Things worth sharing...

What I've been reading, eating, writing, watching, and listening to lately — I hope you'll share too!

Hello!

Happy Halloween. This year, I’m dressing up as a middle-aged woman rotting on the sofa while binge-watching season two of Nobody Wants This. Oh wait… that’s real-life… Oops.

Anyway, this is a new series I’m trying out, so we can all share what we’ve been into/up to lately, including writing, reading, eating, watching, listening, and more! I’ll likely play with the format a bit, but you can expect a letter like this around the end of each month.

I want these catch-ups to feel like a group chat where we can all share and ask for specific recs, so I’d love for you to chime in via the comments. Please also feel free to drop a link to one of your recent posts in the comments section!

1. I learned about Ikigai. In short, the Japanese are doing something right, and I think we could all benefit from their approach to adding more meaning to our lives. The tricky part is figuring out how to combine what we love, what we’re good at, what we can get paid for, and what the world needs. Working on it!

2. I’ve enjoyed memoirs and self-development books lately. Fiction just isn’t doing it for me, but after I finish Elizabeth Gilbert’s book, All The Way to the River, I might take a stab at reading something lighter. I’m not sure how I feel about the book yet. I’m trying not to let some of the bad reviews, like this one, influence me, but they do have a point. If you’re also in the midst of reading this one/have finished it… would love to know your thoughts!

3. I tore through Molly Shannon’s memoir, Hello, Molly! — I love how raw, honest, and funny she is.

4. Loved Asia Dawn’s letter to her 32-year-old self. For context, on the night of her 32nd birthday, she caught her husband in the home of another woman… yikes!

5. This piece on writing and making art by Margaret Hutton (on Sari Botton’s pub Memoir Land) inspired me to sign up for oil painting classes again. I agree that exploring other types of creativity (like drawing and painting) can improve your writing (and your mood, too!).

6. I’ve been on the hunt for good bagels ever since I moved from Brooklyn to Amsterdam in 2019. I’ve found two places that pass my NYC bagel snobbery test — Breadwinner and BagelBoy. Buuuuut when I recently fell into an Instagram rabbit hole and stumbled across a 2-ingredient Greek yogurt bagel recipe, I had to try it out for myself! If cooking is not your thing, keep scrolling to #7.

   

   Ingredients (makes 4 bagels)

   • 300g (2 cups) self-raising flour (or plain flour + 2 tsp baking powder)

   • 280g (1 cup + 2 tbsp) thick Greek yogurt (10% fat works best)

   • 1 tsp salt

   Cooking instructions

   • Preheat oven to 200°C / 400°F (fan) and line a baking tray with parchment.

   • Make the dough by mixing flour, yogurt, and salt until crumbly. Knead lightly in the bowl for 30 seconds until smooth (add flour if sticky).

   • Divide the dough into 4 pieces. Either roll into 6” ropes and join ends, or press into discs and poke/stretch a hole in the center (this is what I did). Place on tray.

   • [Optional] Drop bagels into boiling water for 1 min, flip, and boil 30 sec more. Return to tray. (I think next time I’ll skip the boiling step, as it caused one to fall apart, and it appears that with the type of oven I have, baking alone works better.)

   • Sprinkle toppings directly on bagels if boiled, or brush with egg/milk/water first if unboiled. Optional toppings. Everything bagel seasoning, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, flaky sea salt, or cinnamon sugar (or whatever your little heart desires!).

   • Bake 20–25 min until golden brown, rotating the tray halfway.

   • Cool, then enjoy. I let them cool while I made the filling for a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich, of course.

7. My boyfriend’s parents were visiting us from Turkey, so I thought I’d introduce them to some wholesome American comedy one night by watching Bad Neighbors. However, I had forgotten that this was the opening scene. AWWKKKWWWAAARRRDDD. But I still love this movie. Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne are just such a funny pair.

8. Last night I started season two of Nobody Wants This. What are our thoughts on the second season so far? I still have a massive crush on Adam Brody since the first kiss scene from season one! I showed it to my boyfriend, and now he keeps touching my face. Smooth. Lol

9. My musical taste is all over the place, so I checked the last three songs I recently added to my “Liked Songs” on Spotify. Clearly, I’m feeling a bit nostalgic for 90s to early 2000s dance music. 🫣

Just added this playlist to my Spotify library while writing… so good!

10. This month, I published four pieces ranging from a humorous take on entering midlife to pumpkin recipes, a Brussels travel diary, and a personal story about how my marriage ended on FaceTime back in 2019. I’ve linked to them in case you missed something.

Your turn! Share away in the comments.

See you soon,

Alexis