Month of Joy: Raspberry Curd by Sarah Gailey
Thaw three-quarters of a bag of frozen raspberries. One quarter of that bag was used to infuse a little gin, because C had a hard day and it seemed like a nice idea to make them a cocktail with raspberry-infused gin. The cocktail was a hit, and you watched a movie together and laughed a lot at Al Pacino’s performance, and the dog snored softly throughout the entire thing. Wrap up the raspberries in cheesecloth and squeeze them out as hard as you can. The raspberry juice will be a deep beautiful fucshia, and it will run down your hands, and when you lick a drop of it from the side of your own wrist you will be stunned by how intense the flavor is.
Month of Joy: The Little Things by Eden Royce
Baby animals: Pictures, gifs, videos… It doesn’t matter! Kittens and big cat cubs are a given for me, especially pictures of my own little (not so much anymore – see below) guy, but the carefree innocence of baby animals playing is a sure way to get my mood back to good. Some of my faves are baby elephants, foxes, pandas, and goats (in pajamas!)
Month of Joy: Oyster Fritters by Joyce Chng
In a lot of my stories, you will find recipes and cooking tips. Why? Because cooking brings me joy. Reading a recipe book is visual pleasure for me. I love going through my mom’s collection of recipe books, some of which date back from the 1970s. (Note: SFF writers, read widely — recipe books are legit reading and world-building material). So… my Month of Joy post will focus on… oyster fritters. In some places, we also call them oyster cakes. My dad got me into it and for years now, we love the sheer pleasure of biting into a piping hot oyster shaped like a disc or UFO.
Helen Lowe’s Month of Joy: From the Color Blue to “The End”
“These I have loved: White plates and cups, clean-gleaming, Ringed with blue lines; and feathery, faery dust; Wet roofs, beneath the lamp-light; the strong crust Of friendly bread; and many-tasting food; Rainbows; and the blue bitter smoke of wood…” ~ from The Great Lover, Rupert Brooke, 1887-1915 This excerpt from Rupert Brooke’s poem, The Great Lover, captures how seemingly small things can encompass joy. I recognize many if not all of the items contained in The Great Lover—from “the cool kindliness of sheets” to “blue-massing clouds”—but of course I have a list of my own…
Month of Joy: A Few Candidates by Mike Reeves-McMillan
Thanks, Skiffy and Fanty, for asking what brings me joy — because now I’m thinking about that, and that’s a good thing. Especially in these times. There are a few candidates. Erin, my spouse of nearly 19 years. Marrying her still ranks as the best decision I ever made, and I’m still astonished sometimes that someone so amazing would choose me. Being married to someone with a chronic illness isn’t all joy, certainly; it can be tough. But I knew that was the deal going in, and going through the tough times together makes the joy stand out more against the background.
Month of Joy: Cooking and a Recipe by Cora Buhlert
A few weeks ago, I chanced to read this article at the Guardian about the history of the premade sandwich. It’s a fascinating article and you should definitely read it. But what struck me was this quote by one Roger Whiteside, head of Marks & Spencer’s sandwich department in the 1980s: “Once you are time-strapped and you have got cash, the first thing you do is get food made for you […] Who is going to cook unless you are a hobbyist?” This quote not just made me bristle, it also baffled me. It baffled me as much as the lawyer from New York City whom I met online in the early days of the Internet and who told me that his family never cooks, whereupon I blurted out, “But what do you eat then?”
