Hacks, Compression Packing Cubes, and Vegetarian Enchiladas

January 2025 Round-Up

Welcome to your (slightly belated) January 2025 Bi-Monthly Round-Up!

I would ask how you’re doing, but if it’s anything like me, the answer is NOT GREAT.

The past month has felt like a year and aged me at least that much too. Between the unexpected death of my sweet pup, Alamo, and Trump’s continued callousness (according to him, my gender doesn’t exist—cool cool cool), it’s an uphill battle not to spiral into a pit of despair. The dreary winter weather isn’t helping either, and I am restlessly counting down the days until spring.

Things were slightly less depressing in November and December, though—at least I had the holidays and time off from work to rest!—and today’s round-up covers my recs from those months. In case you’re new here, every two months I put together a list of all of my favorites across a handful of categories, including what I’ve been listening to, watching, reading, purchasing, and more (any affiliate links will be marked with an asterisk, and the small amount of money I make from affiliate purchases helps me pay for business expenses like website hosting, software subscriptions, and office supplies).

As a reminder, comments are now on for everyone. Feel free to use the comments section to share your thoughts or let me know some of your own recs from the same time period! I’m also on the hunt for more submissions to my Dear Shohreh advice column, so if you could use some guidance, please fill out the submission form (it’s anonymous)!

Music I’ve Been Vibing With

I consumed minimal music at the end of 2024, especially new things. To be fair, November and December tend to be slower release months, so that didn’t help. It’s pretty bare bones, but here are a few tracks that got added to playlists of mine during that time period:

• “Fantastic” - King Princess (featured in the Arcane series)

• “logical” - Olivia Rodrigo (I did listen to the whole album when it came out, but this song was a sleeper for me)

• “Safety Net” - Bea and her Business

What I’ve Been Watching

Somehow I’ve never discussed my love for Hacks in one of these round-ups! I cycle through streaming subscriptions depending on what’s available to watch, so I didn’t have Max for the better part of this past year. The result was that I was very late to watching Season 3.

The show remains incredibly funny and layered. The on-screen chemistry between Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder sizzles. It’s queer, and current, and makes me feel things. I’m so glad Season 4 is on the way!

We also caught up with Season 3 of Heartstopper, which remains one of the cutest TV shows in the world, and the most recent season of The Great British Baking Show, obviously!

Lastly, I’m very into cheerleading shows for reasons I cannot explain, and I binged America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders (I used to love the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team series when I was in college). Now every time I hear “Thunder,” all I can think about is the DCC stadium entrance routine.

For My Book Nerds

One of my top faves from the end of 2024 was Margo’s Got Money Troubles* by Rufi Thorpe. Margo’s brief affair with her English professor leads to her getting pregnant, and she decides to have the baby against everyone’s advice. Once the baby comes, she desperately needs money and starts an OnlyFans to make ends meet. But when other people in her life discover how Margo’s making a living, things become more complicated than she anticipated.

I’ve never read anything quite like this book, and the side characters were also fleshed out and nuanced (shout-out to Margo’s ex-pro wrestler dad, Jinx!). If the premise sounds interesting to you, give it a try.

Products I Recommend

Here are a few items I’ve purchased in the past couple of months that I’m glad I did:

• One of our dog boarding clients brought over a no-spill dog water bowl* for their messy drinker pup, and Jessie and I immediately bought two to have at the house. A genius way to keep dogs from getting water all over the floor (and all of the pieces are dishwasher safe).

• In a past round-up, I mentioned that I have an amazing milk steamer that I use to make tea lattes and hot chocolate (it’s the Breville Milk Cafe* and I could not recommend it more highly). I will often add flavorings to the milk, so we keep a variety of Torani syrups on hand. My favorite one right now is the Toasted Marshmallow flavor. My fancy little teas help me start my work day off on the right foot.

• When I first discovered packing cubes, they changed my life. I recently discovered compression packing cubes, and my life has been changed again. I had the opportunity to use mine on my recent trip to NYC, and I was so happy with them! Little Miss ADHD is an over-packer (can you imagine?!), and these BAGAIL compression packing cubes* make arranging my stuff and zipping my suitcase compartments much easier.

• I live in a state where marijuana is legal (#bless), and a friend told me about a vape that can be used with flower so I asked for it for Christmas. It is so cool!! It’s called the Pax Plus, and you can load either flower or concentrates into it. If you’re someone who enjoys the experience of smoking but wants something less harsh on your lungs, this is a great option. I also highly recommend the Smell-Proof Case to hold everything and the Pax Puck Press to get your flower into the device more easily.

• I saw yet another TikTok from someone who used a fire blanket* to put out a house fire, and I finally bought a two-pack. I hope I never have to use them, but they seem more effective than messing with a fire extinguisher.

• I recently bought a steamer basket for my Instant Pot, and I’m loving it! I like to make hard-boiled eggs in my IP (if you’ve never tried it, it’s such a great hands-off way to cook them!), and this basket makes that a breeze. I also buy large packages of tamales from Costco and freeze them. Then when it’s time to cook them, I steam them in the Instant Pot.

• I have a pair of Sperry duck boots that I really like for the rain, but I was also craving a pair that I could slip on easily for running into the backyard when there’s rain or snow. Enter the Sperry Torrent Chelsea Waterproof Rain Boot. Super easy to take on and off as well as easy to clean.

Recipes

It’s comfort food season, and I have some winter winners to share!

• This Cajun-Spiced Corn Chowder with Gnocchi was warming and delicious and perfect for cold temperatures.

• My go-to mashed potatoes recipe is this Gruyere, Garlic, and Gouda Mashed Potatoes one. Also, if you make mashed potatoes regularly, I highly suggest getting a potato ricer*. I bought one for my mom for Christmas because I like mine so much. They create smooooooth (not gluey!!) potatoes.

• These Vegetarian Enchiladas with Poblano Cream Sauce were yummy AF. Just don’t make the mistake I did and touch the roasted poblanos with your bare hands then touch your face (I did this multiple times). OUCH. From now on I will wear gloves when handling poblanos like I do when I’m handling jalapenos.

That’s it for this round-up! If you have questions or want to chat about anything I included, don’t hesitate to comment or reach out via email. You can also find all of the past round-ups you may have missed here.

Queerly yours,

Shohreh

*Links with an asterisk are affiliate links. If you purchase items using those links, I may be eligible for a small commission which helps support my writing and other content.

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