- Jan 14
- 4 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
Books, books, books - a thousand lives in one lifetime if we are lucky enough to read them! A very dear friend become a librarian several years ago and thanks to her brilliant help, I’ve gone from reading 5 books a year to 55+ a year. We are playing a book bingo this month to recap what we read last year, swap recommendations, and just spend time together. In case you want to follow along, read on the for the book bingo card and the hacks I've used to expand my reading goals.
Book bingo is like any other bingo. The place card has different book categories and author or genre specificities in each box. Each player fills out the bingo place card according to what they’ve read in the year. You leave the box blank if you didn’t read anything relevant to the box. Once all players are ready, the announcer picks a box (individually cut out from a blank bingo card) out of a hat. Then each player puts a marker on that box. 5 boxes in a row wins a bingo! It’s fun to play because as people win the bingo- you get to hear what books they read. Sometimes it’s fun to swap bingo cards and just see what people read in each category. I think it would be brilliant to be able to fill out the whole place card - but I never get that far in the game either because we run out of time, or because some of the categories are hard to fill.
Reading eclectically is part of the game. I'll admit that it's a challenge to dabble in a little bit of everything. And I wonder if my tolerance for eclectic genres is higher because I've had to slog through strange and dense texts for previous careers (e.g. political theory and technical writing.) But I'm often surprised by genres I wouldn't expect to enjoy. Well, except thrillers. I just don't handle it well. My imagination runs wild and I get too scared!
The other challenge is getting through enough books to fill out the bingo card. There's so many good books out there, but time is hard to find. The best thing here is to make do with a little chunk of time. Even 5 minutes counts. Another trick here is to learn the eye scanning tricks used by speedreaders. I learned this technique as a kid and it helps me quickly zip through pages.
But I know that the best thing for my reading record has been the sheer amount of time I can devote to listening deeply as I go about my work day. Since I work from home, I don't have to worry about coworkers so I can play a book in the background. And I have a lot of work where I'm able to split my brain attention to both focus on a task and listen to an audiobook. It doesn't work all the time. For example, I can’t do it when I’m brainstorming or writing concepts. But I can listen intently while sketching, drawing and especially coloring.
The strange truth about that is that a finished illustration will trigger a book passage from the audiobook that was playing in the background while I made it. (E.g. ACOTAR got me through a long and tricky commission once!) It’s similar to a sensation I've had before while running and listening to podcasts. Afterwards, certain streets and parks would remind me of a part of the podcast conversation. Well, now I can look at a painting and be reminded of character scenes in the outline of a drawing, or whole passages in the paint strokes of an illustrated piece.
My happiest reading hack was learning about Libby from my librarian friend. Libby, the Overdrive app is an access app to your libraries online catalogue - including audiobooks. So it’s just like Audible - but free! Most libraries in the US offer it as part of their services. Some overseas libraries offer it too. I source my library cards from my hometown in Florida and I bought a membership card to a public library in the state of Virginia for Christmas. Between the two of those libraries, I can typically find most book titles I’m looking for.
Other hacks include listening to audiobooks while driving, or reading on phones for commutes, having two books by the bedside at all times and try to read at least a page from each before falling asleep, and carving out time once a week to read instead of watching Netflix. Oh, and get yourself a librarian friend or a book-loving friend. Then you will inevitably talk about books and constantly get inspired. It worked for me!
With that, here’s the top 5 books that tickled me pink this year:
The Bookstore on the Corner by Jenny Colgan A romantic and adventurous self-fulfilling fictional story of a Brit pursuing her life dream of owning a traveling van bookstore in Scotland.
The Tools by Phil Stutz A self help book by the psychologist from the Jonah Hill documentary filled with useful visualisation exercises to work through common yet difficult emotional and mental spirals.
Sorry I’m Late, I Didn’t Want To Come by Jessica Pan The hilarious true account of an introverts quest to become more extroverted. Filled with funny anecdotes, research and great ideas for switching up social routines.
Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed The compilation of a gutsy advice column with piercing wisdom and beautiful passages. Knocked me off my socks.
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Kilmarer A wholesome walk through seasonal traditions and nature’s bounty alongside a botanist with indigenous roots. This book hooked me, made my climate anxiety wane a little and gave me philosophical ideas to dream about.
I filled out my bingo card with these titles and others that I read through this year. If you plan to play, I hope it helps you celebrate your reading record, spend time with friends and maybe get an idea for a title or two to find at your local library or bookstore. Download a copy of this past year's book bingo to play:
Cheers to books and whatever time we find to indulge them,
smarti
- Dec 14, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
Once fall hits in the USA, the countdown begins for the hallmark holiday movies, seasonal music, and decorations in the lead up to Christmas. But once you leave the USA, the seasonal culture changes and each place celebrates uniquely. This is the joy of being an expat and learning the nighe traditions of every place. Take it down to the southern hemisphere (where the seasons are flipped) and christmas happens in a very different way: it's summer! And it is certainly a summer christmas here in Namibia.
I'd like to first admit that I'm not big on Christmas. I don't come from a snowy place like Michigan. I didn't live a traditional USA lifestyle (military childhood, foreign mom). I can't get on board with the commercialism of the season (see minimalism). Plus, we don't have children or family around that would permit the pageantry. So it's hard to feel the sparkle in the same way as other people do.
But while we were stationed in Copenhagen, I started to get a glimpse of why it would be a lovely tradition. Watching snow fall from the cozy indoors. Seeing Danish homes filled with eco decorations like felled branches, real berries and fresh holly. Buying locally farmed (and re-plantable!) Christmas trees. In short, Xmas felt more doable, natural and almost necessary to manage the oppressively shorter days and colder nights.
But we've also lived in Argentina where southern hemisphere flipped my expectations. There the heat builds, days get longer and summer holidays start in December. And sure, the culture carries a hint of Italian and Spanish christmas traditions, certainly the Catholic mass, some rich foods and seasonal songs. But there's more of sun-bathing, pool and family togetherness than the hanging stockings or jingling bells.
Here in Namibia, I'm surprised by the lack of a culture during holiday season. Sure, Namibia is such a tiny country - just 2 million people that are highly stratified by economic holdings and scattered on the outskirts of the giant Kalahari desert. There's not enough people to build big sweeping cultural traditions. And the hot summer weather certainly doesn't lend itself to warm sweaters and christmas lights.
I'm always flabberghasted when I walk into a home goods store around this time of year and see one wall flanked with christmas ornaments, holiday tableware, and the other wall stacked with brightly colored beach towels, and pool accessories! The ultimate battle of opposing seasons. Colonial clinging at it's best. Certainly, commercial exploitation at it's worst. But I'm not sure what to make of what people actually do.
I did attend a holiday party once last year. I brought some Christmas trivia games which no one except me seemed to know the answers to, and some seasonal indoor decorations which were politely dismissed as we sat outside enjoying the breeze on the patio. At one point, someone confessed to me that she had only recently learned that reindeer were real and not fictional animals like dragons! At the end of the night, Xmas in Namibia felt rather blasé and extraordinarily relaxing and lazy like true summer.
From what I can tell, it seems there are celebrations but they are split along the ancestral cultural lines. The German descendents here seem to follow their traditions with trees and decorations indoors. The Aafrikans (read: old Dutch) hold tight to their christian protestant church events and choir performances. The Oshiwambo, Damara and Nama and other tribes just embrace the summer hoildays and visit family up north or further south according to what they can afford. There is one thing that is universal - everyone seems to do a feast of some sort.
I asked a new friend here about her childhood experience. She only has memories of sunglasses and bathing suits, swim sessions and walks along the beach. I can see how there is a lot of joy in feasting on juicy watermelon and resting in the shade. Namibia is so very hot in summer!
So that's what the Mr. and I will be doing this year. Hiding from the heat, gorging on fruits, sipping cold drinks and enjoying these vacation days just as they are. No tinsel, no fanfare, but I hear the streetlights downtown feature safari animals and I can't wait to take a drive to see them from the refuge of our air-conditioned car.
Extending a sweaty but cheerful humbug to you wherever you are for the holiday,
smarti
- Nov 14, 2024
- 5 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
Illustrated title and image of soup night dinners © thesmarti 2024
Yours truly hosted a soup night with friends on the regular during the Namibian winter season. It started as a way to get to know a particularly fascinating friend. Easy way to lure her from her offices with a comforting meal, and then send her home with leftovers because a) I love sharing and b) I figured it would incentivize her to come back. Yup, that's me. Shamefully bribing new friends. Ruthless strategic friendship skills, I know. But when you are new to a community, sometimes you have to flip the systems in your favor. And Windhoek is a tiny city and a tiny population. Closed-knit to the max. So, I started the soup nights to break in and meet the other artists. And I can highly recommend a soup night if you want to build community, too.
Why soups? It's soothing. It's healthy. It's easy. Momola and I did a lot of soup cooking together over whatsapp during corona-times. Chop. Sauté. Boil. Simmer. It's easy in comparison to more complicated dishes, and the repetition feels nice. For this soup night stretch I've made:
roasted red pepper soup
white bean chili
green goddess soup
laksa curry
gazpacho
french onion
artichoke gnocchi soup
creamy white bean and kale
golden chickpea soup
tomato soup (and cheese sandwiches)
creamy potato soup
Illustrated invites for soup night - artichoke gnocchi, gazpacho and tomato soup © thesmarti 2024
And hosting? People often tell me that it seems like a lot of work. But actually, I find it easy, and I like staying at home (hello, happy homebody here!) Not so secretly, I also love curating an experience. But I have had my fair share of mistakes:
not being showered before guests arrive
not having indoor slippers for guests (we're a shoes-free home and winters are cold!)
running out of tupperware
realizing soup is cold as I'm serving it
not checking my phone while a guest was lost for 40 minutes
pouring boiling water on my hand because I was engrossed in conversation
burning my arm on the oven rack because I was distracted by a great question
Etc. etc. So many mistakes.
Despite those mistakes - I still it's worthwhile. Anyone can do this. Although you need to know yourself and your bandwidth. As an example, I had to learn to let go of serving drinks as part of the hosting experience for soup nights. Two reasons. First, I'm a camel in social situations and won't drink even if I'm holding a glass in my hand. I just get distracted easily and I cant be bothered to remember to fill up someone else's cup. Two, I like it when people feel emboldened to move around my kitchen like it's theirs. So my solution was to set up a drink station easily accessible on the kitchen counter and let guests self-serve. Other bits - I'm picky about quality salad dressing so I have oil/vinegar set on the table so people can do their own dressings, and I'm apathetic about dessert so I just don't do it. I know some people will gasp at that - but I know my boundaries and practice self-compassion there.
photos of yellow soup pots, place settings and dessert tea tray ready to go for soup night © thesmarti 2024
Here are other things that work for me:
keep the date consistent and repetitive (every other Monday)
decide the soup a week before
add ingredients to the weekly grocery list
estimate for twice the people and have carb fillers like potato, rice, or bread for the extra hungry (almost always guarantees leftovers)
whatsapp a small invite the week before with date, time, location, recipe
pin google directions it at the top of whatsapp conversations so people have it accessible
on the morning of, set up table, set out slippers, set up drink station
on the afternoon of, cook the soup early and let it warm on the stovetop
have a spotify playlist ready
use lamps and candles for lighting
afterward, load the dishwasher since it uses less water than hand washing
throw linen in washer overnight, set it out to dry in the morning
And alright, ok - a little braggy but I still think I did an okay job. Was it perfect? No. Did I make mistakes? See above. But did I enjoy myself? Yes. Did I build some friendships? YES.
And WE ATE WELL. I'm also so proud of that. Serving people nutritious food in a safe, curated space is such a love language. Soup night means all that and more. Breaking bread together and knowing that the food is doing good things for the other person. No fake ingredients, no cheating flavors. Real good food with real good togetherness. It's everything.
Soup nights brought a lot of solace over the autumn and winter months of April-May-June-July in Windhoek. (Southern hemisphere means we have winters in the opposite time frame - confusing? Yea, sometimes.) Through these dinners, I've had heart-to-hearts, wild chaotic exchanges, bonded over family stories and laughed at myself a lot. That one friend became an even closer part of my circle. Others joined in too. Friends of friends were invited in and the group expanded. It was a sweet and intimate way to call in and connect with other creatives in the network. And I'll probably do it again next year.
Illustration of building friendship through hosting soup night dinners © thesmarti 2024
If I dig deep, these soup night have been empowering for me. To be in charge of the inviting. To be the one who gets to decide all the things. To be the one giving instead of receiving. When you are always the new kid because you move around a lot, stability in social situations often feels scary and overwhelming. You are damn lucky if you happen upon a host who is willing to host AND serve AND introduce you into their already busy schedules. It can happen. I've been lucky in other posts. But it's crazy to expect it. And planning is my safety blanket, so these soup nights have helped me flip the tables, set something up instead of waiting for something to happen. And it made me feel secure and accepted in a way I didn't realize I needed.
To be frank, I'm surprised it worked as well as it did. It's probably due to the energy and willingness of the friendly local creatives here. (And that one elusive gem of a friend who everyone wanted to spend more time with!) They've each given me time and grace and ate cold soup once and brought food gifts, shared stories and were just generally wonderfully kind and accepting people. People are wonderful. And it's made me feel very much at home and feel in my heart like I belonged. And that my dears, is what it's all about in the end.
Cheers to soup nights and willing friends,
smarti
