Loose Ends / 1.24.26

Better late than never, and truly all over the place... Flying solo this week, geography, PMS, too much about my dog, the list goes on.

A few loose ends from the week — everything I’m filing away.

Friday Footnote, but on a Saturday 😉

Writing to you on this chilly Saturday morning instead of Friday because, frankly, I felt like I was running into a brick wall every time I tried to write yesterday. I was just in a bit of a funk, no matter how hard I tried to snap out of it. I busted my ass on the Peloton… Took an everything shower and blew dry my hair… Cranked the music up in the house… Nothing worked until I finally just loosened the reigns a little bit.

I had plans to test drive that Bang Bang Shrimp recipe I shared a few weeks back, and was trying to force myself to make it even though I was not in the mood to cook. I also really wanted a cocktail or a glass of wine, but kept telling myself no, for no real reason at all — weekends are allowed in damp January rules.

But I finally said f*ck it — I ordered in a delicious dinner (Coda di Volpe) and decided to put on The People We Meet on Vacation once my food arrived. I stuck everything in the oven to reheat a bit (the food didn’t stand a chance at staying warm in this weather) and went to make myself a cocktail. I was going for a modified Moscow Mule with a tropical ginger beer we had in the fridge… Ice in a glass, squeezed half of a lime in, poured the ginger beer, got out a straw to taste test the ginger beer (tasty!), and then smelled the food. Time to eat and press play!

The movie started out a bit slow for me, but ended up being such a cute little rom com! Dinner was delicious, and as I was cleaning up my dishes afterwards, I realized I never even added vodka to my cocktail (or really, my mocktail).

It was a mini lesson of sorts, and maybe a few of them at once. 1, Sometimes you just need to ask yourself what you actually want, instead of what you feel like you should do. 2, When I tell myself I can’t do something, it makes me want it more. 3, Mocktails definitely scratch the itch. And 4, Living with Dave forces me to have a work-life balance, in a very healthy way. I realized that I had been sitting at my desk after dinner until bedtime this entire week, which rarely happens when he’s home. I really just needed a night to zone out watching TV.

Dave flew out to the west coast for a work conference¹ on Tuesday morning and won’t be home until late tonight (weather permitting, his flight has already been delayed 2 hours 🫠), so it’s just been Marley and me at home this week.

I really do cherish my alone time when Dave is out of town, as it’s not all that often that I have the house to myself. I chalk it up to living alone so much of my adult life before we moved in together, but really, I’ve been someone who recharges best when solo my entire life. I have to admit, though — the week has been pretty monotonous. Not having working hour boundaries and spending wayyyyy too much time staring at a screen, the frigid weather, and truthfully, having sole responsibility for our dog. (Our sweet, sweet dog that I’m unhealthily obsessed with, so I’m kind of embarrassed to say it’s starting to take a toll. We both have cabin fever!)

As I’m writing this, I’ve done Marley’s last 17 walks and by tonight if/when Dave gets home, it will be 20 walks in a row. (If you’re single living in a city with an active dog — man, I feel for you!) If it was even semi mild outside, I likely wouldn’t be counting. However, it hasn’t been above ZERO degrees for a couple of days, and the windchill has been hovering somewhere close to NEGATIVE TWENTY (which is actually better than the negative forty they were calling for). It sounds ridiculous, but suiting up with a second pair of pants, a thick turtleneck sweatshirt, two pairs of gloves, my winter boots, a beanie, and my ankle-legth parka that resembles a sleeping bag is just kind of exhausting. Putting it all on, going down three flights of stairs, freezing my face off in the elements for 20+ minutes, back up three flights of stairs, cleaning her paws as we come back in, taking all my gear back off, defrosting, and then repeating that process four times each and every single day... It’s been monotonous. 😵‍💫 ²

But as I found myself sobbing at a rom-com last night, I realized that a lot of my blah mood is likely PMS. Ooof, the luteal phase gets me every dang time. 🫠

Anyway, moving on, because the week really wasn’t worth complaining about, it’s just been a bit mundane and fueled by hormonal fluctuations. And I’m maybe feeling a bit of FOMO, too, that some of my friends are in Lake Tahoe this weekend and seeing Vandelux (my DJ obsession at the moment) this afternoon. 🤪 (If you’re not familiar, watch this quick video — he’s so freaking cute. 😍)

I did some kitchen cabinet re-organizing this week (which felt good), and actually had to finish up some holiday takedowns for GCS on Wednesday and Thursday. Taking advantage of the final 20° day for the foreseeable future was a must, and it actually wasn’t too bad since I was fully decked out in my ski jacket and pants, along with all of my base layers. Getting outside and being active during the day is definitely one of the things I enjoy most about my little side business. (I will say, though — once again, I was reminded that I was absolutely not charging enough for my services. 😅)

---

Highs & Lows

This Week’s Rose(s) 🌹

I’ve been hitting 10k steps every day, which feels like a big accomplishment considering the subzero weather!

Last night when I decided to order dinner, I tried to think of something I like and Dave usually doesn’t. Neapolitan pizza is what I came up with and since Spacca Napoli doesn’t deliver, I went with Coda. I even went for a non-red-sauce pizza, which is always a hard pass forDave. 🤪

This Week’s Thorn(s) 🥀

The news out of Minnesota… I can’t even handle it. ICE detains 5-year-old Minnesota boy. Two videos that are must-watch: SharonSaysSo, TheJFreakInc. We, as a country, have lost the fucking plot. It makes me sick and I find myself trying to not think about it, but I know that’s even worse.

“You can want every single immigration law on the books enforced at the highest level, and it would still not involve this:” - @SharonSaysSo

Looking Ahead ✨

Next weekend, we’re taking a little roadtrip to Wisconsin and staying at The Abbey Resort! It’s just for one night, but especially after this week, I’m so looking forward to a change of scenery.

Also, I got a Hatch Restore!!! Eagerly awaiting its arrival. 📦

---

🔖 Open Tabs

Open tabs from the week, filed here instead of my browser.

The big Tuckernuck sale is still going strong — up to 80% off. I combed through everything on Wednesday and saved my favorites here. A little peek at what’s in my cart… These flats, this polo (but I’m so sad the matching shorts are sold out), this polo (perfect for Cubs games!), this beanie, and this dress, which I’m considering for a black tie wedding in March in Houston, but worried the linen might be too casual?

🧺 The Container Store is having a massive sale! I’ve already placed two pick-up orders this week, and did a little shopping in store when picking up one of those orders. (The other order I used Uber Courier to pick it up… So underrated!) But back to organization — 30% off Kitchen, 30% off all Elfa, and 25% off everything else. 🙌🏼

I had to physically restrain myself from buying this elevated dog bowl stand for Marley. It’s absolutely gorgeous and matches our kitchen perfectly, and I think would make cleaning under her bowls easier, but, like — it’s $279. 🫠 (But ‘only’ $205 with the promo! 🤣)

Speaking of needing to be physically restrained, I know I haven’t STFU about this girly, ruffled bandana I bought Marley for Valentine’s Day. If you missed my sob story… I somehow missed it on the Foggy Dog website before it sold out. I emailed to see if they would be restocking it, they said no. I found it on Anthro (before it went on sale) and ordered it, even though I couldn’t get it monogrammed. Turns out they lied because I got a back-in-stock email on Wednesday and literally blacked out and ordered another one so I could get it monogrammed. 🫣 I have a problem.

But look how freaking cute she looks in it!!! I had to. It will be even better once it has her name and a little heart on it. 😍 Planning to donate this one to Paws when her new one comes in… Makes me feel a little bit better about my excessive consumerism.

Since I can’t stop talking about my dog… I’m obsessed with these custom dog/cat pieces of art. I need to keep playing around with pictures and backdrops to find one that’s perfect, but here’s a little preview…

MOVING ON! 🤪

Armra saw I mentioned them in my 2025 Favorites post and graciously sent a promo code to use if you want to try it out!! JRS will take 15% off for first time customers. I mentioned how Watermelon is really the only flavor I can handle, but I just realized they have an UNFLAVORED version to add to coffee or smoothies, so I’m going to try that. Wishing my code worked for my own personal orders, too. 😅 But with everyone being sick lately, I feel like I can justify the extra immune support.

Speaking of My 2025 Favorites, I am SHOOK that I forgot Miss Messy Mouths in my favorite product discoveries of the year. Mostly because I can’t eat or drink without spilling on myself, but we go through refill after refill of this stuff. It’s magic. 🪄

It’s the last day of Tarte’s 40% off sale! I did a big concealer review two years ago and still love both their Creamy Concealer and Radiant Concealer. I also have and regularly use their Contour Wand and Highlight Wand (thanks to Alix Earle 🤪).

This is likely TMI, but since we’ve already talked about my menstrual cycle today, what the hell! For the last few years, I’ve been buying this underwear on Amazon. You absolutely cannot beat the price (5 for $18), but lately I’ve been realizing every single pair I have (probably 15-20) is stretched out. I realize this problem is likely my own doing because I always put them in the dryer, but I just don’t have the patience to hang dry my underwear in our foyer. 😅

I’ve seen a lot of chatter about EBY for years, and even though the fabric care page does recommend laying flat to dry, I took a chance and ordered some. The 5-pack ran me $60, which is a pretty steep increase comparatively, but here’s to hoping the quality is better than what I was buying on Amazon. And if not, I’ll feel good about re-ordering my Amazon undies. (I also threw in a t-shirt bra just to see! Bras are definitely the next undergarment I need to re-access.)

I love seeing all of these custom art installations. 🔗 Stef Ross Art

Two properties I added to my travel bucket list this week: Fairmont’s new Basin Glacial Waters (Lake Louise, Banff, Canada) and Larch House in Whitefish, Montana (near Glacier National Park). Both look dreamy!

How stunning is this new Heaven Mayhem necklace?! Pricey, but a showstopper.

---

Happy Saturday, friends! Hope you have a wonderful weekend and STAY WARM. xoxo

---

1. *The conference is in San Diego (which I’ve never been to) and when I was looking at Dave’s location on Tuesday, I couldn’t believe how close he was to Tijuana/Mexico! I feel so silly for not really knowing the geography there. As I was peeking around at the map, I realized I’ve never been father down the California coast than, like, Manhattan Beach. I would love to check out Orange County sometime, even if it’s just to relive watching Laguna Beach back in the day. 😅 (Speaking of that area… Ralph’s Coffee just opened at Fashion Island in Newport Beach.)

2. I so realize this is small potatoes compared to parents running the show with kids, especially when schools are closed for the cold weather. Sending you all the good vibes!!