Wrote L.M. Montgomery: “It was November--the month of crimson sunsets, parting birds, deep, sad hymns of the sea, passionate wind-songs in the pines." She probably didn't spend much time in Vancouver in November, as she forgot to mention the days (and days) on end of rain. I am certainly having to adapt to this climate, but I'm ever grateful for piping coffee, cozy knits and wool socks to counterbalance the gloominess and knock the chill out of my bones!
For a long time, the calendar flip to November was not all that alluring to me. Lover of Octobers that I am, I was not so excited at the sight of bare branches nor days cold to the bone. November represented the cusp of the grey winter doldrums. Yet, in recent years, November has presented itself as a really lovely month. Mornings dawn crisp and chilly, beckoning you for a bundled walk amidst leaves barely hanging on. Here in Vancouver especially, with Summer lasting a bit longer and Fall making her grand debut a few weeks later than in Québec, I find myself gawking over the mount of leaves at my feet, and streets that are *still* ablaze with fiery colors so late into the year. I take frequent walks, often clutching my umbrella, mesmerized by the leaves readying themselves to dance their golden farewell. My beloved street is a forest of ochre, rust, crimson, marigold - and every wander is a feast for the eyes.
Despite the aura of autumn in the city, Christmas cheer is slowly ascending. Mums and dahlias are turning to pine wreaths and balsam garlands. If you've been around this blog or my Instagram before, you know I don't mind too much.
Yes, I love November. There is something so special -so comforting -about these days where autumn coziness and Christmas merrymaking overlap, like two shingles on a roof. It is familiar yet astonishing all at once.
Here are some of the things I'm holding close, pondering and enjoying this season. I hope they are interesting to you, too.
- Missing this city fiercely these days.
- One of my favorite Christmas hymns.
- Guys, I can't recommend a subscription to the New Yorker enough. You get a free tote by signing up!
- Joan Didion, as always, inspiring me with her words. I am adoring her book of essays, Slouching Towards Bethlehem.
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| Credit: Nitch |
- I won't be seeing the Nutcracker at the New York City ballet this year like last, but this soundtrack is just the thing.
- Keep encouraging local small businesses! I have just loved the glow and aroma of this Spruce and Amber candle by Brand & Iron, a Vancouver-based company.
- I can't wait to watch this documentary and delve into the world of booksellers! I daren't admit the amount of afternoons spent ambling New York City's bookstores last year -many of which appear in this trailer. Quite candidly, I can't walk into a bookstore and NOT buy at least a couple books (ahem, it's a problem). But the future of the bookstore industry is quite uncertain -and if their profit margin wasn't small enough already, I can only imagine how the pandemic has heightened their anxieties. All this to say: fellow bookworms, if you can skip an Amazon purchase, e-book, or book department store and instead encourage a local bookseller, do it!
- Speaking of independent bookstores, how lovely are these? I have visited a couple but need to make my way to more of them!
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| Credit: Town & Country Magazine |
- I will forever have a crush on Nora Ephron, and wear an unholy amount of turtlenecks come October to prove it. Autumn is my favorite time of year to watch her many movies. This year, my sister and I watched Bewitched, When Harry met Sally, and You've Got Mail over Facetime!
- But did you know Nora Ephron writes, too?! My admiration for her knows no bounds. This is a beautiful essay of hers on rent, love, and a New York City building. "Things change in New York; things change all the time. You don’t mind this when you live here; it’s part of the caffeinated romance of the city that never sleeps. But when you leave you experience change as a betrayal."
- Fellow slipper-wearers, would you not agree with me that these look like the ideal pair?
- I really try to avoid politics on this blog. Unlike a conversation around a table, I find posting online often just fosters division more than fruitful dialogue. But this article, entitled "Ivanka Trump Was My Best Friend. Now She's MAGA Royalty", albeit arguably an act of opportunism, was fascinating to me (not to mention well written). "Whether Ivanka is able to rehab her stained image or not, I hope she wasn’t able to drown out the applause of the city she once aspired to rule, cheering and celebrating her political downfall."
- No matter one's political conclusions, I can't get over Harris calling Biden in her cozies when he was pronounced President-elect. Onward!
- For those of us working in violence prevention and the fight for gender equality, this is an important week. The 16 days of activism surrounding the end of gender-based violence start now! Check out UN Women for upcoming posts.
- Beautiful, thought-provoking blogpost by Elizabeth Bristol on the theology of Fräulein Maria.
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Credit: Elizabeth Bristol |
- I recently purchased the cookbook Fraiche Food, Full Hearts by Jillian Harris and Torri Wesszer and I love it. It has many creative takes on comfort food, gluten-free recipes, etc. I made their skillet cornbread recipe for chili night last week and it was delicious!
- Another cookbook shoutout: Mandy's Gourmet Salads. My cousins got it for us for our engagement, as a nod to an esteemed Montreal franchise. I've loved trying out their recipes!
- Thoughts on baking with tea? I am all in! I made these pumpkin chai cookies the other week (loved!) and must try this London fog brioche French toast recipe soon.
- One of my closest friends Vic and her husband Levi are inspiring creatives and entrepreneurs. Check out their custom maps! A truly beautiful Christmas gift, if you ask me!
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| Credit: Wilder Heart Co |
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| Credit: Everlane |
- I loved this piece on how Greta Gerwig wrote the movie Little Women. Paul and I just watched her version of the classic for a second time, and we plan on comparing it to the 1994 version. I love both. I prefer the 1994 soundtrack (listen HERE), yet found the 2019 version to be more stunning cinematographically, more true to the book in terms of the storyline and character portrayal and development. I can't wait for Paul's take!
- What a beautiful ode to a beloved author, Marilynne Robinson. "This is Robinson’s entire cosmology: the world is self-evidently miraculous, but only rarely do we pay it the attention it deserves. Robinson calls her style of writing cosmic realism, a patient chronicling of the astonishing nature of existence. Her attentiveness to creation at every level is what makes her fiction so convincing: she sees everything, including us."
- Advent begins on November 29. We could all use some earnest anticipation for new life and our coming King. Here are my Advent plans.
- This is a beautiful word on Advent and gentleness by Sarah Clarkson, one of my favorite follows on Instagram.
- Ballet and Sufjan Stevens? I can't get enough of the partnership in this short film by the San Francisco Ballet.
- I love this collection of reading corners. As for me, my reading spot of choice is the edge of my couch or in my bed, nestled under a blanket with a candle flickering and a cup of tea.
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| Credit: Cup of Jo |
- The Faces of Americans Living in Debt. Striking!
- Church discipline is a complicated topic that is nowadays often avoided in the Church. This post by Andrea Burke (whom I admire immensely as a woman of faith, and love following on Instagram) is so poignant and rooted in the hope of the gospel.
- As a bride, I have really appreciated this planning book and The Knot in the wedding planning process.
- What a lovely Christmas drink!
- Life goal: making a pie that looks like this one.
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| Credit: Hip Foodie Mom |
- Love this colorized video of a snow fight in 1897 in Lyon, France.
- Music is a powerful tool of sense memory, and is thus often used for minds affected by Alzheimer's. This video of a woman, once a ballerina, remembering choreography at the sound of Swan Lake is so moving. Waterworks!
- "The American Mythology of Racial Progress" by Jennifer A. Richeson is a fascinating commentary. I'm so curious to hear others' thoughts on this.
- I read this article by Charles Officer months ago, but wanted to add it here. As Canadians, we must recognize that racism is very much a problem here, too.
- I am all about brass candlesticks and taper candles. Also, Lore Ferguson Wilbert not only writes beautiful words but makes beautiful spaces like this and this. I love her! Find her Instagram page here, and her blog here.
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| Credit: Sayable |
- And since I mention her beautiful words, here is a piece where she once again reminds us that unity does not mean uniformity. I can't tell you how deeply I have appreciated her discussions about navigating this politically-charged season as a Christian. "If we can’t respect one another, then our problem has turned partisan. We have begun to see human beings as, as I said in a conversation with a friend this week, merely the parts of their sum and not also the sum of their parts."
- In the same vein, this article by Tish Harrison Warren was very helpful to me too. "To be a political alternative, we like the early church must confuse calcified cultural categories. Those early Christians were cultural misfits: radically pro-life, sexually chaste, committed to the poor and marginalized, and devoted to racial and ethnic justice and reconciliation. We are called to the same. These convictions don’t place us neatly in one political party. But our current emaciated political theology has formed us into what Tim Keller calls red evangelicals or blue evangelicals who ignore or denigrate parts of Scripture and tradition that don’t fit into our prior partisan commitments."
- Paul's sister gifted me with this short book for my birthday and it was so moving, so lyrical, so uplifting. I love following along on the author's art endeavors here.
- How to make dried orange garlands. I am planning on decorating Number 668 with these very, very soon!
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| Credit: Cashmere and Plaid |
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| Credit: Zara Home |
Well I think this will keep you all busy reading and researching and thinking for a while. I hope this post sparked some inspiration and cheer in your day. Feel free to comment what you have been loving lately. It's a joy to hear from you.
So long, friends!
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