Coffee Break #008: Emily Henry, wisdom teeth, and a pink coat.
Your weekly roundup of links and things I've been loving.
Dear Friend,
On Wednesday this week, I am finally getting my wisdom teeth out at the ripe old age of (almost) 32. I put up a good fight, but they finally caught up with me – aka, I’ve been told since I was 13 that I needed to get them out but haven’t had any real issues with them and hey, I’ve been busy.
Anyways, we’re stocking up on ice cream, soup, mashed potatoes, and cottage cheese over here. I’m an anxious wreck, honestly. I have never had surgery before, never been under general anesthesia or even broken a bone, so this is all new territory for me. Send good vibes please!
In other news, since it’s a new year, I’ve made a few little shifts in the content of this weekly newsletter. For one, I think I’m going to start sending them on Monday mornings instead of Sunday, because for some reason I can not meet my own self-imposed deadline. I also decided to switch up some of the sections, and add a little fun moodboard component too, because I miss the good old days of Polyvore. Hope you enjoy!
In Brief
📚 Reading
I’m still working my way through Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab – it’s a long one! But I’m hoping to get some reading done during my convalescence and next on my list is Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino which was my latest Book of the Month pick.
🎶 Listening
My trusty “Sad Songs for Hot Girls” playlist, which started off as “uncharacteristically sad songs by female artists that usually have upbeat tracks” and sort of devolved into any sad song with a good beat.
📺 Watching
People We Meet on Vacation, obviously. I haven’t watched it yet – I made the executive decision to save it for the latter half of the week when I’m recovering from surgery and in need of a pick me up. But I’ve heard that it’s living up to the hype and I can’t wait to watch!
🍔 Eating
We made this Winter Kale & Veggie Salad recipe for lunch last week and it was SO good. Pomegranate seeds, dried cranberries, kale, goat cheese… yum. Tragically this week I will mostly be eating mashed potatoes and pudding, but I’ll have the memory of taste at least.
🧣 Wearing
A bright red sweater. I’ve been on the hunt for the perfect primary red cardigan for a while. I specifically want a slimline button-up cardigan and I’ve been weighing my options between splurging on the Sézane Gaspard Crop Cardigan (pricey, but beautiful), or if I’d rather try my luck with the Quince Mongolian Cashmere Crop Cardigan in Varsity Red.
Pinboard
Things I’ve read, saved, shared, or bought this week.
According to LitHub, most Americans read fewer than four books last year. Yikes.
The Gospel According to Emily Henry by the New Yorker. I really adore Emily Henry, and I love that she’s an alumni of Hope College, which was basically in my backyard growing up. Yay Michigan!
I loved reading Make 2026 Your Reading Year by Brittany Viklund – her suggestion to curate your own bookshelves as if you were a bookseller was genius. I’m definitely planning on styling my own little bookshop in my office.
I started using Kim Peek’s Notion reading journal template this week, and I’m obsessed. I love Notion, and I already use it for most things at work and for life admin, but I never thought to use it for tracking books.
I thought I’d do a mini roundup of some Substacks I’ve really been enjoying lately!
And finally, this note made me feel a lot of things:
The Edit
A thematic roundup of bits and bobs that caught my eye.
This outfit started out as one idea and completely transformed into a different one by the time I was done. But this past week it was warm enough to not need a winter parka, so I dug my trusty pink teddy coat out from the closet and was reminded how much I love a pink and green color combo. Add a dash of mid-century inspiration courtesy of watching Mad Men for the first time, and this is where it ended up. I’m obsessed with those chartreuse heels.
ICYMI
What’s been on the ‘stack recently.
If you enjoy reading Parenthetical (thank you!!!) and want to show your support for my work:
Like or leave a comment on this post.
Share this post with someone who might be into it.
Thank you for the shoutout, friend! And listening to your playlist as I type this :)
Sending good energy for your surgery. 🙏 I INHALED Best Offer Wins, hope you enjoy it! And thank you for the link, I’m excited to see your bookstore shelves, please share with us. ☺️💕