5 things: happy new year!
on learning how to rest. plus: homemade cinnamon rolls, a new netflix thriller, a royal romance novel, and more.
happy saturday, friends.
i’m writing to you from the depths of a cold that just won’t quit, a cold that has my sinuses in a vise and my energy levels hovering right around 20%. a cold that showed up on the morning of new year’s day in the form of just a few sniffles and had progressed to full on brutal by evening, causing me to cancel my dinner plans and go to bed long before midnight. it’s now saturday, a full 4 days later, and still, i feel—to put it mildly—like shit. i’ve been to urgent care, been tested for both flu (which is ravaging new york at the moment) and covid (which i had just a few months ago). before you ask: yes, i’ve been wearing a mask on the subway/in crowded spaces (because flu is ravaging new york). yes, i got vaccinated (though only for flu; having just had covid, the pharmacist advised i wait ‘til late jan to vaccinate for that). and yes, i still got sick.
this is the second time in the last few years that i’ve been sick at the very end of the year, aka right around my birthday. two years ago, it was covid. last year, i think i was spared?! but this year, here i find myself yet again, glued to my couch, chugging hot water + lemon + honey + ginger, eating shitloads of chicken noodle soup, cancelling plans and devouring harlan coben thrillers on netflix (more on that later). here i find myself, yet again, praying i will feel better in time for my birthday.
i suppose i could see it as symbolic—this reoccurrence of illness that always seems to find me as one year ends and another begins. i am a phoenix, i burn down and rise from the ashes yet again. i could see it as a sign that when i finally do start to feel better, i’ll be reborn. but it’s more likely that my immune system—which has taken a beating this year—simply hit its limit, and the moment i returned to new york, it took a big old exhale and thought, okay, now we can rest.
as i’ve written about time and time again, i am not the best at resting.
i don’t do bed rot. i don’t (unless ill) spend hours binging tv on the couch. i may spend entire weekends on my own, recharging my batteries, but i do so by cooking, and cleaning, and taking long walks around my neighborhood. it is rare that i find myself confined to my bed, or to my couch, rendered incapable of even running errands.
sickness is a state i despise, because it threatens my ability to be productive, and i thrive on being productive. not necessarily for “the man” or even my job (though i did have to work yesterday, which was bummertown, population one), but because i love the feeling of getting shit done. if you’ve just now remembered that i am a capricorn, yes, this tracks. but i think i also resent sickness because it laughs in the face of all the things i have done right (or so i like to think): i do not do drugs. at this point in my life, i rarely even drink, outside of a glass of wine or a cocktail—maybe two—at dinner. i don’t stay out late, i don’t even stay up late. i drink shitloads of water, i take my vitamins, i get 8 hours of sleep each night. i wake up with the sun, and i try and get my steps in, and—absent of my surgical recovery period—i exercise 5-6 days a week. i don’t drink soda (but i do love sweets), i eat lots of vegetables, and i am actively working on eating more protein (MEH is what i have to say about that).
i am good! i do it right! i am, for all intents and purposes, very freaking healthy.
and still, i get sick more often than most of my friends. and when i do, i get walloped.
when i get sick, it’s not a “i can push through” sickness (though now that i have typed that out, i am recalling that i worked through the entirety of my last bout of covid—see also: i am a capricorn who thrives on doing. but generally speaking, i don’t just get a lil cold. i get down for the count, days on the couch, feeling like absolute garbage sick. and if i had a nickel for every time i’ve gotten this sick right before (or during) a vacation, or after a stretch of days in which i was meant to be resting but couldn’t because of life circumstances or my own idiocy (see: this past christmas break, what with everything going on at home and wanting to see all my old friends and also to have some time to myself to go antiquing and get coffee and walk around town), i would be rich.
sickness is my body’s way of forcing me to rest.
because my body knows: i only truly rest—bed rot, couch rot, order takeout and barely cook rot—when it makes me. so yes, i did attempt to reorganize the skincare section of my linen closet yesterday, and yes, i did also make cinnamon rolls from scratch (i washed my hands every other minute because i know i cannot eat them all myself and i’ll be damned if i give someone else a cold via cinnamon roll!!), but absent of that? absent of that, i have been sitting, and sleeping, and generally, doing a whole lot of nothing. i have cancelled plans and postponed a second date not once, but twice, and am about to send a text postponing it yet again, because i thought i would be better by saturday and here we are at 8am on saturday and i am decidedly not better. my body is forcing me to rest, and so i am resting: drinking tea, watching tv, taking hot baths.
i do not like it, but here i am. if you, too, have been felled by post-holiday sickness, i’m sending you lots of love and chicken noodle soup. and if you’re healthy, please send TV recs (a la harlan coben—shitty thrillers to the front!!), because i shall be couch-rotting for the foreseeable future.
oh! and HAPPY NEW YEAR, friends! i should have led with that.
i promise that once my brain and my body feel normal, i’ll give you a more cogent missive on 2026, and all i hope it’ll bring. by this time next saturday (god willing), i’ll be on a flight to my second favorite city (cdmx!) for a 10-day stint of sunshine and true relaxation. no work, no writing goals, just reading and walking and being. i’ll be alone for the first few days, then joined by a few early birds for the middle of the week, and then joined by 10 (ten!) friends who have blessed my holy shit i’m turning 40 self with their presence for MLK weekend. i’ve planned a whole itinerary for us (see below for the cute—if i do say so myself!—invites i made on canva earlier this year), and i’m hopeful that it will be a really special, once in a lifetime kind of weekend.
perhaps this sounds silly to say, but as someone who “never got a wedding” (yes, i know i still could, but here we are), i’m thinking of this as a wedding weekend without a marriage. that is to say: fun, friends, sunshine, sparkles. flights were not cheap, and people have little ones at home, and so not all of my loved ones (far from it!) will be present (the way they would’ve been, presumably, for a wedding), but still: i will be surrounded by people i adore in a city i love and I! WILL! BE! WEARING! SPARKLES! it feels like a really magical way to ring in not just a new year, but a new decade, and i’m hopeful it’ll be a good omen for the rest of the year.
now that i think about it: depending on airplane wifi (or lack thereof), next week’s newsletter may be a bit delayed, and the weekend after, i’ll likely take a birthday celebration weekend breather. but i always feel inspired in mexico city, so i promise there will be some writing (albeit potentially slightly delayed writing) to come.
and while i’m at it: thanks for being here for another year. i know that my little newsletter isn’t much, comparatively speaking, to most who write on substack. i am a little gun in a sea of big guns, but still: i’m so grateful you’re here. that you read, and comment, and send kind emails every now and then. this lil community might be small, but it’s mighty! if there’s anything you’d like to see more of in the new year (ie, if you’d like me to turn on subscriber chats, or attempt video, or what have you), would you let me know via the comments? thank you, thank you, thank you! and happy new year!
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let’s get into our recs, shall we?
i know people have feelings about gwyneth paltrow, but i adore her. i could listen to her talk all day long, which is why i was sad that this interview with her on awards chatter was only an hour long. i listened to it while shoveling 5” of snow off the back patio of my parents’ house last week, and it reminded me just how much i enjoyed amy odell’s gwyneth biography, which i read over the summer. love her or hate her, you have to admit: gwyneth is fascinating. she strikes me as one of those people who is both interesting and interested, and i always love hearing her talk about her early career as an actress and her hard pivot into a media mogul. having read gwyneth earlier this year, there were a few stories within this interview that i’d already heard, but to hear them from her perspective—vs a biographer’s—makes all the difference. she’s become such a polarizing figure that i think people sometimes forget her early career and just how good of an actress she is (emma, shakespeare in love, the royal tenenbaums).
i haven’t yet seen marty supreme, but after listening to this, i think i might?! maybe i’ll mask up and take myself to the movies this weekend. have you seen it?! if so, tell me: is it worth a visit to the theater?
ps: i also really loved kate winslet on talk easy. what a GEM of a human she is. hearing her talk about her new film (written by her son!) as well as how difficult it was to play mare on mare of easttown is just…a dream. she seems like such a wonderfully intelligent, self-aware, emotionally sound person. a big week for actress-y podcasts, i suppose! but don’t worry: i also listened to this ode to the metrocard (RIP, metro card!) on the bowery boys, this incredible episode of Diabolical Lies on the texasification of america (it will blow your mind - worth subscribing!!), and this joyful episode of The Culture Study Podcast on what makes hobbies so great.
pps: while sick, i discovered that there’s an entire full cast (hugh laurie as dumbledore!), immersive audiobook version of the entire harry potter series (!!). i started harry potter and the sorcerer’s stone yesterday and it is delightful—like a movie in your ears!
well, i finally finished buckeye. my god, i loved that book! if you haven’t read it yet, add it to your TBR list. on new year’s eve, stuck at home, i downloaded the heir apparent to my kindle. the description reminded me of the royal we series, which i loved, and i’m thrilled to say my instinct was right on the money. in the wrong hands, the premise of the heir apparent could’ve gone frothy—but in the hands of rebecca armitage, it’s pure literary magic.
it’s new year’s day in australia, and lexi villiers and her best friend jack are up with the sun, about to lean in for a long-awaited kiss when the whir of a helicopter stops them. the arrival of the helicopter can only mean one thing: that the life lexi has built for herself—second year medical resident, regular gal who lives on a farm with her two best friends—is about to fall apart.
out steps her grandmother’s righthand man, arriving with tragic news: her father and brother have been killed in a horrific skiing accident, and lexi must travel back home to see her grandmother—the queen of england—immediately. in addition to grieving the loss of her family (from whom she has been estranged for years), lexi must come to terms with the startling reality that the life of relative obscurity she has been carefully building for years is no longer hers for the taking. instead, she must embrace a new life: one in which she is next in line for the throne.
returning to london as the heir apparent princess alexandrina, lexi is greeted by a skeptical public not yet ready to forgive her for defecting, a grieving sister in law harboring an explosive secret, and a scheming uncle determined to take the throne for himself. suddenly, her life in australia—the life she was meant to have with jack—seems so far away. when her grandmother grants her one year to decide, lexi must choose: will her destiny be determined by birthright? or by love?
i can’t put this book down, and i hope someone options the rights! i think it would make an incredible miniseries (netflix, are you listening?).
get it on amazon | get it on bookshop
ps: if you’re a big reader, follow me on goodreads! i try and rank/save every book i read (i read 81 in 2025!)
honestly, it’s like netflix just knew i needed a shitty thriller to see me through my sickness. enter runaway, an adaptation of a harlan coben novel that gets twistier by the second. i swear to god, that man’s brain is a wild place. i plowed through this series in just 24 hours, and while i don’t think it’s my favorite coben adaptation (i’d give that award to the stranger or stay close), it certainly did the trick for a sick day binge. runaway follows a father’s search for his (runaway) daughter, who has become addicted to drugs after falling in love with a troubled teen, and quickly devolves into a multi-murder mystery that also somehow has to do with a creepy sex cult on a farm in the middle of nowhere. like i said: that man’s brain is a wild place. if you like a thriller, and you, like me, are waiting for all your favorite serial shows to come back in early to mid jan, this one is a good way to fill the tv time!
ps: has anyone noticed that minnie driver seems to have gotten a netflix contract? she’s in this series, as well as the latest season of emily in paris—interesting, right?
psst! if you like this post, it would mean the world to me if you’d hit the little heart icon, as well as consider sharing it on IG stories or substack notes—so that big feelings can be seen by more people ❤️
weeks ago, my friend alissa mentioned she was craving a cinnamon roll. i haven’t been able to stop thinking about them since, and when pinterest served me this ambitious kitchen recipe on my sick day scrolling, i thought, why the hell not?! if you’re wondering how i intend to eat all of these by myself, fear not: i washed my hands aggressively whilst cooking in the hopes that i can gift some of them away, and—worst case—they are freezable, so long as you don’t frost them all immediately (which is why i didn’t!). for those who fear baking with yeast, this recipe uses instant yeast, which is relatively foolproof so long as it’s not expired. i opted for the overnight rolls (ie, i did the first rise in the evening, then stuck them in the fridge overnight and did the second rise before baking the next morning), but if you’re up early, you could certainly prep them + do your rises all in one day. they’d be delicious for a lazy sunday morning, and of course for holidays—but i’d also recommend them for any old saturday, because WOW are they delicious.
easy to make, pretty much foolproof, and oh so yummy, you’ll want to eat more than one in a single sitting (you know i did!). plus, they’re just so pretty!
i’ve started packing for mexico city, which means i’ve started laying things out on my (tiny!) dining table. one of my very best (oh so simple) packing tips is to put things into pouches, and how freaking cute are the ones above?! once i feel better, i plan to take myself to the baggu store in soho and see if they have this print in stock. what do i put in said pouches, you ask? well, there’s a pouch for bras, and a pouch for socks (unless i can fit them all stuffed inside my sneakers, but since this is a warm weather trip, i’ll only have 1-2 pairs of those, one of which i’ll wear on the plane!). there is a pouch for chargers (iphone, fitbit, kindle, laptop) and a pouch for wipes (antibacterial, lens, toilet). there is a “go pouch” for the plane (all the aforementioned wipes, a tiny toothbrush + toothpaste, meds, etc.—aka all the things i need to survive a night without my luggage). there is a pouch for shampoo and conditioner (on a trip this long, i bring a full size of my usual!). WHEN IN DOUBT, POUCH IT OUT (should i trademark this?!). truly, though: there is something about being this organized whilst traveling that makes my heart sing, and if said organization can also be cute, i am ALL IN.
just for fun, here are a few other pouches i own and love: merci cotton pouch, bando pouch set (i own an old colorway of these, but i love the new patterns!), mesh hot pink zippered pouch set, sezane black and white polka dot pouch (on poshmark, but they release new colorways often on their site). this banada-print one on etsy is also very fun.
before you go, here are a few things i enjoyed on the internet this week:
now slightly out of date, but i loved this video of zohran attending hanukkah dinner at the patinkin family’s house.
chip and joanna’s mountain house is truly something. i can’t wait to watch their series about it on tv!
i read this series about new yorkers’ hopes for the future in the paper while home with my parents and it made me weepy.
nyt’s on the job series is always so fun. i loved this one about room service at the plaza!
behind the mic: the making of harry potter on audible.
i’ve been dreaming a lot lately about my someday country home, and this beautifully restrained 400 square foot cottage is giving lots of inspiration for it.
❤️ and that, friends, is where i leave you. if you like this post, it would mean the world to me if you’d hit the little heart icon, as well as consider sharing it on stories—so that big feelings can be seen by more people ❤️
"i know that my little newsletter isn’t much, comparatively speaking, to most who write on substack." > Disagree!! This newsletter is my favorite! I enjoy your writing, honesty and thoughtfulness every week. Thank you!
I feel the same about the EOY illness and forced rest / rotting. Somehow my body just knows I need that break. Have a great CDMX bday!!! Happy birthday!