Trisha Paytas + Sunday Scaries😬
Today we’re starting with a BIG shout out to the 7 new ✨SYSCA SUPPORTERS✨ who’ve joined us in the last week!
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Not gonna lie to you all, by the end of last week, I was broken. Just recently our angel Bel wrote a chime called 'Break Or Take Breaks' and I can confirm that I did not take a break which... proved Bel's theory. In exciting news, we met/ interviewed one of the sickest people ever (you'll know more on Wednesday about that) and in less exciting news... your girl is sporting a huge cold sore :-----) Love that for me. Hot girlies are cold sore girlies tho and I will not hear otherwise.
This weekend I saw no one and I did nothing. That's a lie, actually. I caught up with one best friend, and completely forgot another best friend's birthday (leading to a little more self-hatred.) I played a lot of Dreamlight Valley (my new Switch game), took a lot of vitamins and pain killers, cleaned my bathroom, ate some subway and tried to sleep as much as my body would let me. I'm still not 100%, but I'm feeling at least a lil more than sub 5% which was me on Friday night!!
For all of the reasons above, I've decided that from when I fly to the states this Thursday, I will be taking a break from the newsy. That means you'll get sporadic updates when/ if I find the time, but it also means that by the time I get home (and we embark on the great SYSCA roadie) I'll be refreshed and ready to bring you the news/ chaos/ love you deserve. And thanks to everyone who reached out to tell me you felt like I needed a break - you were correct!!!
But, from now- Thurs, you'll still be getting a semi-normal newsy, so don't panic! I'm not going cold turkey.
PS, I really just want to pass on Dunc, Bel, and Laura's appreciation and love for you. I send on EVERY SINGLE response you send me for them, and they love you as much as I do 🥺
Me rn:
The speech therapists who wrote the children's books in Hong Kong have been jailed
No, Trisha Paytas is not giving birth to the Queen, reincarnated
🌞Laura's tips for the Sunday Scaries🌞
Roblox is leaning into... ads
The speech therapists who wrote the children's books in Hong Kong have been jailed
Last week I wrote about how a bunch of speech therapists in Hong Kong had been found guilty of 'sedition' for publishing some children's books. I promised I'd give you an update after they'd been sentenced and here it is: they've all been sentenced to jail for 19 months each.
If you want to know a lil bit more about why Hong Kong has such strict laws now, and more details on what was in the books, you should listen to our latest episode of The Shit Show!!!
Canada Stabbings & New Prime Ministers - The Shit Show — open.spotify.com
This week begins with Luce and Nick's horoscopes, before we launch into an energy crisis in the UK (and also a new PM), an update on the stabbings in Canada, some people who've been arrested in Hong Kong for writing kids books, and some positive Peppa Pig news!
No, Trisha Paytas is not giving birth to the Queen, reincarnated
We're not going to spend too long on the Queen's passing (I'm sure you've all heard every take under the sun on this), but this was my initial thought after hearing the news:
And then later in the day, we found out exactly how the internet reacted:
TLDR or TLDC (too long didn't read or too long didn't care):
The internet decided that Trisha Paytas had gone into labour pretty quickly after the Queen died (she hadn't) and that Trisha Paytas had called her newborn baby 'Elizabeth' (she hadn't) to the point where Trisha - who had been trying to keep out of the public eye while preggers- had to make a video about it. That's enough on that, watch the vid I linked if you want to know more!
🌞Laura's tips for the Sunday Scaries🌞
Laura is our resident ray of sunshine. She's a new London dweller, chief of romanticising literally everything, and will definitely ask you all what your love language is at some stage. We love her to death and can't wait to have her therapeutic wisdom in here whenever we can!
Hi again!!! firstly, thank you soooo much for your advice & lovely emails 😭❤️ I feel like a reverse agony aunt, crowdsourcing my moving qualms, and got v emotional (a common occurrence atm) reading how many of you have experienced similar / and that it’s so normal for things to feel totally chaotic so thank you!! Also can’t believe how many of the SYSCA whānau are London-based - we should definitely have a knitting night or something?? (ps Erica - good luck with your TX move this week!)
A topline moving update - still zero hot showers (day 30 and counting 🙃), zero coffee shop banter, but I DID bond with the shop owner underneath our flat about the lack of gas!!! I also had a glorious trip to the english seaside and honestly came back in SUCH a better headspace. I used to go on road trips with two of my besties along the coast in the North Island where we would surf (badly), eat fish burgers with cheap wine and slowly make our way through the 36 questions that lead to love (if you haven’t you MUST). We would tumble out of the car with our boards, all sweaty and grumpy from the work week, drag ourselves into the ocean and get thrown around for an hour or so, emerging flushed and unrecognisably mellow. My friend Tess used to call it mental health salt and I’m 100% here for it 🏄🏼♀️ In fact I wrote a piece for VICE a several years ago about a study on veterans with PTSD that found introducing surfing across trials led to a significant improvement in mood, self-esteem and ability to discuss experiences!
But even if it’s not surfing, a walk along the ocean (shoes OFF non negotiable) is one of the surefire ways to get me feeling better about things. It’s something I would actually schedule in for myself most Sunday afternoons a few years ago, when almost like clockwork 4pm brought on the Sunday Scaries. A friend had suggested that to ease the dread around that time, I write out a list of things that I ✨know✨ have a positive effect on my own brain that are accessible to me. Kind of like, if you could plan out a dreamy, gentle afternoon - what would it look like? And at the moment while things are feeling a bit gritty / unfamiliar I’ve found myself returning to that list in my notes app a lot, so I thought I would share 💖 Please send me your suggestions too, I’d love to hear them !!
Here are my cures for the Sunday Scaries:
Cook something simple - it’s creative, all-consuming and you get something at the end! For me this is almost always a bowl of pasta with a vvv basic tomato sauce. Mashed potato is also always a winner.
Pat a dog 🥲
Alt nostril breathing - this activates your parasympathetic nervous system, which releases hormones that can calm your body and decrease feelings of stress. Closing your right nostril and breathing deeply through your left, gently touching your lips (which contain nervous fibres), or my personal fave lol - humming! Your vocal cords are connected to your vagus nerve, which actually stimulates parasympathetic response!!
Phone-a-friend
Getting in the sun OR in winter turning off my phone / getting under a heavy blanket / picking up a book (needing reccos on these atm!)
Stretching out just a little bit
A walk somewhere outside. Ground yourself in Papatūānuku, dig your toes into the sand, breathe some fresh air <3
*specific album* that I find super settling (we are still early-days in our relationship so not ready for that level of vulnerability juuust yet)
A hot shower (😭)or bath if you have one!
Drinking a big glass of water
Lots of love from London!!! xxx
Roblox is leaning into... ads
It was only a matter of time until the juggernaut gaming (or should I say 'metaverse') companies really leaned into advertising in a big way. I mean, we've had explicit advertising like virtual fashion shows and virtual concerts, but now the company seems to be moving into more classic styles of advertising - digital billboards. Roblox has commanded a HUUUUGE young audience, and unfortunately when you've got the audience that everyone 'seeks' you're kinda expected to start planning to make as much money off of them as you can. And when you're that young, it's less about getting you to spend money and more about you recognising and remembering brands so that when you're older, you'll hopefully spend your money on them.
I know it's icky and it's giving The Simpsons/ Party Posse/ Yvan Net Nioj vibes (if you know, you know) but it's also the world and how it works in 2022. Anyway, if this shit interests you, way more here!
Now I'm off to watch Monza highlights & try to heal! Love you!
Canada Stabbings and New Prime Ministers (The Shit Show)
Gabbie Hanna and the Dangers Of Influence (Culture Vulture)
Lewis Capaldi Reveals He Has Tourette’s Syndrome: It ‘Looks Worse Than It Is’ (Rolling Stone)
Elizabeth Holmes wants a new trial because a prosecution witness is acting remorseful (NPR)
Kim Kardashian launches private equity firm (The Guardian)
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