In defense of not optimizing every little thing...
Let's hold hands and unclench together.
Hi pals! I hope all is well. I spent the week battling positively bone-crushing seasonal depression, but I think I squashed it successfully, and here’s why:
There are more good people than bad people in the world, you know? (Fwiw, I don’t even believe in a good person vs. bad person binary, but it’s still a useful trope to communicate what I’m trying to say.) The amount of folks pouring their whole hearts into supporting Angelenos makes me feel warm and fuzzy, even if there’s so much left to do.
I volunteered with a new group for the first time on Friday and got to bring hot meals to folks in my community who needed them. The volunteers cooking were so kind, I got to be useful in my neighborhood, and it was an amazing way to start the day! I’ve already signed up for a bunch more shifts and I feel selfish because it truly made me feel better.
This quarter is all about catching up with people I love, admire, or don’t get to talk to enough! I’m scheduling and going to tons of catch up coffees with people I’ve fallen out of touch with or just don’t see as much as I should, and I get something different from each hang or call. It’s been amazing. I love it and should be doing this more often.
If you’ve been feeling similarly down, I hope the above is a useful jumping off place for you!
Readers, I’d love to hear from you in the comments…:
Officially leaving for London and Edinburgh this week and I am in desperate need of a few more dinner spots worth visiting in Edinburgh. I’ve got Noto and The Witchery… any other recs, friends?
Speaking of, I love audiobooks about history or reading historical fiction. Anyone got anything about Scottish history? Tudor era or Victorian era Britain? Something Maggie O’Farrell or Brynn Wallner esque? I want to learn before I go look at all the historic sites and museums! I enjoyed learning more about Ireland and the Troubles this month and would love to understand the geopolitics of the UK more.
As you receive this letter, my pickleball team is fighting for the crown in our playoff game, bright and early! I am so proud we even made it to the playoffs (against all odds) and we’re entering ranked #3… pray for victory…
I thought this was very interesting conversation about being “seen” or being “silent” online from a very fearless Gen Z writer,
, whose work always piques my interest.I like the casting of Patrick Radden Keefe in this J. Crew campaign. (Good job, Chris Black.) I finished two of Radden Keefe’s books this month and really admire him— I fear his brand of well researched, thoughtful journalism is a dying breed. (Not the fault of journalists, if you know what I mean.) Excited to write more about PRK in my monthly reading wrap up!
Patrick Radden Keefe for J. Crew.
Clark’s have become my go-to shoes so long as it’s not actively raining or snowing. I wear the classics with jeans, leggings, or my favorite pants that fall somewhere in between real pants and pajama pants. There are some really cool variations that might suit you: I loooove the cheetah print and the croc, and this buckle version would have certainly been just as good a pick too.
Want to read more this year?
wrote a great guide on books coming out in 2025 that you should keep your eye on.It’s freezing-FREEZING!— in New York. I am not even on the edge of meltdown, I’ve already had several meltdowns. I’m post meltdown, which is somehow worse: you fall apart and realize it changes nothing and no one cares.
Anyways, this is all to say, I only have one item of clothing that can wear in these temperatures and I’m lucky it coincidentally is acceptable to wear in public or to interviews and meetings, etc: this Lunya wool sweater.
- is my favorite artist and one of my favorite writers, this account of a first date after a breakup reads almost like literary fiction, though I fear it’s completely real. Anna could write about something as mundane as making toast and it would probably feel literary and masterful to me, it’s her very essence. She has “it”, whatever “it” is…
Tickled PINK by my new favorite bracelet, a gem from Dorsey. I will not take it off.
