Sunday Stuff
In support of super nerdy deep dive rabbit holes.
One of my very favorite things to do in the whole world is to get lost down a rabbit hole.
It’s a procrastinator’s dream, right? It feels productive - I’m learning! - even when it’s not exactly what I’m supposed to be doing.
When I was a kid, pre-internet, my rabbit hole was Webster’s dictionary. I loved looking up words, spotting new words then looking those up, on an on, until an hour or more had passed. Bliss.
These days of course, it’s google.
Here are some recent rabbit holes that you might enjoy going down too:
The Great Feminization
Last week’s New York Times opinion piece about How Women Are Ruining the Workplace (or Ruining the West, after the title was changed) created a shitstorm and rightly so. I read it. I rolled my eyes at how desperate bro-culture is fighting to stay on top right now. I also dug deeper. It’s based on an earlier piece in Compact Magazine called The Great Feminization by Helen Andrews. It argues the same - that more women in the workplace with their (supposedly) feminine traits like avoiding conflict, gossiping, passive-aggressiveness, toxic egalitarianism, big feelings, and over-empathy have created cancel culture (the irony writes itself) and ruined whole swaths of education and business and the law (again, the irony). I’ll allow Leonara Barclay on Persuasion, Richard Haniana here on Substack, and Sophie Gilbert in The Atlantic to provide excellent counterpoints, from varying political points of view, with data. I encourage deep diving on the term “feminization” because I’m not sure enough women realize it’s being discussed heavily in the manosphere and conservative political sphere.
Nuclear Bombs vs. Thermonuclear Bombs
I watched the series Manhattan on Amazon about The Manhattan Project - it actually pre-dated the movie Oppenheimer - and was totally riveted. It debuted in 2014 and ran for two seasons. The characters are mostly fictional but the story is true and so is the science. How do I know? Deep, deep rabbit-hole dives, of course. I probably watched 10 minutes max at a time before I was pausing to look up things like implosion, the relationship between Oppenheimer and Einstein, uranium vs. plutonium, what is a hydrogen bomb, and fission vs. fusion. For the record, the two bombs dropped in Japan were two different styles of fission bombs (split atom). Current-day bombs are fission that leads to fusion, which are hydrogen bombs aka thermonuclear bombs and exponentially more powerful than the bombs dropped on Japan. I highly recommend the series, the deep diving, and following it up with the series Genius, also on Amazon. Season 1 is about Albert Einstein’s life and it’s also so, so good. More deep diving for sure. Season 2 is Picasso, a tough watch because he’s such an abusive asshole, but I learned so much about the Belle Epoque writers and artists who were his contemporaries. What a time to be alive, pre-World War I. Season 3 is MLK/X, a juxtaposition between MLK and Malcolm X, their political views and strategies, their rise to fame, and their incredible wives who carried on after their assassinations. Season 4 is Aretha Franklin, the perfect, complex, glorious end to the series.
The Human Need for Enemies
All of the rabbit holes above take you into moments in history fraught with intense conflict and dramatic change. How women are changing the workplace/government/education/the law (and no, it’s not a disaster). How autocracy gets rolling, and when, and why. Is it ever successfully stopped, or do humans struggle too hard to live with diversity, multiculturalism, power-sharing, and equality when it’s in our nature to resist all of those things? Is scientific advancement always a good thing, or is it just the best worst thing? Do we need enemies in order to bond with each other? Is political corruption and hoarding of wealth inevitable, since humans always seem to land there? Is the only solution burning it all down and starting over, since humans always seem to land there too? Some groups seem to think so and we should be paying very close attention to them.
It’s a strange time to be writing and teaching about nutrition and midlife weight. We’re in the midst of a huge cultural and technological shift and it’s deep and stressful. I find enormous comfort in grounding myself in healthy, nourishing food. When I veer off course for even a few days, I feel tired and depressed and I can’t afford to feel that way right now. No one can. Being grounded in simple, healthy, vibrant food, walks outside, plenty of sleep, staying connected to loved ones, being well-informed but also putting phones away - these are vital activities for health and longevity right now. While many people turn to comfort foods and alcohol under duress (the average weight gain during the pandemic was 25 pounds and women in particular alarmingly amped up their alcohol consumption), not everyone does.
I’m very clear that my piece of this puzzle is developing and teaching the systems (meal plans, recipes, classes, coaching) for those who want to be strong, healthy, and vibrant enough to tackle whatever opportunity (or stressor) comes their way. Is that you?
Last rabbit hole…
Seasonal Color Theory
My main Instagram is @stephanie.a.meyer but I have a second account, purely for creative fun, called @softautumnglow. There I post (mostly in stories) about seasonal color theory as it pertains to clothes and interiors. Do you know your color season? My stepmom gifted all of us having our colors analyzed when we graduated from high school. Such a great gift! The field has changed a lot since its early days - initially there were just four seasons - but now there are 12 (some even use 16 although I don’t think that’s necessary). My season is Soft Autumn (as you can tell by my IG handle) and I find it incredibly flattering, soothing, and cohesive-feeling to dress in soft autumn colors and create my home in them too. I super nerd out about it on Instagram. I offer my opinion about celebrities, I rave about best hair colors, I tell my friends/family what season I think they’re in, I share interior palettes that resonate with the seasons. It’s an absolute blast, so please do join me over there.
SALE SALE SALE
Before I leave you to prepare for the week, I’m about to kick off a BLACK FRIDAY SALE on coaching. Save $100 for only for a few days! This is a great opportunity to give the gift of coaching to someone you love (shoot me an email response to your receipt so we can get it all set up).
Coaching includes:
Four 1:1 Zoom sessions over 2 months for lasting results
Recipes for breakfasts, lunches, entree salads, soups
Weekly nutrition lesson emails with additional resources
Eat Like a Midlife Badass Course (6 sessions, listen like a podcast)
Kickass Condiments E-book
Project Vibrancy Meals meal plans
Working with me is a total transformation package, not another diet. That said, the recipes are simple, the meetings are fun and packed with actionable ideas, we tackle one change at a time so nothing is overwhelming, we make sure you’re not deprived and hungry, and we make sure you’re achieving results.
I don’t teach super low-calorie restricted eating. I’m not a fan of intermittent fasting or low-carb diets. I don’t have you pounding protein shakes and bars. I do teach you to know what you’re eating, how to get full and eliminate cravings, and where calories are sneaking in and creating weight gain. We talk in-depth about perimenopause/menopause, activity level, sleep, labs, food preferences, how to eat in restaurants, how to shut out all the confusing noise on social media, and how to stick with what works.
Have a great week! Let me know your fave deep dives…or your color season!
xoxo Stephanie
PS Reminder for my paid subscribers - THANK YOU! - that I post recipes just for you in the Chat function here on Substack. Don’t forget to check them out! I posted a Cornmeal Bake Crepe recipe today. Perfect for the holidays!
