july reflecting
10 days of monkhood (a new comic), solstice music & rejecting the nihilism of climate apocalypse
remember how I said I was gonna take it easy this month since I was in between projects? lol
more on that later, BUT I spent the bulk of this month deep in the desert amongst dozens of strangers enduring 110°+ F / 43°+ C heat, totally silent, learning a 2,500 year old Buddhist meditation technique with no reading, no writing, nor communication with the outside world permitted.
For no charge whatsoever, these folks give you room and board in order for you to confront the depths of your own psyche, work through your body's reactions to all you've been holding onto, and walk towards peace.
My only critique is that it was organized and segregated in an exhaustingly binary-gendered way, had a rather sexist dress code, and for these reasons is sadly not something I could comfortably recommend to trans friends. but if you're curious, check it out, there are centers all over the world!
I posted a bookload of sketches from my time there on my blog as well as “10 days of monkhood” (available to the public next week), a comic / collection of notebook scraps on my own journey with mental health, therapy (both physical and psychological), grief, critiques (and later understandings) of Buddhism as I knew it, and what it means to find peace in a world that has been very hostile to you and your kin.
not my prettiest nor lightest comic BUT something I definitely needed to get out :')
also, as promised / threatened when you signed up for this newsletter, I have a podcast recommendation, and a playlist for you.
the first episode of Emergence Magazine’s podcast, Reindeer at the End of the World made me weep with resonance. listen if you need a dose of beautiful realism, indigenous resilience, and reasons to reject the appealing nihilism of the privileged when looking into our very scary climate future.
I also made a playlist brimming over with summer feelings.
in book news:
with all that time in the desert silence, I pretty much wrote out the entire script for GO BACK & GET IT, my debut fiction work. Random House sent me a whole stack of their graphic novel works, and I’m still reeling that imma be adding my baby to it :’)
as you saw above, I completed an illustration for promotional, poster & postcard uses for COOK LIKE YOUR ANCESTORS I’m really happy with. (here is a look at the process from sketch to finish!)
I also made some really cute sticker designs featuring the tomatoes & potatoes from the risograph posters I did, but I’ll share those once they’re in physical form post-printing.
speaking of printing: the book officially went off to print in China last month, but because of a recipe inside that acknowledges Taiwan, censors halted it. Rather than cede to such a petty imperial demand that would imply Taiwan as NOT a nation independent of China, we switched printers entirely.
because of the timeline crunch and price difference, the book cost went up, and the final release date is now mid-November instead of October, which is really unfortunate. Thankfully the book will still be accessible via public library card apps like Libby and Hoopla, and then there’s always the digital version. <3
that’s all for now. I hope you’re staying cool in the best way.