Finally got around to watching Twin Peaks. It's not totally my cup of tea, but Agent Cooper is clearly the best: "Every day - once a day - give yourself a present. Don't plan it, don't wait for it, just let it happen. It could a new shirt in the mens store, a cat nap in your office chair, or two cups of good hot black coffee, like this." YouTube.

One of the best things on anxiety I've read: ​Keep Your Friends Close but Your Anxiety Closer

Damn gorgeous: Sufjan Stevens, "No Shade in the Shadow of the Cross"

More student-focused than my reality but still funny/good/painfully true: The 37 Emotional Stages Of Living In Boston During February 2015. And, on a more serious note, How to Support #BostonWarm

Man, I love them: Broad City.

Currently reading: "How to Grow Up" by Michelle Tea, "Are You My Mother?" by Alison Bechdel, "Yes Please" by Amy Poehler.

"Ah, world, what lessons you prepare for us, /even in the leafless winter, / even in the ashy city. / I am thinking now / of grief, and of getting past it; / I feel my boots / trying to leave the ground, / I feel my heart / pumping hard. I want / to think again of dangerous and noble things. / I want to be light and frolicsome. / I want to be improbable beautiful and afraid of nothing, / as though I had wings." from "Starlings in Winter" by Mary Oliver

Just finished reading "White Nights" the second in the Shetland series by by Ann Cleeves. Cleeves is one of my favorite contemporary mystery writers, I just love her portraits of life on the Shetland Islands. Because of her, they've risen to the top of my "want to visit" list. In "White Nights," I didn't see the "whodunnit" coming, which is also nice. I just started "Are You My Mother?" by Alison Bechdel. I also added "Disgruntled" to my "to read" list after hearing an interesting author interview on Fresh Air.

Image: source.

Great post by a friend of a friend who is doing some awesome work as a life/health coach: So. You Wanna Lose Weight.

I thought this article about the life-impacting effects of one thoughtless (racist, insensitive) tweet was really interesting: How One Stupid Tweet Blew Up Justine Sacco’s Life. It's not a perfect article and there has been some valid criticism lodged, but I think the NYTimes article isn't just about "feeling sorry for stupid white people on the internet," but instead touches on much broader issues of public shaming and the rapid-fire cycle of internet comments and publicity.

Absolutely heart-wrenching: "Hello, my name is Yusor Abu-Salha."

"In this choiceness / Never-ending / Flow / Of life, / There is an infinite array / Of choices. / One alone / Brings happiness- / To love / What is." - Dorothy S. Hunt

I'm listening to "Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls" by David Sedaris, however, can't say I'm loving it as much as some of his previous books, but I'm not entirely sure why. I'm also reading "Little Children" by Tom Perotta, a gift from a very wonderful friend. Sometimes Perotta's books frustrate me with the heavy handedness of the satire, or the broad strokes, but for the most part I always find them to be engrossing, entertaining, and thought provoking reads. So far, "Little Children" is no exception.

Image: a page from "Marbles" that is one of the best depictions of the mental struggles of doing yoga I've ever seen!

On the yoga front, I'm still doing the 40 Days program at Baptiste and absolutely loving it. The snow storm and a terrible flu made this last week a particularly tough one, but I'm happy to say I'm back on the mat in week 3, and really grateful for the practice.

This past weekend I read "Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo, and Me," a graphic novel/memoir by Ellen Forney about her diagnosis as bipolar and subsequent journey to find some "balance" (she rolls her eyes at the word/idea) and to reconcile her life as an artist with this quest for stability. I don't identify as an artist so the parts of the book focusing on links between creativity and mental illness weren't as interesting to me (hence the one star off), but overall I thought the book was an excellent illustration of Forney's relationship to ("struggle with" sounds too cliche although would also be apt) mental illness. I cried in recognition at multiple parts, which is uncommon for me, and I feel grateful for the hard work that Forney put into documenting the years covered by the memoir; I'm glad she survived and I'm glad she decided to share with the rest of us.

"Love, love, love, says Percy. / And run as fast as you can / Along the shining beach, or the rubble, or the dust. / Then, go to sleep. / Give up your body heat, your beating heart. / Then trust." - "I Ask Percy How I Should Live My Life" by Mary Oliver.