Hi Bestie!! 

LAST YEAR

I ate a staggering amount of bean and cheese burritos this year, so I disagree, because I loved every single one. I guess my friend was right last year when she bought a box at Costco in anticipation of hosting me (and others).

I didn't read many books, but I did read the Frog and Toad stories. I hope you did too. Some days are Frog days and some days are Toad days, and that's exactly what Walt Whitman meant when he said that I, personally, contain multitudes.

I read "Song of Myself" in its entirety at least twice this year. (Is it snobby or derivative to love Leaves of Grass? I'm asking for my next tight five.) 

I celebrate myself, and sing myself,

And what I assume you shall assume,

For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.

One evening, I had a Sazerac at a nice-ish bar near my apartment; for my birthday, I told my sister I wanted one in her basement, with ice. That's two sublime Sazeracs, if you're counting. 

A handful of times, I took the Q between Manhattan and Brooklyn at night and experienced my third-favorite view of the city (following the top of the first hill on the Cyclone and the sunset view from the dumpster chute at Maimonides Park, alone).

I wrote trivia for the first time, and some of you played for me. (That was kind and fun, thank you.)

I fell in love a lot with my friends, the city, and the natural world. I put myself out there once, and it ended in tears and implied violence, but I will probably do it again. (I would like to, now that Heated Rivalry has ruined my life.) I am shy but friendly, and sometimes — often — I am absolutely callous with my own emotions. 

By the last two weeks of December, I had started to feel like Shane Hollander, in that my eyes are almost always filled with tears. I have been very, very tired. It was a long year. A lot of big things happened, and severe burnout did not help. I thought a week alone in the city would help, and it started to. I saw The Testament of Ann Lee in 70 mm one day and In the Mood for Love the next day, before I went to New Jersey to watch the Sirens. That might have been teetering on the edge for someone who should have been rotting at home. I spent New Year's Day outside in Coney Island and was so tired that night I Googled "does shivering make you tired," and the answer, unsurprisingly, is yes. ("Shivering increases thermogenesis and replaces body heat losses, while peripheral vasoconstriction improves thermal insulation of the body and retards the rate of heat loss.") 

I could have eaten more pizza, enjoyed more Sprite, and I should have listened to more Wu-Tang Clan. I should have read more poetry, and there were always opportunities to be kind that passed. Actually, I probably could have been kinder and less kind, depending on the circumstances. We all have the new year to continue living, learning, and practicing kindness, and it's a wonderful thing.

OH BISCUITS

I found out this year that I love Bluey and think it is as close to perfect as any modern kids' show. Or show. Why shouldn't it join the pantheon with Fargo, The Bear, Atlanta, and Heated Rivalry? (No apologies to The Wire, which hasn't aged well in this decade.)

I went to a concert alone and realized my sun sign is Aunt Frisky because we both have, I don't know, three friends? ("Double Babysitter" is a very sweet episode, and it's a meet-cute for Aunt Frisky and Uncle Rad, who marry in "The Sign," a 30-minute episode.)

My moon is Bingo, of course, and next year I'd like to be more like Muffin, a pint-sized tyrant with a heart of gold who doesn't need to work on her Big Girl Bark. Muffin is only 3 and wants to be older like her cousins. I will not be hearing criticism about Muffin, ever. Lately, I feel a lot like Jack, who has ADHD and is just doing his best, and Lila, who is friendly but shy. 

During an especially frantic week, I rewatched clips of "Cricket," which is about doing your best and being brave despite fear or adversity. "He was never brave enough to bat. Until one day, he was." I think that's true for most people.

I hope we can wake up brave easily this year.

A QUICK NOTE ABOUT ATLANTA

Atlanta is better than The Wire. 

I think you should watch it all. It has moments of sublime lunacy. The last season was especially brilliant. If you get there, you'll be rewarded with extreme vulnerability and a scene where a woman beats a man with a stale baguette, which was extremely cathartic after four years of trashing stale baguettes. It is not, if you were concerned, about the music industry.

It's as good as Fargo. (You can't get better than the last season of Fargo, which is clearly a response to our current political climate and presupposes a world where Jean Lundegaard fights back.) The nice thing about Fargo is that, as an anthology series, you don't need to start at the beginning. The first season was very good and expanded on the film. The second and last seasons, however, were better. 

This is a link to the final scene, which encapsulates everything that matters to me.

HEATED RIVALRY IS RUINING MY LIFE

I expected I would be a little sad at the end of the season, because it's a romance that has a happy ending. I did not expect that Ilya Rozanov and I would share similarities on a cellular level, forcing me to examine my entire life. (At minimum, I, too, would play a playoff game with bruised ribs. I have done worse for less. Will I let the man I love carry my bags? Unclear!) 

Never in my life have I blushed, Hills do not do this! 

Now I'm out here making lists of new hobbies to engage in outside the house, sobbing outside Laundry City, and Googling "How do I meet boring men." (Even though, I am, to quote a Tweet I saw, "A malicious entity made of seafoam.")

I had resolved to take my own advice in 2026, so we all know what the answer is. Of course, I haven't met a boring man in a very long time, and I was already following my own advice, so there is no need to follow up.  

Heated Rivalry will not ruin your life. Most of you are not Ilya. All of you are in stable, long-term relationships. It's about the importance, value, and privilege of being yourself. (And queer joy!) The finale offers talking, which I would like to see more of. I want to see people sit down and talk about their feelings. 

The Bear offered this at the end of season 4 by the way, and I know the public does not enjoy apologies as much as I do, but after three seasons of yelling, "JUST EXPLAIN YOURSELF AND APOLOGIZE" I was deeply thrilled.

I finally realized at the end of December how it came to be that I desire Sprite so much. When I worked at the brewery, I would take a Sprite at the end of my shift instead of beer if I was tired. Usually, I had a Coca-Cola as a mid-shift drink, but sometimes we worked really hard and were allowed two drinks, so I had a Sprite, as it was too late for more caffeine or alcohol. And now Sprite is the signal that everything will be OK, and the day is over. Should this have been obvious? Maybe! Am I surprised that the brewery still has its claws in the hunk of electrified meat in my head. Yes! And there is hardly a bar in the neighborhood to get a Sprite now, which is a huge bummer for someone who goes to so many (we're calling five "many") Cyclones games.

I ordered ticket vouchers for next season, by the way. The season opener, if I haven't told you, is against the Frederick Keys. Seeing The Keys a lot this summer might be my last shred of hope in a dark time, by the way, so be patient with me.

Actually, that and the possibility that American Football will release a fourth LP. This is speculative, but the band deleted its social media accounts and changed its profile picture. If I've learned anything from Taylor Swift, it's that this is the universal signal for a new era. Install a port and stream LP4 into my veins, please. 

I went to Trader Joe's at the end of December (New Year's Eve, actually!) and heard "Freak" by Silverchair at the store. What a world, what a surprise!

American Football is my favorite band. They are, if you're under 40, the driving influence of your favorite band. If you want to eat pierogies at Warsaw when they inevitably tour, I can hold your merch for you when you're in the non-existent pit.

Speaking of your favorite band's favorite band, I saw Texas Is the Reason last month, and it was incredible. And they plan to keep touring!

My Spotify Unwrapped wasn't accurate this year; this is the list I put together throughout the year:

Spotify ranked "I think about you all the time" by Deftones as No. 9 in spite of the Friday I worked from home and listened to it on repeat for 10 hours.

Eventually, Hulu will cease to exist, and I'll have to move to another service. If you have a recommendation, let me know.

Thank you for being here. You know what it means to be you! May love follow you, always your friend, Katherine

Armstrong, Vanessa. "Muffin's Best 'Bluey' Episodes and Minisodes." Vulture, 22 Apr. 2024, www.vulture.com/article/muffins-best-bluey-episodes.html. Accessed 4 Jan. 2026.

Bluey — Official Channel. "Jack Joins Rusty's Army | Season 2 | Bluey." YouTube, 1 Dec. 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLMQBEAjLTI.

"Fargo — Season 5 Finale — Bisquik (End Credits)." YouTube, 23 Jan. 2024, www.youtube.com/watch?v=wozrHws3QDw. Accessed 4 Jan. 2026.

FX Networks. "Carmy Gives Sydney the Bear — Scene | the Bear | FX." YouTube, 4 Oct. 2025, www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRXOZNcumLY. Accessed 4 Jan. 2026.

"FX Networks on Instagram: 'the "Okay" at the End ❤️.'" Instagram, 2017, www.instagram.com/p/C9nTsmpS95D/. Accessed 4 Jan. 2026.

Hill, Katherine. "Cookie Bobby Bangers (and Ballads)." Too Loud and Too Old, Buttondown, 4 Nov. 2025, buttondown.com/KatherineMHill/archive/cookie-bobby-bangers-and-ballads/. Accessed 4 Jan. 2026.

"Sam Reich on Instagram: 'Strangely Inspirational.'" Instagram, 2017, www.instagram.com/reel/DRxPekcEz5X/?igsh=MTJkdmwwOXpvMGc0eQ==. Accessed 4 Jan. 2026.

Silverchair. "Silverchair — Freak (Official Video)." YouTube, 24 Aug. 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KHwuOtcALQ.

"Van's Baguette Attack | Atlanta | FX." YouTube, 23 May 2022, www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtaML9D2p8k. Accessed 4 Jan. 2026.

Whitman, Walt. "Song of Myself (1892 Version)." Poetry Foundation, 1892, www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45477/song-of-myself-1892-version.

"Wind up Bingo" | Daddy Drop off | Bluey. YouTube, 17 June 2023, www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-pdKRD7ARY. Accessed 4 Jan. 2026.

Young, Andrew J., and John W. Castellani. "Exertional Fatigue and Cold Exposure: Mechanisms of Hiker’s Hypothermia." Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, vol. 32, no. 4, Aug. 2007, pp. 793–98, https://doi.org/10.1139/h07-041. Accessed 21 Feb. 2021.