Blog #7: All I Covet for Christmas
What’s your favorite deadly sin? Mine is gluttony. Anyway, here’s a list of ideas for things to covet in case you live in isolation or your neighbors are private. I polled my gorgeous friends and family to bring you the best the four corners of the internet have to offer. I’ve thrown some intangible desires in the mix in case you want to copy those too.
Penitent Spirit - You know how people who are insecure about their self-image flog themselves when they interact with customer service representatives? Those people act that way because they are guilty, probably due to their own wickedness. Many are so shielded from their own conscience that they cannot face the truth, a necessary step to healing, loving yourself, and conducting yourself with dignity. This holiday season, save your loved one the energy of apologizing for ordering coffee from a barista and share these helpful tips:
To cultivate a penitent spirit, you need to actively engage in self-reflection, prayer, confession (especially if someone you know is a chismosa, this is a whole other gift idea actually), and actively seek to amend your behavior by making positive changes in your life, acknowledging your shortcomings, and committing to not repeat them.
Key elements of a penitent spirit:
Contrition: Feeling deep sorrow and regret for your past actions and sins.
Humility: Recognizing your own flaws and dependence on God's forgiveness.
Confession: Openly admitting your sins to God, and in some cases, to a co-worker.
Self-examination: Regularly reflecting on your thoughts, words, and actions to identify areas where you need to improve. It was Jemima Kirke who once said, “I think you guys might be thinking about yourselves too much.”
Penance: Performing acts of reparation for your sins, such as prayer, charity, or self-denial. If you own Shein, this is a great time to donate it or even make a post to tell people that you spent your money on Shein this year.
How to cultivate a penitent spirit:
Prayer:
Spend time in prayer, especially focusing on prayers of repentance and asking God for forgiveness.
Sacrament of Reconciliation (if applicable):
Regularly participate in the sacrament of confession in your faith tradition. In addition to sharing with your co-workers, please also consider doing so with any direct supervisors or a strange introvert at a party.
Journaling:
Write down your thoughts and feelings about your sins and areas where you need to grow. If you have the means, please buy a domain and a Squarespace subscription and consider sharing there as well.
Acts of service:
Perform. Jokes, song and dance, a slight of hand, etc.
Seek guidance:
Consult your least spiritual friend - if you are getting blind validation from them, things are worse than I thought.
Important points to remember:
Authenticity:
A penitent spirit is not about outward displays of remorse but a genuine inner transformation. This is the hardest step for most people but try and stay in the moment.
Forgiveness:
A key part of repentance is accepting God's forgiveness and extending forgiveness to others.
Continuous process:
Cultivating a penitent spirit is an ongoing process that requires consistent effort and commitment.
2. Highlights from Justine’s Christmas List - Justine is one of my go-to girls for any kind of fragrance supplies. She’s a Scorpio and her taste reflects this - weird girl, hot enough to pull off whatever and interesting enough to go beyond basic palatable selects, intense, and very sensual. This summer we cameo-ed as the only high femme guests at a rock climber wedding. Although the socially deficient men who were trying to flirt with us were not engaging, even pretending to be humored by this information, or most importantly willing to leave us alone, we bore our souls to each other for the third time that night and learned that I am a Taurus Sun, Cap Moon, Cap Rising and she is a Scorpio Sun, Pisces Moon, Pisces Rising, which to me means we are dumb-bitch bonded - meant to be! Anyway, beside the point. Check out her recs below:
Marissa Zappas Tragedy Oil - if you aren’t ready for a full, highly recommend her discovery set as well - she makes perfume for esoteric and otherwise quirked up shawties. I own Pink Bedroom Oil (which smells like old-formula lipstick and powder, idk it’s perfect) and I am hoping I get a full of Queen Nzinga for Christmas.
Flowers and Their Meanings - Karen Azoulay
Hako Incense - they look like leaves y’all!
3. A Challengers Type-Situation - I abandoned my blog duties really early this year and the movie event of the decade got zero airtime here, but for posterity I must plug this movie. For as homo-social as most straight men are, they really let me down this year by not leaning into their friendships with other men even though most of them love each other in ways they could never extend to the women in their lives. There is still about a month left in the year, and I’m putting this out here as something to covet in case some lucky girl or young man can manifest a situation like this for themselves. Please also take the time to indulge in a sexy and stylish soundtrack mix. If you're my friend and you haven’t seen this movie yet, try and reflect on how little my word means to you.
4. For Girls Who Live Like Dogs: Hair Pins - I’m guilty of operating on revolving baskets of laundry. I always have wrinkled clothes, and I’m often in need of a lint roller. My corporate stints didn’t help either because Utah is not glamorous or chic and the workforce isn’t either, so there wasn’t a lot of pressure to look put together. I only this year began consistently blow drying my bangs. I also have a gigantic forehead and am required to serve high cranial top at all times when I can help it. I spend money every month bleaching my hair and I really have no excuse to have it looking limp half the time. I think that claw clips are convenient but very sloppy. Hair pins make you look like you tried and they are simple to use. Here’s a link to some that I’ve been eye-ing, and here’s a video on how to do it.
5. I <3 Winning Lawsuits Shirt - I’m writing this post on campus, not studying for finals, and putting the cart before the horse . Imagine winning a lawsuit or wet t-shirt contest in this! Hoping I get this in case the law school thing doesn’t work out so I can still accomplish the latter. This seller has great stuff, including shirts being sold at cost to support Palestine.
Jealousy is a disease, to which I say….
6. Meredith Marks x Lush Bath Bomb - For those who support the best show currently airing on television and happen to be in need of a lightly psychedelic, somewhat unsettling vibe for their baths this winter.
From DieModeWelt’s Etsy Shop
7. For the Man Who Has Everything: Slutty Shorts - These don’t have that built in underwear thing and they are the perfect length to highlight hairy quads.
8. Somebody Else’s Criterion Channel Login
Don’t ask me though - If you need the HBO login, please see my contact form.
9. For the People Who Have Exhausted Their Bag of Tricks: A Random and Inorganic Linguistic Affect
If you feel like people are getting bored with your antics and you aren’t ready to cultivate a penitent spirit, this is the perfect way to mix it up and force a confrontation or maybe even a blow-up from your patient loved ones. I recommend starting with a few words that you use all the time. Mess with the inflection on a few vowels, and go for something uncanny. It’s super important to play dumb about this as well.
10. Highlights from Angie’s List - Angie is living on her own for the first time and working on making her house a home. I’m working on giving her access to her own page, but in the meantime, enjoy some Angie selects.
Candle Warmer - These make your candles last so much longer and if you’re a renter, it may be necessary.
Fun Mug - I linked one I like, but really world is your oyster on this one. DO NOT GO OUT THERE AND PAY FULL PRICE FOR A RETAIL MUG.
35mm Film - Me and Angie have the same film camera and we regularly take the same photo on each one any time we’re together. Portra 400 is great, especially if you are not a professional and don’t want to invest in photo editing software, because the color grading is kind of built in.
Silk Cinnamon Caramel Oat Cold Foam Creamer - As Angie has said (and it’s so true), “Companies have never been so eager to please the at home drinker.”
Tickets to Kilby Block Party 2025 - “The Undisputed Coachella of the Intermountain West.” - fake quote I’m attributing to Angie because she said it in so many words.
11. From My Dad: A Good Pen - My dad has gorgeous victorian ghost handwriting (not pictured) and he is something of a pen snob. Here’s the scoop:
Uniball 207 Signo Gel Ultra Micro Gel Pen, Retractable, Extra-Fine 0.38 Mm, Blue Ink, Smoke Barrel These are his favorite in blue. You can also get them in black.
If you like ballpoint pens, nothing beats a Parker Jotter or other parker brands Limited-time deal: Parker Jotter Originals Ballpoint Pen Collection
He prefers fine point refills: Parker QUINKflow Ballpoint Pen Ink Refill, Fine Tip, Blue
12. From Joanna: Cheeky Phone Charm - I linked a super cute one from Ebay, and I’m telling you, Ebay is gonna be the place for this. Joanna is sort of on the vanguard of how to upgrade your digital presence and communication style. Hot tip: If you would like to employ a text signature, go to Settings > Keyboard > Keyboard Shortcuts > Paste:
˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚༘⋆ Highest Anticipated ˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚༘⋆
13. Unofficially From Bonnie: Breakaway Matcha - Bonnie has kept her apothecary under lock and key this year, but she does speak highly of this brand. She told me she had to call to cancel an order and spoke with the CEO directly and he was soooo nice. I personally like the Coldbrew Matcha because it’s the cheapest and it mixes well with cold water and milk.
14. From Nikhil: All twenty volumes of Dragon Ball Z and a competent mailman - Not really sure what he’s on about for that second thing, I’ve met his mailman and he’s actually a really cool guy. Nikhil is somewhat evil and tends to align with the managerial class, so if you have that in common with him and happen to have some pull with the USPS, see my contact form and I’ll share his LinkedIn.
15. From Tristan: 20 Lbs of Lean Muscle - I don’t really have advice for this because I accomplished my body goals this year via major and ongoing gastrointestinal issues. Keep in mind that the body is evil and must be punished. Please mute the above clip and play this instead. It’s what Tristan would want.
If nothing here catches your eye, try checking out Andrew’s list over on Andrew’s Corner for some more superficial, pedantic desires. Merry Christmas Y’all!
