An Ode to Being Earnest
Everybody's so punk on the internet...
I’m very, very excited this week. The Life of a Showgirl is released today, Friday 3rd October, and I have the day off to listen to the whole thing repeatedly. The tickets to see the documentary at the cinema are ready and waiting; my orange sparkle cardigan is in transit. We are living at the same time as one of the greatest and most earnest poets to put pen to paper. I can be debated on this, but I will not change my mind.
It’s not exactly unusual to be a Taylor Swift fan. She is loved by many, a superstar in a million ways. If it’s seen as being a bit cringe to admit to being such a superfan, mostly from the rolling eyes of those who simply don’t feel as deeply about her and her lyrics as I/we do: well that’s fine. Roll on!
So in honour of my good friend Taylor, I’d like to focus this post on two of my favourite quotes of hers:
“Think of your energy as if it’s expensive. As if it’s like a luxury item. Not everyone can afford it.”
“I don’t think you should ever have to apologise for your excitement. Just because it’s something cliché doesn’t mean that it’s not something that’s awesome. The worst kind of person is someone who makes someone feel bad, dumb or stupid for, like, being excited about something”
Which brings me to a list of things that bring joy, in the hope that it encourages you to do the same. There was a book written in 1949 called ‘Delight’ by J.B. Priestly which described simple pleasures in order to cheer people up at the end of the war. Dolly Alderton already wrote about this in 2016 and so inspired by yet another tall, smart broad, here goes!
My earnest list of delights:
Being brought a coffee first thing in the morning, particularly if I don’t have to get up straight away and can scroll around on my phone while sipping away at my morning nectar. Bonus points for this being early enough on a WEEKDAY! What a thrill.
As per the above, the release of a new Taylor Swift album - the anticipation, the easter eggs, the relentless pedalling of merch which obviously, yes, I will get sucked into. The fanfare, the dissection of lyrics, the analysis of every song. I. Love. It. Current favourite songs from Life of a Showgirl are ‘The Fate of Ophelia’, ‘Opalite’, and ‘Eldest Daughter’.
Getting to hand-write anything. A card, a letter, filling a notebook with screeds of thoughts until my hand starts to cramp up.
A perfectly crafted decaf iced latte with one pump of vanilla syrup. Very few places get this right. Too much vanilla makes it both bitter and sickly at the same time, not enough ice is a lukewarm disaster; too much ice waters it down. I developed a small addiction to the Starbucks glass bottles of iced coffee over the summer, not realising that the caffeine content was contributing to 6 weeks of insomnia and major evening anxiety. It’s hard to have nice things.
That feeling after any yoga or pilates class when you’re a) a little bit smug from having participated at all, b) slightly taller from fixing your posture for an hour c) able to breathe better from actually breathing and d) chilled out for the first time all week.
Seeing something fairly cultural and actually understanding it fully. Not just understanding it but enjoying it. Years ago I went to see the ballet: ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. I didn’t know anything about the story, had not read much Shakespeare, assumed I wasn’t smart enough in the first place, and went in blind. I hated it. I couldn’t understand what was happening and what the heck was that with the donkey? I felt worse coming out of it because everyone around me seemed so… intelligent?
The thing about the ‘Arts’ is that I thankfully no longer believe that it takes a higher level of intelligence than I have. Last weekend we went to see the ballet ‘Mary Queen of Scots’. I’ll admit I was a little nervous: ‘What if I don’t get it? And leave feeling a bit thick again?’ But this was different. For a start, we watched the movie a few weeks ago. The Margot Robbie and Saoirse Ronan version. The theatre gave us a one-page synopsis before the show so we could follow along with the story. It was brilliant - so clever, so creative, a feat of athleticism and storytelling that swept us along. Sure it took a while to adjust to who the characters were, but that wasn’t a bad thing, it made you concentrate. Time disappeared and I left feeling… cultured! 5 stars, definitely recommend. Just watch the movie first.
A really deep conversation. I know that some people don’t like this. It makes them uncomfortable and they would rather stay light and surface level. Personally, I find small talk tough going for too long. It’s not a case of one being better than the other. Small talk has its place (at the start of Teams Meetings and large group gatherings, absolutely, let’s talk about the weather), but now and again, in a one-to-one situation, I like to get right into it. Bear our souls and dig into life’s big things. I guess it’s a spectrum, and what fills one cup makes another want to smash it to pieces. Yet another quirk of being human.
Walking on a warm evening, the smell of my dog’s head when he’s been freshly groomed, my cat purring anywhere near me, the sight of a full moon, the light in October, the satisfaction when the whole house has been cleaned and a candle is lit, winning on Premium Bonds, sending flowers, chocolate covered fruit, peppermint tea, Rituals body mists, getting hooked on a song and learning every single word so you can belt it out in the shower, an adult being kind, a teenager being polite, a child being excited.
A perfectly made Hendricks gin with Fevertree tonic and a large slice of cucumber in a fancy glass, made by a professional.
Salted chocolate.
Salted pistachios.
Salted tomatoes.
Salt.
An Update
The garden is winding down now that we’re knee-deep in Autumn. I’ve never paid so much attention to the seasons as I have since claiming to be green-fingered. The summer garden brought a lot of joy as the blueberries were harvested and were largely edible, the bees were all over the lavender, and the clematis which I thought might not pull through, grew fresh leaves and new shoots. She’s still going. I’m very proud of her.
All of this to say, Happy Taylor Swift Day!
Keep it 100.
Thanks for reading. Until next time!
Amy x
💗 love this!