organization | productivity | creativity
We decided to make our first night in New York City a Broadway night. I'm so glad we ended up choosing the musical “Company”... it completely blew me away! The story opens on the 35th birthday of Bobby, a bachelorette whose friends are all married couples. We then get to see vignettes of each couple’s… Continue reading “Company” on Broadway in NYC
Earlier today I took what will likely be my last bathroom selfie in Goodes Hall. (Hopefully in equal part because I'll grow out of it and because I'm about to graduate from undergrad. 😋) Isn’t it an amazing feeling to be fascinated by an area of study? The utter excitement that comes along with it!… Continue reading what it means to be your own friend (feat. my last bathroom selfie in Goodes Hall)
I started off really liking this book, and to be fair by the end I still feel that there were some great messages. What intrigued me the most was the start, which refreshingly challenges our obsession with how two people "fall in love" rather than "stay in love". Then the story takes off, alternating between… Continue reading book review || The Course of Love by Alain de Botton
…like the fact that I'm graduating in 6 weeks! Idea Café is an email newsletter from Mistral Spirit sent straight to your inbox (mostly) every second Sunday. If you love it, consider checking out the Mistral Spirit YouTube channel for more organization strategies, joining the book club, and sharing this newsletter with a friend. ♥ Currently: my brain is… Continue reading ☕ 3: Tenant fixtures and other things I think about on a Friday night
It’s been a while since I’ve read or seen something that I genuinely can’t stop thinking about. I finished watching Normal People (the TV show) last week and on the surface, it was a decent show with some strange parts. But somewhere beneath that, it must have seriously muddled up my thoughts or emotions or… Continue reading Normal People
This post first featured in my bi-weekly Sunday newsletter, Idea Café on January 24, 2022. Find out more about Idea Café and read the archives here. I'll be discontinuing the classic WordPress blog updates today, so please make sure you're subscribed to my new list if you want to stay in touch! Writing is an… Continue reading ☕ 2: Writing is an act of ego: the problem with Atomic Habits and why I’m giving it 2 stars
I woke up this Monday morning and headed to my computer to write my very last online, open-book, 24-hour exam of the semester - more of a time slog than anything truly difficult. After which, this would be my week to decompress, get back into a routine, and enjoy some holiday prep. But I logged… Continue reading ideas || woke up to a cancelled online exam… am I getting older and more irritable or is the world just going crazier?
In which I talk about a goal I've been putting off, ask for your advice, and make myself accountable by telling you about it. Oh, and invite you to do the same on our new Vibely challenge. I've been toying with the idea of starting a newsletter for almost a year now. It's one of… Continue reading lifestyle || the one goal I’ve been putting off | join me in getting accountable & setting milestones
As I mentioned in my recent blog post about 3 Todoist tips for students, I've started using a combination of Notion, Todoist and Google Calendar to organize my ongoing and upcoming projects... which has replaced the need for my usual monthly bullet journal calendars (like the one below). Digital tools are more practical for the… Continue reading organization || bullet journal plus digital system | things I’ll do differently next month
There seems to be two global economic systems emerging with different institutions and goals, one led by the United States, one by China. Which system do you think will be more attractive to emerging and developing markets, and why? I just finished a course this semester called Business Government and the Global Economy. It was… Continue reading ideas || Choosing Foreign Aid: Emerging Markets and the U.S. – China Battle for Strategic Global Influence
As thought-provoking as this book was, I am GLAD to be done reading, discussing, and thinking about it. "When Breath Becomes Air" was written by Paul Kalanithi after he was diagnosed with cancer at 36. He was in his last year of neurosurgery residency (read: he had his whole career ahead of him) at the time. The book is interesting in many ways. First, he's both the doctor and the patient, and he shares that perspective. Second, his writing is unique in that he was a huge literature lover and just all-around a very well-read person! Third, it puts the onus of answering some of the book's big questions on you: the reader. The odds of getting cancer in a lifetime are something around 1 in 3 right now. So it reads like a simple, universal story: this is his story, but it’s just as much your story, my story, everyone’s story. Really heavy stuff. I recommend it, but be mentally ready when you read it!
I catch myself feeling hyperaware of the present moment a lot lately. In my memory, an adventure I went on an hour ago has already taken on a nostalgic sheen. Next time, there's more music, more laughter, more beauty, and the adventure slows down. But not the memory. It's like reality can't keep up; I… Continue reading lifestyle || 04-28-21 | short entry
Feeling behind? Stressed? Anxious? Overwhelmed? Too much going on at once? See that long list of "ongoing projects"? Yeah. This was a heck of a week back in November 2020. I went back in to decorate it and was thinking about how I managed to get all that stuff done in one week. I… Continue reading lifestyle || hard truths on organization and productivity
I've started journaling again. In the past, I've journaled whenever I felt like it, which always translated to "when I'm feeling sad". Who wants to spend their happy time writing about how happy they are? Pssh. That's the time for living instead, isn't it? I have a few half-started notebooks filled with a few fun… Continue reading ideas || my new habit, journaling every day in Scrivener
I just finished reading The Midnight Library by Matt Haig, and filmed a short IGTV which I posted to Instagram yesterday. But there's one thing I briefly touched upon in those five minutes that I need to dive deeper into. There was something about his writing. https://www.instagram.com/p/CH50-sIBzym/ The book incorporates the science-fiction delight of parallel… Continue reading ideas || i know who you are because of the words you use | The Midnight Library and my own emotional voice