Encircle is a longform essay beginning with the narrator learning of her
relation to Lorna Doom, the bassist in the 1970s Los Angeles punk band the
Germs, upon reading of Lorna’s death in 2019. This sparks an obsession in
the narrator, who listened to the Germs as a teen. Over time, she researches
Lorna and the band, repeatedly reaching dead ends. She can only
uncover so much, though she continues trying to get closer – to what, she
isn’t sure. In May 2023, she embarks on a brief road trip in Southern
California, visiting and photographing landmarks significant to Lorna and
the Germs. In October 2023, she completes an artist residency in
Washington. She spends the week alone in a cabin, writing, reflecting, and
reconciling all she’ll never know about her Aunt Teresa, Lorna Doom. The
residency culminates with a ritual at the beach, using collages of Lorna and
the Germs made by the narrator.