5 Quick Things #356 🥩

future talks, frozen water, letting us cook, and STEAK

Hey there,

This past week we hosted our more-or-less annual winter freeze, with bits of ice and snow here and there, and temps in the “real-feel” department of eleven degrees — nothing major to some of you northerners, but definitely a shock to the system (as always) around here. Thankfully, nothing on our end burst or froze (except for the backyard chickens’ water), but nonetheless, I’m grateful for hot drinks and cozy blankets these days. …And that the high will be back in the seventies in just a few days.

Our recent weekends have been filled with home renovations and upkeep: installing new windows and insulation, prepping for new siding, rewiring electrical, moving raised garden beds and decluttering pantries, and generally doing those home jobs that are hard to do when the beautiful spring weather beckons to a leisurely afternoon with a drink on the deck. I find these weeks leading up to Ash Wednesday a good time for home repair, almost a coincidental allegory to the journey of Lent’s process of repairing my inclination toward vices instead of virtues. What do I need to declutter? What areas need repair? How can I make my framework stronger, more reliable, more at-home for my soul? …These past few Lents it’s been good to have physical, exterior work to match my needed interior work.

Deer Taking Shelter in Winter (1866), by Gustave Courbet #

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5 Quick Things ☕️

1. In case you missed it, earlier this week my daughter Tatum replied to my letter to her with her monthly offering. As always, it’s a delight to witness my firstborn grow into adulthood from 6,000 miles away… “Italy has this wonderful habit of making everything into art. From its literal art, architecture, and literature, to its landscape, food, and people… It’s all beautiful.”

2. I like reading a classic during Lent, and lo and behold, my friend Deacon Harrison Garlick is leading a read of Dante’s Inferno for those six weeks… I think this is a great reading choice for the season! He’s got a great lineup of thinkers to unpack the different Cantos with him — if this sounds up your alley (or perhaps if this seems like a nudge from God to do something out of your comfort zone), consider joining in on this reading. Dcn. Harrison is an excellent companion for reading great works.

3. A tip I shared with a friend this week whose son is, like mine, a junior, and therefore entering that precarious stage of being-asked-to-think-constantly-about-his-future: schedule regular, intentional future-talking appointments with your older adolescents. This is especially true for us mothers, who have a well-intentioned tendency to talk about our kids’ futures all the time when they’re in the thick of that season — it’s a gift when we tell our kids that yes, we will have a set weekly time when we talk about “future stuff” (college, work, money, housing, scholarships, applications, etc.), so be prepared for it, but that these topics won’t come up all the time. This way, our kids don’t go running throughout their entire senior year whenever they see us coming to chat, because they know it’s not all we’re going to talk about …But that these things will be addressed, and with intention, because they do matter. —I got this bit of advice from another mom friend with kids just a bit older than mine, and I thought it was gold. It worked well during Tate’s senior year, and I plan to do the same during Reed’s.

4. Over the years I’ve found my work shifting farther and farther away from the noise of the internet (while still being online where it matters), and so far in 2025 it’s rather unexpectedly gone even deeper in that direction. There’s something about focusing on a book proposal, shoring up infrastructure to keep our local co-op up and running, being in the thick of teaching classes, and prepping for an early summer pilgrimage that keeps me delightfully away from the fray and therefore even less inclined to care about the noise. What does it look like to become more laser-focused on fewer things? This has been my work goal for well over a decade now, especially with how much the internet vies you into thinking one should do All The Things (Substack, podcast, YouTube, all the social medias, etc.) if one wants to be successful. Cal Newport is pretty much my one go-to business bro in this department, and I appreciated his quick thoughts here… What would it look like for more of us to structure our work around “letting us cook”? There are seasons and roles where this makes more sense, of course, but it’s still a good idea to consider working in this mode when it …well, works.

5. And finally, here are my two current go-to hacks for carnivore lunches: the premade stack of frozen burger patties and the jumbo pack of thin ribeye steaks, both from Costco, and both very affordable when broken down by the pound of meat. When I get home from the store, I break up the pack of steaks into individual portions, then toss them in the chest freezer. Then to prep either, I sprinkle both sides with salt, then add them frozen (yep!) straight into the air fryer for 10 minutes at 400 degrees. With about two minutes left, I heat the cast iron skillet on high, then when they’re done, I reverse-sear both of them for about 1-2 minutes per side (I also use my meat press, but it’s not essential). DONE. And delicious.

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Currently Reading, Watching, Listening 📺

Father Brown, season 12

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Quotable 💬

“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.”

― J.K. Rowling (via Albus Dumbledore)

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You've got two hours of unexpected free time. What do you do? 💃

Boy, are you all a bunch of nerds… And by “nerds,” I mean “like-minded kindred-spirit individuals” because I’m not surprised in the least that this one is first. Honestly, all of these options are valid forms of down-time, I think, depending on the situation. If this were me today, I think I’d go with something solo, just for fun — mostly because I’m not great at intentionally making time for this.

• Read a book on the couch: 60%

• Go on a walk: 13.6%

• Leave the house & do something solo, just for fun: 9%

• Take a nap: 7%

• Watch a movie: 5%

• Get on the internet: social media, video game, YouTube, etc.: 3.5%

• Call a friend & get together last-minute: 2.5%

Find next week’s poll here.

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Lent Begins in 13 Days 🍋

Our next upcoming liturgical season begins in under two weeks now, so a friendly reminder: if you’d like an open-and-go, simple-but-rich read for the season, consider my book Bitter & Sweet.

I use the Psalms to unpack the seven vices and corresponding virtues as we walk the six weeks to Easter. I also provide basic, 101 explanations for the season, including its traditional practices, which is helpful for both total newbies who never grew up with Lent as a tradition and for seasoned pros who’d appreciate a quick refresher.

Each day’s reading is mercifully short, serving as a kind companion for you to reflect on your own or with your family and friends. And like its Advent sister, Shadow & Light, this book includes compendium music and art as well.

Order it now so you’re ready by Ash Wednesday on March 5:

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This Summer’s Pilgrimage ⛰️

There’s still space on our boat this summer — join us on the Rhine River!

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Quick Links 🔗

• 📐Create your own Rule of Life

• 🎧 Listen to A Drink With a Friend

• 📖 Read my books

• 🛶 Join me along the Rhine River: Summer 2025!

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Question(s) For You to Ponder… 🤔

What would I tell my 13-year-old self? How can I make him or her proud this weekend?

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Have a great weekend,

- Tsh

p.s. - Oooh… This trailer.