She just said merkin... in front of Judy Blume

This morning, I impulse-bought a ticket to a virtual book tour event for one of my favorite authors, Jenny Lawson. Her new book, Broken (In the Best Possible Way) just came out and in the age of Covid, virtual tours have become a thing. 

Picture from thebloggess.com.

Now you don't have to travel to the nearest bookshop they're visiting, wait in line, be awkward in a crowd, sit on uncomfortable chairs, and try to not trip in front of your idol. Instead, you can pay for your ticket (it included a signed copy of the book plus shipping) from the comfort of your desk and enjoy hearing your favorite authors speak in your underwear. (I mean, you'll be in your underwear, not that your favorite author will be wearing your underwear. Maybe they will, I don't know your life.)

Ain't technology great?

Anyway, I wish I had been paying attention to all of the newsletters and blog alerts I get because Jenny Lawson had events with nerd queen Felicia Day and the Neil Gaiman last week which would've been amazing to attend. But that's ok because today's event was hosted by none other than Judy Blume. I'm sure I read some of Blume's books (probably the Fudge books if any) but I don't really remember. This fact was not going to stop me from attending an event with the legend herself.

If you haven't read any of Lawson's books or her blog (The Bloggess), she spends a lot of time talking about her struggles with mental and physical illnesses such as depression, extreme anxiety, rheumatoid arthritis, and auto-immune disorders... but in a funny way. It sounds like a strange combo, but it works. She started as a blogger and quickly found a community of people who were going through the same things she was and within this community, began to take over the world.

Not literally but I feel like she wouldn't do any worse than what's going on right now. Plus, there would be far more taxidermy animals around.

Picture from thebloggess.com.
Yes, that is a little mouse Hamlet with
a tiny mouse Yorick skull in his hand.

Not that I'm all gungho about taxidermy animals. They smell funky and are more than a little creepy. (I spent 9 years working in a store full of them with four massive mule deer watching me everyday, I get to say that.)

My friend, Jen, recommended Let's Pretend this Never Happened to me years ago and it was one of the funniest things I had ever read. In it, Lawson talks about growing up in rural Texas with her taxidermist father who liked to collect wild animals (both living and dead), trying to explain the insanity that is her family to her straight-laced future husband, and the struggles and joys of finally bringing her daughter into the world.

When I stumbled upon Lawson's second book, Furiously Happy, (which focuses on Lawson's struggles with mental illness and her mission to live 'furiously happy') by accident at a local bookstore, I bought it immediately and have been hooked ever since.

Picture from thebloggess.com.

I routinely listen to both of these audio books on Overdrive, especially when I'm having a bad day or if I am feeling exceptionally anxious. 

I love them. Everybody should read them. Tangent over. Back to the event. 

Top row (L to R): Muffy (ASL translator) & Judy Blume
Bottom row: Jenny Lawson

Judy Blume was the moderator and asked Lawson all the normal questions about the book and even went in-depth about some of the chapters. It was great to see how excited Blume was to talk about a book she obviously enjoyed, and Lawson was so excited to be there with someone she has idolized since she was a kid.

Lawson read a chapter from Broken about the awkward things people do, she included a wide range of examples that people had tweeted at her such as pulling chapstick out of their purse and applying it in front of a bunch of people only to realize it was actually a tampon or asking a friend how their dad was doing... while at said dad's funeral.

Lawson has such a refreshing way of looking at the world, that it's ugly and terrible while also being wonderful and beautiful. That you might feel alone but there are actually hundreds, if not thousands, of people who are going through the same terrible thing as you and they'd love to hug you (from a distance, no touching without permission and a negative Covid test).

She's also a potty-mouth which makes me giggle.

(She has an adult coloring book called You Are Here that I totally recommend, not safe for work)

Picture from thebloggess.com.

And circling back up to the title, (you thought I forgot, didn't you? Or you thought I was just going to leave you hanging. For shame.) Lawson was talking about hairband extensions you can get online to make thin hair look fuller, she then pulled one out and put it on her head to show us. I'm not 100% sure how we got there, but she listed other possible uses for it, including as a merkin... in front of Judy Blume.

I feel bad for the ASL translator. Do you think there's a sign for merkin?