Weekly Good Things - Week 49

Good Things, and the Weekly Meal Plan.

Hello! Hello!

Welcome to another weekly episode of Good Things where I give you a peek into my everyday life during the week, and roundup my good links, ideas, books, and more.

I thought I’d lead with a photo from the archives – I took this photo in 2009 on my way to Tahoe in the summer time, but thought it might be a nice (apologies if too obvious) light at the end of the tunnel metaphor for the challenging times many of us are having these days. If this week was hard for any reason, and you found yourself going through a dark tunnel, my deep belief is that there’s a vista to look forward to on the other side.

8.5 Miles out of 10 - running The Firehouse

That was weird.

A few weeks ago, I woke up in the middle of the night and thought to myself - I have to run the Boston Marathon. This is particularly weird because I don’t usually get transmissions from the universe like this.

It was a very strong feeling that popped up out of nowhere with a sense of specificity.

Not only is this odd, but I was working at Runkeeper during the marathon bombings and several coworkers and many many friends were running that day. It was truly harrowing not knowing where people were and what was going on, and the aftermath in Watertown where we could hear the gunfire from our house still triggers a vigilance response that pops up in unfortunate times.

I’ve explicitly said for years that I’ll never run Boston. (I’ve also spent the past many years saying that I’m definitely not a marathoner, happy with my consistent low mileage daily mile streak! I’m about to finish my sixth year!)

On Saturday, I ran the Firehouse, a 10 mile run, and the first long run of the marathon training cycle at Heartbreak Hill just to test the waters – or more realistically to convince myself better of pursuing this in any way. And then it didn’t suck?

So, I’m not sure what to make of all this – it’s a little late for many of the teams who have closed charity bib registration, including World Central Kitchen, which would have been a meaningful one for me! and the Red Sox Foundation – so I guess we’ll see what unfolds?

👋 If you’ve experienced a clear and resolute whispering that you’ve been happy that you acted on, I’d love to hear about it in the comments!

This Week in Good Things:

• 🎤 Good Listening: last year I decided that I’d like to work on a Youtube Channel, but didn’t get it up and running. I’ve been deeply inspired by watching my friend Aprilynne get to viral success with Youtube in a niche she was no longer interested in, burn it all down, and start from complete scratch to build her following from zero to now over 25k in under a year. (She’s a queen of methodical building.) This inspired me to get going and put up a video from 2016 on the topic of preventing burnout that I was due for a re-watch of my own wisdom! (Almost everything still tracks!)

• ✍️ The Mediocre Achievement Thread: on Friday I was feeling at a low point, and was craving some cheering up. I’ve been thinking lately of more ways to connect with people over the internet about day-to-day life, and posted a question to one of my more active Facebook groups I’m a part of: ⭐️ MEDIOCRE ACCOMPLISHMENTS THREAD? Hello! can we celebrate each other with high fives today? I started with a few personal ones in the comments, including: 1. I sat for 40 minutes under blankets before I got up while my heat came on doing nothing. I can’t underscore how much seeing the thread grow over a few days as done for me.

  Instead of celebrating our friends when they hit big achievements, how can we celebrate people for just getting through the hard days of life?

• ☕️ Connections with people that feed your soul. This week I prioritized connecting with people who truly fill my cup. // One of my women’s groups had an end of season connection where we shared what we’ve learned from others, and it was a really nice way to cap a time period together. // I kicked off taking a mini-course on a topic I’m interested in (newsletters!) from an internet friend I admire

  Louie Bacaj
  . // I met with a friend on Zoom for a wild idea session! // I went to my monthly dinner with my friend Kathy (at Bar Vlaha, for you Boston area locals). // Another internet friend in Maine mentioned he had a few extra copies of
  Paul Millerd
  ’s new book he had purchased and asked if anyone wanted one. I raised my hand, sent my address, and he replied back doing one better - he was coincidently having dinner *around the corner from my house* with friends and would hand deliver me my book! We had a great catch up over a cup of coffee at the shop around the block! // I FaceTimed multiple times with a brand new human! // I stopped by a friends house for Latkes and Donuts! 🥔

  👋 Recommended Action: I’ve been trying to take note of the interactions I have with people where I leave our time together with increased energy – and do more of that!

The feast at Bar Vlaha. What We Ate:

Very good bread HORIATIKO PSOMI house baked village style sourdough bread, served with sheep milk butter and sea salt; with TARAMOSALATA (carp roe, lemon, olive oil) and MELITZANOSALATA charred eggplant, peppers, and herbs

MANITARIA crispy fried oyster mushrooms, maidanosalata (great!)

KARAVIDES with crayfish, ouzo, tomato, fennel, orzo

PAIDAKIA lamb chops, olive oil, lemon, oregano and HORTA (greens)

Tasting Notes: loved the vibe, loved the meal, drinks were delicious - including my mountain tea, desserts were a pass for me!

Good Things to Think About

✨ Where have you given yourself the opportunity to PLAY this week? This is here from last week, because I’ve been noodling over it all week! How can we add more play to our lives? Thank you to my mom this week, who sent me a book related puzzle for Hanukkah. I’m looking ahead to filling my calendar in the new year with creative activities and self care, including an arts workshop at The Paper Mouse, a printmaking workshop at Shepherd + Maudsleigh, a reformer class at [solidcore], and a visit to a new-ish Sauna. Have any ideas for me? I’d love suggestions!

⏳ Creating structure for high energy vs. low energy weeks. I do really well when I have a lot of specific structure - when I don’t, I drop off. Overall, I’m spending a lot of time at this time of year exploring my energy levels: trying to figure out how to create repeatable habits that I don’t resent when I’m feeling low energy. This also includes: backup lists (for when I don’t feel like doing what is planned) and updating my support system (who do I call when I need help?), and bare minimums What tasks get dropped when I’m low on spoons?

Acquisitions of Note:

• 🪴 Flower Share: for the past few years, I’ve gotten myself a season of flower shares from Fivefork Farms: spring flowers, peony, and dahlia shares, which I pick up each week around the corner at Rancatore’s. General registration opens on Monday December 11th at 9am for new members in the Boston area. (It’s like getting T-Swift tickets level of purchasing…) There’s nothing like a fresh weekly bouquet for yourself to lift your spirits.

• 💵 Preparation in advance: I-Bond rates aren’t nearly as good as last year, but if you are looking to park some savings, consider your yearly allocations from Treasury Direct. (Which despite its appearance IS a real government website.)

• ✨ For those of you who like a little magic (scroll past if you don’t!): a 2024 year in advance reading with Christina Luna, and the Lunation Astrological Planner 2024 which I got a physical copy of because I love writing in prompts!

Other Good Things

• 📺 Watch: I was tickled by the last episode of Great British Bakeoff, and pleased with the winner! I just love watching the final episodes where everyone’s families gather, and they have these lovely montages with their friends and families. // I’ve started season two of High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America with Stephen Satterfield.

• 🗞 Ghosts on the Glacier an interactive NYTimes article (🎁 unlocked NYTimes) about a mountaineering double murder cold case and a camera full of film popping out of the glacier 50 years later.

• 🧠 The power of giving a name to a shared feeling: There’s a Name for the Blah You’re Feeling: It’s Called Languishing by

  Adam Grant
  (🎁 unlocked NYTimes)

• 🗞 Bookmark the Wikipedia main page as a source of interesting information for the days you reach the end of the internet.

• 📖 Re-Read for a hard week: Pema Chödrön’s When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times

• 🥔 Eat: Team Latke with SOUR CREAM. // I mixed Greens Powder and Electrolyte powder in one go, and it was fine! // I drank some hot flavorless electrolyte salts with lemon which tasted decent until it became cold and I found myself drinking sea water. // If you need to get yourself fancy chocolate: the Burdick’s Winter Collection.

• 🇺🇸 Living vicariously through my sibling who went to the Red Hen in DC last night (bucket list meal) and the White House Christmas Tour.

• ⭐️ Shout out to my incredible friends: one who became a Texas Master Naturalist! Another who was invited to join the Explorers Club! A third who was home with her infant alone for two days for the first time! A fourth who went for her first postpartum run!

• Memes of the week: Dolly Parton as Christmas Tree Baubles, a Thread, this video of Krampus at the holiday market stresses me out, the video genre of commenters accusing the original creator of plagiarizing themselves, tag someone who needs to hear this (you are amazing, edition), I can’t look away from George Santos Cameos. Danish Butter Cookie Nails.

Fondue Beans!

The Weekly Meal Plan:

This week as I’ve been writing my What to Eat in 2024 (pre-order is up here!) I’ve been thinking about the rhythm of the week, and how to better plan your meals around your energy levels.

One of the reasons I struggle with food sometimes is that my ambition and creativity gets mis-matched with my energy level and ability to actually cook something on any given day. So I’ve been trying to sync my cooking better with how I know I’ll feel on any given day based on what’s on my plate calendar-wise.

On that note, on my quest for higher and more even daily energy, I’ve been on a Quest for Good Decaf: this week I picked up a fancy box of Cometeer Decaf George Howell for the freezer (they actually have a Cometeer freezer at the shop on Walnut!), and on very good recommendation, a bag of Peet’s Decaf Major Dickason’s Blend which so far is winning.

Bean of the week: Rancho Gordo Ceci Neri (black garbanzos).

• Sunday: Pork tenderloin with latkes and green salad (😬 do not smite!)

• Monday:

  Ali Slagle
  ’s forager pasta with lots of mushrooms, chickpeas, lemon, butter and herbs. (I Dream of Dinner p. 122 - affiliate link)

• Tuesday: Pulled chicken Turkish pilaf with tomato and cucumber salad

• Wednesday:

  Alison Roman
  ’s The Stew - spiced chickpeas with coconut and greens

• Thursday: Takeout or Leftovers

• Friday: Butter Chickpeas and tofu with Rancho Gordo Black Garbanzos

Lunches: Leftovers (fondue, a plethora of cheese) TJ’s lamb vindaloo with yogurt, palak paneer with some sardines (or cottage cheese). TJ’ squiggly noodles with peanut butter and edamame.

Snacks: Soft boiled eggs, cottage cheese, cheese sticks, chicken sausage, tofu.

Treat options: TJ’s Pretzel Breadpudding. Chocolate mousse. TJ’s Iced Gingerbread in the freezer. Peppermint Hold the Cones. Walker’s Shortbread. Pumpkin Sticky Toffee Pudding.

🥑 Good Eats from this past week: I include a weekly meal plan in each week’s Good Things, and things never *actually* go as planned! Some of the standout additions include Trader Joe’s Artichoke Bread Pudding (nice dinner with some salad if you like artichoke?). TJ’s Pretzel Breadpudding (very sweet and salty). Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Samosas. Last week’s Chickpea and Chicken Tagine from Nigella’s How to Eat was a standout. FONDUE BEANS, because of which I reached “Peak Bean”.

That’s all for now! Hope you have a great week!

xo, Sam