Congratulations on your new year & new decade! It’s already January 4th, but I’m telling myself we all lost ourselves in that week between Christmas and New Year’s, right?
After a long year and ten days at my parents’ house in soft pants, it feels great to put renewed energy towards self-discipline and civility. I was thinking about resources that might push that effort further, here’s what I came up with: probably some thoughtfulness, likely encouragement from people that care, and maaaaybe a few strategic purchases. Below I've considered four New Year’s resolutions from those perspectives, let’s start fresh and shiny together!
resolution:
comfort in the kitchen
try out a new cookbook!
Copy a smart person’s food philosophies! The best cookbooks introduce ideas that extend beyond strict recipes and shake up your routine, a gift for you and anyone lucky enough to sit at your table. Six Seasons is one of those books for me, I feel like I refer to it as a reference and in conversation regularly. As the title suggests, Joshua McFadden has structured the book by season (dividing summer’s bounty into early, mid, and late), walking through what to look for in specific vegetables and their tastiest uses. I used to stand in the produce section and think, "I should probably know how to eat that vegetable without hummus or ranch dressing,” and after reading this book and working through some recipes, I can do a lot more with snap peas. Maybe you’ll get comfy with lots of lemon and herbs, taste more as you cook, and make an impressive sauce with capers and raisins! This book would be especially powerful in proximity to a farmer’s market (or a CSA membership if you’re really going for it), but it's definitely not required. Show up to your next group dinner with a brightly flavored, seasonally appropriate dish! Or eat it all yourself, you are very worth the effort.
or a small appliance!
While it’s a fun hobby to make an afternoon project out of a really ambitious recipe, most of the time food is fuel my body needs and I’m more likely to eat responsibly if it’s snappy. Has everyone expounded the virtues of an Instant Pot to your face already? The internet’s favorite pressure cooker hit in a big way at least three years ago, but if you’ve held out this long, I would like one last crack at convincing. Who knew a small appliance could empower so much weeknight cooking and simplify so many tasks? 48,416 people who wrote amazon reviews sure did, and so did my mom, who was excited to give me one last Christmas. The name “Instant Pot” is a bit sensational since food needs additional time to build and release pressure, but overall it takes less planning and time than a crockpot with many extra capabilities. I didn’t realize I hated tending boiling water until I started using it for rice and perfectly hardboiled eggs that peel real nice (not simultaneously, gross). I often and easily turn the bones of whatever chicken I just fixed into sophisticated stock, and it brings dried beans to life in an hour! The game has been changed! Food blogs are resplendent with information and techniques, so I either google “instant pot __" or text my mom for her greatest hits. This adobo chicken is in my regular rotation, and I plan on making a great many soups in the cold months ahead. Which brings me to...
including your friends: Soup Group!
Few meals are as cozy, economical, and expansive, but my freezer’s full of ice cream and I tend to tire of monotony before eating through a big batch of chili. Why not get the gang together to swap soup!? Soup Group can take many forms: a rotating host provides the big pot of soup with friends bringing bread / caesar salad / wine to the evening; portion your extra soup into takeout containers to swap with your favorite neighbor; put an InstantPot in the break room and divide duties between coworkers! Your call! Your lifestyle determines your bylaws, but don't soup alone!
resolution:
wrangle your wardrobe
take good care of your sweaters!
I started caring about better sweaters when I lived in Chicago and realized my polyester blends were a bad match for the extreme temperature changes of a February commute. Sweating and then freezing and then sweating again feels bad/clammy. Since listening to the sheep and giving natural fibers a go, I’m much happier, but even my “luxury” wool starts pills from regular wear. Turns out the facts of friction come for all sweaters, but they can be managed! A blessed Sweater Shaver is the satisfying tool that sings your favorites back to life with a little motor and a covered blade. You can’t screw it up! Mine has cleaned up not just a small collection of nice knits but also a handful of coats and the part of our IKEA couch that pills. I co-opted my parent’s 30+ year old model, but this new one is functionally the same. If our brains are in any way similar you will lose yourself in the task and shave everything you can find. All your sweaters, fresh and brand new!
or invest in new ones!
Ok, let's talk about procuring high quality knits. If you’ve got time and a sense of adventure, please cruise the thrift stores. The ladies racks are unreliable with too many cheap materials and poorly aging trends, but someone decided men’s sweaters should be Built To Last, and they’re usually quite timeless and well made. An oversized, tasteful snuggle can be yours if you’re ready to dig!
For full-priced & brand new, I refresh Everlane's sweater page all winter. One of their best sellers is a $100 cashmere crew, I bought one in dark navy three winters ago that, thanks 2 sweater shaver, still feels warm and luxurious. With enough affiliate clicks, I’d cash in on this alpaca button up. Last year’s sweater acquisition was a long open cardigan that now seems like a toasty bargain considering the square footage and how frequently I wear it. And this fall I chose a perfect oatmeal turtleneck as my souvenir from the 24-hr LLBean in Freeport, Maine, won't take it off. What I’m saying is, slow and steady, quality over quantity, let’s all wear matching sweaters for the next hundred years.
including your friends: sweater swap!
My apartment hosted a Sweater Swap when the weather got cold, everyone took turns going through the contributions, cheering when an orphan found a new home, and we donated the remainder. A reason to clean out your closet, refresh your wardrobe for free, and have a wholesome night with friends. Maybe there's soup?
resolution
make time for creativity
three months of showing up!
The Artist’s Way was one of the best things I undertook last year—friends had mentioned it for years before I decided to give it a go, and I’m so glad I did! The book is a self-guided 12 week program focusing on a different topic each week with readings, prompts, and activities to guide readers towards higher creativity. The central premise is about unlocking the creative power within ourselves, believing each of us is an artist with a meaningful story and perspective. Sound a little woo-ey? It is! It’s also generous and kind, giving participants permission to take their voices seriously, however that might be expressed. Julia Cameron developed this program almost 30 years ago, and artists all over the world revisit the program throughout their lives. Although I worked my way through the book earlier in 2019, I’ve held onto the core practices: writing freely at the beginning of most days and scheduling regular time for creativity. Not always easy, but def good and def worth it. And you’re going to need a lot of paper, so...
stock up on stationery!
There are a million options for empty notebooks in the world, and we get to be our own Goldilocks on this journey. Off the top of my head, I pass over: large notebooks, lined journals with decorative borders, bright white pages with heavy black lines dictating how big or small I can write, any level of cheese. I need wide open spaces, room to make my big mistakes. Muji has a good range of sizes and formats for all the neurotic cheapskates out there: everything is readily available, reasonably priced, not too precious, and very light. I’ve spent all kinds of money on nicer notebooks, but these are my surest standby. I typically go for the midsized B5 with a soft grid, and then stock up on their gel pens. The .38 ones come in a bunch of colors write so tiny and nice!
including your friends: a creative cluster
I chose to do The Artist’s Way solo for my first venture, and miraculously 3-5 friends from different circles were working through it around the same time! Casually checking in on the process was so helpful, and I loved hearing what they all were learning. The book encourages a communal effort, including questions for weekly meetings where you can freely discuss your experiences. If that kind of accountability sounds helpful to you, poll your likeminded friends and see who’s down! I also wouldn’t be surprised if an internet search in your city yields meet-ups as well.
resolution
read more books!
get / use your library card!
Wanted to remind you in case you forgot! Do you live for the rudimentary simplicity of this newsletter? We’re living in the future and Benjamin Franklin over here is telling you about the public library. Should my mention trigger memories of overdue fines, the internet has made it so much easier to search for and reserve the books you want to read. Most libraries use an app called Overdrive, and once you get your card at a branch it’s super simple to place holds or search for what’s currently available. They don’t have every title, and there are often waits for the most popular titles, but it always feels best to start there when I hear about a new book I want to read.
with the ford focus of e-readers!
I put an Amazon gift card towards a base-model Kindle a few years back after purging a bunch of books and moving into a tiny apartment. It’s become one of my very favorite possessions, which came as a surprise given the joy I find in the tactile experience of physical books. I try not to hang onto books that I’m only going to read once, and this tiny little thing has really lightened my load. It’s easy to stuff it with books before a trip knowing my bags won’t be any heavier, and I read more regularly if I can swap between titles when the mood strikes. I can cling to it with one hand on the subway or read sideways on the couch, and it's linked to my Goodreads account to keep track what I’ve read. A sneaky trick to elongate a library loan if you don't finish in the three week loan period: leave that thing in airplane mode and it can’t return the copy by connecting to wifi.
including your friends: book club!
Books are a common starting point for surprising conversations, and I’ve been thankful for the unlikely friendships grown from meeting to discuss them. Book clubs can be a nudge to read something you wouldn’t otherwise, an opportunity to discuss a compelling topic, or a chance to read the book you keep putting off. Our’s compiles a list of titles to schedule six months out or so, and a point person sends email reminders. We’re definitely a “read the whole book and come prepared to talk” group, but for a lighter commitment with similar cheese plates, try an articles club for talking through those juicy long reads.
resolution:
more tasteful self promotion!
This lil letter made it to 200 subscribers! Wow and thanks! I really enjoy this whole process, and I also love that I’m not screaming into a void—your responses have been so gratifying! In the spirit of good-hearted recommendation, feel free to pass this newsletter along to someone who might appreciate it! The more the clicks the merrier, let’s further the network of people who all have matching sweaters, you get it.
As always, shout if you want to chat about work, life, instant pots or your sparkly new resolutions! I’m on twitter (when I think of a joke) and instagram (as it suits me) and the world wide web (so long as the lights are on).
auld lang syne,
Frances