Feel Good Friday 60
Well, it’s been quiet here this week. It’s not that I have nothing to share, but it’s been all about surviving! Chris’ schedule has been hectic, which in turn makes mine as such so I just have not had time. But I will always (well, most of the time) make time for Feel Good Friday! This week may have been survival of the fittest (hint- not me), but I’ve managed to carve out a little time for the things that feed my soul. Let’s dive in! (Wow, I’ve been watching too much Paw Patrol.) This post contains affiliate and Amazon associate links. I earn a small commission from purchases made through those links.
String lights
I shared the image above on instagram this week and yes, it is current. I had taken down all of the Christmas decor and lights and came to the realization that I truly loved having string lights around my desk, especially since our living room doesn’t get much daylight – winter or not. I used these LED lights that we used on our trees this past Christmas, and love how happy my workspace feels now. I truly believe that your home should be filled with what makes YOU happy. Maybe it’s string lights, and maybe it’s hearts everywhere… no judgement here as long as you love it.
Local Talent
Do you use the NextDoor app? It is filled to the brim with Karens, but every once in a while a little gem comes along. A couple of weeks ago, a woman posted a video of her talented 10 year old singing and playing Don’t Stop Believing, and I was blown away! Just thought I would share as I always love seeing children let their spirits shine without inhibition or reservation.
Another thriller
Welp, I haven’t made a ton of progress on my personal development book yet (Sorry, Brené!). With everything going on in the country, I just needed to lose myself in another thriller, and The Lying Game by Ruth Ware scratched that itch. I’ve honestly loved everything I’ve read by Ware, so if you haven’t yet, definitely check her out (literally, from the library!).
Healthy Vegan Recipe
We’ve been making stir-fries these days, and while I don’t have an exact recipe for that to share because we tend to add our own spices, I do have a great tofu recipe for you. This week I wanted a vegetarian stir-fry, and Chris was up for trying tofu. I found a great recipe for crispy baked tofu and used that, then added it in at the last minute to the stir fry. While it was delicious, I also enjoyed snacking on the crispy tofu while I cooked.
A Poignant and Timely Video
Thanks to my job, I come across all sorts of moving pieces of media. O.Henry magazine’s Billy Eye wrote about A Letter to My Son, created by a local filmmaker in our November issue. Below is an excerpt from the article.
Still, Maurice would like nothing more than for this film to be totally irrelevant — a moment lost to the past. He describes the recent attention to A Letter to My Son as a bittersweet reality. “It was my hope as a writer, as an African American man, that one by one these issues would be eliminated so that the short would become invalid. It would be like, ‘Oh, wow. That was a really unfortunate place that we were in all those years ago, but I’m so happy that’s not the case today.’” But it has not come to pass.
With MLK Day this Monday, I wanted to share the video here.
100 Tips for a Better Life
I came across this blog post a couple of weeks ago, right around the ringing of the new year, and loved it so much! There are so many wonderful and thoughtful ideas on this list, and it’s worth reading the entire thing. Obviously, I am not dating, but I love this one: When dating, de-emphasizing your quirks will lead to 90% of people thinking you’re kind of alright. Emphasizing your quirks will lead to 10% of people thinking you’re fascinating and fun. Those are the people interested in dating you. Aim for them.
The other one that truly made me think: Remember that you are dying.
It’s a very thorough list that will help you focus your energy where it deserves to be.
Body Image Podcast
One of my favorite business podcasters, Amy Porterfield, launched a new podcast this week called Talking Body. This limited 12-week series is going to dive into all things body image as Amy grows and learns with us on how to love the skin we’re in, even if we’re working toward other goals. As someone who has struggled for much of my life with body image, I am extremely excited to see where this one goes. My mood very often correlates to how I feel about myself in the morning. If I got up and ran or worked out, I feel great in my clothes. If I stayed in bed, I feel bad about myself and end up cranky. I very much know this about myself which is why even on the days where I want to stay in bed, I typically get up and go, knowing that my afternoon self will thank my morning self.
SNOW
Last Friday, late afternoon, we finally got some snow! While it wasn’t much, we were thrilled to see it. This New England girl loves to see snow at least once each winter.
It didn’t accumulate to much, but the flakes were large and beautiful and hid my grays nicely.
I’m not sure if we will see any more snow this year, but at least we have this day to remember.
Well, friend, I hope you have had a wonderful week and that you have a restful weekend ahead of you. After the craziness of the last couple of weeks, I wish I could say we’re laying low, but we’ve got a soon-to-be 14 year old to celebrate! Emmy will be 14 on Sunday, so it’s going to be a weekend of movies, pizza, and cake. (What was I just saying about body image?!?!?) By the way, I can’t wait to share some of the things I found for her next week. 😉
