For the list nerds and seasonally affected

my top 100 movies to combat the encroaching darkness

Photo by Myke Simon

Love, Lists, and other Remedies

Last Sunday I got sick really suddenly. Sneezing and sniffling and miserable, I looked like a sick person in a Disney cartoon: red nose, tissues surrounding me on the bed, chicken noodle soup, a voice 2 octaves lower than usual. I decided to postpone my live writing session until today (more info on that below if you’d like to join) and I settled in to watch some bad tv and drift in and out of sleep.

After my nap, my husband came up to check on me and started talking about Quentin Tarantino movies and how many of them would make it into his top 100 movies. He went on to say that he knew none of them would make his top 10, and I suggested we each try to make our top 100 movies and find out. The rest of the day was spent with him running up and down the stairs while I lay in bed making my list and he took care of our kiddo and made his. This is a classic example of an Alix & John activity, by the way. This is just who we are as humans together.

Before we had our son, we used to sit in our window seat in Chicago and take turns reading obscure word histories to each other from John’s copy of Garner’s Dictionary of Modern American Usage. I think we once made flash cards to improve our vocabularies. We are consummate nerds and list-makers.

oh, we bought GRE flashcards, right. (photo from Dec 2012 in Chicago)

A few months ago, I came across this wonderful essay on The Digital Meadow about curating your personal canon of art, movies, books, and ideas that were formative for you.

“In academic contexts, a “canon” is a collection of works deemed essential... But a personal canon is something entirely different. It’s not handed down from universities or intellectuals, but a set of works and ideas that you’ve chosen—consciously or unconsciously—to carry with you.” - Sabine Carys

I was immediately excited by this idea but had no time to actually do it until now. This winter I am going to curate my own personal canon. I will keep you updated as it goes! I may even go so far as to create some prints of my favorite book covers, movies, and artists to hang around my office and bedroom because I love being surrounded by things that inspire me. Also because - I need a plan for this season.

Oh, November

It’s November, and today with the ever-annoying “daylight savings time”, the world around me will begin to descend quickly into darkness. I am very dramatic about this because it effects me dramatically. In addition to my Vitamin D, movement, light therapy, therapy-therapy, and all my other methods, I need to plan ways to stay engaged creatively or I will sink quickly into a seasonal depression that can be hard (impossible?) to pull myself out of.

This is part of why I developed a spiritual and creative practice that is so tied to seasonal patterns. I’ve learned over my 44 years of existing, that if I try to run intensive programs or make too many social plans or think that I’ll write the next great novel over the winter, I inevitably feel terrible and overwhelmed and exhausted.

I need to let late fall and winter be a time of hibernation and rest. I need to trust that my creativity has not abandoned me come January, it is just a sleepy bear with no food.

Also from Quietly Wild

The work, then, is not to force myself into productivity, but to choose slow, small things that keep me connected. Like making lists. Like re-reading and watching old favorites. Like remembering which works of art have shaped me, and letting them continue to do their quiet work within me.

The First of many Lists

Without further ado, here is my list of 100 movies I love (so many from my formative years in the late 90’s and early ‘00’s). I hope it sparks your own list-making, or at least a conversation with a loved one about the works that have made you who you are.

I began by simply writing down as many movies as I could without looking anything up or referring to my phone at all. That got me to about 45 movies and then I took to the internet for my watch history, my purchases, and other people’s lists. Then John and I took stock of each other’s lists and added those the other had that we also loved.

It’s not perfect. It’s not done. I will probably change and update it forever, but it was really fun to do. And very rewarding.

Alix's Top 100 Movies

50KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Share your top 5 movies in the comments and let’s get some new ideas for our lists!

Creative Prompts

Here are a few questions for you, if you’d like to play along this week:

• What books, films, songs, or works of art belong in your personal canon?

• Which pieces have been so formative you carry them in your bones?

• How do you want to remember and honor those influences this season?

Poetry Prompts

• Write a list poem inspired by your favorite movie(s)

• Write your own “Oh, November” poem

Today’s Writing Session 4pm Eastern (rescheduled for today from last week)

Writing with the unseen, Zoom info will go out to paid subscribers around Noon on Sunday, Nov 2nd - upgrade now to join us!

After today, our next live writing session is Wednesday, Nov 12th at 12pm Eastern.

If you haven’t yet picked up Quietly Wild, now’s the perfect season for it—poems, photos, and rituals to light the darkening days. (It also makes a great gift for the seasonal poetry lover in your life.)

With love,
Alix