As mentioned in the photo-captions above, I’ve had what was probably a cold (I received a negative COVID test about a week into my symptoms, but it was a single rapid test, so who knows) for about twelve days, which was at times borderline miserable but mostly just massively annoying and inconvenient for someone who spends an inordinate amount of time in front of a microphone.
My usual strategy when I catch something is to re-delegate as much of my energy to my immune system as possible, so I blasted the disease with hot, cozy soups, strafed it with long, relaxing periods of book-reading, and slit its infectious throat with soft, fluffy socks and aggressive bedtimes.
This morning was the first in a long while I woke up without significant sniffles and dammed-up sinuses, so I feel terrific and am amazed by how easy it is to breathe!
That said, a few things:
First, thank you so, so much for your support, enthusiasm, messages, and overall amazingness.
The work I do is supported by the people on the other end of it, but I, as a human being, am supported in so many ways by your engagement and presence—even if we’ve never emailed or otherwise communicated directly.
I’m regularly reminded of just how fortunate I am to have curious and conscious and globally distributed people on the receiving end of the work I do, and I don’t take that for granted.
Thank you thank you thank you. For being you and for making what I do both possible and meaningful.
Second, I did a somewhat unusual livestream on Instagram last week, where I chatted for a few minutes, but then just read a book for half-an-hour, encouraging folks watching the livestream to do the same.
I enjoyed it! And I received some very positive feedback from people who decided (and were able) to set aside a small chunk of time to read or write or otherwise just chill, doing their own thing with someone else in the same virtual room.
I’ll riff on that concept again in the future, but I’d like to try another experiment this upcoming weekend, aiming for a casual, virtual version of the Q&A’s I do after presenting talks.
So! On Sunday, January 2, at 3pm US Central Time I’ll be livestreaming via Twitch—which is a platform most commonly used by folks streaming video game things, but which I’m keen to try out for other purposes (maybe eventually presenting talks, but keeping it simple and interactive for the moment).
I’ll post upcoming livestream info (including a link you can click to go straight to the right place at the appropriate time) here:
Colin’s Livestream Page.
As was the case with the Insta livestream, please note that I have no idea what I’m doing and this upcoming event might be lame—but it also might be wonderful (immediately or eventually), and this is what learning looks like :)
And finally, I mention this at the bottom of every newsletter, but I want to emphasize that I’d truly love to hear from you if you’ve got a quick moment to reach out and tell me something about yourself.
It can be a quick introduction or a question, but also feel free to just riff on whatever.
Also, the end-of-year holiday season can be lonely and rough sometimes, as there are a lot of pressures to do and be and feel certain ways.
Not everyone responds to these sorts of milestones happily and positively, and that’s okay. And if you think it might help to just say howdy or vent or complain to a stranger from the internet, I’m here and I respond to every message I receive.
You can reach me by replying directly to this newsletter, or at colin@exilelifestyle.com.
