Happy Friday!
This Sunday is the Super Bowl, which means it’s been just a year since Beyoncé and her all-woman troupe of Black Panther-style dancers dominated the halftime show with their performance of “Formation,” the day after the surprise release of the song and video. For many of us, it was energizing and galvanizing to see such a powerful, political performance—one that celebrated both female strength and black power—front-and-center for over 100 million viewers.
That feels like another lifetime now. Regardless of your politics, the divisive rhetoric and sheer head-spinning velocity of news in the year since—or even just this week—has been exhausting.
It is a deeply uncertain time, in the US and around the world. To become drained, anxious, and numb are understandable responses to the current political climate. So one year after “Formation,” I’m trying to remember what it felt like to hear that song for the first time—and how it felt dancing in my seat in a Brooklyn living room, surrounded by friends, whooping and glued to the television.
I’m trying to remember that the things that energized and fortified me then still do today. My values haven’t changed, and the world is still as full of strength, beauty, and highly danceable music today as it was a year ago. (Plus, you know, Beyoncé is multiplying.) I just might have to work a little harder to stay in Formation. Here are some thoughts on how.
Remember that you’re in control of your media diet. Just because cable news is always on doesn’t mean you have to tune in 24/7. The same goes for Twitter, Facebook, and the rest of it. The new US president is a master of making headlines—many of them alarming—and you might need to adjust your media regimen accordingly.
Think deliberately about what news outlets you want to engage with, and when. One colleague deleted social media apps such as Facebook and Twitter from her phone, and only kept news sources; the constant feed of emotional reactions was just too much. I’ve started spending 20-30 minutes first thing in the morning with the print edition of the New York Times, which helps me feel more relaxed about shutting out the 24-hour news stream for much of the day. (And I’d be remiss not to mention the refreshing mix of important news and oddball discoveries in Quartz’s Daily Brief and app.)
As Mirah Curzer wrote for Medium, stepping out of the news stream “will not make you a bad activist or a weak person. You will do more good if you make time for non-Trump conversations and non-political activities. It’s like taking a vacation from your job, which research has shown dramatically boosts productivity. Take a good long break, then come back refreshed and ready to work.”
But make room for good news. For me, that often comes on Instagram, which is where we all learned this week that Beyoncé and Jay Z are expecting twins.
Bey’s announcement came Wednesday, like a digital Valentine. A family album she then released on her website included old photos of her, Jay Z, and baby Blue Ivy; her mother, Tina Knowles Lawson, pregnant with Beyoncé on the beach in 1981; and a series of photos shot by the artist Awol Erizku.
In the past, Erizku has remixed old-world works such as Johannes Vermeer’s Girl with the Pearl Earring, replacing the lily-white subject with a black woman and a bamboo earring. (You can read more about his work here.)
In some of Erizku’s new photos of Beyoncé, she resembles a Madonna. In others, she looks like a goddess—specifically Venus, whose name is invoked in the Warshan Shire verses accompanying the images: “mother is a cocoon where cells spark, limbs form, mother swells and stretches to protect her child, mother has one foot in this world and one foot in the next, mother, black venus.”
Pregnancy announcements will never be the same.
Find a volunteer gig that you love. Okay, back to business, with another key to sustaining your energy and remaining effective. In a new city, I’ve been trying to find volunteer work that’s meaningful and—importantly—fun.
Joe Kahne, a professor of education at UC Riverside, helped focus my search. A few key tips from the full guide on Quartz: Joining up with a friend will make volunteering easier. Beware the “competency trap”—just because you’re good at something doesn’t mean that’s what you have to do as a volunteer. Think about what you love—Dogs? Cooking? Building stuff?—and tailor your search accordingly.
Rest up, and don’t forget to dream. The New York Times Magazine published a few tips last week on how to remember your dreams (which I found via @lovelyskybed, the snuggle-licious Instagram account of the LA-based quilt-maker, Lizzie Harper).
Before you fall asleep, say aloud: “I’m going to remember my dreams,” three times. (It’s like casting a spell!) Keep a pen and paper by the bed, and before you open your eyes, try to lay still and recall the details. I already do a rough version of this, and my journal is full of bizarre dreams I don’t remember writing down, like letters from my subconscious. Plus, it makes you relish those luxurious, semi-waking moments.
Sweet dreams, enjoy the Super Bowl, and stay in Formation. Have a great weekend!
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As a kid I thought the “Super Bowl” referred to all the bowls of chips and dips that came out for the occasion. Not much has changed. I barely know who’s playing Sunday but I’m already planning on this pan-fried onion dip, adapted from the Barefoot Contessa. It combines the sweetness of caramelized onions with the tart creaminess of sour cream, mayonnaise, and cream cheese. It’s a super, super bowl to dip your crudités or—let’s be honest—potato chips (ideally ruffled) into. It’s best made a day ahead if you can stand to let it sit, covered, in your fridge for that long.
Here are a few details about what to expect from the game, including Lady Gaga at halftime, from Quartz’s Ashley Rodriguez. And the recipe:
Cut two large yellow onions into 1/8″ rounds, and heat them in a pan with 4 tablespoons unsalted butter and 1/4 cup olive oil over medium heat. Add 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, one teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper. Sauté for 10 minutes, reduce the heat to medium-low, stirring to prevent burning, and keep at it until they are golden brown and caramelized—about 20 minutes. Let the onions cool. In a food processor, combine 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup cream cheese, and 1/2 cup Hellman’s mayonnaise. Once it’s smooth, add the onions and pulse to mix.