My Pandemic Routine & Comfort Levels

Tuesday, 22 September 2020Tuesday, 22 September 2020 Starr2 Comments

Happy autumnal equinox!

Today marks the first day of (astronomical) fall for the northern hemisphere and we are feeling it in the northeast US. Now that the smoke from the west coast wildfires has mostly cleared, the air is cooler, crisper. We are able to start keeping our windows open during the workday, like we did at the beginning of quarantine.

But it also means that our daylight hours are getting shorter, which we have not really had to experience since before quarantine. We have been taking stock of where New York City stands with coronavirus and trying to determine what level of comfort we have with things like seeing friends, going to reopened gyms, and more.

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Happy autumnal equinox 🍁 Changing things up a little for equinox this year with a selfie I just took in the sunniest corner of my apartment instead of a nature photo for 2 reasons: 1) I wanted to share what it looks like when I go outside with a mask. Right now, this happens once a week, so I haven't seen the need to buy cute, reusable masks yet, since I venture outside so rarely. Wearing a mask is still one of the number one things we should be doing to curb the spread of coronavirus. 2) My extreme resistance to posting selfies stems from a deep fear of my own vanity. I don't even consider selfies vain but I know mine feel rooted in it. I'm really vain and I work actively to suppress that part of myself, among others. I am coming around to the idea that maybe I should try to reduce my vanity rather than just stifle it, since my social media makes clear I'm not actually less vain… I originally was going to make it my monthly challenge this month, to take a selfie every day, but I chickened out when the month suddenly started. But one thought I've had all year is that I should not be so apologetic for who I am, even for the parts of me that I want to change. So here's my face, partially at least. If you're still here, how are you getting ready for the colder months? We haven't spent much of quarantine with fewer daylight hours than nighttime hours, and with both schools reopening and indoor dining resuming next week , I'm really nervous. I also don't know how to mentally prepare not to see my family for peak festive, family gathering season, from Mid-Autumn Festival through to Lunar New Year…

A post shared by Starr ⭐ (@sipofstarrshine) on Sep 22, 2020 at 6:53am PDT

Schools are set to reopen and indoor dining is set to resume next week in New York. If the city isn’t bracing for another wave of cases, we certainly are here in my household. In fact, we are trying to prepare by making sure we have supplies that we may need, since we were only just able to get through the first wave.

Here’s where we stand right now and what we’re thinking about as the cold months set in:

Oh Shenandoah | Part 3

Tuesday, 15 November 2016Sunday, 4 December 2016 Starr1 Comment

Last time in the Shenandoah Valley, Ben and I visited the Luray Caverns before our early anniversary dinner. Today, we finally see what we drove down to Shenandoah for…

By the way, here’s the song, “Oh Shenandoah”, that I hum every time I write these posts.

We awoke for our final meal at By the Side of the Road: the breakfast soufflé.

I sat on the porch swing one last time and we were off, back to Skyline Drive. We drove down Skyline Drive from the northernmost entrance southwards just one week prior, before a Halloween party, because we weren’t sure when peak foliage was going to happen. The reports were unsure, the leaves were already late with turning, and we didn’t want to miss it this year.

Driving up from the southernmost entrance, we were a little worried. While the trees were mostly green when we came down a week ago, most of the trees by this entrance were browned or, worse, bare. Did we miss peak foliage within just one week?

We saw a few disappointing views from the overlooks that indicated that, if nothing else, maybe the southern parts of Skyline Drive had already passed peak. This was terribly disappointing until we started seeing much more promising views.

While stopping for lunch, we noticed that one of the hiking trails had waterfalls! It was listed as a challenging hike, and Ben and I were literally both wearing jeans, but whatever! Hike for a waterfall!

This was indeed a very strenuous hike. It was about a mile to the first waterfall and very very steep. We don’t hike much at all, so I was definitely huffing and puffing on my way back up the steep incline. I only got a break to catch my breath because Ben finally got signal on his phone and was able to conduct some fantasy football trades. Whodathunk I’d be grateful for fantasy football?

After catching our breaths and letting our body temperatures come back down, we were in time for sunset! I really thought we would miss golden hour because I was so tired during the hike that I didn’t think we’d last long to still be in the park.

But we made it.
And it was so worth it.

I have so many photos from the brief half hour when the sun dipped below the Blue Ridge Mountains. With everything bathed in this sumptuous golden sunlight, I felt so content and at peace with the world.

Happy anniversary, Ben. I had a truly fantastic weekend exploring Shenandoah Valley with you, and I look forward to many more adventures together.

Where are your favorite places to hike? I am super new to hiking and am not sure where to start, to be honest. Any tips would be really appreciated!

What are the best places to see foliage, aka “leaf peeping”? (I swear this is a term that I read on the foliage report and not one that I made up!) Next year, we might look into going up to New York to check out the gorgeous foliage in the Catskills. I remember the leaves looking spectacular back in New Jersey, too, so we’ll see!

Cool Down for Fall

Friday, 23 September 2016 Starr1 Comment

Hello all!

Yesterday was the autumnal equinox, the first official day of my favorite season. I used to love winter the most, but after a day in such cold that I literally forgot what it felt like to not be cold… I realized I like the warm cozy feeling that comes with the holiday season and looking at snow moreso than winter itself. I’m a fan of hygge moreso than the uglier sides of winter, if you will.

You can only buy one or a dozen doughnuts, there is no in-between. I didn’t get any of my usual favorites so that I could get a box full o’ fall flavors.

With the cooler months here (in the Northern Hemisphere), I’ve been reflecting on how busy I’ve been keeping. You may have seen some think pieces about why we are always telling each other and ourselves that we’re just soooo busy and bragging about how busy we are keeping ourselves. I’m definitely very guilty of this, and I used to really love keeping myself busy because I am very extroverted, so many of my evenings are spent doing things with friends or meeting new people.

However…

Lately, I’ve been finding that I am home for the evening maybe once a week, if that. If I’m not at a movie screening or event or meeting up with friends, I am working late and still getting home after dark anyway. While I’m glad that my reinvestment of my time into my friends is helping me feel more socially fulfilled as well as to be a better friend, it is really starting to take a toll on me to only drag myself through my front door after 8PM every day of the week. I told Ben that I wanted us to cook dinner at home more, but I’m only home at dinnertime once a week? And I’ve been meaning to do a big cleanup of our place, but don’t spend enough time at home to do it. On top of that, I have been wanting to make some moves career-wise and build my skills more actively, but I am wiped out by the time I get home to the point where I don’t even take my computer out of my bag most nights I’m home. (Except when I have to write a blog post, of course!)

So I’m going to be consciously trying to dial it back a bit. Commit to my nights at home as much as I commit to my nights out. Schedule my time to be at home and cook and clean and run errands and just enjoy being at home. Relax. I’ve never been good at relaxing, but I hear practice makes perfect.

I’m really excited about the fall this year! I have a lot of great costume opportunities and some great costumes lined up. (You all know I’m a sucker for dressing up.) And October-November-December brings out the greatest festive season of the year. Before I know it, I’ll be writing up my 2017 resolutions post! (!!!!)

This is one of the best times of the year, and I am really looking forward to it. But I am also going to make sure to let myself pause and relax and soak it all in, as well.

What are you looking forward to this fall? (Or spring, if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere!)

Fall in Love with Fall

Tuesday, 23 September 2014Wednesday, 20 April 2016 Starr1 Comment

Mmmmm… fall.

After this last winter, I’m no longer certain if winter is my favorite season of the year. (December may still be my favorite month, however.) I have always been really fond of autumn, however, and with the autumnal equinox upon us, I find myself feeling excited. Not for the cliched, basic things like pumpkin spice lattes (remember that I don’t drink coffee beverages, no matter how much sugar and milk you put in them) but for other things like:

The smell – Do you know what I’m talking about here? Every season has a pretty unique smell and autumn’s is one of my favorites. The air becomes clear and crisp as the humidity of summer gets chased away. You can smell fruits ripening and leaves falling. That’s just outside. When you step inside, people start spicing their foods and drinks with cinnamon and nutmeg and you can smell it as soon as you walk in. (Maybe they have a candle, but that’s okay, too.) They bring the outside smells in, with their fresh-picked apples and the crunchy leaves in their hair. It smells warm inside, but it smells cool outside.
Philosophy knows what I’m talking about
The colors – I’ve never been one for super bright colors except as an accent. But when autumn rolls around, we shelve the neons and the pastels and bring out the rich neutrals. I dislike orange (I’m sorry, orange-lovers) but I am head-over-heels for that cranberry/wine/burgundy/maroon/oxblood color. I wish I could wear it all-year-round (and I’ll be honest, I probably wear it more in the warmer months than I’m “supposed” to) so getting to see the fall color palette roll around really gets me excited.
The only time of year I really tolerate browns
The leaves – Of course, who doesn’t love watching the leaves change color? I get particularly excited about this because there is a road near my house that is lined with all maple trees. If the weather cooperates (aka we don’t get so much rain that the leaves get washed away), the entire street is ablaze in red maple leaves, all the way down. I used to really look forward to walking home from school so that I could walk past this street. Back when I lived in New Jersey, we used to take these scenic drives in the fall to see the fall foliage.
Hot soup – You can have hot soup any time of the year, and believe me, I do. But it isn’t until autumn that you get to start indulging in hot soups more often. I don’t even have that many different types of soups but I am really happy with my regular rotation. (Holla at me chicken noodle soup lovers.)
Hot tea – Same as with hot soup, but not something I get to enjoy as much during the warmer months. I remember really loving holding a thermos of hot tea in my hands as I walked to class. Two of my favorite cool weather feelings are the feeling of a warm mug in my hands and the feeling of drinking hot soup/tea in your throat when you’ve caught a chill.
Scarves – I think because a) it’s easy and b) I have a long-ish neck, I have always been most keen on accessorizing my neck with necklaces and scarves (if I accessorize at all). I like having my neck covered when it gets chillier, especially by a soft or silky scarf. (Please note that most turtlenecks make me feel as though I am being strangled so I avoid those.)
Cozy sweaters – I went through a phase where I was pretty anti-sweater because I owned a lot of scratchy knits and also because kids in school were too cool to wear sweaters for a while??? I remember being the only person wearing a knit sweater in a class full of hoodies and being very confused but also desperately wanting a hoodie of my own. Now, I can really appreciate a soft sweater in the chillier months.

That’s all I’ve got for now, but I’m sure I’ll think of other things soon. I realized that this wound up being a very sensory post again, because really, when I think about seasons I think about very specific sensations.

What are your favorite things about autumn/fall?