no place like home... okay, but which place?

a not-to-miss indie film, a novel considers the Venn overlap between wrestling and porn, + cookie adjacent granola bark

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I love when readers upgrade to paid subscriptions or gift a subscription to a pal. So, here’s a discount in case you’ve been on the fence.

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hey-ho,

Welcome to new subscribers! I am so happy you’re here. watch.listen.snack. is a once in a while permutation of read.write.eat. Sometimes, watching, listening, and snacking is all we can manage in a busy time!

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Twenty-two years ago we left Santa Cruz and moved to Portland. There’s much to be loved and lauded about both places. Hence neither fills the ache of yearning for “home.” Portland rocks the mountains, the trees, autumn, family, friends, food and culture. Santa Cruz absolutely shines with the coast, the blue sky, and oh, that horizon! Of course family and friends as well. If only I could move Portland south, you know? Place it just Santa Cruz adjacent…

I end up feeling that perfect German word for distance pain, fernweh, the sensation that life is elsewhere, with a little bit of sontagsleere (the melancholy emptiness of Sundays) thrown in.

I know I’m lucky to be attached to two beautiful locations. Yet, winters in Portland are difficult. Not going to lie, the rainy and dark days bring me down. 👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻 (Counting on you, S.A.D. light!)

So, while I’m still here in sunny California, helping out my mom, spending time with pals, I’m trouble shooting, stacking the deck with strategies for my return to the PNW. What do you all do in the wet, cold, and dank days of winter to lift your spirits? (This is not a rhetorical question.) I love my online community, I love chatting virtually with all of you, my workshops too, but I need a bit more IRL. I’m feeling a little stuck rn. Is there such a thing as post-holiday-blues pre-holiday? Man, I’m in trouble!

Write to me with ideas! Jobs? Classes? Volunteer opportunities? What do you do? This is an open thread to support us all (and kind of selfish to be certain because I know I’m going to benefit!)

Meanwhile, here’s a song for you:

PS. Thursday I’m sending the annual read.write.eat. gift guide… fun and eclectic so please be on the lookout!

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watch:

We watched DAY TRIPPERS, the other night, (available on MAX). Oh man! I don’t know how I missed this film when it came out in 1996. The cast is amazing: Hope Davis, Stanley Tucci, Parker Posey, Anne Meara, Liev Schreiber, and more. Honestly a terrific movie about love, betrayal, seeking and discovering yourself (albeit reluctantly), helicopter parenting, and the tight weave of family. When the eldest daughter, Eliza, discovers a love letter written to her husband (by an unknown paramour) she turns to her tight-knit Long Island family for advice. Soon the entire clan—strong-willed mom, taciturn dad, jaded sister and her budding-novelist boyfriend—squeezes into a station wagon and heads into Manhattan to find out the truth, kicking off a one-crazy-day odyssey full of wacky detours and life-changing revelations. I sort of hate that the mother is such an easy target, w/o much curiosity about her life. The movie was by turns funny and heartbreaking, with a pitch perfect ending.

Also, if you aren’t watching SOMEBODY SOMEWHERE, you’re totally missing out! This season is so emotionally satisfying. And, would you look at this? Bridget Everett killing “Piece of my Heart” on Jimmy Fallon!

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ONE SMALL THING BEFORE YOU CONTINUE? A pause to hit the ❤️ button at the top left or bottom left of this newsletter. It means more to me than you know. xoNatalie

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listen:

Elle Fanning did a great job as narrator for this audio book!