24 Comments
User's avatar
Samantha Chesler's avatar

Great interview, Alex is open and funny and I am happy to discover him! I really needed this card reading today. When you write that the Five of Wands can help us see "beyond the inner monologue, beyond our anxieties, beyond our hopes and fears, to the realm of possibility. What if the truth is out there, and it’s different than you think?" it just lit something up for me. I needed this shift in perspective. We can get lost in our minds, can't we?

Expand full comment
Alex Dobrenko`'s avatar

thanks so much Samantha and also have you heard this song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjoA4nYBD5U

Expand full comment
Samantha Chesler's avatar

A beautiful song, and perfect for this feeling. Thank you!

Expand full comment
Patty Barrett's avatar

omfg, I pulled this card this week but it was REVERSED... which is exactly what I needed. I needed to let go, stop looking for a resolution and leave the conflict behind me. Why is the universe so aligned right now!?

Also, obsessed with Alex. I am him. He is me. We are Palex.

Expand full comment
Caroline Cala Donofrio's avatar

I would love to hang out with Palex at a party. Palex, I'm pretty sure, is a party unto themselves.

Expand full comment
Alex Dobrenko`'s avatar

THE PALEX PARTY IS HERE THE PALEX PARTY IS NOW

Expand full comment
Alex Dobrenko`'s avatar

WE ARE PALEX

Expand full comment
Patty Barrett's avatar

Thanks everyone, we have been PALEX! You can find us here every Wednesday hiding in the corner with the house party pet!

Expand full comment
Meg Wardle's avatar

Alex, I also struggle with organizing group events and who to invite!

Caroline, hope you’re doing well! I really needed to hear this week’s reading. Thank you ✨

Expand full comment
Caroline Cala Donofrio's avatar

Thank you, Meg!

Expand full comment
Alex Dobrenko`'s avatar

I usually end up just not doing anything as a result lol

Expand full comment
Laura Bernier's avatar

Loved this! I wasn’t familiar with Alex but I really vibed with this interview and will find his work elsewhere now. Kids are pretty astonishing. And also that millennial need for validation — totally thought it was just me. Oops.

Expand full comment
Caroline Cala Donofrio's avatar

He's the best! Excited for you to read more of his work.

Expand full comment
Alex Dobrenko`'s avatar

thanks Laura <3 (he writes, trying hard not to seek further validation)

Expand full comment
Sara Garcia's avatar

Love this interview so much! His Piña Colada essay is so good and absolutely hilarious. Thanks for the intro to Alex and loved the card reading today!

Expand full comment
Caroline Cala Donofrio's avatar

Thank you, Sara! So glad you enjoyed it!

Expand full comment
Alex Dobrenko`'s avatar

thank you Sara!!

Expand full comment
Kaitlyn Elizabeth's avatar

Love and appreciate that he talked about orthorexia. It’s something I think a lot of people struggle with and don’t always realize it. 🙏🏼

Expand full comment
Anne R.'s avatar

What a great image: "impulse and critic can dance in harmony."

Expand full comment
Jane Ratcliffe's avatar

What a beautiful interview! For different reasons, I also struggle with what I now know is called orthorexia. I ate fairly clean growing up, but when I got into raw foods in the early eighties, I became hardcore. And then after head and brain injury, I became even more hardcore, if that's possible. I was just speaking with a friend about this very topic: there's no doubt the clean eating helped my healing tremendously. But with it can come a whole bunch of fear. While I do want to keep a foundation of eating well, I'm slowly expanding my understanding of what that means. For one thing, eating well can mean eating for pleasure! Clearly, Alex and I need to have a few meals together and sort this shit out! I love everything Alex writes here! As you note, his prose is the perfect combination of hilarious and tender.

And what a card. You apparently live inside my head!

Expand full comment
Alex Dobrenko`'s avatar

hahaha Jane we gotta go get some pizza asap

Expand full comment
Jane Ratcliffe's avatar

Yes!

Expand full comment