Summer Routines, Reset, and Recommendations
Hi, it's July☀️
Hi, friend! 🌸
Somehow it’s the beginning of July and summer is in full swing in NYC. May and June were insanely busy for me and filled with so many joyful moments: I saw one of my closest friends get married, spent a week at my parents’ house in northern CA, and cheered on my partner's new band at their first show. I’ve also been struggling with social (and physical) fatigue, overcoming jet lag, and acutely missing my own bed. Honestly, I’ve been feeling unmoored and as a result, I’ve been deprioritizing the small routines that help me feel like the best version of myself, including writing on Substack. Oops!
As with most things - but especially my fledgling creative practices - consistency is crucial: the longer I go without writing, the harder and scarier it is to sit down and just begin. I’m still learning how to express my voice in writing and to be candid… I frequently struggle with self doubt and comparison (the joys of the internet). How do other people find the time to write so much or make writing look so effortless?! Simultaneously I’m trying to balance sharing parts of my inner world while - most importantly - being present in my real life. It’s a work in progress.
I’ve always been a highly structured person and find comfort in creating routines and rituals for myself. The intensity and focus of my routines have waxed and waned over the years: I’ve come a long way since my early twenties, when I didn’t keep real bread in the house and tricked myself into becoming a runner. I actually don’t like running, and sourdough bread is my favorite food group.
While I’ve become less rigid about my ‘wellness’ habits (and life), I still struggle to give myself flexibility with my daily routines and rituals. I came down with a nasty cold at the end of June and while I knew that I deserved rest, I was frustrated that I didn’t have the energy to exercise or write a Substack post.
I recently heard someone say they try to wear their routines like a loose garment: gently guiding, ever-present, and flexible enough to move with the current of life. No restriction, self-imposed rules, or forcing myself to continue a practice simply because I think I must. Loose garment energy is what I’m striving for this summer (both literally and metaphorically) and I’m trying my best to embrace this fleeting period of light, movement, and adventure. Leo season is right around the corner!
In the spirit of loose garments and self care, I put together a gentle plan to help me feel more grounded after several weeks of travel and a month of feeling constantly untethered. Each day last week, I wove in these small and achievable practices to get back to my personal homeostasis. If you’re coming back from a trip and/or want to take small moments throughout the day to recenter, hopefully this can serve as inspiration for you. 🙂
My mini reset routine, in no particular order:
5 minutes of meditation - I use the Headspace app
Morning walk - At least 15 minutes! This is a non-negotiable for me every day, rain or shine. Walking, ideally with no phone/music/podcast, consistently boosts my mood, creativity, and energy.
Journaling - Ideally in the morning. More on this in my post on morning pages and how they’ve changed my life.
Morning reading - 10 minutes, max because I strive to keep my morning routine under 30 minutes. I’m currently reading Wherever You Go There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn.
No social media for at least 1 hour after waking up. This one is so important to me. Starting my day on Instagram or TikTok sends me to a negative place.
15 minutes of creativity - For me this looked like 15 minutes of writing every day last week (re: consistency ^!!) and I was so proud that I followed through with this small goal. Swap this with any joyful/creative hobby of your choice.
If you try this plan, let me know how you feel after a few days. What are your rituals and routines that help you get grounded and centered? Let me know in the comments below.
Recommending from June
While I have been MIA from Substack, don’t worry - I’ve still been consuming my normal amount of content and have many recommendations! Here are some of the best that I’m excited to share with you! If you can’t tell by now, curating/recommending is one of my biggest joys. I narrowed down June’s loves to my 3 favorite reads and 3 favorite podcast episodes.
Books:
Wellness by Nathan Hill - I loved this book - it was an intimate, raw portrait of a family and I felt so invested in the characters. I listened to this book Audible and really enjoyed the narrator.
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke - I knew nothing about this book before starting and was extremely confused for the first 75 pages… but then it all came together. I don’t want to give too much away but it was a deeply moving story about humanity that left me feeling both hopeful and sad. I couldn’t stop thinking about the story for days.
Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan - A nearly perfect petite book. My only qualm is that I wish it was longer. The book was beautifully written about a topic I knew nothing about. It sent me down a deep Wikipedia rabbit hole!
Per many of your recommendations, I’m currently reading Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. I’ve been awake till 1am the past few nights fully immersed in the story!
Podcasts:
“Maya on Brené Brown’s Podcast” on A Slight Change of Plans (I listened to this episode twice!)
“Awe and Psychedelics with Michael Pollan” on A Slight Change of Plans
“Julia Gets Wise with Julie Andrews” on Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus
A special thank you to an extremely devoted Spring Cleaning subscriber (my mom!) for introducing me to my new favorite podcast, A Slight Change of Plans. Every episode has altered my brain chemistry - it was hard to just pick two!
Sparking Joy in June
🏓Playing pickleball
🍓Picking my own fruit
🥕Volunteering at the community garden
🌳Drinking coffee in my parents’ backyard
🐦Identifying birdsongs with the Merlin app
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Thank you so much for reading! I deeply appreciate each and every one of you. 🌸
Wow, I'm so impressed by your morning routine! Staring at my phone and "catching up" on everything is always the first thing I do haha. But I'm also a big fan of the morning walk-- can't wait for it not to be so hot outside because that makes it not quite as fun!
The morning walk is key! Especially with no music or podcasts. Starting journaling again as well - game changer.