Coastal waves, salt air or not, feels like home. I must be fish in the water rather than the bird in the sky. I should’ve trusted this nature sooner. (I learned how to swim before I can remember my first conscious childhood memory and this is something more than just a fun fact at a party.)

I love cloud watching, but my heart belongs to the waters. And, oh dear, this month of July was quite a ride and storm. I keep swimming and excited to share what keept me afloat during this summer’s odyssey.

Theme for July

The Summer Odyssey

Ways I cherished and celebrated my July theme

Pinterest Deep Dives

Integrating the shell-shaped water bottle, cozy blanket and sea themed earrings I unpacked at home (plus wearing liquid blue eye liner just because this summer, because why not?)

Seeing the Odyssey in the cinema

Watchlist that have me floating through the waves of July

Bonjour, Tristesse (2024)

La piscine / The Swimming Pool (1969)

Plein soleil / Purple Noon (1960)

Past Lives (2023)

Song of the Sea (2014)

Books of the Season

Writers & Lovers by Lily King

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

Annie Bot by Sierra Greer

Beach Read by Emily Henry

Pandora’s Jar: Women in the Greek Myths & Divine Might: Goddesses in Greek Myth Natalie Haynes

Miscellaneous Joys

Revisiting and reflecting on the first half of 2026 season (books, cinema and more)

Strawberry Cereal

New bed linen

Beach Day! (indulged on the giant soft serve as well - deliciously messy memory saved for personal memories archive)

Finishing Read the Rainbow challenge

Sharing My Taste in Books

Favourite Substack Reading

July’s creative solitude pieces I’ve shared

Hope this edition of Digital Memory Lane of a Girl in the World brought your joy today! 🐚🌊🫧

With ♡, Ana

Before That Summer

Reading was a chore.

I only read what I had to and this was a hardship I stoically endured due to school curriculum.

So much so I remember that I was staring on the page for some time and then flip it. The thought or interest of actually reading the text never crossed my mind. I pretended to read some books but never actually read it. I read books because I had to. And to please ones around me who wanted to see a reader in me.

My earliest memory of this struggle is reading Ivan Bunin’s Gentleman from San Francisco and today I am surprised that this short story is around 30 pages because it felt endless and torturous to overcome it for the school work.

And looking back to it, reading all that serious literature largely before 14-15 was brutal.

Reading Les Misérables by Victor Hugo at 8ish years old and to have no clue what is happening to Fantine is wrong season of life to do so.

Fyodor Dostoevsky’s The Beggar Boy at Christ's Christmas Tree (or The Heavenly Christmas Tree in some translations) in elementary school gave me nightmares I dreaded each Christmas day till I graduated university in early twenties. I dreamed of this story each season and I don’t miss it now.

Then, there was William Shakespeare at 13. Because “If you only read Romeo and Juliet, it doesn’t count. You never actually read Shakespeare”. (P.S. I’m fully convinced now that Romeo and Juliet was intended as mocking cautionary tale and social commentary rather than actual romantic story.)

So I read the eternity of Shakespeare in chronological-ish order. Plays & Sonnets. Sonnets were my favourite.

I don’t remember most of the plays now. I remember that my favourite play was the Tempest, the most impression was given by Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus. It was my introduction to Shakespeare before we had a chance to cover Romeo and Juliet in class. I was 13. Reading about what happened to Lavinia in that brutal and violent tragedy.

I prefer Shakespeare in Russian translation rather than the original. I only feel this chemistry towards poetry in Boris Pasternak’s (Nobel prize for literature) or Samuil Marshak translations who were both poets too.

A 17-year old mind should never be exposed to Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment. Although I think that Raskolnikov’s fever dream towards the end of the novel is one of the most overlooked part of the story. I’m actually surprised no one took it and did an inspired dystopian retelling based on it. Everything is basically there to seize and deliver a spectacular piece inspired by THE Crime and Punishment.

Esmeralda’s trial in Victor Hugo’s The Hunchback of Notre-Dame gave me nightmares at night. I still had to write graded essay on the novel praising it unable to articulate and speak up about the horrors or the effect it had on me.

On top of literature school curriculum of a Russian School of the 2000-2010s, other extra-curriculum reading activities included Stefan Zweig, Romen Rolland, Guy de Maupassant, Stendhal and Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary. I loathed the last one with all my soul and being.

There were also a handful of stories which I very much liked despite my general loathing for reading. I hardly ever read for pleasure but in those dark days there were also books that I genuinely enjoyed.

Jack London’s short Stories

J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter Series

Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter

What Katy Did by Sarah Chauncey Woolsey

Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Lesson learned: You cannot force love. (And school and summer reading curriculums were brutal).

The Summer I Became a Reader (18)

It was late July 2016. I’m 18, few months away from being 19. I’m in a summer language school in Malta to prepare for my IELTS exam as I need it for my uni applications.

I decide to download and read Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games on my mom’s kindle. I never watched the films and was skeptical about it due to hype around it. But it is good enough to be merely a language exercise to dive deeper into language learning. Besides I really enjoyed Safe & Sound soundtrack. And maybe, just maybe, it deserves an extra point for being good enough. Unserious means to very serious ends. Right?

Only later I will know that first impressions are often our own first prejudices as well. Life-changing? Maybe this is how my 19-year old self would describe it. My 28-year old self now would say that she still figures it out.

I only know that one of the most joyful memories to date is getting the surprise gift from my late grandfather months later. It was an English edition boxset of the Hunger Games.

This kind of surprise and joy when you are jumping, smiling and hugging everyone. Looking at it all like it’s the most beloved treasure on earth and your emotions are bursting fireworks of the brightest colours. And, oh, how proud my grandfather was about it. A decade ago, it was hardly possible to buy or order English books to where we lived. To this day I have no idea how my grandfather pulled this off. I just now that he did impossible back then. And what a marvel, what a thrill, now to be able to order almost everything from almost everywhere in the world.

If my house is on fire, this boxset is what I’m saving. The funny thing is that you never know what moment is a special one, what is THE DAY to remember or to start a countdown from. One day in the future you simply wake up and realise that this was THE MOMENT the very FIRST one. And, as much as I wish to, I doubt it that I will ever be able to rehearse, prepare or make some day THE DAY. I just wonder and curious which day and memory the future me will look back to and realises it was one of the most special ones in her life.

Later in the year I mostly relied on the recommendations of my family members and continued with the next Hunger Games book which is Catching Fire (P.S. I prefer film over book). I’ve read Erich Maria Remarque (Heaven Has No Favourites; Three Comrades) and F.S. Fitzgerald (The Great Gatsby) as they were my grandfather’s all-time favourite authors. In November I also picked up and read To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (mockingjay / mockingbird logic) which became my favourite book for years.

Lesson learned: Beware, first impressions are often prejudices in disguise so take it with a grain of salt and decide for yourself. Someone else’s salt can be your sugar and vice versa.

My Reading Odyssey

The next decade is me mainly curious about what is my reading taste. There were also some crisis of fate and “I have no personality” panic after reading only what was trending and viral on Bookstagram and Booktok with some reading slump years in between.

19-20: Was the closest to my Slavic roots (as ever) those years obsessing with fantasy book series like Лабиринты Ехо Макса Фрая & По Ту Сторону Марины Козинаки и Софи Авдюхиной. In the beginning of my reading journey, even in the ocean of viral bookstagram books, I was glad to meet John Steinbeck’s Of Mice & Men, The Pearl. Steinbeck is my favourite classics author to this day.

21: Again read mainly what was trending. If last year safe haven and lighthouse for personal taste was John Steinbeck. This year it was all about Kazuo Ishiguro (The Remains of the Day; The Buried Giant) & Agatha Christie (And Then There Were None; Murder on the Orient Express) saving the year. From what was trending that year online I genuinely enjoyed Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows & A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith.

22-24: Notorious years of reading ONLY what was trending, including self-help books. Navigating this devastating sea with safe spaces like Steinbeck, Ishiguro and Christie with some reading slumps as well though. As much resentment as I feel for those reading years I still had a great time on reflecting on books which were both trending and to my liking. This was also all about genres exploration and figuring out what is my cup of matcha / chai latte (cause I generally don’t drink tea nor coffee).

Some very honourable mentions from this season of life:
East of Eden by John Steinbeck

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro

4:50 from Paddington by Agatha Christie

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

Beartown, Anxious People & Us Against You by Fredrik Backman

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

The House on The Edge of Night by Catherine Banner

A Whole Life by Robert Seethaler

Moby Dick by Herman Melville

25-28: In my mid-twenties I have discovered so called healing fiction which became my cup of matcha. After intense reading slumps I’ve decided to respectfully and politely give up on trending books after reading almost everything Booktok had to offer at respective year of 2025. Here are the books that shaped my taste:

Before Coffee Gets Cold series by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen

Kamogawa Food Detectives series by Hisashi Kashiwai

Ulysses by James Joyce

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

Bunny by Mona Awad

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro

The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim

Pandora’s Jar & Divine Might by Natalie Haynes

Books I fangirl about and ready to write a paper / whole passion project about (by the way, all best enjoyed during summer!):

Ulysses by James Joyce

The Hunger Games series (especially Sunrise on the Reaping) by Suzanne Collins

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

This Summer: Homecoming (28)

My Reading Odyssey continues, I’m already setting sail towards new adventures. Only this time I feel like I found an inner compass in the ocean of books. A compass, rather than the hope of it all to see the lighthouse in the uneasy waters of infinite options and trends. I am hungry for the taste of books I’m yet to read. Hungry to see how the taste evolves, which stories will stay with me and which new ones will emerge as I grow older.

And I feel at peace with the idea that I think about my journey as my current taste and stories I fangirl about rather sticking with the niche, genre, aesthetics, favourites, 5-star or 6-star labels.

I cannot force love , first impressions might easily be prejudices and with no taste it’s just hunger to carry through seasons of life. Hunger for homecoming from personal decades of Odyssey. I am home now.

with ♡,

Ana

𓊝 The film is made for us 𓊝

Us - modern audience of 21st century rather than Ancient Greek, past generations or even historians, academics, subject matter experts with multiple niche degrees and PhDs.

𓊝 «We all know how Helen or Troy or Trojan Horse, authentic Greek ship, language, armies, armours or bards looked like» 𓊝

No we don’t. This story, narrative, picture, vision was painted, rebuilt and shaped with biases, status quos told again and again by whose voice is the loudest and the most convincing. Its own form of fiction and even history often told by the momentous winners rather than by truth holders or all the survivors. The story, the myth beyond it belongs to people who storytell vs. agree on one story being the «true» one. And what is truth, really?

𓊝 Helen of Troy 𓊝

On 3-minute screen time for 3-hour film. Lupita Nyong’o delivered striking, contrasting, spectacular performance which haunted the narrative for the whole eternity of the Odyssey. And this is exactly and so perfectly Helen and her place in the film as I see her. And, oh, how I loved the creative touches around duality of it all.

𓊝 The most delightful surprise in the Odyssey was Travis Scott. 𓊝

The Odyssey starts and ends with his character. He’s the bard. Not just in the film but in the year of 2026 which makes him perfect for this role. He’s not acting he’s telling the story and this is what he does for the living. Again, this film was made for us. And for us, rappers, songwriters, singers, musicians of all kinds and genres are storytellers - and I believe in the past those storytellers were called exactly bards.

𓊝 Beyond the homecoming memes … 𓊝

… and jokes around not wanting to travel with Matt Damon who calls himself nobody (Saving Private Ryan (1998) or Bourne Identity (2002)) both Matt Damon’s and Christopher Nolan’s creative craft were born and destined to manifest in the Odyssey.

Besides, this adaptation is the closest to the source file and Homer’s canon. At least chronologically with all the creative visions and touches which makes sense. Think director, actors, sound designers, composers, production stage crew and more. So many people shaped the creative story we see. And we are the ones who are shaping, interpreting and retelling it now. This is how the art of myth stays alive and belongs to us.

𓊝 The Troy that got away 𓊝

I’m glad that for Christopher Nolan’s opportunity to direct Troy (2004) was the one that got away. Because now I feel that this was the most divine timing, divine might that the Odyssey (2026) happened right now. The peak of Nolan’s career, wildest dream coming true. Now an established genius mind with all the money, respect and reputation. Well deserved cornucopia and likely the producers’ question «What is your wildest dream project could look like?»

I think the answer is the Odyssey. Consciously or not, all the roads of Nolan’s own Odyssey journey led to this historic moment and story - told as we see it on screen. Much like Matt Damon is a natural man on a quest for homecoming, Nolan is a natural to direct him and his Odyssey. Think my most favourite and dearly beloved Interstellar (2014) or Dunkirk (2017). Both stories are fundamentally about homecoming rather than the epic battle and overcoming the terrors and hardships of war (for survival).

𓊝 The pain, reign and fain of us 𓊝

It is the modern story made of us, reflecting us and modern world we live in. With Christopher Nolan and Matt Damon leading the edge and navigating the waters I’m beyond satisfied about the cinematic and sound experience of this absolute cinema.

And as someone who read Homer’s Odyssey to prepare myself for the theatrical release I can say with full confidence one thing. I was left much more pleased with Christopher Nolan’s ending and Matt Damon’s portrayal of the Odysseus compared to Homer’s work of art. Because Christopher Nolan made his Odyssey for me and Homer made his Odyssey for his people whose era and reign on earth are long bygone.

The men start wars yet Troy hates Helen

Have I known you for 3 minutes or 3 hours?

I wonder If I knew you at all

Or have I just seen you but never known?

All I see is beauty

Beauty of haunting the narrative

Duality of pain in compassion

All seven sorrows of the world on your hands

Scared in your eyes and face

Tell them Your story

Sparta nor Troy did your beauty justice

And I am afraid neither us did

All I see the beauty

My eyes are on you

Did I see you for 3 minutes or 3 hours?

CIRCE

I miss your hawk golden eyes

I wish you’ve stayed here longer

Footnotes on the story’s pages?

More like one of the best metamorphosis I have ever witnessed

Men are all equal

Some more equal than other though

My heart aches for you and your story

The pain, the torture of

a lamb dressed as wolf by others

But you give me hope

I’ve seen how twisted it is to become an animal

My heart aches for the price of your craft

It gives me hope for

Homecoming to goodness

When becoming is possible even if goodness is just

a drop in the twisted and treacherous ocean

I hope I’ve seen that drop in you and this was my mirror

AFINA PALLADA

If I’d need to describe your wise eyes

They are tender and soft even in their final moments

Color of silk, cotton, lamb, pearly white bones and clear tears

If I reach my hand to you - will I see you?

Do I know what I see,

Do I know it at all,

Or are you just the breeze, the memory, the tears, the guilt

The story I am telling myself

Are you everything I am not

The dazzling torture to my eyes

My mind and soul shaped into

Vision from the other side of Hades gifted to us

Aren’t you the greatest, wisest thing to not ever exist?

I need to believe

I need to hope

I wonder in how many people’s faces I’ve seen you but never actually seen

Till the bittersweet end

I am sorry for the men from the sea

CALYPSO

Oh the static labor of it all with a lotus ribbon on top

The caregiver gift which is a curse

No wonder the tables have shifted

The men start wars yet Troy hates Helen

Would I endure the exile or my fate is to admire you from afar?
US

Us in the cynical armour, all eyes hidden from the plain sight

Did we lose our way home while becoming and shapeshifting?

While singing violent hymns

Shielded by armour

Acting like there’s wax in our ears

Or the screams of Helens, Circes, Palladas and nymphs are too much to bear?

Screams of steel, power, triumph

Against

Innocent, clandestine tears

Fabrics torn apart

Hearts aching and burning of tragedy

Steel armour against bare tender shoulders while the world is on fire

What did it do to us?

If I was to archive the history of a spectacular now

Even under the cunning sword against my swan neck

Which story do I dare to see and tell?

Horse is on fire and burning to its core

Once bronze and now all is left is steel

Against my

Tears, Cottons and Beauty

I wonder if this armour is strong enough to guide me back home each time the men from the sea are here again

I’ll be 29 this October 5th. And this means that I’ll be waving farewell to my roaring 20s this 2026 season before entering my 30s era.

Since my 26th birthday I was always anticipating 30th birthday milestone. For years now, I have figured out and genuinely excited about the birthday cake design I’ve picked and the theme of it (birthday).

I’m so ready to embrace the 30 already. Or maybe it’s me being so done with my twenties which were honestly and truly beyond glamorous fantasies and dreams I imagined as a teen.

Instead of it all, from 26 to 29 I’m in this awkward in-between state and it hits with awkwardness and guilt of rushing towards 30 instead of being in and celebrating the present. This almost apologetic look in the mirror in the morning on top of the fact that I’m failing to romanticise autumn in general and so confused about what’s so romantic about October 5. (Except for the cinnamon roll day on the 4th of October, but it feels like I’m still missing out and is late to this party anyway).

In my defence, I’ve been unfortunate enough to sponge in my, then, friends remarks that their late-spring / summer birthdays is superior to my October one. Cause even in Finnish language October and November are Lokakuu - Mud month Marraskuu - Month of the dead respectively. October is the one with all the decaying leaves and everything in mud dying against Earth month (March) or Harvest Month (August). And I don’t blame them, it’s just how the language works which comes with its own perception and background. Yet, I’m so glad that months of my mother tongue are of Roman origin (like English ones).

Anyway, I’m not a Halloween, or spooky/horror fan either. Not sure about pumpkin spice latte cause genuinely pumpkin spice and everything nice is simply not my cup of tea. I prefer matcha (or chai) latte. So this is, still, a blank canvas, I’m working with. And as you can see, I’m dreading it already.

19 seemed like the worst one at first. This girlhood, I’m not a girl, not yet a woman kind of state. When everything you feel of intensity of fireworks in the sky. Of course you feel deeply about everything, not in drama queen way, but castles and dragons type of way. The one when sparks fly instantly, fireworks flashing each day and every explosion feels like it is end of the world rather than the start of the new era. But, oh dear, the most hopeful I used to be - it was the one when I was 19. This glimpse of joy and hope of it all - what a marvel what a thrill to feel it all and be enchanted by the colours of those emotional fireworks. Yet, somehow, this year also so often felt like “the worst one”.

This is the price, I guess, to feel everything deeply - both hope and turbulences of life alike. But I wouldn’t change a thing and wouldn’t trade it for the numbness and being nonchalant. What a gift from my 19-year-old self to feel deeply - hope, glimpses of joy which transformed into the lifelong core memories I hope to remember through every season of life. The one I was jumping from surprise and absolute happiness one day and crying my eyes out the other one. Because not only 2 can coexist but one is possible because of another.

Then, there’s 20s. Oh, dearest, loveliest thing of all. It’s brutal out here. The amount of rollercoaster rides, character development arcs and route changes… It is a tough pill to swallow, honestly. Instead of getting the fantasy of an enchanting dream life where I tried and I tried chasing numerous dreams I worked so hard on (and sacrificed a lot for) I… I guess, the main lesson I learned about my 20s on my last birthday is that your twenties is for learning how much rock bottoms (one more brutal than another) you can hit in a single calendar year, year after year, for the whole decade straight.

But!

I’m still in my 20s and will be in my 20s for 15 more months. And this is another lesson I have learnt: the world is always ending. Either the world is telling you the world is ending or the inner voice, or both, really. IT IS FINE! I’m still here. We’re still here. Every generation before and generation after treated and will treat their decades as the one where the world is on fire. (I personally think, that absolute record holders for seeing the worst world endings today are the ones who are now in their 80-90s; so I’m the lucky one to experience only a fraction of the same calamities my grandparents have witnessed and experienced).

And if the world is on fire what does it make me? A GIRL ON FIRE! (Hello Katniss Everdeen and Alecia Keys). And this is the moment I say, what a time to be alive and to be a woman! And suddenly the burning ember of autumn feels like a perfect soundtrack / stage for the girl on fire. The girl on fire who has realised that she’s a fig tree rather than a single fig she once nurtured. The one where she dreamed and worked for to be a neurosurgeon, the one where she was a theatre actress and wanted to pursue it professionally, the one who is financially independent and has own home, the one traveling to Japan, the one seeing favourite music artists live on tour, the one where she aspired to be the next Miranda Priestly either in a) aerospace, b) finance c) software development. Although it feels like needless to be said - I’ll say it anyway: I had a privilege of eating or tasting every fig I dreamed of from early childhood to late 20s except for one. It is the one which already fallen and rot but this is fine - I liked her the least anyway (and the trad wife fiction is really a cure against FOMO on this one).

The fig tree I am growing and nourish. I think it is now in its blooming season and I’m excited to see the figs that will grow on it’s branches. In the meantime, the greatest gift for myself is to live the life as a special occasion it is. After all, the odds to be born on this earth is 1 in 400 trillion. And those odds were in my favour with no strings or pressure for higher purpose or calling attached.

And, what a gift to myself I’d want for my birthday of the last roaring 20s season? The most tender and beautiful one. To look in the mirror one day (hopefully October 5th, because, why not?) and anticipate with joy and hope for each coming season of life. Season as grand as a year, decade and a simple tomorrow. 20s, 30s and 40s still feel like the summer. View a new wrinkle or grey hair as a glimpse of joy and privilege of aging. I hope to leave the I’m running late and I’m behind mentality in my 20s, truly.

I hope to see myself half a century later in the mirror and realise that I made it. And by made it, I mean that the favourite part of it all is the beautiful laughter and tender smile wrinkles with natural grey hair I see in the mirror. Oh, what a privilege for the future me and the gift of my present self. Cause, let’s hope those tender smile and laughter wrinkles are the ones to appear in my 20-s, 30-s and all the all the -s onward.

With ♡,

Ana

My misalignment situation for the June theme inspired me to revisit yearly goals. Because accepting misalignment and adjusting the compass from the goals I drifted away from is not a failure, it is information.

Things I did this January:

• Vision board

• In-s & out-s

• Goal Punch cards

• 2026 Bingo

Things I’m keeping:

• 2026 Bingo

• Monthly adventures (bucket lists and monthly 10s)

• Seasonal Living & Themes, Watchlists and TBRs

• Printed Bullet Journal pages (adulting tetris, monthly habits & goals aligned with the bingo and monthly adventures)

• Gamification of goals and habits (savopoly game; adulting tetris, bingo, bookworms & bookmarks, read the rainbow and so on)

Why:

• 2026 Bingo - it is specific yet flexible enough. Also it has this exiting element of indulgent reward the moment I have a bingo which makes it all exiting and special.

• I feel most like myself when I embrace seasonal living. I wish I was wintering well and hibernating with year starting in March rather than this new year, new me January pressure.

• Printed out pages, setting up journals and colouring in, doodling - this all feels like returning to what I liked as a kid. Curiosity and game wrapping and packaging in daily, monthly, yearly trackers. Turns out key to achieving even the most ambitious goals isn’t more discipline but more play.

Things I drifted away from and letting go:

• Vision Board

• Goal Punch cards

• In-s and Out’s

Why:

• All 3 feel to me like heavily trend-influenced. The shoe doesn’t fit kind of situation. I find myself misaligned and resentful. It becomes pretty isn’t pretty/lacy/jealousy, jealousy/magnolia kind of situation. And I want to see myself rather than lacy or magnolia when I look in the mirror.

How it’s going with 2026 bingo:

• play Savopoly ‘25 - had to pull savopoly savings before December last year, 60% there on track

• play Savopoly' ‘26 - weekly savings adventure on track

• reduced screen time adjusting the course

• declutter living spaces - did a lot during my March vacation and will need few more days during summer vacay to cross this one out on track

• declutter storage spaces - was waiting for nice summer days to do it as some storage spaces are outdoors on track

• digital reset adjusting the course

• breakfast as a meal - in March I made a lot of progress with it (usually I was skipping this meal but I feel that I am on a right path to eventually intigrate it into my life on track

• cook recipes from the cookbooks - I hope to do it 2nd half of the year! on track

• Read 108 books - 71 books read, even ahead of schedule! on track

• skincare as ritual there’s more consistent months and less consistent months, I keep an eye on it on track

• move my body regularly - was going strong till May-June and hope to find my rhythm back in July on track

• no doom scrolling - was struggling with it big time in the beginning of the year, but deleting Social Media apps from my phone and checking them out from desktop from time to time helped a lot! on track

• 2026 slot crossed in June

• bloom scrolling - I feel like I’m bloom scrolling when I’m on Substack crossed in March

• summer cycling & swimming - 2 more months to go! on track

• beach vacation - been to Spain! crossed in May

• dream destination vacation - I already looked into the second half outlook and decided that every of my dream destination are best enjoyed next year released

• intentional consumption adjusting the course

• attend 12 creative / art experiences - 6 so far on track

• fearless heart moment - publishing on Substack is my fearless heart moment! crossed in January

• nourishing sleep rhythm adjusting the course

• spacious days adjusting the course

• creative solitude - I’ve been doing lots of creative things, both solo and in company! crossed in June

• calm nervous system adjusting the course

• effortless flow adjusting the course

How I’m adjusting the course and why I’m releasing:

• reduced screen time < smartphone screen time is under x h.

• digital reset < unsubscribe from newsletters, social media accounts I no longer engage with; save photos and videos from PC & smartphone to a hard drive and free storage from unused media and apps.

• intentional consumption < pause and ask is this feels intentional or autopilot, personal taste or trend, luxury or necessity. Reflect on purchases and media consumption from time to time.

• nourishing sleep rhythm < Aim for 7+ hours of sleep and screens-free buffer time before bed and after waking up.

• spacious days < protect my mental, physical and calendar space from hustle culture and busy bee mentality towards presence and engagement with what matters to me.

• calm nervous system < support myself to rest, recharge and bounce back when I feel stressed, anxious and overwhelmed.

• effortless flow < flow with my seasons of life, trusting my natural current rather than resisting it.

What I’m saving/keeping for the next year:

• chalant queen energy (expressive, curious, present)

• seasonal living

• the daily reverie (word of the day and its Pinterest aesthetic)

• monthly 10 adventures

• dream destination vacation

• greek summer vacation

• try crafty hobbies

Reflection:

I’m glad I’ve took sometime to reflect on the 2026 journey midyear. The permission to myself to change the shoes that don’t fit. Try new things, keep what feels aligned and release that doesn’t serve. Overall, I’m quite satisfied with how far I’ve come and achieved this year already. Maybe it’s exact reason why I feel fearless enough to try to achieve one very bold goal of mine. Cause it finally feels after decade of a standby, the year of a fire horse is the perfect year for 6-month action on that one. Wish me luck! ℧ 𓃗 ✮

And If you feel like revisiting your own goals and aspirations this month, please be kind to yourself and remember the stage is only yours to see in this moment. Keep lacy and magnolia in your playlist rather than in the look in the mirror.

With ♡, Ana

Dear Reader,

June, oh, June. The darling month to remember. The one for the personal history books and life-changing events. From tornado risks to lowkey obsessing over oysters and revisiting childhood passion for Classical Antiquity. All because of the (life-changing) reading of James Joyce’s Ulysses.

Theme for June:

This one is interesting this time. When I was debuting the new theme I was living for the hope of it all that I will love it as dearly as I loved the springtime one.

Episode one: Garden Disco (peaches, sunset oranges & girlhood lover summer version)🌺🪩🌺🍑🌺

And I really tried with

Pinterest deep dives

Summer’26 Manifest

Themed soundtrack

Until I accepted mid-journey that the shoe doesn’t fit and this current version is misaligned with the reality I pretty much savour and already seizing.

(Episode 2): Summer Odyssey (Ulysses, Tornado Risks, Firewood version) 🦪📚🌪️

The Pinterest garden of this summer (so far):

Lot of themed restacks to manifest the theme:

June Watchlist that created the summertime feeling:

Barbie (2023)

La La Land (2016)

The Parent Trap (1998)

Twisters (2024)

Before Sunrise (1995)

Books of the season

Talking at Night by Claire Daverley

People We Meet On Vacation by Emily Henry

White Nights by Fyodor Dostoevsky

The Family Experiment by John Marrs

Ulysses by James Joyce

June Baby by Shannon Garvey

Bonjour Tristesse by Francoise Sagan

Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury

Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf; Odyssey by Homer; Thunderhead by Miranda Darling

Circe by Madeline Miller

June’s Playlist

Cruel Summer (Live from TS The Eras Tour) - Taylor Swift

Home - HAIM

White Feather Hawk Tail Deer Hunter - Lana Del Rey

Madwoman - Laufey

You Then Me Now - Maisie Peters

Magnolia - Laufey

drop dead - Olivia Rodrigo

jealousy, jealousy - Olivia Rodrigo

pretty isn’t pretty - Olivia Rodrigo

lacy - Olivia Rodrigo

the cure - Olivia Rodrigo

Miscellaneous Joys:

Getting a 750+ Substack subscribers celebratory cake first thing after returning from the vacation

Morning Matcha

Trying something new: sudoku

Journaling

Listening to new Olivia Rodrigo album

Substack Reading:

June’s Flowers : Peonies

June’s creative solitude pieces I’ve written:

Heavily influenced by Ulysses & epics of own’s summer Odyssey

Love Letters I’ve Sent:

Hope this edition of Digital Memory Lane of a Girl in the World brought your joy today! 🌺🪩🍑🦪📚🌪️

With ♡, Ana

in fact bathroom mirror feels the opposite

heart eyes

The reality of hyping you in the mirror

i feel pretty

pretty isn’t pretty

playing in the background

i’m unraveled

heart eyes, freckles of sparkles and constellations on my face

i feel pretty

it will never be the cure

bathroom mirror is a hard pill to swallow

skipping cake on birthday

because it belongs to lacy

pretty isn’t enough

heart eyes

trying to win the chariot race

the gladiator tournament

chasing lacy i see in the mirror

with all my loving eyes

love so grand it’s too big for my heart

so I stare at lacy with

heart eyes

i am blinded by lacy

i only see her in the bathroom mirror

clothes, makeup, ribbons and other weapons I brought to the chase, the race, the arena

all covered in dust

i am human made of flesh, skin and bones

she is lacy made of puff pastries, daisies and angel dust

i only see her in the bathroom mirror

so in love

she’s got everything I’m chancing and fighting for

she’s the girl worth fighting for

i used to think and say

will there every be a winner

the end of the long walk

a crowned winner

i despise how hard my

heart eyes fell for her instead of you

pretty isn’t pretty

enough

it will never be the cure

you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love with who she sees in the mirror

your heart eyes is

the scarlet letter you see in the bathroom mirror

My favourite memory of all

art, joy, hope

The world is on Fire

Incandescent glimpse of hope and joy in the darkest of days

The wedding cake decorated with delicate flowers

The violin of a folk song

The dance, the steps from people to people

For people

Dance, song, colour

The brightest glimpse of joy and hope I’ve ever witnessed

I chose to resist rather than rebel

Dance, Colour, Music

Is Resistance

Let these violent weapons of rebellion dust

I wanna cry

And its more than the special occasion

My tears are selfish

I am not there yet

I might be the wedding guest

the closest I get to the special occasion

Fraud, intruder, imposter

Longing and yearning in the darkest of corners

To dance and to sing in the circle

People-watching

Still registering the cues under the decorations

Of the world on fire on the background

Is joy allowed?

Am I tone-deaf for attempting to resist and to live for the hope of it all?

Trying to make art

While no contribution feels like it counts

The urge to burn all attempts

As nothing feels worthy of being called own contribution to art

This is the voice in my head; never sings

Maybe that’s why my eyes are so on the people who

Dance

Movement is art

Oh, to have a body that flows

Maybe it’s time to take baby steps of my own?

Folk dance is for people from people

The brightest glimpse of joy and hope I’ve ever witnessed

I want to resist and not rebel when world is on fire.

No audience present

Yet I save every seat for you

Like my life depends on it

When did my theatre become a gladiator arena

No audience present

All seats are empty

Yet I perform a spectacle like my life depends on it

Fighting the monsters

Are there any?

Let go and release

I wish I wish I wish

To say that I’m doing good and mean it

To say yes instead of no and mean it

To count what counts and mean it

The ref got rigged and this is me

Panem et circenses!

I wish I wish I wish

To live a life as a special occasion it is

The gladiator games and chariot racing

I wish I wish I wish

To leave both behind

Take a seat

Breathe

In

Out

The theatre is

Empty of audience

Full of empathy and compassion

No one is watching

Flowers are blooming

Chariots, armours and archery abandoned

Theatre of us is empty yet far from abandoned

Just far from the madding crowd

Screaming more

Panem et circenses!

I wish I wish I wish

To live a life as an Odyssey, it is

Far from the demons screaming

Panem et circenses!

You are the Mother of Pearl

Life is my Oyster

Don’t make me laugh

From Venus to the girl in the flower

Tidal Waves and Foam

Inside an Oyster

A girl, a woman

In the shape of a cloud

Cloud, wave, foam

Ariel

I used to cry so hard

Who dissolved into sea foam

Heartbreak and loss of her life?

More like finally going beyond the Oyster

A shell, a cage

Forever the Mother of Pearl

Girl to Woman, Woman to Girl

You are the Mother of Pearl

Caged in the position of a girl in the flower

Sea foam touching the open water

Abandoning the ship which is dust and shell

Who made you believe in the Oyster and not in the Pearl?

Believe in the lighthouse and not in the pearly white compass within?

Feel it deeply to your skin and albatross white bones

The ethereal, magical spirit

Feel it deeply to your skin and albatross white bones

Isn’t it lonely to fit in the Oyster?

I wonder if it leaves you bruised, airless?

Cause it surely leaves me grasping for air and in blisters

The Tempest within

Aren’t you hungry for the open water

The ethereal, magical spirit

Ariel, Venus, Mother of Pearl

Girl to Woman, Woman to Girl

You are the Mother of Pearl

Dissolve into the sea storm

The sea foam, beyond the oyster

Incandescent escape from the pearly white Oyster

Girl to Woman, Woman to Girl

You are the Mother of Pearl

The tides of the open water is so much more than the Oyster you’re promised

I wanted to revisit, look back and reflect on my spring so I can go back to it the next year. Fleeting and flowing through life just like the seasons.

This spring I came up with the monthly theme for the first time. It turned out to be a seasonal one and I honestly don’t remember how I came up with the idea but after 3 months I can say confidently that this theme vibes and associated natural side-quests made my spring more special, joyful and even whimsical, if you like.

So, ♡ you so matcha will forever hold a special place in my heart. It was truly a delight to try new things like this with her.

Here’s Crème de la crème and highlights of my spring - all in one place. Hope you enjoy the dive in as much as I! ♡

Theme of the spring and a digital memory lane of ♡ you so matcha adventures:

Baking Mitsuri Kanroji’s honeycomb pancakes and paired it with Matcha

Painting by Numbers

Mini Garden Creation

Capturing the theme throughout the day

Starbucks vacay orders

Best Films of the Spring:

Crossroads (2002)

Project Hail Mary (2026)

Notting Hill (1999)

Les parapluies de Cherbourg / The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964)

Down With Love (2003)

Favourite reads of the season:

Matcha on Monday by Michiko Aoyama (Hot Chocolate on Thursday Series #2)

Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

Flush: A Biography by Virginia Woolf

The Perfect Matcha by Stevie Greene

Spring’s Playlist:

Lover Girl - Laufey

Baby Steps - Olivia Dean

Audrey Hepburn - Maisie Peters

Labyrinth - Taylor Swift

Promise - Laufey

Sign of the Times - Harry Styles

It Isn’t Perfect But It Might Be - Olivia Dean

Life Boat. - RAYE

Opposite - Sabrina Carpenter

Paint by Numbers - Harry Styles

Drop Dead - Olivia Rodrigo

Staying Still - Noah Kahan

I Could Be A Florist - Olivia Dean

Mr. Eclectic - Laufey

Everything I Want - beabadoobee

SUPERSCAR - Adéla

The Fate of Ophelia (Loud Luxury Remix) - Taylor Swift

The Cure - Olivia Rodrigo

Hit The Wall - Gracie Abrams

miscellaneous joys:

Growing on Substack in just few months!

Alysa Liu’s Interview and photoshoot for Teen Vogue

https://www.teenvogue.com/story/alysa-liu-olympic-gold-teen-vogue-cover-interview-2026

Netflix’s One Piece Live Action Series

Lightning a candle I made in February for the first time

SPAIN VACATION!!!

Spring’s garden:

Favourite Creative pieces I’ve shared:

Love letters I’ve sent

Olivia Dean

Cereal

Reading

Hot Baths

A Perfect Vacation

Writing this last sentence I feel so much gratitude for this capture it, remember it attempt. And I hope a future me will look at this digital memory lane of a girl she once was with the love and joy ♡ you so matcha spring of 2026 brought me.

Hope this Digital Memory Lane of a Girl in the World brought your joy today! 🍵🌸

With ♡,

Ana

“I wanna be defined by the things that I love, Not the things I hate, Not the things I’m afraid of, Not the things that haunt me in the middle of the night. I just think that you are what you love.” — Taylor Swift

Dear Reader,

I must admit my soul was ready for summer already in May. And I’m so grateful for this month’s generosity for me to be mentally ready for summer. My soul tasted the summer in the air in May. What a marvel, what a thrill, what a privilege to feel like this!

Theme for May:

Having the single theme for springtime felt like the right decision, so here’s a final round …drum roll… of

The Theme for May is: ♡ you so matcha 🍵🌸

I’ve already picked my June (and potentially summer) theme and tin May I was trying to channel the transition energy and shift between seasons so it honours this change with care and love it deserves. ♡

Ways I cherished and celebrated my May theme:

Pinterest Deep Dives

Capturing the theme throughout the day

Pinterest Deep Dives which feel transitional to the summer as well

Starbucks vacay orders

Themed reading

May Watchlist that created the springtime feeling:

Austenland (2013)

Confessions of a Shopaholic (2009)

Becoming Jane (2007)

Down With Love (2003)

Midnight in Paris (2011)

Books of the season

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

Flush: A Biography by Virginia Woolf

Martin Eden by Jack London

The Perfect Matcha by Stevie Greene

May’s Playlist

I Could Be A Florist - Olivia Dean

Mr. Eclectic - Laufey

Everything I Want - beabadoobee

SUPERSCAR - Adéla

The Fate of Ophelia (Loud Luxury Remix) - Taylor Swift

The Cure - Olivia Rodrigo

Hit The Wall - Gracie Abrams

Miscellaneous Joys:

Watching The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity

Getting a Red Velvet Cake (very special treat) to celebrate 500 subscribers (thank you so much for walking this digital memory lane with me ♡)

Lots of workshops and creative experiences

Listening to full albums skip free

SPAIN VACATION!!!

Favorite Substack Reading:

Fairy Tales by Caroline

Between Plath and Didion: the most important lesson I learned in my 20's

Read more

2 years ago · 23517 likes · 746 comments · Caroline Beuley

this must be the season

how to reclaim your voice in the age of AI slop

I vividly remember turning in a creative writing assignment in college with a sentence that I thought was pure poetry. To me, it was lyrical and powerful—the kind of sentence that would really make people feel something. But when I got the revisions back, the professor wrote “overwrought, no…

Read more

4 months ago · 12 likes · Sarah Walsh

hey, it's dae

i measure eras of my life by the color of my nail polish

I started getting my nails done the week before I began my first ever corporate job at age 23 — I think I was obsessed with the idea of looking down at my perfectly manicured and painted hands typing on the keyboard throughout the workday. At 23, having a flawless gel manicure made me believe in the facade that I was a real adult who had my life togethe…

Read more

5 months ago · 106 likes · 47 comments · daelyn

May’s Flowers : Tulips

May’s creative solitude pieces I’ve written:

Love Letters I’ve Sent:

Hope this edition of Digital Memory Lane of a Girl in the World brought your joy today! 🍵🌸

With ♡,

Ana

Thank you for stepping by. I feel so inspired by the start of summer. It feels like the stars aligned for me to start something new, something aspiring, something adventurous - although I’m in amateur in it.

May I present to you my version of summer curriculum which almost didn’t happen because I was too caught up in how to name it and whether to do summer and June separately.

Nonetheless, here’s every adventure gathered in one piece I aspire for the summer and the month of June.

Summer’26 Manifest

For the past 3 months I have shared my spring in notes and sent paper planes (posts) of soft romantic diaries with all the things I captured and highlighted. What is interesting, I feel like it was a success but still has a missing curiosity piece of what was the intention/plan in the beginning. Cause plans meet real life and it is also perfectly fine (if not even better and even sweeter than fiction of the mind).

So, here is me trying to do just that:

Visions for the Summer’26:

• Spend more time on outdoor movement activities

(cycling; swimming; outdoor walks; beach days maybe even running - who knows?)

• Digital and physical space reset

(I’m upgrading my smartphone this summer so it’s a perfect opportunity to reset to factory settings - in a metaphorical and literal sense; as well as reseting remaining living/storage spaces which were intentionally untouched during spring cleaning/reset)

• Dancing in the Kitchen

Dancing in the Kitchen (Ana’s version) - verb - act of cooking, baking, experimenting in the kitchen to celebrate joy and delight of food. Food is my love language. Reality is I’m still struggling to show up to this love (home-made & nourishing meals). The reality is, that especially in May, and in spring in general - I’ve struggled a lot with skipping (real) meals out of convenience and ordered more than I cooked.

Summer Bucket List:

• Experiment with unplug/offline days & no social media days during my vacation

• Experiment with own Journaling ecosystem

• Have a photo session in a studio

• Perfect my signature cookie recipe

• Cook with peaches and rhubarb

• Read on a pool floatie

• Bake more sourdough and try something new (like sourdough focaccia or ciabatta)

• Go to a color hunt solo date

• Cook recipes from physical cookbooks I own

• Run a kite

• Make a mess it up cake from Gracie Abrams’ Music Video

• Summer Poetry Prompts

• Play bookworms & bookmarks and read the rainbow challenge

• Rainbow sandwiches summer

• Visit museum, exhibition or something similar at least once

• Reread all 6 Emily Henry novels

June’s Monthly Adventures (Inspired by Monthly 10 Substack piece):

• Bake Sourdough at least 3 times

• Kick off rainbow sandwich summer

• Bake something with peaches

• Have cookbook Sundays

• Visit farmer’s market

• Spend one evening by the beach

• Swing

• Play with bubbles

• Reread 2 Emily Henry books (People We Meet On Vacation & Great Big Beautiful Life)

• Try baking with marshmallow crunchies (cookies and/or cake)

Full albums I look forward to listen to skip and shuffle free in June:

Just for the plot and for the sake of trying out something new for the vibes

• Lover and Lover (Live From Paris) by Taylor Swift

• Keep It Peachy - EP by Bellah Mae

• Midnight Sun: Girls Trip by Zara Larsson

• Barbie the Album by Various Artists

• You Seem Pretty Sad For A Girl So In Love by Olivia Rodrigo

Books I’m excited to read this summer:

• Emily Henry’s books (People We Meet on Vacation; Great Big Beautiful Life; Beach Read; Funny Story; Book Lovers; Happy Place) - (stories I reread/revisit)

• Ulysses by James Joyce

• East of Eden by John Steinbeck (revisited cause the TV adaptation is coming out soon)

• Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins (I want to revisit it as well before the film cause it oddly feels like a July read)

• Seven Days in June by Tia Williams (I adored Love Song for Ricki Wilde and saved this one for June)

• Sweet Heat by Bolu Babalola (sequel to honey & spice which also feels like a July read to me)

• Before I Knew I Loved You by Toshikazu Kawaguchi (new book in my favourite healing fiction series)

• Mixed Signals by B.K. Borison (Summer instalment of 4-book series: Christmas and Spring ones were so good)

• Cruel Summer by Morgan Elizabeth & Cruel Summer by Maisey Yates (solely because the titles remind me of Taylor Swift’s Cruel Summer)

Films and TV I’m excited to watch this summer:

Films

• Disclosure Day (in cinemas)

• The Odyssey (in cinemas)

• Before trilogy (Before Sunrise; Before Sunset; Before Midnight)

• Love, Rosie (2014)

• The Pink Panther (2006)

• The Parent Trap (1998)

• High School Musical 2 (2007)

• Moulin Rouge (1952)

• Funny Face (1957)

• Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

• How To Steal A Million (1966)

• Rear Window (1954)

• The Lizzie McGuire Movie (2003)

• It Takes Two (1995)

• New York Minutes (2004)

• You, Me, Tuscany (2026)

• Under the Tuscan Sun (2003)

• Midsommar (2019)

• Bonjour Tristesse (1958 & 2024)

• Spirit (2002)

• Mamma Mia! (2008)

• When in Rome (1953)

• Howl’s Moving Castle (2004)

• Twisters (2024)

• What a Girl Wants (2003)

• Wild Child (2008)

• Confessions of Teenage Drama Queen (2004)

• Call Me By Your Name (2017)

• Pretty Woman (1990)

• Aquamarine (2006)

• The Cheetah Girls (2003)

• Crazy Rich Asians (2018)

• Spice World (1997)

• The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967)

• Blink Twice (2024)

• (500) Days of Summer (2009)

• Hannah Montana: The Movie (2009)|

• Grease (1978)

• Barbie (2023)

• La la land (2016)

Films I’m revisiting (aka will watch again specifically in summer):

• Dirty Dancing (1987)

• People We Meet On Vacation (2026)

• The Eras Tour (Taylor’s Version) (2023)

• K-Pop Demon Hunters (2025)

• How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003)

• Bullet Train (2022)

• Lost City (2022)

• Free Guy (2021)

• Shotgun Wedding (2022)

TV

• Every Year After (2026 release)

• Elle (2026 release)

• Lucky (2026 release)

• Running Point Season 2

• The Summer I Turned Pretty

• We Were Liars

• The White Lotus

• Girlboss

• My Life With Walter Boys

• Emily in Paris

• I Love LA

• Daisy Jones & the Six

• Sweetbitter

I hope you enjoyed this summer manifest of mine (cause it felt so right to share it exactly on 2.6.26). Excited to hear back from you what’s part of your summer vision.

With ♡, Ana

I must confess that I’m fascinated and deeply inspired by Charlotte York from Sex and the City. I only know her from the Substack essays and occasional short videos/edits on social media yet she’s such a main character energy blueprint for me. I haven’t seen the show or read the books and good chance, I’d love for myself to keep this Charlotte York (Ana’s version) to myself rather than actually meeting Charlotte someday by watching the show. Let the girl be delusional about the Charlotte she created in her mind.

Let me introduce Charlotte York (Ana’s version):

I often meet Charlotte together with Carrie on the internet. The contrast between loud and messy main character energy Carrie (oh, the more drama the better - this is what makes a good show) and the supportive heroine who is labeled as delusional, overly romantic and soft for the New York city. Yet somehow, for me, Charlotte’s delulu made her wishes come trululu allowing her to live her best life in a quiet, right amount of drama way while enjoying the ride. But can we the say about Carrie and her rollercoaster of main character drama? Both are great, but I feel like if I’d need a life advice I’d go to Charlotte fascinated about how her pink, bedazzled sunglasses and naive romantic nature is a shield and armour against the drama which destroys the fancy wonders of real life and the figs of dreams that rot.

Charlotte is the main character in her own life, she might not be everyone’s favorite, the main character of a New York drama and the friend group, labeled as a dreamer, but she is totally chill about it. She also has this clarity on what she wants. Most importantly, she also has this belief that her dream life will come true and every step on the way, dreamy, romantic, delusional one gets her closer to her big dream. And oh, what it takes, the courage and mental resilience to stay sincere and true to the quiet heroine nature like this in the buzzy culture that rewards messy and dramatic. Charlotte is just a girl, but the girl I aspire to be and girlhood in the adult era I aspire to take as a blueprint and inspiration. I feel like I need more of Charlotte York mentality to make my big dream come true - which are at their core is living a good life.

That’s why Sarah Dewald’s essay might be one of my favorite ones on Substack. Simply because it inspires me and gets me closer to the mindset and lifestyle of my dream life. I aspire to be a supportive heroine living her best life of her dreams rather than be a real-life main character of a 90s romcom with all the messy and drama attached before the happy ending.

overdressed + overanalyzed

Charlotte York was right, I fear

A few weeks ago I came across a diagram on the internet that rearranged my brain chemistry…

Read more

5 months ago · 2014 likes · 195 comments · sarah dewald

And what about Pinterest? Oh, dear, I wish I could see Pinterest board of Charlotte York as she seems like someone who would be manifesting her dream life via Pinterest board inspiration given her delulu nature and art dealer occupation alike. And somehow it is so on point and on character. Secret ingredient of it all - Charlotte’s clarity of what she wants, what’s the vision what is the manifestation. Pinterest is just a perfect tool and therapy to fancy the dreams and have a girl talk with the subconscious of what the heart’s deeper desires and how they look. Dream kitchen, what kind, what are colors, the plates, the towels? And somehow the next day, during the shopping spree window watching somehow you see exact dinner plates of your dreams which you can have already today. One step closer to the dream kitchen in the home of your dreams. Shaped by clarity, desires, dreams and honesty rather than purely culture and trends.

One of the latest additions to my commonplace journal was the Gabrielle’s piece on Pinterest therapy and this is totally my cup of strawberry matcha! This is also your sign to go and try things out even if and especially they look differently from the piece that inspired the action, the dream and step towards the life you building for yourself and person you’re becoming.

Le Secret Club

Hot Girls Use Pinterest for Therapy

Forget retail therapy, I just need an hour with my Pinterest boards and a glass of wine…

Read more

a year ago · 423 likes · 18 comments · Gabrielle Dubois Meloff

Pinterest boards audit of mine happened before the Charlotte York piece but I got a revelation that it is in fact what I imagine Charlotte board would look like ideas/structure wise. And maybe its only a good thing. I only wish I had an audacity to be as delusional, clear and honest about my dreams as Charlotte and stand by it. Taking my heroine space rather than shrink under the culture’s main character drama queen mentality.

So here’s how I use my Pinterest to channel Charlotte York mentality when achieving my dreams and becoming main heroine of my life

In addition to digital garden, cinema, books and seasonal inspiration boards I decided to have an Ana board of 2026 with subcategories in it. Everything that feels right, myself, creme de la creme of it all.

And in Ana board I save everything which I feel like the energy I wish to embody, photo inspiration of dream life I wish to capture in own camera roll and remember it.

This is me, this is who I am becoming and the vision I am manifesting, delusional about and the direction I take steps towards. When I have it near me it gives courage and dreamy armour against doubt, anxiety and internal turmoil against the outside noise. Trends are part of but I’m the one who is writing the story, season after season, year after year.

I want to surround my space (physical and digital alike) with the reminders and cues of my big dream of living a good life. Maybe it’s the part attracting rather than chasing and living for the hope of it all that my delulus will come truelulus because why not?

Here are more sneak peaks to my dream vision boards. And, oh, I love Substack notes for allowing only 6 media pieces because it is also such a wonderful exersice to be honest what your heart desires most.

Ana (2026’s version)

Dream Home

Dream Destination Travels (I might do the whole essay about this)

Connection and Relationships

Food (because it is my love language)

Creativity

And somehow I feel like me and Charlotte York would be twinning on our usage of Pinterest boards. And, oh, I wish I could actually see Charlotte York’s boards to get even more inspired into defining and proactively dreaming about my main character life full of dreams and romance. And just right amount delusion fairy dust sprinkled on top as a magical ingredient for the dreams coming true.

With ♡,

Ana

Consider it a part 2 for the 5 Ways I Romanticise My Life piece because they exist and belong together in my notes app.

Staying cozy is often an act of courage, because how often do we feel that life is cozy?

I think if I was an animal I would be a fawn or a cheetah. Largely due to the fact that anxiety is my dear (over)protective friend who I take care of rather than demonising her into monster to resist and fight. I’d like to think we’re nakama-level (hello, one piece!) friends now.

Did you know that cheetah is naturally anxious animal? Especially in captivity, they can become so anxious they need a support dog? Yes, support dog. And I loved cheetahs even before I learnt this fun fact.

So here’re 5 ways I help and support my nervous system and mental health when my inner cheetah starts running in circles of my mind:

1. Wrapping myself in a cozy blanket

I’m literally writing this post in my cozy seasonal blanket. In winter months I found myself noticing how much physical and emotional warmth this simple act gives me. It also returns childlike wonder of wrapping oneself to the cozy blanket with all it’s security and comfort. And childhood memories like those are such a powerful warrior of the past against a powerful worrier of today. And it comes with the loveliest bonus (even from intentional consumption perspective for me) of giving myself a reason to stock myself with multiple cute blankets for the season. I’m now the sucker for cute blankets and already have 1 with snowflakes & deers, another one with pumpkins in addition to 2 neutral/universal ones. I’m having my eyes on at least 1 more spring blanket and 1 summer one for the colder summer days.

2. Applying lip balm & hand cream throughout the day

Again, in the coldest winter days lip balm and hand cream are MUST (hello -20°C) as much as having a hat, gloves and scarf on when outdoors. When season changes and becomes warmer applying lip-care and hand-cream became a nice, repeat as many times as you need in a day, sensory and aromatic experience. I even think I prefer a nice aromatics of hand cream / lip balm over perfumes and scented candles. When I’m travelling, want to treat myself or asked what I want from a trip or for holiday - lip balms/lip oils or hand cream (especially if they are in a cute packaging and smell nice) is something that wins my heart with so much joy and appreciation.

3. Having at least one tech-free meal a day

I managed to stick to the habit of having breakfast (after 20+ years) only thanks to a small challenge of having at least one tech-free meal a day. No phones, no TV, no devices, not even music (from streaming, youtube or even record player). I just love to create an opportunity to become unavailable to the noise and practice 1 action at a time. Nothing fancy, complex or romantisised savour-everything ritual. My favourite is having cereal and I go as far as having cereal in a fancy bowl. The main showstopper of the act is a singular act performance rather than social media worthy vlog aesthetics. This is also an act that can work on a perfect, normal and tough day alike. Everything in this list, really, intuitively designed to work on every day. But 1 singular act per instance… I find it the most powerful when I feel especially overwhelmed, anxious or frustrated.

4. Rituals to signal the permission to rest

Having KitKat on a weekend to signal weekend break start (chores and commitments free weekend break; even if it means only for the few hours on a Sunday evening), lightning a candle on a workday evening to signal the end of workday - a few rituals I mentioned in my previous piece above. Curious to see how many more I’ll add to this running list over time but I find this associations game and cues so powerful on a nervous level system. When mind is unsure, body, through repetition of a same ritual, is able to team up with me and reassure the mind that it is fine, it is OK to rest. Let’s rest now - we deserve it and we allow ourself grace and permission to rest. Even when we are beginners, amateurs or relearning in the art of rest. Those rituals are like support dog to my cheetah. Perfect match. Just like milk and cookies.

5. Having space for at least 1-hour me time

On a perfect day, it is early morning before the world wakes up, sun is shining, birds are singing and I’m wrapped in my blankets with no-agenda 2-3 hours before the day starts. I can watch a film (or 2), have my matcha and fancy breakfast, go with a flow and play with no interruptions.

On a average day, it is usually bullet journaling in the evening with a scented candle lit beside me. Or some creative activity which in my case is of rotating nature depending on the season (of life). (examples from this year: jigsaw puzzles, painting by numbers, commonplace journalling, comfort cinema)

On a tough day, it is having a hot bubble bath to wash the day away. Having a bathtub in a home is a non-negotiable for me. I can switch to another side of the bed (I can switch from right side to the left one) or even sleep on the couch but I need a bath in the bathroom. For the good days, and especially for the tough ones. Cause those bubbles are as (if not even more) magical as Glinda’s toss-toss magic.

That’s all (for now). Hope you enjoyed this read inspired by my daily adventure in search of soft romantic things and ways to show up for my inner fawn and cheetah.

With ♡,

Ana

Dear Reader,

Happy May 5th! Today it feels so right to me to share the 5 ways I romanticise my life. So let’s begin! ♡

5 Ways I romanticise my life

1. Eat KitKat on Sunday (or weekend) to mark the beginning of weekend break

I usually have at least 3 KitKat bars in my pantry. Here’s the story. It’s a random Sunday after full day of chores and I just got home from the grocery run feeling exhausted after two-day adulting spree. As a treat I bought myself a KitKat, so I got on my couch, wrapped myself in a cozy blanket and had a KitKat for the first time in a long time.

You know how some scents or tastes bring back memories? This was the case for that KitKat. It tastes to me like childhood/girlhood - a time in my life when the adulting, chores and hustle-bustle of busy bee lifestyle was only a chapter in the future.

And I felt it deep in my bones - this taste might not bring a specific memory but I associate it (on a mind & body level) with the permission for a break from adulting.

Gladly on that day, those groceries was the last thing on my to-do list so indulging on a KitKat literally marked a weekend-weekend evening where I had it all to no-agenda flow & rest. And I decided to make it a ritual/tradition, to signal myself - good job, now have a weekend break.

Weekends are different. Sometimes I have KitKat on Friday evening, sometimes somewhere on Saturday, sometimes lucky if I have it at 6PM on Sunday - and that’s OK! Regardless, I’m saving it for a special moment and this definitely something I look forward to every weekend.

2. Eat my cereal/soup/ramen from a fancy plate and drink my from a fancy mug

As simple as it is, food tastes more special and delightful when I eat it from fancy plate or drink my matcha, milk or tea from a cute mug. On ordinary days and special occasions alike.

3. Buying fresh flowers at least once a month and put them where I can see them the most

This just brings me so much joy. It is usually the first thing I see when I am back home too. Flowers are delightful and important. And I find the place of them in the house is as important too!

4. Lightning a candle in the evening as a signal to enter a soft mode

Similar to a weekend KitKat ritual, I have a ritual for the weekday evenings as well. I work from home, so boundaries and balance between work/life are important to me. So, as cue that workday ended and evening has started I tend to light a scented candle. To signal my body and mind to enter the soft mode for the evening. The scent and the cracking sound of a candlelit flame - the things that belong on the desk (the same working desk) in the evening and I find true magic in this ordinary everyday act.

5. Practical things that brings me joy by their fun looks

I’m still obsessed with my Going Merry/One Piece desk calendar. Best part? I can use it every year!

Similarly to it, I always wanted a mirrorball, so I bought one. It is spinning and changing colours. Best part? It is an air diffuser which is so essential to me during winter months when it’s too cold to open windows for fresh air for a long time.

If you ask me why I love each and every one of those way - the keyword here is simplicity. To me it feels so simple, real and natural it is already a part of my day. The flow, the signal, the cue, the ritual which feels effortless rather than forced, joyful and personal rather than something that adds more noise/pressure into the days.

So I really hope this list brings you joy today and, maybe, even inspiration for your own ways to bring more softness and romance to your day.

With ♡,

Ana

Dear Reader,

April Showers Bring May Flowers. I love this phrase so much because it allows to shift perspective from small sorrows of rainy April days to small joys of floral Mays.

I continue to do things for the first time, exploring further the joys, sweetnesses and sorrows of seasonal living. So here’s everything that shaped my April of 2026.

Theme for April:

I decided to continue with the March theme as I’ve been enjoying it a lot and savour the slowness and opportunity to embrace it in different ways and angles. It is the same yet with the twist and I’d love the side quest of it all: have the same theme for the whole season and celebrate it utilising all the joys a particular month/vibe/season of life offers. The shiny, iridescent mirrorball of opportunity - what a marvel, what a thrill!

The Theme for April is: ♡ you so matcha 🍵🌸

Ways I cherished and celebrated my April theme:

Pinterest Deep Dives

Themed Substack restacks

New Monday Morning ritual of at-home Matcha on Monday inspired by the April read

Creating a Spring Moodboard

Painting by numbers vol. 2

April Watchlist that created the springtime feeling:

Emma (2020)

Marie Antoinette (2006)

Pride and Prejudice (2005)

Notting Hill (1999)

Les parapluies de Cherbourg / The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964)

Books I’ve read

Emma by Jane Austen

Matcha on Monday by Michiko Aoyama (Hot Chocolate on Thursday Series #2)

Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim

The Elsewhere Express by Samantha Sotto Yambao

The Cemetery of Untold Stories by Julia Alvarez

April’s Playlist

Opposite - Sabrina Carpenter

Paint by Numbers - Harry Styles

Drop Dead - Olivia Rodrigo

Staying Still - Noah Kahan

Miscellaneous Joys:

Olivia Rodrigo’s new album cover

Being congratulated on my half birthday by self-care finch app pet (her name is Mochi ♡)

Meryl Streep & Anna Wintour Interview for Vogue moderated by Greta Gerwig

https://www.vogue.com/article/meryl-streep-anna-wintour-may-cover-2026-interview

Bubbles!!!

Soft Serves (consumed in April: 3)

Violet Evergarden anime

Capturing spring blooms after showers

This note on personal aesthetics ♡

Lightning a candle I made in February for the first time

Celebrating 100 & 250 substack subscribers ♡

Visiting the local farmer’s market for the first time this year

What I’ve Added to My Commonplace notebook

For the very first time I’ve decided to start a commonplace notebook to capture knowledge and research which resonates and aligns with me.

Of course I started with Substack!

Substack Reading:

lick the pearl

how to have a sofia coppola girl spring

hi lovelies! i like to start each new season by creating a moodboard for it, filled with all the colors and aesthetics i’m gravitating towards, and every year, my spring moodboard is filled with stills from sofia coppola movies. spring is such an ephemeral, feminine season to me. it’s pastel colored and delicate, like a pink tulip. when i think of sprin…

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5 months ago · 176 likes · 37 comments · aurora

Downtalk

Making Your Own Dopamine Menu

A week ago, I read this lovely piece by aurora blythe on dopamine menus. If you don’t know what this is, it’s basically a TikTok trend where you list the things that make you happy—that give you dopamine. These are usually things that aren’t internet related and are actually meant to help put some distance between you and your phone. The concept of a dopamine menu i…

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2 years ago · 1030 likes · 26 comments · elma

my year of unrest and relaxation

the esoteric world of girlblogging

“Cool girl. Men always use that, don’t they? As their defining compliment. She’s a Cool girl.” - Gone Girl (David Fincher, 2014…

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3 years ago · 447 likes · 15 comments · cerys🩰

Moodboard Diaries

An Ode To The Classics

Lately, I’ve been thinking about where my love of fashion actually came from, and, in hindsight, the answer feels… obvious: films…

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5 months ago · 43 likes · 2 comments · The Moodboard Diaires

The Mindful Mama

Hilary Duff Reminded Me That Girlhood Doesn’t Expire

Hilary Duff released her new album luck…or something last week and, of course, my nostalgic, 90’s-kid, little heart had to listen…

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6 months ago · 32 likes · Cassie

Helmi Anttoora

The rom-com career of today: Content marketing is taking over journalism

The early 2000s rom-com’s painted a picture of the dream job. Carrie Bradshaw, Jenna Rink, Andy Anderson, and Andy Sachs were all fashion or lifestyle journalists. And as faithful fans, we all wanted the Runway office, the fashion closet, the fierce editor, and the byline in a glossy magazine…

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6 months ago · 45 likes · 15 comments · Helmi Anttoora

Izzy

How to Dress Like a Rom-Com Journalist (Without Losing the Plot)

There’s something about starting a new job that makes me reassess everything. My morning routine. My personality. My entire wardrobe…

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5 months ago · 405 likes · 24 comments · Izzy | The Wardrobe Edit

Older, Wiser, Hotter

An Analog Day for When You’ve Had Enough of the Internet ✨

In case you didn’t know, my bio for Older, Wiser, Hotter states that the writer behind the keyboard (me!) is a millennial hottie slash your new bestie. While I hope opening these emails every Sunday does indeed feel like you’re chatting with a friend (hey girl!), I want to bring to your attention that I am, indeed, a millennial…

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7 months ago · 135 likes · 22 comments · Kristen Garaffo

April’s Flowers : Daffodils

April’s creative solitude pieces I’ve written:

Love Letters I’ve Sent:

Hope this edition of Digital Memory Lane of a Girl in the World brought your joy today! 🍵🌸

With ♡, Ana

And so many times I’m terrified. The beast is beauty. And I’m just a person in a tiny body, feeling like a little fawn in the moments like this.

I’m the type who thought she wanted to write a novel. Or a play. Or maybe a short story collection. No, I know — poetry of my own terms! There are so many ideas and things I want to say and express and share. To love and send love letters of it to the world.

Turns out I just want to write without putting a label on it. I can admit I’m too scared and soft for labels. See where my thoughts go and flow. I thought I’ve said enough with the It Girl post which would’ve allowed me to be with peace of the idea. Idea of the lucky one, Clara Bow and the beast of beauty.

It took me few years to gather and plan, save materials across notes and social media which would serve as inspiration to my grand and genius writing peace. Then, in 2026 I finally put something into words and publish it on substack which should’ve (or could’ve) give me peace.

Is it nonsense? Is it brilliance? I’m afraid Virginia Woolf is not there to give me that answer.

I thought I found peace, put both whimsy and rage into it but…..

Then I watched Notting Hill (1999) and found myself in restless circles realising that I haven’t finished talking on the beauty that is beast.

Open notes app, start writing, stop when I feel peace of getting it out of my system for this time. No going to my notes, no background noise, no additional media to influence and shape the writing of the present moment.

From Taylor Swift’s Clara Bow and Nothing New Lyrics:

«Beauty is the beast that roars. Down on all fours. Demanding more»

«It’s hell on earth to be heavenly»

«Promise to be dazzling»

«Will you still want me when I’m nothing new?»

From Laufey’s Goddess lyrics:

«I’m a goddess on stage / Human when we’re alone»

«You took a star to bed

Woke up with me instead

You must have fеlt so damn deceived»

«Whеn you made up a version of

Me that you thought you’d love»

«I’m so naive to think you loved me for me / But I am not your Aphrodite»

«When the glamour wore off / Reduced to skin and bone»

«I can’t even tell who you want to know»

From the Notting Hill (1999) film:

«Every man I have ever known has fallen in love with Gilda and awakened with me.» — Rita Hayworth

«Men went to bed with a dream. They didn’t like it when they woke up with the reality»

«And don’t forget... I’m also just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her»

From Gilda through Notting Hill to Goddess & Clara Bow.

I feel the tragedy (or reality) of the lucky one and the beauty (a beast that roars) of how it’s nothing new through the decades deeply into my bones.

For the famous Notting Hill quotes the boy is replaced with the world in my mind.

Being a dream girl (or person/human really) takes so many forms. Romance and Fame are just one of them.

All those tensions and pressures are true without being famous and without a boy. The fear and the beast are there though. Yet, at the same time it is so human of me to yearn and long for hearing from the world and genuinely hearing and believing that I am lovelier this morning than I have ever been. Not from the whole world but someone I connect with (my inner beauty beast and self included).

With ♡,

Ana

Dear Reader, in 2026 I’m doing so many things for the first time and this is one of them. Here’s what shaped my March, so I hope you enjoy taking this digital memory lane of mine with me.

Theme for March:

For the first time I’ve decided to embrace and cherish each season with a side quest of choosing the specific theme for each month and channel its energy, colour palate, vibes and treasure hunt activities and pieces which would embody the theme (near) perfectly.

The Theme for March is: ♡ you so matcha 🍵🌸

For the first month of spring after wintering well, I was craving softness, peace, light and joy while also savouring sweetness of seasonal living.

And pastels of pink & green screams all of those things to me. Matcha is green love & florals are pink. And here’s how love you so matcha has born. I love pastels, matcha lattes and food word play like that.

Ways I cherished and celebrated my March theme:
Pinterest Deep Dives

Baking Mitsuri Kanroji’s honeycomb pancakes and paired it with Matcha

Painting by Numbers

Mini Garden Creation

March Watchlist that created the springtime feeling:

Crossroads (2002)

27 Dresses (2008)

Uptown Girls (2003)

13 Going on 30 (2004)

Legally Blonde (2001)

March’s Playlist

Lover Girl - Laufey

Baby Steps - Olivia Dean

Audrey Hepburn - Maisie Peters

Labyrinth - Taylor Swift

Promise - Laufey

Sign of the Times - Harry Styles

It Isn’t Perfect But It Might Be - Olivia Dean

Life Boat. - RAYE

Books I’ve read

Jane Austen’s Bookshelf: A Rare Book Collector’s Quest to Find the Women Writers Who Shaped a Legend - Book by Rebecca Romney

All About Love - Bell Hooks

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - Betty Smith

Hooked by Asako Yuzuki

Substack Reading:

Best of the Times

I built this softness brick by brick

I wasn’t born soft…

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8 months ago · 205 likes · 8 comments · Mansi Nikam

this must be the season

how to be a lover girl 💕

I’ve been begging the universe for years to give me my sparkle back. I think I lost it somewhere around 2017, driving home on Valentine’s Day after spending the evening crying in my now husband’s arms over a cruel email my manager sent about being disappointed in me…

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7 months ago · 78 likes · 6 comments · Sarah Walsh

Maximalist Musings

Are you Doing Enough in your 20s?

When I was 16, I thought that 26 sounded like high time to be married. My expectations for my 20s were to be working an impressively altruistic job (and being immensely successful at it), living in a glamorous city, meeting the love of my life, and getting married. It is amusing to me how much our perception towards when we think we should have our ‘liv…

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2 years ago · 977 likes · 34 comments · Amelia Ward

boring things

the sweetness in seasonal living

i often talk about seasonal living here—the idea of guiding yourself through the seasons, shaping your routines and life around them and what they ask of us. i love it because it makes ordinary days feel more intentional, helping me notice subtle shifts in light, energy, and mood that might otherwise pass by. aligning with the natural rhythms of the yea…

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6 months ago · 77 likes · 4 comments · kyla james

my tangled labyrinth of desire

maybe it's okay to let your figs rot

“i have done nothing all summer but wait for me to become myself again…

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8 months ago · 1925 likes · 48 comments · vivi

Cozy Pursuits with Kylin Anne

How to live like a March sister this March

Hi cozy friends…

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6 months ago · 71 likes · 6 comments · Kyli Wagner

even better

Hump Day? 5 easy ways to beat the mid-week slump

Have you ever heard of ‘Little Saturday…

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10 months ago · 41 likes · 4 comments · Trine Jensen-Burke

milk and cookies

keep yourself to yourself

i used to think vulnerability was a shortcut to connection. that the more you shared, the more people would understand you, respect you, maybe even love you. and so i gave people access—sometimes too much, too soon. i let people in under the assumption that closeness meant safety. but the thing about handing people the full, unfiltered version of yourse…

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2 years ago · 14546 likes · 191 comments · ayushi thakkar

noted, by hannah cao

I want to be the muse, not the lover

The other day I read a poem that he wrote about someone else…

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6 months ago · 962 likes · 62 comments · Hannah Cao

Le Secret Club

How to flirt with your life

Flirting, at its core, is simple: it’s subtle allure…

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9 months ago · 2515 likes · 38 comments · Gabrielle Dubois Meloff

miscellaneous joys:

Alysa Liu’s Interview and photoshoot for Teen Vogue

https://www.teenvogue.com/story/alysa-liu-olympic-gold-teen-vogue-cover-interview-2026

Netflix’s One Piece Live Action Series

Watching Project Hail Mary in Cinemas

Capturing the arrival of spring

lille lørdag (Little Saturday)

March’s Flowers : Ranunculus

March’s creative solitude pieces I’ve written:

Love Letters I’ve Sent:

Hope this edition of Digital Memory Lane of a Girl in the World brought you joy today! 🍵🌸

With ♡, Ana