Sam's Weekly Quarantine Digest #50: May 2, 2021

Hi all,

This week's Quarantine Digest marks the 50th edition!  And...it's late.  Two weeks late.  So today, I'm thinking about forgiveness for ourselves.  Sometimes, life throws us curveballs.  Sometimes, we have commitments that preclude us from doing other things we want to do.  And sometimes, we just plain get overwhelmed by our to-do list.  And that's ok.  It's completely normal, and most of the time, the person who's most upset by your failures is...you.

Particularly as women, we're used to hearing that we should apologize less.  And I do believe that - in the right circumstances.  I do think we should apologize to other people when we screw up and it affects someone else, or when we do something wrong.  However, as my own harshest critic all my life, I do also believe that we should stop being so hard on ourselves and criticizing ourselves, or getting so frustrated when we fail to meet our own internal promises.  I can't even count the number of times I've started apologizing to people and had them brush it off and assure me that they were not upset at my delay, or that they hadn't even noticed it because they'd been so busy themselves, nor the number of times other people have apologized to me and called themselves a "terrible friend" or started pouring out excuses for a slow response to an email or a text, where my own reaction was simply pure delight at hearing from them!

So yes, I'm late in sending this out.  But because of that, it's full of even more wonderful tidbits than it otherwise would have been.  I have no great excuses for the delay this time.  I've simply been busy with other things - things that make me happy, things that stress me out, things that simply need to get done.  In the past three weeks, life happened - I've been working hard to build my new life with Luke in our new home, I've been working hard at my new job, and I've been working hard at trying to carve out time to relax and spend time (virtually or otherwise) with my family and friends (and sometimes just by myself).  And so, with that: To those of you who eagerly await this email each week, I do apologize for making you wait.  However, I've already forgiven myself, and I hope you will as well!

As always, previous digests can be found on my blog at thatsthewaythecookiecrumbles.com.  If you have suggestions or would like to stop receiving these emails, just let me know.

Best,

Sam

Keeping Yourself Busy

• Want to catch up on this year's Best Picture nominees from the Oscars? Check out this article laying out where you can watch each one.
• Hoping to travel within the country, but missing traipsing through the European countryside ogling castles? Well, turns out we have a few of those stateside, too. All of these US castles are available for stays via AirBnB!
• Own a grill for the first time, or looking to up your game this summer? Check out this guide to grilling, courtesy of Thrillist and Boar's Head.
• If you missed last week's meteor shower, you've got another chance this week! Although we're actually nearly midway between the viewings of Halley's Comet (last seen in 1986 and not expected again until 2061), this week's meteor shower is actually debris from the comet. Check out the details here.
• Governors Island is reopening to the public on June 12. Through October 31st, visitors can view the current season of art exhibits, including commissioned works by internationally renowned artists Meg Webster and Onyedika Chuke and a participatory sculpture installation by Muna Malik.
• The Public Theater has two shows available to stream right now: One is an audio production called Shadow/Land, a drama set amid the ongoing devastation of Hurricane Katrina, the first of a 10-play cycle examining the ongoing effects of disaster, evacuation, displacement, and urban renewal in and around New Orleans following Katrina. The other is a bilingual audio play called Romeo Y Julieta, featuring Lupita Nyong'o as Julieta and Juan Castano as Romeo.
• LMCC has launched this year's SU-CASA programs, which features artists and art organizations collaborating to offer free, remote creative aging projects for Manhattan's older adults.
• Did you know that New York has a wolf conservation center? Me either. But it does, and it's full of webcams!
• The Legoland Discovery Center in Yonkers has reopened!
• Last chance to order a LovePop card in time for Mother's Day! Don't forget to check out their amazing full-sized paper-flower bouquets as well.
• Want to try something new for your next virtual game night? Check out this list of multiplayer game apps and websites.

Keeping Yourself Hungry

• Bored of ordering from the same 10 neighborhood restaurants on Seamless for the past year? Check out this list of 78 new restaurants that have opened in NYC during the pandemic.
• It's strawberry season! Check out this list of 30 different recipes featuring one of this season's most beloved fruits.
• Dining Around Downtown is back! You can sign up for a free cooking class with the chefs from some of the best restaurants in lower Manhattan, although donations to the chefs' charities of choice are encouraged! This week is the executive chef of Fulton, and past episodes are linked to here.