No time for ten things, so let’s cut that crap in halfsies and go! Here are 5 Things I’m loving or otherwise up to…

1 – Happy Rest of the Season!

Now that we are through Halloween (happy belated from the Super Mario family!), we are officially in the Rest of the Holidays mode.

Does anyone else judge the season upon us by the display at Home Goods? Because I walked into the store the day before Halloween and was greeted with a tsunami of red and green, which means that we are just gonna skip right over that whole pesky Thanksgiving thing and go straight to the Yuletide business.

(For the record, I don’t hate this.)

But if anyone can shoot me over some tips on how to actually prepare for Christmas without doing all my shopping the week before, therefore inducing a mini-breakdown, I’m all ears!

2 – The Best Way to Boil

Now that the aforementioned Rest of the Season is upon is, this means many meals call for an accompanying hot beverage. I always suggest this instant boil kettle to my fellow tea lovers because it boils water in less than a minute, and is super convenient to pour right out.

You can also make coffee with a French press with boiling water, so this is just as good of a gift for coffee lovers too.

Pour said beverage of choice into these adorable Hearth & Hand mugs (another recent obsession of mine) to get extra in-the-holiday mood!

Sip Sip, Chick

3 – Pittsburgh Forever

I don’t want to get too political or emotional (right now at least, even though I do love me a good political sparring match COME AT ME BRO), but my heart is broken by what happened in Pittsburgh and by what seems to happen all too frequently in our country–instances of mass violence.

We deserve better–my hometown and the entirety of our country. Are you voting this year? I sure hope so.

4 – Podcast Podcast Podcast!

I always joke that my job for 15 years in television news was learning the talent of BS. I’m kidding–mostly. (We are an intelligent bunch in television journalism, despite the airhead stereotypes that have pervaded the industry for years. And you can’t find a more hardworking group of people than journalists at large.)

And now it’s time I put my gift of gab to good use. You’ve heard me yammering on about the podcast for a while on over on Instagram; now I’m happy to say that it is launching next week! Whaaat!

Here’s a draft of the cover art. Get ready to subscribe!

5 – Bomb-A** Palette

I’ve had this Mixology Palette by Sephora for a while now, but I recently rediscovered it while traveling. Guys, the formula is super blendable, and the colors can be combined for neutral everyday wear, or for more dramatic nighttime looks.