Are there any works of art–literary, musical, cinematic, whatever–that you find yourself turning to in times of stress for comfort? What are they, and why?
I’ll start with one song and two books.
The song is from “Who Am I?” from Les Miserables. Jean Valjean sings it as he’s wondering whether he should abandon his comfortable life as mayor and businessman to save a total stranger who has been mistakenly accused of his (Valjean’s) crimes. It’s something I turn to when I’m trying to garner the courage to do something I know I should do but am afraid to.
The books are “The Magician’s Nephew” by C. S. Lewis and Beach Music by Pat Conroy . During my mother’s long illness, and since her death last October, both these tales of sons facing the deaths of their mothers have been an enormous solace to me, albeit in different ways. Nephew gives a (magically provided) happy ending while still acknowledging the hugeness of grief: I quoted it as I gave my mother’s eulogy, and my baby sister and I have reminded one another of Aslan’s line (“Grief is great. Let us be good to one another”) several times since then. Contrariwise, while while Music provides no magical healing, it does take the protagonist on a journey of helplessness, grief, and eventual healing that I find very familiar, and very hopeful.
The movie Clueless. I know it isn’t cinema at it’s best, but I love it. I’ve seen it so many times, I could probably recite much of it from memory. Also, I’m from Los Angeles, so it’s fun to see my hometown in the background (Cher goes shopping at my mall, fails her driving test around the corner from my best friend’s house, etc). One of my big regrets is switching my computer to region 2 dvds, so I can’t watch my Clueless anymore.
The movie Clueless. I know it isn’t cinema at it’s best, but I love it. I’ve seen it so many times, I could probably recite much of it from memory. Also, I’m from Los Angeles, so it’s fun to see my hometown in the background (Cher goes shopping at my mall, fails her driving test around the corner from my best friend’s house, etc). One of my big regrets is switching my computer to region 2 dvds, because now I can’t watch my Clueless DVD.
Star Trek episodes (mostly TNG, DS9 and Voyager… TOS kinda bores me) or reruns of Stargate: SG-1 or Stargate: Atlantis. It’s eye candy that I don’t have to put too much thought into, and I’m so familiar with the stories that there is a comforting familiarity there.
I really love Pat Conroy’s writing. Beach Music is definitely a comfort book for me as well.
The Anne of Green Gables series is like my equivalent of a teddy bear. I re-read those books at least twice a year. It’s oddly comforting to know that Anne and her story never changes, admist all the chaos that is my life.
Music - Well, all of my comfort music is Indian. I like Western music a lot, and own a ton of it, but when I need comfort, it’s always Indian. Something in the blood I guess…but I honestly think Indian music is just better. More poetical.
Books: Francesca Lia Block’s Weetzie Bat series aka Dangerous Angels, Pride and Prejudice, anything in the Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader series, any of the Harry Potter books, but especially the first 3 because nobody dies yet, and of course, the works of Unca Cece.
Music: I made myself a mix CD of songs to lift my spirits when something bad has happened or I’m feeling bad about myself. These include: I Don’t Wanna Be by Gavin DeGraw You Gotta Be by Des’ree (the titles contradict each other, but the songs don’t) Fighter and Beautiful by Christina Aguilera
and one I thought of after I made the CD: Refugee by Tom Petty
When I don’t even have the energy to listen to that CD, I listen to Enya. Her music always makes me feel better.
Movies: Napoleon Dynamite, Office Space, The Princess Bride
TV: SpongeBob Squarepants, Simpsons reruns, Food network (anything but Bobby Flay)
Books - Pratchett, any Pratchett. But Esp. Small Gods
Music - 4AD, any 4AD, but especially Cocteau Twins’ Victorialand, the whole album as an aural experience.
Films - Time of the Gypsies and Wings of Desire. Also, lately, Underworld.
Art - the Fairies book by Brian Froud and Alan Lee is full of art that makes me feel better (in an almost saudade kinda way)
My favorite entertainment comfort food?
That’s an easy one.
You’re home sick from work and feel like crap. Nobody to call cause they’re all working. You’re bored and depressed. It’s raining out. Mid-morning and you haven’t showered. Turn on the TV. Local news shows last nights shootings, robberies, accidents, etc. The other channel has Jerry Springer or Maury Povich with some losers of society cussing and swinging at eachother. You start to lose faith in your fellow man and wonder how everything turned to crap.
And then suddenly “Hey! It’s Bob Barker! Of course the Rice-A-Roni is cheaper than the Turtle Wax. All right she got the car! C’mon you just need 25 cents on the wheel! What? $37K for that showcase, she overbid.”
and suddenly your feeling good again and all is right with the world.
Music: My unofficially dubbed “cheer-up” mix; it’s got Barenaked Ladies, The Champs, The Foundations, The 5.6.7.8.s, and a bunch of other tracks on it.
TV: Spongebob Squarepants, Disney’s Fillmore!, Gilmore Girls, and old reruns of Mutant X.
Books: The Narnia chronicles or The Complete Sherlock Holmes.
Movies: Anything Monty Python.
Food: Chocolate and more chocolate. Also cookies, but mostly chocolate.
And, a bonus: any one of the magazines from the store–People, Us Weekly, Cosmo, and so on.
Books: I don’t like re-reading books so any book I’m currently reading is good.
Music: I’m 28 and I just discovered the awesomeness that is Neil Diamond. I was surprised to know how many of his songs that I didn’t know I knew. So it’s been fun listening to him as of late bringing back memories of previous years.
Movie: Any Kevin Smith movie, even Jersey Girl which I really do like, I seen those movies so many times that I feel like I know the characters and it feels like they are old friends who I just haven’t hung out with in a while. Dogma is a bit above the rest though. Especially when Bethany asks The Metatron what God is like and he says, “Lonely, but funny.” That line is very comforting to me and even more so when I actually am feeling lonely.
Books: Robin McKinley, but particularly the Damar books, Beauty, Rose Daughter, and Spindle’s End. Also Jane Austen, particularly Persuasion. If I really need the big guns, I haul out H.D.'s Trilogy, and read it aloud to myself.
Music: The Pixies, The Clash, Ned’s Atomic Dustbin, maybe some Trip Shakespeare. Music that’s so well ingrained in me that it’s like a fuzzy sweater for the eardrums.
Movie: A Knight’s Tale. Or the BBC Pride and Prejudice. If food is available, Tampopo.
Other art: If anything, it’s Brian Froud’s Faerie Oracle deck. Joy.
