M'AIDEZ!

We need all the help we can get right now

I'm so sorry I’ve been slack on maintaining this Substack lately, but I’ve been so immersed in the political stuff that once I’ve decided I’m done with it for the day, writing anything else seems like a Herculean task.

Nobody expects everybody to pay attention to everything if it’s not their job. But it IS my job, and the question I get most often from the people I know who DON’T work in politics is “How do you unwind from all of that shit?”

My go-to quip is “Weed,” because it’s not untrue, and the laugh makes people relax for a moment. Then I explain that while I don’t stay stoned ALL of the time, I do put my phone down for longer breaks these days. It’s not that I’m checked out, I just need to take some time to rest and reset so I can get back out there to resist.

I’ve participated in two protest marches, and I’ll be back out there today for the May Day protest. This time, I decided to get a little crafty with my Resistance. I know they seem small, but they stretch! Also, I have the wrists of a malnourished 8-year-old, which saves on beads.

Then I kept going.

There are 50 bracelets in there. I’ll give them out to anyone who wants them today until they’re all gone.

I’m not a very crafty person, but this is the kind of mindless craft I need. It may have started with Taylor Swift, but then I started making them for my Low Bar Chorale friends when I found myself with a surplus of bracelet stuff. And then, even though I’m a woman in her mid-50s, I kept buying beads and making bracelets, because once I got into the process, I found it very soothing to do the repetitive motions while creating patterns with colors.

I always have the TV on when I make them, and it’s always on “Grey’s Anatomy,” aka the Balm For My Soul, aka My Story. There are 20 seasons’ worth of soapy goodness to have on in the background while I put the bracelets together. Sometimes I skip through seasons based on my mood. Do I want to go through the plane crash and the shooting again? How many times can I watch Denny Duquette die? But what always remains consistent (besides my eternal worship of Chandra Wilson’s Miranda Bailey) is that once I have it going, I want to keep it that way for a while. You’d think Netflix would learn this by now, but nah.

Yes, that’s Maggie’s estranged husband, Dr. Winston Ndugu. I’ll even binge the more recent seasons, even if they aren’t as good as the previous seasons, I don’t care. I’m forever Ride or Die for “Grey’s” even if Ellen Pompeo has taken a major step back and they still can’t find a lasting love interest for Amelia. [Sidebar: Caterina Scorsone (Amelia) and E.R. Fightmaster (Kai) had the most scorching chemistry of any “Grey’s” couple since Izzie and Denny, and I will die on that hill]

Someday, I’d love to sit down with Shonda Rhimes and discuss my ideas to give “Grey’s” the boost it’s been needing over the last couple of years. The newest class of interns just isn’t all that interesting. I can’t remember any of their names, and I don’t care about their entanglements.

My rebooted “Grey’s Anatomy” would be about both Ellis Greys—the OG Ellis making her mark in the 70s while getting it on with Richard, and a future Ellis Grey-Shepherd starting her intern year at Grey Sloan Memorial with her older sister, Zola, as one of her attendings. Bailey and Webber would be on the brink of retirement by then, Ellen Pompeo could cameo in age makeup as an acting challenge, and it would be cool to experiment with the idea of where medicine will go in the future while enjoying all the retro goodness of the 70s storyline.

THIS is what I think about sometimes instead of politics. I remember that I’m a creative person, and I embrace those moments of inspiration at a time when there’s not a lot to be inspired by.

I also think about adapting The Sound of Settling and the follow-up into a streaming series, which seems all but impossible now that no one cares about my book while the world burns. I’m never giving up on that dream, but now that men are finally getting the publishing breaks they’ve never had before, I guess I have to keep waiting.

BRB, I’m just fixing all of the skin I’ve peeled off of my body out of pure lifelong frustration, I’ll be fine. In the meantime, please buy a copy (if you can spare the scratch) and share the link on your socials (which is free to do!) because I still love my rock and roll love story more than anything else I’ve ever written, and nothing will ever change that.

I’ll also keep going with the politics on my podcast, THE TARA SHOW, which is broadcast live every Tuesday and Thursday at 2 pm ET/11 am PT. It’s the fastest hour of political talk anywhere, so I’d love for you to join us in the chat and be a part of the conversation! And YES, I’d even talk about “Grey’s Anatomy” if anyone wants to!