Issue #226: 19+ Things I'm Obsessed with from 2025

It was a big year for physical and mental health...

📺 “Chad Powers” on Disney+: I’ve been delighted by this show, which I’ve been watching with my parents since I’ve been home. Glen Powell plays a college quarterback who was blacklisted after a televised massive sports faux pas, then disguises himself to walk back on another college team under a pseudonym. It’s basically ‘Ted Lasso,’ but with less charming, but still very funny, protagonist.

🥣 Savory Oatmeal: I’ve been making this for lunch every day since I’ve been home and I truly can’t get enough. After cooking these sprouted oats in chicken broth, I top them with mushrooms sautéed with greens and onions or leeks, and add a protein like a soft-boiled egg or salmon, plus some sauerkraut. Before eating, I top it with this mushroom oil (an L.A. Erewhon find I’m obsessed with). It is so good.

💿 Labi Siffre: I’ve been on such a Labi Siffre kick since listening to the ‘Broken Record’ podcast with him, which reminded me of what an influential and experimental artist he was in the ‘70s (in addition to being one of the most sampled in contemporary hiphop)! Honestly, I love all of his songs, but can’t stop listening to ‘I Got The…’ and his album ‘Crying Laughing Loving Lying.’ Perfect to put on for a long travel day, or in the background of a family dinner. I hope you find it as magical as I have!

P.S. I’m back in the rhythm of working on my second book (after losing my initial draft of it!). My friends Chelsea Bieker and Kimberly King Parsons are hosting a 100-day Winter Writing Intensive on their platform The Fountain! It begins January 11th, and I’m planning on joining to keep up my momentum and rebuild a sustainable writing practice! Sharing it here, since I know so many of you are writers! Hope to see you there. xx

So much has happened in the last few months, that I often forget just how much happened this year. I completed my clinical internship, graduated from my master’s in mental health counseling, finished settling into my house, finally addressed some chronic health issues, including healing my insomnia, and moved into the van I’m currently traveling in (!). I learned so much about myself and continued to get more clear around the life I’m creating for myself, and what truly matters to me.

This is my third year sharing my obsessions, and one of the reasons I love doing it is because, in looking back at past years (here’s 2024 and 2023!), I can see that so many of the things that felt like revelations have since become natural parts of my life. They’re often small changes that, put together, have made dramatic differences in making me happier, healthier, and more grounded in myself.

2025 was a big year for small changes, and I had more fun this year than I have maybe any other year?? The best way I can describe it is that I feel like I’m living my twenties, but with the wisdom of my thirties, and I love it so, so much. Read on for my 2025 obsessions, including:

• The tiny daily shift I made that helped cure my insomnia

• A weekly and monthly meeting that feels obvious in retrospect, and made all the difference

• My favorite workouts, novelist, and rituals…