I’m swamped with deadlines and appointments both in and out of town this week and the to-do list before the holiday next week seems to be getting longer every time I mark something off. So just a few links (but GOOD ones) to get you through the beginning of the week…

• A visit to The Met is always a good idea - but this new permanent exhibition looks divinely enticing.

• I have been a member of Beauty Pie for a few years now… no notes, no regrets. I feel like membership is a fantastic gift for a friend - and recently they launched a fragrance line.

• Some Positive News for the week.

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It was a weekend full of love. My husband and I celebrated ten years on 8 November.

But on that same day, 11 years ago… death came calling. Her black robes brushing the fallen leaves with dark kisses in her wake. She chose her quarry, and without ceremony, spirited him away.

But she left behind a gift. One tied with a velvet ribbon as deep as midnight.

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It’s been a busy two weeks. After not knowing where work was coming from for months and months - things have picked up significantly and the last week has been a litmus test for my ability to get organized and focused after nearly a year of feeling as if I was almost floating above my own everyday.

Yet, in that floating - that hovering above - I found myself observing much more than I had in the past. Not just myself… we know that those liminal stretches of time and place are where the truth peeks out of the shadows - eyes glowing - teeth barred. But others - others surprised me. Last week, my 19 year old and I attended a B-52’s concert. And here among the beauty, chaos and hypnotic beat - was a surprising beauty.

I raised my children on the music of my own generation - and that which came before. It was important to me - being a music lover - that they understood the seeds. They love The Beatles as much as they love My Chemical Romance… they love Elton John as much as they love Conan Gray. As such, it was Ayla - my 19-year old, who invited me to see the B52’s with her. And something unexpected unfolded…

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After nearly two years of feeling lost - and somewhat without direction, the last two weeks have unveiled possibilities that I had not before considered. I have been having dreams - vivid, deeply symbolic dreams. And as I witness pieces of my life slowly, but assuredly fitting together - I am realizing that the visions that come to me at night, are more powerful than I had once believed.

Being 50 is weird and wonderful. There are moments of such abject clarity about who I am and what I have learned that it nearly knocks me off my feet. Other times - I have this overwhelming sense of not knowing - but while that was once an oppressive emotion candy-coated in fear and longing - now, I find it inspiring and motivating.

Dreams are our intuition - our deepest desires - our greatest fears - our soul secrets - that come to us in the dark hours to remind us who we are and what we are capable of. I have just started once more to record my dreams - to make an effort at remembering and picking them apart for clues about where my path through the proverbial dark forest of my life will lead…

• If you are new to dreamwork, this is a great article.

• A case for keeping a dream journal.

  A few more links to enjoy…

• If you missed my conversation with Klara Hagymassy about the enlightening benefits of having a star chart reading at mid-life, you can listen here - was truly a fun and fantastic conversation.

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• I have always loved Fashion Week - not because of the celebrity-watch or the hopes of finding the “perfect piece” - but for the artistry mostly found at the heart of emerging designers. And I have always enjoyed the discourse around the socio-economic undertones of how designers show up each season. This article by NYT, “Why Can’t Fashion See What It’s Doing to Women?” was incredibly compelling.

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Today got away from me. One of the days when being in that place between raising children and taking care of an elder parent doesn’t care that you have work to do - doesn’t care about the hours of day. But also stands as a reminder of what matters most.

A few hours late… things that I’m finding interesting this week…

• I always love stories about women making waves in what are usually male-dominated spaces.

• Not a huge fan of “Best of” lists - but I am loving this one.

• We need more of the energy happening in Chicago right now.

• I recently came across these archives. Have you seen ‘The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’? If not, and you have a nostalgic spot for LIFE Magazine, it’s a must watch.

• This Fringe Necklace had me at hello.

• Did you get a chance to listen to my episode Fragrance as Ritual? I talk about the idea around “signature scents". While I don’t have a signature bottle - I do have a signature scent… I always smell like roses. Sometimes a leathery rose, sometimes a dark rose, sometimes a wilting rose - and if I buy a scent that does not include a rose accord, I will layer it with this Rose or this one. It’s my own take on a “Signature Scent.”

• EVERYTHING in this post.

• We lit the first fire in our hearth for the season this weekend… here is a blessing for your own hearth.

When I was in 8th grade I was invited to a Halloween party that would live with me (pause for a dramatic breath) for the rest of my life.

After trick or treating that evening, about 30 of us gathered in our host’s basement with pizza, our bounty of candy and an old television broadcasting the classic horror film, Halloween.

Let me add here that while I snuck soap operas on days that I stayed home sick and music videos when I got home from school - my brother and I were not permitted to watch anything deemed “scary”. So watching Michael Myers, literally stalk and stab teenagers for the methodical thrill of it all, settled deep into my psyche and took up permenant residence. So much so that I spent months sleeping on a futon in my parent’s bedroom convinced that Michael was coming for me. I remember being in the backseat of my mom’s Cherokee Chief and seeing a stranger carrying a tool box and thinking, “If I ever open THAT tool box - Michael Myers will kill me.”

Yeah. It. Fucked. Me. Up. It took years for me to be able to watch anything remotely “scary” - and it also was an early lesson that maybe Mom was right about some things.

Over the years, I opened myself up to watching movies with monsters. “Monsters aren’t real,” I would tell myself - not like psychotic serial killers (I know now that humans ARE the real monsters). “Monsters” was rather traditional in the sense that I started falling in love with vampire and werewolf stories - anything that had a dark, mythical shadow and was decidedly NOT human. I also love shark movies and am always #teamshark.

Then something shifted about two years ago. Maybe it was the fact that both my oldest and youngest daughters became obsessed with the horror genre - but I dipped my toes back into the bloody pool. All that to say - considering my personal history with the genre, I have some surprising comfort tv shows…

• My number one comfort watch - I think I’ve seen all the seasons a half a dozen times at this point. And if you love her and love classic slasher movies - this one is SO well done.

• A close second - this one makes me laugh with just the right amount of darkness.

• This one and this one BLEW my mind. I could watch them over and over.

• And of course, if you need a little hope instead of horror right now (like we all do) - this show is my favorite love story ever.

Other Sundries…

• I’m finding myself drawn to Brutalist jewelry as of late - no one does it better. Okay - maybe she does.

• When I was blonde, burgundy and deep red wine were my go-to colors (outside of black, of course). With the hair color change, I’m considering adding more of this color to my closet.

• This podcast has me rethinking everything.

• It’s been a minute since I have been so excited about a new Tarot deck.

• I love this news story so much.

• This cover bores the shit out of me. Where is the media coverage for the artists pushing in the proverbial envelope in the industry?

• Two products that are seriously transforming my aging skin… Elastic Skin and Extreme Cream.

• If I win the lottery (maybe I should actually start playing), there will most assuredly be signs… like this, definitely this; and probably this.

Can you feel the shift? This is my favorite time of year - everything feels like it begins to slow down - like the entire world takes an extended breath. Some things on my radar this week…

• Like every other goth-kid on the planet, I’m counting the days until this magic moment. Maybe this will FINALLY give the original story justice.

• I have been trying to strike a balance between being aware of the absolute shit show that is our political landscape, and keeping things at arms length to maintain sanity. This recent discovery is how I want to get all of my political news now - I fucking LOVE these ladies.

• Here's another podcast that I'm loving right now (I'm doing a LOT of driving). Her concept around highly functioning co-dependency blew my mind.

• Another game changer for my skin - and the scent is intoxicating.

• Some early Fall scents that I'm really loving. Note: That’s the shorter version/Reel - for full details check out the Highlight “Fragrance” here.

• If you've been on the fence about coming to Marrakech - I'm offering a $250 cash credit for anyone you get to sign up with you! AND - I'm working on having an astrologist join us who will give us all individual birth-chart readings!

• Three upcoming releases I’m SO fucking excited about. One, Two and Three.

• Feeling very drawn to stones again and recently came across this line of jewelry. Kate matches your vibrations with her stones through personal consults.

• I'm finding this article about "grief travel" equally compelling and inspiring.

• Are you excited as I am to re-enter this world?

• I burn incense at my altar every morning while I work through my journals. I really want to try this line - the packaging is so beautiful.

It's a challenge to stay hyper-aware of the hellscape of American politics while also creating boundaries to maintain our mental health... we're all out here doing the best we can. And in this strangely liminal place we seem to find ourselves, I'm having a hard time getting excited about much... but here are some distractions - a few things I have some across as of late that I'm loving...

• I have started applying this after my toner in the morning and at night have seen a massive shift in the hydration of my skin. I also carry the smaller one around in my handbag as a refresh during the day.

• After years of not wearing gloss... I'm falling in love with it all over again. This one and this one have become staples.

• Late to the party on this one but I’m so in love with everything they do.

• I have just started listening to this book and I'm feeling small little sparks in my belly again... my 100 days started two days ago.

• A few things on my fall wishlist... these jeans (I was a big time hater but I finally tried them on and I can not believe how flattering they are); I'm ready for easy, comfy, washable flats; and new rain boots; and as long as I'm dreaming - let's throw this in too.

• Two recent perfume releases that I'm excited about trying for fun... Blood Berry and Lazulio. This one is utter MAGIC - a perfect early fall fragrance.

• As we all know… the algorithm knows how to get us… here’s a few things that have peaked my curiosity on the ‘gram; a very attractive toothbrush, this dress is stalking me, this belt is SO good, and speaking of the scrolling… just downloaded this and it’s helping enormously.