jillsalahub

1. Truth: Snow day! It started snowing yesterday morning and never stopped. This morning we woke up to 14.5 inches and it’s still going. All the schools are closed, even CSU — which NEVER happens. I even had to cancel my 7 am yoga class this morning. Eric walked the dogs (in snow so deep, it was more like swimming than walking) and he said there are cars stuck and/or wrecked all over. They plow the main roads here, but rarely ever the neighborhoods, especially not ours. I’m all caught up on laundry, so I’ll most likely be cooking today — sweet potatoes for quesadillas for dinner, butternut squash, and some muffins. Then I might write a few letters, read, take a nap. I am most certainly doing all that in my pjs. The glory of a snow day is you can do whatever you want, but there’s also not much you can do because you can’t really leave the house (my favorite!).

2. Truth: Having to cancel my yoga class this morning made me realize how much I love teaching. I thought I’d be as giddy to have a snow day for yoga as getting to skip my other work, but I was actually sad that I wasn’t going to get to teach. Luckily, I’m subbing my other yoga class Wednesday and Friday morning, and the roads should be clear by then, so I get another chance.

3. Truth: I am so so so lucky. I am happy, and when I’m not, I’m still okay. I am safe. I am healthy, and when I’m not I have health insurance and good doctors. I am financially stable. I get paid snow days and sick days, and summers off. I just bought a new car. I have a good husband. My dogs are healthy and happy, they love me and are stupid cute. I have people who love me, people who like me, and those who don’t aren’t spending any energy trying to hurt me. I have access to clean water and live in a house with heat and a beautiful bathroom. I have a refrigerator full of food, and when I’m hungry, actually have the luxury of thinking to myself, “what do I want to eat?” I could keep going, make a list of 2000 things, but you get the idea.

One wish (or more): May all beings be happy. May all beings be healthy. May all beings be safe. May all beings live with ease. And when this isn’t possible, may all beings find a way to keep going, not give up. May suffering be eased.

Image by Joanna Kosinska, who has a beautiful set on Unsplash

1. No, you are not an hysterical female, and this is not just anxiety. One of the most important things you could ever read, from Patti Digh. Spoiler alert: Patti knew she wasn’t feeling right, but kept coming up against doctors wanting to dismiss her symptoms as anxiety, until she had a heart attack, followed by surgery. After she came home from the hospital, she wrote this beautiful piece, When you break open, it happens by surprise.

2. Liz Kalloch’s Tools & Talismans project. (P.S. I was lucky enough to be a part of this. Her work is beautiful, makes my work look beautiful in the translation).

3. Do We Matter? If we want to…

4. This Is How Adele’s “Hello” Would Sound In Reggae Style. I can’t get enough of covers of this song.

5. 11 Reasons Your ‘Concern’ for Fat People’s Health Isn’t Helping Anyone. Word.

6. Shaq Joins Kind Cop After Viral Basketball Video, to Surprise Kids in Rematch. More of this, please.

7. Talented 16-Year-Old Artist Turns Her Wildest Dreams Into Paintings. This kind of thing makes me believe in reincarnation, because where else does a 16 year old get this kind of talent?! How else could you explain it?!

8. Dog Is Let Out To Go To The Bathroom, Casually Runs Half-Marathon Instead. She came in 7th!

9. Is mindfulness making us ill? “It’s the relaxation technique of choice, popular with employers and even the NHS. But some have found it can have unexpected effects.” This is just one reason why it’s important to study in an established lineage, with the support of a teacher and community.

10. #1000BlackGirlBooks: 11-Year-Old Philanthropist Launches International Book Drive.

11. The happiest four words. The saddest four words. From The Bloggess. The comments are the best. Also, this: For David. For you.

12. What Is Suffering? 10 Buddhist Teachers Weigh In from Lion’s Roar.

13. A constant buzzing of self-blame from Kirsten Akens.

14. When Can Women Stop Trying to Look Perfect? I think I may have already shared this when it was first published, but it’s worth a repeat.

15. Dogs Vs. Stairs, a hilarious video compilation.

16. 15 Life Hack things do with binder a clip.

17. The problem isn’t that life is unfair – it’s your broken idea of fairness. Oh, snap.

18. People wrote down their biggest regrets on a chalkboard for all of New York City to see. What’s yours?

19. Incredible snow works made by ‘snow artist’ – using only snowshoes. Impermanent art. Amazing.

20. Chicken with Forty Cloves of Garlic, a recipe from Barefoot Contessa. Sounds yummy.

21. Best couple ever Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard made a music video for their Africa vacation. The only part of this I didn’t like is when they chased the giraffes.

22. Five years ago yesterday I started writing from Renegade Mothering. “So, hey. I think you should say the thing you want to say even if you’re sure nobody is listening and I think you should say it in the way you want to say it because it doesn’t matter that they all like us. It matters only that a few like us in their bones.”

23. Hedgehographer, nothing but hedgehogs, my new favorite Instagram account.

24. ‘This Song Is Uncomfortable’: Macklemore On The Contradictions Of ‘White Privilege.’ Feels like less of a song and more of an opera to me.

25. Watch 9 kids demonstrate why grown-ups need to stop asking, ‘Is race still a factor?’ from Upworthy.

26. Heartmelting Pics Of Aging Dogs Show Them Grow From Puppyhood To Old Age. Would that they all got old and died an easy death.

27. These 39 Sites Have Amazing Stock Photos You Can Use For Free. What a GREAT list of resources!

28. Carol Burnett’s Powerful Speech at the SAG Awards Addresses Gender Discrimination. Oh how I adore her. Netflix needs to add her show — it would be the best binge watch ever.