Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl
I look forward to getting to know all of you a little better and seeing what we may have in common! Here are ten of my favourite things.
1. Nature
There’s nothing like taking a long, peaceful walk through the woods. I’d do it every day if the weather cooperated and if it were always safe for women to go tromping through the woods alone. (Some urban forests here are perfectly safe, of course, but others can be a little sketchy at certain times of the day or year when few people use them).
2. Dairy-Free Hot Chocolate
I don’t see it very often here in Toronto, so I buy it whenever I find a brand that’s safe for me. Luckily, a relative recently surprised me with a lot of dairy-free hot chocolate that will probably last a very long time.
3. Time Alone
I am deeply introverted. My spouse and I live in a small apartment and both work from home, so getting enough alone time has been a bit of a struggle since 2020. I relish all of the alone time I manage to get.
4. Rabbits
While I can’t have a rabbit of my own due to allergies, I love looking at photos, gifs, and videos of them online.
5. Museums
Whether it’s about science, history, or art, I love learning new things at all of them.
6. The Anonymity of City Life
I was a preacher’s kid who lived in a small town when I was growing up. There are benefits to both of those things, of course, but the combination of small town culture, church culture, and my quiet, reserved personality made it a relief for me to move away somewhere and no longer be the centre of attention so often. Ha!
7. Food Festivals
One of the other cool things about living in a big city is how many food festivals exist here. I’ve had a lot of luck finding delicious food that’s safe for my milk allergy at certain ones.
8. Small Groups
My favourite type of socialization happens in small groups. There’s something magical about getting together with a few other people and going out to dinner or something. I like being able to hear everything that’s said and have a chance to jump into the conversation, too.
9. Weightlifting
It makes me feel so strong and capable!
10. Love Songs
This might come as a little bit of a surprise since I don’t read or watch many romances, but I adore the optimism and joy that comes from songs about love. Any genre is cool, although I do tend to gravitate towards R&B and Adult Contemporary since it’s easier to find songs about this topic there.
I do feel like I know you a little better now, Lydia. I, too, am a big fan of nature.
This is a good idea for a Top Ten. It would be nice if it would become an official TTT post!
Thank you! I’ll submit it and see if Jana accepts it.
Trying new foods, spending time in nature and visiting museums would’ve all made a list like this for me too!
Cool!
Food festivals are the best
Absolutely. 🙂
I like nature and going to museums.
Nice. 🙂
I could go for some dairy free hot chocolate.
I hope we’ll get to have some together someday!
I LOVE walks in nature, but like you, I know it’s not safe to always be in the woods alone! I am also very introverted and LOVE my alone time. I wanted to share a link with you that I used to start crocheting. I love Sarah Jane’s teaching and I have learned SO much from her in the little time I have been crocheting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcOzdAzmtNM&t=14s
Ooh, thank you! That is awesome, and I’m saving it for later.
Such an interesting selection, Lydia. I’ve often thought how difficult it must be to be the child/wife/parent/husband of someone in the public eye. anne stenhouse
Thank you, annestenhouse! Yeah, it’s difficult for sure, and my parents weren’t ever even famous. Just well known around town.
I so agree with time alone. I am a total introvert and crave time on my own. Being around people too long is draining and I need to recharge.
Yes, exactly.
I’m definitely a city girl, but I also like to spend time in nature. And I’m definitely an introvert!
My list: https://franlaniado.wordpress.com/2023/04/18/top-ten-tuesday-non-book-freebie-favorite-comfort-series/
Cool!
These are great things to love. I also love weightlifting and love songs.
Thank you. That’s awesome.
I enjoy taking walks through nature, too, and I love museums! We always try to get to new ones when we travel somewhere.
Oh, what a fun tradition!
This is a great list! Bunnies are one of my favorite animals. 😀 And strength training changed my life, honestly.
I want to say that Target here sells dairy free hot cocoa packets.
Here is our Top Ten Tuesday. Thank you!
That’s awesome, Cholla!
I love museums too! My family’s going on a vacation to Chicago this summer and I’m really looking forward to all the museums they have 🙂 Great list, thanks for sharing!
Oh, how fun! Good for you.
I enjoyed your photographs of Toronto’s parks a few years back! I went with podcasts this week.
Thank you, Stephen!
Food festivals are THE BEST!!! They have scaled back a bit since Covid but I’m seeing more pop up this summer and I’m so excited!!
Yay! I hope we both get to see some great ones.
Time alone is so important for me, too. Luckily I have a home office in my house, so I can get time alone when I need it. 2020-2021 was a lot harder to get that alone time, though. My spouse started returning to the office frequently last year, and that helped us both a lot.
My TTT: https://bookwyrmknits.com/2023/04/18/top-ten-tuesday-free-short-fiction-for-a-freebie/
Good for you! Yeah, striking that balance can be hard for sure.
Fun post! I also love time alone, love songs and food festivals! 🙂
Very cool! And thanks.
I don’t share any of your loves – I do love time alone though but live alone and its just small groups I like to be in!
Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Can you believe I have never been to a Food Festival!? I’ve been to a county fair where they have the typical elephant ears and deep fried Twinkies, but never an actual food festival! I’m intrigued! Also, I’m with you on the Love Song topic. I’m always hunting the tracks of a new album looking for the ballads. Vince Gill has some great love songs/ballads if you’re in to country music.
Oh, I hope you’ll get to go to one someday! County fairs are fun, too.
I’m looking up Vince Gill’s music now. Thanks!
Dairy-Free Hot Chocolate — ok, this is something that somehow doesn‘t make it across the Atlantic. What exactly is your hot chocolate? Is this something already mixed with milk in a bottle that you buy and then heat up? Sorry, I know that question sounds inane. But: I buy chocolate powder, aka cocoa powder + sugar, and stir it into hot oat or almond milk. Done.
It’s generally sold as a powder that has cocoa, milk powder (or plant milk powder) and sugar in it among other ingredients. You heat up your milk and then mix the powder in.
I can buy plain cocoa and make hot chocolate that way, too. But the instant mixes taste better to me.
Nature and chocolate in any form for the win! 🙌 I’m a PK (preachers kid) as well! I adore alone time and although I’m an introvert, I can be expressive in the right situation! So I guess I’m a social introvert! Have you read Quiet?
Oh, cool!
Yes, I’ve read that book. Wasn’t it good?
Love this list of some of your favorite things! I, too, like time alone and prefer small groups to large ones. And getting out in nature to hike or bird watch, or just appreciate the view is something I love, too. 😀
Thank you. That’s very cool.
In my city, every December they do a Christmas festival, my favorite part is the food stalls, it’s international, you find food from all over the world, my brother and I, made a map and mark the countries we tried every year
That sounds wonderful!
I love city life for the same reasons you do I think! I also enjoy going to museums and visiting food festivals. Two things that are not in great abundance in small towns
That is so very true.
What a great list! I’m an introvert (although the most extroverted introvert in our house), so I can appreciate some quiet time to myself. I used to like a good festival, but the older I get, the less tolerance I find I have for crowds and kerfuffle and traffic. I still like good food, though!
Cool! It’s interesting how people change over the years. 🙂
Wonderful list! I’m an introvert as well. I also like time alone and small groups. Have a great rest of the week! 🙂
Thank you! You, too.
Weightlifting! Very interesting!! I can completely understand the attraction of anonymous city life. It’s never been possible for me (had to go where the job was) but I can see it clearly. Enjoy it.
Thank you. 🙂 I hope your job is a wonderful one.
I’m really enjoying blog hopping this week and finding out that I have more in common with people than simply books! I also enjoy nature, museums, food festivals, time alone, and socializing in small groups (it helps my inner introvert). When I was able to, I absolutely loved weightlifting – it made me feel very confident and good about myself. I’m hoping to be able to get back to that someday.
We have so much in common! I’m sorry you’re not able to lift weights at the moment. I’m sending you good thoughts and hope things improve for you soon.
I love museums too, I was a history student at uni so I love getting to explore museums and seeing all the treasures and insights into the past that they have to offer. I also very much relish my time alone, I live with my parents so lockdown was a bit of a struggle with everyone around all the time, things are much easier now they are back to the way they were! I also much prefer socialising in small groups to big ones, I’ve always had a small group of friends and I much prefer it that way: I definitely like having fewer, more meaningful connections than being friends with lots of people but not really knowing any of them well.
What a cool major!
Hello to a fellow introvert.
I love alone time! My son is now 4 and at school and I love those few hours I get before I have to collect him. Sometimes my peace is broken, but I guess we all have to see other people at some point!
I also love museums and nature. To be fair I agree with many things on your list. I do have regular hot chocolate though, but not too much as I need to be as caffeine free as possible. You can’t trust cafes etc to be caffeine free which annoys me so have to go for a juice instead!
Have a great week!
Being caffeine-free is hard! I have to limit it, too, but hot chocolate is usually okay for me.
And, yeah, cafes sadly aren’t always trustworthy.
The Anonymity of City Life and Nature – since I don’t live in a true metropolitan area, I do get a lot of nature.
Thank you for posting.
You’re welcome. I’m glad you get lots of nature time.
We’re very similar! I’m also a hardcore introvert who needs a lot of time alone. 🙂
Very cool!
This is an awesome list, Lydia! I definitely relate to quite a few of these things—anonymity in a big city, small groups, time alone and FOOD FESTIVALS! I love food festivals so much 😍 Great post!
Thank you! Yeah, we seem to have a lot in common for sure.
I love this little snapshot of who you are! As a fellow introvert, I totally feel #3. My husband works from home, too, but he does travel some for work. So I do get a few scattered days of alone time. It was hard during the pandemic when he didn’t travel! Happy reading!
Thank you, Dedra. I’m glad you get it.
What at thoughtful and revealing list. We share a lot in common: nature, time alone, museums, the anonymity of city life (I grew up in a small town, too), and though I don’t lift weights now due to health issues, I miss it!
I’m glad you visited my blog and I look forward to checking out yours!
Thank you very much! It’s cool that we have so much in common. Sorry to hear about your health issues.
What a fabulous list, Lydia. Nature, time alone, and museums are things I also enjoy. Thanks for sharing and for viisting my blog last week.
Thank you, Cheryl! I’m glad you like that stuff, too.