Season 6 (2022)
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This week’s weather has been gorgeous with cool mornings and warm, sunny afternoons. The end of last week was a different story. We actually had a few snow days (typical Central Texas weather with mostly ice and little snow), so my son and I made these gluten-free linzer cookies after not getting around to making them over the holidays. Spoon a little raspberry or strawberry jam in the middle and you’ve got a sweet Valentine’s Day treat for someone you love.
Throughout this week and next week’s blog post, you’ll find links to celebrate Black History Month. Share your experiences, thoughts, and discoveries during Black History Month in the comments section below this blog post.
New Year, New Debt - Hannah at YNAB wants to help you out. (*link may have sound) Try YNAB free for 34 days* (YNAB is what we use for our budget, and we LOVE it!)
NATURE
I can attest to the beauty and intricacy of a hummingbird’s nest. We found this one a few years ago.
Wondering when you should hang your bird house?
Hummingbird builds tiny nest (*link may have sound)
My son always got a kick out of a mockingbird at our last house that would make car alarm sounds. Check out this bird mimicking sounds. (*link may have sound) He’s really putting together a unique mix tape to attract a mate. The sounds are a reflection of what has changed in this bird’s environment as many are man-made inventions.
Watch a blue titmouse build a nest (*link may have sound)
WELLNESS
After crying my eyes out at the movie Hachi over the holidays (a movie so heart-wrenching I’m not even sure I could recommend it) and secretly crying while watching Where the Red Fern Grows in my 4th grade class as a child, I think we all want to know DoesTheDogDie.com? Crowdsourced trigger warnings that involve people and animals (hate speech, abuse, phobias, etc) help users to navigate movies, tv, or books they plan to watch. Thank you for giving our sensitive hearts a little heads-up!
CREATIVITY
Black History Month Profile: Victory Grill on KUTX
(*Video link below has sound)
Artist Ekow Nimako creates Afrofuturistic themes in LEGO bricks (be sure to watch the video about his work)
Black History Month - Join Etsy in celebrating Black-owned shops and artists
BOOKSHELF
Leave it to magical realism to explain grief in the most heartfelt and curious ways. Several of the books I’ve read recently have a thread of grief paired with something warm to drink as a conduit to transforming their experience of losing someone they love.
Remind yourself where you drifted off to sleep while reading with this awesome bookmark made by an artisan right here in Austin, Texas.
Stories about grief are also stories about love, heartache, acceptance, and forgiveness. Books that discuss grief in unexpected ways help us all process loss and begin to explore concepts much bigger than this life. These books ask us what it means to live a fulfilled life, to be vulnerable, to take risks, and to fully love someone.
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi . This sweet little book in translation was a magical trip into what would happen if we could go back in time to visit someone even if we couldn’t change the future. Would you do it? Be sure to read Tales from the Cafe* as a follow up book.
In Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune, the author’s voice is so distinct in his books that I am immediately drawn in by his wit, humor, and magical storytelling. This book explores the stages of grief and complexity of life and death through each character’s unique journey as they reside, if only temporarily, at Charon’s Crossing Tea and Treats. The process of grief is complex and messy. In this story T.J. Klune leans into the very real emotions associated with losing someone and gives his characters time to navigate the choppy waters of loss with care, curiosity, honesty, and even heartfelt laughter. This book is also a love story in the most surprising ways.
I also loved his other book The House in the Cerulean Sea* on audio from Libro.fm.
Read or watch an interview with T.J. Klune. (*links may have sound)
“You keep asking why your work is not enough, and I don’t know how to answer that because it is enough to exist in the world and marvel at it. You don’t need to justify that or earn it. You are allowed to just live. That is all most animals do.“
-Splendid Speckled Mosscap
For a book pick that touches lightly on grief, purpose, and change, A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers, is a quick read that offers a little burst of uplifting energy and hope.
Sibling Dex travels as a tea monk and later as an untethered explorer into the wilderness where humans and robots no longer interact, but they find a robot who befriends them on their journey. Splendid Speckled Mosscap, their new robot friend, through its own natural curiosity helps Dex discover whether having a life’s purpose holds as much importance as society may lead them to believe. Be sure to keep an eye out for the follow-up book, A Psalm for the Crown-Shy*, coming out in July of 2022.
I loved this book on audio from Libro.fm*
COMMUNITY
“When we reject the single story. When we realize that there is never a single story about any place. We regain a kind of paradise.”
The Danger of a Single Story - (*link may have sound) Thank you to the community book club at my son’s school and their SEL and Cultural Proficiency Department for this link
Raising a Child to Be a Feminist. (*link may have sound) Why we must name the problem before we can explore it. You can find Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s most recent book here.*