We made it to another week, and that means another edition of Friday Five, your weekly digest of content meant to spark joy, create comfort, or give you a deep sigh of relief. Welcome to all the gorgeous, perfect, and incredible new subscribers here! I hope you stay for a while and get cozy.
Song: I first discovered Bobby Caldwell’s “Open Your Eyes” after hearing Common sample it in “The Light.” “Open Your Eyes” feels like the warm sun on your skin, swirling honey into tea, and singing karaoke with your friends. “There is a light that shines, special for you and me” is so tender and sweet, like this entire song.
Newsletter: Writer, author, poet, and artist Annika Hansteen-Izora’s newsletter is all about joy. I’m a brand new subscriber, after being moved by the most recent edition with this dazzling passage on the new year. Nearly every line reads like a meditation — savor this with a warm beverage or snuggled in a blanket:
Local News Sensation: Carter Trozzolo is exhausted. This eleven-year-old good samaritan spent his snow day shoveling for his family, neighbors, and ‘for people he doesn’t even know’ and he is TIRED!!! At this point in time, we are all Carter Trozzolo. *exhales deeply*

Recipe: This chicken and rice soup with garlicky chili oil is an antidote for cold weather, gloominess, and exhaustion. I have been coming back to it for years and it truly is the kind of comforting, warm dish that you need in your cooking arsenal. I have used multiple types of rice in this recipe, subbed the water for broth, and often double the chili oil because I go through it quickly. It’s always divine.
Joyful Internet Content:









Reading The Cheesecake Factory Menu for the next ten hours,
Fuddruckers Roya
The only better than Carter Trozzolo himself is his last name. It sounds like candy!
The recipes, the tweet round up, the people’s champ Carter Trozzolo— all very good stuff here!!