Noticing when you need a pause
I'm taking a break but will be back soon.
Something I advocate for in this newsletter is less. Less stuff, less consuming, less time managing bs in your home, less less less.
Right now I’m needing to open up some bandwidth to support a family member (it’s a good thing, don’t worry), so I need to do less writing for a few weeks. Your House Machine will be back in the new year, but for now I’m putting it in pause mode.
What this means for paid subscribers:
Monthly billing has been paused until I’m back in action
If you have an annual subscription, time will be added to it based on how long I’m on hiatus
What this means for free subscribers:
Substack won’t allow free subscribers to become paid while I’m paused, so there’s no way for you to unlock my archives (grrr)
I’ve unlocked a bunch of recent and top posts so you still have access to some content while I’m away, and you’ll get a note as soon as I’m back and can upgrade then if you’d like to continue your journey down the rabbit hole
I’m deeply grateful to subscribers for supporting me and showing me that you value what I do. Thank you for being here!
Because I’m me, I can’t sign off without a few quick tips.
Candles to get through dark winters
I tried to get into the Danish hygge thing when it was trendy but somehow it never quite connected for me. But nonetheless I’ve stumbled into the magic of candles to get me through dark Pacific NW winters. I light them when it gets dark (at 4:30pm lately!) and in the early morning. There is a physiological connection between humans and fire. If you think about it, we evolved to exist in candle and fire light. It’s calming and for me lends purpose to the darkness: now I get to light my candles. I use unscented beeswax candles which are supposed to be good for air quality (unlike most candles, sadly).
As a bonus, candles seem to mellow out kids too so our mealtimes are calmer lately.
The menorah cleaning hack that saved Hanukkah
In other candle news…After decades of scraping wax off menorahs (iykyk) I finally figured out how to properly clean them. As you prepare your menorah for Hanukkah this month, you’ll be amazed how quick and effective this hack is.
To tide you over till I return, here are some posts to get you through the darkest part of the winter.
