I’ve been listening through The Lord of the Rings trilogy, re-reading them for the first time since my original read 20+ years ago. I got the Andy Serkis narration edition and they’re great. It feels like the right time of year to read LOTR—because even though the books have been around far longer than the…
My Christmas tree is up, a small light shining in the darkness. Advent begins this weekend, and we are poised to look forward over the coming weeks. When you celebrate the coming joy, remember this moment of the darkness, when the light is all you have to hold on to. Around the Web When Hope…
Okay, who loves Thanksgiving leftovers? Who hates them? Who eats Chinese or Mexican food on Friday and Saturday just to have something different than the Thanksgiving feast? Around the Web How to Find Gratitude in the Trenches of Motherhood Some days, it’s hard to be grateful. Janet Perez Eckles explores how to find gratitude in…
It’s dangerous, but my favorite pizza place, a week after I have ordered, sends me a text message saying something like, “Last week, you got pizza. Wanna get it again?” I resisted this week, but, well, I’m eating naan baked with marinara sauce and cheese and pepperoni on it, so maybe I didn’t after all….
Mooses with Bazookas What on earth is this? A novel? A picture book? A crime? It’s an illustrated collection of stories and humorous letters, with a novella (Mooses with Bazookas) in its middle. It stars a mouse, a moose, a dog who can speak Alienese, and other lovable misfits. It’s perfect for people who need, or…
This week our temperatures dropped and we went from 80+ degrees on Saturday to a frozen mailbox this morning. I prefer the cooler temps and have reveled in the frosty days and bright sunshine of this week. Growing up in Michigan, November was an “ugly month”—after autumn, but before winter—but since moving south, I’ve had…
For context, I typically write this newsletter in the evenings. On days when I have a large lunch (today, for instance), I often don’t really need dinner. But if I stay awake past 8 pm, I get peckish before bedtime. The logical bedtime snack is, of course, cereal. I can see at least half of…
This week I’ve had to debate each night whether to turn on the heat in my house, but so far, I’ve held off… A friend of mine asked this week: are you a keep it cold in the room and cuddle under warm blankets person or a keep the room warm person? I pass the…
My cat has, I think, forgiven me for leaving town last week. Or—at least—he’s determined to make sure I know he’s here. He’s been meowing or chirruping at me all day and now is looking at me from the floor, considering jumping on my laptop. I think everything is back to normal. Around the Web…
I went to hear Daniel Nayeri read his book, The Many Assassinations of Samir, Seller of Dreams and forgot to prep an email, so we’re coming to you late this week. If you haven’t yet treated yourself and your kids to Samir, I am here to remind you that you should—and while you’re at it, get Everything Sad is…
I’m writing this from a hotel room—I have a work retreat for the next couple days and before I do my best to unplug for the weekend, I’m knocking out a Warren & the World. Out my window is the top level of the parking garage next door, with one single vehicle parked on it….
I made a conscious decision last week to set aside my many podcasts (all of which I really enjoy) for a time and focus instead on audiobooks in my car rides. I used to listen to audiobooks almost exclusively in the car, but the rise of the podcast pushed the habit aside and reserved it…
