November is such a grey and gloomy month, isn’t it? As I write this, the sun rises at 7:29 am and sets at 4:02 pm, and those precious daylight hours are only going to get worse before they get better. However! November is also the month of Tiny Secret Festive Season, which morphs into Full On Festive Season, and all the happiness and light that brings to me. In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer. It’s not the depth of winter, not even close, but the sentiment stands. In the depth of November, within me I found some Favourite Things.
Nicole’s Favourite Things: The Fight The Gloom Edition
It’s Puzzle Season, Motherfuckers
November through March – i.e., the non-garden season – is unofficially Puzzle Season around here. I love a good puzzle but I definitely gravitate towards the less difficult realm. Do I want to go insane while staring at 1000 pieces of hell? No I do not. My husband is a person who enjoys wildly difficult puzzles, like the one we did of a canoe on a lake with a background of mountains, or the one of Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in which every single piece was the exact same shape. I like a series of vignettes, is what I’m saying.
My older son gave this Jane Austen puzzle to me for my birthday, and I saved it to kick off Puzzle Season. It’s a very special puzzle because the photo on the box does not contain the solution. The Puzzler must put the characters together, figure out who goes with whom, and then use the conversational clues to figure out how to arrange them for the final product.
You need to be a Fan, is what it boils down to.
It’s a really clever idea and it was so much fun. I tried to explain WHY it was so amusing to my family, and their eyes started glazing over.
Fun fact: I used It’s Puzzle Season, Motherfuckers for a Favourite Things last December, and it also included a Jane Austen puzzle! Will the pattern continue? Check in with me in 2026!
Oh, I’m Writing My Life Away
On the topic of Items Received For My Birthday That I Am Using Seven Months Later, my dear friend Suzanne (HI SUZANNE) sent me this notebook.
I was absolutely delighted, and I knew that I wanted to save it for a special use. Right now Inhale Exhale is out for review with Clarion, which means that the process is out of my hands, as nerve-wracking as that is. Time to redirect that nervous energy and start something new!
Two of the women in my writing group, Gill and Michela (HI GILL HI MICHELA) swear by Morning Pages; they say that there is something about it that really sparks creativity. I am not at the Morning Pages Life Stage yet, but I have been using Suzanne’s gorgeous notebook to handwrite thoughts about my new project in a very stream-of-consciousness way. And I have to say, it has worked. Creativity has been sparked!
On the same topic:
Isn’t that a beautiful cover? I am SO pleased with it. If you’re wondering what it’s about, wonder no more!
My publisher, Friesen Press, is a hybrid one, which means that my path to publication is not traditional and I won’t have the ability to pre-order, or to give you an exact release date quite yet. However! It will be available at all the usual bookstores, and the MINUTE I have that information, it will be here on the blog, it will be on my Instagram, it will be on Facebook, it will be sung from my own rooftop. I absolutely loved writing this, and I hope people will love reading it.
She Walked Up To Me and She Asked Me To Pose…Y-O-G-A Yoga
I realize that a discussion of yoga mats might be more topical in, say, January, but in my mind ANY time is a good time for yoga. Also, it’s possible that one might want a yoga mat for Christmas, and I have very strong feelings on this topic.
As a small digression, I would like to go on the record to say that yoga truly is for everyone. No one is “bad at yoga.” No one “can’t do yoga.” No one is “too stiff” to do yoga. There are as many ways of practicing yoga as there are people on this earth. Some people do seated postures on a mat, some people do standing postures, some people sit in a chair, some people lie in savasana. And, as I said sternly to my husband and son who were watching a commercial with a football player doing a barre practice while someone jeered, no yoga teacher has ever “laughed at” a student. If such a thing has ever occurred, it has not been in my hearing, and I would posit a theory that such a person is not truly a yoga teacher. Yoga teachers are almost exclusively a gentle, loving bunch who only want the best for their students. If a person can sit quietly and listen to the sound of their breath for thirty seconds, THEY ARE DOING YOGA. Yoga doesn’t necessarily mean putting legs behind one’s head, although it can. Yoga doesn’t necessarily mean touching one’s toes, although it can. Yoga is LIFE and it is practicing loving-kindness to oneself and to the world around us, and it means leaving a room a little brighter than one found it. In this definition, I would venture to say that we are all yogis. We are all practicing yoga every day, or at least we have the potential to. Being able to touch one’s toes is a nice thing, but it doesn’t define a yoga practice.
Back to the topic at hand, which is my own personal physical yoga practice, and my mat of choice, which is a Manduka Pro Black Mat. It is expensive, yes, but it is the best mat on the market. It is thick and heavy and doesn’t move around while you practice, even if you are taking vigourous vinyasas. It gives cushion for the knees and for the sitz bones, and mine are going to go with me to my grave. My (theoretical) great-grandchildren will be cleaning out my room at The Home and will wonder why Grandma had so many mats.
Because I do have SO many mats. There are four – FOUR – Manduka Pros in this house, although one is my husband’s, given by me for Christmas one year.
One of the mats was purchased to leave at this house, when we lived in Calgary, so that I didn’t have to schlep it back and forth. Another was my practice mat, which I kept in a storage space at the Yoga Shala, and the other was my teaching mat, which lived in my minivan and would be taken to all the non-Shala places I used to teach. And then the pandemic happened, and the Shala closed, and my classes went from ten a week to two, and those two were taught via zoom; my need for multiple mats evaporated, but my mats live on.
Ever since my friend Gillian (HI GILLIAN) turned me on to them in 2009, I have been a devotee of the mat cover. These microfibre covers serve several purposes: a) they keep your hands and feet from slipping by being grippier the more sweaty one gets, which is good news for a sweaty gal like myself, b) although this seems to completely contradict what I just said, it makes your feet slide nicely when doing vinyasa, c) it feels nicer than a naked rubber mat, and d) it keeps the mat clean and is machine-washable. Need I say more? And yes, I have three, one for each of my mats.
Friluftsliv!
A little while ago, my friend Sarah (HI SARAH) said plaintively in response to all the autumnal celebrations that fall is already really nice, what are we doing about winter? Well, what I do, and what I have done for the past five and a half years, is to embrace my half-Norwegian heritage and the concept of friluftsliv, which means that life is best lived outside. I go outside every single day and I also embrace the somewhat strident Scandinavian belief that there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes. To that end, I want to talk about something that has definitely made my Favourites in the past: the bum warmer.
A woman in Calgary that I met through a Yoga Shala holiday market buys old sweaters at thrift stores and transforms them into a skirt-like item, the bum warmer, and then uses the remainder to make headbands and mittens. You would not believe the difference this makes, warmth-wise! I have three of them but this is my festive season set. I top off the look with legwarmers and a toque, and I am cozy and toasty and ready for the outdoors. It’s very hygge, and also very ecologically friendly.
You Don’t Know What You’ve Got ‘Til It’s Gone
To think I took something as mundane as the mail for granted for almost my whole life. I didn’t realize how much happiness sending and receiving mail gave me, particularly during the holidays, until the Canada Post strike shut it all down last year. I am a little scarred from that experience, and have been frantically writing out my cards in order to get them into the mail, just in case the current rotating strikes turn into a full-blown one.
On a recent episode of The Girl Next Door podcast, one of the hosts talked about her secret fear of getting a paper cut on her eye, and while I don’t share that particular worry, I am always concerned that I’m going to get one on my tongue while licking envelopes. Anyway.
I loved pen pals when I was younger and it’s a thrill now to have my own grown-up ones. Sometimes it’s more than a postcard or a note; last week I received a parcel from my friend Lisa (HI LISA).
Imagine my surprise when it contained a SIGNED copy of Wreck! I almost fainted. Lisa! Talked to Catherine Newman! And she signed a book just for ME! I could die. Have I read it yet? No, because I still have eleven library books that need reading. But I cannot WAIT. Thanks Lisa!
Outfit of the Month
In the spirit of shopping my closet, everything in this outfit is at least seven years old, with the exception of the jeans. It’s a whole thing with Jean. Please don’t make me relive my Jeans Crisis.
The lined coat is from lululemon, circa 2013, and the sweater is from the same place but a few years later. The boots are lightly lined and perfect for this weather right now – not too warm, but warm enough.
What are you doing to stave off the Novemberies? I know my dear friend Michelle (HI MICHELLE) is celebrating Gnomevember, but I would posit that every month is Gnomevember in the Boyhouse. Tell me all your Favourites this month, I would love to hear them. xo
Keeping the secret of knowing that book was on its way was VERY HARD! I was quite anxious that that Canadian post would strike and the package would sit in some warehouse for months on end. I am so relieved it’s in your possession. If anyone needed a book signed by our gal, it was you!
I have ‘do a yoga class’ on my 25 for 25 list so I better get on it. I plan to do one of your recorded classes so will be bugging you for the link in December. I used to do yoga quite often pre-kids as I lived close to a core power yoga studio. I loved their classes. Getting to a studio is just not going to work in my stage of life but I want to find a way to fit some home classes in. It would be good for my soul!
That bum warmer is genius! I am going to be heading out for a cold 10k race shortly and am wishing I had one of those! My bum will be ice freaking cold when I get back from the race. I have seen a sort of puffy vest equivalent of that bum warmer but I am not looking to add volume to that area of my body. Ha! So the sweater version looks much better!!
Lisa, it was SUCH a thrill! I’m surprised I didn’t die from happiness. OR DID I. Maybe I’m typing this beyond the grave!
I would be happy to send you the link but I would also be happy to create a little sequence of postures for you to do! Just let me know how long you have, and what you want to focus on (hips, hammies, shoulders, a little of everything) and I’ll do it!
I love everything about this, Gnicole! You and your blog are certainly one of my bright points during the dark winter months! I am about to die from the anticipation of your novel! (Or Gnovel!) The description sounds so good, and I can’t wait. I’m also delighted that you’re getting started on another one. I love your Jane Austen puzzle and I would listen to you talk about it all day without my eyes glazing over! Here’s to celebrating Gnomevember all year long! We need a word for that…
Michelle, YOU are such a shining star in my life!!! If I’m feeling blue I go over and look at your dollhouse, or your gnomes, or really anything, and it cheers me right up.
And thank you! I hope you don’t mind I borrowed your name! It’s one of my favourites and also the name I always get called if someone mistakes my name. At one point I answered to Michelle, with my neighbour who called me that for thirteen years.
First things first- I CANNOT WAIT to read your book! And I’m not just saying that- it sounds really good. I saw the cover on Suzanne’s blog yesterday and got very excited.
I love that puzzle- I also don’t like impossibly hard puzzles, and I love the format of this one. I almost thought of ordering it for myself, but then I thought about Foxy… I would need a puzzle mat, some way to put it way while I’m in the middle of it, otherwise it would be a fiasco.
Your paragraph about yoga is so, so true. I went for a couple years thinking I “couldn’t do yoga” because of my wrists, but now I’m doing yoga with Adriene and I LOVE it! It’s really helping my back. Why did I think I HAD to do planks and down dogs??? Sheesh.
Good luck with the gloom (she says from sunny Florida… our beautiful weather is just getting started!) I grew up in the midwest and I remember it well.
Thank you Jenny!!!
Yes! So many people say they “can’t do yoga” because of downward dogs, and there are like 100000000000 other postures! I’m so glad that it’s helping your back so much. Yay!
I can’t wait to read Inhale Exhale!
Puzzle season will start with Advent next week. Hubs and I have an advent puzzle calendar that we do every year. It’s a 1,000 piece puzzle packaged in 24 little boxes. I actually haven’t been able to fully indulge in puzzle season since we got Doggo, but this year I have space staked out on our dining room table (which we do not use to eat on, I mean duh we eat at our kitchen table and the dinning room is for various family projects).
Stay strong Canada Post!
Thank you Birchie!
That puzzle sounds super fun, I seem to remember it from last year. I have one that is dogs in Santa hats, but it’s individual puzzles every day. I think it would be really fun to have it become one giant puzzle!
That cover is stunning! I love the colour, the vibe, all of it. Now I’m itching to see what Michelle, Steve, Paul, and Livvy get up to… and that bombshell? I NEED TO KNOW!!
All the best with the Clarion review… I can imagine who nerve-wracking this must be. Any idea when you’ll hear back?
And thank you for the yoga pep talk. I’m basically a walking block of wood, so it’s good to have an expert confirm that yoga really is for everyone!
Oh Catrina, this made me smile so much! Thank you!!! It could be up to six weeks to hear back, but it’s already been two…so hopefully soon. I don’t know how it will work around the holidays though.
“Walking block of wood” – lololol! But yes! You can do it! A little at a time!
Wow, Nicole, thank you for brightening up my day with this post. I loved it all.
The puzzle- how clever!! The quote about mother is hilarious.
And congratulations on the book. The cover is lovely and I can’t wait to hear when it’s gonna be out.
Thanks so much Daria!
I know, the puzzle was an absolute DELIGHT!
My husband loves doing puzzles. He finds them a great stress release. My daughter gifted him a “mystery puzzle”, the picture on the front of the box is not the end result. You figure it out as you go, and he did!
Your book – it’s almost here for us! Keep us posted.
Oh wow, that sounds like a really hard puzzle! Good for him!!!
And thank you – I absolutely will!
November isn’t as cold and dark where I live, but I am currently at the beach, which is all the cheering up I’d ever need.
How exciting to see your book cover! Congrats! And the Jane Austen puzzle is such a cool idea…
Thanks Steph!!
Thanksgiving at the beach sounds quite lovely!
That cover is just… perfection. I can’t wait to read your book and how exciting it is almost time for it to be released into the world. SQUEAL. And it sounds like you’re already working on a second book????
It has been so dismal and grey lately and I am feeling very over November at this point. (Currently raining in Nova Scotia – blergh.) I’ve gone to a lot of yoga classes lately and it always makes me think of you <3
Most of my Christmas decor is up and I'm feeling fairly festive. Life has felt rather hectic lately but bit by bit things are coming together.
Thank you friend! I am in love with the cover, honestly! They did a great job.
Ooooh today was such a dreary day. Rain which turned into sleet, and grey all day long. Yeeeeesh. I need Clark Griswold-style Christmas lights!
I recently mentioned to someone that I use tape to seal envelopes because of not wanting to get a paper cut on my tongue, and they kind of implied I was crazy, so I feel very validated that you agree! I did in fact do that at least once, and it’s hard to overcome that fear of it happening again.
Ahhhhhhh we are twins and also ahhhhhhhh paper cut on your tongue!!!!
The cover IS BEAUTIFUL. Eve was complaining mildly that she sent a thing to her supervisor to look over and it was back an hour later, which is great but also, sometimes you send something away and then it’s out of your hands for a while, which doesn’t suck.
The stripy bum-warmer is SO CUTE. I don’t mind walking in the cold at all, I’m just a little hampered right now until I get my new orthotics. Lucy doesn’t seem to mind it either, even though she got too chonky for her old coat and I have yet to find her a new one.
We haven’t decorated yet but I’ve cleaned the living room up to the point where it will be easier to decorate. We keep getting snow when I have to drive, which is annoying, and then not when I would be happy to sit by the window and watch the snow. This is by far not the worst Novembered that ever Novembered for me, though.
Hahaha Lucy! Rex went to the vet and they said he’s “cuddly.” Which means we have to cut his food back a wee bit. Rex LOVES the cold, he really gets so much energy from it. And when it snows, forget about it, it is the BEST THING EVER. It’s aspirational!
It is indeed puzzle season, like you and my mother-in-law, I prefer vignettes; but will on occasion do harder puzzles (like the one I’m struggling with now).
I CANNOT wait to get my hands on your book, Nicole. I’m so proud of you for your giant accomplishment.
Oh thank you so much Gigi!!
Vignette puzzles are so fun to do! I think I’m not patient enough for the really hard ones.
CANADA HAS SUCH GOOD CHRISTMAS STAMPS!!
In November I put out my little pre-lit birch trees. They’re perfect for fall, but then they go the whole winter and into spring—and they bring MORE LIGHT. My other treatment for winter is MORE FLOWERS: I buy supermarket flowers from November until the outdoor bulb flowers come up
Aren’t those stamps cute???
Oooh, little pre-lit birch trees. That sounds lovely!
I am so excited about your book release and I will put it on my to-read list immediately. Such a labor of love, Nicole, and I am so happy you got it published.
Today is Turkey Trot Day in the US and it was so cold this morning (probably not Canada cold, but low 40s is cold for this California girl) and there was no sunshine today either (foggy, wet air instead). Oh well, I think we have to make the best of this dark season and that means fireplace, twinkle light, candles and other festive shenanigans (like baking).
I also love that it’s puzzle season. I have at least three puzzles that need to be put together, so maybe I’ll get on that as well. (Wish me luck. I am having a hard time with follow-through these days.)
Foggy and wet makes a big difference! It’s a bit cooler than that here, and also foggy and kind of sleeting. It’s a very grey day! But I think I’ll do some baking this weekend as well. I have some festive puzzles I should start too!
The cover of your book is absolutely beautiful. I really enjoy your witting & am excited to read your book. I also loved your description of yoga and how it is for everyone. You are obviously a very dedicated yogi.
Oh thank you so much, Pat! That means a lot to me!
You start puzzle season early! Ours is January until Easter, when I need the dining room table again. OMG, your book cover is gorgeous! Congratulations!
I don’t do yoga, but I use an exercise mat everyday and found one at Aldi in January for $20 and it’s the best! Huge (lengthwise, which is what I need) and the exact right amount of cushion. When you know, you know!
Long mats are a MUST for us tall girls! I think we are around the same height, or thereabouts.
Thank you!
Your book cover is beautiful, and the story sounds so interesting- definitely something I’d want to read. I can’t wait to read it!
Yoga balls! My yoga instructor this summer got me hooked. I released tension in my neck with those things that my physical therapist had been working on for years.
Thank you Kari! It was so fun to write.
Yoga balls are so great. I used to teach classes which featured a lot of ball work!
your book sounds great! i totally want to read it!! (In addition to the new Catherine Newman!!!).
Thank you so much Shu!
I got your Christmas card today so now I have FOUR already and we don’t have our display up yet. FOUR!
I am also a Manduka mat fan. I just bought a purple PRO though, not black. My husband has black and I do not want to get our mats confused. I have tried other yoga mat brands, but have always come back to Manduka as the best quality.
Oh I am SO glad it arrived! Canada Post, well. You know how it goes. I’m thrilled that you got it!
Mandukas FOREVER. Literally, those things will last forever.
I am so happy for you that your book will be published and I do look forward to reading it! It sounds like my kind of novel. What a huge accomplishment, Nicole! And I never knew they made covers for yoga mats so I thank you for that bit of information and now I’m off to see if I can find one online. (I am not shopping in public on Good Friday)
Thanks so much Dulcie!
YES! Mat covers are great. I never practice without one! I just checked and I see on lululemon’s website it is called “The Towel” and it’s…not on sale. WTF lululemon? What kind of Black Friday is that! Good luck on your search.
Congratulations on your book. And when it’s out, I think you’re fully entitled to have a blog post that says, “It’s time to read my book, motherfuckers.” Lol. I love your spirit throughout this post in banishing away the gray, short day doldrums!
Hahahah YES I SHOULD DO THAT!!! That is an excellent suggestion!
Congrats on your book! It’s gorgeous! I should look into chair yoga. Traditional floor yoga does hurt my back. Thanks for the suggestion. Puzzles are such a distraction from social media. Maybe I should try one this winter?
Judy, I used to teach chair yoga both to people who were mobility challenged and to people who worked in offices and needed a break mid-day. I can tell you that it is REALLY helpful! There is SO much you can do while on a chair. No need for a mat!
Yes! You should definitely try a puzzle. They are a GREAT distraction and also really fun.
So exciting about your book and its enticing and lovely cover. The blurb is also alluring. Yay for you!
That puzzle is terrific. Were I a puzzle motherfucker, I’d be enchanted. Alas, puzzles feel like a job to me, so I don’t do them. More for you.
PS–I can actually FEEL Rex’s resentment in that Christmas tree photo.
Thanks so much Nance! I am really excited about it!
Hahaha – yes, more puzzles for me, but only the SIMPLE ones. I don’t want anything too hard! I leave that to my husband.
Love this post, love the puzzles. I haven’t done puzzles since I was a kid. Maybe I should start again; I used to love them. I’ve been doing Morning Pages for a few years now, not always the 3 pages recommended, sometimes it’s one, sometimes two, but it’s a routine with my morning coffee that I enjoy. I love the cover of your new book and look forward to reading it. Besides puzzles, I think I also need a bum warmer. I’ve never owned one of those.
Oh Pearl, you would love both puzzles and a bum warmer. I feel like they are both right up your alley!
I can see how people swear by Morning Pages. There’s something great about writing by hand!
Awww – thanks for the shoutout! I am so glad you are putting that notebook to good use. And I am SO EXCITED for Inhale, Exhale (obviously) and also EXTREMELY EXCITED about your next novel, cannot wait, etc.
That puzzle looks delightful, your tree is gorgeous, and a SIGNED COPY of the Newman!!!!! What a fantastic gift!
Thank YOU so much – you were instrumental in the final product!!!
I’m so excited to see the cover of your book, Nicole.. O M G!!
The blurb sounds fantastic!!
And Lisa’s present is so freaking over the top too good!
I MEAN!!! I was so excited, Maya!
Thank you so much for your sweet words and your encouragement in this project!
So excited for your book! YAY! Can’t wait to get my hands on a copy.
I love your holiday stamps, so cute!
I don’t use a yoga mat, because I practice in our living room, which has so much padding. Carpet padding, carpet, then a rug on top. But when I did, I hated how slippery it would get. Downward dog was horrible, because my hands would slip even if I didn’t feel like I was sweating. I bought myself a thin beach towel and used that on top when I went to class. The mat cover sounds like that, in theory…just a little grippiness?
J, yes, it sounds very similar. The cover is microfibre and it gets grippier as you get sweatier, if that makes sense. Some people would even spray their mats with water, back in the day when I would practice Mysore-style at the Shala. You would spray the top and bottom so that your feet and hands would really grip the mat. No slipping! It sounds just like your beach towel.
I can’t wait to read your book AND to hear more about your path to publication!
I will tell you all about it!
I love your book cover and look forward to it! I’m re-listening to Sandwich to prepare for Wreck and also bought my husband a yoga mat for Christmas. I also have three mats, one is from the year 2000 when I first started doing yoga. It’s amazing, my yoga teacher sourced them from India and is still is great shape!
Thank you so much Anna!! I also just read Sandwich (“just” – it was in September, but you know how time goes) and I cannot wait to start Wreck. But wait I must as I STILL have a pile of library books to get through!
I could say so much more, but I’ll just say—I feel seen! Every time I close an envelope I have fear of getting a papercut on my tongue.
OMG! We are twins! I had no idea other people felt like this too!
So, I need to read Wreck? YES?
I love the doughnut pose; Rex is very bendy!
Nicole, I don’t know how many times I’ve said over the last five years: “I love puzzles with vignettes!” They’re my favorite flavor!
I remember your sweet bum warmers. I mean, I have no need for them here, but still, they’re delightfully cute.
LOVE LOVE LOVE your book cover. I can.not.wait.to.order!
I got a lovely Christmas card ALL the way from Canada this week—my very first card of the season. ❤️
I’m so happy it made it there so quickly! The way the post goes these days…well, and after last year’s debacle!
And THANK YOU!!! I am very excited about the book.
I don’t know in what circumstances you’d need a bum warmer in Florida but maybe if you ever come north!
YOUR BOOOOOOK. I am so excited to order it the minute you give me a link! I cannot wait to have YOUR BOOK on MY BOOKSHELF. YOUR BOOK!!!!!!
I think I am just too impatient for puzzles. I want to be someone who likes to puzzle, but I get very annoyed with myself if it’s taking me too long lol. Maybe there’s a lesson in there for me to learn.
The Jane Austen puzzle looks so intimidating!
Thank you so much Stephany!!! I am so excited about it too!
Congrats on the HUGE accomplishment of writing a book – wow! The cover is so pretty, just like the author, and I can’t wait to read it!
Awww thank you so much Colleen!!