By David Fortier
Come Sunday morning, I will have settled into the weekend—breakfast with Mary on the porch (this Saturday blueberry crepes and a cup of tea before she heads out for a full day of activities and I get ready to exercise, something I need to do a couple of times a day to get his knee working), getting my car washed and doing the grocery shopping, and maybe some grading and reading and thinking.
Two times during the week for dinner, I eat leftovers from the Dozynki Festival—the stuff cabbages that I made sure to get extra—while again Mary is again engaged in more activities—this week it is a council meeting and then a bunch of other meetings. My mom used to make stuff cabbage (and sometimes stuffed peppers, similar but definitely different) and I find great comfort in them, yet I rarely think about making them myself. I leave that for the experts at the local Polish festival.
Aside from an occasional break such as a visit to a local festival (of which there are many this time of year, including our own Mum Festival which is back next weekend), the weeks are beginning to shape around school and rehab for my knee, which is coming along nicely. It’s nice to have some routine, especially when there is so much volatility in the air. I think about this volatility often enough and find that I have begun to limit my intake of news—I try to get in some in each morning and again in the evening—because there is just so much of it, all the time.
I am guessing that oftentimes it is the amount of coverage that dulls the message and that by cutting down I get some distance so that I can distinguish between what is important and what is noise.
Despite that effort I still find myself turning to a couple of sources that help put things in perspective. Of course, one is the Ezra Klein Show, a New York Times podcast, and something called PressRun. This week I caught one of the Klein podcasts. Here is a link: The discussion is subtitled, “How the pandemic and events of the last decade upended economic policy.” Yes, it sounds highfaluting but is approachable and enlighteing.
PressRun is a website dedicated to “fearless media commentary.” It’s the closest venue that I have discovered that provides an honest and fair evaluation of the press’s performance in recent years up to the moment. Every post provides a clear look at our news media and its strengths and weaknesses. PressRun is an oasis for people who would like to gain a clear understanding of the issues that we face when it comes to thoughtful reporting.
And, a little escape. This one is s stretch, but I took a few minutes to track down on YouTube episodes of a tv show I vaguely remember from my childhood, and one that I think about every once in a while because I really liked it. The show, “My World and Welcome to It,” was based on the writing of New Yorker humorist James Thurber. I found and watched some episodes, and while dated in some ways, it proved to be as much fun as I remembered.
The main character, John Monroe, is a cartoonist at a New Yorker-type magazine. He often addressed the audience directly, and once in a while engages in fantasies and walks in and out of scenes that are animated. The show got raves but only lasted a year. If you are curious, search YouTube.
Have a good week!
“Come Sunday morning” is intended to be a weekly review, a recounting of the past week and an anticipation of week to come. Among its features will be reviews of old and new books, sharing of favorite podcasts, some family news, Bristol events and happenings and issues surrounding education, work and community journalism. He can be reached at dfortier@bristoledition.org.