image via Walid BERRAZEG @bazingraphy

The morning after the election, when I saw the results confirming that he’d won, I was in shock. I called my dad in tears that morning because, when I don’t know what to do, I turn to my parents. I felt ill, drained, and afraid.

I felt the same way on Tuesday night when I came home from work and read about Trump’s press conference. I read about Trump doubling down on his statement about there being “many sides” to the violent white supremacist rallies that took place in Charlottesville over the weekend. I shouldn’t be surprised at this point, right, because we knew that Trump was racist. Yet, a small part of me still is. Maybe I’m more of an optimist than I thought. Or maybe it’s because he’s not even trying to hide it at this point, to deny that these horrible beliefs are his beliefs.

It’s hard not to lose all hope in these moments. If Trump’s remarks on Tuesday made you feel small, like you didn’t matter at all, you’re not the only one. But then I remembered what my dad told me on November 9th: “We have to keep going.”

I’m going to hold on to the good things. Actually, I’m going to seek out the things that bring me joy, because there is a lot of doubt, fear, and uncertainty in the world right now, and not enough joy.

When you were in grade school, did you ever have to make a time capsule? I did, and I remember taking great care when selecting the items that went into my collection. In that same vein, I’ve titled this post “Capsule” because it captures a few different things that are on my mind at this moment in time.

In the spirit of keeping on, I thought I’d share a few links that I’ve enjoyed recently. I hope you find the articles interesting and if you’ve made it this far, I want to thank you for reading my ramblings (always, but especially today).

Food x Film

You’ve probably seen those short, food video tutorials with a bird’s-eye view (usually on Facebook, right?). Well, food stylist David Ma took that concept one step further and imagined what these food tutorials would be like if directed by famous directors. The results are absolutely delightful and spot on. I hope he adds more directors to his series!

All About the Stars of Insecure and Queen Sugar

I’m an avid watcher of both Queen Sugar and Insecure. There is so much heart in the Bordelon family in Queen Sugar and I see some of myself in the character played by Issa Rae in Insecure. Here are some really great profiles about the actors on these shows, including this article on Kofi Siriboe, this one on Yvonne Orji, who plays Molly on Insecure (did you know she was a comedian first??), and this one on Issa Rae.

LOLOLOL

This article about the various styles of online laughter is so interesting. It’s fascinating to consider how formatting really changes the meaning of the laughter. Now I’m wondering when I started using “lololol” instead of “lol.” What’s your preferred style of laughter online?

THANKS, BUT NO THANKS, TO HBO’S CONFEDERATE

Ta-nehisi Coates has done it again. His article on why we shouldn’t give HBO’s Confederate a chance, even though it hasn’t aired yet, is well worth a read. After the events of this past week, let’s just say that I’m less interested than ever in watching a show about an alternative history in which the South won the Civil War.

TARGET LOVE

Target is debuting a new clothing line and a new home decor line this fall, and the goods look good. I should probably just start setting aside a portion of my paycheck now… I’m excited about the home decor products in particular because I think I’ll soon be working on another round of decorating my apartment. I’ve been in my place for over a year and the main wall in my bedroom is still completely blank!

(image by Walid Berrazeg on Unsplash)