January 2024 Recap
All the things I got up to during this first month of the year
Last week I began feeling the inklings of burnout creep their way around my neck and chest and heart and lungs. Everything felt like too much. Peeling myself out of bed in the mornings became a struggle. All I wanted to do was to remain buried within the folds of my blankets and sleep and sleep and sleep.
My body demanded rest, so I gave it.
It’s strange, this constant fight back and forth within myself. I’ve written about and been intentional about my desire to put my body first, to slow down, to not do too much. Yet somehow, even with those strong intentions and accountability, I find the overwhelm quietly stacking itself upon my shoulders. I don’t notice the subtle shift in weight as my body slowly gets dragged down until it suddenly becomes a strain to pick one leg up after the other. I wonder why that is, why I have yet to notice the signs before it is too late?
If I am being truly honest with myself (and you), I’d say that I did notice the signs. I noticed them two weeks ago, yet chose to ignore them. I chose, instead, to fall back on my old, bad habits and fall comfortably into the well-worn shoes of equating productivity to my sense of worth. *Sigh* I suppose I should count it as a tiny win that I finally listened to my body’s cries for a pause last week instead of pushing through to do more, more, more. Perhaps next time I will stop a bit sooner and then a bit sooner still, until one day I don’t question myself or push myself when I feel those first sneaky tendrils of burnout sliding their way through my veins.
Because I took last week off from writing, I have an extra long post for you today! I was feeling all sorts of energy springing forth this morning as I sat down to write (I probably shouldn’t be surprised by *gasp!* the fact that resting has led to an increase in my vitality). So settle in with a nice cuppa and let’s see what I’ve been up to this month.
Body Health
I’m not entirely sure what to call this excerpt (I was never one for coming up with good titles or names), but basically, this past month, I did . . . just alright when it came to taking care of my body. I failed to stretch every single day (and really felt the effects of those skipped practices), but I did make it to my yoga mat most days, so that is a win in and of itself.
I find myself struggling (again) with this idea that whatever routine I craft today will somehow become the routine I must stick to or the rest of my life. I know this idea is absurd, but it’s simply how my brain operates. It sees the schedule I have planned out and immediately believes, “Ok, so this is what we are dealing with from now until infinity. Oh gosh, so 2.5 hours a day of stretching and strength training? Wow. That leaves very little room for anything else once you factor in Brittani wanting to do A,B,C and X,Y,Z. And of course we must do all the things all the time, so time to up the stress hormone and flood everything with it.”
It’s not wonder I get overwhelmed so quickly. I know my issue lies in the false belief that I need to do all the things all the time, and I’ve been challenging that belief, but it is incredibly slow work.
Recently, my friend Annika reminded me that what I need to focus on today will not necessarily be what I need to focus on in the future. That I can work on getting my body to a more healthful place but one day, I won’t need to do as much to establish the routines I’m struggling with because I’ll eventually fall into the habit of simply maintaining them. So, I’m going to take her wise advice and focus on the next two weeks for now. During those two weeks, I’ll be doing an above average amount of stretches and strengthening each day to help get my body back to a healthful place. I will focus on my pelvis/ hips as well as my shoulders and building up both their flexibility and strength in an effort to stave off my chronic pain. Once the two weeks are up, I will then determine whether I need to continue to maintain my current “schedule” or if I can ease out of some of the daily routines, i.e. instead of 2.5 hours on my mat, maybe I drop to 1.5 hours, alternating the days in which I stretch my shoulders vs. hips.
Bookish Boxes + Surprise Dates
I’ve recently restocked and updated my Surprise Date with a Book listing and you all have already surprised me and begun ordering—thank you! I get such a thrill every time I see someone purchase a book. I just think about how excited I’d be to receive an unknown-to-me-story and settling in for a cup of tea or coffee on a cold and rainy (or snowy) day. There is still time to order a gift for yourself (or a loved one) in time for Valentine’s / Galentine’s day. Whether you get just one book or you snag an entire box filled with bookish goodies, I promise it will delight the book-loving person in your life!
Book Clubs
This month, I attended two in-person book clubs plus a bonus online club that happened to be reading the same book (The Martian) as one of the other clubs. Of the three, I really liked the second, in-person meetup I went to. It was held at a little cafe and was comprised of six people, including myself. Personally, I really enjoyed how small the group was as compared to the other in-person club I attended which boasted around 20-30 people I believe. Plus, the second club was held at a little Spanish cafe, and both the coffee and food were divine, oh my gosh! At first, I was nervous about joining in, but everyone in the small group was so welcoming and the setting so intimate that I felt as if I had found a new batch of best book friends! The shakiness I had experienced at the larger book club meeting was nowhere to be found.
Next month I am trying out another new book club, this time in Athens. I still plan to attend the small book club I enjoyed in January, I just want to continue to see what else is available around my area. I’m very much in an exploratory phase as I branch out and meet new friends 💛.
Bringing the Blog Back
One of the things I’ve been severely missing has been writing blog posts. I’ve got so many ideas swimming around in my brain and topics I want to write on, but haven’t allowed myself the time or headspace to actually tackle any of them. So, it is my hope that I can begin rebuilding the blog-writing muscle I’ve put on the back burner for the past few years. That being said, I’d love your input!
Sewing Sale
I found a few more items in my sewing studio that I am ready to part with and—lucky you—they are coming in at 70% off with code Newsletter70! This is the final discount drop for all of my sewing supplies + hand sewn items currently listed in the shop as I transition away from sewing and more firmly into books.
Thank you to everyone who has already purchased stuff and helped me clear out the excess from my studio! It is so helpful, and I am so grateful to be moving my way towards a fresh start with the new direction of my business, all the while knowing these items are heading to wonderful, creative homes.
December Reading Wrap Up
This month I managed to finish 8 books in total. I read 4 non-fiction and 4 fiction books. Surprisingly, I didn’t have a bad book in the bunch. Some I loved more than others, but all of them were overall lovely reads. Below are the books in the order in which I loved them (a difficult task to choose!):
Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston — I loved everything about this book and am so thankful my neighbor lent it to me. This story imagines a world in which I would love to live. A more hopeful world where a female president is entirely possible, where people are allowed to love whomever they want, and where those who spit vitriol are denied access to power.
Untamed by Glennon Doyle — My friend
recommended this book to me and I have to say it came at exactly the right time! I managed to find a perfect copy at the thrift shop and tear through it in just 4 days. This memoir is all about finding yourself, learning to trust your own inner voice, and claiming the power that is so often denied to women. There were parts of the book that I felt were a little too didactic, but overall, I took a lot away from this read.Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa — There are two parts to this story, and they read incredibly differently. If I were to judge this book as a whole, it’d appear much lower on my list. Instead, I am only looking at the first half of the story which was my favorite bit and resonated with me giving me all those cozy, loving, days-spent-wandering-a-bookshop-with-your-friends vibe. The second half of he book felt as if it came kind of out of the blue and I so wish the author had simply chosen to expand more on the first half of the book.
The Art of Frugal Hedonism by Adam Grubb & Annie Raser-Rowland — This was just a really fun read that offered quick advice on different ways in which one might lead a more simplistic yet fulfilling life. Much of the advice is stuff I have seen online or written about in other books, but I still found nuggets of wisdom and new ways of looking at things that I hadn’t thought about. Plus, I really love the cover!
The Martian by Andy Weir — As my first true sci-fi read, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the story of Mark Watney being stranded on Mars. I mainly read this book because 1) I had already seen the movie and 2) it was part of two book clubs this month. The tone is really what drew me in and after re-watching the movie after having read the book, I found that I actually liked all the additional calculations and science being spouted off. I hadn’t felt that way while reading the book (my eyes glassed over some), but the lack of explanation in the movie gave me a greater appreciation for the book itself.
The Woman in Me by Britney Spears — This one all came down to writing style vs. content. I thought the content of this memoir was eye-opening to someone who has not yet seen the documentaries on Britney’s conservatorship. However, the writing style was incredibly lacking. I think I would have struggled if I had physically read the book, but because I listened to the audiobook, I managed to stay engaged. In the end, I had to vent for a good half-hour about all the terrible things this poor woman was put through. It made me incredibly heartsick.
You are a Badass by Jen Sincero — This was a re-read. I’ve always had some issues with the writing in this book, but I come back time and again whenever I am in need of a cheerleading presence in my life, someone to really bolster me and get me all pumped up and excited to tackle things that feel too big or too scary.
Main Character Energy by Jamie Varon — I so wanted to love this book with all my heart, but I found that it fell a bit flat for me. I struggled to connect with the main character, realized I am not a fan of stories written in the present tense (who knew?), and found there to be more telling than I wanted. Even though I agreed with the messaging running throughout the story and highlighted the heck out of some things that resonated with me, this sadly was my least favorite read of the month. But again, I still enjoyed it, especially given that the setting was in the south of France.
Novel News
On Friday, I received my shipment of 500 books (eeep!) and spent the entire weekend sorting through them, doing some QC with my partner. A few of the boxes arrived water damaged and beat up. After sorting through everything, we found that ~10% of the books had been damaged in some way which is disappointing, but seeing as the content inside of them is perfectly fine, I figured I’d still list them at a discounted price. So, if you don’t mind a cover that is less than perfect and want to save a few dollars off the list price of my debut novel, I’ve set up a seconds/ imperfect sale. These books are still eligible for the pre-order gift of locally crafted tea + fun packaging, too!
As for the undamaged books, I managed to put them up on the library bookshelves, and I got nearly all of them to fit! It’s kind of wild looking at this many of my own book sitting on the shelves, waiting to be sent out into the world.
This week, I’ve focused my attention on reaching out to more bookshops to see if they might want to carry ADILV. Once the email is sent, however, I am leaving it up to the universe to pick which (if any) shops respond and wish to carry my story. If none of them do, maybe the universe has different plans for it after all.
I’m also working towards sending out the first of the pre-orders—what?! Wild! I am putting together the boxes, tea, & other gifts before sending them off into the world. YAY!
Happy Imbolc,
Brittani
PS—Have you snagged your copy of A Daisy in Lily’s Valley ? Every order from now till publication day will still receive a signed copy + locally crafted, delicious tea from my favorite business, MePlusTea.
A portion of February’s paid subscriptions + website purchases will be donated to Atlanta Community Food Bank.
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OMG, the rebel in me would die if I set myself up for a 2,5 hrs of some routine, even if the most delicious one 😅. I understand that it's something your body needs right now but I wonder how it'd be if you started with some smaller pieces or more variety / flexibility in your routine. What works quite nice for me is that I know I want to do something for myself each day, but depending on how I feel I can choose if it's conscious rest, yoga, meditation, emotional deep dive, journaling, or reading. It keeps me accountable, and yet curious and attentive to my needs in each moment. PS: I had the same experience with Doyle's Untamed!