Eight Small Things: April 2025
Monthly field notes on what I'm eating, bookmarking, screenshotting, consuming, and learning.
I’m going to try something new here! A lot of my friends ask what’s on my radar—where I’ve been traveling, how I find places, what my latest hobby is, or what I think about this or that very uncomfortable interaction at work.
It was fun to share stuff like this during Screenshot Saturdays last year, but then we started planning a wedding and my camera roll became one too many invitation suites and tablescapes for anyone else to care.
So now, I’m going to try doing a quickie dispatch once a month instead.
Here’s a snapshot of Eight Small Things from April I’ve been thinking about, saving, loving, learning, and leaving behind.
(1) One place I marked to eat or stay:
Hotel Ett Hem in Stockholm.
Matt and I had a blast in Stockholm a few months ago. It was my first visit since publishing this Stockholm issue of Drift years ago and this Bon Appétit guide, and it was such a good reminder that a whole new set of countries and European cities are really close to where I live now (compared to the overnight flights it took when I lived in the States).
I’m sure I’ll be back to Sweden sometime soon, hopefully to farther reaches of the country (maybe on a summer sailing trip?).
And when I do go back, I’d like to visit Ett Hem in Stockholm. My friend Bonjwing, whose taste I trust completely, said it had one of his favorite hotel breakfasts in recent memory, and it’s exactly the kind of place I love: intimate, thoughtful, beautiful, and personal. I try to avoid accommodations that feel excessively large, impersonal, or sterile if I can; and, if it has a great hotel breakfast to boot, then sign me up.
(2) One thing I purchased:
Watercolor paints!!!! For whatever reason, I had an overwhelming urge to space out and do something creative that involved fine motor skills. I’d just met Jessie Kanelos Weiner for the first time and had lunch with Jane Black—both phenomenally talented American watercolor artists living in Paris—and I wanted to learn even a tiny fraction of the magic they make when paint meets water and thick paper.
Jessie told me to check out her book (I ordered it! Arriving soon!) and that I could pick up supplies at Rougier&Plé. I was comically bad at my first attempt (totally freehand painting is not the right fit for a newbie like me, it turns out), but then I bookmarked some beginner TikToks and tried again on a long weekend in Bretagne. I made some honestly cute but also very rudimentary bookmarks for the whole family. I love mine and have been using it!
I already know this travel watercolor set is going to serve me well for years to come.
(3) One trend I’m following:
Customization via pins, brooches, charms, embroidery, and patches. It’s a trend I love in practice but am very over in certain forms: I don’t want to see another charm dangling from a bag.
But please: let’s salvage every brooch, barrette, bangle, belt, scarf, and scarf ring from eras gone by so we can accessorize our existing wardrobe more playfully.
This photo is from Carolina Herrera’s F/W 2025 runway show, but if you’re looking for inspiration, just open the Vogue Runway app and watch last season’s shows. You’ll suddenly see how to style what you already own in much more interesting ways.
It’s a little recession-core (find use for what you have instead of buying new), but I’ll always prefer trends that lean into individuality and expression over uniformity.
(4) One thing I learned at work:
Letting colleagues in on my thought process earlier than I think I need to by preemptively communicating.
Last year, I worked with a phenomenal executive coach, Helen Dayen, who called me on my bullshit a lot—and made me a much better communicator, executive, and teammate.
One thing she taught me (that I’m only just starting to practice well) is: preemptive communication creates clarity and shared ownership. When you loop people in on your thinking early (whether you’re assigning work or just flagging what’s coming), it helps them feel invested. Even if you’re technically delegating, it starts to feel more collaborative.
It also gives everyone space to weigh in along the way, rather than waiting until the end to critique something you worked on in isolation. It helps avoid needless friction, resentment, and rework.
And this applies not just when assigning tasks, but also when communicating up, down, and sideways.
(5) One thing I’m consuming:
Several books about China—starting with Lady Tan’s Circle of Women, then Daughters of Shandong, and now Last Boat Out of Shanghai.
I started with Lady Tan’s Circle of Women. It’s one of the first books I’ve read in a while that’s set in China (though this one takes place in the 15th century), and I haven’t read historical fiction in ages. But I was really taken in by Lisa See’s descriptions and the way this defiant—yet still very much of her time—main character, a doctor for women (unheard of then, especially for someone of her class), navigated her world.
Then I dove into Daughters of Shandong, which my friend Eytan recommended. It’s another historical fiction novel, this time about a mother and her two daughters who are forced to flee their home during the Cultural Revolution and make the harrowing journey to Taiwan.
The last one, which I’m listening to on audio, is Last Boat Out of Shanghai. It’s nonfiction, and follows four separate people—starting just before WWII and through the Cultural Revolution—who either lived in or ended up in Shanghai during the Japanese invasion, stayed through the war, and later faced the struggle between the Nationalists and the Communists. I’m only halfway through, but it’s fascinating and adds a lot of texture to stories I’ve heard from friends whose families lived through that period and eventually settled elsewhere: in Hong Kong, in Taiwan, in the US, and beyond.
(6) One photo from my camera roll:
Views over Bretagne. Whenever I’m in Bretagne, one of my favorite things to do is put on an audiobook and go for a long, hilly walk along the Sentier Littoral—the coastal path that meanders along dramatic cliffs dropping into the sea. I took this photo at the top of Garde Guérin, overlooking Saint-Briac-sur-Mer.
(7) One thing I ate and adored:
Folded eggs and focaccia at Lot 103 in London.
Whenever I stay with Kate in London, she always takes me to some terrific café where we can camp out with our laptops while we’re remote working. This time, it was the newly opened and very cozy Lot 103 near Newington Green, and the friendly staff was turning out righteous seasonal focaccia and folded eggs—perfectly runny, with a firm constitution.
I immediately noted that I need to learn this technique so I can replicate it at home asap.
(8) One thing I’m sick of:
Most fitness classes.
At the start of the year, I set two fitness goals: improve my VO₂ max by several points and rehab my shoulder so I can play tennis and swim again. VO₂ max became a target metric because it’s one of the strongest predictors of increased healthspan.
So, I got an Apple Watch and started meticulously tracking my workouts.
What moves the needle for me is about 40% Zone 2 cardio, 20% Zone 5 cardio (4x4s, sprints, etc.), and 40% weight training (mostly lower body and core, focused on functional strength).
And now, when I go to a group fitness class, I’m reminded: they’re great for maintaining fitness, but not always for improving it. Unless you find a way to consistently challenge yourself (heavier weights, more intensity, adding on reps), you’re often working at the level of the lowest common denominator in the room.
I still go sometimes for fun—especially for reformer or megaformer Pilates—or if I need to jumpstart motivation, but more often than not, I’d rather do a focused cardio or weight session at the gym on my own.
Bonus Things
Where I was in April:
Paris. Happy to be home!
Beaujolais. A long weekend with Matt’s family.
Bretagne. Easter weekend, also with Matt’s family.
London. Just a few days for a community event we hosted at work, plus some terrific dinners and lunches with friends along the way.
One thing I stopped doing:
Not ruthlessly prioritizing my time at work. Now, I do the most important task for the business first thing, so it’s off my desk early, and I already feel accomplished by the time late afternoon fatigue sets in.
One unresolved thought:
What are the actual skills kids need to develop now, if they’re going to be meaningful contributors to society going forward?
I’ve been thinking about this a lot at work. We build an alternative MBA for entrepreneurs, so we really live and breathe the future of education. I also work with several early-20s interns who’ve shared how rampant ChatGPT use is in their schoolwork—and how it makes the whole experience of being in the classroom feel kind of useless, unless they’re getting direct in-person exposure to high-level thinkers (like when some really successful or accomplished person is sitting in on a group presentation and asking questions). But it’s hard for them to understand the rationale behind synthesizing information for an essay or wrestling a problem set.
I listened to this episode of The Ezra Klein Show, which touches on this in an interesting way.
Back in a few weeks with more.
—E
I am researching visiting Brittany from Ireland. Is there anywhere you would recommend visiting in particular. We like coastal spots, and towns with culture
Thanks so much for the mention! I love Jane, too.