plant matter 2.8.21
i’ve been thinking a lot about online communities lately — how they’ve changed since the start of the pandemic and how culture might shift around them moving forward. as any early aughts tumblr user will tell you, making friends on the internet is nothing new. but until 2020, social circles mostly formed online around specific niche interests or shared life experience. i think we can all agree that making friends as an adult has never been walk in the park, but if you weren’t naturally compelled to go searching for ‘your people’ online during normal times, there wasn’t really anything in the culture trying to convince you to do so. we were still expected to meet likeminded peers at work, or at parties, or i don’t know, on a recreational sports team? now seeking and maintaining relationships virtually is the de facto norm, and we’re building new infrastructures to reflect that.
i think this is kind of amazing. there are more opportunities now to connect with folx who share our passions or proclivities, and there’s less of a stigma towards doing so just for the sake of connection. the location agnostic nature of online communities forces us to be more intentional about who we’re sharing our time and energy with, and allows us to dive deeper into interests we may have previously ignored because the people around us weren’t into them.
i’m fixating on these ideas in part because we’re working on a new community-centric branch of closed loop cooking. i can’t say too much yet, but i’m very excited and hopeful for what’s to come. if being in community with sustainability enthusiasts and plant-based food lovers sounds like something you’d like to do, we would love to get your input.
what does online community mean to you? has the meaning changed over the past year? reply to this email and let me know!
thanks for being here <3
practice with me this week
restorative: wednesday 6pm cst with coconut yoga. bring your pillows, and come ready to unwind. let me know if you’d like to use my free guest pass!
strengthening flow: friday 5:30pm cst with outer reach. a 30-min energy booster to help you feel powerful and connected in your body. donation-based, pay what you wish.
some links
i finished the invisible life of addie larue by v.e. schwab last week, and it was one of the best books i’ve read in a while. the main character is cursed to be immediately forgotten by everyone she meets. beginning in france in 1714 and ending in present day nyc, this story made me think about finding purpose in life in ways i never had before. let me know if you read it so we can spiral together.
applications close this sunday for superhi’s black history month scholarship. the company is giving away over $50,000 worth of skill-based courses to black folx in the in the digital and creative industries. definitely check it out if that’s you!
cooking fatigue has really gotten the best of me lately, and i’ve been eating cereal for dinner more than i’d care to admit. in the interest of upping my veg intake i’ve been prepping batches of produce all at once so i can grab them super easily throughout the week. i’ll cut up carrot sticks and purple daikon to keep raw, and roast big trays of squash, beets, and parsnips. half gallon stasher bags are my key to success here because they keep everything fresh and are take up much less fridge space than a hard container. also, how cute are these rainbow sets?
read this if you need a good cry.
i asked a bunch of people what they ate in 2020 and wrote about it for my last story of last year on closed loop cooking. i’m still thinking about the poignant reflections i got in response to this simple question.
do you use rss feeds?
help shellie-ann grow her sustainable farm in western washington!
coveting these bright upcycled drop earrings. would make a great v-day gift, just sayin’.
what is my role in the climate movement?
i’m very excited to try baking these chocolate dipped oat biscotti.
my friend geneva is the cutest human on the planet.
i made these the other day with tahini instead of almond butter and they were *chef’s kiss* so perfect.
i love love evangeline garreau’s good question: ‘a newsletter co-written with its readership, based on survey responses to low-stakes, open-ended questions.’ this week’s q is how do you conceptualize time? (!!!)
yours in cereal dinners,
maia