Happy Friday!
Last week, I told you how taking a road trip made my summer vacation feel extra long (in a good way). What I didn’t tell you is that the following Monday morning, I found myself taking deep breaths in Quartz’s supply closet. It was quite a change of scenery from Highway 101 between California and Oregon, and for the first couple of hours back at work, I wasn’t completely coping.
For expert advice, I called the cognitive psychologist and improvement coach Amanda Crowell. I reached her at a roadside Cracker Barrel, en route to her own family holiday, where she talked me through some tips for a successful vacation re-entry.
Amanda confirmed my primary rule: Come home on a Saturday, or whatever day gives you a solid buffer before returning to work. Of course, that gives you time for unpacking, laundry, and meal-planning, but Amanda also suggested some mild mental preparation: Take a moment to remind yourself what you like about your job, and what you’re there to do. It’s not just about avoiding a meltdown in the supply closet; it’s also about carrying the energy and perspective you gain on a great holiday back into everyday life.
To allow for that perspective, unplug from work so your brain can recharge, and give yourself a little time to get bored. (It’s not just for kids!) Amanda said a mind at rest will start to surface serendipitous thoughts, ideas, and memories. Those might be the greatest souvenirs from a real holiday. Here, the complete guide to vacation re-entry.
Baby steps. I’ve found the post-vacation weeks to be a good time for forming new habits—and leaning on old ones. A smidge overwhelmed, I recently returned to my longtime favorite method for parceling out tasks and getting them done: Set a timer. People in the productivity world call this the Pomodoro Technique, named for those little tomato-shaped kitchen timers. I’ve been using this lovely online version from E.ggTimer. Belle Beth Cooper, an iOS developer and self-described procrastinator, wrote for Quartz about how she adapts the method for working through all kinds of real-life intervals—whether a washer cycle or the length of a Led Zeppelin album.
Anderson .Paak’s Malibu. I have extolled the virtues of full albums for road trips. Here’s one more: They help keep the vacation vibes going when you get back. I was stuffed into the L-train like a sardine Tuesday morning, but thanks to .Paak’s cruise-y beats and lyrics I was almost—almost!—back on the 101.
Quartz marketing manager Cameron Hough—who this week sent me the link to .Paak’s performance on NPR’s “tiny desk”—fell for his music after she shared an UberPool with Ron Avant, who plays keyboards with .Paak’s band, The Free Nationals. This is a good reminder to take out those headphones and chat up the people in your UberPool, subway car, or elevator once in a while. You never know who you might meet!
Stranger Things. I had been resisting Netflix’s new series, Stranger Things, because I’m a wuss when it comes to watching anything scary. But Adam Epstein’s review tempted me with the nostalgic appeal of an adventure set in Spielbergian 1980s movie-land, where synthesizers set the soundtrack and scrappy kids on bikes band together against unseen monsters. I’m now one episode in, and struggling to do anything other than watch the other seven. (Cue Pomodoro timer!)
Winona forever. Winona Ryder, who stars in Stranger Things as the mother of a missing boy, is no small part of the series’ appeal. If you love Winona even a little bit, do not miss Heather Havrilesky’s sit-down with the actress in New York Magazine. The interview includes a sweet, awkward moment in which a Chateau Marmont waiter interrupts the 1990s goth-girl icon to reassure her: ”You are very attractive.” (“How do you get a job at the Chateau Marmont if you’re this guy?” Havrilesky asks.)
Ryder does indeed look very attractive in the Norma Jean Roy portraits that accompany the piece, and Havrilesky’s takeaway from her conversation with Ryder is also beautiful. She writes:
Even these days, when women who talk openly about their struggles still work very hard to project that flavor of sunny, upbeat optimism our culture prefers, Ryder offers us a helpful reminder that feeling conflicted, confused, or just ambivalent is a feature of being alive and not a bug. Emotional intensity, contradiction — these aren’t signs of instability or immaturity; they’re the sophisticated processing of an intelligent, mature adult.
In other words, dark is okay sometimes. I’m curling up with Stranger Things, and making plans to re-watch Heathers.
Embrace whatever mood you’re in this weekend—and have a great one!
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Anyone dealing with re-entry from the Rio Olympics is likely going into açai withdrawal. The Brazilian breakfast of champions—an icy, blended concoction of the antioxidant-rich fruit—is easy to adapt at home. In short: Take a frozen packet of Sambazon’s Original Style açai (Whole Foods carries it), drop it in the blender with a banana, a few ice cubes, and a splash of liquid (nut milk or juice is ideal, but water will do in a pinch), and let it rip.