As a Corpus Christi native, I love Joey so much for challenging the status quo and just being balls-to-the-wall outspoken about the stupidity of local land caretaking, and for teaching me about the unique flora I did not appreciate growing up. It's not something I think a woman could get away with, sadly.
The cleanliness thing (about leaves) is pretty-hard wired in a lot of cultures, but I especially noticed this paranoia the most in nice areas of Mexico City, which employs giant fleets of sweepers with handmade brooms. It does keep the city neater and provides work to desperate ppl, but strips the topsoil and adds to the dust.
On a trip to Bolivia I also saw the aggressive sweepers, keeping the city streets clean. It seems helpful in the employment aspect but certainly breeds a certain aggressiveness for vegetation.
Misti, please hang in there. I, too, face cognitive dissonance and severe depression trying to think and write about (waves broadly) all of this menace. Your touchstones in nature help remind me that someday this will all be gone, but the trees (hopefully) will still remain.
I always get overwhelmed after I finish a book. Puttering is one option. Diving deep into something utterly different is another. Can I express my digust at neighbors AND Florida cities cutting down mature trees because oh, landscaping? Grr. I'm with you. Can't cope with fiction writing right now. Dealing with the cognitive dissonance of the moment by burying myself in a long-delayed web-based project.
The book burnout is real. I think you will come around. The metaphor about eating a favorite food until you can't stand it is apt. I do this too!
I very much felt the rest of this as well. The cognitive dissonance of spending our energy on trivialities while the world burns. And yet, the puttering and small explorations of the fragments of the world we occupy are important. I hope you keep writing.
Every situation is different, but with my books I didn’t get sick of the project - but did get frustrated with some of the process. If anything I tended to revisit it, kind of overfocused and nit-picking a few times. I bet you’ll be ready to enjoy it, hopefully soon. Maybe just a little time and distance will help.
While I’ve not written a book I can relate to growing nearly bored or sick with a topic or project that I’ve focused on too hard for too long (and that once inspired me) - perhaps that’s one way our body tries to regulate, “too much of this! Go do something else”. Ideally something that brings perspective and levity which puttering seems to do very well! It seems a perfect antidote to the seriousness which snowballs (literally in some cases) surrounding matters of climate and conservation.
My escapism lately has been wholesome books where characters have little to no serious problems and the setting is sweet and comforting lol and then I try to emulate that at the end of my work day where I allow myself to QUIT. Quit the fight for a better social, political and climate future and just sip tea and do something superfluous (lately I’ve been coloring).
I'm currently reading 'Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow' by Gabrielle Zevin and LOVING IT, ha! Much to my surprise as it's totally not my subject matter (it's about gamers) but all the better to disentangle myself from the things I busy myself with day to day. Btw, I read a book last year that I believe you recommended to me - Where the Forest Meets the Stars by Glendy Vanderah - it was a page turner, thanks for the rec.
For years I've called focusing on the natural details as "getting small". I think it's a wise quality you see in children. So many disinterested Little League kids in the outfield crouching over a fire ant bed.
"God is in the details", right? Selective attention and focus is necessary to find some peace in the chaos. You are not alone, friend.
On subject is the brilliant short film “Power of Ten” by artists Charles and Ray Eames that addresses this focus, and the clear visual loop that occurs with scale - the consistency of what is visible to us in nature and beyond.
Limestone County? That’s not far from Waco. I really need to venture out more. Ft Parker was a nice botanical surprise when I visited 6 years ago. I wasn’t expecting post oak savannah so near to here but nature’s boundaries don’t always align with the lines on a map of biogeographical zones. My nature attractions tend to go west-a personal problem I guess. Thanks for posting.
As a Corpus Christi native, I love Joey so much for challenging the status quo and just being balls-to-the-wall outspoken about the stupidity of local land caretaking, and for teaching me about the unique flora I did not appreciate growing up. It's not something I think a woman could get away with, sadly.
The cleanliness thing (about leaves) is pretty-hard wired in a lot of cultures, but I especially noticed this paranoia the most in nice areas of Mexico City, which employs giant fleets of sweepers with handmade brooms. It does keep the city neater and provides work to desperate ppl, but strips the topsoil and adds to the dust.
On a trip to Bolivia I also saw the aggressive sweepers, keeping the city streets clean. It seems helpful in the employment aspect but certainly breeds a certain aggressiveness for vegetation.
Glad to know you listen to Joey, too!
Oh that’s funny it’s a thing in Bolivia too!
I’m with ya! And I love those cool plants you featured.
Misti, please hang in there. I, too, face cognitive dissonance and severe depression trying to think and write about (waves broadly) all of this menace. Your touchstones in nature help remind me that someday this will all be gone, but the trees (hopefully) will still remain.
I always get overwhelmed after I finish a book. Puttering is one option. Diving deep into something utterly different is another. Can I express my digust at neighbors AND Florida cities cutting down mature trees because oh, landscaping? Grr. I'm with you. Can't cope with fiction writing right now. Dealing with the cognitive dissonance of the moment by burying myself in a long-delayed web-based project.
So glad to know I'm not alone on the overwhelm post-book writing!
Take care of yourself---looking forward to whatever your web based project is!
The book burnout is real. I think you will come around. The metaphor about eating a favorite food until you can't stand it is apt. I do this too!
I very much felt the rest of this as well. The cognitive dissonance of spending our energy on trivialities while the world burns. And yet, the puttering and small explorations of the fragments of the world we occupy are important. I hope you keep writing.
Every situation is different, but with my books I didn’t get sick of the project - but did get frustrated with some of the process. If anything I tended to revisit it, kind of overfocused and nit-picking a few times. I bet you’ll be ready to enjoy it, hopefully soon. Maybe just a little time and distance will help.
Cheers to liverwort!
While I’ve not written a book I can relate to growing nearly bored or sick with a topic or project that I’ve focused on too hard for too long (and that once inspired me) - perhaps that’s one way our body tries to regulate, “too much of this! Go do something else”. Ideally something that brings perspective and levity which puttering seems to do very well! It seems a perfect antidote to the seriousness which snowballs (literally in some cases) surrounding matters of climate and conservation.
My escapism lately has been wholesome books where characters have little to no serious problems and the setting is sweet and comforting lol and then I try to emulate that at the end of my work day where I allow myself to QUIT. Quit the fight for a better social, political and climate future and just sip tea and do something superfluous (lately I’ve been coloring).
I got into coloring last summer when I was really wound up by some stuff in my personal life. It definitely helps!
What are the books you have been reading?
I'm currently reading 'Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow' by Gabrielle Zevin and LOVING IT, ha! Much to my surprise as it's totally not my subject matter (it's about gamers) but all the better to disentangle myself from the things I busy myself with day to day. Btw, I read a book last year that I believe you recommended to me - Where the Forest Meets the Stars by Glendy Vanderah - it was a page turner, thanks for the rec.
For years I've called focusing on the natural details as "getting small". I think it's a wise quality you see in children. So many disinterested Little League kids in the outfield crouching over a fire ant bed.
"God is in the details", right? Selective attention and focus is necessary to find some peace in the chaos. You are not alone, friend.
On subject is the brilliant short film “Power of Ten” by artists Charles and Ray Eames that addresses this focus, and the clear visual loop that occurs with scale - the consistency of what is visible to us in nature and beyond.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fKBhvDjuy0
Limestone County? That’s not far from Waco. I really need to venture out more. Ft Parker was a nice botanical surprise when I visited 6 years ago. I wasn’t expecting post oak savannah so near to here but nature’s boundaries don’t always align with the lines on a map of biogeographical zones. My nature attractions tend to go west-a personal problem I guess. Thanks for posting.
Yes, definitely stop by Fort Parker again! The other location was the Confederate Reunion Ground State Historic Site: https://thc.texas.gov/historic-sites/confederate-reunion-grounds
I’ve driven by but haven’t explored that site. Ft Parker Memorial Park is interesting also though more for historical purposes than botanical.