I was also thinking about the ice storm last year (and the year before)! Crazy how our Texas weather has been very cyclical in that regard (I do hope the summer is not a level of hell again though!!). I grew up in west Texas (did some traveling throughout the years) and have been back to my roots these last eight years. Apparently the lake froze over in our town the year I was born, enough so that people could ice skate on it!
I so appreciate your love for reading :) And how you encourage New Years resolutions to begin in February, the shortest month. This year a friend and I are doing only 23 days of alcohol in 2023, so roughly choosing only two days a month to drink. It was kinda hard for me at the beginning of last month (I have four children age 10 and under...) but I came to an acceptance about it and it helped me settle in. Instead of a glass of wine, in the evenings I have been craving a good book. I re-read through Lewis’s final book in the space trilogy with a cup of hot tea by my side in January. So the less alcohol, more reading has been a better way to finish the day for me. 📚 Also have been trying to create more, do a quick watercolor painting roughly once a week from a YouTube tutorial, so by the end of the year I will have filled up my little sketchbook. 🎨
So much of this resonates! I attended a great talk on The Killing yesterday. And I love the idea of a noticing workout. Today I’m taking myself on an artist date to sit and draw at a cafe for an hour. I…don’t draw, but I feel like it will be a nice way to spend an hour. Thanks for the steady inspiration!
I like reading recklessly. I'll still buy books I've read or heard about, but I'm also into picking up books at "Little Free Libraries" outside of people's houses when I walk the dog. That's where I found With Nails last year! A hilarious read. I also take books back to the Little Free Libraries or put them in my friends' hands, because I don't hoard books anymore. I don't have room on my shelves, and it feels better to recycle them.
Love the 13-month calendar! Although the note in the Outlook advertisement for it—
“ It has no relation to anything in astronomy, or human experience.”
—is not as I’m sure someone has already pointed out, *quite* accurate. :) The lunar cycle (as you’ve noted in the post) is ~29 days, and the average menstrual cycle is around 28 days as well, but I’m sure no old philosophers wanted to talk about that ;)
Curious how you felt paying attention to the lunar calendar may have changed your perspective on the month/time/the cyclical nature of things in general? 🌙
Anyways, +1 for adding a random month into summer and taking on year day at the end! All of our weeks, days and years are the same length, why shouldn’t our months be so too?
Thank you for the Dylan reminder. Remembering hearing him live. Then remembering other live concerts a long time ago: Janis Joplin at the Fillmore, Ike & Tina at Basin Street West, Little Richard, and if you can believe this -- the Rolling Stones opening for Herman's Hermits. Wonder what concerts others remember . . .
I’ve always been a read recklessly type of reader! A few years ago I was dismayed at how I felt I was reading less. But I realized I was reading just as much if not more blogs, newsletters and articles. Online reading counts! I’m continually pushing back against the algorithm online though. I have no tips for this--I just try to stay aware. And over time I’ve started to read more books and I rediscovered the LIBRARY. One of the greatest browsing places.
Really like the Reading Recklessly post—stumbled into Sternberg's Lesson 2 last year, the botanical horror anthology I picked up in Savannah last March readily came to mind!
And Lesson 4 ("short books are a great way to leaven your reading routine") rings true for me—the 33 1/3 and BFI Film Classics are great for this, as are graphic novels/memoirs/bios/histories. I'm feeling a little locked in with my first Lord of the Rings re-read in 40ish years so the Paul Robeson and Box Brown Putin graphic bios waiting for me at the library might make for an interesting break from Middle Earth!
I was also thinking about the ice storm last year (and the year before)! Crazy how our Texas weather has been very cyclical in that regard (I do hope the summer is not a level of hell again though!!). I grew up in west Texas (did some traveling throughout the years) and have been back to my roots these last eight years. Apparently the lake froze over in our town the year I was born, enough so that people could ice skate on it!
I so appreciate your love for reading :) And how you encourage New Years resolutions to begin in February, the shortest month. This year a friend and I are doing only 23 days of alcohol in 2023, so roughly choosing only two days a month to drink. It was kinda hard for me at the beginning of last month (I have four children age 10 and under...) but I came to an acceptance about it and it helped me settle in. Instead of a glass of wine, in the evenings I have been craving a good book. I re-read through Lewis’s final book in the space trilogy with a cup of hot tea by my side in January. So the less alcohol, more reading has been a better way to finish the day for me. 📚 Also have been trying to create more, do a quick watercolor painting roughly once a week from a YouTube tutorial, so by the end of the year I will have filled up my little sketchbook. 🎨
I experienced a horrible ice storm in NJ back in 2008 and remember how terrifying that crackle, snap...boom! was. Stay safe!
Thanks for linking to Patti Smith's eulogy for Tom Verlaine - so sad, but she made it beautiful, too. I love her writing.
PS: She's been reading Uncle Wiggly stories on her own Substack account and it's downright cozy.
So much of this resonates! I attended a great talk on The Killing yesterday. And I love the idea of a noticing workout. Today I’m taking myself on an artist date to sit and draw at a cafe for an hour. I…don’t draw, but I feel like it will be a nice way to spend an hour. Thanks for the steady inspiration!
I like reading recklessly. I'll still buy books I've read or heard about, but I'm also into picking up books at "Little Free Libraries" outside of people's houses when I walk the dog. That's where I found With Nails last year! A hilarious read. I also take books back to the Little Free Libraries or put them in my friends' hands, because I don't hoard books anymore. I don't have room on my shelves, and it feels better to recycle them.
Love the 13-month calendar! Although the note in the Outlook advertisement for it—
“ It has no relation to anything in astronomy, or human experience.”
—is not as I’m sure someone has already pointed out, *quite* accurate. :) The lunar cycle (as you’ve noted in the post) is ~29 days, and the average menstrual cycle is around 28 days as well, but I’m sure no old philosophers wanted to talk about that ;)
Curious how you felt paying attention to the lunar calendar may have changed your perspective on the month/time/the cyclical nature of things in general? 🌙
Anyways, +1 for adding a random month into summer and taking on year day at the end! All of our weeks, days and years are the same length, why shouldn’t our months be so too?
Thank you for the Dylan reminder. Remembering hearing him live. Then remembering other live concerts a long time ago: Janis Joplin at the Fillmore, Ike & Tina at Basin Street West, Little Richard, and if you can believe this -- the Rolling Stones opening for Herman's Hermits. Wonder what concerts others remember . . .
I’ve always been a read recklessly type of reader! A few years ago I was dismayed at how I felt I was reading less. But I realized I was reading just as much if not more blogs, newsletters and articles. Online reading counts! I’m continually pushing back against the algorithm online though. I have no tips for this--I just try to stay aware. And over time I’ve started to read more books and I rediscovered the LIBRARY. One of the greatest browsing places.
I didn't know the owl cam was coming from an old iPhone! That's so cool. It always makes my day when I see the updates.
Really like the Reading Recklessly post—stumbled into Sternberg's Lesson 2 last year, the botanical horror anthology I picked up in Savannah last March readily came to mind!
And Lesson 4 ("short books are a great way to leaven your reading routine") rings true for me—the 33 1/3 and BFI Film Classics are great for this, as are graphic novels/memoirs/bios/histories. I'm feeling a little locked in with my first Lord of the Rings re-read in 40ish years so the Paul Robeson and Box Brown Putin graphic bios waiting for me at the library might make for an interesting break from Middle Earth!