The night sky in New Orleans turns a dusty shade of pink during a summer thunderstorm. The lightening brightens everything with light and contrast and I always hold my breath for the crack of thunder. New Orleans is extra palpable in the summer months. She’s breathing deep and will not be ignored.
It’s been a big week. Sun-filled. Sweaty. So so sweaty. I’ve been in the kitchen cooking up recipes for the blog and the brunch book. Tron (when he’s not laying in the bathroom sink) is trying to convince me to make him an indoor-outdoor cat. I’m doing a lot of yoga and looking like an absolute spazzzzz. They don’t call it a practice for nothing.
I hope your days are starting to feel warm and slow and sometimes stormy. Here’s what this week has for us:
• We’re human and we build societies and rules and all sorts of ridiculous things for ourselves. We build a structure and sometimes we build it wonky and have to reevaluate what we’re doing and how we’re treating each other. These words from the Supreme Court make marriage for all. It’s a mark in history and here we are, alive for it!
“No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were. As some of the petitioners in these cases demonstrate, marriage embodies a love that may endure even past death.
It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right.
The judgment of the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit is reversed.
It is so ordered.”
• What is going on? Three terrorists attacks on three continents, Friday.
• How New Orleans stopped making jailing a business and reduced its jail population by 67%. Spoiler alert: New Orleans still has a heck of a lot of people incarcerated.
• What if authors were payed every time someone turned a page? Amazon is about to find out.
• We talk about our guts a lot lately. There’s much going on. Can the bacteria in your gut explain your mood? Surprise surprise, stress is a nasty beast.
• Turning to a ghostwriter for a personal toast. This is pretty fantastic.
• Extremely Important: Why women apologize and should stop. Taking sorry / not sorry to a different level.
• Meet the 63rd Black Woman With A Physics Ph.D in American History. She used to help me with my Spanish homework in high school. Go on and GET IT, Chanda!
• Meet people where they need to be met. Nowadays, that’s with a text: How the crisis text line is saving lives.
• The essential guide to happiness at work, with Rashida Jones.
• This was unexpectedly beautiful to me: 14 perfect French words and phrases we need in English
• David Lebovitz went to visit the Le Creuset Factory in France.
• 11 things to remember when you think you’re not good enough. Helpful more often than we’d like to admit.
• What happens when a man spends two weeks eating nothing but food made for women? Try to give me a thumb-sized brownie and see what happens… I’ll bite you.
• The life-saving ‘undo send’ feature is now an official part of Gmail. Um… we’re also going to need this for text messages and ten year old emails. Thanks.
• 10 Most Annoying Food Package Quirks. Shrink wrapped cucumber WHY!?
• 5 things that will make your kitchen more Parisian
• A Sad Cat’s Diary. Half of love is just… low.
• Have you put together your Summer Bucket List? May I suggest that this lovely travel watercolor kit be on your list? It’s so great!
Go enjoy this day! It’s just too good to waste.
xo Joy
Jessie @ Chasing Belle
This run down is the best! My company uses slack and I love Rashida Jones so I really appreciated the article shared regarding the essential guide to happiness at work.
caitlin
love these posts, especially the quote from the Supreme Court and the French phrases this week :)
emmajeanne16
David Lebovitz’s post was so cool. I wish we could all go explore.
Deepak k
This is amazing … Please keep it going and Love Tron
nancy k
Please, please keep Tron an indoor cat. I know he used to go out when you lived in CA but New Orleans is very different …lots of stray dogs around and so many dangers. He is a beautiful boy and his life expectency will be severly decreased if he becomes an outdoor guy.Be strong and don’t give into his pleas. He will eventually get over it.
Terry Covington
Joy, everything, every little and big thing, about this post is amazing. Your spirit is contagious. Your courage (and yes, that is not too strong a word) in being free to post things that interest you, or talk about things that are important, is something I admire. This is all in addition to the beautiful photos and great recipes. My cousin died years before this Supreme Court decision; she wanted so much to marry her partner of 20 years. I am grateful that other people won’t have to be denied that peace and joy now, of being able to be recognized as married couples if they choose to be. Thank you for all the links about empowering ourselves.
marie
loving your cat picture what a beauty!
loving all the links too thanks :)
http://allornothing-blog.blogspot.co.uk/
sarah
DANG Dr. Prescod- Weinstein is a brilliant bad-ass. I love that I got to learn about her today! Thank you for your always smart and refreshing Sunday posts.
joythebaker
she is a FORCE!
Jenna
What a great batch of links today! Loving them all :)
Mary-Claire
Joy, I so do love your perspective on world issues and on life. Your blogs are one of the most intellectual and fascinating, and for that, I love you (in a not-so-weird-stalkerish way, of course—although in the off chance I’d be in New Orleans, I would be super excited to meet you if I saw you in the street). Thank you for continually keeping me in the loop of current events and your random musings. They are wonderful! Oh, and Tron’s bathroom sink decision is brilliant. I wish I could fit in the bathroom sink right about now. Heat=Ugh!
JoDee
Let it be Sunday’s blog is so insightful. I love it!
Becky Winkler (A Calculated Whisk)
Tron is so adorable!
Cecile
I very much enjoyed reading how ‘our gut can affect our mood’. It does make me even more worried about all the antibiotics we take…. and all those ‘anti-bacterial products’ !! I did know that our bodies needed lots of good bacteria but I had no idea that those little ‘bugs’ can change how we act. Fascinating!! I plan to share it on Facebook. ; o )
Jay
Another thoughtful and informative post! Keep writing Joy! ( and dear Tron, you are safer and healthier indoors!)
Dani | salt sugar and i
Love all the links and Tron in the sink – super cute! :) Thanks for sharing
Bethany Wilson
this is possibly the best Let it be Sunday post yet. So many good links. So much love. #lovewins