Sunday Sundae (on a Monday!) #3
Saharan dust, St. Augustine, and Serendipity
Sunday Sundae is my bi-monthly Sunday treat to you, where I’ll share what I’m reading, teaching/learning, wearing, watching - and what’s bringing me joy. Let me know if there’s anything else you’d like to see here!
Reading:
Finally finished The Myth of Making It! My brain is still feeling a little fried after this weekend to share a book review, but if you’re curious, let me know, and I’d be happy to talk about it! I would recommend.
Watching:
Geek Girl (Netflix) - I enjoy teen shows because they’re fun and if my students have also watched, I can find ways to tie them into lessons. This show was based on a book series (I haven’t read). The main character on this show is autistic and the actress who plays her is autistic, as well! I love the representation and diversity on the show, and I thought it was fun overall. Certain moments gave me flashbacks to my time in the fashion industry, so that part was enjoyable, too.
Learning:
Prepping for the start of the school year (which is only 2 weeks away 🫠). India’s history is one of my weakest areas in World History, so I’m spending more time focusing on it as I work on lessons.
How Britain Used India to Replace Slave Labor, AJ+ (YouTube, below) - This is a short, 12 minute watch. I had no knowledge of this history. I did know that indentured servitude was replaced by slavery in the United States, but I didn't know Britain brought it back there after abolishing slavery, and under such harsh and extreme conditions. Just another reminder that colonialism, imperialism, and white supremacy have never done anything good for society. An important watch!
What brought me joy in the past two weeks:
A quiet, solo beach morning and swim last week with a beautiful, hazy sky. When the dust from the Sahara desert blows across the Atlantic, it creates incredible skies here. This yearly summer phenomenon also gets me thinking about how close and connected we all really are: I’m in Florida, breathing in Saharan dust that traveled thousands of miles across the Atlantic Ocean from Africa just a few days ago. How incredible is that? If you’re unfamiliar, the dust is an effect of seasonal thunderstorms happening in Africa. These storms provide winds that have been counted on for generations to facilitate Indian Ocean trade. And we benefit on the Atlantic and Caribbean coasts because the dust can help suppress tropical storm and hurricane activity and it carries iron for the soil. Here’s a great explanation from meteorologist, Adam Berg on NBC.
My friend and I went to a local art museum for creative inspiration. I did a quick DuckDuckGo search (DuckDuckGo is a Google alternative, learn more here!) and found the museum has been there since before I was born, but this was my first time stepping inside! I’m trying to visit more local museums and this one exceeded expectations. We went for the Color Field exhibit, including some Frank Stella pieces, one of my fave artists! I was pleasantly surprised to find an extensive Louis Glackens exhibit too, he was the staff artist for Puck Magazine! Puck was a satirical magazine in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The political cartoons Louis drew are serving as primary sources in history lessons today!
Morris Louis, laughing with my pal Lizzy, Frank Stella, Jack Bush, Louis Glackens Drew and I spent the weekend wedding planning in St. Augustine. It was a hectic, whirlwind of a trip, but full of some truly serendipitous moments. We started the trip with a cake tasting - first of all, DELICIOUS - with a baker named Dana! We sampled so many cake and icing flavors. Want to take a guess at which flavor we chose for our cake?
After a chaotic Saturday morning, we ran into my childhood best friend at breakfast, who I haven’t seen in 20+ years, and it was a joyous reunion. She invited us to our table and we met her husband of nearly a decade and her two awesome kids. What a magical moment!
We are planning a vegan, sustainable wedding and were also lucky to find a vegan planner full of great ideas to help with our vision. We met her for the first time Saturday night and checked out our venue in person on Sunday morning.
We ended our trip with more delicious food at a local park with a pop up food vendor we’re hiring to cater. The food was amazing and it feels surreal to see our vision coming to life and with such great people. Neither of us enjoy being the center of attention so the idea of a wedding has felt strange, but we are finally starting to embrace it as a celebration of our love, especially during dark and troubling times, and an opportunity to reconnect with and introduce our families and friends.
I hope your week was sprinkled with joyful moments, please comment and share one of yours! I hope in the weeks to come you are able to find moments of peace, clarity, connection, and community.
Thank you for being here,
Dana