Wow that sounds cool re. winter solstice!! I would love to see a photo. I was looking at Winter Solstice stuff too: am thinking about how much I would like a winter festival that isn't commercialised: thinking inside my head and potentially thinking out loud to other people. The charity shop that I went into today was Salvation Army - it's very old-fashioned, religious charity but unlike modern commercialised charities they have a very sincere vibe of human kindness, gentleness with handicapped staff, teasing each other. And stuff is cheaper, not same prices as online like most charity stores. They were talking about organising Xmas dinner for poor older people, and I wanted to volunteer because there was something so real Xmassy about the vibe. But I'm not Christian and religious stuff makes me feel very conflicted. I had a joke with one of the workers there.

Which is to say that I'm actively seeking non-consumerist modes of life, and finding connections about that in different places, but so far that hasn't extended to changing my festivities for the Xmas season.

I do think that being accountable about my self-care is key to moving forward, but I've just come back from two and a half months of hard work and I've lapsed into laziness. I suddenly flashed just then that I would stroke a pet cat more often than I am accountable to care for myself.

I haven't drunk any alcohol this winter.

I need to do some crafting too, but haven't settled back well enough to get in the mood for it. It's very calming when I can push myself into that mode.

Wishing you happy crafting and happy movie!!! What movie did you see?

Best,

Us