Jane lynch: finding bliss in a busy life

WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE MEMORY FROM MAKING _BEST IN SHOW,_ AND ARE YOU STILL IN TOUCH WITH ANY OF YOUR COSTARS?  When we see each other, it’s always great. Eugene [Levy] was on _Only Murders in

the Building,_ so that was a really good week. We had a day on set together, and that was fun. I loved working with Jennifer Coolidge in _Best in Show_. Jennifer and I did a lot of walking

through Stanley Park in Vancouver [Canada], and we got to know each other very well, and it really served our relationship in the movie. We were both first-time Christopher Guest improvisers

— that was our first movie with him —so we kind of shared the same amount of anxiety and fear and bumped each other up. And we did a lot of laughing. I really cherish the time I spent with

her. LOOKING BACK, WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO YOUR YOUNGER SELF? I think I would tell myself, “Look, the stress you’re feeling, the anxiety and all of that stuff is absolutely appropriate

to where you are right now.” There’s power in knowing that’s just how you’re supposed to be. Because I think the hardest thing is thinking, _I shouldn’t be in this space. I should be

somewhere else. I should be more confident._ I would tell myself, “You’re absolutely where you’re supposed to be,” and sometimes that can free you and open you up and let the anxiety fall

away. WHAT’S YOUR ATTITUDE ON AGING? It’s really just another number. Since the pandemic, I don’t look at the numbers as much — it’s more about how I feel. I accept the fact that I’m looking

older, and sometimes I don’t like it and I’ll rush to get some Botox or a little filler, but I’m not fighting it. I look more and more like my mother, which is an interesting thing. Even if

you love your mother, nobody wants to look like their mother. I guess because it says you’re old. But I not only accept that, I kind of embrace it. WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO KEEP FIT? I’m

probably more physically active than I’ve ever been in my life. I do a lot of gardening and walk a lot. I’m also more social than I’ve ever been. I go out to dinner with people. I live in a

small town [Montecito, California] with a lot of really great people who are my age and older, so it’s kind of nice. I just want to stay as healthy as I can for as long as I can. I’m eating

better than ever, and my blood work is the best. WHAT CHANGES HAVE YOU MADE AS YOU’VE GOTTEN OLDER? I don’t eat processed foods, and I don’t eat sugar, and it was very easy to do that. It

kind of just all fell away. And when I got sober, I didn’t have any struggle, losing the alcohol. I know that’s not true for everybody, and I know it’s been a blessing. I feel the same way

about food — the need to eat the bad stuff just fell away. And I can feel the difference. The only thing I wish I was better at is sleeping. I wake up a lot. I get up way too early, and I’m

way too tired. I really wish I could sleep through the night, so I’m investigating ways to do that.