Spring Break has always been a time of writing for me. Sitting on my patio on a beautiful, early April afternoon has me thinking about things I’m enjoying. In this post you’ll find 4 things that are currently bringing me joy. I know it’s only been about 2 months since my Winter edition but this felt like the right thing to be doing this week.

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I wrote about this app in my last post. One of the things I’m enjoying that I did not write about in that post can be found after pressing the “Playlist” icon, in the bottom right corner to the screen.

When you press one of the playlists you are taken to a screen that shows the title of the list, album cover art, a brief description of what is in the list, and the number of songs in the list.

Pressing the circular, three dot menu in the top right corner opens up, among other things, the opportunity to refine the playlist by pressing “Playlist Options.”

Pressing “Playlist Options”takes you to another screen where you have some interesting “options.”

You can toggle on the “Limit Playlist” option. This allows you to set a limit of songs you want in the playlist. The “Limit Playlist” option is off by default. Side note, when toggled off, the playlist will pull from all of the available songs in your library. You can also order the playlist, as shown in this pic…

I have not yet played around with this option. That said, the more time I spend with this app the more joy it brings me!

Flock of Dimes/Head of Roses

Flock of Dimes is a project of Jenn Wasner’s. I learned about both Wasner and her “project” a few weeks ago while reading an article on Pitchfork. The article, published weekly, shares 5 albums the writers think readers should be listening to “now.” I experimented with a few of the suggestions before landing on Wasner’s. The name of the album is titled: Head of Roses. Wasner wrote the album mostly during the COVID-19 quarantine, Spring 2020. My favorite song is track 2; Price of Blue. The guitar is deeply hypnotic and layers beautifully over Wasner’s vocals. My favorite 2 lines come from another song, track 3, titled; Two...

“And we’re all just wearing bodies

Like a costume ‘till we die”

There is so much going on in both lines. They’ve actually become meditative for me as I hear something different “within them,” each time I play the track or read the lines.

I feel that it is important for artists like Wasner to remain creative in times like this. The songs on her album are full of pain and heartbreak. Many of us are experiencing similar emotions right now. Listening to the near-spiritual soundscape she’s created on Head of Roses gives all of us permission to allow 2 completely different emotions to occupy the same space, in our minds, simultaneously; joy and pain.

Creating Shortcuts

Readers of this blog know that I have been tinkering with Shortcuts recently, in an attempt to “scratch a few itches” I’ve had related to time tracking and music consumption as well as text expansion. I’ve written about 3 Shortcuts I created, in 3 separate blog posts. The post about the Shortcut I’ve titled: Music Hub has become one of my most popular due in large part to a link that the writers of MacStories shared with its Club members after I shared the post with them. Putting together these Shortcuts has brought me joy because each has allowed me to do something I was not able to do prior to their creation. Writing about the process involved in the creation of each Shortcut has brought me joy because I knew there was potential for my efforts to be helpful to others.

AHA: Citrus + Green Tea Sparkling Water

In my ongoing effort to share something whimsical in these seasonal posts, I offer you another drink I’m enjoying. AHA comes up with some pretty cool flavor combinations in their sparkling water and this one does not disappoint. Citrus + Green Tea has the potential to be a very refreshing addition to your daily liquid consumption if you care to give it a try. It has 30mg of caffeine, just enough “pick me up” from this dynamic duo of a drink to, as they say, “pep you up!”