5 min read

March in Retrospect

It seems as if we're all in agreement that while January passed us by at a glacial speed, the preceeding months have been moving impossibly fast.

I usually crawl my way through January and February, struggling to sort out how I want to steer myself in a year that has yet to unfold, internally debating if it even matters if I do. As someone who hates to feel like they're failing, I'm never one to sit down and set my intentions to paper (or to screen in this case). Lately I've been considering whether too much time has passed to make any sort of resolutions, but I'm ultimately choosing to ignore all those thoughts and get started now.

With all that in mind, I'm ending March with a look back at the things that made me better and planning to set off into April with a little more positivity.

Our Fiddle Leaf sprouting more leaves this month (and a visual representation of how I'm trying to be this year) 🌱

The goals I want to set for myself and how they shaped up in March

  • Exploring more literary genres – The only good thing about the end of daylight savings time ruining my sleep schedule was that I leveraged the late nights to finish more books than I usually do in a month's time. I shelved some contemporary literature, modern romances, one science fiction, and one fantasy novel.
    • Martyr! by Keveh Akbar, a novel that follows Cyrus Shams, a newly sober, orphaned son of Iranian immigrants, as he embarks on a profound search for meaning. Honestly, I finished this one feeling a bit like a dummy and had to Google that second-to-last chapter's meaning. For context, Keveh is a poet and Martyr! is his debut novel, so some of the writing was a bit flowery and figurative, but overall, I liked this book and was interested in the main character's exploration of death and legacy.
    • Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez, a romance centered on two people from different social and financial backgrounds. I read the third self-contained installment of this series last summer and deemed it one of my favorite romance novels of 2024. I loved this one as well.
    • Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez, the second installment in Jimenez's Part of Your World series. Based on how much the cover art for this book flooded my Goodreads feed, I feel like fans really liked this one. I liked it well enough, but also felt irritated by the characters at times and I can't explain why. Maybe these stories are better with a bit of time apart from one another!
    • Normal People by Sally Rooney, a coming of age story that doesn't aim to romanticize the human experience. Rooney's writing style was new to me, but I took to it pretty quick and enjoyed the complexity of the two main characters. I haven't watched the show that came from this novel, but could see the appeal in telling this story without the written subtext of each character's internal thoughts.
    • I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman, a story about about a young woman who suddenly finds herself free in a mysteriously desolate world after being imprisoned for as long as she can remember. This one was tough only because it was so, so bleak, but I still enjoyed the broader themes and admired its unwillingness to offer any simple answers.
    • Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett, the third and final installment of a cozy fantasy series, following a faerie scholar on a series of adventures through the hidden world of Folk. I hadn't realized this was the last book in the series until after I'd finished reading it. I think everything wrapped up really well and I'll miss this world and it's characters plenty 🥲
  • Being consistent with writing/journaling – I'd like to write more on this blog and to also get into the habit of journaling. I think dedicating time to reflect on each month is a fair enough goal for this space. And, yesterday, Dan got me a Midori notebook that I plan to use as a place to record things in on a (hopefully) daily basis.
  • Taking time for creative endeavors – I'd love to commit to carving out the time to make things 'just because' this year. This month, I didn't get up to too much creatively, though I did give myself a Keroppi-inspired multi-colored manicure complete with hand-sculpted nail charms, glitters, and gems. I feel like younger me would flip out if she knew she'd get to sport these one day.
  • Less meals out – We stayed consistent with weeknight dinners this month and have really started to get into the groove with meal planning on Sundays. My favorite at-home meal this month was probably these Mediterranean Turkey Burgers that we paired alongside a cucumber and tomato salad.

Things that brought me joy

  • Warmer weather and longer days – At the start of the month, we had what felt like a solid string of consistently warm weather and sunny days. A false spring right before the spring equinox made its official appearance, but a welcomed one at that. We even had our first patio hang of the year — followed up with a short stroll for some ice cream. Green is beginning to peek out from a few trees in our neighborhood, and I can't wait for Denver to look lush and alive again.
  • The return of appointment television – Severance S2 and White Lotus S3 in the same month? The distraction we all needed, and the only thing that made tuning into social media fun in March.
  • Really, pop culture in general – The Oscars had their highs and lows. TV, as I just mentioned, was entertaining as hell, and the return of Lady Gaga gave me the best reason to go out dancing with friends.
  • Slow weekends – I haven't really gone out-out a ton this month, but it's been nice getting to move through March a bit more intentionally. At home, we've used the free time to reevaluate our apartment and the things we'd like to improve in it. We spent one of our weekends reorganizing our kitchen cabinets and another one planning where else in our living situation could use a little more attention.
  • Infinity Nikki – I'm a little embarrassed to admit to obsessing over a dress-up gacha video game, but I am. And maybe I'm giving this game too much of my time. But listen, okay? I'm easily lured in by cute aesthetics and happy to be collecting my silly little in-game outfits and clearing off every thing there is to do in the game, slowly but surely. For now, it brings me joy, which is just what I need in an otherwise "stressful time" (euphemism for the current political climate).
  • Starting therapy – I'm just excited about starting this journey for myself.
  • No-fuss bakes – This month, I baked Loaded Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars and Coconut Apricot Oat Cookies (both recipes from this book that Dan recently picked up). They were both easy to whip up and you'll just have to trust when I tell you they were yummy. Consider this an encouragement to treat yourself today.