Hi there,
My goodness am I loving the beautiful, sunny weather here!
(I know, the rain is going to return soon, and I am happy for the plants and all that, but man did I enjoy my Rivella on a sunny terrace overlooking a beautiful lake this Saturday).
Nature is my happy place, and I’ve been enjoying some gorgeous parts of Switzerland this weekend. What did you do?
I was planning to share some outdoorsy resources in this two-minute treat, but I will save them for sunnier days in order not to torture you too much.
So here we go, some indoor inspiration:
WHOM I DEARLY MISS
It’s King’s Day in the Netherlands, which also means it is the 5th anniversary of my grandmother’s death.
One of the things that I’ve always found remarkable about my grandmother was her intellectual curiosity. Until late in her 80s, she was following the latest ventures of the Curiosity Rover on Mars, and insisted on taking selfies with my cousins (whereas I didn’t even know how to turn the camera to face me at the time).
In tomorrow’s session with the WOMEN’S HUB, we will explore how our ancestors can inspire our current endeavors. What is/was remarkable about yours?
WHAT I LISTEN TO
I know, I promised to share the occasional 90’s hit song in these 2-minute treat emails. But what I am really listening to on a daily basis is less exciting - but probably more useful to share with you.
Although scientists can’t seem to agree on the effect of music on productivity, I genuinely believe that listening to this playlist helps me focus - even if it’s just placebo;)
WHAT I AM GOING TO READ
I’ve been waiting for this book for a month, and it’s finally launched today. It’s called ‘You Are Your Best Thing: Vulnerability, Shame Resilience, and the Black Experience’ and is edited by two women I deeply admire: Tarana Burke and Brené Brown.
Ironically, I feel ashamed sharing it here, as it might come across as ‘look at me, the privileged white woman, doing my homework’. But hey, since this email is about me sharing things I am excited about - this is THE book for me this month. If you’re reading it with me, let me know how you like it.
WHAT GUILTY PLEASURE I INDULGED IN
A massage. I got a massage yesterday! I’ve been holding back on so many of my self care activities during this pandemic, because most of the things I love happen to involve other humans.
Luckily, my beloved husband secretly booked a massage for me for my birthday. The 1,5 hours on that massage table were quite literally life changing.
What do you do to take care of yourself these days?
WHAT NEVER CEASES TO MAKE ME GIGGLE HYSTERICALLY
One of my first presentations in school was about the peculiarities of the Dutch language (mind you, I was 10. It’s a miracle I wasn’t bullied).
Now that I am learning German, I am totally into language jokes again. So I can’t help but share one of my all-time favorite jokes about the French language (I find it works best if you visualize ‘French’ as a proud little kid):
French: …Sixty-seven, sixty-eight, sixty-nine, sixty-ten…
Other languages: **stares**
French: **stares back**
French: …sixty-eleven, sixty-twelve, sixty-thirteen…
French: …sixty-sixteen, sixty-ten-seven…
Other languages: *shutting eyes*
French: …sixty-ten-eight, sixty-ten-nine…
Other languages: *hands over face*
French: …four twenties! :) Four twenties one…
(It’s ok if that didn’t make you laugh. I can’t see your face while you’re reading this anyway. But if it did, let me know😉)
