Happy Friday, Consumers! Thank you for all the love, support, and health scare stories you shared with me after this week’s post. It turns out many of you are also in the dense boob club and I’m honored to be part of this sisterhood! My next step will be making us tank tops that say ‘our breasts may be dense but we aren’t’ across the chest in all caps. Anyway, I’m back with your weekly Friday Five roundup of joyful, cathartic content from the corners of the internet and my brain. I’m happy you’re here.
Poem: I couldn’t sleep one night this week and somehow wound up thinking about an Iranian tradition, the Fal-e Haafez (some history on that here). If you’re at an impasse or faced with a big life decision, one way to sort it out is by consulting Hafez’s poetry for guidance. I grew up doing this on Yalda, the Winter Solstice, and Norooz, Iranian New Year — you think of a question in your life that needs an answer, pick a page at random from Hafez’s Divan book, and you’ve got a fortune! It only struck me this week that turning to poetry for guidance and help is such a novel, beautiful tradition — and maybe one that more of us could use in these chaotic times (in addition to whatever spiritual works you like, astrology, Snoopy memes, etc.!).
I also found a online Hafez fortune generator, where you think of the question, push a button, and you are paired with a poem accordingly. Give it a go and let me know what you find.
Art: Relatedly while we’re on the topic of Iranian legends, my parents have both been recognized for their artwork recently and I just think that is the coolest thing ever! My Dad loves photography (if you don’t follow his Instagram account The Doc Walks, it’s a gem) and submitted a photo for a competition, and won! The Monastery he visits during the work week for morning walks was hosting a photography competition and he won first place! He was the only person who submitted an iPhone photo and he beat out all the professionals. Meanwhile, my Mom’s old needlepoint work is on display at the gallery of the school she works at. Our creative hobbies and passions are worth celebrating always and I’m happy my parents are getting recognition for it — and I hope you submit your story, your art, whatever creative endeavor has brought you joy, to something! I recognize that sounds incredibly vague and slightly unmotivating, but I believe in you.
Strange Moment in Politics: I have no clue why Bernie Sanders was filmed playing ping pong with a small child but the noise he makes at the start of the video has haunted me for the past 48 hours. What the hell kind of table tennis game with a child prompts that noise? If you’re still somehow on Twitter (join the dense souls club, I’ll make tank tops for that too!) you can watch a loop of it here.
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There’s something so strange and ridiculous about that noise that it instantly brought me to this historical moment in pop culture:
Dance Performance: We, as a society, need to put boyfriends through more strange tasks and tests. Thank you TikToker Hummuslover33 for putting her roommate’s boyfriend through a dance challenge before giving him permission spend the night. This sort of thing almost makes me want to have roommates again. It’s brilliant, it’s hilarious, and the way no one is laughing in the video shows the gravitas of the situation. Please, if one of you has a roommate with a boyfriend, make them do this and send me the video.
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Joyful Internet Content:
Balegde,
Roya
I’m in tears Roya
I just woke up my dog snort laughing at “Giacomo Bologna on the banana shortage”