Weekly Checklist 2/27/23
Camonghne Felix
Hard Shit: Dyscalculia: A Love Story of Epic Miscalculation
In my search for queer books that address psychological issues, I have discovered this gem. An epic meditation on loving yourself in the face of heartbreak, from the acclaimed author of Build Yourself a Boat, longlisted for the National Book Award
When Camonghne Felix goes through a monumental breakup, culminating in a hospital stay, everything—from her early childhood trauma and mental health to her relationship with mathematics—shows up in the tapestry of her healing. In this exquisite and raw reflection, Felix repossesses herself through the exploration of history she’d left behind, using her childhood “dyscalculia”—a disorder that makes it difficult to learn math—as a metaphor for the consequences of her miscalculations in love. Through reckoning with this breakup and other adult gambles in intimacy, Felix asks the question: Who gets to assert their right to pain?
For Your Astrological and Entertainment Health:
It took me till I was in my 60s to see that astrology was neither more or less “evidence-based” than any of the cognitive-behavioral interventions I teach my students, to say nothing of Freudian ones. I did a few charts and, yes, there is a correlation between the transit of the planets and certain key points in my life, and it does seem pretty clear that I am an Aries (that hot temper) with a Taurus Rising (the stability of my profession as a psychotherapist). Also, Saturn, the planet of constriction, has been in the constellation of Aquarius (all about freedom and revolution) for three years. A correlation with the pandemic? And soon Saturn is moving into Pisces. Anyway, I am now falling in love with a few astrologers online. There are some serious ones. Will The Astrologer is, excuse me, so sensuous and warm, I just love him. Maybe you will, too?
For Your Queer Health:
Full disclosure, our gay national authorial treasure, Felice Picano, is one of my mentors and dearest of friends. Still, as an author myself, and a struggling one at that, I turn to his work to learn new aspects of the craft. He writes about gay life with such wisdom and humor and also includes the entire human family. He is one of the co-founders of the Violet Quill, a collection of serious gay authors who formed a supportive collective in the 1970s, not unlike the Bloomsbury Group. But it’s hard to keep up with him, as he is so prolific. I have a shelf and a half of his books and only a fraction.
I happened upon his Science Fiction trilogy Dryland's End (City on a Star Book 1). And I have been mesmerized. Felice has a deeply visionary and mystical side. The perfect book to read as Pluto enters Aquarius for 20 years! Here’s how Amazon puts it: “Five thousand years in the future, life itself is in jeopardy! A rebellion of intelligent Cybernetic servants has left the Females of the galaxy virtually sterile, crippling the controlling political body – the Matriarchy. The race is on to find a solution, but will it be enough to save the Matriarchy as other galactic authorities attempt to dominate them using sabotage and all-out war?
Dryland's End is Felice Picano’s science fiction adventure for the new millennium. The novel touches on many of today's most controversial subjects, such as interracial relationships, gender conflicts, gender identity, and same-sex pairings – and views them with a lens toward the future.” What’s more, you get Felice’s great and wry characterization, going back and forth into different characters’ minds, camp humor, deadly serious dialogue, and a stark glimpse into the future already being announced by changes Felice predicted a long time ago! Get this trilogy. It’s already blowing my mind.
For Your Cultural Health:
Billy Woodberry
We are getting to the end of Black History Month but that doesn’t mean we should do anything less but expedite our awareness of our national character. I have watched Billy Woodberry’s only dramatic feature to date, from 1983. As the New Yorker puts it: The movie “looks deeply into the life of one family in Watts and plots in crisis in their dimensions—race, money, and gender.” In addition, and I agree, “Woodberry crafts a passionately pensive realism-—nearly every scene of action is matched by a long one in which characters, in observant repose, look back and see themselves reflected in society’s mirror.” The psychological intensity and danger are also riveting. If you do not subscribe to the Criterion Channel, maybe seeing this movie is a good reason to throw some coins into yet another streaming service (but this one has a library of all the old movies, so maybe worth it?).
For Your Psychological Health:
I am sorry to promote myself, but I am actually kinda proud of these Youtube videos, I have made with the help of my social media producer Ally Noel. This one is on the Self Psychology of Heinz Kohut. It’s made for my students but is also meant for the YouTube community. If you haven’t heard about Kohut or Self Psychology, I would beseech you to learn more. Self Psychology explains why our narcissism is not the problem, as it leads to self-esteem which leads to empathy, it’s that we have been wounded in early infancy by caregivers who didn’t mirror appropriately our NEEDS in three areas: To be Grand; To Idealize; To Experience Twinship. The self should be made to feel like Cheddar Cheese. But instead, it feels like Swiss Cheese. The holes (or the deficits) in the self need our most compassionate empathy–and therapy! I’d love to know what you think!?