I’m super psyched about next year’s theme word. I have a post planned about it for New Year’s Eve. But I can’t wait that long.
Spoiler – it’s “cozy.”
This isn’t really a new theme or value for me. I leaned pretty far into cozy the year I explored what it meant to be at home in the world. Quiet and cozy went hand in hand. It’s seeped pretty steadily into wonder this year.
And for the past 20 years, I’ve been working in housing, helping people find ways to feel as cozy as possible in their home away from home.
Throughout the year, I’m going to be looking at how I can make my spaces (physical, social, emotional, mental, etc.) cozier. I’ll also excavate some of the more negative aspects of the definition of cozy, particularly when it acts like a verb.
This month, I want to take the time to acknowledge and honor what I’m already doing. I’m not sure if this statement of my intentions will be the only post about it in December, or if I will find more to say. But in the spirit of Advent, I’m paying attention to how coziness is already having an impact on how I interact with the world.
The whimsy of the ever-present office bats who change hats with the season. Sharing baked goods with coworkers and friends. Making this soup just as soon as possible. My nightly tea ritual.
The many choices of ways to get warm should the need arise (it rarely does, but I’m so ready for it).
Happy November! These first couple of weeks have been a flurry of jury duty, UNT Fall Preview, interviews, and writing. It’s hard to believe the month is almost half gone already.
It’s the end of an era! The very last Let It Be Sunday from Joy the Baker. I will miss these weekly joyful check-ins, but I know there are more wonders on the horizon.
An international student we know just received funding to continue with her studies here, and then was bitten by a dog and had to have a rabies shot. Please help with the costs if you can.
I always love dark cello playlists, but this has been my jam this week. It’s so soothing. I also like to think it informs those who walk into my office that 1) yes, I would love to help, so come sit around the imaginary fire pit and discuss what you need, but with enough foreboding that they also realize 2) do not fuck around because you will indeed find out.
“You don’t think your way out of burnout. You restore your way out — by rebuilding the energy, safety, and nourishment your body needs to believe again.” I needed to read this piece from The Good Trade today.
I hope you’re having a good month so far. Happy weekend, friends!
Happy Halloween! This year’s costumes are Winnie the Pooh (featured at book club since I was not feeling well for the actual Halloween party I typically go to), and a version of the Mad Hatter for work today. I hope you are having a fun day!
Some things I enjoyed reading this week (and a bit of last week):
Abbott: Rainbows gotta go… Oak Lawn Methodist Church: …on our steps. “It’s important because silence is not neutral — silence in the face of harm always sides with the oppressor. At Oak Lawn UMC, we believe love belongs in public. Painting our steps in the colors of the rainbow is a visible witness to the gospel we preach: that every person is created in the image of God and worthy of safety, dignity, and belonging,” Love this.
Hello, and happy September! I read more in August than I read in June and July combined. I think this “I do what I want” approach is helping me get out of my mini-slump. So I’ll be continuing my list from last month and adding a few more.
Rise and Shine’s prompt for this month is “Reader’s Choice,” and I have a lot of great books I read last month to choose from.
Other Reading
These are mostly books I’ve checked out from the library. Some of them fulfill prompts from my reading challenges (and at least one of them will do quite nicely for 52 Book Club’s prompt “read in a “-ber” month), but most of them are just books I put on hold because someone said, “Hey, I bet you’d enjoy this.” I am happy to continue another month of reading for enjoyment. Here are more books I’ve added to the library pile:
The Book of Goose by Yiyun Li (52 Book Club – Lunar New Year Mini Challenge – I know, I’m a little behind, but in my defense, I didn’t know the mini-challenges existed until I scrolled down on StoryGraph and saw the prompts last month – “by an Asian author”)
I’m sad today. My friend Des died. He was a gentle, kind person, and the world is worse without him in it.
So much of my own grief and general sadness processing is so internal that it is a challenge for me to understand those who work these things out socially. Understanding is not necessary for acceptance, though, so I’m leaving this here as a reminder to myself not to isolate too much, for their sakes.
There’s a lot going on otherwise, too. Work and life and the world are all pretty overwhelming right now.
One of the things I love about reading is that it’s not just a pastime. It’s a comfort, a balm, an inspiration, an excitement, a focus.
Any month is a good mood-reading month, but reading exactly what I need at the time I need it is especially essential right now. There are a lot on this list, so this will likely extend into September.
Book Clubs
Talking about books with other people is one of my favorite things.
I love when someone lends me a book they think I’ll like. I automatically feel closer to them when I read it. And then I get to see them and bond over what we liked about it when I give it back to them.
Ah, the excitement of a new release! I enjoy being among a book’s first readers (even if that group is in the millions). It’s a specific part of the larger global-ish book community that I particularly enjoy. It inspires me to keep working so that I may be able to experience it as an author someday.
Also, I need to get these back to the library so folks in my larger local-ish book community who have them on hold can read them, too.
When an author develops their characters well (or builds a fascinating world, or tells a great story), I will read (and sometimes re-read) every book in the series. I just can’t get enough.
Still Life by Louise Penny (deluxe edition comes out at the end of September – I may hold out until then to start this series over)
Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas, and since I devoured both the first and second books in this series as well as the collection of five prequel novellas in less than four days last week, I’m going to go ahead and add…
When I need something lighthearted where everything works out in the end or at least a reminder that sometimes things do work out. If we can subvert some tired expectations and/or gender roles, throw some sunshine into a grump’s life, or redeem a villain – even better!
A bit of a catch-all category for anything homey, whimsical, charming, cozy, or quirky, these are tea and a warm blanket in book form. The characters are lovable, the storylines are typically low-risk/high-reward, and there is a general sweetness to all of it that is particularly useful when I feel like that sweetness is lacking everywhere else. Or there’s just really good food involved/promised.
Happy Friday, folks! June is up and running! We are three down/ten to go with orientation sessions for new students and their parents this week, so it’s been busy at work. And tonight is Pridenton’s Night Out, and my church has a booth, so that’s my Friday night. Luckily, I have a few days off next week to go hang out with my parents, so that’s something to look forward to.
Additionally, this has been a great morning:
My sister came to visit at work (she is going on a trip and wanted to take her friends some of UNT’s special coffee blend from Voltage) and we got to have coffee and bagels together.
I got some excellent news that is really going to make my financial life easier.
I was able to help two students who were struggling/anxious about housing next year get exactly what they need.
One of my staff who has been on a tour with the UNT acapella choir is back and I get to hear his stories soon.
I get to have lunch on the square with the office folk today.
Here are some things I’ve enjoyed reading in the last few weeks (months? It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these):
As a member of Tori Dunlap’s 100K Club (shameless plug) (which I originally typed “shameless plum” – I’m so hungry and also I may have just given myself an idea for a children’s book), I have been thinking a lot about value categories when it comes to my budget. These are the things that aren’t needs but that I still make room for in the budget because they bring me joy or enrich my life in some way. When I first joined the community, I had office supplies + stationery + accessories on my list because I love them so much. While I have since begrudgingly admitted that maybe I don’t need a whole budget category for writing implements, gosh, I love a good pencil.
I don’t know if “cozy” and “challenge” would be found together in any sentence I mutter (I lean more toward do-nothing cozy), but this list for summer is nice. Take your dog on a date? Come on, that’s adorable.
Joy the Baker’s guide to a joyful summer is more my speed when it comes to summer to-do lists. Gentle suggestions. Things that make life easier/more pleasant. And if you think I’m not looking for that banana malt icebox cake recipe in my inbox every single day, have we even met?
Everything about this is powerful and I love it and also I despise that we are living in times where two international students at Harvard singing “There’s a Place for Us” to honor Rita Moreno is especially poignant. I have a lot of feelings.
Speaking of things that give me a lot of feelings, OMG YAY.
I hope you have a lovely weekend full of whatever gives you the most peace.
Hello, June. I’m trying hard to get into the spirit of you. It may be easier this year, since I’m spending more time at the farm. I loved June in the Panhandle, growing up. It was almost as good as October. We’ll see if the magic still persists.
Speaking of magic, I have not been great at pursuing my exploration of wonder this year. There are reasons, but I’d still like to do better. After all, the whole point of cultivating a practice of wonder is to have it in place for when things are *gestures broadly* I think I’m going to start Awestruck: 52 Experiments To Find Wonder, Joy, and Meaning in Everyday Life by Alexandra Franzen [inspire/self-help/community care] this month. And continue on with Year of Wonder: Classical Music To Enjoy Day by Day by Clemency Burton-Hill [essays? Daily prompts?], which has been excellent. I also want to read On Thriving by Brandi Sellerz-Jackson [inspire/self-help/community care] early in the month so I can get it back to the library for the people waiting on it. Hopefully, these will inspire me to embrace the wonder in everyday life a little better.
What I have been great at is carving out time every day to read. Here’s hoping June brings even more of that.
Library
In addition to On Thriving, there are several other books I need to return to the library this month.
The Author’s Guide to Murder by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White [mystery/suspense] – Rise & Shine is a mystery theme this month!
Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune [fantasy/nonrealism] – Follow the Reader’s choose your own adventure with a queer theme for Pride Month
Nevada by Imogen Binnie [queer lit] – also an FTR pick
Reading Challenges
Some of my favorite things about summer are the extra reading challenges and an abundance of readathons. Apparently, to many people, summer means more time to read, and that is delightful. Our public library has a challenge that lets you earn free books. As I also make space for Modern Mrs. Darcy’s Summer Reading Guide (the Minimalist List can be found here) by putting as many as my library has ordered on my hold list and eagerly await the possibility of a 52 Book Club summer challenge, I don’t want to neglect the yearly challenges I’m trying to finish. I know I have at least one official readathon coming up in July, but I know I will add more just for kicks, including a mini-retreat this Saturday. There are just too many good books I want to read! And by too many, I do mean never enough and please keep writing more great books, dear authors.
For this month…
52 Book Club:
Hurricane Summer by Asha Bromfield – Genre two: set in summer [general YA]
The Bodyguard by Katherine Center – A crossover (set in a shared universe) [favorite authors]
The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center – Shares universe with previous prompt [favorite authors]
Kill Joy by Holly Jackson – A prequel [mystery/suspense]
Libro.fm:
Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune – Listen to an audiobook by an LGBTQIA+ author [fantasy/nonrealism]
Kingmaker by Sonia Purnell – Read an audiobook about a historical figure and/or event [general nonfiction]
Nevada by Imogen Binnie – Listen to an audiobook by a transgender author [queer lit]
Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado – Listen to an anthology or short story collection [essays/short stories]
Bad Bitch Book Club:
Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy – A book set in the state/region where you live [general YA]
The Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki – A book with astrology as a main plot point [fantasy/magical realism]
A bit of catch-up with the books I’ve planned for previous months
Nowhere Book Bingo:
All Fours by Miranda July – Book rec from a friend (thanks, Sarah!) [general fiction]
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton – your favorite author’s favorite book – as choosing a favorite author is like asking someone to choose a favorite book (i.e., impossible), this is one of the favorite books of one of my favorite authors (Roxane Gay) [general fiction]
I’ve already plotted out all my intended reads for the Overeducated Women With Cats challenge in previous months. So all that is left to do for that challenge is to finish reading them. Maybe I will have them finished by the end of summer.
Looking forward to my mini-retreat this Saturday. I already had my snacks planned (because priorities), and now I have my TBR ready to go!
Do your reading habits change with the seasons? If so, how?
Whew. What a year to explore wonder! I mean, I guess I am, in fact, frequently astonished (Am I really? Or is it all playing out exactly as expected?) and full of doubt, both of which were phenomena featured in the definition. But damn.
My focus last year was technically learning how to embrace quiet but realistically, it was also a lot of trying not to die. My community was instrumental in helping me achieve that goal. Of course, people are only able to help others insofar as they have the spoons/energy/resources to do so. Therefore, in addition to capturing some wonder along the way, a big part of my mindset this year leans more toward getting my shit together so that I can be in a position to be there for those who are having their try-not-to-die year(s) now. I mean, I have been a moderately-functioning adult for a long time, and I have most of the adulting basics down, but there are areas I could be stronger. I find myself veering toward pieces that talk about cultivating sanity and joy and community and love and stability amidst *gestures broadly* so here are some of my favorites this week.
Reckoning with This Vicious World from Ask Polly, aka Heather Havrilesky – “Every opportunity to dance, to seek pleasure, to love with an open heart, to create freely, to show yourself without shame, and to celebrate what you are makes you stronger and more helpful to this struggling world.”
Power: What It *Truly* Is – Tori Dunlap with Kasia Urbaniak – “If you’re focused on how you’re being perceived, your attention is inward and you lose the power to lead the conversation.”
This is Happening by Nadia Bolz-Weber – “…this is not the time to concede the faith to nationalists, and I do not want those of us who believe Jesus’ message was one of mercy, humility, hospitality and forgiveness to give into despair.”
How Do You Know: The Consequences of a Lack of Media Literacy and Where We Go From Here by Ashlie Swicker via Book Riot – “We all know that the internet twists thinking and that this leads to large swaths of people buying into misinformation…Still, I think we imagine that this is happening somewhere else, to other people…We don’t hold ourselves accountable for the same kind of open mind and fact-checking that we demand from people who think differently than us.”
On HillmanTok University, Black Educators Are Sharing Invaluable Info by Kaitlynne Rainne via Her Campus – Professors dropping lots of knowledge on TikTok. They’ve posted syllabi, resources, etc., on everything from basic adult skills like budgeting and personal wellness to courses on literature and entrepreneurship. Teachers are going to teach, regardless of the hurdles they face. Love to see it. I also love that it’s called Hillman.
I’ll leave you with this quote from Bernice King: “There’s a difference between being informed and being consumed.” I invite you to take that into your weekend and beyond.
More than any other month of the year, my January TBR most closely resembles what it’s like inside my brain. It’s a unique blend of structure and chaos. Between my ambitious “these are the topics/challenges I’m most excited to explore right now” and my book clubs’ equally ambitious “let’s start the year off with a bang” and also my “maybe I should also read something light and fun because rest is resistance/important” tendencies, the list is all over the place. It’s also super long, because this is Ridiculous Optimism Week, and I love it.
As one of my reading goals for the year is to read more broadly across the different genres on my TBR, I’m going to note the category that I have each book listed under in brackets.
I loved starting my word for the year during Advent (the start of the church year). It’s especially useful to do so when the word of the year is wonder, and both Slowing and Enchantment [both are inspire/self-help/community care] were a great place to start. So I’m going to continue with both of these books and add a few more.
Mary Oliver poems (see various collections in the picture above) [poetry]
World of Wonders by Aimee Nezhukumatathil [essays/short stories]
When I set a goal for myself, one of the first things I do is gather information (sometimes I gather too much and get bogged down in all the scintillating details, but that’s another story for another day). So here are some books I’m reading/starting this month to get me started on my resolutions.
My two main reading challenges this year are from the 52 Book Club and Libro.fm, but if/when Overeducated Women With Cats and Nowhere Bookshop post theirs, I’ll probably jump on those as well. I joined another online book club and I’m not sure where I’m going to put the prompts, but they’ll probably be in this section as I ease my way into the community. For now, though, here are the books I’m reading this month for specific challenges.
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery, read by Richard Gere and Haley Joel Osment – Reread an old favorite on audio [fantasy/nonrealism/sci-fi/etc.]
The Third Gilmore Girl by Kelly Bishop – Read a winning audiobook from our 2024 Bookseller Choice Awards [memoir]
One of the prompts is to share Libro.fm with a friend or family member. I’m still trying to figure out how to pick a book for that prompt for my StoryGraph tracking, but in the meantime, click this link to check it out!
If I’m going to stay at the same place, this is how I want it to improve.
If I wasn’t careful, this theme would lead me into a world of rabbit holes and contingency plans. I’m not opposed to either of those things, but I’m not sure I’m at a place to take on a whole year of them.
In other words, “if” isn’t quite ringing true for me. I want a word that captures the mystery of “if…” without the ellipses. Without boxing myself into its implied necessary action. I’m not opposed to taking action. I’m just wary of obligation.
So instead of “if” and all its intense expectations, I’m going to dive deep into wonder and all of its questions.
Merriam-Webster has several definitions of wonder that I love:
A cause of astonishment
The quality of exciting amazed admiration
Rapt attention or astonishment at something awesomely mysterious or new to one’s experience
To feel surprise
To feel curiosity or doubt
Marvel
Miracle
Yes, please. All of that. I want a year of being open to mystery. I want a life that leaves room for both curiosity and doubt. I want a year on which I can look back and marvel.
After all, I’m turning 50 this year. I want to be open to big things.
This is one of my favorite days of the year – the day that I make resolutions and set goals for the next 12 months. It seems contrary to the nature of wonder, however, to predetermine what is going to happen the whole year. So I’m going to jot down some wishes – things that might be fun or interesting – with just enough structure to be measurable in case they develop into actual goals but also enough room for interpretation to allow them to evolve or disintegrate as needed, depending on…*gestures broadly*
My wishes for 2025:
To read 180 books (per yesterday’s post).
To look for opportunities for wonder. I want to be charmed by the world. I want to recapture the delight in simple things and little kindnesses. I crave whimsy. And I don’t want it just for me – I want to share it.
To buy 50 books (one for each year I’ve been alive) in person from independent bookstores. Originally, this goal was to buy 5 books each at 10 different bookstores, but then I started listing bookstores I want to visit..and it’s more than 10. So still 50 total, but I’m going to spread the love a little more broadly.
To cook at least 50 meals. This past year was unusual, and there were whole months in which I did not cook at all. To be clear, that doesn’t mean I just ate takeout (although I did that more frequently than usual). A lot of the food I buy is premade and ready to assemble and eat as snacks or salads or sandwiches, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Fed is best. But I also miss cooking, and I feel better when I do so on a regular basis. I want to average at least one cooked meal a week (with a couple of weeks off during staff training or holidays).
To set and meet 50 small financial goals. I didn’t talk about the goal I set for my finances last year, because medical expenses are expensive and I didn’t have the confidence that I’d actually be able to make it. But I did. I saved a month’s salary in an emergency fund. And then I made the first payment on a medical bill (which is exactly what emergency funds are for, I guess). And I built my savings back up. And made another first payment on a different medical bill. And I have – for the third time – almost reached a month’s salary in savings again. This didn’t happen spontaneously, though. I did it by setting monthly financial goals for both my outgoing budget and my savings. This year, there are additional things I want to do that will help me (eventually) draft a retirement plan, so I’m going to work those goals in as well. I do not harbor delusions that I will be able to retire fully any time soon (if ever), but with a little preparation, I think I can see a lighter workload on the distant horizon.
To write 50,000 words. This may be one story, or it may be 100. I just want to get back into a regular writing practice.
To consistently meet daily goals on my Finch app. Most of my reminders to eat, or drink water, or do something creative (whether that be writing or knitting or music or whatever), or take a walk/stretch break, come through Finch. Neurospicy folk, gamify the daily activities everyone else thinks of as habits. This app has helped me so much.
To make a list of 50 fun things to do in the next 10 years. I already have a few ideas, but I am going to take the whole year to decide what makes the final cut. Something to look forward to!
This is a long and ambitious list, and I fully expect my intentions to wax and wane as the year throws whatever curve balls it’s got up its sleeve. After all, sometimes just surviving is the only accomplishment a person needs to achieve.
But these wishes give me hope and spark a little bit of the type of wonder that I desperately want this year.
M. Suzanne Terry 