Hi there,
As youâre reading this Iâm camping with my clan. The weatherâs supposed to be beautiful, weâve got a few more days still until Spring Break winds down, and weâve got one of the better camp spots at our favorite go-to local state park. We booked this weekend ages ago as a way to celebrate a final family hurrah before the oldest kiddo gets married (in less than two months now đ¤Ż)âunbeknownst to us at that time, her fiancĂŠ would now be living in the area, too, so heâs joining us as well!
It should be a delightful spring weekend.
5 Quick Things âď¸
1. One of the challenges of camping this time of year: Lent. Since we fast from meat on Fridays, and since weâre big meat-eaters in our family, letâs just say the weekly Lenten fast feels very âŚLent-y for our clan. But weâre gonna try fish tacos over a campfire tonightâweâll see how it goes!
2. If youâve read 5QT for any length of time, you know of my great love for Arthur Brooks. Iâve already pre-ordered his book that releases at the end of this month, but I was happy to recently see him chat with George Kamel, a more recent follow of mine (as I continue to do research for my upperclassman personal finance class next fall). It was a great conversation (here it is in video form, if you prefer).
3. This past weekend we got another five ladies for our backyard flock! The chicks are currently living in a big cardboard box topped off with a window screen in our dining room and are incessantly chirping at all hours of the day. I used to be intimidated at the prospect of chickens, especially in the early stages, but once you get the hang of it itâs really pretty simple. Theyâll live indoors in their box for a few more weeks, and then weâll slowly introduce them to the big girls currently in the coop out back. Thereâs a whole art and science to that part, but weâll get to it later. âŚLetâs just say it involves watermelon.
4. Speaking of chickens⌠I really enjoyed this piece from Jenna Kutcher about why all the girl bosses suddenly want chickens. It was reminiscent of my about-face I had in light of burnout in my work about eight-ish years ago, so I wouldnât exactly say âsuddenlyâ hereâIâve seen a slow, subtle change with a lot of women in this line of work since I started writing online more than eighteen years ago now. But I totally get what she means, and it made me all the more glad I waved goodbye long ago to places like Instagram and media like girl-boss podcasts (and goodness, I havenât made a funnel in years): âWeâre not checking out. Weâre hedging in the most human way possible.â
5. And finally, because you know I canât go too long without sharing one of these from Max Miller⌠Hereâs that deep-dive on what pioneers ate on the Oregon Trail that you never asked for.
Currently Reading, Watching, Listening đş
Quotable đŹ
âReal freedom does not mean being ruled by oneâs impulses from one moment to the next. Just the opposite. Being free means not being a slave to oneâs moods; it means being guided in a course of action by the fundamental choices one has made, choices one does not repudiate in the face of new circumstances.â -Fr. Jacques Philippe2
Itâs been a couple months now⌠How are those New Yearâs resolutions/goals/plans coming along? đĽ
This question was a suggestion from Kyle, and I thought it was fun because I genuinely, legitimately forgot that New Yearâs was even not too long ago. âŚJokeâs on it, though, because I had no goals or resolutions to remember in the first place, like the majority of you. I typically do make some sort of quarterly goal, but what with absolutely everything on my plate this springâdaughterâs wedding, book deadline, class, senior graduating, etc. etc. etc.âI gave myself an overload of grace this year. And Iâm glad I did.
Iâm guilt-free because I never made âem in the first place: 65.3%
Uh⌠Theyâre ekeing along, I suppose. Hit or miss: 20.6%
Solid! I review them weekly and track my progress: 7.5%
Oh yeahâI completely forgot about those: 6.6%
Find the next poll here.
Historic Highlands: Our 2026 Pilgrimage to Scotland đ´ó §ó ˘ó łó Łó ´ó ż
âThere is no other place like Scotland in the whole world.â - Sir Walter Scott
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đ´ó §ó ˘ó łó Łó ´ó ż Join the next pilgrimage: Scotland!
Question(s) For You to Ponder⌠đ¤
Youâve got a weekend free, but with only enough time to go somewhere nearby with one tank of gas, there and back. Where do you go?
Have a great week,
- Tsh
p.s. - NYC dogs in bags.
Iâd seen the thumbnail of the show for a while but didnât give it much thought, but once we finished The Count of Monte Cristo we decided to give it a go. So far itâs much more charming than I thought itâd be!
Once more, itâs my main man from my current Lenten read.