‘Palm Springs’ eternal
Our COVID world can feel like a time loop, too
The time-capsule movie of the COVID era has to be “Palm Springs,” which sticks Andy Samberg in the same kind of rom-com time loop that Bill Murray faced in “Groundhog Day” three decades ago.
There are big differences, but the premise is the same: You’re living a (COVID-free) day over and over. When you fall asleep — or die! — the day resets and you wake up where you started, but you remember your experiences.
It’s easy to yearn for a return to normal, as lots of us do these days. But think for a minute about how life could really be if you were one of those characters, and you weren’t bound by a movie script. You could create dozens of days worth reliving.
Spend money like there’s no tomorrow, because there isn’t. Take a limo to L.A. or fly first class to New York. Indulge in the finest meals. See every Broadway show. Begin each day with an open mind, a full wallet and a free-range libido.
You know that person you have a crush on? Shoot your shot. If you miss, try again. And again. They won’t remember your failures.
Sculpt the perfect day with your significant other. If you can’t get through to your teenager (or parent), try a few thousand times. They’re worth it.
Bottom line: You’re not really stuck in a time loop. You’re stuck in an imagination loop.
Make sure that isn’t happening with COVID.
Lots of people are struggling for very good reasons, from losing jobs and homes to worrying about lonely children and frail parents. And in our time loop, death doesn’t come with a reset button.
But if you’re healthy, collecting the same paycheck and working from home, focus on what you’ve gained instead of what you’ve lost.
If you have extra money from stimulus checks, use it for your mental health. Not therapy necessarily, but things that will give you joy. Splurge a little. Pay down a loan that’s hanging over you. Plan a reunion with friends for June 2022.
Tip generously. Donate more. Help people. If you make someone else’s day, you’ll make yours, too.
You’ve probably gained five or 10 hours a week by not commuting. Don’t spend all of it in a Hulu time loop.
Focus on friends: Zooming or emailing or safely getting together. Exercise, watch documentaries, listen to podcasts, sample a different music genre, learn a new language. Ask friends if they have a favorite poem. (Here’s mine.)
Don’t call Grandma and ask about the weather and whether she had fish sticks for dinner. Get her on the damn internet so she won’t feel so alone. Look for signs of depression in people you care about, including yourself.
And maybe learn from a dying man. When he received the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the first ESPYs, basketball coach Jim Valvano talked about setting aside time each day to laugh, to think and to cry about something that touched him.
“That’s a heck of a day,” he said. “You do that seven days a week, you’re going to have something special.”
Our movie protagonists got to the same place Valvano did: figuring out what was most important in their lives. If you do nothing else in the COVID era, accomplish that.
Because a time will come when we exit this damn time loop, and you’ll want to be in a world where every smile is more genuine, every toast more heartfelt, every hug more precious.
Murphy Slaw
Something old: “One Night in Miami” includes a few details about Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come,” a civil rights anthem. One of the best ways to grow is by drawing inspiration from people and art. In Cooke’s case, some of that came from “Blowin’ in the Wind” by Bob Dylan. Maybe Cooke’s song will inspire you.
Something new: “Saturday Night Live” was having fun in this sketch, of course, but Olivia Rodrigo’s hit song might be one for the ages. Whether it came from real life experience or didn’t, it’s a great reminder of how intense emotions can feel when you’re young. Life comes at you fast.
If you’d prefer the song without the laughs, here you go:
Something borrowed: Here’s a joke that might even be older than I am. There are three stages of sex in marriage:
Tri-weekly
Try weekly
Try weakly
When I was in my 30s, I wrote a column three times a week. This one is weekly. I wonder what’s next.
Something blue: If you’re too young to know what “working blue” means, it’s basically NSFW with a few exclamation points. And this week’s sample is so blue that you might turn red.
While “Drivers License” is heartfelt, “WAP” involves a waaaaaay different part of the female anatomy. But part of understanding other generations is appreciating their music, and this one from last year was a huge hit about sexual empowerment. So if you haven’t heard it, listen if you dare.