🧂 "Always throw spilled salt over your left shoulder..." 🧹🪄
🎉 Happy (Belated) New Calendar Day to all who celebrate! 🎉
Dear friend,
Two reminders -
(1) THE DOG COVEN. If you are a Snail Mail Club member with a dog in your family, I’d love to recruit them for our dog coven. Please let me know if you want a likeness of your dog included with a Practical Magic-inspired illustration of the coven banishing an evil spirit.
I don’t want to make an assumption for anyone, so please opt in. Just reply to this email with some photos of your dog or a link to an online album if you’d like to be included. Only two dogs have joined so far, and according to The Aunts, “We need a full coven. Nine [dogs]...Twelve's better!”
(2) FREE PRINTABLE CALENDAR. I created a 2025 wall calendar that you can download and print for free. Please share with anyone who still needs a calendar! Click here if you want more information and ideas to personalize your calendar. OR click here if you want to go straight to the download page via Ko-fi.
Other than that, my big news is that my 12-year-old Canon Pixma printer (and scanner) finally quit working earlier this week. I’ve been having big feelings and typed a whole bunch about it, but now I’m tired and you are probably tired, too, so I’m just going to say that I’m super bummed, and I’ve now ordered a new printer which should arrive tomorrow.
We also took an impromptu trip over the Christmas holiday. I initially planned to bring supplies to work on the Winter cards, but then I decided I would try to be a super chill go-with-the-flow person and take all those days off. Was it a good decision? It probably was, but then my printer broke when we got back so it feels like I put myself behind again. I’m trying not to freak out. Super chill go-with-the-flow, ammirite?!?! 🥲
Current Projects
Snail Mail Club updates.
FALL. I know of at least one of the Twilight Autumn zines that hasn’t been received and there’s still quite a few I haven’t yet confirmed. Please let me know if you are still waiting on yours!
WINTER. I’m working on Practical Magic Winter cards and I think they are really cute so far! But, as mentioned above, my scanner and printer broke in the middle of working on them!! It will probably take me some time to figure out the new printer, but hopefully it will work even better and print really nice so there’s that to be excited about.
What is Snail Mail Club? SMC members receive unique handmade cards four times per year that are inspired by the seasons. Additional items are included in every release such as stickers, bookmarks, and other surprises. If you aren’t already a member, you can sign up through Ko-fi HERE or find more info HERE!
New journal entries.
Since I took some time off, the only new journal entry is about the Free Printable 2025 Calendar.
Luna.
Luna is doing okay and taking her New Year’s Resolutions seriously. Here she is demanding to be my exercise buddy. I’ve tried to explain that, as far as I know, mat pilates is a one-person kind of activity, but it’s sweet that she wants to be involved.
Recent Inspirations.
Watching.
Star Trek: Prodigy (2021-22). We started this animated series a few weeks ago, and I immediately fell in love with the characters, especially Rok-Tahk! It’s currently streaming on Netflix, and I hope they pick it up for another season (but it was previously cancelled on Paramount+ so I’m not sure if it’s possible). Personally, I enjoyed this much more than both ST: Picard or ST: Discovery.
Reading.
Dune (1965). Frank Herbert’s classic sci-fi novel is one of my favorite books. I finally talked my partner, Josh, into checking it out and he liked it so much that he continued reading the rest of the books in the series, which I have never done! I just finished re-reading the original novel in December because he wants to discuss them with me - so now I’m going to try and read the rest as well.
Something that got my attention this time was the awe that the Fremen characters experience when someone cries in grief over a death, or “gives moisture to the dead.” Shedding the body’s water is not done lightly, so imagining myself on Arrakis is pretty ridiculous. I’m sure I would be kicked off the planet as soon as someone noticed me crying during a laundry detergent commercial.
In conclusion.
I hope you are settling into the idea of the New Year as best you can.
I’m struggling a bit to get back into my regular routine after returning from our trip and taking a break for a few days. My printer quitting also hasn’t helped. It had been struggling for a while though, so starting 2025 with a new one is probably a good thing.
In the following year, I want to do more letting go of things that aren’t working, as well as adjusting to change as gracefully as possible. This aligns with my main areas of focus for 2025: (1) simplifying as much as I can so that I am able to (2) pay better attention to the things I am passionate about.
What are you hoping for this year? Please let me know so I can be your cheerleader!
See you in your mailbox soon,
💖 Becky H
💚 Dear Chizuko