Weekend Reads: Be better

A photo posted by Refinery29 (@refinery29) on Jan 3, 2017 at 6:54pm PST

New year, new me? Business school has inspired me and reminded me that learning exercises parts of your brain you forgot about. Being constructively challenged, engaging in awesome discussions, and putting thoughtful points on paper does that too. 

It's weird to feel to inspired and hopeful about your own potential at the same time that you feel so sad and hopeless about the future of the country. I'm having a hard time reconciling the two, and so I'm just trying to be better. Here's how: I don't think compliments in my head anymore, I say them. I don't let someone walk all over me because they say it with conviction, I stand up for myself (<--literally just did this in a meeting today and got secret email high fives during the call), I seek opportunity that will make me happy, fulfilled, expand my mind, and surround me with people I am inspired and challenged by. I plan to stay informed so I can be loud and confident when I need to be.

That's my amorphous resolution. Be better. I think I can accomplish that one.

This to do list is INSANE (via T&C) How to fold napkins for dinner parties (via Architectural Digest) What's in her bag? (via Warby Parker)

These maps of TV show popularity are so interesting! (via NYTs) Lauren Duca is my hero. (via HuffPo) Hahaha, nerdy book jokes (via Buzzfeed) I love Wale. So much. (via Twitter) Glamour get so many points for doing this and for not drawing attention to it (via BuzzFeed) Hehehe, this is funny (via NYer)

This sweater is super cute (I ordered it!) and so is this one. Style by Love Story (via TMR)

Everything you've wanted to know about My So Called Life (via Elle) This show looks so up my alley (via BBC)

I'm making my own yogurt (first batch wasn't great--a little scalded, I'm hopeful for this linked recipe). (via the Kitchn) WOW JENNY (via DALF)

This month of Selfies turned out to be so much more (via TMR) This is a good reminder (via COJ) The psychology of buying a lottery ticket (this had me laughing--so true!) (via TMR)

In search of a calendar for 2017? Check out these food related ones. Which state has the worst winters? Well, Hawaii has the best. (via Thrillist) 2017 book preview! (via The Millions)


Not Normal:
Democratic Governors will save us (via HuffPo)
The Pope is pro-science (via WaPo)
The editor of the Chicago Review of Books speaks (via the Guardian)
Sexism and racism is the best predictor of whether or not someone voted for Trump (via Vox)
Anti-Inauguration (via NYTs)
Why rural America voted for Trump (via NYTs) (and this comment  on the article)
Woolsey quits the Trump transition team (via WaPo)
Obama wrote a 50 page article about Criminal Justice reform in the Harvard Law Review (via Politico)
Olbermann has a new take (via HuffPo)
This sucks (via WaPo)