a collection of thoughts
being 'pretentious', strega nona fall, and messy artists
welcome to the first tuesday edition of the set & setting newsletter. I was busy driving six hours from georgia back to kentucky on sunday so I hope you’ll forgive me for my tardiness.
It is under 70º in Louisville this week so naturally I have been cozying up and finding myself deep in thought. I love thinking of stuff, I yearn to be labeled a thinker. A couple of people already call me pretentious and I resist the autistic urge to remind them that to be pretentious is to put on a facade of intellectual superiority. If we want to look at the definition of pretentious it is as follows: “attempting to impress by affecting greater importance, talent, culture, etc., than is actually possessed.” I’m not trying to impress anyone or pretend that I am smarter, more cultured, more talented than I am. I just enjoy thinking.
And with that, here’s a collection of thoughts I’ve had recently:
I’m weirdly fascinated with artist’s studios, more specifically the creative process of artists and how that bleeds into and informs the physical spaces they occupy. I want to have the sort of artistic mania that leads to piles of creative mess. I want to collect my inspirations and plaster them on the walls. I desperately want to own the home I live in so I can exist in it in whatever way I choose.
1. skateboarder and graphic designer, Jason Dill, won't let people into his home studio because it is an explosion of mess. He finds inspiration everywhere, I imagine it looks like Howl Pendragon's bedroom. 2. Casey Neistat's studio, meticulously organized but pleasantly chaotic in that he modifies everything he brings in to suit his needs. This is to say nothing of his politics surrounding Israel, I no longer support his work. I just admire his studio. 3. A photo pulled from pinterest by typing in "messy artist workspace," mess is important to me. Related to my previous thought—I want to be more archival. This is something I vowed to work on as part of my therapy homework. I am deeply bothered by my lack of childhood memories (though not enough to do EMDR to try and recover them). My therapist recommended starting to collect memories moving forward because I have so much more life ahead of me than I have behind me and isn’t that a relief? Since I find myself thinking constantly, I want to begin collecting my thoughts and ideas on anything that can be written on-napkins, ripped out notebook pages, post its, receipts, the margins of books- and then store them somewhere. I hate digital archiving. I want a physical collection of my thoughts to see how that makes a life. I’ve started this with morning pages, it feels really good.
I’ve been missing academia, more specifically i have regrets about the time i wasted in academia and what it would look like to return. College was the first time I was able to unmask and didn’t feel the constant surveillance of my parents. Without the fear of disappointing them, my school work suffered. I pushed attendance rules to the brink and often took a learn from home approach when I could. I never went to office hours and I never asked questions when I was confused lest I look stupid in front of a group of strangers who were also learning the material for the first time. I am subscribed to Closely Reading from Haley Larson and she shares a lot of tips from grad school, this post made me cry. I was suddenly confronted by regret, something both unfamiliar and uncomfortable. I may not be able to redo my time in academia or justify the thousands in loans it would cost to return but I can sign up for classes, I can read books and analyze them, I can think.
Strega Nona Fall, which brings us to the next segment.
strega nona fall
Strega Nona, translating to ‘grandma witch’, is a children’s book about a witch who helps the villagers with her big cauldron full of pasta. My tiktok FYP was full of Strega Nona Fall inspiration videos a couple weeks ago, from fashion to food, and while I hate the consumerism often tied to trends on the internet, I do indeed fuck with Strega Nona Fall.
I am referred to, lovingly, as Cottage Mother by one of my group chats. My friends come to me for cooking tips and recipes and I provide more information than they need because I am autistic and food & cooking are my special interests. All I need is some magical powers and I could really embody Strega Nona.
This Fall I am leaning into warming soups, creamy pastas, crusty breads, filling bean dishes, and lots and lots of baked goods. I want to cook my way through Justine Doiran’s cookbook once I have it in hand. I’ll be listening to cozy jazz ambiance videos on youtube, reading good books, maybe working on a book of my own, and trying to slow down as much as possible. I want to find chunky oversized turtleneck sweaters secondhand and pick up crocheting again. I want to treat myself to nice dinners with my partner both homemade and at local restaurants. I want to craft and plan my wedding. I want to save money and find enriching, free, ways to enjoy my city and my friendships.
Strega Nona Fall, to me, is about slowing down, being cozy, and finding the magic in a good meal.
shop talk
This is one of the most stressful weeks in recent memory. I’ve got some big events this weekend that I’m anxiously awaiting stock for, please keep your fingers crossed that everything comes on time.
What I’ve got coming up:
Louisville Book Festival: 10/18-10/19 10:00am-5:00pm. This is a free event where you can come meet local & regional authors, local bookstores, and attend panel discussions. I’ll be on a panel talking about small bookstore ownership and all the highs and lows that come with it, Saturday at 12:00.
Take Root Reproductive Justice Conference by KHJN: 10/18, 10/20 4:00pm-6:30pm. This is an event you have to pay like $300 to attend but I want to highlight it because I’m honored to be the bookstore doing the fulfillment for the opening and closing author talks. If you’ll be there, come say hi! Please pray the books show up by the time I need them, I am so anxious!
Silent auction for The Peace Dove & Tunefork Studios hosted by Locals for Liberation. 10/20, 5:00pm-8:00pm. I have donated a stack of five Palestinian authored books for this auction. There is a suggested $25 donation. All proceeds will be split between the two organizations. Free Palestine & hands off Lebanon.
Stress aside, I’m feeling really fortunate to be asked to do events like the Take Root conference and the silent auction. Set & Setting is not an apolitical bookstore. I am not and never have been interested in appealing to the masses in order to acquire more sales. Set & Setting is dedicated to being loud about giving a shit.
I’ve decided not to proof read this piece. Mostly because I have been reading essays on my laptop all day long and my eyes can’t stand another pass through for edits but also because sometimes it is nice to see imperfect writing. Hope that’s alright with you.
What are some thoughts you’ve been having recently? I’d love to think about them with you. <3