Mid-Week Libation: REVAMP! (Now with audio from R&R!)

Birthday celebrations, an exciting archaeological discovery, a Balkan culinary classic, John Waters' Closet Picks, music from Susana Baca, wisdom from Sara Ahmed & paintings by Evelyn De Morgan!

Mid-Week Libation is our weekly curated splash of inspiration and culture!

Mid-Week Libations are back! And now in a brand new format with completely REVAMPED content, including something special that we're adding specifically for fans of our podcast . . . audio clips of Ryan & Ryan!

We're planning a different audio segment each Wednesday, so you'll never know what to expect. We are also now rotating our weekly Mid-Week Libation content, so each week is going to be a unique grab bag of cultural gems, interesting discoveries, and fragments of beauty! Check out our new & revamped Mid-Week Libations each Wednesday!

---

The Art of Evelyn De Morgan (August 30, 1855 – May 2, 1919)

1) Aurora Triumphans (1877–78 or c. 1886); 2) Love's Passing (c. 1883-1884); 3) The Vision (1914); 4) Ariadne in Naxos (1877); 5) Venus and Cupid (c. 1878); 6) Demeter Mourning for Persephone (c. 1906); 7) Port After Stormy Seas (1905); 8) The Hourglass (c. 1904-1905); 9) The Grey Sisters (c. 1880-1881) [All Images Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons]

• Official Website of the De Morgan Foundation (Love this site! So much great content here!)

---

Balkan Culinary Classics: How to Make Börek (aka Burek or Byrek or Byurek or Boureki or Bourekas or . . .)

• Full recipe from Chef Aysenur Altan (via Turkish Food Travel)

• Official Site of Chef Aysenur Altan / Instagram / Youtube Channel

---

R&R’s Album Pick: Palabras Urgentes by Susana Baca

Purchase or Stream (multiple platforms)

• Susana Baca at Real World Records

---

New Archaeological Discovery! Recent Excavations in Albania May Have Unearthed Europe’s Oldest Human Settlement:

• This 8,000-Year-Old Village on Stilts May Be the Oldest of Its Kind in Europe - Archaeologists unearthed the settlement—which had tens of thousands of defensive spikes—beneath a lake in Albania (article by Sara Kuta via Smithsonian Magazine)

• Archaeologists uncover Europe's oldest lakeside village underwater, find "treasure trove" (via CBS News)

Lake Ohrid and the small village of Lin, near Pogradec in Albania [d_proffer, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons]

---

Must-See Viewing: John Waters’ Closet Picks from The Criterion Collection!

---

Artists Born Today: August 30th

First things first . . . today is the birthday of textile artist Kathy Elston — aka Ryan Elston’s wonderful mom! Happy Birthday Mom!

There are so many artists born on this day! We daresay there are more visual artists born today than any other Mid-Week Libation so far!

Visual Artists:

Today is the birthday of Felice Ficherelli, Yanagisawa Kien, Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo, Jacques-Louis David, Thomas Hope, Jacques Raymond Brascassat, Pierre Tetar van Elven, Eugène Burnand, J. Alden Weir, Evelyn De Morgan, Isaac Levitan, Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky, George Minne, Nikolai Astrup, Theo van Doesburg, Paul Gösch, Ramón Acín, Margery Hoffman Smith, Siri Derkert, Puru, Leonor Fini, Virginia Lee Burton, Geoffrey Beene, Guy de Lussigny, Robert Crumb, Susan Tepper, Nigel Hall, Terry Evans, Jacques Tardi, Antony Gormley, Alex Gross, Amy Sherald and Kawira Mwirichia!

Writers, Philosophers & Scholars:

Today is the birthday of Mary Shelley, Théophile Gautier, Marie-Rose Astié de Valsayre, Henrietta Cordelia Ray, Bertha Parker Pallan, Beryl Gilroy, Molly Ivins, John Mohawk, Fred Hampton, Peter Ho Davies, Diran Adebayo and Sara Ahmed!

Musicians & Composers:

Today is the birthday of Anne Caldwell, Robert Strassburg, Kenny Dorham, Luis Bacalov, Luther “Snake Boy” Johnson, Jewel Brown, David Maslanka, Rodney Jones, Ismaël Lô, Chalino Sánchez and Bebe Rexha!

Film/TV/Stage:

Today is the birthday of Shirley Booth, Raymond Massey, Joan Blondell, Fred MacMurray, Peggy Lipton, Lewis Black, Art Arya, Cameron Diaz, Lisa Ling and Raúl Castillo!

Also, yesterday (August 29th) was the birthday of Ryan Wildstar’s brother, Adam Bryson AND Ryan Elston’s cousin, Katie Kleinhesselink! Happy Birthday to you both as well!

---

This Week’s Words of Wisdom: Sara Ahmed (b. August 30, 1969)

“Where we find happiness teaches us what we value rather than simply what is of value.” — Sara Ahmed [Source: Quotefancy]

• Official Site of Sara Ahmed

---