Things I Love

There’s been a bit of a stall on the 40 by 40 list front, so it’s time for another list of stuff and things that I’m loving lately. Back next month with fun updates…promise.

-Have I talked about Evil Queen candles on here yet? Probably. But they deserve another mention. The candles are so deliciously good. Stolen Hoodie is my all-time, year-round favorite and her seasonal collections never miss.

-We all know I’ve become addicted to TikTok, but I finally gave in and bought the one skincare product I saw in post after post…the Cosrx Snail Mucin. Y’all. It’s so good. It makes my skin feel hydrated without getting extra oily and I’ve had much less acne. Thanks, snails!

-Do you like getting in bed and pretty much immediately falling asleep? Samesies. Want to make it happen? Of course you do. Enter Dr. Teal’s Sleep Spray. Not only does it smell freaking amazing it also really does help you relax and drift off into restful sleep.

–Viking River Cruises kept coming across my mind, so I looked them up. And then I had them send me brochures. And now I wanna go.

-Sometimes (not always) Starbucks (but not all Starbucks) has an almond croissant. It is flaky and perfect and totally worth hunting around to find.

Let’s keep summering along and I’ll be back soon to do lots of 40 by 40 updates!

I think we can officially call it summer even though it’s only May. Lots of sunshine and warmer days. Here’s what I’m loving and excited about lately.

At last, I have finally started really using my library again. If you know me at all, you know one of my favorite things is a long roam through a bookstore. However, that has resulted in many many (many) books in my house. I’ve had a library card forever, so I started using Libby to check out books from my local library that I knew I would likely be good with just one read.

Speaking of books, after I discovered Libby, I also discovered the Armand Gamache series by Louise Penny. If you love a cozy mystery and smart detectives, it’s time to pick these up. I have yet to figure out whodunit before Gamache and the characters are just so lovely.

Baseball is back! I’m so excited to watch my Cardinals for another season. Knowing it’s the last season for Pujols, Molina and (likely) Wainwright means I’m going to try to get to as many games as I can this year. Here’s hoping for something magical!

I’ve decided it’s going to be a summer of popsicles. I love me some ice cream, but being able to just snag a popsicle out of the freezer for a refreshing, fruity treat is right up my alley this summer. My absolute favorites are any of the Outshine fruit bars. Join in popsicle summer, won’t you?

I’m still big-time into the online newsletters I’ve subscribed to in the past year or so. If you sign up for nothing else, sign up for Sam Irby’s newsletter. Her recaps of Judge Mathis (a show I have never watched and don’t plan to start) are complete perfection. I’ve never read one and not laughed out loud at least once.

That’s it for now! What are you excited about this summer?

After pining for spring in my last Weekly(ish) Stuff & Things post, it has finally arrived. I’m writing this with the windows to my house opened up and a can of rosé next to me. Along with the nice weather (and my daily Zyrtec), here are some other things that are great…

-I wrapped up my last Stuff & Things post with my enthusiasm for the True/False Film Festival. Since it hadn’t been held in its usual form since 2020, I eased my way back in and only saw six films rather than my normal 11-12. It was a wonderful weekend and two of the films really have stood out to me even all these weeks later. If you can track down Let the Little Light Shine or The Territory in a theater or on a streaming service near you, do not hesitate.

-My 40 by 40 list contains a lot of travel that I needed to knock out over the next few months. Thankfully, all of those trips have officially been scheduled, flights booked, etc. Let the anticipation begin!

-Like my liquid sleep body wash, my liquid ‘wake the hell up’ body wash also does the work.

-I’m seeing Hamilton at the gorgeous Fox Theater in St. Louis this weekend. To say I am excited is a vast understatement.

-Get you a friend who would hop a bullpen wall to join a brawl with you.

-One of my upcoming trips involves getting my first tattoo. I found an incredible women-owned shop and I am ready…or I will be.

-I feel this comic in my soul.

-A couple of recent reads I love include more of Kate Baer’s fantastic and wrenching poetry and this beautiful coming-of-age novel by local author Alex George.

That’s it for this week. What are you looking forward to this spring?

It’s been a bit since I did a little round-up of stuff and things I’m loving, thinking about, etc. Fall had just started and I was excited about my favorite time of year. Now, after a few snow and ice storms, warm weather cannot come soon enough. To get me through the last dregs of winter, here are a few things from life right now.

-One of my new favorite topics over the past couple of years is skincare. I’ve had less than amazing skin for most of my life, so finding products I love and that I can see working is pretty fantastic. One of my latest loves is this face wash from La Roche Posay. I love anything that foams and this leaves my face feeling clean but not stripped.

-Everyone I know is watching the terrifying situation in Ukraine very closely. The coverage from everyday people defending their homeland is both heartbreaking and inspiring. It can feel very helpless to watch such frightening things unfold from so far away, so this is a situation when I find monetary support to organizations I believe in can be heartening. Two of my favorites are the International Rescue Committee, which helps families in crisis, and the Committee to Protect Journalists, which supports the media professionals working to shine a light on these dangerous situations. I’d love to know where else you lend your support in times like these.

-Another thing that helps during tough times is gratitude. A little habit I’ve developed over the past year has been to think of five things I’m grateful for at the end of each day before I fall asleep. It can be anything from how pretty the sunrise was to lunch with a friend to leaving work with inbox zero to how cute my cat’s paws were while he was sleeping. Nothing is too big or too small for those five things and it gets me in the right mindset for sleep.

-Also good for nighttime? This body wash. I call it liquid sleep. It’s that good.

-I am a huge Food Network fan. One of the most fun series is the Tournament of Champions, which is a bracket-style competition featuring some really fun and intense matchups. This season I’m even in a bracket challenge. I’m nerding out about it and am so excited for the competition to kick off tonight!

–Majority 54 is always a regular in my podcast rotation. In their regular rotation is an ad for Athletic Greens and after a while, they wore me down. So I ordered my first round of AG1 and I’ve been using it daily for a couple of weeks. Y’all. They have converted this skeptic. I’m more alert, don’t get my afternoon slump and have better focus. I should never have doubted Ravi and Jason.

-After enjoying it from various places over the past few years, I finally made my own batch of red pozole from scratch. A cross between a soup and a stew, pozole is meaty, rich and spicy. Throw in some fresh garnishes and it’s next level. Truly one of the best things I’ve ever made and it was only made better knowing there was an ice storm raging outside and I was warm inside with my pozole.

-Yes, I watched season two of Love is Blind. Yes, it was an awful trainwreck. Yes, I will watch season three.

-Next weekend marks Columbia’s True/False Film Fest. This exhausting, emotional weekend is one of my favorites. If you get me started talking about True/False, settle in because I won’t stop for a while. If you ever find yourself in town for T/F weekend, it’s an absolute must.

My very favorite time of year has finally arrived…fall! The windows in my house are open as I write this, and I’m loving the crispness of the air each night. It’s still going to be a bit before the leaves do more serious changing, but all is on the right track. I also can’t believe that somehow we’re in the final quarter of 2021…a year that has felt both endless and like a flash. Here are some things getting me through.

-When Trader Joe’s Seasonal Spiced Apple Cider is out it’s officially fall. Naturally, I have two bottles at the ready. And yes, I also will be adding some Captain to the mix when appropriate.

-Why do I want to see this absolutely horrifying movie?

-I talked about the Katami National Park bears in my last Weekly(ish) Stuff & Things, but did you miss Fat Bear Week?

-There are still jam advent calendars available! Join me for Toast and Jam December (a holiday I completely made up)?

-I try to do a digital declutter a few times each year. It’s so worth the time and effort to keep the overwhelm from setting in.

-On the advice of my wonderful sister, I finally started the We Can Do Hard Things podcast. Cried the first episode, so we’re off to a good start.

-Finally bought some new Rothy’s. Broke my toe the next day.

-Yes, I do check the bones forecast every morning.

Summer is definitely in full swing here in Missouri. And by that I mean it’s blazing hot and my glasses fog up when I go outside. But! it also means time out on patios with friends, outdoor concerts and frosty beverages, so it’s all worth it. When I’m not obsessively applying my sunscreen, there are some things I’m into right now.

-My fingers and toes are this fun bright orange color right now. It’s helping me embrace summer.

-I got ambitious last week and made a Raspberry Ricotta Cake for a happy hour last week. Not only was it delicious but the leftovers made a great breakfast too (don’t judge).

-It is taking me everything I have to not buy one of these Modcloth Halloween sweaters. Yes, I am entertaining reasons as to why I should.

–One thing I bought absolutely shamelessly. I can’t wait to start assembling it this weekend!

-A great article from Roxane Gay (of course) about a topic I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about this year. And I’ve set it before, but are you part of her online book club yet?

-I have been an admirer of Ady Barkan for years and loved his 2019 memoir. Now a new documentary about his activism and life comes out in August and the trailer was released today.

-The Brooks Falls Bears in Alaska’s Katami National Part are back, baby!

Go get your summer like those bears get that salmon!

As much as I love reading, I set a pretty low reading goal for myself this year. I knew that work projects were going to get overwhelming fast and I was spending more of my evenings hanging out with the boyfriend. But it turns out that reading is still an important break and escape for me, so I’ve already read 35 of my 45 book goal for 2021.

This year I also joined Roxane Gay’s virtual book club, and I’ve loved the selections she made for the year. Not only are the books fantastic, but there’s a great forum for discussion of the books and zooms with authors every month.

I also tried to put a moratorium on buying any new books aside from the book club books. It has been…mildly successful. But I’m still diving into my not-read bookshelves, and I’d love to hear about what books you’ve loved during these first six months of 2021. Now, without further ado, here are my favorite reads from the first half of the year.

Black Futures – Edited by Kimberly Drew and Jenna Wortham

Easily one of the single best things I’ve read in a long time. Saying I read it feels like an understatement, as this anthology is more of an experience. It features art, poetry, social media posts and more on the Black experience in the United States and around the world. It also focuses on hopes for the future. This is a work I will revisit over and over into the future.

What Kind of Woman by Kate Baer

On the list of things that are not usually my jam, poetry is usually right up there. But Kate Baer’s poems feel very accessible for this poetry novice and somehow extremely familiar and comfortable. If poetry is something you’re trying to dip your toes into, this is a great place to start.

The Book of Delights by Ross Gay

I also am not one who usually picks up a book of short stories or essays, but I saw so many good reviews of this that I simply had to. Plus, after the hectic nature of 2020, it was time for some delight. And this book really is it. The way that Gay sees and describes the world and his life left me unexpectedly smiling constantly as I read. Each story was like a balm for the times we live in.

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Ooooh this one is good! A story of leaving your past behind, your identity and how what you leave behind can still find its way back to you. I loved Bennett’s writing, her deep exploration of how you create who you are and the prices you can pay for those decisions. This multi-generational tale of how life shapes you in unexpected ways and what directions your life takes was so beautiful and frustrating and sad all wrapped up in one.

City of Thieves by David Benioff

I didn’t expect to be so deeply pulled into this tale of Lev and Kolya, sent on a fantastical quest after being arrested during WWII. Benioff’s characterization makes you quickly fall for these two misfits and cheer for them as they move through Leningrad and its outskirts looking for the one thing that will keep them alive…eggs. As they meet up with people both terrifying and friendly, their relationship grows against the backdrop of a desolate city trying to make it through the war.

The Night Always Comes by Willy Vlautin

I have loved every single Willy Vlautin book, and this one is no exception. This one is a bit of a departure for Vluatin, as it feels more ‘action packed’ than his typically more quiet stories. But the incredible characters (you cannot help but want the best for Lynette) and the feelings of desperation are what I always love about his books and this one has it in spades. It’s a perfect reflection of this moment in time, of the way people get pushed to the fringes and sometimes have to resort to desperate measures just to stay on their feet.

Beartown by Fredrik Backman

Backman is another one of my favorites, and I can always depend on him for an excellent read. This one is also a bit of a departure, but it is still incredible. You immediately feel like you understand this place, the people who live there and how their lives all intertwine. Your heart aches for the good in the characters and wants to push back fiercely against those whose egos have outgrown their hearts. Backman’s tales often end with a beautiful coming together of people and circumstances, but this one ends with an aching, for a town that has needed to change but only does so because of an awful, act perpetrated by one person against another (big TW for sexual assualt). There is some redemption, but even more, there is a reminder that far too often, those with the power prevail.

Life has taken some turns lately that are keeping me even more busy right now than I had anticipated. The turns are also adding extra stress and emotional roller coaster moments. Things feel scattered and unsure right now, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t bright little moments and things that make me smile.

Each night before I start to fall asleep, I try to think of five small things I’m thankful for. Does it help me fall asleep faster? No. Does it make my dreams any less weird? No. But it does let me remember that not everything has to be going perfectly for things to be going well. A few things keeping me going…

-Group chats of amazing women who are wise, hilarious and incredibly thoughtful. I am genuinely humbled to have such people in my life.

-Despite things being hectic, I’m still jumping into the #1000WordsofSummer challenge tomorrow. There’s a Slack full of supportive people, a few jumbled ideas in a notebook and a desire to check off a 40 by 40 item. Let’s do it!

-I did a mystery box from Universal Standard and LOVED the jumpsuit they sent (who am I?!), so when I saw this one get released, I put it in my cart so fast.

-Floofy kitties who hop on you and cuddle up when it’s nap time.

-Being able to track down some Topo Chico Lime.

-Roxane Gay keeps knocking it out of the park with her monthly book club selections. May’s book, Libertie, was beautifully written.

-This interactive story about the Tulsa Race Massacre is one of the best pieces of coverage of the event I’ve seen. Lots of other great reads and podcasts out there as well.

–Mrs. Meyer’s hand soap, especially the Lilac scent you can only get in your Grove box.

-And finally, yes, this geriatric millennial loves TikTok.

Not sure about you, but when my space is cluttered, my mind is covered. So I took a long weekend to do some major spring cleaning, and it definitely helped me feel more focused and calm. Spring cleaning for my space and my brains.

I’m also being more intentional about taking time to rest. I’m in bed early most nights and don’t beat myself for needing to take a reading lunch break to reset my mind. I hope you’re able to take care of yourself too. Here are a few lovely things from recently…

-A margarita made with Meyer lemons that were hand delivered from family visiting from California.

-I really want one of these eucalyptus and lavender bundles for the most perfect summer showers ever.

-Why is GBBO so soothing?

-I made this salad and it was like spring in my mouth.

-Margaritas (not the Meyer lemon kind). On a patio. With vaccinated friends.

-Why yes, I would like to stay in a treehouse.

-Knowing I get to go to a baseball game in less than a month.

-I’m reading this book, and it’s giving me hope. I also just finished Willy Vlautin’s newest and it wrecked me like all of his books do. It’s called balance.

-An organized pantry.

-My new nightly routine. Skin care regimen (who am I?). Books. Bougie soda (my favorite is Cherry Vanilla).

We’re in the April showers bring May flowers mode of spring. What are you hoping summer brings?