YESTERDAY WAS TU B'Shvat, or the "New Year for Trees," as it is loosely defined. I was not aware of this holiday until we started going to the Secular Jewish Community School. This past Sunday we had a seder for the trees, which involves eating fruits in a particular order, starting with fruits with inedible pits, fruits with inedible skin, completely edible fruit, and seeds. There is something lighthearted and gentle about this holiday, and it is perfect for kids. In "modern times" this holiday has been coopted by Zionists, so I had to dig a little bit to find out some more about the holiday's actual origins, and learned that Tu B’Shvat has pagan origins in the worship of Asherah, the ancient Semitic mother goddess, whose spirit resided in trees.

How nice that Tu B'Shvat overlaps with Valentine's Day this year. Why, you ask? I couldn't even tell you. It's just like strawberries dipped in chocolate, two lovely things that go well together.

Three Things That Kept Me Going This Week

1. Megan C. shared this inspiring letter detailing "Thirty Lonely But Beautiful Actions You can Take Right Now." Protests are on the list. If you're in the Chicago area, you could attend this protest tomorrow in support of trans youth. I'm planning on going so please find me if you go, too.
2. This story about a couple who leaves ginormous tips at the restaurant where they went on their first date had me in tears.
3. Hoopla! I loved this tribute to the awesomeness of libraries in No Expectations, especially the passage about Hoopla and all the hidden gems it holds. We used Hoopla to watch Interview With The Vampire and Babylon Berlin, two great shows that are only intermittently available on the usual streamers.

This Week in Mushroom News

The Sex Mushroom Hunters of Nepal: I hope Steven Soderbergh buys the rights to this story, as it seems perfect for him: fungi that grows on moth carcasses in the Himalayas sells for exorbitant prices due to their supposed libido-boosting properties. The market value of these mushrooms has led to gang wars, murder, child labor, and environmental destruction. Even the Dalai Lama has spoken out against cordyceps farming—which seems to flout every Buddhist precept there is. According to experts, "isolated communities and nomads can now make more money in a month of gathering mushrooms than they can in a year farming anything else."

That's all from me for this week. I will be in Pittsburgh for a quick work trip next week. Any recommendations on what to check out or where to eat while I'm there?

Also, I need a really good book. I'm talking page turners that I don't want to end, that leave me feeling intellectually and emotionally fulfilled. Please send me your suggestions, and I will put the list on here so everyone can use it.

The next edition of Mushroom Head comes out on February 28th.

And Happy Valentine's Day! Show our trees some love.

Claire

Thank you for reading! If you like Mushroom Head, please consider leaving me a tip, or share this with a friend. And if you're new here, welcome. Mushroom Head is a comic diary about me, Claire, a middle-aged lady who lives in Oak Park. Previous installments recorded the time I thought I'd ODed on THC and my experience parenting a person with ADHD as a person who has ADHD. There are also occasional forays into the surreal. If you'd like to get in touch with me, please feel free to respond directly to this email. I'm always happy to hear from you! (Also, you might want to put the Mushroom Head email address into your contacts to avoid having it go to your junk folder.) And if someone forwarded this email to you, I hope you will subscribe, because you are welcome here! Unless you are a bot. In that case, boo, please go away.