5 Quick Things #200 🍾

Rest, sleep, breaks, and what about lunch

Hey there,

We’re leaving this weekend for our annual (save last summer) road trip up to the Pacific Northwest, and we could not be more eager! Tate’s already up there to spend extra time with the grandparents, and the rest of us are going to mosey up there to join her, camping along the way (fun fact: it is a long way from Texas to Oregon — and takes even longer in the winter).

Naturally, this means I’m doing all sorts of house projects because this is Just What I Do… I decluttered all the bathroom stuff, cleaned out the fridge, and today I’m probably tackling the hall closet and junk drawer. Why do I do this? Some sort of nesting before I temporarily leave the nest? Anyone else have this problem?

And hey, lookie there — it’s the 200th issue of 5 Quick Things! 🎉 Cue all the fireworks and crack open that champagne.

The European Stone Stacking Championships took place this past week in Dunbar, Scotland. I don’t get the hat, either. #

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5 Quick Things ☕️

1. 👉 New episode of A Drink With a Friend! 👈 It’s not just the not doing of something… It often takes a certain proactivity to TRULY rest. Seth & I talk about why resting well is a game-changer — especially when it’s in tandem with a dignified view of work and play.

2. Speaking of, here are seven types of rest that every person needs (I’m eager to focus on the third one during our trip).

3. Is it sometimes hard for you to sleep? Me too. Here are a few herbal remedies that help (I personally use the last two and they do genuinely seem to do the trick).

4. I feel this in my bones, especially after this past school year — maybe it’s not realistic, but the spirit of the idea resonates hard. We need to rethink work.

5. And finally… This is my latest YouTube channel rabbit hole (which also makes my family’s not-quite 1,500 square-foot cottage feel like a veritable mansion!).

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Currently Reading, Watching, Listening 📺

• Manifest on Netflix (Seth recommended it to me this week — and yep, he’s right; we enjoyed the first episode!)

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Quotable 💬

“It is more fun to talk with someone who doesn’t use long, difficult words but rather short, easy words like, ‘What about lunch?’”

—Winnie the Pooh, by way of A.A. Milne #

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Inside The Commonplace 🏡

This week I shared with you my unapologetic reason for taking a break every summer:

“I used to get bummed when my favorite creators took breaks, but I don’t anymore because I realize I want them fully rested as the full human beings they are. We all create better work when we’re centered, and even better still — when we remember that the point of our existence isn’t output. It’s to be more fully ourselves.”

If you’re a subscriber, head here to read the rest. (And thank you for your support!)

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Elsewhere 📍

Tsh Oxenreider ☕️ @tsh

Intrigued by Gandhi's seven social sins, first published in 1925: • politics without principles • wealth without work • pleasure without conscience • knowledge without character • commerce without morality • science without humanity • worship without sacrifice

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Question For You to Ponder… 🤔

What steps do you need to take this weekend in order to take the next week off from one tiring task?

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Like on the podcast, I’m taking the next few weeks off from The Commonplace (ergo, sending 5 Quick Things) in order to enjoy time with my family offline. I may post on social media, or I may not… My priority is family, friends, and nature in the Pacific Northwest. Now’s the time for you to catch up on the back catalog, binge-listen to any missed (or favorite) episodes — or perhaps close your screen, too, and settle in with a good book. Rest, my dears.

I’ll see you back here in a few weeks!

xo, Tsh

p.s. This is really good. As foretold.