.)
I’m not really sure why I did it. I would like to say that it was in commemoration of 9/11, but that wouldn’t be entirely true. Maybe it was some sort of a mid-life crisis. But, if that was really the case, I would probably rather buy this or this, rather than waking up at an ungodly hour to schlepp across the shipping channel of the Hudson River.
Life seems a bit like one of my favorite plays, Waiting for Godot, these days….waiting for this notion of “normalcy” that may never come, at least not in the way it used to be. I don’t know how to articulate it any better, but I feel that this swim jolted me awake and took me out of this waiting pattern to propel me into action (be it work or family life, and even self-care). It’s not that I was actively angsting about my day-to-day life, but I felt that there was a constant, low-grade hum of anticipation from morning till night. Like waiting for some life-changing news that is far more uplifting and far from the tragedies of COVID, Afghanistan and natural disasters, only to find that you’re actually the real-life Bill Murray in Groundhog Day.
One of my biggest fears is inertia. Have you ever read this book called the The Tartar Steppe (Il deserto dei Tartari) about a soldier’s lifelong wait for a great war and its subsequent glory? [Spoiler alert: just as this great war arrives, the soldier, Giovanni Drogo, after waiting his entire life, dies a lonely death from an illness.] This book captures my worst nightmare. That I become the prisoner of my own construct, and this act of waiting becomes the whole point of life, in and of itself.
So, into the murky, dirty, choppy water I dove in. I know it doesn’t make sense at all now that I’m writing about it. But at 6:30 am on 9/11, swimming with the sunrise over Manhattan and being welcomed by Lady Liberty, it all made perfect sense. And, I felt super motivated to go conquer my humble little universe (after some fried eggs and and a long nap).
For my virtual Dream Box this week:
🧥 Belstaff. After wearing it almost every fall and spring for the last 15 years, I’m sad to admit that my lightweight jacket may need to be retired. I’m staying loyal to one of my favorite brands and checking out their waxed versions.
👖Insulated pants. My baby boy goes to a “forest school” where he spends almost 6 hours outside, rain or snow. The parents are told, “there is no such thing as bad weather. Just bad clothing.” I totally agree. As soon as the temperature hits below 40, I’m going to live in these.
🧘🏽 Hale Pule. I’m a wanna-be groupie of Ayurveda. A friend who’s thinking about importing Ayurvedic ingredients from her hometown in India to the US market recently told me about this place. Just even browsing through the site makes me feel healthier and balanced.
👁️ CVI. People often associate blindness with the eyes. Cortical Vision Impairment (CVI) is a brain-based impairment that impacts 150,000+ kids in the U.S. alone (including my own sweet son). CVI is caused by damage to the visual processing areas of the brain. Did you know that September is Cortical Vision Impairment (CVI) Awareness Month?
🥮 Mooncakes. This week is the Mid-Autumn Festival in China and elsewhere (Koreans call it Chuseok). I’ve heard some people describe it as the Asian Thanksgiving, but not exactly. I mean, it coincides with traditional harvest time, but I think that’s where the comparison ends. For me, after having lived in Hong Kong and Singapore, it’s all about the mooncakes. There is an entire universe dedicated to this very special dessert (which I won’t bore you with), but all I can tell you is that Lady M’s mooncakes look divine. I think they sold out as soon as they came out. I’m going to remember to line up early next year. Even if you can’t have their mooncakes, you HAVE to try their green tea flavored mille crepe cake.