Jane, this is such a good one. Alex, the bit about your son and the blanket on the couch, so good. Everyone, read this for a glimmer of the logic behind Alex’s thinking.
I love and admire Alex from afar and frankly don't understand why he isn't my good pal who lives a few blocks away. Not that he'll have any time to hang out once there are two tiny children in his life. And I too love this sentiment: “I hope to continue letting go of what I believe ought to happen so that I may be surprised by what actually is.” Truly, words to live by.
I love this. Like Alex, I also had an ESL teacher at elementary school who got me started with English. Also, I agree, the house feels empty without the sound of pitter patters of our pets. Lovely post, looking forward for more.
Yes, we move too fast to be present most of the time. Nice for me right this moment is noticing my two pups and how they sleep, the snow outside right now (blizzard day for us in New England), how the lamb I'm slow cooking smells, the two books I'm in the middle of, the eucalyptus on the dining room table that still looks fresh, thank God, a blooming amaryllis.
Like Alex Dobrenko, I'm from the fomer Soviet Union (though I came to the States when I was older).
But that's not the only thing we have in common. Finite and Infinite Games by James Carse is one of my favorite books too. In fact, while a film student at NUY in the early '80s, I took three of Dr. Carse's courses(at the time he was the head of the Literature of Religion Department there). In one of the courses, A Perfect Society, he read us chapters of from the book he'd been working on, which later would be known as Finite and Infinite Games. I kept in touch with him till the day he died.
Jane, this is such a good one. Alex, the bit about your son and the blanket on the couch, so good. Everyone, read this for a glimmer of the logic behind Alex’s thinking.
Did he know I needed this reminder? “I hope to continue letting go of what I believe ought to happen so that I may be surprised by what actually is.”
I love and admire Alex from afar and frankly don't understand why he isn't my good pal who lives a few blocks away. Not that he'll have any time to hang out once there are two tiny children in his life. And I too love this sentiment: “I hope to continue letting go of what I believe ought to happen so that I may be surprised by what actually is.” Truly, words to live by.
I love this. Like Alex, I also had an ESL teacher at elementary school who got me started with English. Also, I agree, the house feels empty without the sound of pitter patters of our pets. Lovely post, looking forward for more.
"The wisdom is to notice the nice." I LOVE that.
What a delightful interview! You always get to the lovely uniqueness of each person.
Noticing the nice. That might just be one of the keys to life 😊💗
Yes, we move too fast to be present most of the time. Nice for me right this moment is noticing my two pups and how they sleep, the snow outside right now (blizzard day for us in New England), how the lamb I'm slow cooking smells, the two books I'm in the middle of, the eucalyptus on the dining room table that still looks fresh, thank God, a blooming amaryllis.
I welled up hard at that couch moment
“Slouch social” 🫶🏽 also: the blanket moment! Gahhhhhhh
"The wisdom is to notice the nice." Love this, Jane and Alex. Thank you for the reminder!
Fun interview, Jane.
Like Alex Dobrenko, I'm from the fomer Soviet Union (though I came to the States when I was older).
But that's not the only thing we have in common. Finite and Infinite Games by James Carse is one of my favorite books too. In fact, while a film student at NUY in the early '80s, I took three of Dr. Carse's courses(at the time he was the head of the Literature of Religion Department there). In one of the courses, A Perfect Society, he read us chapters of from the book he'd been working on, which later would be known as Finite and Infinite Games. I kept in touch with him till the day he died.
I love Alex and his newsletter. And I NEEDED to read that spider exchange today!
this is beautiful ❤️
I loved reading this and I love Alex's newsletter. Thank you for sharing this interview.
perfect read that came to me at a perfect time