Volume 44: Overusing Wave Metaphors and Other Updates
*next week, same thing but with mountain metaphors
Welcome back to What Needs Knowing. Life is moving pretty quickly and this week, I found myself comparing the rush and bustle to waves and avalanches. In an avalanche, things pick up pace instantly and destroy everything it its pathway, only coming to rest at the valley floor or when it reaches a forest of critical mass that it cannot continue. While life can feel like you’re in the midst of an avalanche, it is much more like the breaking zone of a wave. Wave energy washes over the corral and for a temporary time, exerts force on the seabed below before pushing the water towards shore. But a wave is not permanent. It passes, causing a disturbance but then dissipating and like the coral and animals that thrive in the breaking zone, that agitation gives us oxygen and pushes us to be stronger and more nimble than we ever thought. Right now I feel like I’m in the middle of a wave, but eventually this wave—or set of waves—will pass and I’ll get my sea legs back.
What’s Worth Knowing
A baby disclaimer: After a two-week hiatus and pretty limited time to focus on WNK ahead of press time, What’s Worth Knowing is back with a brief check-in on the two sporting events that have captured my attention in the last few weeks as well as a sneak peek at my bookshelf and what I’m excited to read next. This speedy Vol. 44 is dedicated to Lewis Hamilton—whose car number is 44—and his fashion sense, which is impeccable. See some of his 2022 paddock looks for yourself by clicking below:
Leg 2 of The Ocean Race is underway. Just the IMOCA boats are making the trip to Cape Town, South Africa which is expected to take upwards of two weeks. Some obstacles are ahead including sleep deprivation and the doldrums (a region of ocean near the equator that often has very low wind speeds and can cause boats to sail almost all the way to Brazil just in search of wind). The stopover in Cabo Verde following Leg 1 proved crucial for teams with significant boat and sail damage following a rough exit of the Mediterranean Sea. Fun fact: shore crew members were forbidden from assisting with repairs and sailors had to go it alone while fixing sails and boats, often burning the candle at both ends to finish the repairs in time for departing to Cape Town. Here is the tracker and if you weren’t sure how intense this sport was, this report from Day 2 of Leg 1 will set you straight:
The finals are set! Early on Saturday morning (1:30am MT on ESPN) in the U.S., 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina will go up against Aryna Sabalenka. This time last year, Rybakina was relatively obscure to non-diehard tennis fans and Sabalenka was struggling with intense nerves and a wholly ineffective serve. This year, they are both in the hunt for their first Australian Open title. Oh, how time can change everything.
Competing in the men’s finals early Sunday morning (1:30am MT on ESPN), Novak Djokovic has been relatively unchallenged in this tournament, one he was un-invited to last season due to his vaccination status and the strict rules of Australia at the time. This year he will face Stefanos Tsitsipas, a Greek who following the early exit of favorites Nadal, Ruud, and Medvedev along with all the stars of Netflix’s Break Point, is the challenger ascendant with a real chance of stamping his name as one of the players to watch in 2023. This will be an exciting match, although I think it is safe to bet on Djokovic who looks exceedingly comfortable in the pressure cooker that is the final days of a two-week Grand Slam tournament.
Just after the New Year, I began reading Your Table Is Ready: Tales of a New York City Maître D' by Michael Cecchi. As an avid Master Chef watcher, I thought it would be fun to get an inside look to how the best restaurants in the world operate. The book is poorly written and while the content is shocking and pretty fascinating, I couldn’t get past the typos and heavy-handed bravado. I put it down to move on to something different.
I am currently reading Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo, a prolific YA author whose first adult fantasy book Ninth House was a smashing success in 2020. Hell Bent is the sequel to that moody story set at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. So far the book is creative, very exciting, and providing an excellent escape from busy, wave-like life.
I’m a little unsure what I will read next. If anyone has a great recommendation or upcoming release that they are excited about, send it my way. I’ll report back next week on what I choose!
How did I get this far without talking about Mikaela Shiffrin! This past week, she not only broke Lindsey Vonn’s record of 82 career World Cup wins by winning her 83rd alpine skiing race in Italy, she then won her 84th race less than 24 hours later. Remember, one of my hot takes for 2023 predicted she would tie Ingemar Stenmark’s record of 86 career World Cup wins this season? I’m feeling pretty confident in that claim if she continues at this rate. Go Mikaela!
This playlist has been my ubiquitous soundtrack for the last two weeks. I’m listening to it right now as I furiously rush to finish Vol. 44 before getting on the road to the mountains for some skiing adventures this weekend. I recommend turning the volume way up!
Parting Shots: I’m thinking fondly about this weekend last year exploring Revelstoke and loading into a helicopter headed for the remote backcountry in the Monashee Mountains with an all-time crew. Miss y’all, hope you’re shredding somewhere this weekend in honor of Bruno.
Skiing brings you to some pretty incredible places.
That’s all, folks. Per usual, I write something about brevity and how this issue will be shorter and then find myself here at the end having written something with my typical length. I guess you could say I’m enjoying myself. I hope the wave doesn’t get you down this weekend and whatever fun activity you do, I hope it brings you some place beautiful! See you next week,
-Mackenzie “Mouthguard Mack wishes she were in Canada?” Timbel