1. Supporting WNC. “A hub for community-driven change in Western North Carolina. Centralize your giving and find volunteer opportunities to make a difference. Join others in supporting local causes, donating to nonprofits, or signing up to lend a helping hand.” In related news, How to help Appalachia recover from Patti Digh, and Hurricane Milton relief: How to help, donate & volunteer.

2. Seven Ways to Love Better on The New York Times. (gift link) “Reading some 200,000 love stories has taught me a few lessons about love and life. Here are the ones that help me most.”

3. See the Wildlife Photographer of the Year winners.

4. “Nothing Else Matters” – Oona & Gage Brown skate to Metallica and Marlisa. (video) “Oona and Gage Brown are Team USA Ice Dancers. We filmed their 2020-21 Free Dance in Bryant Park’s Winter Village ice rink at 6:45 in the morning over the Thanksgiving holiday.”

5. Kate McKinnon Moved to the Woods, Grows Her Own Food, Got Into Carpentry and Wrote You a Book.

6. Andrew Garfield Wants to Crack Open Your Heart on The New York Times Modern Love podcast. (gift link) “In this episode, Garfield reads the Modern Love essay ‘Learning to Measure Time in Love and Loss,’ by Chris Huntington. His reading was unlike any other in the history of this show. Mr. Garfield was so moved by Mr. Huntington’s essay that he spoke in a surprisingly raw way with the host Anna Martin about the need for art to crack us all open, including himself.”

7. Jami Attenberg Can’t Wait to Find a Book She’s Inscribed at a Yard Sale on The New York Times. (gift link) “‘I am kind of living for that moment,’ says the prolific writer. ‘Who will betray me first?’ Her new novel is ‘A Reason to See You Again.'”

8. Han Kang Is Awarded Nobel Prize in Literature on The New York Times. (gift link) “The South Korean author, best known for “The Vegetarian,” is the first writer from her country to receive the prestigious award.” In related news, The Guardian view on Han Kang: a bold outsider has been rewarded. “This year’s winner of the Nobel prize for literature is another triumph for South Korean culture.” And finally, Han Kang becomes the first South Korean writer to win the Nobel Prize in literature.

9. ‘Will & Harper’ navigate transition and friendship in a cross-country road trip.

10. Stephen King: ‘I loved Lord of the Flies the way kids love Harry Potter.’ “The horror author on Dr Seuss, the radicalism of Earl Thompson, and the perfect whodunnit.”

11. Lisa Agnetun’s Miniature Ceramic Spirits Sport a Variety of Looks.

12. Nature and Geometry Merge in Yulia Brodskaya’s Meticulously Quilled Paper Birds.

13. Why have the northern lights been so visible lately? An expert explains why “we’re in for a ride.”

14. On being an introvert. (Instagram reel)

15. Joy Comes Back, a poem from the very lovely Donna Ashworth read by The Wandering Paddy. (Instagram reel)

16. For When the Heart is Breaking from Abigail Rose Clarke.

17. The Post About The Election from Chuck Wendig on Terrible Minds.

18. Wisdom from Martín Prechtel: “When you can’t remember what to do, what to say, or what the real teachings are, when all else escapes you, just remember: Always feed what needs feeding. Always make beauty.”

19. It’s pantoum time, “What object is important to you?” on Poetry Unbound by Pádraig Ó Tuama.

20. Prompt 307. Slow Living & Rachel Schwartzmann on how light moves us on The Isolation Journals with Suleika Jaouad.

21. Coming out of the fog on How I Live Now from Instructions for Living.

22. Good stuff from Jamie Attenberg on Craft Talk: We Are All Still Here and Incidentals.

23. ‘I think, boy, I’m a part of all this’: how local heroes reforested Rio’s green heart. “A restoration project to revitalise the Atlantic forest is making the city a much more liveable place in the face of increasingly frequent heatwaves.”

24. Nicer Things from Out With Lanterns, a daily poetry practice from Julie Barton.

25. Wave me on my way. “A good-bye letter from my younger body to my older self” from Rita Ott Ramstad on Rootsie.

26. As the crow flies, “A summer spent with Rae” on The Earth House from Jo.

27. What I’ve learnt about toast & being happy from Satya Robyn on Going Gently.

28. Stare in the mirror by Patti Digh.

29. Facing the future from Seth Godin.

30. To Make A Snow Angel On a Stranger’s Grave, “And other things on my bucket list” from Andrea Gibson.

31. Cicada, a poem from Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer.

32. Relic Radio, “Classic entertainment from radio’s golden age. Relic Radio features eight podcasts offering old time radio from a variety of genres. Subscribe and listen on your favorite podcast app, download and play on your computer, or listen right here on the website.”

33. On the Quest for a Better Life, “Real talk about Overwork with author Brigid Schulte.”

34. Salmon swim freely in Klamath River for first time in more than 100 years. “News comes after Iron Gate dam was removed to let river near California-Oregon border return to natural flow.”

35. How to put your phone down and get back into habit of reading books. “After an English academic at Oxford complained about students’ attention spans, we get experts’ tips on enjoying the written word.”

36. How to Slow Down: 7 Ways I’m Slowing Down in a Busy Season of Life.

37. How to Change Your Mind-Set About Aging on The New York Times. (gift link) “People who think positively about getting older often live longer, healthier lives. Here is how to reconsider your perspective.”‘

38. Awe Can Do Wonders for Your Well-Being—If You Know Where to Look for It. “It’s the closest feeling we have to magic, and it can have profound effects on your mind and body.”

39. Junk Food, High Art on The New York Times. (gift link) “Noah Verrier’s oil painting of an Uncrustables sandwich sold for $4,999. It looks delicious.”

40. And finally, some random stuff I saved on my phone last week.

1. 32 Of Life’s Simple Pleasures that Don’t Cost Much on Be More With Less by Tammy Strobel.

2. Poetry and a new book from Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer: Hypertrophy, After All These Years, and Positive Side Effect of Exhaustion. Also, Raghu Markus – Mindrolling – Ep. 562 – Unfolding Our Grief with Poet Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer (“Written in the key of grief and the melody of praise, Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer sits down with Raghu to discuss her newest poetry book, The Unfolding”), and The Courage to Say Yes – A Conversation with Tara Brach and poet, Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer (“In our interview, we talk about the key themes in her poems: grief, love, opening to what’s difficult and what’s beautiful… saying yes to life”).

3. Hurricane Helene: Over 220 dead as some communities struggle to get basic supplies.

4. Plan a Creepy Road Trip to These Abandoned Towns Across the U.S. In related news, The Most Stunning Road Trips to Take This Fall.

5. 7 Minutes of The Cutest Baby Animals You’ve Ever Seen. (video)

6. Comedy wildlife photography awards 2024. In related news, Bird Photographer of the Year 2024 winners.

7. Well versed: the pharmacy that dispenses poems instead of medicine. “Fresh from opening a London branch of the Poetry Pharmacy, peddling literary first aid to a new generation from the most famous shopping street in the world, founder Deb Alma explains why poetry is in motion.”

8. The garden-artwork that positively reframes ‘weeds’. “A misconception-busting garden has taken root in Oxford, on a spot – poignantly – where weed killers used to be developed and tested.”

9. The Californians Rescuing Surplus Produce to Fight Hunger. “By swiftly redistributing perishable fruits and vegetables, Food Forward addresses two issues at once: food insecurity and food waste.”

10. Wisdom from Patti Digh. Assume positive intent and Scrabble.

11. When Christians Finally Get Tired of Being Terrible on The Beautiful Mess by John Pavlovitz.

12. Wisdom from Frederick Joseph: Confronting the Weight of Our Deaths (“Marcellus Williams, Lebanon, Sudan, Gaza, me, and you”) and We Still Have Each Other (“A reflection on generosity, gratitude, and our futures”).

13. How We Chose the 2024 TIME100 Next. “Now in its fifth year, the TIME100 Next list was created to recognize that many of today’s most influential leaders are, like the 27-year-old Brown, individuals who are not waiting long in life to make an impact. Nor are they eager to respect the status quo by following the traditional power structures and pathways that have determined what influence looked like in the past. TIME100 Next has no age requirements; its aim is to recognize that influence does not have them either, nor does leadership look like it once did. Indeed, the majority of the individuals on this year’s list are leaders of color; more than half are women.”

14. Fat Bear Week returns: Meet this year’s beauty contestants after attack delayed reveal.

15. Diplomacy, Not War. A recent edition of My Civic Workout that is especially urgent.

16. John Amos, ‘Good Times’ Dad, Dies at 84. “He played Gordy the weatherman on ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show’ and earned an Emmy nom for his turn as the older Kunta Kinte on ‘Roots.'” And let’s not forget him playing one of the dads in ‘Coming to America.’

17. ‘I’m motivated by the puzzle’: how Courtney Dauwalter became ultrarunning’s GOAT. “Dauwalter does not have a coach, a strict training plan or a Strava account, but the 38-year-old is widely considered ultrarunning’s greatest of all time.”

18. Prince ‘Purple Rain’ House Rental Reservations on Airbnb Start This Week.

19. Why Is Moo Deng So Popular? This ‘Pork Meatball’ Has a 24/7 Livestream.

20. The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos: Survival of the Fittest… or the Kindest? (podcast)

21. Why the World’s First Pet Cemetery Was Revolutionary. “A new book charts the history of pet cemeteries and honors the universal experience of grieving an animal companion.”

22. Fall Poems. “Poems to read as the leaves change and the weather gets colder,” from the Poetry Foundation.

23. The Cure to Releases First New Song in 16 Years.

24. How To Feel Better About Everything: You Are Not Alone from Satya Robyn on Going Gently.

25. 12 Tiny Steps To Help You Simplify Your Life Today by Courtney Carver on Be More With Less.

26. The Devil Finds Work, “And God is in cahoots” from Robert Jones, Jr.

27. The Chicken Is Maligned on Short Reads.

28. Hurricanes and Hard Truths. “Much like the wildfire smoke that engulfed the east coast last year, Helene is one more in a series of reminders that while there are certainly patterns at work as the atmosphere warms, there is no easy way to know where the next climate disaster will strike, who exactly will be in its way, or how one should prepare. It’s a deeply disorienting reality in which we find ourselves, to say the least.” In related news, Climate change is destroying American homes. Who should have to move?

29. Wisdom from Jami Attenberg’s Craft Talk: Hummingbirds, and Stop Doing The Math, and What We Really Want is That Room.

30. Louise Erdrich Answers the Orion Questionnaire, “In which we get to know our favorite writers better by exploring the sacred and mundane.”

31. Tell Me Something Good, a poem from Margaret “Peggy” Atwood. In related news, Margaret Atwood was advised to just find a good man. Her response: ‘You’re an idiot.’

32. Part 2: Going back from HannahRoWrites.

33. Unlocking the Power of Menopause: A Conversation with The Red School.
“A different and much needed perspective on the benefits of perimenopause and menopause.”

34. “Have a Good One!” said everyone in Oregon… “why clichés make me crazy.”

35. Poetry from Out With Lanterns, a daily poetry practice by Julie Barton: Silent Flight, and How to Fall Back In Love With Writing, and On Still Writing, and Make It Clear What You Love.

36. Pep Talk: On Second Chances from For Dear Life with Maggie Smith.

37. Be the lighthouse from Alexandra Franzen.

38. What if you had it all? from Danny Gregory.

39. I tried to get rid of my sadness from Britchida.

40. Choosing Death, “a break from perfection to come alive.”

41. The Deep and Beautiful Offerings of Being Alone, “And so many other reasons to read Jami Attenberg’s A Reason to See You Again.”

42. The Dutch ‘tile whipping’ competition to green gardens and streets. “The national tegelwippen contest seeks to restore greenery and help the Netherlands meet its climate targets.”

43. Cancel All Your Plans: A New Season Of ‘The Great British Baking Show’ Drops This Weekend.

44. Embracing Self-Compassion: How to Give Yourself More Grace.

45. List: Ways to donate and help flood victims in Western North Carolina after Hurricane Helene.

46. Andrea Love’s felted stop motion videos on This is Colossal. 

47. Will the ‘SmartLess’ Podcast Be the Biggest Role of Their Careers? on The New York Times. (gift link) “Started during the pandemic, this venture is the first step in a media empire being built by the actors Sean Hayes, Will Arnett and Jason Bateman.”

48. This Is The Last Dog We’ll Ever Own. Here’s What He’s Taught Me About Love. “Two things can be possible at once. I can be eager for the next phase of my life to begin and wholly unprepared to let this one go.”

49. Stressed out? These 8 skills can help boost mood and reduce anxiety.

48. Indie-Rock Supernova. “Whip-Smart was supposed to be the album that made Liz Phair a superstar. Instead, we got something better.”

49. From The Office to Breaking Bad: what is the neuroscience of chronic TV rewatching? “Encountering nostalgia is like autoloading and hitting play on past positive experiences, elevating desire and regulating mood.”

50. 10 Unconventional Ways To Practice Real Self-Care by Courtney Carver on Be More With Less.

51. Demi Moore on “The Substance” and resisting a toxic beauty culture on CBS Sunday Morning.

52. Emma Thompson reading “Kindness” by Naomi Shihab Nye.

53. A Year of Horror: Palestine’s Cry for Humanity from Frederick Joseph, “Reflecting on Netanyahu’s expanding colonial terrorism since October 7th.” In related news, A year from Oct 7, tens of thousands killed and fears of a ‘forever war,’ “Hopes for peace have been shredded by a spiraling conflict that has brought the Middle East to the edge of all-out war.”

54. And this collection of random things I saved, (inspired by Kari’s What I Kept posts on A Grace Full Life).