Monthly Index
I don’t put any info on here besides a little masthead with the name of the month on it, and swatches of the fountain pens inks I’m using for that month.
May
GRATITUDE
After the monthly page, I include several pages for gratitude lists, which I currently refer to as daily "highlights". I jot down two good things each day. Personal wins get a little star instead of a heart icon.
May Highlights
- *A professional achievement
 - ♥ Yummy food
 
- ♥ Usually a nice thing my husband did for me
 - ♥ Rabbits in our yard are cute
 
- ♥ Yet more food probably
 - * Feeling good from exercise
 
- * A personal win
 - ♥A good book I just finished
 
- ♥Fun hangout with friends
 - ♥Pet a corgi
 
- ♥Sew Day with my mom and my aunt
 - *Finished sewing my pouch
 
Media of the Month
I’ve started putting this at the beginning of the month, right after my gratitude pages, so that I can add to it as the month goes along. An “x” means I finished this piece of media, and a “>” means I carried it over from the month before.
MaY media
Reading
- × “How Far the Light Reaches” –Sabrina Imbler (★★★★★)
 - × “Making Comics” –Lynda Barry (★★★½)
 - × “The Familiar” –Leigh Bardugo (★★★¾)
 - × “Evidence-Guided” –Itamar Gilad (★★★★)
 - × “A Psalm for the Wild-Built” –Becky Chambers (★★★)
 - × “Atomic Habits” –James Clear (★★★)
 
Watching (Tv)
- • Best in Miniature S1
 - > Grey’s Anatomy S3
 - • Project Runway S20
 
Watching (Movies)
- × “The Hunger Games: A Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes” (★★★★)
 - × “Vampire humaniste cherche suicidaire consentant” (★★★★★)
 - × “Wonka” (★★★)
 
Listening
- Boygenius
 - Local Natives
 - Snow Patrol
 - Paramore
 - TWICE
 - St. Vincent
 
Month in Review
A list of things I’ve been doing lately. The header text comes from a series of Everyday Explorers Co. stamps. The "RIGHT HERE AND NOW" column is a collection of varying kinds of vibes from the month.
MaY in Review
current project
- × Tiny but Mighty releases
 - × ICP user research study
 - > Variables reordering and bulk actions
 - > CSS feature gap analysis
 
currently making
- × Sketchbook drawings
 - > “I’m So Basic” socks
 - × Zippered pouch
 
currently learning
- × “Evidence-Guided” book
 - × Gouache and Posca pen courses on Domestika
 - • Restarted kanji on WaniKani
 
right here and now
- AURORA BOREALIS
 - Flowers everywhere
 - Lots of knitting
 - Maeda-en yuzu sherbet
 - French food in YQB
 
Daily pages
Typically some combination of the following:
- Headline written in Textura Quadrata-style calligraphy or old school bubble letters.
 - Bullet-style snippets of my day.
 - “Noticed” list of things I saw or overheard, Lynda-Barry-style. I do this on occasion.
 - Spot illustrations: often drawn with a Pilot Explorer pen (F) and Platinum Carbon Black ink, then colored with Ecoline brush pens. Sometimes I’ll use Posca markers for a more graphic vibe.
 
Wed, may 01
- Here is a thing that happened during my workday.
 - R. and I went on a walk around the neighborhood after work. There are beautiful blooms everywhere, great timing for the start of late spring.
 - For dinner, we made the Mediterranean feta + veggies sheet pan bake again. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it.
 
noticed
- Cute birb being cute
 - An "interesting" thing a fellow human did
 - Lots of bunnies around the neighborhood
 
