Minerva's Muse Vol. 31
Minerva’s Muse is a column of inspiration named after the Roman goddess of creativity, wisdom, medicine, and craft. I believe that inspiration and creativity belong to the collective and are meant to be shared, so if any of the following inspires you, please feel free share it with others!
Listen…
Well folks, I have a new favorite album. If you don’t know about Leif Vollebekk, you’re missing out. I can’t totally articulate what it is about Leif’s music that touches me so deeply, I just know it does. This album is next level.
Not sure if it’s because it’s Aquarius season, or because the world seems to be coming to an end, or if it’s just a sign that I’m going crazy, but I have spent the past two weeks heavily immersed in a UFO/alien fixation. This episode of Smartless is a good place to start. (Several more UFO-themed recommendations below).
Read…
We recently read The Man Who Fell In Love With The Moon by Tom Spanbauer for my book club, and I am here to report that it was one of the most courageous, memorable novels I’ve ever read. I have a shelf on my bookshelf reserved exclusively for books that that changed my life, and this is the newest book to gain access to that shelf. I have never experienced writing like Spanbauer’s, and the plot and characters in this book speak to my life experience very deeply. Full disclosure - this book is NOT easy to read. There is a lot of taboo sex and some unpleasant violent scenes, but I promise it’s worth it.
Watch…
Okay, back to those aliens. If you haven’t watched the government subcommittee hearing about UAPs (the new name for UFOs), you definitely should. As my brother recently said, when the “squariest of squariest” government dudes are talking like this, you know something’s up.
If I’ve piqued your interest in the alien situation, then you might also enjoy the Netflix series Investigation Alien. It provides a good, relatively balanced overview of where we’re at on investigating these phenomenon, and what might be ahead. (Video below is the trailer, full series available on Netflix).
Okay, moving on from the aliens. (For now).
I loved this overview of the relationship between Bullock and Swearengen from HBO’s Deadwood. Although Deadwood takes place in late 1800s South Dakota during the Gold Rush, it is SO relevant to the modern world, especially for those of us pursuing a communal way of life. If you’ve never seen Deadwood, you might wanna do that first before watching the video below.
I loved Deadwood so much that I’ve been playing around with the idea of doing some kind of Deadwood “book club” where a group of us would watch (or rewatch) this series and then talk about it, maybe after each season? If that’s of interest, let me know in the comments. It’s just an idea for now, but if there’s some legitimate interest, I might decide to make it happen.
Look…
I kept myself (somewhat) sane during the LA fires by following photographers instead of news networks. I was blown away by some of the images and videos that came out of these fires, and wanted to share a few with all of you…
Also check out @ethanswopephoto, @stuartpalley, @argonautphoto, and @patrickfallon.
Big thanks to
for so many amazing photography recommendations.Cook…
I recently made this Glazed Pistachio Lemon Cake from Diane Morrisey and it was so insanely good. Every recipe of hers that I’ve tried has been spectacular, and I am looking for her first cookbook, set to be released this March.
Deadwood is so damn good. Also, loving the novel recommendation.
Thanks for the fire photography shoutout. I'd add Noah Berger and Kevin Cooley (whose home burned, and he photographed it!!) to the list.
I'm so game for a TV show club! I've never seen Deadwood.