Pop Culture Comfort Food

This holiday season has gone from “it’ll be normal” to “I hate the Greek alphabet – stupid omicron…” in just a matter of a couple weeks. Some of us, myself included, have had to change their plans due to breakout infections, the overstretched covid testing systems, or new government mandates. In times like this, we need the things that bring us warm fuzzies to keep us going. The pop culture equivalents of comfort food or your favorite sweater. So here are some things that make me feel better in tough times. Stay safe and happy holidays everyone!

Book – Party of Two by Jasmine Guillory
I mentioned last year that this was one of my favorite books from 2020, and that has not changed. I’ve read it, well, more times than I’m going to admit and I love it every time. It’s funny, thoughtful, and the protagonists are delightful. As a Californian living in DC, the fact the male lead is a Senator from California living a bi-coastal life makes me particularly happy. While it has all the tropes you expect from a romance novel, deep down it’s about figuring out how to navigate everything that is needed in addition to love to make a relationship work – communication, consideration of your partners’ needs, and how two very different people can make things work. Also, the importance of cake in life.

Fandom – Harry Potter Fanfiction
Harry Potter has gotten me through many rough periods in my life, both the books themselves, and Harry Potter fanfiction. I have a number of different types I enjoy – reformed Draco/Hermione fics for example – but when I need comfort I turn to fics about Sirius rescuing and raising Harry. I love Sirius Black so much, and the fix-it stories where both he and Harry get the love and family they deserve brings me a lot of comfort. There are so many, but if I have to recommend just one, it would be “Innocent” by MarauderLover7. The first story starts with Sirius rescuing Harry when he’s 9. The author now has 6 stories in the universe, with the first one set pre-Hogwarts and stories 2-6 corresponding with Books 1-5. They are very long, well written, and a good read if you like this flavor of fanfiction.

Music – My Chill and Decompress Playlist
This is probably my most listened to playlist on my phone. I put it on whenever I’m stressed, overwhelmed or just need to breathe. I’ve made a Spotify version of it, which you can listen to here. But if you want a couple specific songs here are my suggestions.

·         Sunday Morning by Maroon Five. When I first created the playlist years ago, this was the first song I put on there. It’s calm without being sad, and mid-tempo, so you still can groove to it. I just love this song so much and it always dissipates at least some of the stress whenever I listen to it.

·         Stand By by ONEUS. This song is my centered happy place. It’s another mid-tempo song slightly melancholic love song, but not in a way that brings you down, just in a way that makes you have feels. It is in Korean but that shouldn’t stop you – even if you don’t look up a translation, the music and singing itself is so beautiful and soothing.

·         Sister Golden Hair by America. There is something about folk-rock that I find particularly comforting, and this song is an excellent example of the genre. This has been a comfort song for me since I was in high school and I don’t imagine that changing any time soon.

Travel – Rick Steves Europe Travel Show
There are a million travel shows out there, but this is my go to. Most travel shows are gimmicky, about how different a place – especially it’s food – is, or about the host and not the place. But what I love about Rick Steves is that it’s both comprehensive and accessible. You get a little bit of everything, including the most famous sites and museums, as well as food and experiences like sheep shearing in Scotland, or declaiming in a Greek amphitheater. All the episodes are available for free on YouTube via his website, which is nice. Travel has been a very hit-or-miss prospect this year and it’s nice to sink into some basic, enjoyable travel show with Dad jokes that you can watch while cooking.

Literal comfort food – Fried Rice
I have many comfort foods in life, but right now, fried rice is what’s hitting the spot for me. There are tons of country-specific version of fried rice, and all of them are good. I’ve been eating Vietnamese Basil Fried Rice this week and it has been exactly what I needed right now.