Of the moment // 12.29.20
It’s hard to think back to the beginning of this year and recognize all of the grand plans I had (I thought my biggest problem would be…too much travel): my birthday in Greece, a family vacation in Jackson Hole, a wedding in Kauai, an adventure to India! Obviously: all of that was cancelled. Even though this year was not at all like what I imagined, it hasn’t been all bad.
The biggest upside: I really learned to appreciate San Diego. We moved here for sunshine and more space–and this was a year in which we certainly benefited from both of those things. Living somewhere with a backyard, home offices and year-round good weather made a huge difference in our moods when we couldn’t leave our house. I also used to travel so much for work during the week and so much for fun on the weekends that we barely got to appreciate San Diego in the 2ish years we lived here until the pandemic. This summer, I spent almost every weekend either in the hammock in our backyard or set up on a beach chair in the sand with almost no one around me–and it was fantastic. The ocean, the sunshine, a good book: this is usually what I searched for on vacation, and I had it right in front of me! We also have a newfound appreciation for our favorite hiking trails, bars, restaurants, breweries, and tiny shops–and I’ve especially found a new love of Sunday mornings at the Hillcrest farmers markets, and spending the afternoons cooking a new recipe with fresh ingredients.
Although I’m certainly hopeful for more travels in 2021–give me that vaccine, and get me on a plane back to New York City for a bagel and an IRL wine date with friends STAT!–I’m feeling less inclined to spend every dollar and free day on a plane to somewhere new. I still have grand dreams of adding some new passport stamps (Greece, India and Jamaica are high on the list), but I’m also hoping to explore more of our national parks and continue to just enjoy all that Southern California has to offer.
Reads
A big perk of this year was how much I read! I’ve always been a fast reader, but I really built before-bed reading into my evening routine (usually around 30 minutes) and I also tried to treat some full-on quarantine weekends as an excuse to curl up with a cup of tea and a book and nothing else to do. A few stand-out fiction reads: Valentine, Home Fire, This is How It Always Is, Clap When You Land, The Evening and the Morning, 28 Summers, Rodham, The Dearly Beloved. And for non-fiction, I learned so much from (and had many thought-provoking discussions inspired by) Golden Gates: Fighting for Housing in America, Know My Name and The Girl Who Smiled Beads: A Story of War and What Comes After.
I’m also still fully devoted to Book of the Month: I’ve discovered some great new authors and enjoyed early access to some of the most popular books of the year. I also committed to buying all of my new books at The Book Catapult (another fantastic San Diego small business with a great online shopping and shipping experience!), and reading anything on my Kindle through the library. I’ve been trying to support independent bookstores (*ahem* not Amazon) as much as possible this year!
Beauty
Although maskne presented a new problem, I do think that not being on a plane every other day, not wearing makeup every day and sticking very squarely to my skincare and sleep routine worked wonders on my skin (aka the photo above is without any makeup on, and I feel pretty good about that!).
I especially fell in love with the Botnia brand this year: these “farm to face” are all natural and work beautifully. I especially loved the Gentle Cleanser and the Rose Water Toner. Another current favorite is Josh Rosebrook Vital Balm Cream for a nighttime moisturizer. (Just updated this with my current routine and products as well!)
When my facialist moved to Nor Cal at the beginning of the pandemic (anyone in the East Bay–cannot recommend BLH Beauty enough!!), I also started getting facials at Shop Good and have been super impressed by the facial experience, as well as all of the clean beauty products they’ve recommended. It’s a great little store to pop into in North Park or Del Mar, but the online shopping experience and packaging is also A+. One of my 2021 goals is to transition most (if not all) of my makeup and skincare to clean products, aka I’ll be spending a lot of time (and $$) at Shop Good!
Another thing that was great for my skin and overall health: a solid workout routine. Before this year, I was a group workout devotee: I needed the accountability and peer pressure to get anything done. But I’ve really loved the yoga and deep stretch classes on Skyting TV and all of the sculpt classes on Sculpt Society. Although I still can’t motivate myself to do an hour-long class, I can almost always convince myself to squeeze in a 30-minute energizing yoga flow with Krissy and Chloe or do a 10/15/20-minute “quickie” abs/butt/arms/legs class with Megan. Highly recommend both!
House
We took all of our energy (and money!) that was previously devoted to travel and applied it to…our house! I kind of can’t believe how many DIY projects and transformations we completed this year–although it was certainly easier to do when a) we had nothing else to do and b) we had nowhere else to go, which really motivated us to change the things we didn’t love.
I especially loved what we did with our kitchen: when we bought the house, the kitchen was overflowing in iconic late 90s oak cabinets. We took the doors off the top cabinets and painted it all white (aka low-budget open shelving) and painted the bottom cabinets a nice blue-green and installed gold hardware. And in the corner, we took out all of the cabinets and replaced it with a little breakfast nook and gallery wall. We also put a new lighting fixture in our dining room, along with a new dining room table and chairs. All in all, it’s really opened up and lightened up our cooking and dining area!
The next step is updating our “laundry room” aka the closet off our kitchen with our washer and dryer: one of my January projects is wallpapering the interior, adding in a new shelf and figuring out a new door situation.
Podcasts
Unsurprisingly, I listened to *a lot* of podcasts this year: more than 25,000 minutes worth! They were a saving grace and a key element of many, many walks around the neighborhood and on the beach. I tried to limit how much news content I ingested, but I was very committed to the pop culture takes of Ringer Dish, Keep It! and You’re Wrong About. I also learned a lot about prison life through Ear Hustle and the opioid epidemic in Last Day. And if you’re looking for a binge, I couldn’t stop listening to to Nice White Parents, Wind of Change and Rabbit Hole.
Looks
It wasn’t a great year for fashion, but it did further refine my “uniform.” Namely: basic tees and bodysuits (mostly from Everlane), Everlane (authentic high-rise stretch skinny) jeans/jean shorts (or Outdoor Voices leggings), Bensimon sneaks or a pair of Allbirds. I also lived in my Uniqlo zip-up fleece and the Cup of Jo x Alex Mill reading sweater (mustard yellow forever). I basically wore some version of this every day this year, and it…worked.I gotta say, I am hopeful to have some reasons to dress up and throw on some heels next year!
The most important accessory of the year was, of course, the mask. After testing out a few different options, I’m fully committed to this silk option that I found on Etsy (and now have in basically every color on offer). Silk is definitely helping reduce my maskne, and the built-in nose clip and extra chin fabric makes it extra comfortable with great coverage.
Words
“One life on this earth is all we get, whether it is enough or not enough, and the obvious conclusion would seem to be at the very least we are fools if we do not live it as fully and bravely and beautifully as we can.” -Frederick Buechner
Finishing up this crazy year the same way I’ve spent most of it: reading, taking walks with pugs (and podcasts), and enjoying time at home! I’m also getting ready for the ninth-ish annual no-alcohol, no-sugar January and I cannot wait for a nice, relaxing start to the year!
