Currently: January 2020

Hi there! Don’t mind me clocking in with this January recap at a very respectable ten days into February… I’m nothing if not punctual! Wink. I debated scrapping this altogether, but ‘taking stock’ posts are so incredibly anchoring – for travel blogs, in particular.

So! January! It was a month that was equal parts chaotic and grounding. I alternated between weeks of nonstop work events and movement, and weeks of delicious stillness and routine. Below, in more detail…

Travels

Mid-month, I spent a week down in LA for work. In between trainings and happy hours, I snuck in 5:30am cuddles with my baby niece, playing Pete-the-Cat-themed pretend with my nephew, carpools with my sister, and homecooked meals by mom. Nothing could have been more delightful.

I also escaped to Lake Tahoe with a group of co-workers after our company kick-off. The weekend of lazy naps, snowball fights, hot tub hangs, and stargazing was a much-needed reprieve from the previous week’s complete lack of sleep.

Products

My MVP products this month were all Christmas presents so #thankyoufam! First up is the Hydroflask, with a straw lid. You guys. Never have I ever been so hydrated in my life. Everyone needs one.

I don’t know what voodoo magic The Makeup Eraser towel possesses, but I am here for it. It’s not something I use every day as it seems a tad rough on the skin, but it’s a total godsend while traveling or after a late night out when washing your face is the last thing you want to do.

And finally, I have at long last been inducted into the AirPods Pro cult. They make my commute, the soundtrack to which is typically obscenely loud construction, an actual dream.

Watching

The shows I’ve been slowly making my way through on solo nights have been The Crown and Dreaming Back to the Qing Dynasty, a cutesy palace drama from China (my guilty pleasure!).

When my roommates are home, we’re usually watching the Morning Show or the new season of The Bold Type! I’m realizing that these are all very female-centric shows, but really… who has time for anything else.

Reading

I didn’t read nearly as much as I had hoped this month, but I did make a small dent in Illyrian Spring. Illyrian Spring is a novel I picked up from Daunt Books in London. It takes place in what is now Dubrovnik, which is an easy way to pique my interest, but it reads a bit slow!

Working On

My big resolution for 2020 was to work on raising my energy level. Late last year, a coworker asked how I was doing and I responded “oh, just tired” like I usually do. Her response was “I feel like you’re always tired.” That statement gave me pause, and ever since, I’ve been working on ways to be less fatigued.

So far, hydration has had the biggest impact (read: Hydroflask). Having a consistent routine and doing lots of yoga make a difference as well. The week of 2am nights did not help, and the whole week afterwards was spent recovering, but! No regrets.

Cooking

A couple of highlights from this month’s adventures in the kitchen included Bon Appetit’s Digaag Qumbe, a Somali yogurt-coconut chicken curry, and Alison Roman’s Spicy White Bean Stew which my roommate took the lead on. Like the proper, card-carrying Millennials we are, it’s been all stews and soups all January and I don’t hate it at all.

For Christmas, my roommates generously gifted me with this smart pasta maker. This machine is insane! Weeknight pasta in less than 10 minutes! I’ve been experimenting with a few concoctions, but one of our go-to meals is still penne with Rao’s arrabbiata sauce, a squeeze of lemon, and a runny egg on top. Yum.

San Francisco

Well, it’s been a fun month of local adventures and discoveries. Some favorites:

• Wine and cable car spotting at Union Larder
• Phenomenal Puerto Rican dishes at Sol Food after a gorgeous hike in Tennessee Valley
• Uncontrollable giggles at Cheaper Than Therapy
• Cheap foot massages on Polk St.
• Seeing Hamilton at Orpheum Theater for the second time (it was even better!) after gorging ourselves on rosemary focaccia and fried chicken at City Beer Store. Incredible. Highly recommend – the musical and the food!

In other news, I quit my job in January. I’ve been with the company for four-and-a-half years so needless to say, this was a Big Deal for me. In many ways, even despite the emotional roller coaster of having to share the news with my colleagues (many of whom are close friends), I still haven’t completely processed the fact that it’s all happening. Quickly.

In my heart of hearts, I know that this was the right choice. But in this phase of transitioning between My Life Currently and all the exciting things ahead (more to come soon!), I am regularly swinging from uncertainty to euphoria to doubt to peace in a matter of minutes, all day long. I’ll report back on where the next couple of months takes me.

Until next time,

Caroline