I suppose it’s somewhat trite to deem the month of pollination the month of passion, but here I am doing exactly that. What can I say? It’s the perfect metaphor! For years now spring has been my favorite time of year, and I’ve even been likened to spring by peers (not to brag). I understand if you have a different season as your favorite, but you have to understand that you’d be wrong. As a kid I get choosing summer. There was a k-12 period where it would be sacrilegious to choose anything but summer. Then there was a Gilmore Girls era where everyone had to love autumn. If you weren’t like other girls then you had to try on winter for size. Finally, you arrive at the thinking man’s choice: spring.
You can’t leave your house without being seduced in the spring. I’m not just talking about the return of the sundress and men jogging shirtless (as welcome as those things may be). It’s the bloom of it all— flowers opening up, the sun coming out, the film Challengers being the number one movie in America (more on that later). It just feels like it’s time to lean in to keenness. This May I’m looking to get out of my head and into my body, and the power of spring compels you to do the same.
. ⋅ ♡ ‧ ₊ ˚ 〰. . ・゜ ゜ ・
May: Passion
Embracing others, making moves, blooming
Get outside. Self-explanatory, but really hold yourself to it. If you can escape during the work day take a walk around your neighborhood. Plan your weekend around the UV Index. See and be seen.
Move your body. It’s time to officially free yourself from the shackles of winter and revel in the glow of new beginnings. It’s a time to go for hot girl walks, meet friends out dancing, act out a completely choreographed routine to Renaissance on the elliptical at your local gym, etc.
Feed your obsessions. What’s making you light up? If it’s a particular song you should feel no shame about putting it on repeat. If it’s a person give them a kiss and tell them they’re cute. This is a time to feel good and ask for more.
Talk to strangers. Compliment someone’s outfit, strike up a conversation with the table next to your at a cafe. Give someone your number, lend your neighbor some eggs, connect with your local community.
✩ What would your most spontaneous friend do? Channel some of that energy.
✩ Pay attention to the things that get you out of your head and let you just enjoy yourself. Make sure you’re doing things that feed your soul and not just your ego.
✩ Literally and figuratively stop and smell the roses.
. ⋅ ♡ ‧ ₊ ˚ 〰. . ・゜ ゜ ・
In April I was deep in reflection (see last month’s keepsake) and it made me recognize some of my patterns. I think when you journey deep into your own psyche you need some sort of airline safety video to outfit you for the journey. You don’t need to dig into things that aren’t calling you towards them. You can leave your inner child alone if they don’t want to play right now. You don’t need to overthink about the way you’re thinking about how you overthink.
My best takeaway from all my reflection was Jemima Kirke’s timeless advice from her Instagram Story: “I think you guys might be thinking about yourself too much”. Putting my biggest insecurities under a microscope only serves to make them bigger, and there’s actually something enlightening about pivoting away from ‘doing the work’ and towards just doing. I’ve been overly concerned with my self image, and in the Instagram Age it’s only gotten worse. Now we operate in an economy where we can’t just have hobbies we have to have side hustles. I would start a drawing and then think ‘wait is this something that would do well on Pinterest?’ ‘Could I sell this on Etsy?’ ‘Is this good enough to be consumed by others?’ I’m having so much more fun with art now that I’m making it just to make something silly.
Being silly is an underrated thing really. It walks that same dangerous line we all fear which is being cringe. Recently my friend asked me what my most millennial trait is and I answered “Honestly, I think it’s being earnest” and that feels revolutionarily true. It’s such a gift to find meaning in things and give meaning to someone else. If we pull off the mask of algorithms and micro-trends all we are left with are our actual real life selves and I’m happy to be okay with that.
⊹₊ april favorites ₊ ⊹
I did something very out of character this April and took a trip to Las Vegas for my brother’s birthday. While a lot of it was overwhelming (throngs of old ladies with gambling addictions, dudes smoking cigars indoors, the general crush of Americana) a lot of it was fun! If you’re in town you absolutely must see Dita Von Teese’s residency at the Horseshoe ‘DITA LAS VEGAS: A JUBILANT REVUE’. It’s sexy, it’s campy, and just about as classic Vegas as you can get. I also highly recommend visiting old friends (not Vegas dependent, but I got to do it while I was there) and of course attending some pool parties for free because you’re a girl.
Dolly Alderton’s Dear Dolly kept me company on my trip out west, and it was an excellent travel companion. I was lucky enough to see her speak last month while she was promoting Good Material and I’ve been collecting her wisdom ever since. Dear Dolly is the perfect quick read that feels like a gentle course correction Facetime from your best friend.
This april I also had my life changed when I saw Challengers. Luca Guadagnino shines in these visceral yet tender depictions of desire with films like Call Me by Your Name and Bones and All; but this is his most magnetic work yet. Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist are sweating over the camera, and you’re going to want to be seated IMAX for it. If you haven’t seen this yet…you need to go. If you’re waiting for it to come out on streaming, you need to go to the theater. Tennis is sex, sex is tennis, and Zendaya is the puppetmaster of both. I left the theater with the adrenaline and serotonin levels of a professional tennis competitor winning a challenger, and folks…! This movie is a grand slam.
Lastly, I had such a great time checking out the still life pastel event at RecCreate Collective. I’ve done a few club events with them before, both of which were collage nights, and it was so fun to try this new medium. I can’t say I followed the exact rules of still life, but the teacher even called out that she liked the way I played with space and made all the still life items look like they were at a disco dance party together. I took this as a sign to get even goofier and break even more rules next time I draw!
I hope you have a silly little May,
xo Julianna