The B-Roll #19

Excerpt from Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

This is the nineteenth edition of my weekly newsletter, The B-Roll. Thank you for coming along for the ride. If you think someone in your life might also enjoy these letters, please share this with them.

Hey you,It’s raining outside. I’m curled under a blanket, trying to decide between getting a glass of wine or making tea. I’m taking a break from reading a book that my best friend recommended because I want to scream at her for always finding books that hit me right in the gut at the right time. It’s like the Universe yelling at me through her. But of course, it’s just her, sometimes knowing me better than I know myself. 

There is a navy blue lace dress I am thinking about. I bought it a few years ago and according to my IG memories; I wore it to a friend’s wedding 6 years ago. I also wore it when I went out with my cousin for his birthday in Istanbul in November. I put the two pictures side by side. I stopped trying to focus on weight gain and honestly, the recent one does give me main character energy.

But then I started thinking about leaning into the comfort and familiarity of having a dress for 6 years. And then realizing that I have one dress that I’ve had for close to a decade. I’m the kind of person who will buy multiple colors of a top if it fits me well and I love it. I will wear clothes down until the last possible second. (However, I will never have jeans for longer than a few months because my thunder thighs are a force of nature.)

When I find an author whose voice I love, I want to read all of their books. I find comfort in the adventures of the characters. Sometimes, I notice little things, like how their characters are in the same universe, but it’s subtle (unless it’s a series, of course). 

I like comfort.

And taking chances. I find comfort in taking chances.

We talk about life happening outside of our comfort zone. I know I wrote about this in here before, but lately, I’m thinking more about how something like a dress can be an anchor as I go through life. I don’t even know if I’d recognize the person I was 6 years ago, but I know she would be proud of the battles I’ve fought and won. 

I think about escaping. I think about how during my depressive episodes, all I can do is turn on a show I’ve seen a million times and let it run for hours at a time. I feel like a failure because I’m hiding from life instead of dealing with it. But then I come out, and little by little, I can do the tasks that overwhelmed me because that’s what it takes.

It’s not an escape to watch shows or movies while unplugging because our brains can’t take one more sentence of chaotic and horrible news. It’s not escape to say fuck it and go for a drink with a friend. It’s not an escape to go to a workout class and just shut everything out except for steadying myself as I lift a pair of dumbbells over my head while standing on one leg.

It’s not an escape.

It’s dropping an anchor, furling the sails, and going below deck to avoid the waves overwhelming you.

So if you need to drop the anchor and go below deck for a while because you’re overwhelmed by the anger, grief, and frustration you feel at the world right now, you do that. You gather your strength. Because the storm will still rage on and you need your strength to keep going.

LANGUAGE CORNER: Which came first: The bird or the country

Today's language corner comes courtesy of my friend

, who sent me a message a few weeks ago saying that the turkey the bird

is

, in fact, named after Türkiye. Which I forgot about until I was having dinner with one of my best friends on Friday, and he and I started going down a Wikipedia path on origins of country names. So, thanks to his digging, here's how turkey the bird got its name.

And it has to do with another bird: The guinea fowl, which is native to eastern Africa and was imported to Europe through the Ottoman Empire. Istanbul sat on the silk road and became a critical meeting point for commerce between Asia and Europe.

Because guinea fowl came from the Turks, Europeans called the guinea fowl the turkey-cock or turkey-hen. Turns out, when the settlers came to America, they confused the bird native to America with the guinea fowl, but there's a bit of literary history as well. The North American bird was mentioned in Henry IV and in A Christmas Carol. So, when Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863, the turkey was already a staple of Christmas dinner, so it was a natural choice for Thanksgiving dinner as well.

A NOTE OF GRATITUDE...

When I finally came up with the concept and name for this newsletter, I felt proud because it had become difficult to separate my professional career from my personal voice. Although I haven't been able to keep it up at a weekly cadence, whenever I sit down to write, I'm proud of the letter I send your way. It's also a fun way for me to learn about my language and culture.

A few of you reply back to the letters here and there, and that means the world.

However, more recently, a couple of people reached out to me, unprompted, to tell me how much they love seeing The B-Roll in their inbox. I'll be honest. I cried because it's been a long time since I wrote like this and to share it with you is an honor and privilege.

So thank you for reading. Thank you for appreciating my words. Thank you for being part of my community.

... and a small request

Although this isn't a professional newsletter, I do know the power of recommendations. So, if you ever feel inclined to give me a 1-3 sentence review of The B-Roll that I can use whenever I promote it, it would mean a lot. (And it can 100% be anonymous).

SHARING CORNER:

Well, since I talked so much about books and authors, I want to give a few recommendations. 

• Did you know that Elizabeth Olsen, our beloved Scarlet Witch, wrote a children's book? It's called Hattie Harmony: Worry Detective. It's a character created to help children manage anxiety, with coping mechanisms and tools outlined at the back of the book. It's adorable and it sounds like it will be a series!

• It's Been a Pleasure, Noni Blake: I'm in the middle of this book and I was hooked from the first page. It's all about starting over, putting yourself first, and it's adorable. I'm sensing a theme 😂

• Malibu Rising: I read this a while ago but after re-reading Daisy Jones and the Six, and reading another one of her books titled One True Loves this week, I can confidently say that this is my favorite book by Reid. She's also the author of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

• The London House: A complete pivot from the other books I've been reading, I found my way back to WW2 historical fiction. If you're into discovering family secrets, espionage, and 1930s Paris, you'll enjoy this one.

***

Thanks for reading this far, friend. As with everything in life, this is a continuous work-in-progress and you can always hit "Reply" to give me feedback, commentary, or your thoughts on the topic of the letter.Until next time, I wish you a sane and healthy week.With love,