The Month Of Festive Cheer: December 2025 Recap

Happy New Year! 2025 is complete and time continues to hold no meaning 🙂 . I’m writing this while watching snow fall on my idyllic little town. It’s quiet and beautiful here, which is a nice contrast to the festive madness that encompassed December. So let’s see what I got up to! 

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Lessons Learned After 11 Years Of Blog Writing

Somehow it’s been 11 years since I first typed words for this blog. That means that writing this blog has officially become my longest running hobby ever 🙂 . It’s the longest I’ve done anything actually – longer than my working career (9 years), longer than college (4 years) and way longer than my previous NaNoWriMo winning streak (2 years) before I boycotted them. Continue reading “Lessons Learned After 11 Years Of Blog Writing”

The Year Of Settling Down(ish): 2025 Goals & Accomplishments

Throughout the year, I like to jot down new things I’ve learned, read, watched and experienced to try and remember what each year entailed. I then summarize all of that in my annual goals and accomplishments posts.

The goal of these posts is not just to curate what I’ve been up to, but also to document how I’ve changed from one year to the next and how I’ve grown as a person. I also like to give each year a theme in retrospect.

I wasn’t sure what this year’s theme would be but upon reflection, it became clear 🙂 . I’ve decided that 2025 has been The Year Of Settling Down(ish). 

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The Month Of Thanks: November 2025 Recap

I’m writing this post while looking at the gorgeous fall leaves outside my NY apartment window. It’s a fully Knives Out vibe here and I am loving it. So let’s see what I got up to this month!
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Slow Travel Review: Auckland, New Zealand – The Land Of Nature And Cafes

When I first visited Auckland, New Zealand with my Mom in 2023 I thought, “My Partner would love this city”. It’s gorgeous, close to nature and filled with unique Mom and Pop coffee shops.

In 2025 after my Partner asked that we “meet in the middle” while I was in Japan and he was in New York, we met in Auckland and stayed for 6 weeks. I’m happy to report that he loved it for the reasons I suspected he would.

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How To Get The Most Out Of Your Library Card: Sister Libraries, Free Passes And Apps

A few months ago in the post below, I asked if anyone wanted me to elaborate on what I learned about all the benefits of library cards and I was pleasantly surprised that a lot of people did! So this is me fulfilling that promise.

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The Month I Became A Millionaire: October 2025 Recap

I’m writing this while looking out at the sun rising over the Rocky Mountains. Adorable birds are chirping and I’m curious what wildlife we’ll spot today (recent favorites included hawks, turkeys and deer).

Colorado has been an interesting first stop after being overseas for months. And it’s been a busy month so let’s get into it!

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Here’s What Retirees Do All Day! (I Recorded What I Did Every Hour For 5 Years Of Retirement)

I’m back at it 🙂 . Years ago I mentioned that I accidentally recorded everything I did in 1 hour increments for my whole first year of retirement. Originally this was because I was curious to see what I got up to with unlimited time, and later I found it so useful that I just kept doing it. Continue reading “Here’s What Retirees Do All Day! (I Recorded What I Did Every Hour For 5 Years Of Retirement)”