“My life is good because I am not passive about it. I want to nourish what is real, and I want to do it without wasting time. I love to travel, to cook, to eat, to take care of my body and mind, to work hard.
Make your life good. Invest in what's real. Cook a meal for someone you love. Pause before reacting. Clean out your space. Read something beautiful. Treat yourself to something. Go to a city you've never been to. Learn something new. Don't be lazy. Workout and stick with it. Make it great.”
This is a Gwyneth Paltrow quote that I promise ties in very nicely with our very first newsletter theme, which speaking of, please allow me to quickly explain:
Welcome to Notes From A Small Kitchen!
The kitchen is a sacred place. It’s where food is - hopefully - lovingly made and enthusiastically shared. It’s a place that encourages community and laughter, it’s a place to share secrets and make memories. And it’s a place where I spend a big chunk of my time, considering I’m a recipe developer during work hours and homebaker during my off hours. That means I’ll probably be writing and sharing these from my kitchen, too.
So, please have a seat, tell me your favorite dessert while we share a cup of coffee and I bake you a cake - it’s my love language, lucky you.
I wanted to start a newsletter as a place where we can share thoughts, recommendations, and advice. As a curious person with far too many interests, I always have something to say and I’m always ready to hear whatever people have to say. Any excuse to build community and make connections is valid and vital in this chaotic world, even if it’s a silly little newsletter.
Every month will be a different theme. I’ve been doing this thing for a while now, where I start every month by assigning it a theme and then going through a very overly sentimental ritual of setting goals and routines, making a moodboard and a playlist that fit the theme. It gives me a sense of structure and purpose, and it’s low-commitment because it only lasts a month. Next month holds entirely new adventures and commitments of its own that we’re going to ignore for now. The goal is to focus on the present and not get overwhelmed.
I wanted the first theme to be Plan Some Luck because it’s been on my mind lately: having agency over your own life. Too often we forget that we actually have some control over our fate. Life keeps on throwing punches, but we can control the controllables.
I’ve been thinking about this ever since I took a career design course a few weeks ago. It’s one of those obvious things that you already know, but it suddenly hits you: luck is about taking the necessary steps that will put you in the right place at the right time. In other words, luck is when opportunity meets preparation (Seneca). I know, it’s so obvious(!!), but it’s also life changing because once you accept that in order to be lucky, you actually have to take some responsibility and make it happen, you realize that life is yours for the taking.
Don’t let uncertainty stop you. Until you have your dream life, you have nothing to lose, so be excited about the possibilites. Be like Gwyneth! Put in the effort, make your life beautiful. Make it great! She has a ton of privilege and it’s easy for her to say it, I get it, but we all have some sort privilege, too. So don’t be passive, go plan some luck. And if you need some guidance, just ask yourself, what would Elle Woods do? It always helps ;)
In keeping with the themes of taking control of your life, and.. Gwyneth? I guess? (how did we end up here?), is there anything GOOPer than a recipe for bone broth?
A wellness elixir to start your day, bone broth is not a lot of work, but it does take a long time. You won’t be able to leave your house for the next six to seven hours, but then again, you will have plenty of time to read that book or something. We’re smart ladies who read and don’t need boys, after all - jk, sadly. (wonderful recommendation below, though!)
I’m so in love with this book. I want to keep it in my pocket so I can pull it out and quote it at any given time and use it as reference. It’s not for everyone - it’s whimsical and eccentric - but that’s probably what makes it so special. Raphael Bob-Waksberg’s brain is a wild and wonderful place and I’m fascinated by the way way he sees the world and translate it into stories.
Someone who will love you in all your damaged glory is a collection of short stories about love - the best and worst thing in the universe.
I’m very interested in Stoicism as a way of life, and when it comes to having opinions, the Stoics see it as a source of most misery. They believe opinions are just subjective and narrow impressions of a vast and changing reality. Enters this podcast.
Wiser World, hosted by a History teacher, dives into current events and global topics, trimming down all the details and making it east to understand. It’s a great way to make sense of current events and international affairs and form your own opinion about each one. You’ll feel smarter and better equipped to debate any topic!
It’s decisively Fall, so it’s time for old Fall traditions like watching the same movies over and over again. If you’re looking for cozy, witchy movies to watch on a chilly evening, it doesn’t get more 90’s or cozier than a classic, chunky-sweater-wearing Sandra Bullock’s romcom where she somehow can’t find love, but life has better plans for her. “Peter once asked me when it was that I fell in love with Jack. And I told him, ‘It was while you were sleeping’."
And then, there’s the iconic Practical Magic - in case you’ve already seen it, this is your reminder to go rewatch it. Visually stunning (I mean, that house?! - which wasn’t real btw, it was just an architectural shell built for the filming of the exterior scenes🥲) and a wonderful mixture of magic, romance, spooky, and bizarre, it’s a celebration of sisterhood and the all-consuming destructive power of love.