Hello, everyone! I’ll start with the obvious—over a year has passed since my last update. Again, after Loitering at the Merylthon, I thought the cadence of updates would be more frequent. But of course, life calls. It’s been a busy year, and a challenging one at times. In the middle of that, though, there have been balms, and this interview is one of them.
Earlier this year, I was lucky to speak with the writer Carvell Wallace about his memoir, Another Word for Love, for the journal Alta. We sat on the grass at Lake Merritt in Oakland and had a wide-ranging conversation about love, writing, healing, etc. — some of which appeared on the Alta Q&A, much of which did not! I hope you’ll listen to it now. The interview also appears on Carvell’s Substack.
(the cover of Carvell’s memoir)
On my end, this summer I took on a new role with Uncuffed. In addition to teaching and editing at Solano State Prison and co-producing our podcast, I’m now strategizing media partnerships for Uncuffed—a.k.a., getting the word out about our amazing work! If you’re in the podcast and/or media world and want to feature Uncuffed stories, re-air an episode, or write about Uncuffed, please get at me.
Uncuffed recently won an award from the NorCal Society of Professional Journalists for a story about pickleball in prison (!) The awards ceremony was a rare opportunity for a lot of Uncuffed staff to be at the same place at the same time, so please enjoy this photo of us. :)
A story I reported for 99% Invisible also won an award that night (!) I mostly think awards in journalism are a scheme, but I admit it was nice to be honored. The story is one of my favorite pieces I’ve ever reported. It’s about the history and evolution of U.S. military simulations and the experiences of the role players who staff them. I started reporting on the story at the beginning of 2023, and by the time I started tracking it at the end of last year, the war in Gaza was well underway. Suffice it to say it made covering a piece like this an even more surreal experience. (The latest headlines have now placed the death toll at a staggering over 44,000 people, according to Palestinian authorities). And that’s just what the news reminds us of. It’s easy to forget ongoing conflicts in Ethiopia, Armenia-Azerbaijan, Sudan, Ukraine, etc., etc. Selective amnesia about war, politics, and so on is a trend. Let’s not forget how that’s also playing out in the U.S. these days.
But back to the story. Another reason I loved reporting that 99pi piece is that it brought me back to that feeling of discovery that happens when you’re out in the world, reporting outside your home or comfort zone and engaging all your senses. I miss that! Outside of Uncuffed, I’ve been working on another project, but it’s been mostly planning and less field reporting at this stage. That will change in time, although it often feels like it can’t happen soon enough.
Until then, something else has been creating a new experience of being in the world…
…Which brings me to other news—I got a puppy! If you’re reading this post, you probably already know that. His name is Yunoki. He’s a medium bernedoodle named after the local train stop where I lived in Japan. The name generates that natsukashii feeling, and he generates a lot of attention! Yunoki is a walking conversation starter. I’ve been enjoying my time with him and leaning into my identity as a dog person. :) And yes, he has an Instagram.
Here’s a photo of him from a few months ago. He’s bigger now!
And here’s a little portrait my friend Evan took of us this summer.
Again, I want to say I’ll be more frequent with these posts—it seems like everyone has a Substack these days and is doing just that—but I also do enjoy posting at this slower cadence. So let’s see. Wishing everyone a peaceful close to 2024. Maybe you’ll hear from me before it ends, maybe you won’t!
Until next time…
Peace,
Sonia
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