171. An Idea

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Being an adult is hardly ever what you expected it to be. Nora’s shares a poem by her friend, the writer Kate Baer, about enjoying life regardless. 

You can find Kate’s poetry and other work on her website

About It's Going to Be OK

If you have anxiety, depression or any sense of the world around you, you know that not *everything* is going to be okay. In fact, many things aren’t okay and never will be!

But instead of falling into the pit of despair, we’re bringing you a little OK for your day. Every weekday, we’ll bring you one okay thing to help you start, end or endure your day with the opposite of a doom scroll.

Find Nora’s weekly newsletter here! Also, check out Nora on YouTube.

Share your OK thing at 502-388-6529‬ or by emailing a note or voice memo to [email protected]. Start your message with “I’m (name) and it’s going to be okay.”

“It’s Going To Be OK” is brought to you by The Hartford. The Hartford is a leading insurance provider that connects people and technology for better employee benefits.  Learn more at www.thehartford.com/benefits.

The IGTBO team is Nora McInerny, Claire McInerny, Marcel Malekebu, Amanda Romani and Grace Barry.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcripts may not appear in their final version and are subject to change.


INTRO MUSIC

Sometimes I am blown away by how little adult life resembles what I saw in movies growing up. I do not live in a palatial home like every family in a John Hughes movie. My life has none of the effortless charm of a Nora Ephron movie and my kitchen would make Nancy Meyers die. I eat a lot of fritos and not a lot of beautiful Martha Stewart meals. My work life is not in a glamorous high rise office building where my male coworker who gets under my nerves is secretly in love with me! It’s mostly just me sitting alone in loose pants and jumping onto zoom calls 5-8 minutes late. Sometimes, at night, when I attempt to do the very LIGHT journaling I practice, I think…what did I do today?

Because for me, today is a lot like yesterday which was a lot like the day before and a lot like tomorrow will probably be.

And I am not complaining because I love what I call a consistent experience. I’ll stay in the same brand of hotel because I know what the pillows will feel like and that the detergent they use won’t turn my eyeballs bright red. I’ll eat the same thing for lunch for months because hey, I like it.

And I don’t think that life has to be filled with over the top experiences to be enjoyed…we just have to give ourselves the chance to enjoy the experiences we have. Not all of them. If you’re prepped for a colonoscopy I’m not asking you to enjoy spending 12 hours glued to a toilet seat and if you’re a kid listening to this…ask your parents about colonoscopies later. Specifically if they’ve had one, which they should!

Anyway. I’m going to read you a poem today. And you can’t stop me. Unless you press pause on this. 

It’s by Kate Baer, who I love as a person and a poet.

It’s called An Idea.

I will enjoy this life. I will open it

Like a peach in season, suck the juice

From every finger, run my tongue over my chin. I will not worry about cliches 

or uninvited guests peering in my windows.

I will love and be loved. Save and be saved

A thousand times. I will let the want into my body, bless the heat under my skin.

My life, I will not waste it.  I will enjoy this life.

And so will you. That’s an order. 

OUTRO MUSIC

CREDITS

Being an adult is hardly ever what you expected it to be. Nora’s shares a poem by her friend, the writer Kate Baer, about enjoying life regardless. 

You can find Kate’s poetry and other work on her website

About It's Going to Be OK

If you have anxiety, depression or any sense of the world around you, you know that not *everything* is going to be okay. In fact, many things aren’t okay and never will be!

But instead of falling into the pit of despair, we’re bringing you a little OK for your day. Every weekday, we’ll bring you one okay thing to help you start, end or endure your day with the opposite of a doom scroll.

Find Nora’s weekly newsletter here! Also, check out Nora on YouTube.

Share your OK thing at 502-388-6529‬ or by emailing a note or voice memo to [email protected]. Start your message with “I’m (name) and it’s going to be okay.”

“It’s Going To Be OK” is brought to you by The Hartford. The Hartford is a leading insurance provider that connects people and technology for better employee benefits.  Learn more at www.thehartford.com/benefits.

The IGTBO team is Nora McInerny, Claire McInerny, Marcel Malekebu, Amanda Romani and Grace Barry.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcripts may not appear in their final version and are subject to change.


INTRO MUSIC

Sometimes I am blown away by how little adult life resembles what I saw in movies growing up. I do not live in a palatial home like every family in a John Hughes movie. My life has none of the effortless charm of a Nora Ephron movie and my kitchen would make Nancy Meyers die. I eat a lot of fritos and not a lot of beautiful Martha Stewart meals. My work life is not in a glamorous high rise office building where my male coworker who gets under my nerves is secretly in love with me! It’s mostly just me sitting alone in loose pants and jumping onto zoom calls 5-8 minutes late. Sometimes, at night, when I attempt to do the very LIGHT journaling I practice, I think…what did I do today?

Because for me, today is a lot like yesterday which was a lot like the day before and a lot like tomorrow will probably be.

And I am not complaining because I love what I call a consistent experience. I’ll stay in the same brand of hotel because I know what the pillows will feel like and that the detergent they use won’t turn my eyeballs bright red. I’ll eat the same thing for lunch for months because hey, I like it.

And I don’t think that life has to be filled with over the top experiences to be enjoyed…we just have to give ourselves the chance to enjoy the experiences we have. Not all of them. If you’re prepped for a colonoscopy I’m not asking you to enjoy spending 12 hours glued to a toilet seat and if you’re a kid listening to this…ask your parents about colonoscopies later. Specifically if they’ve had one, which they should!

Anyway. I’m going to read you a poem today. And you can’t stop me. Unless you press pause on this. 

It’s by Kate Baer, who I love as a person and a poet.

It’s called An Idea.

I will enjoy this life. I will open it

Like a peach in season, suck the juice

From every finger, run my tongue over my chin. I will not worry about cliches 

or uninvited guests peering in my windows.

I will love and be loved. Save and be saved

A thousand times. I will let the want into my body, bless the heat under my skin.

My life, I will not waste it.  I will enjoy this life.

And so will you. That’s an order. 

OUTRO MUSIC

CREDITS

Our Sponsor

The Hartford is a leading insurance provider that’s connecting people and technology for better employee benefits.
Learn more at www.thehartford.com/benefits.

Learn More

Have a story you want to share?

Share your OK thing at 502-388-6529‬ or by emailing a note or voice memo to [email protected].

Start your message with:
"I’m (name) and it’s going to be okay."

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