East Bay Bookshelf

Maybe this is my new normal for a weekly newsletter – 6 on a Saturday! It is nice waking up on the weekend and having a few more hours to write before I hit publish. Today I used my morning walk to finalize my thoughts, then I headed back home to write.

Birthday Celebrations 🎉

I turned 36 on Thursday and besides working all day, I got outside for a mid-day walk and dinner at Bridges in Danville with my family. My friends and family are amazing and I received coffee gift cards (hello Lattes for Literacy!) and Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid along with a ton of birthday wishes. My co-worker also sent me a Sugarwish gift, which I had never heard of before, and I’m so excited to receive the cookies I ordered!

My grandmother and I shared a birthday, so I made a video to share with my family and people who knew her that highlighted some of our moments together. I’m so lucky that my mom captured many moments from my childhood and then converted them to be stored online so I can watch them any time!

ASTC Passport Program

As I’ve been planning summer fun this year for my family, I learned about the ASTC Passport Program. It’s a reciprocal program for museums and science centers when members travel outside of their local area. If you are a member of a science center or museum participating in the ASTC Passport Program, you are eligible for benefits such as free general admission when you travel outside of your local area. We are members of the Exploratorium (in San Francisco), but we have family in Texas where we visit often. I’m excited to add participating museums all over the country to our travel itineraries in the future!

Type 2 Fun

Next week we are on a staycation, but we are planning some big events and fun day trips for the week! (Our Springer Spaniel is turning 13 and the days are getting a little hard for him, so we are hesitant to leave him for extended periods right now.) I heard of the concept called “Type 2 Fun” a few years ago and think of it often.

• Type 1 Fun: Fun while it’s happening, but maybe not so fun in retrospect. I think of going on a shopping spree or eating too much sugar.
• Type 2 Fun: Not necessarily fun while it’s happening, but fun in retrospect. For me, this is the sweet spot for a vacation. There are definitely moments of joy and great stories to tell, but it may not be considered “fun” at every moment.
• Type 3 Fun: Not fun while it’s happening, and not fun in retrospect. I would like to avoid this type of fun. Like maybe this is fun for other people but not for me.

You can read all about our trip to Boston a few years ago here, which was definitely Type 2 fun!

Mid-Year Check In

Over the next week, I plan on doing a little mid-year check-in with my annual goals. My process is below!

• Review any goals I set at the beginning of the year – I usually set mileage, book number, page count, and writing goals.
• Stop: What isn’t working well and I should stop doing?
• Start: What should I start doing now to meet my goals by the end of the year?
• Continue: What’s working well and I should keep doing?
• What’s changed and do I have any new goals to set?

You can find the goals I set for 2025 here! I’ll report back next week about how I’m doing.

Podcasts to add to Your TBL

This week I was notified of two new podcasts to add to my TBL (to be listened) list.

Book Lounge by Libby is “your new go-to for cozy, smart, and joyful book talk with author interviews, behind-the-scenes stories, Libby reading recs, and lots more to come. Hosted by Joe Skelley, each episode invites you into a candid conversation about books, writing, publishing and the trends shaping the literary world. PLUS, every episode features book recommendations from some of your favorite online content creators.”

Bookmarked by Reese’s Book Club — “the podcast where great stories, bold women, and irresistible conversations collide! Hosted by award-winning journalist Danielle Robay, each week new episodes balance thoughtful literary insight with the fervor of buzzy book trends, pop culture and more. Bookmarked brings together celebrities, tastemakers, influencers and authors from Reese’s Book Club and beyond to share stories that transcend the page. Pull up a chair. You’re not just listening — you’re part of the conversation.”

Lessons from One Year of Writing

Last week I shared that my first post on East Bay Bookshelf was on June 28, 2024, which is exactly one year ago today! Over the past year, I’ve learned a few things about writing:

• Plans are important. I’ve gotten off-schedule a few times, but I always try to post at least once per week. Most of the time that is in the form of my weekly newsletter.
• Progress not perfection. There are some posts that I’m so proud of and others that I never want to read again. It’s a balance!
• Inspiration never strikes at the last minute. It’s helpful to have a place to brainstorm ideas and be able to quickly access them to meet a deadline. For me, they don’t even have to be fully formed, I just need to remember what I was going to write about.
• Repurposing content is ok. I’ve taken some of the shorter “5 on a Friday” material and repurposed it into longer “Beyond the Bookshelf” posts. This helps me dive deeper into concepts and ideas that I’d like to explore further.
• Have fun! There are some weeks where work is busy or I have quite a bit of family stuff going on and I just do not have the time to dedicate to this space…or I get bored. When it stops feeling fun, I try to change things up a bit with a new series or structure.

Thanks for following along with my reading, writing, and other life adventures. I hope you have a wonderful weekend and if you are in the US, a safe and fun 4th of July holiday!