Snow on Douglas Park in Vancouver at 8 this morning.

They gave Pandora a box. Prometheus begged her not to open it. She opened it. Every evil to which human flesh is heir came out of it.

The last thing to come out of the box was hope. It flew away.

—Kurt Vonnegut, Timequake

Youth non-fiction: Yuval Harari's Unstoppable Us (1 and 2) were such a welcome change from the usual bedtime reading! (Wimpy Kid is okay... but I can only read each book so many times!!) I recommend it for kids and adults alike!

Favorite non-fiction of 2024? Nothing stands out strongly. But @emollick.bsky.social 's Co-Intelligence was very useful, @bobdoto.bsky.social 's A System for Writing brought lots of value beyond the common approach to Zettelkasten, and Li-Anne Tang's Get Off Your Cushion made me pause to breathe.

The only memoir I read this year was "Somebody I Used to Know" by Wendy Mitchell. What a poignant story! Mitchell decided to make the most of her life with Alzheimer's disease. I could relate to the challenges of having to learn to trust more as one becomes increasingly vulnerable.

"Loneliness & Company" by Charlee Dyroff was my favorite fiction book of 2024. It's all about living with our eyes wide-open despite the difficult emotions that come with being born human. Bonus points for being about AI-based solutionism. Recommended!

The "You in Review" workshop by @nickmilo.bsky.social is a gem! I do a pretty elaborate process of yearly review and planning ever December and still gained a ton of precious insight from this Linking Your Thinking event. Strongly recommend attending the replay!!

I remember you.

Geneviève Bergeron
Hélène Colgan
Nathalie Croteau
Barbara Daigneault
Anne-Marie Edward
Maud Haviernick
Maryse Laganière
Maryse Leclair
Anne-Marie Lemay
Sonia Pelletier
Michèle Richard
Annie St-Arneault
Annie Turcotte
Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz

Instead of a Black Friday Sale, I have built a habit of offering a free cooking class on the day after US Thanksgiving. This year, it's a Knife Skills Bootcamp on Zoom. I love the idea that participants will be saving money and become more resilient by growing their chopping skills and confidence.

Orcas in downtown Vancouver!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIed...

Two years ago, I thought: I don't have enough time to read all the books, and I'd like more nerdy women friends. So I created the Vancouver Women Who Read Anti-Book Club. We each read whatever we want and share about it. After yet another gathering tonight, I say this: best idea I've ever had.

Hello Vancouver! Hadn't seen your blue sky in a little while.

Hi! I'm an educator and content creator empowering people to cook healthy plant-based meals at home (even if they'll never go vegan). Trained as a sociologist of science and education (!). Books are my true home, though I also live in Vancouver and work on Focusmate. At ease with conflicting ideas.