I struggled with this post today. Is going about business as usual to pretend that everything actually is business as usual? Do readers need normalcy and comfort or do they need to see that sometimes some things just get shaken up? Do I need normalcy and comfort? It’s no secret I’m shaken up this week, but I’m sending a newsletter this afternoon that I think is hopeful and actionable and reassuring and in the meantime:
five little things that made my week.
1. this maple syrup.
{on roasted veggies, to sweeten muffins, in frosting for birthday cakes. refilled at our beloved grocery store. sweet comfort.}
2. this acorn soup.
{made four times daily.}
3. this butter keeper.
{a long-awaited purchase to help make mornings a little brighter.}
4. the stamps on these clogs. 
{a beautiful gift from a supportive business, but especially a reminder to keep my nose to the grindstone. there’s work to do.}
5. this cozy spot.
{and endless gratitude for having it.}
39 Comments
It’s been a shattering week for many people, not just in America. You’re no different to the rest of us that had to pull ourselves together and work through all the difficult emotions swirling in our heads. I for one love these posts every week, so I’m especially glad that you’ve compiled this list. Keep your shoulder to the wheel.
Just subscribed to the newsletter because I couldn’t handling missing any more at such an important time. Also looking forward to a possible post in the future about the Bryr clogs. Dreaming of getting a pair one day.
Staying hopeful and preparing to fight – Julia
I’ve been reading a lot of your archived blog posts this week, revisiting my favorites in the Simple Matters Series. It was a great comfort to read the thoughtful posts from you, as well as the stories of other women who are living their lives by their own standards. It was a reminder that there are many people out there who share my values, which is something I really needed to remember this week. Thank you.
It has been a tough week. The election, Leonard Cohen… But we are fierce and mighty and we will get through this. We will be on guard and help those who need it and confront those who need it. Keep beauty and poetry in your heart!
Erin, I have found solace in the fact that I am not the only one struggling to find normalcy and balance this week along with a renewed strength to do more in the coming days, months and years to make a difference. I made a pact with myself in the wee hours of Wednesday morning to avoid the internet save for seeking refuge in the words of those I respect and love but do not even know. You are one of those people. The words thank you do not seem sufficient for the comfort, love, compassion, frustration, and humanity with which you have always written. I truly look forward to this post every week and the addition of your heartfelt words at the beginning clarified the foggy thought that has nagged at me recently — do we move forward normaly or be revolutionary? I realize that it is not either, but both. Move forward with all the grace and love and beautiful normalcy that makes life so extraordinary and find ways to be a revolutionary in harmony with that normalcy. Blessings and peace to you and your family and thank you for making a difference in my life and the life of countless others by reminding us daily that it is in life’s simple joys that the magic is discovered.
I really admire you for writing your post on Wednesday. I just started blogging and I was disappointed on Wednesday morning when I checked in on my favorite blogs and would see some sort of jokey/light hearted post about how it was going to be ok or to relax or worse, nothing at all about the election. I’ve heard bloggers say that they need to make a living and continue with their sponsored posts or that their audience doesn’t want to hear their opinion on politics but I think that’s just an excuse. Tuesday night was devastating for half our country and for the other half joyful. It’s hard to talk about politics because it’s so personal but I think that’s how we got into this mess; we haven’t been talking openly and listening. So thank you again for telling us how you feel. I would love to hear more about your thoughts as we proceed into this scary and unknown new presidency but I also really enjoy your “regular” lifestyle posts.
I was just about to write the exact same thing. I lost some respect for some of the bloggers I’ve followed who like to talk about women empowerment and all of that, and then who said not one word about the election either during it or in these days after. Big bloggers have the power that not everyone has; the power to reach a lot of people with your voice. I firmly believe that with great power comes great responsibility, and so many have shirked that responsibility. So bravo, Erin, for using your powers for good! I think you’re striking the perfect balance of normal content and thoughtful political posts. Please keep fighting the good fight.
I agree 100% with this. I was really disappointed in how few of the bloggers I follow didn’t even mention the election or just made a flippant passing comment about it. I get that it’s uncomfortable to talk about politics, but it is the most important thing going on right now and it really does affect all of our lives. I found great comfort in reading the thoughts of bloggers like Erin and others who eloquently shared their reactions. I also very much concur with your statement about how not talking has gotten us into this divisive mess. Thank you again from me as well, Erin.
I agree with this as well. Now is not the time to be quiet and passive. Now is the time to speak out and rise up. Thank you.
Like others below, I agree with this, so much.
Me too. Thank you so much for addressing what many are feeling. It’s weird to read a blog that glosses over a huge and disturbing event. Thank you for everything.
I was hoping to see this post, and a little bit of loveliness, at the end of this terrible week. I appreciate you not glossing over the trouble we’re in (not that I ever thought you would), but am especially grateful for this today… and am looking forward to your newsletter.
I always love your posts- especially now, as everything feels so upside down, it’s a comfort to come to this space and mourn and feel supported and then to start again with something familiar and lovely. Thank you.
I echo your sentiments. I personally have found it thoroughly disconcerting how quickly some friends and co-workers ditched the “unpleasantness” of the election and started spewing platitudes about how it would all be alright, etc. It doesn’t feel that way to me. Honestly, everything else this week has seemed banal in comparison and it’s been hard to go about business as usual. That said, I appreciate spaces like this that show a side of the world that is simple and beautiful and can set an example of a sustainable lifestyle, which our world so desperately needs. Thank you for using your voice productively and for shaking things up :-).
Agreed with other commenters that it is nice to see something familiar this week. I always love the Friday “week in objects,” and if little things like this were to go away I think the week would just contain too much change for the negative. Thank you for posting.
Both is good. You’ve struck a good balance.
Bless you for posting all this week: from autumnal VOTE, to onesies asking what we will say to our children (mine are grown and all I could do was commiserate, in solidarity with them, thankfully) and this regular but extra welcome my-week-in objects. Your blog is the first one I check every morning. Thank you.
Three cheers for handmade pottery and for carrying on with joy in the little things even as we struggle against despair. I’m a potter and I wasn’t sure where I was going to find the strength to get out to the studio and throw on wednesday, but after reading your post as well as the courageous words of others, I went out and threw the biggest pieces I could to remind myself that I am strong and we will get through this. I’m so grateful to be able to exercise my creativity, now more than ever, and to take solace and courage in the creativity of others, yours included. Thank you for all you are doing and for your honesty about your feelings right now. It’s so needed.
You’ve been posting what you felt was right, and sharing your doubts, and that’s exactly why I love your blog. Thank you, Erin!
Dear Erin,
I am really thankful for all of your posts this week, including today’s. This election season has been tough, but you manage to talk about important issues and also light-hearted ones with grace and warmth. Wishing you a relaxing and love-filled weekend.
Erin, I’m especially thankful for your words this week and knowing that it’s OK to feel this way. I had a big trail run scheduled for tomorrow morning with a group of running friends, but all I want to do is go out in the woods by myself and cry my eyes out with no one around. I have a feeling you could use that, as well. I’m glad we’re all in this together. I bet we will feel fired up and ready to go soon enough.
I appreciate you sharing your thoughts and acknowledging it’s not really business-as-usual. I look forward to the newsletter. <3
I am a recent follower (and a fellow Nutmegger who now lives in the East Village). I love your blog, but this week made me a fan for life. Thank you for your writing, for being honest and vulnerable and for not immediately skipping over how devastating and scary this is and trying to normalize it. I am so very grateful you’re in the world.
Erin, just wanted to stop by to say that I have been loving your newsletters lately. I always appreciate your posts, your how-tos, and in general the content here but there’s an openness with the newsletters, a stream of consciousness and reflection of the everyday that has been hitting home with me. Just realized this today and wanting to send a nice note your way. Peace and light!
Thank you for your honesty and hopefulness. Band sorry to change the subject so abruptly, but I was wondering how you freeze your beans. Do you use zip lock bags or is there a better alternative? And would you ever be willing to share the sourdough pizza recipe? (Or bread for that matter. I’m always looking to add to my sourdough recipe collection).
I use wide mouth mason jars…and I’ve broken two of them. The trick is definitely not to overfill, but I can’t say that my solution is perfect. Still hunting for one!
Thank you, Erin. One of the reasons I read your blog is because of its (your) honesty and intelligence, something that is missing from a lot of content that is produced these days. I don’t live in the US – I’m a Belgian stranded in Australia – but the events this week have affected me in ways that I didn’t imagine possible. I have cried a lot these last few days, and the only thing that is helping me right now is to try and focus on the little things in my own life. I know I will need to turn outwards again eventually, but just for a little while, I need the niceness and comfort of my routine and of people who understand. So thank you again, for writing about your experiences this week. Your newsletter meant the world.
It’s important to talk about these issues, and your heart-felt and candid writing is exactly what we need right now. I walk down the street (on the Upper West Side) and look at others’ faces and I wonder if they feel the same heavy knot in their throat, and heavy heart and feet. I keep thinking what could have been had more people voted for humanity instead of darkness. We need to live our lives but we also need to voice our concerns, beliefs, to fight, and to be politically engaged. I couldn’t believe 46% of people simply didn’t vote. This is a painful lesson that we need to fight, engage and lead by example.
As I try to imagine a future where, somehow, we have righted at least some of the things that seem to be so wrong with the world right now, your voice and your message seems incredibly important.
Echoing those above, thank you, Erin, for so generously sharing this week.
First time poster, and I also wanted to thank you for sharing your feelings about the election and not being neutral to maximize readership. I am very disappointed in the female bloggers who say that things will be okay or who don’t respond with sadness to comments made on their blogs in favor of Trump. Half the voting country voted against the safety of women’s bodies, the safety of so many Americans, and the safety of the environment. This is not a partisan issue–it’s a human rights issue. Thanks for taking a stand.
Yes to this!
Your thoughtfulness means so much in this truly extraordinary time. Thank you.
We’ve all been shaken up, frustrated, emotional and uncomfortable this week. What a week it was. But I find comfort in the day after, when looking back I find that it’s in these turbulent moments that we let go and in the end find purpose, meaning and ourselves. Here’s to a wonderful, relaxing weekend and a hopeful new week ahead. <3
this has been a week full of emotions, indeed. I think the whole world can relate to what you’re feeling. but I hope we all won’t give up and keep our heads up.
I’ve never thought about acorn soup before. Now I’m wondering how it tastes.
Noses to the grindstone! (Acorn soup isn’t for eating;))
You’re an inspiration to me in so many ways. It’s time for all of us to remain true. And I admire your willingness to do so. Hemingway said, if I am to believe as the Internet quotes him, “Write one true sentence.” Sometimes that one true sentence takes courage to write … but I try to remember what it would be like to live with the alternative. You write your truth. And that’s enough for me. Thank you.
Erin, I’m sorry I think you’ve written about this before – could you say where you found this blue quilt in the last shot? I did a couple searches of your blog and couldn’t find it. Thank you!
My quilt is from Blockshop Textiles. They’re not currently for sale on their site, but they might be restocking!
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