New year, new us? Yeah right! 💊
+ long distance friendship, and tickets to Babygirl
Anyone following Ensemble since we launched in 2020 will know that we don’t subscribe to the ‘New Year New Me’ mentality (side note: I am also trying to retrain myself from thinking of time in 12 month constructs, i.e. what constitutes a ‘good’ year and a ‘bad’ year in a binary manner).
That said, we do love to dip our toes in the pool of wellbeing as much as we do hedonism (which is, of itself, wellbeing of a different kind). Yes, I am a creature of extremes. But life’s all about balance, right?
In the latest in my series on wellbeing recommendations, I asked an ensemble of people whose advice I rate what one supplement they’d take if it came down to it. These people, predominantly but not entirely women, over a range of ages, backgrounds and ethnicities, each offer up their personal opinion for us to select from - and there are common themes you’ll notice.
I love this crowdsourcing approach to wellbeing. As someone who has suffered ‘bad health’ in the past, and used a wide range of modalities and supplements to help repair my immune system and mitigate side effects of western medicine, I consider myself a perpetual student. It’s a fun place to be - now it can come from a place of freedom not fear (okay, that’s not entirely true: I think it’s near impossible to live through a cancer diagnosis without some kind of lifelong fear. It just loses some of its desperation through the years).
I know that not one person has all the answers. Especially for my odd ailments! So, click here to read advice from people like Dr Libby, Karen Walker, Niki Bezzant, Dr Emma Wehipeihana, my new obsession Dr Stacy Sims, Jess Clarke, Zoe Hobbs and more.
Also this week: one of my favourite humans lives on the other side of the world. It’s very rare we spend IRL time together (we did begin 2-25 together; read more about that below), but we consistently show up for each other in a multitude of non-physical ways. If you have friendships like this, you will love Alexcea Apostolakis’s story on maintaining long distance friendships.
While I have you… our heart is filled with gratitude for all our new subscribers and founding members. It gives us hope we can continue, and evolve, in our new independent era, but just as importantly it shows how our work resonates with so many.
Earlier this week, we were thrilled to offer paying subscribers 20 double passes to see Babygirl, the A24 film starring Nicole Kidman and Harris Dickinson (it’s in NZ cinemas January 30).
How to (realistically) maintain long distance friendships
Nurturing friendships from opposite sides of the world isn't always easy. But this guide will help! ❤️🩹
The Ensemble Edit
Things that Rebecca has seen, saved and shared…
🧍 Alone feels like one of those shows that doesn’t generate a lot of online chatter, but mention it in certain crowds and watch a bunch of Ponsonby luvvies (myself included) froth at the bit in excitement while explaining they have what it takes to win this reality show, which involves dropping people, alone, in the middle of nowhere to build shelter, find food and battle elements. I always thought I’d do well in it; I can live without people and I once used a saw to trim a sunny reading spot in my garden. But season 11, on TVNZ+, has given me pause for thought. Firstly, I don’t really love the cold unless it's hygge. I’m talking a fireplace, mohair throws, hot chocolates, saunas etc. And secondly I do not want to prepare and eat rabbit brains. It’s a stunning show to watch, and one that highlights both the physical and emotional decline of people who live in isolation. Spoiler alert: of all the hardships contestants endure living in the Arctic Circle, it’s the lack of companionship that sees the majority of people ‘tap out’.
👟 I had a magical NYE in Scandinavia and, having not visited Europe since 1992, I speed-dated Rome, Florence, Paris and Amsterdam on the way. My teenage boys, husband and I averaged 25k steps a day on this part of the trip and we were all hurting physically. Not my feet though! Sure, I had to lie in bed in Florence, overlooking the Ponte Vecchio, and stretch my hips using a rolled up towel, but my feet kept going and going. And this was all thanks to the Adidas Taekwondo sneakers I was gifted last year. Highly recommend for the most comfortable walking shoes around. Bonus, they are also super cute.
📖 Michelle Suzanne Mirsky (or Mirsky as she’s known to her friends) is a dear friend of my dear friends, making us practically sisters. Despite this I didn’t exactly rush to pick up her book Here, Now, a series of essays about her son dying of cancer at the age of three. It was with more a sense of duty that I picked it up over my summer break. Needless to say, I didn’t put it down until I finished it, by which time I was sunburnt but also very moved. I honestly feel like it broke my heart into a million pieces and then glued them all back together again. It reads as a self-help manual for anyone who has experienced grief (and Mirsky is non-judgemental on what constitutes trauma) and as insightful inspo for anyone navigating Trump’s America.
☕ The Twin Peaks soundtrack: nostalgic flashback to trippy teenage dreams. RIP David Lynch.
👑 Inside Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Big Business Ambitions by Anna Peele is a fascinating look at the limitations and roadblocks faced by these two in the post-royal lives, and the challenges that are likely stopping success - aka, it’s more complicated than the fact they (she, because the world hates women) are allegedly hard to work with.
🍸 It seems like anyone with a block of land is getting in on artisanal gin lately, and I endorse this trend! This bottle from Waiheke winery Casita Miro was given to me as a gift by friends at Christmas, and is delicious. Plus, pretty.
🥬 I just looked at my ‘saved’ posts in Instagram and there are an alarming number of cabbage recipes in there of late. I guess it’s cosy Northern Hemisphere recipe time. This one looks like something I will definitely make. Cheese and anchovies! Can’t go wrong.
🍞 I’ve made three loaves of the Life-changing Loaf of Bread this year, which has seen me make many a visit to the Good For store in Richmond Rd, Grey Lynn. I slice it and toast in a sandwich press before applying hard butter, tandsmør style, and then either serve sweet with almond butter, sliced banana and Maldon salt, or savoury with tomato chilli jam and cheese of any description.
🧳 I promise not to make my Scandinavia trip my entire personality. But. After travelling to remote Northern Sweden to meet friends from around the world I tasked my husband with finding us a way home. Being a true crime obsessive he chose going through Bergen, given it was the setting for his favourite podcast Death In Ice Valley. I’ve since listened to it, and given it’s essentially a global story (a woman, who may or not have been a spy from any number of European countries, was found burnt and unidentifiable just out of Bergen in the 70s). I’m not sure I’d travel to the Norwegian city for that reason alone, but it was the most incredibly picturesque place so I was extremely happy to be there. To get there we caught an overnight cruise from Trondheim and it was a truly spectacular trip through the fjords; I can’t recommend it highly enough. Plus, during the one rough part, the four of us lay in our cabin like sardines, drinking champagne, eating Swedish candy and watching Triangle of Sadness on a laptop. Iconic immersive experience. Anyway, if you love great storytelling in podcasts, you will adore Death in Ice Valley, which is a collab between the BBC and Norway’s NRK. Norwegian investigative reporter and co-host Marit Higraff has the most beautiful English speaking voice, which always helps too.
♨️ I’m sorry, I know I wasn’t going to make Scandinavia my entire personality, but the sauna culture there is so inclusive and fun, not the expensive solitary activity we chase here in Aotearoa. Starting the day at a large communal sauna on the harbour in Oslo, with intermittent dips into the freezing fjords, was absolutely mindblowing. I’ve heard there’s beachside saunas on Waiheke, and I’ve just discovered this Coromandel-based one. I will report back!