2024: End of Year Intentions
Making the most of the last month of the year!
The past few weeks have been a bit of an unintentional downshift: through the election, the time change, and a very quick trip to Southern California, upon which on return, I felt thrust unwillingly into the cold season with a perpetual case of the Mondays. (It could also have been the swing from 77 degrees to 37 in the period of two weeks.)
The antidote for me, during these times, is to get plenty of sunshine, read more books, make the house cozy, and stay away (as much as possible) from screens.
As someone who generally loves the endless bounty of the internet, I have a hard time intentionally disconnecting, and sometimes have to force it upon myself. A good way to do this is to get back in the kitchen.
I cooked
’s excellent combination of chicken and sweet potatoes, tossed in chimichurri, which I made from overflowing parsley bush.I made chicken soup. Kale salad. Ate fondue with potatoes and pickles.
I baked for the first time in months and months: some deep gingerbread hermits which I stirred in some dates.
I boiled down cider into syrup.
I went to art salon and made a gelly print, and I met with friends at F1 to drive in the sims. (Surprisingly fun.)
And then there was writing.
The end of the year I always take time to sit and take stock in the form of an annual review. It usually gets done over a few weeks starting around Thanksgiving: looking at my calendar, my photos, my journals, reviewing categories of things I’m interested in, and asking myself good questions. Here are a few of them. I like to collect these when I see them, and rotate them in:
Good Questions for the End of the Year:
What have I been doing this year that I could cut out totally?
What am I dreading?
What am I feeling “meh” about?
What did you buy this year and not use?
What am I doing that no longer makes me happy to do it?
Groups you’d like to roll off (including group chats)
What are the things that you've wanted to do and said you are going to do, but not done? (What's on your endless list and shouldn't be there anymore?)
What does good and proper rest design look like?
When did you feel most alive?
Which choices did you make that gave you a full body YES?
Where can I be working more in my zone?
Where are places that I’m meeting my own needs poorly? (Or settling on “eh, it seems good enough?”)
What are the main questions and themes I want to explore for the rest of my life? In the next ten years? Five years? Year?
Who do you want to be in five years, and what does that person do every day? (What are they not doing?) What are some of the mindsets you need to get out of? (Work on replacing those.) What mindsets do they have?
What do you want your community to look like?
What are ways to ease into new artistic practices?
Immediate life improvements (under $100)
More good questions (founder focused, via Greg Isenberg)
End of Year Intentions:
Each month I sit down and write out a list of intentions for the month ahead. It’s not exactly a to-do list, more like an “options” list. Place-holders also help me make space for more exciting adventures! Many of my intentions remain the same month to month, but I try to pick out a few new things regularly!
How (or what) do I want to feel this month?
Gratitude
Connection
Managed-Energy
Seed Planting
Reflective
Creative
Ritual
Magic
Out and About
Hot Chocolate at Burdick’s • The Holiday Market at Snowport • a trip to the HMart in Burlington (roasted sweet potato) and pickup takeout from Viet Citron • afternoon Oysters at Bluebird • visit Isabella Stewart Gardner museum (with my mom who just finished Lioness of Boston) • winter haul at Newtonville Books • Monthly Boston dinner with my friend Kathy • Monthly family dinner out with my mom and brother • passes from the Library (not just Museums!) to *something* • A movie in the theater • An art class (currently registered for Year End Planner Prep at Paper Mouse • A cooking class
Good Eats
My Dandelion Chocolate Advent Calendar (yes, I’m Jewish..) and a cheese one from Montreal • Noma Tastebuds Club • Draft your 2025 kitchen resolutions • NOVELTY! • some more aggressively green things
A note of appreciation: Low Ratings for Restaurants. There’s this guy who is giving refreshingly LOW rated reviews for everything in Boston. It’s not that he doesn’t enjoy the food, it’s just that he’s a HARD grader. I actually love this because I’m more likely to enjoy myself if I have lower expectations for something, and then it goes ahead and exceeds them.
Some Meal Ideas:
Inspiration: Nigel Slater Christmas Chronicles (a delightful winter idea book), The Nordic Cookbook
Novelty: Get fruit shipped in from a warm place. Citrus?
Seafood: Oysters. Red Caviar on Toast (HMart or Berezka). Chowder. Shrimp cocktail.
Soups and Stews: Kreplach Soup. Ottolenghi Legume Noodle Soup. Beef and Barley Soup. Marcus Samuelsson Black Eyed Peas (so good.) Cauliflower Leek Soup with Toasted Cheese. Scandinavian split pea soup with ham.
Recipes: Dishoom’s Chili Cheese Toast. Dishoom Black Dal. Cider braised chicken and leeks.
Hearty Things: Pork chop, mashed potatoes. Baked potatoes. Leeks, cannelini and sausage. Roast lamb, coriander, and rosemary. Stuffed cabbage rolls. Christmas limas with gorgonzola cream sauce.
Breakfasts: Creamy oatmeal and porridges with chopped dried fruit. Eggs and kielbasa. St. Viateur Bagels.
Noodle/Rice/Potato things: Kasha Varnishkes. Iç pilaf. Lemon tahini pasta. Wonton Noodles.
Vegetables I want to eat: Braised sweet and sour cabbage. Kale salad with dates. Fennel salads. Mushrooms. All the squash. Avocado.
Fruits: Turkish Pumpkin Desserts. Baked Pears. Get started on the citrus.
Sauces: Chimichurri and other bright green sauces.
Treats: Poppyseed Strudel. Tea buns. Jewish biscuits. Panna Cotta.
Out: Sophia’s Greek Pantry. HMart and Viet Citron. Grandma’s Kitchen.
What are you looking forward to eating this month? I’d love to add to the list!
Self Care
Self-Care Short List • Massage (*check’s notes: my last massage was in August) • Weekly Manicure • Acupuncture • Sauna and Cold Plunge at Kelo • Eye Masks in the fridge in the morning • Float Spa (want to test Float and The Indoor Oasis) • Scalp treatment (either at SKA or Fashion Point)
Move
Walking • Daily Mile • Signed up for my New Year’s 5k • Lift – Weekly Lifting 2x at home with lifting schedule printed out, 1/week at gym - continue working on Hip Thrusts • something new?
Update Lists
Inputs List (Podcasts, Reading, Watching) • Recipes to Cook / Let’s Eat Spreadsheet • Cooking Projects 2025 • Bean of the Week • Hobonichi Monthly Review December 2024 (been doing great at this!) • Placeholders for “Once in a Lifetime monthly activities”
Create
Get started on New Year Card • Daily Hobonichi Cousin (Food, Gratitude, Mood) • 2024 Calendar • Sketch in Sketchbook (backfill some travel sketches from photos I took in hobonichi) • Watercolor • a class at New Art Center or Shepherd Maudsleigh • grabbed my Acrylic paints, embossing materials, and pastels from New Hampshire
Shortlist of new art projects: botanical drawing (trees, flowers, nature journaling) • fiber art • stamp making out of erasers • grab embossing materials from the house Pinterest Art Board and Sketchbook Ideas (forgot how useful Pinterest is for this purpose!)
Home
Passport Renewal • Real ID • Plant more spring bulbs • List 5 things to giveaway on Buy Nothing • replace the air filter • wash dog beds • tidy up downstairs entrance • go through clothing drawers for a clear out • Short list for my “Life Binder”
Inputs
Good Thinking Swipe File (a.k.a. Blog Roll)
Update: Podcast Listening List
Update: Movie List for 2025
Update: 2025 Reading List
Watch:
Movies: Nightly (Mostly Terrible) Holiday Movies (so far the Lindsay Lohan “Our Little Secret” I’d actually… recommend!) Hot Frosty (meh), The Merry Gentleman (don’t) • Christmas Eve in Millers Point • Hundreds of Beavers • Anora • Heretic • Maria • Red One • The Wild Robot • My Old Ass (I enjoyed Conclave and The Substance, and there’s not much greatness in theaters right now…)
TV: Slow Horses • Star Wars: Skeleton Crew (the new Star Wars show) • The Boys • True Detective: Night Country • Rivals • The Penguin
Connect more Deeply with my Humans:
Time spent in NH with family • friend calls on my walks • initiate texts and love to friends (this is hard for me!) • Dog Walks with Friends • Porch Sitting (even in winter!) • Plan 2025 spring travel • Plan winter “learn with friends”
Shortlist: Other Reviews for Reference
Patricia Mou’s Annual Review Template
Nigel Slater’s Kitchen Diaries
Goodreads Reading Challenge
My food blog: 2022 Eating, a Non-Exhaustive List
First Page SEO on this guy’s 2023 review post is fascinating
I miss the good ole’ days of blogging year in reviews
Spotify Wrapped
That’s it for now! Back with the Weekly Good Thing this weekend.
xo,
Sam
I've been doing my own year end review and planning for the new year. Thanks for some new questions to ask myself! 2025 is going to be a relatively at-home year for us, especially when it comes to food. I'm looking forward to it.