Fiction book
Free Food For Millionairesby Min Jin Lee
Having read and thoroughly enjoyed Min Jin Lee’s Pachinko, I was really keen to read Free Food For Millionaires and it didn’t disappoint. Lee’s characters are always so wonderfully complex and multi-faceted, making them relatable and realistic. The protagonist of Free Food For Millionaires, Casey Han, is the child of working-class Korean immigrants in New York who, after attending the prestigious Princeton, is trying to work out what she wants in her life. Where do the expectations of her parents, peers and mentors end and her own desires begin? Casey’s struggle to work out her answer to this question is the central force of this novel and it’s a highly relatable struggle – I imagine we’ve all struggled to find that line between what we want versus what other people tell us we should want and what they want for us.
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
I know I’m a bit late to the chorus of people praising this book but I’ll join in anyway! This is such a beautifully written and constructed book, with the natural world as its beating heart. One of my friends told me I’d love the way Owens describes nature, especially birds, and she wasn’t wrong! As a wildlife scientist, Owens clearly has a keen eye for the natural world in all its intricacies which shines through in the prose.
The novel centres a wonderfully unique protagonist, a girl, then woman, who essentially grows up alone, is finally taught to read as a teenager by one of the few people who take a genuine interest in her and, by combining her love of the marsh where she lives with the natural science books he brings her, becomes an expert in all aspects of the marsh.
This is also a story of learning how and who to trust, and ultimately love, when you’ve been let down again and again by all the people who are supposed to love and protect you. And it’s a murder mystery. Yes, I know that sounds like a lot, but nature is the very effective and affecting thread weaving it all together. At times, this book made my heart ache, at others it made me smile. At all times it inspired with its beauty. Obviously highly recommended!
Podcasts
Dara McAnulty and the joys of nature from ABC RN’s Conversations
Continuing on the theme of an appreciation for the natural world, this interview with a 17 year old naturalist and author (so impressive, I know!) was a beautiful ode to the landscapes and fauna of Northern Ireland. While I don’t know this landscape intimately, the way McAnulty talks about the landscapes and fauna of his home just served to deepen my love of the natural world in general and the landscapes and fauna I live with here in lutruwita/Tasmania more specifically.
Each episode of I Weigh is an interview with someone interesting, whether they be a writer (eg Matt Haig, author of Reasons to Stay Alive, among other things), comedian (eg Celeste Barber) or something else entirely. The underlying premise of the podcast is that we are much more than the number on the scales, so at the end of every episode Jamil gets each guest to tell her how much they “weigh”, not in terms of kilograms or pounds, but in terms of their qualities, their values, their achievements and what is important to them in their life. Common themes of the broader conversations are mental health and illness, body image and acceptance, and feminism. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed every episode I’ve listened to so far.
Discovering this podcast this month has also been really serendipitous as this was also the month that I found out how much I weigh in kilograms for the first time since 2013. I will write a separate post about that soon.
Music
Seasons of Change by Half Moon Run
I’ve been really enjoying this EP from 2020 from a band I already love. I particularly love the way this EP starts – the first song begins with a combination of acoustic guitar and bird song which is like relaxation in musical form!
Self-care action
Outdoor yoga practice
I’ve practised yoga outdoors a little in the past, but having wound up with a migraine a couple of times after this style of practice I got scared off. When practising outdoors, I definitely do need to think about the position of the sun and shielding my sensitive eyes from its glare, however recent experience has proved that outdoor practice doesn’t inevitably create migraines. In letting go of the fear somewhat, I’ve been able to enjoy the benefits of outdoor practice.
- At a guided morning class in the Botanic Gardens, I had the joy of practising under a huge canopy of green leaves and listening to the contended quacking of ducks as I meditated.
- In practising on the beach after work on a hot day, I enjoyed the somewhat cool breeze off the Derwent River and a well-earned swim at the end of my practice.
I’ll definitely be going to yoga in the Gardens semi-regularly (I’m actually going back tomorrow) and I’m looking forward to repeat performances of the yoga on the beach and swim combination when we have warm Summer days (rare but not unheard of).
Yoga pose
I’ve been practising both of this posture quite regularly and am hence developing some sense of mastery over it which is very satisfying. As a balancing pose, half-moon can still have its challenges as my balance (like everyone’s) varies from day to day, but I’m now mostly able to stay fairly steady in the pose. I love the sense of extension you get from the tips of your fingers on one hand to the tips of your toes on the opposite foot on both sides, on one side in a horizontal direction and on the other vertically.
Also, side note, I love the synergy of the fact that my music favourite is from Half Moon Run and my yoga pose favourite is half moon!
Events
So many lovely things have happened this month – life is just feeling full in the best possible way at the moment. Here are a few highlights:
- Spending New Year’s Day with my brother for an unplanned sibling bonding day. We went cherry picking at Sorrel Fruit Farm, shared an amazing cheese platter for lunch at Wicked Cheese and spent the afternoon exploring the historic town of Richmond which is full of amazing old buildings and lots of lovely shops.
- Dinner at Dana Eating House with someone I met on the Three Capes Track. This was a highlight not so much for the food or venue, although both were wonderful, but for the company and conversation.
- Seeing an echidna up at Knocklofty Reserve.
- Attending an exhibition at the old K&D Warehouse in Hobart as part of MONA FOMA with a friend, followed by a lovely dinner at a Mexican eatery nearby.
- Walking from Roches Beach to Seven Mile Beach and back, followed by a swim, with three girlfriends.
- Hiking from Lenah Valley all the way up to the Lost World and back again. Climbing more than 800m in altitude over the course of this hike, I really enjoyed watching the vegetation change and seeing the ever more impressive views as I ascended. The lost World part of this track (about 45 minutes one way) is more bouldering than hiking, requiring you to follow orange arrows on the rocks and use all four limbs to haul yourself up. This is my favourite sort of hiking/almost not hiking – so satisfying. I did get slightly off the track at one stage and incurred some minor injuries as a result, but nothing is broken and I would do the hike again in a heartbeat!
- Farewell morning tea from my current team at work. As I finished my time in my current role and team this week, my team hosted a morning tea to say farewell and thank you. The really special parts of this were the speech my manager gave (“we threw a lot of challenges her way, although nothing really seemed like a challenge for her”) and the card I received with messages from each of my colleagues. I also received a generous gift of a voucher to one of my favourite Hobart eateries, Veg Bar.
- Seeing a blue tongued lizard in the Waterworks Reserve on Gentle Annie Falls (a dry stone structure).
These are just some of the highlights of what has been a wonderful month.
Food
Just as there have been lots of event highlights, I have also eaten a lot of really good food. I’d have to say though that the dark chocolate, oat and almond cookies which Mum baked for me and brought down in December have been the delicious Christmas gift that has kept on giving all through January. These cookies make the perfect mid-afternoon pick-me-up in the midst of a busy work day and every time I eat a cookie I am reminded of how much I am loved, which is obviously a wonderful feeling.
Love, hope and peace from Emma.
Love Hope Peace 
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