Man Crush

I never got into the original Queer Eye For The Straight Guy mostly because I was in high school and college and I just didn't watch a ton of television then. I am however obsessed with the rebooted Netflix original!

Why My Brain is Always Tired

Being a millennial and librarian is kind of a problem. I have never been diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder but if you were to guess that I have these tendencies and behaviors, then you guessed correctly. I once spent my spring vacation in college at the university library reading (and researching) everything I could find about the execution of The Romanov Family and Rasputin (it wasn't an assignment, it was for pure pleasure). By the time school was back in session, I was checked out. My brain never got the break it needed. And this is a daily habit, I'm not even kidding. Living in the rabbit hole and researching for hours on end (on any given subject) is second nature to me, I never stop to consider that it is a habit I need to learn to control. But I'm addicted, the need to know is just part of me (and most millennials). This perpetual state of curiosity is at the core of my foundation. So the fact that information is so easily accessible and that I have this degree (in library and information science) doesn't exactly help; it means I just know how to search information better and faster. We live in a world of information overload. Part of it is pressure because of the job. The other part, I just love learning. I'm a reading fiend, an information hoarder, hoping to one day be a walking encyclopedia. 

But having access to so much information can also be a bad thing. I wake up to the sound of my alarm which is a curated playlist and then will usually switch to the latest episode of a favorite podcast while I'm getting ready and on my commute I revert back to listening to music. The work day is a combination of researching and reading, with a lunch break spent listening to more podcasts. Winding down at night is catching up with social media and reading newsletters or a book. My ears and eyes never get a break and it's important, you know, to chill out from time to time! For someone extremely introverted and who prefers to be alone to recharge, there is little silence in my day. And, that's part of the problem. My parents always ask how can I be so exhausted, I'm just a librarian?! Even if I'm not physically exerting myself, my brain is constantly working in overdrive. So learning to balance the amount of information I consume should be more of a priority. Here's a few really intriguing articles about information overload and how it's affecting us!

Why My Brain is Always Tired

Information Overload

Smartphones over Drugs

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The Working Girl

So you work in a job that you love but you're feeling burned out because a. your company is seriously understaffed and therefore you are overworked and b. the people you work with you cant stand?! The best option is to leave. But it's never that easy! How do you manage and balance your work life and not let it seep into your personal life? This is constant struggle but these practices make it a little easier until you can find something better.  

   

1. When you clock out at the end of the day, make sure you leave your work at work. I typically go home and get right back on it, whether it's through social media or projects I didn't finish earlier that day. Given that I have access to programs from home, I never really escape work and it affects my time at home. Over the last few weeks, I've been going to work on time (instead of an hour before I'm actually scheduled) and spending my evenings cooking new recipes, catching up with a show, learning meditation, practicing yoga or allowing myself a twenty minute bath.

2. When it comes to work relationships, it's a little trickier. There is most likely one person you just can't work with. You don't agree on anything but because you work in the same department, distancing yourself is hard. In this situation, I try to keep the relationship professional. In the library world it's easy to make friends, you find someone who shares the same book interests, you get each other's pop cultural references and you click. With the coworkers you don't necessarily get along with, I try to keep conversations short and to the point and try not to get too personal. Unfortunately, people will take advantage of you and use personal information as an attack. Women in particular, can be vindictive!

3. How to deal with harassment of any kind. Whether verbal, physical or sexual, report it.  Obviously if it's the latter two - report it immediately! The first one, however,  can be a little harder to deal with. Words are incredibly powerful, they can be inspirational and destructive, they have the ability to completely warp a persons mind. If someone with authority uses their position to put you down, it most certainly is not okay. To hell with interpretation and implications, if someone is verbally demeaning towards you or someone you know, don't wait, act quickly.

Literally within the first month I started working at my current job, a coworker made a racial comment about me. I wasn't even aware of the incident until the person in charge at the time informed me about it, she then proceeded to laugh it off. I tried to let it go but I felt totally ostracized, I didn't have a friend at work for months! I told myself, I'm white so I guess it's okay because I belong to a race who has historically done despicable things to every other ethnicity. It kept happening and I continued to tell myself, I deserved it!  I have been dealing with this problem for four years and I keep telling myself - don't take it personal, you are strong, you know you're good at your job, they have insecurities and they are just taking their issues out on you. This is in no way okay, yet we put up with it all the time. If there's one thing I know to be true it's taking note of everything that seems wrong or out of the ordinary, write it down! Make note of the day and the incident, don't let it slip by.I learned this from my dad, his meticulous note taking even landed him on ESPN, his bravery to speak up and expose an injustice happening at my own high school was one of the craziest things I've ever seen, and I admire him! I wish I had his guts! Don't let it go like I have. Write everything down, talk to others who may be experiencing similar abuse and do something about it!   

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Friday Morning

Good morning readers, how are you?! I woke up this morning completely ready for the new year. Not to say that 2017 has been a bad year because it wasn't, it was just a year of soul searching for me, professionally and personally. It was the year of hanging out on the sidelines, a little unsure of things and questioning everyone and everything coming at me. And before this turns into a lengthy post on life, (I promise I'm saving that for the next few weeks as we close in on this year), I just want to say, I can't believe I'm still here. Sit and Stay Awhile is still kicking at seven years old. There were times where I was ready to call it quits and move on with my life. But this space, there's something about it I just can't part with. It's helped me grow in so many ways. So even if I walked away, the blog is apart of who I am. So get cozy and stay awhile because it's only about to get better. Have a lovely weekend and see you next week :)

Trips of a Life Time

We're Making Progress

The Life Coach You Didn't Know You Needed

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Things I'm Into This Week

A few nights ago, I finally settled in to watch the first Christmas movie of the season. And even though Netflix produced it, The Christmas Prince is basically their version of a Hallmark holiday movie. Filled with cliches and situations that would never happen in the real world, (fans of The Princess Diaries, The Prince and Me, What A Girl Wants will love this movie) I let my mind take The Christmas Prince, for what it's worth, a terrible and utterly cheesy holiday romantic comedy. 

I saw this shirt floating around the insta-feed of my bookish instagram account. And now it's mine. An excellent gift for your book hoarding friend or family member :)

I can't get enough of these tabby cat browser backgrounds. 

 I have been following Julie Houts for months now on Instagram, she is by far my favorite person/illustrator ever. I also bought her book recently, I was practically in tears from laughing so hard the other night reading it. I promise, she's worth following. 

And if I haven't written enough about Messy Nessy Chic, she now has short episodes of her 'Don't be a Tourist' series. There's only a few out at the moment but they are totally worth watching. Since she's known for the path not taken, there's so much to learn about Paris and France from Vanessa. 

What I'm Into This Week

I'm always up for a good festival, and it just so happens that Vulture Fest is happening this weekend in L.A. They have an incredible line up this year. Are you going?!

  Payne Lindsay is one of the best true crime journalists I've listened too. And believe me, I've listened to many. A film maker turned podcaster, he's not just in it for the fame or entertainment, he's really passionate and will call people out no problem. To learn about about the Tara Grinstead case, start at episode one of Up and Vanished. 

If you want to treat yourself, I highly recommend these robes and candles.

 I can't even remember how I came across Shine Text, but it came into my life at the right time. For uplifting, empowering and positive daily affirmations, sign up here and you'll get a personal text message every morning.

Need help meditating or interested in learning the basics, Mindful Meditations is for you!

What I'm Into This Week

 Girls Night In: For ladies who would rather stay in on Thirsty Thursday and enjoy the latest book club read or keeping up to date with a few excellent reads, like this one on venmo, fed up woman and sensitive comics. Netflix, read, rosé and chill. 

Project 62: The latest product line at Target that every millennial girl is gushing over. My sister and I have already added a few pieces to are our apartment. Head over to your closest Target and check out the reasonable home line that is both modern and chic. 

Books Are Magic: A bookstore ran by one of my favorite authors, Emma Straub. Filled with beautiful books, book readings and author events, this bookstore is like my dream space. Oh and they have an online shop that ships all over the U.S., I just got their mug and will be gifting it to a few of my favorite librarians.  

It Starts With One Step

I was thumbing through a children's poetry book in the stacks when I heard a very loud patron ranting at the front desk. Daily interruptions are apart of my job, I'm use to this so I kept working, assuming another librarian would help the individual. As many of you know libraries bring all sorts of people together - families, tutors, people seeking jobs, students, readers, working people taking their lunch and enjoying a quiet break and people who don't have homes. Libraries are a safe place, everyone is welcome. We don't discriminate, we instruct, we research, we help, we teach and we're constantly being trained so we can administer just about any situation. Literally everything from heart attacks to people who suffer psychologically, even individuals who overdose on drugs.

It was a warm, August afternoon and there was blood, seven wounds and a knife. The man dozing in and out of consciousness was yelling that another library user was trying to kill him. I froze, my heart sank and all I could think about was that the door was five feet away, just bolt (I told myself). It was only weeks before this incident that staff had been trained for this but I was still unable to move, my eyes fixated on the back emergency exit. Through their tears a brother and sister snuck up behind me and whimpered, "Ms. Sarah there's a man with a knife." I wanted to break down, but I couldn't let these kids see me upset or that Ms. Sarah (the role model) couldn't defend them in a crisis. I quickly got as many people as I could out of the library and went looking in bathrooms and storage closets and found one more family. By the time my side of the library was evacuated, the knife had been surrendered and the attacker had been cuffed. I remember standing in front of the gentleman bleeding out thinking, this is like a friggin episode from a Crime Scene television show.

In those first five minutes, I was petrified but over the course of a four hour lock-down, I felt safe and stronger than I ever thought I was. So many friends and family called asking if we were okay, how crazy the situation was, how scary for the staff and patrons. It was all of those things, it was surreal and jolting. In moments of crisis we have two options, fight or flight. And I chose to stay! However, I can't help but think about this terrible feeling I have. Initially, I had partially lost my hearing (I'm assuming due to shock) and days after I had nightmares that were way worse than the real scenario. Walking into the library weeks after I couldn't help but feel this looming presence of something much darker.

I use to associate violence with war and in the movies, but hate and violence has become such a central part of our culture. It's seeping into every part of our lives and it's beyond terrifying when you see it firsthand. We think it will never happen to us or in our towns or at movie theaters, malls or libraries. Yet, everywhere seems to be an open target. It's present in every country on the planet. How did our world become so negative, what is happening to us? Women are banished to huts while on their periods, we're literally running people over with cars, we're blowing up our planet because we hate one another. We have marches and rallies and we think it's ok to dehumanize each other! How did we get here and how do we make it stop? I never thought I'd be living in a time and witnessing the same horrible atrocities that my parents and grandparents saw when they were my age.

How do we teach tolerance and end violence? It seems difficult (and daunting) because these ideals (of prejudice, egotism, fraudulence, and hatred) run deep in our countries veins. All you really need to do is start with one small, single step! Go out of your way to be nice. Help one person today and the next day and the next...choose to be a good person. I didn't think I could shake the feeling of being scared of what happened at my library but I started opening doors, saying good morning and buying coffee for strangers, looking people in the eye and listening instead of talking and I started feeling safe again.

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The Librarian Suggests

What I'm Reading:

August was definitely my slowest reading month, I hardly spent any time at home so I didn't get much time to read and chill. Excited to get my hands on The Mist by Stephen King, I plowed through this in one sitting. It's less than 150 pages, so it's a quick one. A novella that first debuted in the 80s short story collection, Skeleton Crew has been adapted to the screen a few times. A movie back in 2007 (which is a cheesy guilty pleasure) and a television show that just wrapped up it's first season on Spike TV. I grew up watching more movies that were adapted from King's books than actually read. Since he's known for his horror and I grew up with an older brother, I wasn't allowed to read them. But I heard enough from my brother, so you can imagine the nightmares I had as a child. For the most part, I loved The Mist but with all short stories a little disappointment was met just because I wanted more - more depth, more description and of course, wanting my questions answered. What have you read by Stephen King? Are you a fan or not? We actually just reviewed this short story on our podcast over at The Librarians Suggest, so make sure to check it out!! I actually just finished a bio on Ludwig Bemelmans that was wonderful, it's part bio and full of his artwork and sketches. Of course, I indulged in spending an entire evening earlier this week reading, Mad About Madeline. Also, I'm halfway through The Vagina Monologues, and I'm loving every bit of it. What have you been reading?

What I'm Watching: 

Last weekend after I finished Stranger Things for a second time, one of the suggested shows intrigued me. Have you heard of  The Returned. It first aired on A&E in 2015, it's an adaption from the French show Les Revenants (which is currently playing on Sundance) and unfortunately it was canceled after one season which is a shame because it's one of the best shows I've watched in years. Mystery, suspense and supernatural elements - I basically threw a fit after I binged it last Saturday. So many questions unanswered.

What I'm Listening Too:

 The latest PVRIS album is out and I cannot stop listening to it. "Separate" is definitely my favorite song from the album, it also maybe my favorite song of theirs, period! Wednesday was by far the most important day of the week,  only because I've been waiting a year for this specific date. The Black Tapes Season Three finally appeared in my recent downloads.

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Friday Morning

Hey everyone, how has your week been? Pardon my absence this week but it was needed. We'll get into the deets (well not every detail) next week because I have questions for you. Until then, what have you been up too? I've been enjoying my somewhat quiet workdays lately. August is one of my favorite months, aside from the back to school shopping and the nostalgia of my childhood summers, it's typically my slow month. There's little to no programming so I can plan for the Fall/Spring seasons and not be interrupted with my usual crazy work schedule of events and activities. So I'm taking in every minute of every hour of my workday because it's my only month I can catch up on actual work and take a bit of a breather. What are your plans for the weekend? Whatever you and your family are doing, I hope you have a nice and relaxing one! 

Frozen grapes for snacks

Would you delete the internet from your phone?

Bedtime ritual

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Things I'm Into This Week

 When I came across this librarian blog, I seriously fell out of my chair from laughing so hard while on my lunch break one afternoon. Every single librarian frustration this guy writes about applies to librarian life like you can't believe. He's spoken at library conferences and I'm dying to get him to come out to sunny California. Do yourself a favor, check him out! 

I recently was suggested this book last week after talking about my love for Manhattan. Have you heard of Vanishing New York? "The go-to hub for those who lament New York's loss of character." "Jeremiah Moss does an excellent job of cataloging all that’s constantly being sacrificed to the god of rising rents." These are just a few of my favorite reviews of his blog. His writing features mom and pop owned businesses closing left and right and how Manhattan is becoming a city for the 1%. 

I've been following Lost in Cheeseland for a few years and luckily for me, I got my copy of Lindsay's book right before I left for Paris earlier this year. She now has a podcast all about The New Paris. If you're a Parisian lover like me, you will love this show, the book and the award winning blog. 

For anyone wanting to learn the process on how to become a writer, this is one of the best books out there. Written by Dani Shapiro, author of Hourglass and Slow Motion, this book is filled with quotes you won't want to forget and excellent pick book about books. Whether you're an aspiring author or just looking for a piece of nonfiction, I can't recommend this book enough!

Another newsletter I was just recently introduced too, is The Skimm. Have you heard of it?!  I can't go a day without reading what's going on the world either in one of the newsletters or their app. I especially love their calendar on their app. Whether its concerts, environmental town hall meetings or politics, these girls have you covered! Oh and have your heard about their book recommendations? If I ever decided to leave the library world, I'd go into Children's Book Publishing or work for the book recs department at The Skimm.

What are you into this week? What reading, watching or listening too? 

What Are You Watching?

What have you been watching lately? I took a break from watching television a few months ago as apart of my summer challenge and then after that, I realized there was so much more I could do besides sit down in front of the tv all night. With the lack of sleep from the past few weeks, last weekend I decided to be a little lazy and catch up with a few shows. I can now (mostly) keep up with Game of Thrones conversations since I officially caught this weekend even though I feel confused about so many things and characters. I also binged Silicon Valley in the past few days; seriously one of the best shows ever! And since my guy is watching Gilmore Girls, I figured I could watch one of his favorite shows, Hannibal. I'm also waiting for the last season of Bates Motel to show up on Netflix. What's your favorite show? Do you stream or watch in real time on your television?  

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Things I'm Into This Week...

If you didn't know that I was a nerd already, I've come across this website twice in the last couple weeks because of books I've read or for researching purposes to expand the juvenile geography collection we have here at the library. Needless to say, it may or may not be a surprise that I became a member.

I've been a long time follower of  31 Bits, I love what they stand for! When I started following Dallas Shaw's career seven years ago, she was wearing earrings that I had to have and I eventually wound up on what was then just a jewelry brand. I haven't purchased anything in awhile and when I saw the latest bag collection which launched earlier this summer, I had to get myself a straw bag.

I came across Overdue, at least two years ago. I'm pretty sure I was looking for bookish podcasts but I never listened to it because my my list of shows was growing and I couldn't (and still can't) keep up with everything on my list. For whatever reason, I started listening to them a few months ago and I cannot stop. I seriously wish I were friends with these guys. Seriously the best episode is their conversation on the movie, Hook.

I started reading this book of essays at last month's Silent Book Club and I couldn't wait so I finished it later that evening. This essay is everything! A beautiful writer, a hilarious twitter feed, this girl is basically the voice of my generation. Move on over Lena Dunham, Scaachi is my girl!!! 

You should just go ahead and subscribe to Anne Shocket's Badass Babes newsletter!

Friday Morning

Good Morning!!! So this whole waking up at five in the morning hasn't really gone away. The past few days I've been lying in bed hoping to go back to sleep but I end up reading, which is a good thing because I've gone through a couple books in the last two weeks. With the summer festivities around the corner and gearing up for the annual Summer Reading Program, I'm excited and slightly overwhelmed. I know it's going to be a fun summer but honestly, I was not ready to come home from Europe. I'm already thinking of a few more trips, hopefully the east coast in the fall! What are your plans for the weekend? I have a few do it yourself projects waiting to happen at home I also plan to do a serious deep clean of the apartment. Have an excellent weekend and see you next week :)

How to Make Friends At Work

 Master of None

 If Seinfeld Was In the Midwest

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What I'm Into This Week

While I was in France, one of the most important stops was to hit up the Laduree counter. I got macarons galore - at Versailles and at shops scattered throughout Paris. Don't ask what my favorite is because there's so many to choose from. To make matters worst, I ended up getting this book where Laduree gives up their secret recipes. Indulge your sweet tooth with these French goodies. 

I've long been a fan of Chloe shoes, they are the epitome of being classy and chic. But I could never justify spending five hundred dollars on a pair of shoes, even if they are as cute as these pink scalloped flats that have been sitting on their pretty display at Saks for the last five years. Years later, I ended up with a pair that cost less than $100, the story behind these perforated creme babies make them so much more lovable. 

As a history nerd, I came across Malcolm Gladwell's latest project, Revisionist History. Yet another podcast to add to a library of more than a hundred shows I already listen too. Essentially Gladwell goes back and reinterprets something from the past, (whether it's an event, person or idea) that was perhaps misunderstood or overlooked at the time.

While on vacation, my friend who is currently living and working in London took my sister and I out  to a comedy show on our last night in the city. Beat, tired and thinking about my suitcase that needed to be repacked, I had the greatest time. The two comedians we ended up seeing were Tom Ward and Andre Mitchell. At some point in my research on comedians, I came across Tom at least a year ago but I didn't necessarily know anything about him or his act. There's just something about British comedy and that accent that makes it so much better. I'm just happy I got most of the cultural references.  

I was introduced to The Great American Newsletter a few years ago but have recently gotten back into it. Erin Carson is just an exceptional writer and spot on in whatever she's writing about. If you have never heard of her, just start reading her as soon as you can!!! 

The Traveler's Book List (Part II)

In the last five months I've been doing a lot reading for my upcoming trip. I wouldn't say I'm Brit expert but I spent many college nights staying in and catching up with favorites like Austenland and Bridget Jones. There was something so alluring about the Brits, their lifestyle and their country that I just fell in love with. I took every class I could, in fact I was just a class short from declaring a specific subject with my history major but I choose to stick to general history. For all things British, a combination all my favorite reads. 

84, Charing Cross Road

500 Hidden Secrets of London

Austenland

Brideshead Revisited 

Bridget Jones' Diary

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society 

The House at Riverton

I Capture the Castle

How to Speak Brit

Imagine London

The London Cookbook

Longbourn

The Royal We

Watching the English

Year of Wonder

Word of the Day

Word of the Week: Magnanimous

Definition: (adjective) Big-hearted, very generous or forgiving, especially toward a rival or someone less powerful than oneself.

Used in a sentence: (1) A truly magnanimous person can lose without complaining and win without gloating. (2) Even though the defendant had broken the law, the magnanimous judge have him the lightest sentence possible. 

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A Slow and Healthy Approach to Life

In preparation for my trip across the pond, I've been enjoying my nightly reading routine. And for the last five months I've read everything from understanding the Danish way of life (Jante and Hygge) to mastering the art of French eating, I haven't quite mastered anything but I'm working on it. I'm no expert by any means but there are few lifestyle changes Americans need to adopt, these are just a few I'm trying to incorporate into my daily routine.

1. More life and less work. I'm not saying Americans work themselves to death but the stress of being the best and almost being expected to become workaholics, no wonder our mental health is in the state it is in. We're known for being fiercely competitive and overly ambitious, I once read, "anxiety is the handmaiden of contemporary ambition" and I wholeheartedly agree. When I'm out with friends, we talk more about work than anything less. Take advice from the Europeans and focus on life more and less about work. 

2. When it comes to food, America is probably the worst country in the world. Welcome to fast food nation and frozen meals for dinner. I'm very guilty about this but through my books, I've learned that buying fresh, the real stuff (no additives) and unprocessed food is so much healthier than most of the crap in our grocery stores. In fact, skip the grocery store all together and shop at farmers markets or local grocers instead of chain stores. Also, slow down. I'm not saying you need to eat as slow as the French, but there's so much more to food than just fueling up. Food is culture. Food is an experience, think about what it smells like, what does it taste like? I love going to new places with my guy because we actually talk a lot about food and cooking, thank god he's an awesome cook because I'm worthless in the kitchen. We're such foodies, we've even talked about planning trips solely for food purposes.

3. Get outdoors more. There's a whole section on spending more time outside in How to Hygge. I'm now going to the park almost every Sunday to read and do other crafty things. The outdoors is so much more than just getting in an exercise, marvel at the beauty that is nature people!!!

 

4.  When it comes to language, Americans (specifically White Americans) are at a disadvantage. We're so arrogant into thinking everyone should speak English, that it should be a universal language. The rest of the world speaks at least two languages, challenge yourself to learn a new language this year! My parents are Irish and French, so I'm taking it upon myself to learn the language of my ancestors.

5. I love that the Irish go to the bars after church. I'm not encouraging anyone to become an alcoholic but there's something to be said about the pub culture in Ireland. Traditionally the church, pubs and local football clubs were the place for social interaction in rural Ireland. The pub was where the village met, stories were exchanged and the fun was had. The atmosphere and warmth of Irish pubs is just so inviting that many cities around the world adopt the Irish approach to drinking, conversation and making sure everyone is having a good time. The sense of community is so important and in a country that is very individualistic, there's a lot to learn from the friendliest people on the planet.

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The Librarian Suggests

What I'm Reading: Two years ago I came across a woman who decided to read the world in a year's time. You're probably thinking what? After talking with colleagues, fellow book lovers and friends, she realized her mission of trying to read everything in the Bodleian was filled with information written predominately by white people. A friend suggested to get out of comfort zone and did she. I'm finally getting around to reading, The World Between Two Covers and I am loving every word of it. It's a lot of information to take but I'm learning so much about the writing process in other countries outside of Western Europe. Do yourself a favor and if you want to be a well read individual, this book will be your saving grace. Also, if you love strong badass women and dancing, Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina, this is for you. I also just picked this up and I can't wait to start in on this one. 

What I Watching: An American in Paris, Midnight in Paris, Before Sunset, French Kiss and Funny Face. I leave next week, so I figured I needed to get in the mood :)

What I'm Listening Too: Did you listen to S-Town? The heart wrenching story of a crazy yet tormented and maybe the kindest soul who ever lived, John B. Mclemore is profound to say the least. I would love to hear your thoughts on his life, the show and what's currently going on with all his stuff? Also, And That's Why We Drink and My Dad Wrote A Porno :)

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Things I'm Into This Week

 

Per usual when settling into bed, I usually start perusing the new podcasts in the iTunes store (as if I don't have enough to listen too) even though I already have more shows that I can keep up with. But this particular one, Terrible, Thanks for Asking really stuck out to me. I'm finally just now getting around to it but two episodes in I'm hooked. How many times a day are you asked: how is your day or how are you? Your automatic response is usually "fine". Most people don't really drudge on about their lives or their days unless they are wanting attention. The hook, the host miscarried her second child, lost her father and then her husband all within a few months of each other... A little on the downer side but following stories are fascinating how people deal with terrible things. 

I've been wearing Philosophy products for years and I've written about the brand countless times on the blog so I'll spare you a lengthy description on the newest perfume. But you should probably get it anyways :)

With my trip right around the corner, I've been spending a lot of time in the archives over at Messy Nessy Chic, a lovely and curated newsletter dedicated to all things French. Want stories of the past? You want vintage photos of Paris, style, food and fashion trends around France? You will love this newsletter then.

Since the release of Beauty and the Beast, I've seen the new live action film in theaters a few times and I've been listening to the soundtrack nonstop. Suffice to say, Evermore, the new single sung by the beast is so well done. I've been a fan of Josh Groban for years but I have to say, I find Dan Stevens performance  just as compelling!

My mom actually introduced me to the new newsletter Healthyish by Bon Appetit. In our initial conversation she said it was a magazine so I spent a few days trying to find out where to purchase it. And while the January issue of Bon Appetit introduces the new feature, it is only available as a newsletter on the Bon Appetit website, naturally I subscribed right away. I've been reading it on my lunch and have even incorporated a few recipes they have shared into my weekly meal prep.