☀️The One with the Blazer

A September Letter that's been a long time coming but...

Hello Friend.

My gracious has it been too long. I never intended to take a six month pause on our letters. My itchy fingers want to apologize and wax and wane excuses for my absence. But my heart tells me to get straight to the story. Start where you are. So that’s what I’m doing. I’m here now, and that’s what matters. Thank you for still being here, too.

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I want to start the story with the gasp.

See what happened was my friend Molly had just slipped a hot pink blazer off the hanger and onto her shoulders, a blazer she had found in the basement of Una Mae’s vintage shop on Chicago’s west side. Molly barely had her arms through the sleeves when my friend Amy and I uttered an audible gasp. Simultaneously. Unplanned. No words. Just an eyes-wide-open, hands-to-mouth, suck-the-oxygen-out-of-the-room gasp. A gasp that said “YES. One Hundred Percent. Immediately yes. This blazer has waited her whole life to be found. Star crossed lovers, these two.”

Quick pause…I suddenly have the urge to write this story line. The hot pink blazer, we’ll call her Barb, spends her whole life yearning to to be worn, from factory to high end boutique to TJMax clearance rack to the back of Peggy’s closet to the garage sale to the vintage collector and then finally the basement of the hip vintage store that has already switched their main floor merchandise to earth tones so she is placed in the basement with the other brights, just waiting for her moment when…

Anyway, so the gasp.

But wait, maybe I should start the story with a question. I love a story that begins with a question. I love a story that ends with a question, too. Questions are open doors. I love an open door.

“Can you help me find something to wear tonight?”

That’s what Molly asked while we waited on the platform for the green line train to take us into the city. Molly is on a journey to dress in “her colors.” You can hear her tell the story here. Essentially colors can be mapped out into seasons–winter, spring, and so on–and certain color seasons look better against different people. The colors bring out the best in you–your skin tone, your eyes, your hair. Molly told us that she was a winter and that meant cool based jewel tones. For a girl who once only wore gray and beige, this was revolutionary for Molly. And also a bit intimidating. I think that’s why she called us in. When you’re on a new journey of discovery, it’s good to bring along a friend.

But wait, no, before the gasp and before the question, there was an idea. That’s really where I should start this story.

It was March. My friend Amy the Cake Baker–also Amy the gasper–was baking her way through the Era’s tour. It was an incredible journey–a different cake for every Taylor Swift Era. I loved it so much I created my own Era’s tour journey but with cocktails. You see, this is the thing about creativity–it’s never in isolation. Every new creation is a branch off of another, a beautiful interconnected web of limbs that grow and grow. Remember this. It’s important.

So anyway, on the cake post, our friend Ashlee made this comment. I’ll just insert the receipts here:

Idea 💡

That’s where it started. This is, in fact, where many great things in my life have started–as an idea from Ashlee. Her idea for a story site became the catalyst of my writer’s journey. An idea for a creativity group became my greatest support as a creator*. And, an idea to celebrate our creative lives together became one of the best memories I carry from this year (yes, in the year of Barbie and Taylor, this is saying something.)

That’s why we were together on this Saturday afternoon in Chicago. Molly and Amy and I, and nearly 40 other creatives that became friends on the internet through Exhale brought our internet party to my city and my living room. We celebrated our creative lives in person for three magical days of laughter and tears and deep writerly thoughts and Taylor Swift and cocktails and cake and shopping.

And gasps, too, apparently.

But now I’m thinking the idea and the question and the gasp are really all one in the same, aren’t they? This joy I see in you–it is creating an idea in me. This question I’m wondering for myself–I want to bring you in on the wondering. This gasp you hear–it’s because I see you. I see this thing in you. I see what this thing does to you, how it comes alive in you, and also see what this can do in me, too.

This is why I surround myself with other creatives. This is what I want more of in my life. I want to gasp because I see what makes your eyes come alive. I want this gasp to spark an idea, a question, a moment. I want to ask more questions and share more ideas. And I want you to do that, too.

Molly bought the blazer. With a gasp like that, she knew she had to. I got one, too, mine an aquamarine blue that we found as we walked up the basement shop stairs. Amy is still looking for the right blazer. Maybe yellow, she wonders.

I don’t know where we will go, what we will do, in these blazers that make us come alive. But remember, one idea, one question, one gasp–it grows branches.

What’s your blazer color? Try it on. I can’t wait to gasp.

Cheers!

Rachel

*If this creativity retreat sounds like something you would love to be a part of, blazer or not, now is the time to join! Membership to Exhale is open now through October 6!

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SPEAKING OF…

a series where I string together all the things I’ve been meaning to tell you.

As you can imagine, taking six months off of a newsletter means there is A LOT I’ve been meaning to share. So as to not break the internet, I’ll just give you a taste, mostly centered around my moving Era. Also noteworthy, in the year of Barbie, it only makes sense that the leading sponsor of this newsletter would be Barbie, and Ken, in GIFs.

Speaking of Moving…

Right, ok, so I said I wasn’t going to give you a bunch of excuses for my absence in this space. But really moving a family of five across states is an entire creative project from beginning to end. The staging of a home to sell, the packing of a home, all of the proper goodbyes leading up to basically an inverse of that in a strange place in the middle of summer with all of the emotions and no familiarity to soften the feels. Not an excuse, just a fact.

And that fact has a million stories attached to it, for which we do not have time today. Instead, I’ll give you what saved my life during that period.

Reading Unearthed. My friend handed this to me in the spring and I held on to it like a life raft. It’s about moving and gardening and grief and so yeah you see why it was a gift.

Listened to Wild and Precious: A Celebration of Mary Oliver. Imagine your favorite people like Ross Gay and Samin Nasrat, among others, talking about how Mary Oliver saved them. I listened while painting my dingy walls white to create a clean slate for the new homeowners, and I sobbed my way through.

Reading Alphabreaths as a family. This summer when emotions ran HIGH, I remembered this book and grabbed it from the library again. It guides you through different breaths and truthfully, I need this more than the kids.

Listened to American Royals. This series has been out for awhile but somehow I never took my turn. It was a delightful floaty distraction from my non Royal life.

Speaking of Distraction…

Shows also saved me this summer. Many I watched during painting projects in my new home such as Bad Sisters (An Irish “Goodbye Earl” series, Platonic (friends who, delightfully, do not turn to lovers), and TSITP (IYKYK). Mike and I watched The Bear, along with everyone else, which was an absolutely perfect welcome back to Chicago kind of a show. Wild, but delicious.

Speaking of Wild but Delicious…

(Always have to have at least one weird segway.) Scamanda! Have you listened? A Serial True Crime kind of series podcast all about a blogger who convinced everyone she had cancer to gather donations. FASCINATING.

Speaking of listening…

Have you been listening to Swift & Swigs with Sibs? Do you even know about my podcast? Quick primer if not: I have a podcast with my brother where we talk about a Taylor Swift song and pair a cocktail with that song. It’s a dance party for your ears.

While moving was my biggest creative project this summer, my most delightful creative project I maintained consistently is this podcast. I truly feel so alive with the entire thing—the creative energy, the curiosity, the camaraderie with my brother over something we both love. It’s fueling me. There are 39 episodes to explore. But if you want to know where to begin, maybe try the Trilogy of August, Betty, and Cardigan episodes that we did this summer. They are the perfect summer to fall transition.

Speaking of fall transitions…

I’d love to start dumping a bunch of tasty fall recipes in your inbox. But the truth is, I’m just coming around to cooking again. Survival mode cooking isn’t shareable.

But this apple dip I make every year and serve up on an after school snack tray is.

Speaking of snack tray…

One of the highlights for my retreat was getting to host everyone at my house for a cocktail and heavy snacks party. None of us had attempted a big fancy cheese board before but we were able to pool our creative minds and come up with this.

Amaze balls, right?

The inspiration came from the books That Cheese Plate will Save Your Life and That Cheese Plate Wants to Party. Can’t recommend enough. Perfect for your fall and winter gatherings.

Speaking of Retreat…

For the Exhale Retreat, my friend Amy (you know, Cake and Gasp Amy) made a Blackberry Sage cake to which I paired a blackberry and sage champagne punch. I’d share the recipes for that but truthfully I dumped a bunch of stuff together and didn’t really measure. #MixologistProblems

But what I can share is the recipe for the simple syrup because my friend Michelle, an incredible poet, created a cocktail with the syrup and called it the Part-Time Poet, (keep reading below and you’ll learn why) and it was so delicious I MUST share.

The Part-Time Poet

1/2 oz. Blackberry Sage Simple Syrup*

2 oz. Bourbon

Dash of bitters

Stir ingredients with ice until well chilled. Strain into glass with large ice cube. Become a poet after a few sips.

*Blackberry Sage Syrup: Simmer 1 cup sugar, 1 cup water, and 1/2 cup blackberries for a few minutes. Add sprig of sage leaves and turn off heat. Let cool for 30 minutes. Strain and chill.

Speaking of Part-Time Poet…

I adore this poetry project of my friends. I especially love when they go behind the poem to discuss the writing process. There are too many good ones to share so I’ll just direct you to subscribe so you can read them all.

Speaking of creative friends…

My creative friends are just really cool.

I can never get enough of their stories. I started to list out all of my favorite essays read recently but noticed they were all collected in the Coffee + Crumbs Fall Collection so just go there and read them all. Savor the words and the season. That’s what I plan on doing this weekend.

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I leave you with a lyric I’m still thinking about and still can’t listen to without melting into the floor into a puddle of tears. Damn you Billie Eilish and Greta Gerwig for meeting me right where I was, I am.

Think I forgot how to be happy.

Something I’m not, but

something I can be.

Something I wait for.

Something I’m made for.

— “What I was Made For” Billie Eilish

Crying with me? K great.

See you next month, promise!