issue #209 - a refreshed one
a new name, a new look, and an overdue new format
If you can’t remember the last time you took a break from social media, this is your sign to plan a weekend/week to delete the apps from your phone (and log out of them on your web browser).
As someone who did just that, it was exactly what I needed.
Some highlights from my weeks away - a quick family & friends trip to Miami to attend our friend Jamie’s Little Jam Fest (so proud!), attending Bobbi Brown’s International Women’s Day lunch with some of my favorite women, finalizing the design of our new Pennsylvania home, and making progress on some big work things.
Besides being hyper present with my family and friends and unlocking a new level of focus with work, the time away gave me some clarity on where to take this burgeoning content business of mine - especially this newsletter.
Let’s be honest - this weekly letter has gotten way too long. It started as a simple weekly digest of the week’s #5SmartReads. The weekly AMA sessions were added to it, and before long it became a Dickensian diary of everything I read and wrote and did in a week.
I like to think that this format is the happy medium. You’ll still get my musings or reflections of the week or how I’m feeling. But the books, #5SmartReads, and recommendations/advice sections are a lot more streamlined.
I feel really good about this new format, and I hope you do as well. If you have any thoughts/comments/feedback, I’d love to read it!
The Empty Adderall Factory
published in New York Magazine
My frustration with a lot of reporting on the life sciences sector is the lack of nuance and detail this sector requires.
This is a rare piece that zooms out of individual, serious issues - drug shortages of ADHD medications, new DEA policies on controlled substances and their enforcement, how diagnoses are made, what patients go through - and connects them to show how intertwined these individual issues are, and how well-intentioned policy can often fail those who are the most in need.
It is expensive, difficult, and time consuming to get a drug approved by the FDA (the filing fee along is currently $4M, not to mention the millions in research and development and manufacturing a company spends before getting to this point). These companies should absolutely be audited and inspected to ensure everything they do is above board and in line with regulations. Drug shortages are becoming increasingly common and their own public health risk to patients. We need to find a way to address the latter while keeping the standards of the former issue high.
It’s a both/and. And this piece underscores the urgency and severity of this issue.
You can find every issue of #5SmartReads here, and subscribe to the daily newsletter here.
Friends in Napa
by
This book is salacious, evocative, and impossible to put down. I wanted to fly through it and savor every single word in equal measure, and found the ending to be so satisfying. It’s a Kindle First Reads selection for March, if you haven’t claimed yours for the month.
You can find my 2024 reading list and reviews here.
Sharing
Are you following
? I’ve bookmarked a ton of recipes from , her podcast is excellent (I loved her interviews with Jessa Hastings and her solo episode about her creator journey). She’s an excellent person to follow here and on Instagram.In case you missed it on Instagram: my upcoming speaking schedule, my own definition of a multi-hyphenate, and a long overdue re-introduction.
Making
There’s only one meal I’ve managed to cook over the past few weeks, and it’s my channa saag. It’s simple, comforting, and so flavorful (and plant-based, though you’d never realize it).
Answering
The best carry-on, if you’re in the market for a new suitcase (a more budget-friendly one, and this one is still going strong 9 years later).
This wellness assessment and optimization protocol has been the best investment in my health (in combination with health coaching). I’ve lost 8 pounds and my A1C levels are back in normal range since my first visit 3 months ago.
This moisturizer (my father asked for a restock because it’s just that good, and I agree).
Reading
- (so good I bought the Kindle and audiobook versions)
Vagabond Princess by Ruby Lal
Trying
I’m trying to get back into a consistent workout routine. My coach selected the following 3 bodyweight workouts for me to do weekly and to aim for 7,500 steps a day. If you’re a Peloton fan, here are the workouts that Mya planned for me for the next 5 weeks (all Callie, all 20 minutes):
I hope you take some time offline this week. But before you do, I’d love if you shared this weekly letter with someone you think would enjoy it.
xo,
HPN
Loving this new format. Already downloaded "Friends in Napa" and I can't wait to read!
Love the SMART section.