The Tortoise and the Snail

The enraging reality of slow persistence, "page-hugger" book annotation, and a Snail Mail gift

If you forgot you were subscribed to this or have found me for the first time, I’m Ginger— writer, artist, former podcaster/indie film reviewer, and arts education lecturer. I love conversing in analogies, listening to the same song 100x over, and learning more about neuroaesthetics.

Here you’ll find thoughts on creative strategies to combat hopelessness in a hostile world that’s stealing your attention away from deep work.

Hello and happy November!

First off, thank you for subscribing and taking the time to read. If your 2025 has been anything like mine, it’s been a gauntlet.

A few grief events and difficulties were anticipated. . .a couple of them have left me shellshocked.

And in an act of thievery quicker than the Louvre heist, it feels as if someone snatched a few glittering handfuls of my very limited and ever-dwindling store of creative time.

What I notice is a book draft that was “supposed” to be finished six months ago staring back in its unfinished, chaotic state, or the tickets from the canceled postponed research trip. And other losses with even greater consequences.

The angel on one shoulder says, “It’s okay. We can go slow. Everything worth doing takes time!”

The devil on the other says, “Time is running out, idiot! None of us have “enough” time! Death is near.”

If the Tortoise & the Hare was revised to be more relatable, we’d need to see the Tortoise having a bit harder of a time. Instead of being allowed to simply press on and do his steady plodding, we need to see him:

fall into a few pits,

get sick from eating poisonous leaves,

survive an attack by a starving coyote where he stays in his shell for a week,

realize it’s winter and time to hibernate.

Time and time again, he wakes up stunned, realizing he too lost hours, days, or months in the race. He wants to go faster to catch up on lost time, but there is no “faster”. He’s a tortoise.

Getting back to the slow and steady after interruptions, resets, or loss requires extra heaps of persistence.

But as long as life reevaluation isn’t necessary, it’s often best to simply keep going and move on.

Some research from years ago, found that giving too much attention to our problems (like when we get to the “co-rumination level” with friends) can increase our cortisol levels. (No, thanks.)

Perhaps it’s my time-blindness, but I know I’ll be working my whole life long on being able to hold the expectation that things will take more time than we assume (or more time than we have).

SO NOW I ASK YOU. . . What did the snail say when riding on the turtles back?

Uknown artist “Annie”.

I believe that joke above was from Sarah Silverman when she shared her “favorite joke”, but through the goofy visual it speaks on perspective. . . My “slow, behind-schedule, limited” existence may even feel like a joyride to someone facing even more setbacks.

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” (Gal 6:9)

If we can’t embrace our current life speed, we don’t have many other choices. A. Stay frustrated and start acting like the Hare: checked-out slumberer who waffles between meaningless distraction and unsuccessful scrambling. (We’ve been there.)

Or B. drop out of our race (as in, dead. . . Don’t want to be there).

In an effort to stay on Team Living Tortoise (or as I’ve actually been saying in recent years because of. . . book project reasons. . ., TEAM LIVING SNAIL), I’ve jumped back into my creative crawl with some more book annotation— this time with Maggie Stiefvater’s debut adult novel that plays the long game and takes its time for a meaningful experience: THE LISTENERS.

A while back, one of my friends, Denise, introduced the term PAGE-HUGGER to describe a book you want to enjoy slowly. Not only does this combat the need for every novel to be described as a “page turner” to be considered a great one, but it also reminds us to embrace the slow, beautiful things we enjoy.

At first, in an effort to catch-up on my TBR, I was reading THE LISTENERS at the wrong speed, but the second I slowed down was the moment I entered the Avallon Hotel. And you won’t believe what’s all over the place. . . SNAILS!

art by Katie Brooks (Isn’t this tiny leaf art so cool? The patience!)

Which inspired me to give away a SNAIL MAIL BOOK.

Periodically, I’ll be giving away a duplicate of a book I’ve annotated. Plus other snail mail goodies.

Years ago, one of my friends, Samantha, shared a magical idea to do a progressive book club where friends annotate a book with reader reactions and send it to the next person.

I’ve never done it, but it sounds so fun to add your thoughts and pay it forward by sending this book onward. Or, of course, keep it for yourself.

This package will have an annotated U.S. copy of THE LISTENERS signed by Maggie, a gold shell charm, fresh annotation tabs in a new color for your reading, and a pressed flower bookmark. *

Anyone can enter, but if you’d like to support my writing, a few private posts, and more frequent Snail Mail deliveries, I’ve opened a paid subscriber option at the lowest subscription price allowed as a way to give you 10x the entries.

So that’s all for now. Keep an eye out for the giveaway post later this week

[edit: U.S. Giveaway is live through 11/17 at midnight!]

and KEEP CRAWLING!

-Ginger

*my brass snail friend is not included

Someone Sang It.

SISYPHUS - By Andrew Bird

“I’d rather fail like a mortal than flail like a god on a lightning rod
History forgets the moderates
For those who sit
Recalcitrant and taciturn…

So take my hand, we’ll do more than stand
Take my hand, we’ll claim this land
Take my hand, and we’ll let the rock roll… Let it roll.”

---

Someone Shared It.

This week I learned from a friend that there are apparently up to EIGHT different types of Narcissism. An interesting slow listen that might have you learning more about the characters in your books or in your life.
⁠

Someone Said it.

“Anything worth doing is worth doing slowly.”

—Mae West

Previous Posts:

The one on Digital Deprioritization and Autumnal Leaf Shedding

The one on Being a Speckle in an “Infinity of Subcultures”

The one on Secret Work and Not Taking Others’ Attention