New Year, Same Hot Takes
BYOApplesauce
Happy New Year! My January started today so if you have been living in 2023 for nine days don’t tell me what happens. Over the holidays I visited my grandmother in Arizona, which is NOT going to be governed by Kari Lake thank you very much, and then I went to Istanbul, which was, predictably, incredible. 2,000 years is just enough time to built a pretty great city and although I felt like I walked through every inch of it I probably saw about 5% of what it had to offer. Which is fine with me because I will definitely be back.
Now I’m here, back in the real world. Well, at this very moment I am at Soho House which is decidedly not the real world but does have delicious vegan chocolate pots. But I am back from vacation and caught up on The Circle which is as real as it gets, so I woke up at 4:30 this morning, ready to get to work. This is a big year for me and I have a lot to accomplish. 2023 is my Slytherin year. I have ten months to get a lot of very big, scary things done and the countdown has begun. This is not a Gryffindor year, when one can run around waving wands at every perceived threat and accidentally save the world every nine months. This is a year for focused intention, long hours, and getting paid. The kids may be here for the soft life but I am here to hustle. This is the year I turn 40, the year my life changes in a few very big ways, the year that everything I have ever worked for either measures up or doesn’t. I can’t wait.
I downloaded TikTok while jetlag and youthful partygoers were keeping me up in Istanbul and among the disturbingly anti-feminist videos about the aforementioned soft living and a lot of comically accurate videos about capitalism I found an interesting dialogue about energy- masculine and feminine energy, where you are placing your energy, where you are wasting it. The kids are also into manifestation which, sure, I remember when Oprah read The Secret, but the question of where I am putting my energy this year and how often I waste it or hold it back from where it should be going is one that I am pondering a lot. This is a moment when time is short and energy matters. What am I doing with mine?
Do you have any New Year’s intentions? Are you seeking and/or living the soft life? Are you relieved that we have a Speaker or sad that the drama is over? Tell me in the comments!
What to do with your time:
Watch
Mo (Netflix)- I don’t know why I clicked on this show I had never heard of but I’m glad I did. It’s a delight.
Sparking Joy with Marie Kondo (Netflix)- I gave this a rewatch as I cleaned and organized my space for the New Year and it was the perfect companion.
The Menu (HBOMax)- I recommended this before but now it’s on HBO so you have no excuse. Unless you don’t have HBO.
Read
I have a new bucket list item. Any takers?
I love Appalachia and I’m thrilled that someone is reframing the narrative.
Let me list the things I hated about this article: 1) IP law is a thing; 2) craft, art, and legacy used to mean something; 3) WE ARE ALL WELL AWARE THAT LUXURY KNOCKOFFS SUPPORT ORGANIZED CRIME AND THEIR NEFARIOUS DEEDS LIKE THE TRAFFICKING OF DRUGS AND HUMANS; 4) The Cut wrote this article like an add for purchasing expensive knockoffs and not, you know, A JOURNALISTIC PIECE ON PEOPLE DOING CRIMES because crime is fun when rich white women do it.
Speaking of fun and crimes, Vietnam has their very own Anna Delvey.