Vol. 57: Feeding our creative sides/Sabaddie in review

Photo by Mariah Miranda. Peacoat rented via Nuuly.

Sabbatical often consisted of two types of days: I’d wake up eager to get out of the house to explore my neighborhood and DC, write for hours at the coffee shop, or cross things off my to do list, yet I ended up spending the day on the couch; alternatively, I’d plan to spend the day doing as little as possible, only to end up grocery shopping for two hours, cooking an elaborate meal, running around completing errands, or spending time on my computer for endless life admin work.

I'm a work in progress when it comes to coming back to the middle. Despite this, I still feel at peace that I did what I set out to do on my six-week sabbatical: explore, relax, and feed my creative side.

Exploration

I’ve written previously about my time in Italy here. It already feels so long ago!

Bae and I spent a long weekend leaf peeping in Vermont. Thanks to Ariel for so many great recs!

• Hits: Hiking Mt. Philo; the fireplace in the Martin Chester room at The Arlington Inn (h/t Purple Roofs); crab toast and hot cider by the fire at the Crooked Ram; Maple Creemes; Black Flannel Brewing; journaling and reading together while drinking my maple latte at Uncommon Coffee, sunset wine flights at Shelburne Vineyard with Folino’s pizza takeout, Burlington as a whole, and the Gen Z youth who said to me, “I love your outfit. It really is Christian Girl Autumn!”.

• Misses: The Essex. We stayed here for our first few nights and they messed up our spa appointment! For a “culinary resort,” the food at The Tavern was very mid so we opted to cancel our reservation at their “fine dining” restaurant to spend more time off property. Our cooking class with Chef Marcus was the only highlight of our stay here, and I was sad we didn’t have time to stop by his restaurant Barbara Jean’s so definitely check it out if you’re in Burlington (Open Sunday & Mondays afternoon.)

I began taking the bus more! I used to be intimidated & confused by the breadth of bus routes, but after using public transit successfully with Julia in Italy, I decided to give it a go in my own backyard. We are a proud one car family, and I’m a passenger princess. I don’t drive, but I love the metro. But there are so many places that the metro doesn’t reach, or it takes much longer by metro than bus. So much anti-bus sentiment is rooted in classism and while I’d like to say I was more of a metro girl because the routes felt more straightforward, I definitely fed into the classism. Forgive me for being an earnest white liberal here, but I now feel empowered to get where I’m going while saving money, reducing my carbon footprint, and engaging in my community by taking the bus. Most notably, I took the bus to a thrift store - one of my New Year's resolutions was to thrift more.

I went to Planet Word my last Friday of sabaddie and it was nerd heaven. I love museums. I love learning history and engaging in art. Museums remind me of my Grandma, who gave me a Smithsonian membership. We have a huge wealth of free museums in DC and I don’t go nearly enough; I love going to remember why I live where I do. I loved Planet Word's library and karaoke room in particular. This museum is designed to be interactive and done with loved ones, so I definitely want to go back (plus, I didn’t check out Immigrant Food, which I’ve heard nothing but great things about). It is free with suggested $15 donation. I signed up for a timed pass but they didn't seem to be required during the week.

Relaxation

As I wrote about previously, one of the more difficult aspects of sabbatical was learning how to relax.

My break from social media was the most helpful thing I did to relax. During my first two weeks off, I deleted IG & TikTok from my phone. Bae changed my Twitter password. Of course, I still checked IG or TikTok occasionally on Desktop and even found myself mindlessly scrolling Facebook on my phone’s Safari as an annoying testament to how wired my brain is to need to be on social media. I found myself online shopping an absurd amount, since Poshmark was one of the few apps I could scroll, but surprisingly I stayed (mostly) within my budget - another one of my goals for sabbatical was to stay credit card debt free, which I’m happy to report I’ve succeeded at!

I watched a lot of Girlfriends and joined a new yoga studio. I read 7 books in total. My goal was 5.

Creativity

I love cooking long, elaborate meals to tap into my creativity, though sometimes it can be hard to separate the necessity of eating from the joy of cooking - i.e it's a hobby I can justify because it feels “productive” in a way that other creative pursuits do not. That said, one of my most rewarding - if messy - projects was attempting to make the Korean Vegan bibimbap, which entailed 7 recipes from her cookbook. Apparently everyone but me knows the first thing you’re supposed to do is read all the recipes to figure out what needs to marinate for 4 hours and what needs to pickle for 4 days. I didn’t do this, but I did pay for express shipping on my soy curls, so that was hilarious.

I took a nonfiction intensive course through Catapult and really enjoyed kicking my butt in gear to draft more essays. I hope to eventually share some of what I worked on here or elsewhere. Devoting time to my writing practice is mostly intimidating but also a little rewarding. 

Interviewing, transcribing, editing and sharing our reflections on our one year anniversary was my favorite creative project I’ve done in years. I also loved hearing from all of you how it resonated.

Self expression is a form of creativity and one of my sabbatical goals was to take photos I feel confident in. Part of this has also been exploring my own personal style armed with the support of a supportive group of friends and a nuuly subscription. For $93/month, you can borrow up to 6 items. Nuuly is owned by the brand behind Urban Outfitters/Anthro/Free People but includes a variety of brands. I was skeptical at first because it’s not very size inclusive - I have a 33 inch waist and most of the jeans only go up to 32. There are some plus options available but it feels limited comparatively. That said, once I started actively reading reviews for sizing and generally avoiding mini dresses (I’m 5’7” & 30, many of their mini dresses are lengths I haven’t worn since 2017!), I’ve found it really works for me to sustainably try out new stylesbuild out my closet after weight gain, while also quelling my urge to shop myself back into debt.

Blazer rented from Nuuly (and later purchased at a discount thanks to Bae because, I mean!)

I bought a candle making kit in January and finally got around to making my candles! It was a lot of fun and very relaxing to craft something. Next, I may blatantly rip off Queer Candle Company’s thrifted candle collection (NOT FOR SALE, JUST FOR HOME) by thrifting my own mugs and buying more candle wicks and soy online.

Miscellaneous Notables

We went to see Tina: The Musical and I had SUCH a great time! If it’s on tour near you (DMV: will be in Baltimore next week!), highly recommend.

There’s something particularly rewarding about bringing your loved ones to see an artist that meant so much to you growing up. Since seeing Vienna Teng perform at The Ark when I was 14, I’ve seen her perform anywhere from 5 - 7 times. During sabbatical, I went to see Vienna Teng at The Hamilton with my wife for the first time. There are so many Vienna Teng songs I love but City Hall holds a special place in my heart. It’s also the only Vienna Teng song Bae knows - she included it on the wedding playlist even though it “didn’t go with the flow.” I listened to this song on repeat as a deeply closeted teen and it played through my head when we got our marriage license in Baltimore a year ago. When Vienna sang City Hall at The Hamilton, she updated the lyrics to say “If they take it away again some day, we won’t let them will we? This beautiful thing won’t change.” If you were at the concert and saw a lesbian couple ugly crying in the front row - that was us.

I donated blood! I got my flu shot and bivalent booster! We’re still facing a blood shortage so if you’re eligible, please consider finding a place to donate here. Happy to respond to questions about my experiences.

Back to work…

Now that I’m back to work, I’d love to hear from you: How do you incorporate rest, exploration, and creativity in your daily life? I’m committed - if a bit intimidated - about keeping up these practices while working my 9 - 5.

From our fall family photo shoot with the homie Mariah Miranda at Zinnia.

P.s. I’m sure by now you’re aware in the US that it’s election day and this Midterm election is very important as Republicans continue to run on white supremacy, Trumpism, and election denial. There is also the right to abortion on the ballot in many states, including my home state of Michigan. I voted in Maryland for Governor Wes Moore and the legalization of cannabis. While I won’t purport that voting solves all our societal ills, I hope you consider voting in a way that is aligned with your values.

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