Open Space Practice, (AKA: A Thousand Shades of Gray)

1. Sunrise. Next week Eric will go back to work and we’ll get back on our shared walking schedule so I’ll get to be out taking pictures of our morning walk again and I’m so excited about it, also apologizing to Ringo in advance if it takes a bit for me to get my stamina back after such a long break.

2. Flowers. After a few doctor’s appointments this week, I stopped at Trader Joe’s on my way home. They always have such an interesting variety of flowers. These are Love in the Mist (Nigella Damascena, also apparently sometimes called Devil in the Bush), which even though I bought them separate from the Ranunculus it turns out they are both from the Ranunculaceae family of flowers, cousins.

3. Good news from my doctor and surgeon. The CT scan I got last week showed my abscess has cleared up. Next step is a colonoscopy in four weeks to get a closer look and determine if I need surgery. My primary doctor is being super helpful getting my insurance claim sorted out, as they somehow missed the whole part about the abscess and decided my hospital stay “wasn’t medically necessary.”

4. New pajamas. I love them, they are so nice and comfy, and when Eric saw them, he said, “you look like you’re in prison.” I mean, he’s not wrong… 🙂 My brother said, in response to the text I sent with the picture at 3 pm, “you are still in your pajamas?!” and I had to explain that I live in my pjs, that after I take a shower I put a clean pair on. The older I get, the more I prioritize comfort.

5. My tiny family, tiny home, tiny life. As happy as I’ll be to get back to the morning walk, I’ve love having Eric home more often. Right now, he and Ringo are on the couch napping and it makes me so happy.

Bonus joy: making art with Mikalina, texting with Chloe’, laughing with Eric (for example, we were watching an episode of Antiques Roadshow last night and the appraiser had a uniquely shaped head and haircut so Eric started to do a Frankenstein voice version of the appraisal that had us both laughing so hard), yoga with Sarada and Abrona and Jamie (especially Sarada’s New Year’s day mandala flow), texting my mom and brother, cleaning up my office a bit, stretching, oranges, oatmeal with apple compote, sweet potatoes, reading in the morning after I write, writing with a cup of hot tea, meditation, the hydromassage chair, the pool, the sauna, clean sheets, all the laundry done and put away, being able to do so many necessary things through email or text or using an app, Insight Timer, Prisma, Instagram, Google and the magic of the internet, watching good TV (and sometimes trash TV), listening to podcasts, a warm shower, breakfast burritos, raspberries, birds in the feeder, other people’s dogs and cats and kids, being able to help, dog rescue and the people who do that good work, naps, reading in bed at night while Eric and Ringo sleep.

1. 12 Reasons to Celebrate Introverts on World Introvert Day (Jan. 2). In related news, How to Find Peace in the Chaos When You’re a Highly Sensitive Introvert.

2. 22 Ways To Simplify Your Life from Courtney Carver on Be More With Less.

3. The world as it is from Seth Godin.

4. The Five Things Essay. “An all-purpose writing prompt to help you find your voice, lose your voice, beat writer’s block, or figure out what the hell you want to write about in the first place.”

5. Good stuff from Chuck Wendig on Terrible Minds: The Death And Rebirth Of A Year: What Happened In 2022, What May Happen In 2023 and Writer’s Resolution 2023: Mounting An Aggressive Defense.

6. Unruly Sainthood, “Dorothy Day, Catholic anarchy, and neurodivergence.”

7. Saying Goodbye, a poem from Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer.

8. Embodying “Less Is More” Is The Most Potent Way To Boost Well-Being In 2023.

9. 10 Secret Therapy Lessons We Learned for Free in 2022.

10. 99 Inexpensive Self-Care Ideas For Your New Year.

11. The Alt-Right Manipulated My Comic. Then A.I. Claimed It. on The New York Times.

12. Greta Thunberg ends year with one of the greatest tweets in history.

13. She was a popular yoga guru. Then she embraced QAnon conspiracy theories.

14. Pelé, Brazil’s mighty king of ‘beautiful game,’ has died. I adored Pelé. Watching him play football was like watching someone dance, joyful and graceful, and as this article describes it: fluid and fast.

15. On setting low goals and reading my way through the year: how I read 56 books in 2022.

16. Dave Attell Bids a Heartfelt (and Hilarious) Farewell to Carolines on The New York Times. “Each year, the comic headlined the club during the holidays. With the space closing, his final show there was a mix of deadpan and melancholy notes.”

17. Leave Room For Your Future Self, a comic.

18. In search of an attainable New Year’s resolution. “How to actually improve your life, one small change at a time.”

19. 71 of Our Favorite Facts of 2022 on The New York Times. “Each day, Times Insider editors scour the newspaper for the most interesting facts to appear in articles. Here are facts that surprised, enlightened or entertained us this year.”

20. Stop tying yourself in knots: what stress does to your body – and how to beat it. “From migraines to IBS, back pain and hair loss, millions of us suffer health problems triggered by stress and anxiety. Here’s how to deal with them.”

21. Holiday Illustrations For The Culture from PBS. “Representation in media is not only important, it is vital. As a team, we have always understood the importance of seeing oneself represented both on and off screen. Throughout the course of 2022 we commissioned holiday art from artists across the country of varying cultural backgrounds. The task? Create a captivating illustration that celebrates a holiday from the artist’s unique perspective. Some artists drew inspiration from their family traditions while others depicted the historical reason for celebrating. We also asked each artist to provide a writing sample that explained the illustration and spoke to their connection to the holiday itself. From Lunar New Year to Kwanzaa, we collaborated with these BIPOC artists to help educate and inspire.”

22. Winter Fruit, a gorgeous poem and post from my friend Wendy.

23. 30 Day Meditation Challenge with Joel, from the beautiful Instagram page @asoulcalledjoel. “Join me each morning at 7:30 am Central Standard Time [beginning January 9th] for a 30-minute live stream with moments of gratitude, live music, and meditation. Let’s start 2023 out with a practice that supports, lowered stress and anxiety, greater emotional regulation, reduced fight or flight response, and greater well-being.”

24. It’s a Sin Official Trailer (video). “The latest masterpiece from the creator of Queer As Folk (UK) is as devastating as it is endearing. A heartfelt chronicle of young friends navigating the joys, heartbreak, and outlandish parties that await them amidst an epidemic in 1980s London.” Queer as Folk is one of my all time favorite TV shows (both the UK and USA versions), the kind of show where you fall in love with the characters, laugh and get your heart broken. I just finished It’s a Sin and it is just as good. LA!

25. A Lil List of Lists. What’s better than a book list? A collection of ALL THE book lists! In related news, The Best Reviewed Fiction of 2022.

26. There Are No Bad Days.

27. Pay Attention to the Beauty that Surrounds You.

28. An Animated Short Film by Martin Smatana Explores Loss Through Lighthearted Symbolism.

29. Self Portraits Embroidered With Images of Blood Vessels, Bones, and Muscle Tissue by Juana Gómez.

30. This almost makes me want to get a bird. (Instagram Reel). “This bird loves kisses. ‘I named him Hamlet because he acts like a little dramatic blue prince.'”