A cross-country move from New York to Portland would probably be stressful for anyone—but it's especially hard if you're the security-loving type who relies on order and routine to stay sane. My solution?
30 Rock. Liz Lemon's goofy discomfort with everything and everyone around her gave me relief from the hell of packing as my family's apartment was transformed into a cardboard-box forest of despair. I burned through six seasons in a week.
Then we got to Portland. A storm delayed our moving truck two weeks. We had to buy a car, choose childcare for our 1-year-old, and figure out our new city (fun fact: Portland requires four types of garbage bins!). As a reward for getting through another day, I would nestle onto our sagging air mattress and feel the tension drain as
30 Rock's familiar boppy theme song began. I may not know which trash can is for coffee grounds, but I know Liz. If she can face tomorrow with a crooked smile, so can I.
— Sunny Sea Gold is the author of Food: The Good Girl's Drug (Berkley).
