WHAT is happening?

No, really. WHAT?

Oh, dear readers, I’ve been thinking of you and wanting to tell you about all the wonderful and beautiful things I’ve been seeing and eating and reading, but every day, we get zapped hard by what appear to be non-stop lasers of destruction, negativity and, yes, I’m going to say it: evil, and I begin to wonder what possibly I could say (or do) to lessen the incredible weight of this non-stop-full-bore assault on all that I love and adore, and all that makes this country great.

Last Thursday, I bit into a piece of crunchy toast and my jaw cracked in protest. A warm feeling spread outward from the hinge of my face. It was not warm like a nice mug of tea and a woolen cardigan, it was oozing and lava like. I was suddenly afraid of what might happen if I opened or closed my mouth.

I’ve gone to the doctor and to the dentist and I’m wearing my mouthguard and, at night, taking muscle relaxers that push me with a firm hand into immediate and dreamless sleep. I don’t really like either of these solutions.

Everyone tells me I hold my tension in my jaw and everyone tells me to relax. “Breathe,” they say. I try. But more often, I notice that I’m holding my breath.

Breathe.

I’m breathing.

I’m looking for the antidote.

Last week, before my jaw staged a rebellion, I took part in Career Day at my local high school where I got to field questions about writing from some very smart, curious, and enthusiastic students. (Some of whom made this amazing sign for our table.)

I also visited The Hammer Museum and saw the amazing work of Noah Davis who seemed to be born with a paintbrush in his hand and his foot on the gas. When he was just a teen, his parents set him up in his own painting studio, encouraging his exploration and experimentation (while keeping the mess contained.) With, what the last placard in the exhibit describes as an “enduring commitment to finding a painterly language to articulate the many textures of what it is to be alive,” he worked almost constantly throughout his brief life (1983-2015) and this work is so gorgeous and intimate that I felt his presence in the room. Get yourself to the westside. This is not be missed.

On the other side of town, at the Huntington Library, you should also check out Don Bachardy: A Life in Portraits. Over 100 portraits trace the life of Bachardy and his longtime partner, writer Christopher Isherwood, and offer the viewer a sliver of Hollywood history. Bachardy, like Noah Davis, began to draw as a teenager, and over the course of his life has created hundreds of portraits of artists, celebrities, socialites, friends and lovers. When lacking a model, he turned to the mirror and captured himself.

It’s important to balance all this art with action, so I’ve been writing letters and signing petitions and volunteering when I can. A few hot topics on that front: did you know that tucked away in the so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” is a full scale assault on our public lands? Check out this map and zoom in on your favorite western state to see what these complete psychos plan to put up for sale. I’m particularly incensed to see that marked for potential liquidation are big chunks of forest in the both the Sandia and Manzano Mountains of New Mexico. You can sign a petition here and send a letter to your representative here. If you are in New Mexico, you can make a sign and gather with your fellow outdoorsy types and speak up. Call your reps. Make a fuss. Really.

Because those creeps in the White House are not content to only destroy the environment, but are also gunning for our LGBTQ+ friends, you might check out many possible actions at the Los Angeles LGBT Center. Write letters, call your representatives, be an advocate and an ally wherever and whenever you can.

In addition to denying climate change, persecuting the LGBTQ+ community, cutting funding for science, and engaging in all manner of extremely divisive and destructive action, that oafish man and his posturing posse are striking fear into the heart of Los Angeles in their relentless pursuit to increase deportation numbers. All over the city, our fellow Angelenos are being grabbed off the street by masked officers. Documented or undocumented, all people living in the United States have RIGHTS. Many local organizations are pulling together to protect these rights. Red Cards detailing these rights are available for download or to order for free from the Immigrant Legal Resource Center.

The above image is a print made by Corita Kent. A few weeks ago, the Corita Art Center was giving these away for free. The center, located in downtown Los Angeles, is worth a visit. You can see lots of Kent’s artwork as well as some inspiring footage of the former nun pinning back the sleeves of her voluminous habit so she could get down to the work of making art.

Get to it. Stay with it. But also, take time to rest your body and your mind.

I’ve been practicing the mindfulness trick of picking a color and letting my brain settle on that color where it appears in my environment. I often look for pink because it’s so cheerful. Follow one bright spot to the next. And the next.