Weekend Reads v. 10.1.2025
"I hope you didn't hurt."
“I mean, this is a house that was loved. I think that’s, that’s…when I first came to the house today, I started bawling. It’s almost like I personified my house. I’m like, ‘I hope you didn’t hurt. I hope this didn’t hurt.’” Kelly Foster on losing her home in the Palisades.
Welp. I don’t know about you, but I think 2025 should go back to bed and wake up when it’s in a brighter mood. Ten days in and things feel like a chapter out of the book Revelation.
I wish I had witty things to tell you that could serve as a distraction from all the horrific images, but I do not. I’m still here serving you links from around the web even though it feels trivial and pointless.
I suppose this is what one must do in the face of sadness that seems insurmountable. We go through it by picking up the trivial and routine activities of life. We hold a place for our grief by letting the tears come at all times of day. We sit in silence. We check in on those whom we love the moment they cross our minds. We share our disbelief and heartache. We write checks and send care packages. We take a break from the phone and soak in the vastness of sky – even if it is dark and raining with ash. Tomorrow will come. Until then, we must get on with the business of today.
For many, the business of today is finding a place to sleep tonight. Finding clothes that don’t reek of smoke. Finding formula for the baby. Finding a safe place for their pet to rest. By now you’ve likely seen dozens of links to organizations working to provide care. I’m starting this Weekend Reads with a few links you may not have seen yet, and then I’m sharing my usual fare of finds from around the web because a break from the sadness is necessary.
Ways to Help People in Los Angeles
This is a family I went to church with who lost their home. If you’re looking to specifically help, maybe you’d be interested in making a contribution to their GoFundMe?
You may know I spent many years working in the music industry out in Los Angeles. It really was a dream come true. Here’s a list of people from the music industry who have been displaced or need help. It was sobering to see names I recognized.
Here’s a form that families displaced by the wildfires can use to request help.
If you have clothes, shoes, coats, etc. that you can donate to victims of the wildfires — even from afar — Second Markets is offering a program to match people with resources.
Send a meal to firefighters working around the clock to battle the fires. This LA restaurant is working via Toast to coordinate delivery of meals, and you can directly cover the costs of meals via this page.
A Google Spreadsheet of hundreds of orgs and resources. You can give items or money via this doc.
Consider helping displaced pets by making a donation to the organization that brought me my sweet cats.
Your Weekend Reads
This article about a house for sale was interesting to me not because I watched Breaking Bad, but because this simple house is selling for a jaw-dropping amount while real estate comps in the neighborhood go for around $340,000. In addition to the massive price tag, there’s also the issue of people throwing pizzas up on the roof.
There’s still so much snow on the ground outside my house (more is on the way tomorrow!), and while I have quite a collection of Irish woolen blankets, I can’t help but want to add one of these massive bed blankets from Cushendale to the stack.
This essay on the truth about happiness makes me think true happiness can be found right where you are.
“It is common to think of happiness as something we could reach if we could get some of the things we want in our lives. This intuition is misleading. Happiness is designed to move away from us as we progressively achieve the things we thought would make us happy.” Source
Some of my favorite dinnerware is on sale.
Why we can’t focus. Hint: turn off notifications.
Maybe an unspoken resolution: Doing nothing with your favorite people is really good for you.
Would you renovate an old mansion with your mom?
If you’ve never lived through the violence of the Santa Ana Winds, I encourage you to read this magnificent essay by Joan Didion. Even after 12 years of living with this annual visitor to LA, I still can’t find words to describe them the way Joan does.
Take gentle care of yourself, OK?