Five Things to Tell You vol. 1
two book recs, leg huggers, family news, and more
Hello readers! I’m starting something new this week, and I hope it constitutes the perfect balance of your inbox delight and my capacity as a creator. Please do let me know ♡
Welcome to the first edition of the new format of my Saturday newsletters that will be running for the foreseeable future ♡
Friends, I am excited to announce that I am leaning into a resting phase for this month / season because ….. Kari Leibowitz told me to. And in that spirit, I decided to lessen my writing and creative load so I can recharge and savor the season. That means less screen time and more reading, puzzling, sleeping, sewing, family, outdoors, and pondering time.
As a nod to a favorite journaling course I took a few years ago, I will be simplifying this newsletter and sharing five things with you each week on Saturdays ~ some may be tiny, some may be bigger, some may be books, and some may not!
My Tuesday newsletters for paid subscribers will remain as usual ~ book recommendations, mindful musings, and more. ♡
Would you like even more chatty musings on midlife, even more book recommendations, and exclusive downloads and book collections delivered right to your inbox each week? These are all benefits of a paid subscription to this newsletter ~ please do consider becoming a supporter!
I read a perfect pairing of books right before Thanksgiving, and they were a wonderful choice as I strive to embrace winter this year.
How to Winter had a lot of familiar content for me, but also reminded me that I do have power over my mindset AND that things out of our control can’t be fixed just by mindset alone. Leibowitz acknowledges just how much infrastructure and schedules and the inflexibility of American work culture don’t fit in with winter being a time of coziness and rest. This made me sigh in relief, as so many recommendations on this topic seem to ignore the realities of middle class, public servant, and parenting life. Not to mention the impact that America’s crumbling infrastructure and dire municipal budgets have on our transportation options in snow and ice. I put so many book darts in my copy of this book I think it doubled in weight, and while I was going to write an entire newsletter on it, I now realize that you just have to read it for yourself. It truly did help me shift my mindset radically. She also convinced me to donate to Protect Our Winters.
And a huge thanks to Nina aka for her interview with her friend who gave the recommendation for The Hygge Holiday! I loved this sweet English story so very much, and its intense focus on creating cozy interiors and paying attention to the world around us within a delightful holiday tale was a great companion to the overall message in How to Winter.1
I was heavily influenced by and to make this the season of the corduroys and I FINALLY FOUND THEM2. The best cords I have ever owned. I keep telling people that these pants make me feel like my legs are being hugged and cozy all day long, and it’s the TRUTH. These fit me just perfectly and are actually the perfect length for me (most pants are waaaaay too long for me) and have the perfect rise and are so. damn. warm. and. comfy. I bought all the colors except white ~ my only sadness is there’s not a burnt orange or deep burgundy color.
When I was pondering just why I love these pants so. very. much. I realized that it’s because they fit EXACTLY the same way that my most favorite pants ever did ~ a pair of wide leg J.Crew chinos that I bought in 2002 and wore absolutely ragged. RIP best pants ever. Related: this perfect podcast episode from
I spent a lot of time last month text-debating and discussing with my teacher and librarian friends a recent Atlantic article about Lucy Calkins and the always-fraught Reading Wars. I loved this analysis of the article from ~ it is such a delight to see a close reading of a piece about a topic I am so passionate about.
The oldest received her acceptance for her next AmeriCorps trail work / conservation gig! She will be based in Sacramento, CA starting at the end of January through the end of May. I’m so hoping I can squeeze in a visit.
I know, I know, you’ve already seen a million Spotify Wrapped shares this week. But you haven’t seen MINE yet! I’m not shocked one tiny bit by this, and as always, it is a reflection of my own solo listening, and what I listen to with my daughters. If you want to REALLY get in my brain, please feel free to take a listen to my most-listened-to songs playlist!
What clothing item do you still mourn 20+ years later? Who was your most listened to artist? Got a book rec for me??? Please do share!
That’s all for this week ~ thanks for reading!
I love to hear from readers, so please do reach out to me with questions or feedback at mindfullibrarian@substack.com . If we aren’t already connected on Goodreads, I would love to see you there as well!
See how I did that? TWO books as one item! My newsletter, my rules
I’m not trying to convince anyone to buy anything you don’t need! I, however, had no warm winter pants to get me through the next 4~5 months here in Wisconsin and was despairing of ever finding any.
Thanks for stopping by!
