Four Fun Things

Done! Thank you!
Maybe I will go tomorrow with some girlfriends to see Little Women!

Aw – I would love COJ merchandise! I so rarely buy anything for myself anymore so this would be a treat! Would love something that I could use every day like a coaster for my desk or an iPhone cover (how fun would it be to have a fellow COJ reader see it and say hello!) or COJ tassel to hang on my bag. I would not feel bad about buying something that would be used or that is made from reusable material or even if a portion of proceeds was donated.

Yes to a podcast!! Please and thank you!

I’ve been dying to listen to a Cup of Jo podcast!!!

I started breaking out in my early thirties after having pretty clear skin in my teens and twenties.

I was diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease last fall, and my skin was terrible- so much acne!

I started eliminating foods for my IBD- gluten, dairy and alcohol (I know… ) and a secondary benefit (anecdotally of course) has been super clear, and radiant skin. The difference is like night and day.

I was also on a course of corticosteroids, but they can often cause acne- my skin remained pretty clear on the meds while staying on foods I tolerate for my IBD and eliminating alcohol (it’s been a year since I’ve had a sip.)

The patches I hear a good, but do you ever look at your inputs too? Balance is key of course! I’d love to be able to eat more of the foods I’ve eliminated, but my gut won’t allow me :)

Survey says> Where is that lovely chair you are sitting in from?
Love CoJ!

I would love trackable comments, like discus or something. Over Christmas I trawled through old articles and found people had replied to my replies. I know I can tick “notify me of follow up comments” but that seemed to send me everyone’s new comments, not just those that responded in my thread… is there already a way around this?

I would also love a weekly question in the links wrap up, or a separate post – it needn’t even have much content, I think this blog is as much about the comments as the content… “How was your week?” “What’s worrying you?” “What did you excel at this week?” “What did you learn?” this community is one of my favorites, real life or online and sometimes I just really want to engage in what’s relevant to me that week. I also think it would be a rich minefield for new content ; )

Greta Gerwig is phenomenal, and I am in love with the new Little Women. While the 90s version was nice, Winona was too beautiful and Christian Bale was too much of a heartthrob. Ronan and Chalamet captured the ungainliness of youth so well. And the writing and direction were so good! I thought the time hopping was a really effective narrative device, although I can see how it would be jarring to someone not familiar with the book. Making it a nonlinear story meant that the whole movie isn’t one big lead-up to the conclusion of the love stories. This made it less of a “marriage plot” story and allowed Jo’s creative journey as an author to shine. I loved the feminist bits; they could have been heavy handed or felt out of place but instead they were natural expressions of Amy’s and Jo’s frustrations with the limitations placed on them as ambitious women of that time. I hope I get to watch this many more times! I am usually a bit impervious to emotion due to antidepressants, but I was misty eyed or actually crying throughout the entire thing. It’s a magical thing when one of your beloved childhood stories comes to life before your eyes!

I’m so torn on the superpower question. My first reaction is to choose invisibility, but I don’t trust myself with that power. But then I consider flight, and there would be too much focus on me. I’d never be able to fly for fear of being seen, and once I am seen, everyone would know because the sensational news that would provoke, and I’d be watched and not be able to do things I’d want to do with flight. So then, my resort is to go back to invisibility, but I almost end up not wanting any of it.

What if your local events featured local makers and amplified their voices? (Women, POC, folks who have long ties to their communities) I would love to attend a get together at a cool shop or pop-up dinner! I would buy the shit outta some nude leather mules, some sort of posh, neutral bucket bag, a mockneck sweater, and some ceramics.

Please bring back your Parenting Around the World series – I miss it! xx

i’d choose invisibility. i could just be invisible and walk onto flights for free and ~fly anywhere i want for free! :D

So excited about the possibility of a podcast!! I would love to have a way to support the COJ team directly but I echo those below who mention the environmental impact of creating and shipping branded merch. BUT if the podcast had a Patreon I would happily contribute as a monthly subscriber! That way folks can access the content for free, and also have the option of contributing if they’re able

ooo please let us know the results of the flight vs invisibility question!

love this. love your writing.

YES to a podcast! I cycle 50 minutes every day and I always listen to podcasts while cycling. They are usually about the FAWSl (women’s football (soccer) league in the UK) but A Cup of Joe one would be great for a change!

BOOOOOK CLUUUB! And podcast. Book club podcast?!

The most fun survey!!! Thanks for letting us chime in. And I’m geeked that Chicago was second on the list after NYC – makes me think you really might come here!! Eee!!

My only complaint is that the question regarding what we’re looking for in a CoJ meet-up/event didn’t include the option to answer “I JUST WANT TO MEET JOANNA.” Consider that the top of my list. ;)

Thanks, CoJ! xx

Shout out to my friend and photographer Liz Devine, who took that last shot! Yay! So cool to see her work featured on your site.