What I'm Up To
​Volume 90

Hey friends,
​
Here’s what I’ve been up to since Vol. 89…
​​
1. December Happenings​
It’s noteworthy that Christmas and Hanukkah fell on the same day (Chrismukkah?). Apparently, this only happens about five times a century. We got our tree early and enjoyed sipping coffee in the living room lit only by our fireplace and Christmas tree. For several years, Keller Williams has sponsored the Austin Trail of Lights and we get early access for our holiday party. It is so lovely getting the park to ourselves.
​
Wendy and her team sponsored Holiday Heroes for Heroes for Children, a non-profit that supports families with kids in cancer care. This year they provided gifts and a party for about 30 families. Carly on my team, helped organize different departments at KW to adopt families. Wendy got a local agent’s father to play Santa Claus 8 years ago. He shared that after that first event, he became a professional Santa.

We stayed in Austin this year for the holiday. Christmas Eve, we continued our tradition of spinning under the Zilker Tree. Back in 1967, Mayor Emma Long turned one of Austin’s moontowers into a giant Christmas Tree. Wendy’s mom and sister joined us for presents and a Christmas meal. We also hosted our neighbor, Mark, and his two kids. This year, I added a new tradition – The 12 Days of Cocktails. Wendy posted a reel with all the drinks we made. Pretty sure The Last Word was my favorite.
​
For about 20 years, my friends and I descend on Port O’Connor for a weekend of winter fishing. This year’s “Fishmas” was epic. The weather was perfect – overcast with temps in the high 50s and low 60s. In the first hour, we found a spot teeming with trout. I probably caught 100-120 fish that first day. My record was seven straight casts with a hookup. Only about one in twenty was big enough to put in the cooler. We easily caught our limits. The second day was only slightly less frenetic but fewer large fish. I did catch a 26” redfish at last light. I grilled the filets on the half shell with butter, salt, and pepper for Wendy. So yum!
​

In other news, Wendy kicked off the month with a total lens replacement for both eyes. She’s had horrible vision – close to legally blind without glasses – her whole life. She has never qualified for Lasik but decided to check out lens replacement. The surgery was a success. Her vision is 20-20 and she won’t ever need readers or have to worry about cataracts. She still has halos at night but that is expected to go away over time.
​
Austin is a college football town and Texas has a good team this year. It’s fun rooting for our adopted team. Hook ’Em! We also saw Wilco at the Moody Theater. It was one of my top shows ever. April and Val invited us to steak night at LeRoy and Lewis BBQ. They were just given a Michelin star, so it was an extra special evening. Wendy and I had a lot of little adventures. Matt’s birthday was at Urban Axes. If you’ve never done it, axe throwing is great fun. We spent an afternoon walking up and down S. Congress checking out all the cool new stores. When I shared that I’d never had a pedicure, Wendy booked one. And my toenails were Longhorn Orange for a few days…

We met Juanpablo for drinks and had a great happy hour with Gus, Jennie, and Ella. And finally, I spent New Year’s at Better Ranch for fireworks and hunting.
​

The above are some of my favorite reads and watches for 2024. While I had five clear favorites for nonfiction, I struggled to narrow the other lists. This was especially true for shows. We loved watching Castlevania (Netflix) and Fallout (Amazon) with Gus. We also devoured Dark Matter (Apple+). Top ten felt like too much. If you want to pick up any of the fiction or nonfiction books, just click the links.

​
​2. What I’m Reading​
In September of 2023, I attended a book signing by Brianna Wiest and got her book, The Pivot Year. It’s intended to be a daily affirmation or meditation. I read it mostly on weekends in batches. Wiest is a beautiful writer and knows how to speak to hearts burdened by grief, trauma, self-doubt, and anxiety. I’m not a fan of the format but I loved the content. I also read The Long Game by my pal Dorie Clark. It has lots of practical advice for finding and sticking to your “ONE Thing.” She and I recorded a podcast for The ONE Thing that will drop on January 27.
​
Carly encouraged me to read Good Inside by Dr. Becky Kennedy, which made my “Best of” list for 2024. It’s a terrific book on parenting. Pretty much all the concepts align with leadership and relationships in general. So don’t be turned off if you don’t have kids. Lots of wisdom in those pages. If you want a taste, I enjoyed her podcast episode with Mel Robbins as well as her new one with Tim Ferriss.
​
Finally, I read the 29th book in the Jack Reacher series, In Too Deep by Lee and Andrew Child. It was diverting but not particularly memorable. Probably time to shop for a new thriller/action series. Let me know what you love.
​
​ 3. What I’m Watching​
We got our money’s worth from Netflix for December. We wrapped up the Simone Biles Rising (Netflix) documentary with a deeper appreciation for Biles and her sport. We also enjoyed the RomCom Nobody Wants This (Netflix).
​
We loved the final season of Arcane (Netflix). The characters, the art, the music…pretty much everything about the show is topnotch. Wendy and I knew nothing about the game it is based on, and it didn’t impact our experience. You know how Netflix automatically plays trailers if you pause on a show? That happened with Black Doves (Netflix). It worked. We opted to watch an episode and were immediately hooked. Great spy thriller.
​
Gus and I went to see Gladiator II on Christmas Eve with my pal, Val. Honestly, I had low expectations. The film was much better than expected. Definitely worth seeing on a big screen if you still can. Finally, we caught Brad Pitt and George Clooney in Wolfs (Apple+). It’s about what you’d expect. Good banter and a little action.
​
That’s it for this month. Please reply back and let me know what you’re up to!

Be well, do good deeds, and eat tacos!
Jay

Forward to a Friend

See something that you know a friend would like? Forward this email to them so they don't miss out. And if you were forwarded this email and want more of What I’m Up To, you can sign up here.​

Unsubscribe

If this isn’t for you, feel free to take your name off this list.