A genius hack for the car, my weekly mahjong ritual, and addictively good potato chips

Plus, winter work gloves that actually keep your hands warm

I’m sitting at our round wooden kitchen table; Ben and Alex are talking about Minecraft, and a favorite playlist is blasting. Full darkness has already fallen, a reminder I don’t need that the wheel of seasons is fully turning towards winter. I’ve got beef stew in the Instant Pot, and I just started a pot of water for mashed potatoes. The lights are all on; the boiling water has fogged the windows. I have the sensation that we’re on a boat; that the inky darkness outside could as well be the ocean.

Casey Gray, THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS, 2017.

The beauty and chaos of this kunstkammer-inspired, kaleidoscope-like painting by Casey Gray caught my eye, as did the images of the artist’s studio.

A. I like to keep a special roll of wrapping paper around for those times when I want to be extra for a friend I know will appreciate it. I recently used up my cloud wrapping paper and have been on the hunt for a replacement. I ordered this malachite wrapping paper as my new go-to.

B. I had an intense flashback to the absolute joy these strawberry hard candies brought me as a child when I came across this ornament tonight. Where did I get those candies? Not my parents; not a doctor’s office; not my grandparents, and not in any store. A mystery!

C. A friend brought me along to her mahjong class a few years ago, and I immediately loved the game - the feel of tiles, the pageantry of the setup, the simple-to-learn rules, the complexity that grows the more you learn about various hands. This fall, a group of friends has been meeting weekly to play mahjong with a great teacher. For a few hours, we all put our phones down, and the game keeps us in the moment. I have a certain feeling of what I can only describe as togetherness on those nights - it doesn’t totally make sense, but sometimes the best things in life don’t. An excellent book on the game of mahjong by Eliza Twitchell.

D. This travel mahjong set is high on my wish list….

E. Earlier in the year, I impulse purchased these chocolate-covered rice cakes, and turns out they are just a sweet and crunchy small delight that I can keep in my bag as a school pickup snack or for when we’re all suddenly hangry - my youngest also loves them.

F. These hand towels are my secret weapon; they fit in the pocket of my car door with a little folding of the edges, and then I have an easy-to-grab and hand-over supply of napkins for the inevitable car emergencies.

G. Today, we did the final garden clean-up. It always depresses me to put away the outdoor furniture, empty the terracotta containers so they won’t crack, and compost the last of the frost-damaged annuals. These insulated work gloves are a seasonal savior—they kept my hands warm as I put the garden to bed for another year. I grumbled, as I always do, that next year I’m not going to plant so many containers, but come spring, you know I’ll be back at it.

H. Tim brought these chips home this week, and I was initially quite skeptical—I don’t usually like ‘flavored’ anything except Doritos (my favorite vice!) —but wow, these were really good.

November 15, 2010. Alex (now 16) was 2 when I took this photo of the light in the park—one of the things I miss most about life in a city is the serendipity of moments like this: being alone in a city of millions.

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I include a few bonus finds here each week for paid subscribers as a small token of appreciation for making this newsletter possible.

1. This suede/knit jacket isn’t available yet on Zara.com, but I signed up for stock notifications - I’ve gotten lucky before!

2. This is my favorite holiday gift to give (and receive) - celebratory, luxurious but not too expensive (under $80).

3. I haven’t purchased either of these, but they keep winking at me - cheery, good for any holiday parties, but also evergreen, too. Bag and shoes