Issue #9: Monthly Scroll 👓

turn-ons and TBR: viewing*doing*creating* in June

Hi! I’m Jordan, and Shade Cactus is where being a cozy homebody and always planning your next travel adventure come to meet. Here, you’ll marvel the mundane and wish for your wild, while reveling in rest.

You’ll learn about how to support your habitual travel adventures alongside your happy home base (even the one inside your own head). Cool kids subscribe. I appreciate you!

Each month, I share a recap of what I was viewing, doing, and creating! These take a generous amount of time to put together, and I hope they are full of lovely goodies for you.

Note: if you’re reading this in your email, click “View entire message” to read its entirety in your browser.

“I feel like I’m dating my essays.”

Does anything beat a day full of 10+ minute voice notes sent back and forth with a fellow writer friend?

(Or, they may not be a writer, but just someone who gets you and what you’re into, and you can talk and talk and talk about that thing that you both get and want to get more of.)

Substack is starting to become rote for me. As in, it’s not something I have to remind myself to do or tempt myself to start. I do it. (Like, yay! Consistency!)

I’ve also found in this rote season of Substack… I’m proud I’m doing it, but I’m not completely in love with everything I’m publishing. There’s a part of me that feels I’ve pigeon-holed myself a bit into writing travel itineraries and these monthly scrolls, and while I do enjoy putting them together, I’m not as lit up by them as I was before.

Also important: I wonder if you, the reader, is lit up by it?

While sending voicenotes back and forth with

Michelle LaCroix

last week, I said the above quote about “dating my essays” while trying to uncover what it is that turns me on when it comes to my writing.

And it’s poetry, ya’ll! Poetry. Poetry gets me going, in all its various forms, including lyrical prose and goofy self-deprecating humor. Poetry is where I find myself smiling as I type. And I’m considering if/how this Substack shifts with that in mind.

For now, I’m still here delivering on the promise of book recs, habitual travel inspo, and other earnest lovelies. Comment below if you love them!

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Typically, these Monthly Scrolls are a special benefit available to my paid subscribers. But this month, I’m opening it up to everyone so you can get a look at everything these Monthly Scrolls entail. (And feel all the FOMO for the months you aren’t receiving them! You’re welcome!)

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Inside:

• 📚 Books

• 🔖 Bookmarks

• 📖 TBR (To-Be-Read)

• 🌈 TV

• 🍂 Activities

• ⛰️ Travel

• 🕸️ Writing

• 🔮 (My) Poetry

✨ Viewing

📚 Books

Spotting the bright yellow SALE sign outside my local bookstore, I swerved the Jeep into a quick U-turn to head inside. (At 40% off — they’re practically giving them away!) While there, I had to pick up a few goodies that caught my eye.

What is it about bookstores? I walk inside, and stress decomposes into book pages, feeding me. I’m an early 19th-century heroine, taking my Elizabeth Bennet walks with a book in hand. I’m a studious gothic scholar uncovering a long-lost scroll. I’m a huge word nerd who can’t help but touch each book, feeling guilty that I can’t adopt them all.

Let’s all agree to bring back the romanticism of bookstores. (Especially locally owned independent bookstores!!!)

• The Assassin’s Blade by Sarah J. Maas

  • And just like that, I’ve finished the series. This series was both heart-wrenching and heart-pounding. It’s been a long time since I’ve been so into a series, and Madame Maas is to thank. There are some arguments about the order in which this series should be read, as The Assassin’s Blade is the prequel, but it was published about halfway through the full series. I chose to read it last, and I’m happy with my decision! And I’m glad I dedicated myself to a high fantasy series this year.

• A Talent for Murder by Peter Swanson

  • Thanks to the sidewalk sale at my bookstore, I picked up this random murder mystery. About halfway through, I realized it’s part three of a series. (Whoops!) While there is some backstory that I didn’t have for a couple of the characters, this could absolutely be read as a standalone. Quick, fun read!

• The Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki

  • Originally written in Japanese, this translation was a lovely little syllabus on astrology. Written a bit like an allegory, the reader learns about various aspects of how horoscopes can be read to better understand ourselves and others in our lives. For my fellow astro girlies, this random pick was a joy!

🔖 Bookmarks

I might need to create a new line item in my budget for bookmarks to keep up with all my partially read books.

This was a new section as of last month, and I love it! Depending on my mood, I may not want the book I’ve been reading day in and day out. I may want something a little more thrilling or maybe something more nature-based. Sometimes, I want inspiration to get on my bike.

While some are still hanging out on this list (I’ll get to them again, eventually!), some have been finished or are further along. The three pictured here will (probably) be finished by the time this Monthly Scroll is published.

• The Assassin’s Blade by Sarah J. Maas Done!

• The Plant-Based Cyclist by Nigel Mitchell

• World of Wonders by Aimee Nezhukumatathil

• The London Séance Society by Sarah Penner

• A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas

• The Grail by Brian Doyle

• The Art of Cycling by James Hibbard

• The Midlife Cyclist by Phil Cavell

📖 TBR

Alongside what I’ve read and am reading (off and on), I also love the anticipation of a new book. (The earnestness!) I have a few gorgeous covers on my nightstand that continue to catch my eye. The To-Be-Read pile is getting dangerously close to crushing me in my sleep.

The other day, I walked to my local bookstore with my dog, and upon entering, I heard, “It’s Penelope!”

I know I’ve lived life right when my local booksellers recognize my dog by name. And because of their thoughtfulness, I bought several more books that day than I had originally planned to. Duh!

• The Cliffs by J. Courtney Sullivan (hard sell from a local bookseller)

• The Amalfi Curse by Sarah Penner

• The Book of Alchemy by Suleika Jaouad

• Wolfish by Erica Berry

• Masters of Death by Olivie Blake

🌈 TV

And Just Like That… is back.

I first started watching Sex and the City in 2009 with my college roommate. We would rush to our room in between classes to binge an episode or two together. While the show has had its ups and downs (a major down being the second movie), I have been a devoted fan of this series and its spin-offs.

Being able to continue living life with these women into their forties and fifties is such a joy! Turning 35 this year…

It’s been a revelation to me to see how much I love learning about myself as I age. As cool as I think I am now, imagine how cool I’ll be when I’m 48! Or 52! Or 70! I’m looking forward to it.

✨ Doing

Summer means it’s time for all the activities! Or so people tell me. When it comes to being an introvert/extrovert, I straddle the line. I am an introvert, but only barely. I want to be included and invited to everything, but that doesn’t mean I always want to go. And when I do, I have an expiration date.

A lot of my activities lately have been focused on movement outside, with biking for beers and running for wine.

🍂 Activities

• Annual Bike & Brew: Every year, the hubs and I take a day to bike around town to all of the breweries and coffee shops around Wichita. We started this tradition years ago, before either of us was into biking!

• 5K Wine Run: Two days before this race was scheduled to take place, my sister texted my mom and me to see if we’d like to run it. I’m proud that the life I’ve created for myself means that on a whim, without training, I can run a 5K (and even place 11th in my age group!)

• Wedding Anniversary: Shoutout to my hubs! We’ve been married for a lucky 13 years as of June. We celebrated with a bike ride and a grocery store date! Complete with flowers and sparkling waters. Cheers!

mom, sister, and I ran a 5K | wine night in the van | mountain biking in Bentonville

⛰️ Travel

In June, we headed back to Bentonville! We pulled a few places from my habitual travel itinerary (linked below!) Mountain biking, wine night, and more of us getting used to living out of our van.

It was a weekend together we really needed, and I’m grateful for it.

Ozarks IRL with more bikes and less murder

✨ Creating

🕸️ Writing

Being a part of a writing community has single-handedly made me a writer. I always dreamed and romanticized the idea of writing and talking about writing and calling myself a writer, but nothing happened until I joined a group of people actually doing the thing.

Since being laid off in April, it’s been a main focus of my writing lately because it’s pretty top of mind. Can you blame me? When I voiced this little annoyance to my writing community, they reminded me that what comes out is what is meant to come out. Here’s what came out in June:

Life isn't meant to be figured out

The salesman says this is the best computer for creating [content]

Colorado autumn over everything else

🔮 (My) Poetry

Remember last month when I said I rage-wrote a poem about being laid off and it was accepted into an anthology? Well, now you can pre-order the If You Ever Anthology to read “To the Woman Who Just Got Laid Off” alongside other truly brilliant writers.

This revolutionary book was edited by

Candace

,

Iva Markicevic Daley

, and

Kristina Percy

. Honored doesn’t begin to cover how I feel about being included with these writers!

Learn more about the anthology and pre-order it here.

Another realization I had when voice-noting with Michelle the other day was that I am living the writer life I have always dreamed about.

It’s not how I thought I would get here, and yet it couldn’t have happened any other way. Thank you for supporting my writing! I appreciate you, truly.

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If you’re new here…

Hi! I’m Jordan, and Shade Cactus is where being a homebody and always planning your next travel adventure come to meet. It’s a travel blog / poetry newsletter / attempt to understand my inner world a bit better each day.

Subscribers can expect weekly-ish newsletters from me (and my forever undying gratitude!)