OOO #68: Outfits, Ohio, and Other Things I Like
I love when I don't have to defend myself, a concert, and the only video game I play
Outfits
Ohio
This past weekend, I went to the Olivia Rodrigo concert at Nationwide Arena. I had not yet been to Nationwide in my three years in Columbus, and honestly, I was really impressed!
I am always deeply worried that I’m going to spend hours waiting in line to get into concerts (I have been scarred by the lines and wait getting into the Elton John concert at Capital One Arena in 2019, and I missed “Benny and the Jets” 😭), but security was plentiful and well-organized, so I walked right in. I was meeting friends at our seats, and was a little worried about navigating the venue, but every part of the arena was well-labeled. Plus, there were a ton of concession stands (yes I did spend $10 on water), and the bathroom-to seating area ratio was so close to equal that I have ZERO complaints about the design of the building. I can’t wait to go back on April 21 for BRUUUUUUUUCE! Seriously, it’s the least stressful concert venue I have ever been to.
The concert itself was a lot of fun. I was probably the exact average age of attendees, but only because the people there represented two extremes: half of the people there were teens and half were their Gen X chaperones.
Rodrigo put on a good show—she had a nice balance between the upbeat and melancholy and between “Guts” and “Sour.” The concert clocked in at about an hour and a half, which was the perfect length after a long week of work. My favorite part of the concert was when Rodrigo got onto a giant crescent moved and sailed throughout the arena singing and chatting as she went.
The concert was as thought-provoking as it was entertaining, in the sense that Rodrigo (who announced she had just turned 21 earlier this year; I recoiled) inhabits a completely different life stage from my own. I loved delving back into teenage angst for a night, but I realized that no one could pay me enough money to be a teen—or even be in my early 20s—again. It was comforting to realize how much more confident and content I’ve grown since I graduated high school (and college!), and I know I’ll become even more so 10 years from now.
Rodrigo is such a talent as both a singer and songwriter (and has achieved so much at 21!), and if you’re thinking about going, I would recommend it.
Other Things I Like
After a 8-9 month hiatus, I’m back to playing Animal Crossing. I did not grow up playing video games; they were banned in my house.* Consequently, I was always super embarrassed to attempt to play Mario Kart at friends’ houses (I could barely get through three loops through Bowser’s castle, let alone Rainbow Road), and I was dreadful at Guitar Hero.
But about a week into the pandemic, “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” came out.** I was suspicious at first—I watched my husband play and refused to make my own character. But as the weeks went on, my interest was piqued, so I asked him to show me how to use the controllers, played as him for a bit, and eventually made my own character, house, and fortune, as I now have four times as many Bells (the Animal Crossing currency) as my husband has.
Why do I love Animal Crossing? Because there are no stakes. The worst thing that’s going to happen to you is you get stung by wasps or bitten by a tarantula—both of which are preventable and have zero consequences if they occur.
There is also no objective. I can just cultivate flowers (trying to get every possible color combination of flowers was a GREAT source of joy circa 2021—ironically I am zero percent interested in gardening in real life), swim in the ocean, bang on rocks looking for gold and iron, and craft weird pieces of furniture to my heart’s content. Today I made a costume out of eggs that fell out of trees. Why? I have no idea, it was just goofy. There are endless daily challenges you could complete (“catch 5 bugs” or “sell ten sea shells” or “change your outfit”), but they don’t really feel like something you have to do. There is literally zero stress in the game, and it rules.
The best part of the game is talking to very sweet anthropomorphic animal villagers—my favorite is Flip, an endlessly optimistic monkey who is obsessed with working out. Mostly, I think he just reminds me of my husband. There is also a character who shares my name, and she is a pretentious peacock, which tracks.
The other day, my husband and I were talking about activities that we do that we just *enjoy.* I have placed such a huge premium in my life on being endlessly productive at all hours (even my hobbies like reading, working out, and Duolingo all play into some life goal), that I sometimes feel guilty for just resting. It has been an important development for me to just do something for *fun,* and Animal Crossing is just that. Even if I play 20 minutes after work or an hour on a weekend, I feel a little lighter after, which I credit both to Animal Crossing’s music and animation, but also because I’ve just done something fun and for me. A little bit of joy for the sake of joy is a good thing.
*Somehow computer games were not—ask me about my pre-teen Sims addiction. I find I can churn out a BUNCH of work if I have the Sims soundtrack playing in the background.
**This was extremely fortunate for Nintendo.
Old News
I’m pretty sure I think about what New Amsterdam looked like and how it operated more than the average person should, so at this point I should just buy The Island at the Center of the World.
I loved visiting this museum when I lived in Boston, and the legacy of the theft is definitely part of the experience.
Diamonds aren’t special!!!! (This article is very similar to a lesson I teach annually in my “Resistance to Imperialism” unit)
I could listen to this woman say “frites” for hours on end.
The New York Times’s investigation reveals another horrific set of abuses in the history of sugar cultivation. A reminder that business regulation practices are actually a good thing: “Major buyers like PepsiCo and Coca-Cola say they hold their suppliers to exacting standards for labor rights. But that promise is only as good as their willingness to monitor thousands of farms at the base of their supply chains.”
That’s it! Have a great rest of your week!