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Hiya, Julia Louis-Dreyfus here from the Wiser Than Me podcast, among other things.
And I've got a bit of a hot take.
Our relationship to our food can feel disconnected.
We don't always know how or where our food is grown.
And if we throw food scraps in the garbage, we don't think about where it's going, or at least we try not to.
One way that I get back a little of that connection is by using my Mill food recycler.
Sure, Mill has totally changed my home life in a lot of practical ways.
It works automatically.
You can fill it for weeks.
It never, ever smells.
But this is also really important.
When I use Mill, I'm participating in a circular system.
All the food I don't eat is helping to grow the food that I do.
It makes me feel like I'm part of something bigger, and that feels really, really good.
And it's all so ridiculously easy.
I just drop my scraps in my mill, and it transforms them into nutrient-rich grounds overnight.
I have mine sent to a small farm, but if I wanted to, I could use them in my garden or for my backyard chickens, if I wanted backyard chickens.
And I don't know, maybe I do now.
Maybe I don't.
Anyway, maybe Mill is transforming me too, just a little.
If you want to feel more connected or you just want your kitchen to feel less gross, try Mill's risk-free trial and just live with it for a while.
Go to mill.com slash wiser for an exclusive offer.
I'm Gretchen Rubin, and this is A Little Happier.
This year on the Happier with Gretchen Rubin podcast for the annual challenge.
We challenged ourselves and readers to read for 25 minutes a day in 2025.
As part of this challenge, one item on my 25 for 25 list was to complete the slow read of Tolstoy's masterpiece War and Peace.
For this terrifically enjoyable exercise.
I joined the Substack newsletter Footnotes and Tangents, where Simon Haisel guides readers through the novel, as we all read one chapter every day for a year.
The War and Peace slow read was a highlight of my own reading year.
I know so many people who joined in and loved it.
And in fact, my mother, sister Elizabeth, and my father all did it together.
And in the last months of my father's life, we often talked about war and peace.
In the novel.
I can't remember if Tolstoy mentions a particular Russian ritual that I love, one related to starting on a journey, a tradition called sitting on suitcases.
In this ritual, before people leave the house to take a trip, all members of the house, even ones who aren't leaving, sit down in silence for a few moments.
They can literally sit on the packed suitcase or on a chair or anywhere.
There are several theories about how the custom got started.
Perhaps people wanted to appease the house spirits before leaving.
Perhaps people thought it brought good luck to prevent mishaps and to ensure a smooth journey.
Perhaps people wanted to pray in silence for a few minutes.
Whatever the original reason, this custom strikes me as a lovely ritual.
At least in my family.
Getting out the door tends to involve a lot of running around, frantic double-checking of necessary items, curt remarks and banging around.
In hustling to get out the door, people, and by people I mean me, can get worked up and crabby.
With this ritual, you go through that stage and then you all sit down quietly.
You take a few moments to calm your mind and mentally prepare for the journey.
This time might also give you the opportunity to realize that you'd forgotten to pack something important.
And people who will be parted by this journey get a chance to be together, to reflect on each other, to acknowledge the transition and to have the chance to say a few loving words.
A ritual helps us remember to take time for what matters to us.
I'm Gretchen Rubin, and I hope this makes your week a little happier.
Hi, Gretchen, Craig Robinson, and my little sister Michelle here.
We host a new podcast called IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson.
We know you're the queen of giving advice, so we wanted to get a few tips from you.
You know, Gretchen, a lot of our listeners are going through some major life changes.
What advice do you have for folks who are trying to stay grounded in the midst of major life transitions?
Craig and Michelle, I am so happy to be talking to you.
Here are a few questions that might help us gain perspective.
So consider questions like this.
What activities take up my time but are not particularly useful or stimulating for me?
Do I spend a lot of time on something that's important to someone else but is not very important to me?
If I could magically change one habit in my life, what would I choose?
And here's a question.
Would I like to have more time in solitude restorative solitude or would I like to have more time with friends?
You know, just thinking about questions like this can help us start to figure out how we might make our lives happier.
With greater self-knowledge, we're better able to make hard decisions that reflect ourselves, our own nature, our own interests, our own values.
In my own case, I have found that the more my life reflects my nature, the happier I get and the more grounded I feel when I'm going through a period of major change or transition.
For more great advice, search for IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson wherever you get podcasts.
You can listen to Issa Rae on letting go of certain friendships, Kiki Palmer on why disappointment is actually the key to career success, Seth and Lauren Rogan on caring for aging parents, and so many more.
