Well, I’m officially in my 28th year of life and I thought I would do that kinda cheesy thing where I share *all the wisdom I’ve gained this year.* I hope you can at least take a few things away from these kinda random but hopefully helpful thoughts. Even if it’s just to get an air fryer. Without further ado, here are the 28 things I’ve learned this year!
- Prioritize your relationships. Call your mom, facetime your friends, and check-in with your loved ones frequently, even if you’re always the first one to do it.
- There are better reasons to exercise than to lose weight, such as an improved mood, stress-relief, higher productivity, better sleep, glowing skin, and long-term prevention of chronic diseases.
- Don’t underestimate the power of small upgrades to your home with a new plant, a little furniture rearrangement, or some new bedding or curtains. And keeping it tidy.
- Wear sunscreen everyday! It’s the number one way to prevent wrinkles and againg.
- The key to using dating apps is to have absolutely none, and I mean zero, expectations.
- Material things that bring me joy: AirPods, Our Place pan, Causebox subscription, these gold hoops, and my air fryer. Yes, I included the links because they might bring you joy too!
- Being financially confident and secure is really really important (especially if you are a single independent woman!), and hiring a financial advisor to help you get there is 100% worth the investment. And yes, you should be investing even if you have debt.
- It’s really rare that I re-order things from restaurants because I like variety and trying new things, but I cannot stop re-ordering the falafel sandwich from 1000 Figs. It’s that good.
- You can indeed eat real pasta and bread, gluten and all, and be totally healthy. At the same time, overeating pasta and bread (and pizza, ice cream, junk food, etc) too frequently is not healthy. And if you can’t stop overeating then beating yourself up for it, you might want to examine and improve your relationship with food. A dietitian can help you with that!
- If you’re asking yourself or your friends, “Should I text him?” The answer is definitely no.
- Want to know the secrets of a healthy lifestyle? Eat a ton of vegetables, drink lots of water, exercise. Go easy on the booze, sugar, fried stuff, and crap out of boxes and bags, but enjoy it and don’t obsess when you have it. Don’t overcomplicate things!
- Easiest ways to consume more vegetables: smoothies, big salads or soups, stir frys, and sheet pan roasted veggies.
- How to prevent a hangover: chug water right before bed, preferably with a Nuun tablet in it, take a couple ibuprofen, and don’t drink sugary alcoholic beverages all night. I would also say don’t drink too much, but that’s how we got in this mess in the first place, right?
- You can’t change someone, fix them, or force them to help themselves, no matter how much you love and support them.
- Baking soda is an amazing sink, tub, and shower cleaner! Gets all the grime off and makes everything look shiny and new.
- Quality over quantity. Mostly with relationships, but also with clothes.
- Compassion, an open mind, and willingness to learn and accept past mistakes is so important, now more than ever.
- Racism is wrong, white privilege is real, and we could all do better to fight racism. And it all starts with education. The Anti-Racism Daily email has really helped me with that, along with Rachel Cargle’s 30 Day Course.
- Vaccines are not all good or all bad. They are a drug-based medical intervention, and there is always a risk of side effects whenever using drugs to treat injury or illness.
- Trust what your gut is telling you. Always.
- You can be the juiciest, ripest peach in the world. But there is always going to be someone who doesn’t like peaches. Sounds like they have bad taste to me ;)…but seriously not everyone is always going to like you and that is okay. (Clearly still working on this).
- Just buy the basil plant and water the hell out of it. The leaves taste 10x better than the kind in the plastic containers.
- Comparison is the thief of joy.
- Seltzers suck. Yep, the Trulys, White Claws, and all the other ones in between. They make you bloated and hungover and all of a sudden you’re wasted when you’re drinking them. They’re just soda beers, as my dad likes to call them.
- It’s okay to not be positive and optimistic all the time. Sometimes things just suck, and sometimes you’re just going to be in a funk. Give yourself a little grace, then get right back at it once you’re ready.
- You are capable of more than you think. Challenge yourself and you’ll be surprised at just how much you can accomplish.
- The older I get, the more I realize I’ve got a whooooole lot more to learn.
- This year has been weird and hard. Be grateful for what you have, take care of yourself, find joy however you can, and we’ll all make it to the other side of this.
I hope y’all enjoyed the 28 things I’ve learned this year. What have you learned this year?
