Episode 14: The Book of Delights by Ross Gay with Sumina Bhatti

• What Amy is reading - Once Broken Faith (October Daye, #10) by Seanan McGuire: https://seananmcguire.com/obf.php 

• What Kate is reading - These Are the Words by Nikita Gill: https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/nikita-gill/these-are-the-words/9781529083606 

• Meet this week’s guest, Sumina Bhatti: - burgeoning gardener 

- Curator of delights

- Gatherer of memes

- Tea Geek

- lover of glitter

- Intentional Community gatherer

- Steward of Bodhi The Dog

- Inquisitive human

• Meet Bodhi the Dog: https://static.wixstatic.com/media/33805f_8a310513df0649ada6444bf8cd99a83b~mv2.jpg 

• Published in 2019, the Book of Delights is a series of essays written of the course of a year: https://www.rossgay.net/the-book-of-delights 

• Author Ross Gay is a poet and a gardener and also a cultivator of joy: https://www.rossgay.net/about 

• On Being with Krista Tippett is a podcast that originally began as a show on public radio that examines “What does it mean to be human, and how do we want to live?”. Over the course of an hour (or so) host Krista Tippett speaks with a guest, ranging from poets to spiritual leaders to doctors to artists and more, on existence and being human. It is part of the larger On Being project: https://onbeing.org/  

  • Listen to Ross Gay’s episode, On the Insistence of Joy: https://onbeing.org/programs/ross-gay-on-the-insistence-of-joy/ 

• March 11, 2020 was when COVID-19 was officially declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), March 13th was when the US declared a national emergency, and March 15th was when states began locking down: https://www.cdc.gov/museum/timeline/covid19.html#:~:text=March%2015%2C%202020,the%20spread%20of%20COVID%2D19. 

• Sharing Love, the essay by Ross Gay that mentions the laundry sharing, is available in the Paris Review: https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2019/02/14/sharing-love/ 

• September 11th, 2001 is the date of the terrorist attacks on the United States that targeted the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in NY and the Pentagon near Washington D.C. using hijacked planes, with a fourth target never reached due to the passenger revolt on the plane. Killing 2,977 people, the attacks are the deadliest terrorist attack in modern history. https://www.archives.gov/news/topics/9-11-anniversary 

  • There are many “Where were you” events, a selection of mid-19th to early 20th century American based events can be prioritized and compared in Slate’s here Were You When Moments Tournament: https://www.slate.com/features/bracketologist/wherewere/index.html

• Annihilation is an excellent word, defined as “complete destruction or obliteration” (also deeply satisfying words). Taken from the Latin word annihilare, which means to “reduce to nothing”, it’s first recorded use is in 1526. https://www.oed.com/dictionary/annihilation_n?tl=true&tab=factsheet 

• Technically WHO has not actually declared an end to the COVID-19 pandemic, rather just the emergency state. https://www.who.int/europe/emergencies/situations/covid-19 

• In the Muppet world, grouches are “an eccentric race of pessimistic, argumentative, and unhygienic furry creatures who prefer to live wherever there is garbage”. https://muppet.fandom.com/wiki/Grouches 

  • But bringing is back to the pandemic, even grouches wear masks! https://www.fbmarketplace.org/even-grouches-wear-masks-sesame-street-130429 

• Runner’s high is a state of euphoria or bliss combined with lessened feelings of pain and anxiety that is not felt by everyone. Initially attributed to endorphins, it’s now thought that the endocannabinoid system plays a greater role, because of the crossing of the blood brain barrier.

• This COVID-19 safe meet up took place in Pease Park, a park in central Austin that is home to Eeyore’s Birthday which is just like, it’s own whole hippie, old Austin thing. There are a LOT of drum circles. https://eeyores.org/ 

• The Oxford English dictionary has about 15 definitions of community, some are obsolete: https://www.oed.com/dictionary/community_n#8779525 

• The Texas Book Fest was started in 1995 and takes place in the Fall (usually in November, I think?) in downtown Austin. Created to showcase Texas authors, it has expanded over the last three decades to now hosting world renown authors and speakers, while still holding on to its roots as a vehicle for local writers. https://www.texasbookfestival.org/ 

• Check out Sumina’s notched and dog eared copy: https://static.wixstatic.com/media/33805f_ffc6086fba684265aae724a5f06a022e~mv2.jpg 

• Sarah Vowell is an author and essayist, and has been a frequent contributor to This American Life. She is a historian and contrarian patriot, and Assassination Vacation was all about her road trip researching the presidents assassinated in the 19th century: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Assassination-Vacation/Sarah-Vowell/9780743260046 

• It appears Sumina, Amy, and Kate are a mix of chaotic good, true neutral, neutral evil, and chaotic evil - where do you fall in the bookmark alignment chart: https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpreview.redd.it%2F66sqhdm5org41.jpg%3Fauto%3Dwebp%26s%3Dd702a5f5b00e9337cac62095e73783a7f82e2dc6 

• Ross Gay’s book Inciting Joy: https://www.rossgay.net/inciting-joy 

• When Breath Becomes Air: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/258507/when-breath-becomes-air-by-paul-kalanithi/

• Our Good Bones recommendation for Kim is the song Springtime by Allison Russell: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EF6VjYqoBQQ 

• Request a recommendation on a selection of writing picked by Kate and Amy just for you: https://www.findinggoodbones.com/contact

• Join Drew Allen and Anne Hurst in supporting the podcast at https://www.patreon.com/FindingGoodBones