76 Comments
User's avatar
Chelsea Caffey's avatar

Not only do I love all of these ideas but this article is just so well written, and funny, and interesting, and I just loved it.

Raine Sillito's avatar

Well this was the lovely reboot to my writing inspiration system that I needed! When I was a teenager I actually did randomly collect the origin stories of middle names - I went around for years just asking me people to tell me all about their middle names just because it fascinated me. Thank you for this, it somehow reminded me of the writer/researcher I used to be.

Michelle's avatar

I love how so many of us are innate researchers, but we kind of forgot who we were/are along the way. Inquiry sits right next to childlike wonder, to me!

Wendlyn Alter's avatar

In my (boomer) generation, someone pointed out that all our middle names were throwbacks to the previous generation. Ellen, Louise, Roger, George. I don't know if that's still true for more recent generations.

Dr Karen Constantine's avatar

Oh my Gosh I love your middle name origin story project!! 💚

Emmalea Russo's avatar

love this so much. makes me think of the amazing artist HANNE DARBOVEN, mystical researcher

Michelle's avatar

googles furiously

generally unavailable's avatar

yeah this is excellent - I might even document finding it, and the sisyphian ritual of finding my way back out of my phone

⏾ ritual girlie ⋆.˚'s avatar

i freaking love this article are you kidding meee??? so well done, lovely ideas, bookmarking immediately!!!

Hearthwing's avatar

This is gold, and as someone who has more than her share of mystical noetic happenings in life, I nonetheless am eager to work my way through the list because I also love the intrigue and fascination of the everyday strangeness that lies beneath the surface of lives

Kelley Hoag's avatar

Obsessed with this

Altar Five's avatar

Yes to everything!

Silvia Sky's avatar

“why do I keep buying celery I do not eat.” the struggle to answer this too, is real! Everything else you wrote is equally full of wonder. Of a different kind. Magic! I guess my summer has just got way more creative than I could ever hope for! Thank you! 💖 I asked, and your article just appeared! 💜💜💜

Judy Blackshear's avatar

I just discovered you. I don't know where you have been. I brought my groceries home, put away the celery, but only after tossing the previous celery into the compost. Then sat down to read. Looks like I'll be here reading a lot.

Noticing is magic. Attention makes a thing sacred. Two things I have learned from some teachers important to me. Glad to see the message getting around. :)

Tina Tau's avatar

This is amazing. I love the origin of the word school-- leisure, or restful learning!! I'm touched that this showed up in my inbox this morning, it feels like the true medicine I was hungry for. Thank you so much, I instantly subscribed, and I will undertake some of these magical research projects. Bless you!

Ari Deng's avatar

These are all so so incredible, I’m going to make this my summer bucket list, maybe even document some on my future substack articles! Will tag your ofc, but please share with us some of your answers to these <333

Michelle's avatar

Ooo thank you for the invitation! I’ve got some tricks up my sleeve…

Kat Skarbek's avatar

I love this idea and the endless ways in which to engage with it. So many yummy ways for my brain to re-engage with my world. Thanks. 😊

Rebekah  Reed's avatar

Unbelievable!

Natalie Nelson's avatar

All of these ideas are wonderful, looking forward to trying them out.

Paloma's avatar

love this! immediately follow.