December Edit: Extreme Eating Out, Reading Challenges, and Publishing 12 of These
She's early! She's had enough of this year!
I’ve truly never been more excited for a year to end, let me tell ya. Despite how crazy 2025 was and how inconsistent I was with a lot of things this year, this monthly wrap-up post went out every single month. I committed, and I did it. It’s been fun to do a recap and now look back to see what I was doing and loving each month.
But I’m switching up the way I do these in 2026. They’ll be season-based, starting with the Winter Edit, which you can expect in March. I’m interested to see how opening up my posting schedule (by not having to accommodate these posts) influences my writing capacity.
A surprising number of you have reached out on Instagram and via text to let me know you enjoy these posts, and I appreciate that! You’ll likely still see the occasional monthly wrap-up on different themes next year, which is another way for me to challenge myself creatively.
So, here’s post 12 out of 12. We made it!
Adithi Ramakrishnan, a reporter with the Associated Press, reached out to me for an interview and quoted me in her article about how to revive your love of books.
Wild Aster Books, which opened in Chamblee earlier this year. I loved their moody atmosphere and friendly staff.
Puttshack. I went to a holiday party there and couldn’t believe how much fun I had playing mini golf.
Wearing my wedding shoes out to our anniversary dinner.
I attempted the 75 Booked challenge (but forgot about it a week in) and two personal readathons (but got distracted halfway through the day both times). These attempts still resulted in me reading a lot more and developing good habits, so it wasn’t for nothing.
I found the Monarch app on a whim, and we switched to it for finances. I love the interface and re-categorizing expenses has been so satisfying.
Arencia Fresh Green Rice Mochi Cleanser, which is doing great things for my skin.
This isn’t nearly everywhere or everything I ate, but the ones worth sharing:
The Brown Butter Supper Club’s gingered velvet menu was amazing.
Dan Pelosi’s chicken stew. Kroger pickup sabotaged me on multiple ingredients and it still turned out tasty. (Gift recipe link—expires in 30 days)
Fresh sushi and other great dishes at UMI for our anniversary dinner.
Necessary Purveyor’s Rocko’s Cutlet sandwich, an incredible chicken ceasar situation that blew me away for lunch.
Smiley’s Burger Club. Their smash burger lived up to the hype I’d built in my head.
Pho Hoang Long, which served up pho just as good (if not better) than any pho I’ve had on Buford Highway. (I said what I said!)
I’m not done reading for the month/year, but here are some of the best ones thus far:
Neighbors and Other Stories by Diane Oliver: I really enjoyed this strong short story collection that portrays scenes of Black life in 1950s and 60s America.
Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century by Alice Wong: After Alice Wong’s death in November, this book came back on my radar and ended up being one of my most impactful reads of the year. It’s an excellent collection of contemporary essays by disabled writers, sharing their experiences being misrepresented, underrepresented, and unconsidered in society, as well as their joys and hopes for disability justice in the future.
Shadow Tag by Louise Erdrich: My first novel by Erdrich, despite collecting a bunch of her books over the years. In this one, a couple begins communicating via mind games after the wife discovers her husband has been reading her journal. It’s a moving story about identity, the complexity of love and family, and the destruction of alcoholism.
One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad: I knew this book was going to be a sharp indictment of the West’s inaction and complicity when it comes to genocide against Gaza, but it was even more incisive and powerful than I imagined.
Page Break’s interviews with booksellers across the US.
Sketchy Food Reviews. I never skip a video.
Oprah’s special about estranged parents and going no contact. I’m not estranged from my parents, but this is an interesting topic to me, and I’ve spent a lot of time learning about it this year.
MUSIC
Lucy Dacus’ Forever Is A Feeling indie-folk-pop album. I was surprised “Best Guess” wasn’t in my top five songs of the year.
“Jammin” by RUBII, a soft hip-hop-ish bop I randomly discovered.
Del Water Gap’s indie/alternative album, Chasing the Chimera.
Soul Coffee, Alternative Frequency, and dark academic winter vibes playlists.
PODCASTS
Diabolical Lies’ podcast episode on why we should try not to go to Starbucks this holiday season, breaking down the sustained labor strike and combined consumer and labor boycott.
A Cup of Jo’s podcast episode, “That Time I Went to France,” where my IRL friend shares about her decision to pack up her life in Atlanta and move to the South of France, and what she learned in the process.
Saved by the City’s podcast episode “God, Glam, and the Good Wife: The Rise of the Womanosphere,” where they explore womanhood in our current cultural moment and the rise of “tradwife” voices.
This weighted sloth, which I told my husband is “medically necessary” / RIP, K&W Cafeteria, a North Carolina legend / The triple flat ear piercing I’ve wanted for at least three years / Should I try pilates? / MUNA finished their album!!! / Getting more strict about not buying unnatural fibers / RIP, Parade, my favorite undies brand / How good Trader Joe’s cornbread crisps are / “What’s the best that could happen?”
