The whole thing about acting and comedy and black-and-purple roles—so much “Yes. SAME.” there for me. I longed to be Vanessa Redgrave performing Medea, and was mostly cast as sardonic second banana—a role I was already successfully playing in life so frequently that it wasn’t a challenge, or chance to explore those dark, dangerous parts of myself which so rarely (if ever) saw the light of day. Yes. SAME.
It’s pretty awful to feel pigeonholed in a restrictive, constraining way. One of the things I love most about your writing is the courageous way you allow yourself to be fully human and not only follow your opalescent ghost muse wherever she/it/they may lead, but also take us along as companions.
Of course your brand isn’t Clown Class, though that is such a spot-on descriptor for how we face the struggles we encounter in life. Your brand is Tina Rowley: Fresh, frank, funny, honest, earnest, clever, witty and imaginative, with a gift for capturing the human experience in words—whatever form, or shape, or iteration it may take. The constant changes of life are part of what keeps things exciting, and it’s only right for that to apply to your writing, as well. Never stale, never boring. I adore you. ❤️
Oh, Suzanne. This means so much to me. Thank you. The feeling is mutual.
(And right! the roles that matched my upbeat daily persona, the roles that seemed like they oughta be a gimme, they were much harder to perform. Some mule inside me was like NOT MORE OF THIS, FOR FUCK’S SAKE. Solidarity back through the years, my friend.)
You’re a world class human being and artist. I love you Tina, and I loved sad clown and farewell and also hello. Everything is a liminal space. Brands hate that.
I love everything you write and appreciate that you let us follow you on the journey. I hope that the “airport jail” story is sent out. Wait, was that the Gallivanting Monkey? I loved it, whenever / wherever I read it.
Aw, thank you, Sandi. That’s a deep cut indeed (and a bit too long for our purposes!) but I’m so glad you remember it fondly. And thank you for coming with!
Sad it's over but glad you had this insight. I can't help but think that some of the most successful "brands" out there are people that stand for something bigger than a narrow concept, even if they started that way. For instance, my favorite podcaster is Lex Fridman, who started his interviews in the AI space (his podcast was original called The AI Podcast). Over time, his whole persona started to emerge through the podcast – his fascination with history, his conviction that love is the driving force of humanity, his endless curiosity about what drives people across domains and how they make meaning of their lives. No need to pigeonhole.
Happy for you, and I hope you keep going to find your fullest self
Thank you for this, Miles. It’s an ongoing journey finding out how I want to relate to the world through my writing. I don’t expect a final answer but a fuller and fuller answer with more room for more of my humanity will do the trick. What a great wish.
What a beautiful send-off. I'm so moved by the tender care you took to follow your inner guides, to make the doll and create the ritual. I never think of that, though friends have recommended it and tried it themselves. I'm always *so* self-conscious about rituals, my rational mind can be such an awful, judgmental bully. (But enough about me. What do *you* think of me?)
I can already tell I'll be thinking about that doll in her little round tent with the happy cat all day. Looking forward to reading whatever you send out. Thanks!
Oh, Julie, thank you. And I get it, re: the rational mind bearing down on the rest of the mind. It was only a few years ago that I began to properly embrace ritual. I still have a measure of self-consciousness that holds me back, and maybe a little fear, too. A fear of cracking open a dialogue with things I don’t understand, maybe? But small rituals like this always feel wonderful now.
The whole thing about acting and comedy and black-and-purple roles—so much “Yes. SAME.” there for me. I longed to be Vanessa Redgrave performing Medea, and was mostly cast as sardonic second banana—a role I was already successfully playing in life so frequently that it wasn’t a challenge, or chance to explore those dark, dangerous parts of myself which so rarely (if ever) saw the light of day. Yes. SAME.
It’s pretty awful to feel pigeonholed in a restrictive, constraining way. One of the things I love most about your writing is the courageous way you allow yourself to be fully human and not only follow your opalescent ghost muse wherever she/it/they may lead, but also take us along as companions.
Of course your brand isn’t Clown Class, though that is such a spot-on descriptor for how we face the struggles we encounter in life. Your brand is Tina Rowley: Fresh, frank, funny, honest, earnest, clever, witty and imaginative, with a gift for capturing the human experience in words—whatever form, or shape, or iteration it may take. The constant changes of life are part of what keeps things exciting, and it’s only right for that to apply to your writing, as well. Never stale, never boring. I adore you. ❤️
Oh, Suzanne. This means so much to me. Thank you. The feeling is mutual.
(And right! the roles that matched my upbeat daily persona, the roles that seemed like they oughta be a gimme, they were much harder to perform. Some mule inside me was like NOT MORE OF THIS, FOR FUCK’S SAKE. Solidarity back through the years, my friend.)
🖤
You’re a world class human being and artist. I love you Tina, and I loved sad clown and farewell and also hello. Everything is a liminal space. Brands hate that.
Aw, man. Thank you so much, Dorothy. I love you, too, and “everything is a liminal space” is the best. Whew! YES.
"everything is a liminal space" - 100% THIS THIS THIS !!!
I love everything you write and appreciate that you let us follow you on the journey. I hope that the “airport jail” story is sent out. Wait, was that the Gallivanting Monkey? I loved it, whenever / wherever I read it.
Aw, thank you, Sandi. That’s a deep cut indeed (and a bit too long for our purposes!) but I’m so glad you remember it fondly. And thank you for coming with!
you know i'm always on board with whatever you're cooking up, snowsuit!
Come with me to the casbah, Turbs! If we’re uh I don’t know if we’re going there but--!
Sad it's over but glad you had this insight. I can't help but think that some of the most successful "brands" out there are people that stand for something bigger than a narrow concept, even if they started that way. For instance, my favorite podcaster is Lex Fridman, who started his interviews in the AI space (his podcast was original called The AI Podcast). Over time, his whole persona started to emerge through the podcast – his fascination with history, his conviction that love is the driving force of humanity, his endless curiosity about what drives people across domains and how they make meaning of their lives. No need to pigeonhole.
Happy for you, and I hope you keep going to find your fullest self
Thank you for this, Miles. It’s an ongoing journey finding out how I want to relate to the world through my writing. I don’t expect a final answer but a fuller and fuller answer with more room for more of my humanity will do the trick. What a great wish.
I loved every CC post and I'm looking forward to what's next!
Thank you, Alicia!
What a beautiful send-off. I'm so moved by the tender care you took to follow your inner guides, to make the doll and create the ritual. I never think of that, though friends have recommended it and tried it themselves. I'm always *so* self-conscious about rituals, my rational mind can be such an awful, judgmental bully. (But enough about me. What do *you* think of me?)
I can already tell I'll be thinking about that doll in her little round tent with the happy cat all day. Looking forward to reading whatever you send out. Thanks!
Oh, Julie, thank you. And I get it, re: the rational mind bearing down on the rest of the mind. It was only a few years ago that I began to properly embrace ritual. I still have a measure of self-consciousness that holds me back, and maybe a little fear, too. A fear of cracking open a dialogue with things I don’t understand, maybe? But small rituals like this always feel wonderful now.
XOXO.
❤️