EoR No. 5: A post-inauguration money date and WTF are we supposed to do about retirement?
Plus, managing money as an unmarried couple and embracing silliness when life feels so heavy
It was a tough week in the U.S. A lot of people around me are feeling down. That makes sense right now, but we can’t sustain this malaise for an entire four years. In my house, we’ve decided to counter the melancholy by enthusiastically embracing opportunities for downright silliness.
We’re dancing like goofs for no reason. We’re listening to comedy podcasts instead of news analysis. We’re watching America’s Funniest Videos. We’re playing odd playlists at dinner, and we’ve placed outdated Trivial Pursuit cards around the house to spark non sequitur conversations. We’re making joy a priority, and we know it requires work. Staying happy is a job I take very seriously 🙃 (This might also be a good time to revisit comedian Jacqueline Novak’s 2016 book, How to Weep in Public: Feeble Offerings on Depression from One Who Knows1, which has helped me laugh through the darkness many times before.)
Onto this week’s round up!
Here’s what’s coming up:
Still time to register for next week’s session on preparing your finances for a fascist regime.
Reminder for Portlanders! Mark your calendars and join me in conversation with author Marian Schembari (A Little Less Broken: How an Autism Diagnosis Finally Made Me Whole) at Annie Bloom’s Books on Feb. 11 at 7 p.m.
🥑 ICYMI at Healthy Rich this week
Money date No. 16: Focusing on money so I don’t melt into a ball of worry over our crumbling society
Are we still just saving for retirement like it’s going to work?
🔗 Things to catch
- shared money tips for surviving the last Trump administration at .
I joined Michelle Teheux, Paco de Leon and Aja Evans with Lindsey Stanberry at
to share some advice on managing your finances under the new administration.For CNET, I wrote about how to manage your money as a couple when you’re not married.
I’m looking forward to
’s new newsletter, , about being satisfied with a tiny business and enjoying the “micro moments” in life.In our economy, “Women today are hummingbirds — constantly in motion, moving fiercely, just to stay in place,” writes
.Something to read if you want to be mad at rich men but in a very low-stakes way, from
’s latest advice column.
💬 Let’s discuss
How do you stay silly when everything feels terrible?
Where do you find joy in little moments? What sparks the life-giving flame between you and people you love? What are you watching/reading/listening to that makes you laugh without cynicism?
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I have watched Schitt’s Creek in its entirety several times and it never fails to make me laugh. It’s just the antidote for finding levity in this unstable world we find ourselves in. I mean, what’s not to love about Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy, and the rest of the cast?!
Choosing joy and silliness should DEFINITELY be a priority right now. My cat Jinx helps a lot. Just watching him do silly things around the house lifts my mood. Staying FAR AWAY from the news helps, staying informed just enough to know what my next move should be. Searching for local farms to get locally grown produce has been pretty joyful. I pretty much watch HGTV specifically, House Hunters, old black and white movies, and rewatch the Twilight Zone series every chance I get.