10 small, good things.
Hello, December!
As always, check out the audio version of this post to hear me read this post. You can even subscribe to it on your podcast feed so it populates automatically when it goes live!
What I cover here today: Feeling happy after a break, a year of hard work, 10 small + good things, and dozens of snapshots from the last month of my life (thrifted couches, favorite reads, repeat outfits, revisions, and more!).
Hi, friends. I hope this newsletter finds you well. We’ve had a bit of snow here for the past week, and it happened to coincide with the first week of our Christmas decorations, so I’ve been existing in a happy, silent snow globe. In fact, I’m feeling very happy in general lately. I took the week of Thanksgiving off to visit my family. I wrote not one word during that time, sent not one email. I have had a lot of positive progress with the draft I’m currently working on and I was afraid to lose momentum, but I can feel now, in retrospect, how much I needed a break. I sat back down at my desk at the start of this week with a renewed sense of peace and focus.
Transparently, for most of the past year, I have worked incredibly hard on feeling good. After a brutal 2023, I wanted a year of settling into our new home, our new town, and my new career. I put everything I had into writing full-time. I let go of the type of influencer work I had become so reliant on. I prioritized new friendships and community. I got used to a house (and life?) in-progress. I finally learned how to spend less time on my phone. I’ve worked very hard at all of it, if I’m honest. I battled for it. I clawed for it. It was frequently extremely uncomfortable. But I know myself, and I knew what would make me deeply happy, and I went after it, even though some of it genuinely frightened me. More on all of that soon, maybe. But all this is to say that this week is really the first time that I’m able to reflect on the past year and see just how far I’ve come. It’s a very good feeling.
For this week’s newsletter, I thought I would share some small things that are making me happy right now, in no particular order. I hope you are out there clawing for your happiness, too, and if this hasn’t been your year, please know I see you. There’s tomorrow, there’s next year. It will get better.
Shrinking on Apple TV. I will never get over how this show manages to make me feel warm and fuzzy while not feeling even 1 percent corny. It is hilarious, sharp, and wildly comforting. Season 2 is arguably even better than the first. I love it deeply. This feels strange to say (and maybe a bit presumptuous), but Shrinking really drives home the qualities that I really aim for in my writing here. Honest, funny, meaningful, warm, deep… it’s a hard combination, maybe, and it’s not like I’m hitting the mark every time, but I am trying for it. I really love the experience of reading a book or watching a show/movie that really speaks to something that’s important to you, and that is what Shrinking has given me (along with just some plain old excellent television to watch).
Taking the long way home. I go into town about once a day, just get out of the house. Lately, I always make myself take the more scenic, slightly longer way home. I blast nostalgic songs and I let myself feel 17. It is a small, beautiful 6 minutes out of my day. Today, I listened to “If Only” by Fink a few times while I drove. It’s a song that has meant a lot to me since I was a teenager. It still hits. Truthfully, I don’t know how more people don’t talk about that album. “Trouble’s What You’re In”? “This Is The Thing”? It’s all so good. Anyway, one of these days I’m just going to make a “songs you will probably enjoy if you are a Pisces who listened to a lot of Bon Iver as a teenager” playlist and be done with it.
Shopping Etsy for Christmas gifts. I got 60 percent of my Christmas gifts for family on Etsy this year, and it was the most fun shopping I’ve done in years. I mostly browsed online antique markets, secondhand shops, and it was a delightful experience. I don’t want to give away specific items/shops here and ruin surprises, but my strategy was to search people’s interests/hobbies with “vintage” or “antique” and see what I found. For example, “vintage + TK sports team” or “antique + TK hobby” — you’ll be surprised the weird/cool/one-of-a-kind stuff you can find! I also love waiting for each of the orders and gathering them in a pile for a big wrapping extravaganza later this weekend.
Feeling good about my skin. I could write a whole diatribe about how hard it has been to feel good about how I look this year, but I will skip all of that and say that I feel really good about my skin fright now. Yes, there are some dark spots and wrinkles that still make me cringe sometimes. But lately, I look in the mirror and really like what I see. My old faithful Skin Food is still key, of course, but I am also drinking more water than usual and (maybe the biggest game-changer) for the last 2-3 months or so, I’ve been adding this Farmacy product1 to my daily CC cream (AKA my foundation for the last, oh, 6-7 years or so). My skin consistently feels hydrated and happy now. And you know what, I’ll take it!
This amazing auction! I was so honored that
asked me to participate in this wonderful cause. The variety of one-of-a-kind offerings is truly incredible (book club visits, manuscript reviews, etc.), and I’m so excited to be offering a fully annotated copy of SABI to the highest bidder. Easter egg explanations! Behind-the-scenes details! It will be fun. Be sure to check out all of the auction items. Many of them would make excellent gifts for the readers/writers in your life.A cheap advent calendar. Jake and I had big plans to get a fancy, reusable advent calendar this year but instead we ended up with this Lindt chocolate teddy bear one and honestly, it is a joy. Every night after dinner we take turns opening the little flaps and it feels very nostalgic and wonderful.
The CrimeReads best psychological thrillers of the year list. I was so pleased and flattered to see that my debut novel Such A Bad Influence was included here. It’s hard to believe it’s been six months since SABI has been in the world. I am still so proud, and so grateful.
A reading hot streak. I have been really reading some excellent books lately. I read Heartwood (out in April, worth pre-ordering!), Blue Sisters, and The Rachel Incident back-to-back-to-back and wow, what a wonderful string of reads. All are new favorites.
Friends. This weekend we’re going to a local, annual holiday event. Jake and I went alone last year and it was lovely. I remember thinking it would be nice to go with friends, but it had been so long since I had made new friends that I couldn’t even imagine how it would happen. But it has! And now we’re all going together! I put myself out there and now we have a lovely group of people who we see regularly, who send texts like, “We’re so happy to know you!” and “Thankful to hang out so much this week!” It’s so wonderful, and I’m grateful.
A new slow-cooker. In extremely exciting news, I got a new slow cooker the other day and have been using it almost daily since. Working, watching the snow fall outside the window, and knowing that dinner was already cooking as I did was one of the most simply satisfying pleasures I have experienced in a while. I made a simple carnitas recipe that I am still trying to perfect, and a nice chili (I set it to cook while we were at a happy hour and yes, it did make me feel very powerful), but I am looking for more slow cooker-friendly recipes if you happen to have any handy!
And now, some snapshots from the last month.
Life lately, in photos.
Shortly after the election, we went to a lovely dinner party at friends’ house. They have the most beautiful home, and it was such a balm to enjoy a delicious homemade meal and fireplace after a miserable week. One of said friends happens to be an interior designer. We discussed our shared love of matching couches and I mentioned two I had seen at our local ReStore…