I guess I’m old or I’ve lived in LA too long, but I remember when people just had parties to have parties. Now it feels like people only have parties to promote things or to fundraise for various causes. Totally fine to promote things and fundraise for various causes but it’s kind of a drag if that’s the only kind of socializing available. I remember when my friend’s movie came out and we were all at the fancy premiere party wherein we had to beg for one more extra ticket so that everyone in our friend group could go and we only got this extra ticket because my manager’s company actually produced it and they were able to finagle me one.
Meanwhile, another friend had to sneak into the back kitchen to get into the premiere party. All of us bestselling YA novelists in our peak and we still had to scrounge like beggars. Anyhoo! At the party, the “numbers” were rolling in and it looked like the movie would bomb upon opening. Dead on arrival. And so my friend at the party was just in distress, and I said, who cares, it’s a party! To celebrate! Your book into a movie! And as I tell her to this day, well, Mike and I enjoyed it. At least someone did! Because all night the producers and the actors and everyone who worked on the movie were all just glum. In the middle of this super fancy party with ice sculptures and premium champagne. Kind of lame if you ask me.
My husband and I are in our early fifties and so are most of our friends, which means we lived through the nineties and we all wonder if that was peak humanity. Before smartphones. Before social media. When you would actually call your friends. And we all still call each other. Because most of my old friends aren’t writers and don’t really text. So if we want to keep up with each other we call each other on the phone or we make plans to spend a weekend together somewhere fun. When I was going through a hard time a few years ago I called my friends (old NYC and new LA) constantly. And I kind of miss it. I’m okay now, but now I wonder why I call my friends only in distress. So now I try to call them when I’m happy and trying to normalize “just saying hey.”
Anyway, we are in Italy with our children who all despise social media but are addicted to it. We all agree that soon enough social media or the scroll, as they call it, will be looked down upon like smoking. The 18 year olds know it’s bad for them, they feel gross after scrolling too much, and both still read and love books. So that’s something! My husband was an architect for a bit before he joined me as a writer and I am a novelist and we always said we both had 19th century careers. Like there’s no way people can still make money off their art, but here we are, surviving and thriving. Both of us too stubborn to listen to the naysayers.
A smart friend said English majors will have the edge on the Ai revolution that’s coming because it’s going to be who can write the most specific prompts who will get the jobs. The kids who can communicate. So there you go. We’re back baby.
For me, writing is the only thing I can do well, and all I ever wanted to do. I like writing so much that writing Substacks is my hobby lol.
Throw a party! Just for fun! And call your friends and catch up. Ciao, bellas!
XOXO
Mel
I love this so much, Mel. We’re having a summer full of seeing people just to see them and it’s been so refreshing and for the first time in a while I’m getting that thrill of excitement you’d get all the time as a kid when you knew you were going to have fun just to have fun. Here’s to fun and frivolity and friends!