I sent my first weekly letter to 13 people on October 2, 2019. This one will be the 51st letter that I’ve sent. This one will hit 106 inboxes. Thanks for being a part of this. My favorite part is that most letters spark at least one fun conversation with a reader. Feel free to smash reply, I love hearing from you.

This week’s recs:

Music/YouTube:

I’ve been shouting into the abyss about Drake White for weeks. He does a live show every Wednesday night from his barn outside Nashville. Last week he hosted Paul McDonald. I had never heard of Paul, but check out the youtube link and skip to minute 19. Drake and Paul sing one of Paul’s songs that vibrated in my bones followed by an awesome cover of an Oasis song that we all love.

A “recipe”

If any of you like PB and J as much as I do, check this out.

I use Vermont Bread (white bread) for this because it is the kind that I keep in the apartment for my kids. You need two slices. On one slice, I put a thin layer of smooth almond butter. Make sure you get complete coverage to the edge, don’t fuck around. On top of the AB, I put another thin layer of chunky peanut butter from Whole Foods. Avoid the trash that is sweetened with Palm Oil. You want the ingredients to say Peanuts and Salt. In the mean time, get a pan warmed up over medium heat. Back to the bread. On the other slice, be generous with wild blueberry preserves (from Maine if you can). Sprinkle some sliced almonds on top. Add a dash of cinnamon and a pinch of salt. I should have mentioned this earlier, but you need to time this so that you have a lightly freckled banana available as well (maybe 5 days in to the ripening process). Slice half of the banana paper thin and scatter them on the blueberry side. Eat the other half of the banana as an appetizer. Smoosh both sides together being careful not to lose any passengers. Now make it golden on both sides in the pan. Slice it diagonally and savor it.

I ate this post run on Saturday morning and the rest of my weekend was great. You get warm temperature, and texture, and salt and sweet. I don’t know what else you’d want in life.

Lesson 2 of my “37 hard earned lessons” series.

There is more to life than constantly striving to be “one percent better everyday.” I know that I can drive myself crazy by trying to fill every available minute with a podcast, an article, or a book that might give me a little edge. Checking twitter and watching youtube and responding to email can fill up whole days. David Goggins and Jocko Willink are inspirations for sure, but sometimes it’s just exhausting.

I need to make sure that I create space for JOY. Walks in the woods with the dog, boat rides, live music, being outside during the golden hour, taking off your boots after a hard ski day to enjoy a cocktail, trying new sports, sitting by a fire on a chilly night, rolling around in the dirt wrestling my kids, canoe trips, and whatever else blows your hair back. You have to make an effort to fit this stuff in. This is what makes life worth living.

This week’s questions. If you’ve ever thought about replying, make it this week. I want to know your answers to these:

How do you make space for joy?

What makes YOU feel ALIVE?

I love you all, thanks for reading.