Hi friends! This is kind of a summer reading challenge (for adults!), although it doesn’t have to be for summer—any time is a great time to read around the world. I got the idea for a global reading challenge when I was shelving fiction in our new place. I was noticing the books set in foreign countries, and thinking about
Category: Semi-Charmed Life.
Hey there, brilliant, funny, good-looking reader! I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how to compliment people. Even though we all know how to compliment someone, it’s easy for me, at least, to forget to do it when I get too focused on my work. But I know how a compliment can make someone’s day. Some of us have gotten
As I’m writing this on Sunday, I’m looking forward to visiting my brother and his family. For the past two weeks, we’ve all been anxious about his daughter, one of my favorite people in the world (seriously; I dedicated my last book to her), who’s been sick with COVID-9 symptoms: fever, cough, body aches, shortness of breath, and exhaustion. The
Hey, everyone! Lately, because things have been stressful, I’ve being doing a lot of journaling. It’s sort of a cross between a spiritual exercise and therapy for me, and coming up with my own journal ideas helps me not obsess too much on the news. I thought I’d share some of my mindfulness journal prompts with you. I love journaling
I feel embarrassed writing about this, but if you can’t be honest in your blog, where can you be, right? I’ve always had some workaholic symptoms, like many writers with full-time jobs, and I’ve written about work/life balance before. But in the past almost-three years, I became a full-blown workaholic. Some people describe themselves this way as a brag. I
Hi, friends! I’ve written before about how well positive thoughts work for me…and about how I have a hard time with positive self-talk, like most people do! So if you’re looking for how to think positive, these are some fun and silly—okay, straight-up cheesy—ways to do it. Even though these self-compliments are tongue-in-cheek, and you may roll your eyes a
A few weeks back, I spent some time on online forums where high school students were talking about applying to colleges. It was research for a very short scene in The Equinox Stone (and I am always guilty of over-researching in my writing.) I was really struck by how these kids seemed to think their future prospects and their whole