The TGIF programming is a collection of pop culture adjacency news that sincerely piqued our interest during these unprecedented times— without celebrity worship culture. The Cold Brew Round-Up also comes with a side of candor in critique pieces on pop culture or societal mores; get into it below.
In 1907, Thomas William Lawson’s novel Friday, the Thirteenth tells the story of a scheming stockbroker who purposefully crashes the stock market on the titular date. In 1940 the German bombing of Buckingham Palace took place, and then there was the unfortunate Apollo 13 mission to the Moon. Then came the 80’s and Jason Voorhees. Despite being an avid fan of the multilayered horror genre, Friday the 13th goes beyond the modern spooky veil.
The Friday the 13th reputation is traditionally set in fear but also rooted in misogyny, with a disproportionate standard also upheld by Hollywood. Its vengeful anger and spiteful spirit toward women are obvious as the evolution in horror continues to veer further away from most sexist and primitive ‘final girl’ tropes with the current tenacity of women. However, thirteen is a celestial number— especially in Judaism, it’s not unlucky or misfortunate as we’re meant to believe through its complicated association with women. Especially when Friday the 13th was originally the Day of the Goddess.
Before Christianity, in many ancient cultures (like Egyptians and Romans), feminine goddesses were worshipped as much as masculine gods, if not more. Then came the stories and superstition around thirteen— in Viking mythology, twelve gods were having a banquet in Valhalla when a surprise thirteenth guest showed up. Loki, the god of mischief to deceive Hodr (the blind god of darkness) into shooting Balder the Beautiful (the god of joy and gladness) with a mistletoe-tipped arrow. While at the original dinner party disaster, The Last Supper was attended by Jesus Christ and his disciples and the thirteenth guest, Judas Iscariot— the disciple who betrayed Jesus, which caused his crucifixion on Good Friday. Not to mention Adam and Eve’s story went down on a Friday— causing them to get kicked out of paradise.
Thirteen is a female number as it’s the number of menstrual and ovulation cycles women have and the times the moon goes around in a year which isn’t a coincidence as the moon has been representative of the Divine Feminine throughout history. Radiance, mystery, sensuality, rest/sleep, cycles, emotions, instincts, subconscious, and intuition. The irony of women being told so early on about our sensitivities or emotions as we’re often able and forced to compartmentalize while bleeding. The patriarchy has long used menstruation as a form of misogyny to shame women. Our world increasingly became more patriarchal, forcing whispers or signals to not say words like tampon or period too loudly; these silly taboo words are effective as women usually hide due to the “impure” or “unclean”/religious connotations when the powerful monthly occurrence of the human body’s capabilities to create life.
Conversely, women are also made to feel bad if they decide not to— or aren’t able to and crestfallen as baron or infertile, when it should never determine a person’s worth. To be a woman is a double-edged sword, damned if you do and damned if you don’t— yet, you’ll be damned before society honors or respects your persuasion for such. Thankfully, the matriarchy continues its resurgence and reclaims Friday the 13th to celebrate the Divine Feminine— the infinite cycles of life, death, and rebirth— and our powerful sexual energy. The unhealed patriarchy stole the holiday from women as they don’t see the value in uniting together because it’s too powerful and uncontained (think covens)— which is why women who speak their minds too thunderously are ridiculed, vilified, and made an example of. The wounded patriarchy continues to gut women’s rights and diminish our worth, as they have throughout history.
Despite hearing the word feminine, it isn’t binary, as divine femininity is about a healthy polarity of energy— not gender. It’s about synergy with the almighty feminine and the cosmic divine goddesses in each of us, as we all have feminine or masculine energy. Embracing spirituality helped me revere the incredible feminine forces, so I’d rather honor and continue to learn such dynamic, multifaceted humans who welcome feminine energy so openly— regardless of your identifier. Nevertheless, we can continue to rewrite Friday the 13th to a legacy it deserves. So cherish the woman you are or the feminine energy within you (honoring your feelings and intuitions) and support the important women you know throughout your life; they fucking deserve it.
As if it wasn’t obvious before, I was that kid whose nose was always stuck inside a book, and like many other kids in elementary school, I was Tales-of-a-Fourth-Grade Nothing-and-Superfudge-obsessed with Judy Blume. Reading Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret sure wasn’t the expectation I wanted as a shy and weirdly strictly religious fourth grader. However, it was the book I needed on the struggles of being a girl. As if relocation, puberty, bras, crushes, secret clubs, and menstruation aren’t enough, Blume’s book is also a beautiful tale of Margaret’s spiritual journey with living in a secular home with interfaith parents (a Christian mother and a Jewish father) yet finding comfort and connection with a higher power. I’m not sure where my childhood would be without Judy Blume’s Margaret Simon or Beverly Cleary’s Ramona Quimby, whose intergenerational and trailblazing female characters stayed with me even still.
The film is written and directed by Kelly Fremon Craig (Edge of Seventeen) and stars Abby Ryder Forston (young Cassie on Ant-Man) as Margaret, with Rachel McAdams (Spotlight) as her mom Barbara, and Benny Safdie (Good Time) as her dad Herb. Kathy Bates co-stars as her vibrant Jewish paternal grandmother, Sylvia. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret may be worth revisiting puberty.
The Youthquake Playlist is a musical amalgam of new releases and new favorites we can’t get enough of— varying from the genre; they’ll cover all sorts of moods, so get into it below.
Paramore returns with their third single, C’est Comme Ça, taken from their highly anticipated sixth studio album, This is Why, via Atlantic Records.
Hayley Williams explains, “I’m trying to get un-addicted to a survival narrative. The idea of imminent doom is less catastrophic to me than not knowing anything about the future or my part in it. The guys and I are all in much more stable places in our lives than ever before. And somehow that is harder for me to adjust to.”
Listen C’est Comme Ça now.
The Godfather of Punk lives on. Iggy Pop recently relaunched the legendary fanzine PUNK and most recently unveiled a new album, EVERY LOSER. Featuring a murderers’ row of modern-day rock icons atop a rock-solid foundation. The result is 11 songs by the man who refused to go gently into that good night on 2019’s Free and again charges fearlessly at life itself on EVERY LOSER. Listen to EVERY LOSER via Atlantic Records/Gold Tooth Records now.
Iggy Pop is always alluring and theatrical but also very much about that life— in a book of photographs by Mikael Jansson circa 2010, Iggy’s shown wearing a staple little black cocktail dress and iconic Lady Dior handbag. The duality of rugged harshness yet ravishing fragility alongside the quote perfectly fits the photo, “I’m not ashamed to dress ‘like a woman’ because I don’t think it’s shameful to be a woman.”
Miley is back with new music with Flowers, cleverly released on ex-husband Liam Hemsworth’s birthday today. Classically infusing rock and pop as Miley does, the disco undertones give the track a freeing anthemic feel reflecting empowering self-love over a fractured disaster disguised as love. “I can buy myself flowers / Write my name in the sand / Talk to myself for hours, yeah / Some things you don’t understand / But I can take myself dancing, yeah / I can hold my own hand / Yeah, I can love me better than you can.” More important than her ex’s birthday is Miley’s choosing to release her banger on Friday the 13th, on Goddess’ Day makes it that much better— good for her.
It’s a short and sweetly spicy one back to the real world after the holidays. Long may we explore the complicated and layered messiness of pop culture and ourselves.
Con Amor,
Naomi x