Weekend Reading #16
New tech backgrounds, who I talked to this week, eliminating distractions, and nobody wants this except everybody wants this.
It’s been a week. We had a scare, but everything’s ok. It really hit me, and I channeled my anxiety into planting mums, and working on my holiday gift guide. 2/3 of my kids also have colds, so lots of coughing, chest rub, and not-so-great sleep happening here.
On a very positive note, I do feel pretty different on my new ADHD medication. I don’t know why I was so hesitant to start it, but I feel less scattered. I don’t feel wired or like I’m hyperfocused, but feel like I’m trying to do less at once, and I don’t get as sidetracked which is really nice.
I also made a big change and took text notifications off my computer, so when I’m working, I don’t get sidetracked by texts. It’s been really nice, but I’m a lot less good about responding and miss messages more often now. It’s a tradeoff that feels worth it.
Our au pair is leaving for 12 days at the end of the month, and my gift guides usually go live November 1. I really wanted to get ahead, and had a goal to do at least one a day so I wouldn’t be stressed out the last week of October. I’ve finished 10/23 guides this week. I can’t believe how ahead I am. I’m also all caught up on sponsored content for now, so it’s all about gift guides, and making sure I’m good in the next 20 days, which I will be.
Nobody Wants This. It was so good, and I haven’t felt this sad that a show ended since Succession came to an end. Maybe an OC rewatch would help?
I reached out to Gwen Whiting, the founder of the Laundress, because I really felt pulled to speak with her about her experience. Our stories are very different, but I felt like I needed to talk to her, and it turns out that I did. She was so kind and not only agreed to speak with me, but we ended up talking for an hour and-a-half! She is a wonderful person. It is rare that I reach out to a complete stranger, but I really wanted to share my experience with her, and chat about how she shared her story. It was very healing and inspiring. I’m really grateful for people like her, and always try to be that person to people when they reach out to me, which is usually about a cancer diagnosis, but still.
This also got me thinking about when we left Anecdote. If you’re not familiar, my husband and I cofounded a store with his mom and our (former) friends in October 2019. We weren’t able to be very involved since the store opened not long before Margot got sick. She was in treatment for 2+ years, and it was just so long and when you go through something like that, you’re not the same for a long time. I was afraid of everyone and covid and germs - it was just so complicated, so the friendship came to an end.
But - the end of the partnership ended so well. We had planned on just suggesting they should retain ownership with my mother-in-law, and they thought we should get our share of the profit, even when we weren’t able to help. They did not ask for anything in return, and I’ll always appreciate that they did not try to profit off of what we went through. Just a random thought since I’ve been thinking about everything in therapy recently.
Here’s what’s new this week.
Shop my favorites from the Wayfair’s Big Sale
October Tech Backgrounds
The Best Holiday Pajamas to Buy This Year
I know it’s early, but they’re out now, and the cutest prints usually sell out.
I'm glad that everything's OK. Well, from what you've written here, more than OK - everything's GOOD. I love that your former partners recognized and honored your value, and I love that you recognized and honored them by writing that. "They didn't try to profit by what we went through" - so it sounds as if they're good and honorable people, and so are you, and this world needs more of that. I'm sitting here smiling as I write this. I feel more optimistic, more hopeful after reading what you've written here. My sunny October Sunday starts on a positive note! Thank you.