EEDA Newsletter Vol 6, Res 1: Book Bans, Accountants of Color, and a Better To-Do List
This is a public issue of Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice. Feel free to share it!
Hi friends. It is Wednesday night as I write this and I’m trying to stave off a panic attack about the fires in Southern California. While we live hundreds of miles away up in the Bay Area, I lived in Pasadena for over seven years and before that, I went to undergrad in Los Angeles. We still have many loved ones down there and many places that are important to us. Climate change affects everyone, no matter your net worth or follower count or fame and it is devastating at every level. My love is going to everyone down there. This is not the intro I wanted to be writing for the first resource issue of the year.
If you are in Pasadena/LA and are looking for a resource roundup, please check out Mutual Aid LA. They have a large list of resources for what is going on right now.
Unrelated, but related to the beginning of the year and it gave me a chuckle:
On this week's EEDA Pod episode, “Cultivating Community & Embracing Hope in 2025” Patricia and Nicole reflect on their holiday experiences and their plans for the new year, including decluttering and setting realistic, hopefully achievable goals. They discuss their Patreon plans, the importance of building community, and share personal anecdotes about their accountability processes and upcoming activities like crochet classes.
You can find our show, Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, and wherever else you get your podcasts. You can also support the show on Patreon, where we have some perks for paid subscribers with even more coming this year.
It’s resource week, so let’s get to it!
Resource 1: 7 tiny hacks that can improve your to-do list
My to-do list is always unwieldy. This short article (and podcast episode, if you want to listen instead of read), has some very helpful tips. I’m trying to follow the 2-minute rule as well as automating what I can.
Resource 2: 56 Small Tasks to Be Proactive Against Book Censorship in 2025 and Beyond
Kelly Jensen continues to do deeply important and difficult work. Not only does she outline 56 Small Tasks to Be Proactive Against Book Censorship in 2025 and Beyond, but in this article she also made a spreadsheet for us to copy and track our progress. Brilliant.
Resource 3: Accountants of Color Directory
In my very first EEDA Resource issue in February 2020, I shared the Free Tax Aide from AARP. Maybe you don’t qualify for that for age or income reasons but doing your taxes requires help from a professional. I recently learned about the Accountants of Color Directory, which seems like a great place for you to look for someone. It looks really East Coast-heavy, but maybe that works for you!
Recent & Current Reads
Inclusion of a book in this section is not necessarily a recommendation and these books won’t necessarily be added to my Bookshop. Links are affiliate links.
Recently Read:
Relationality: How Moving from Transactional to Transformational Relationships Can Reshape Our Lonely World by David Jay
African American Folktales: Stories from Black Traditions in the New World by Roger D. Abrahams (sorry, can’t find it on Bookshop. My copy is from 1985. Found some on Thriftbooks, though not my exact copy)
Thirsty Mermaids by Kat Leyh
The Ojja-Wojja by Magdalene Visaggio, illustrated by Jenn St-Onge
Currently Reading:
Poetry as Spellcasting: Poems, Essays, and Prompts for Manifesting Liberation and Reclaiming Power by Tamiko Beyer, Destiny Hemphill, & Lisbeth White
What Fresh Hell Is This?: Perimenopause, Menopause, Other Indignities, and You by Heather Corinna
Sleep Groove: Why Your Body's Clock Is So Messed Up and What to Do about It by Olivia Walch (out 1/28)
Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds by Adrienne Maree Brown
That’s it for this week! You can shop many books I’ve mentioned in this newsletter at my affiliate shop, The Infophile’s Bookshop, and support independent bookstores. In fact, any Bookshop, Amazon, or Etsy links in this newsletter are affiliate links so if you shop through those, it helps support my work. Or you can leave me a tip on Ko-fi, Paypal, or Venmo.
If you want to send me some snail mail, you can find me at P.O. Box 21481, Oakland, CA 94620-1481.
You can find our podcast, Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, and wherever else you get your podcasts.