Notes from February

This essay originally appeared in the Monday morning newsletter on 3/7/22.

Can you believe we’re already in March?

Temps reached 60 degrees in Chicago last weekend, which was a lovely sign of the passage of time. I mean, I fully expect another snowstorm or two, but great to know we are inching closer to summer 🙂 

With the end of February last week, I took time to jot down 10 things to remember, which is one of my favorite personal rituals and something I’m committing to doing every month as part of my 22 in 2022 list. Such a fun way to remember all the little things that happen over the course of a month! 

If you are looking for an activity to do this Monday, give this a try. Sharing my list below in case it helps (with a new twist at the end!). 

February 10 Things:

1. I can’t think of February and not think of the invasion of Ukraine. It is really important to me to stay informed, but also important to me to protect some personal boundaries (aka consuming news 24/7 does not help me with being informed or productive). What’s been helping? NPR’s Up First podcast. I’ve mentioned this news podcast before, but I felt like it deserved another mention now. For me, this is the medium I gravitate toward to get balanced, informative updates on a daily basis.
2. I alluded to this last week, but work got pretty stressful in February. I’m so glad my coworker told me about The Pomodoro Technique, where you work for 25 minutes and then take a 5-minute break. Really helped me to get things done when I needed to. 
3. An easy way to tell I’m stressed? I read thrillers :). When things are crazy, I crave something that is going to easily capture my attention and transport me away from whatever is stressing me out. Both Verity and The Golden Couple did this for me! 
4. I also watched two TV shows in February. I started The Gilded Age (from the creator of Downton Abbey!) and finished Just Like That. I like-not-love The Gilded Age, but that said, I’m invested now and will definitely be watching all nine episodes. A word of warning: the first episode is incredibly long (1 hour, 20 min!!), but the other episodes are around 40-50 minutes (much better). As for Just Like That, I have mixed feelings, but I do love how they ended it. Honestly, my favorite part of the reboot experience was watching the documentary about how the show was made! 
5. I do my best thinking in the morning, so when work gets busy, I sometimes adjust my morning routine to do an early AM work session. However, now that my schedule is stabilizing a bit, I’m excited to reclaim that time for me-time activities like reading, writing and working out. For inspiration, I checked out two books all about mornings from the library – What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast and Own Your Morning – and enjoyed perusing them in Feb. to pick up some new ideas. 
6. I went to Austin in February for a bachelorette party, and wow, I love visiting that city! I’ve been twice (both times for bachelorettes – quite the popular destination!) and I would love to go back for a normal, non-bachelorette trip. I love the food, the fun bars and the atmosphere!
7. One Saturday in February, a few friends and I went to District Brew Yards, and if you are in Chicago and looking for something fun to do, I highly recommend it. I thought it was such a cool concept! The space features a couple different breweries and allows you to pour your own samplings of beer (you are charged by the ounce, so essentially you can make your own flights and tastings!). Really fun! Plus, they have spacious seating (+a patio for when it is warmer) and board games to play. My friends and I started playing the game Apples to Apples before we realized we were playing the “junior” version, which honestly made the whole thing funnier. 🙂 
8. February was the first month I used this wall calendar and it was such a joy. It actually made writing this recap super easy because I referenced the daily positive moment I wrote down. 
9. Do you dry brush? I tried it for the first time in February and am a fan! I’ve been doing it twice a week before a shower and found it definitely helps with my dry winter skin. Plus, I’m in the Keratosis Pilaris club with little bumps on my arms, and it seems to be helping on that front too!  
10. Full transparency: I forgot about my ‘Best Year Yet’ journal and its monthly activities in February… oops! However, I did remember to look right before the month ended and it encouraged me to complete a few of the suggested activities:
    1. Schedule a massage: I did the MOST INDULGENT thing last Monday. Inspired by this being one of the monthly activities in the journal, I went and got a massage after work! What?! I know – it felt pretty crazy. But there’s a place by me that does a 25-minute mini massage for $40 and now I’m wondering why I haven’t done this more often… it was a great way to start the week.
    2. Schedule a friend date: I’m so glad the journal reminded me to do this. I got to catch up with two friends one evening recently and it made my whole day.
    3. Watch a documentary: As mentioned above, watched the Just Like That documentary and liked it!

As I made my list for Feb., I couldn’t help but also think about what I’m looking forward to in March! A few things I can’t wait for…  

• Running my first 8k!
• Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day – one of my favorite holidays – with the Chicago celebration the weekend before and the 8k I’m running (the theme is ‘Shamrock Shuffle’) 
• Daylight Savings. Never fun to lose an hour of sleep but yay to it staying light later! 
• First day of Spring (one step closer to summer) and Spring-Cleaning-Season (can’t resist a good closet cleanout!!) 

What about you? What was your favorite moment from February and what are you most excited for in March? 

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