Blogger Appreciation Month Week 1 - Gretchen Rubin: Patron Saints
This month I’m appreciating a handful of bloggers I love and admire and I’m beginning with Gretchen Rubin who writes The Happiness Project blog (among many other things). In early June, Gretchen Rubin wrote a post asking "Who Are Your Patron Saints?"
This is exactly the sort of post for which I value Ms. Rubin's blog: I was completely surprised and stumped by her question. Not only had I never asked this question of myself, I had trouble just wrapping my brain around this, sort of, new interpretation of a "patron saint." This isn't the sort of frame/lens I'd normally use to view the world and her asking the question provided me the opportunity to stretch myself to try to understand a really different sort of thinking from my own. It also gave me the gift of discovering that I might have some Patron Saints of my own.
I read this post and I kept it as "unread" 'till Google Reader's recent retirement (boo!) because I really did want to share this idea with you hear and I really did want to try to answer the question for myself. So, here goes.
My patron saints are:
Tina Fey - Sure, every "quirky" actress likes to fancy herself the next Tina Fey. Still, as a smart actress who writes more and more myself, Ms. Fey's career truly is inspirational not to mention ground-breaking and door-opening for the rest of us. (Props must also be given to Junior Patron Saint Ms. Mindy Kaling.)
Meryl Streep - Fellow Vassar grad and consummate actress. Bam!
Mark Helprin - Although I have so much more of his work yet to read, his books Freddy and Fredericka and The Winter's Tale have blown me away with their scope, humor, inventiveness and their excellent writing. Images from both of these books come back to me often.
They Might Be Giants - Early in my life (it might have been seventh grade) I appreciated their use of vocabulary and correct grammar. I still appreciate those things and every time I listen to them, they tickle me. I also admire the longevity of their careers as artists.
Ms. Rubin lists six but I've only got those four so far. I'll keep thinking. (I feel certain there's someone less contemporary who should be in the mix . . . )
In the meantime, visit The Happiness Project and leave a comment below about who's your Patron Saint of Blogging?