My year in lists
Fave albums, everything I watched and read, big wins, ins/outs etc. etc.
I love making lists – I always have. Handwritten grocery lists on scraps of paper that I shove into my back pocket; to-do lists I type into the Stickies app on my laptop; rankings of every product I’ve ever tried at Trader Joe’s (maybe this is a very Canadian thing to do? Idk)… I could go on and make a list of my favourite lists, honestly. When I was in middle school, I made my first book of lists. Here’s an excerpt:
Later, in high school, I filled two small notebooks with lists. There are dozens and dozens, including my favourite things about winter, how to know you’re in love, songs that represent core memories, baby names, and famous people I’d like to have dinner with. I’m not sure what exactly the impetus was behind me beginning this practice. I think it was the quintessential egg-crack moment of “oh wow I’m actually becoming my own person with particular interests and unique tastes and complex emotions” that teens have around 13. Maybe it was that I wanted to cement the person I was at the time and note everything I loved/everything I didn’t. Who knows. I think it was my version of journalling. Thanks to my (life-changing) experience with The Artist’s Way in 2021, I now write long-form, stream of consciousness journal entries as much as I can. The purpose of journaling is, for me, the same as that of making a list: taking stock of what I like, what I’ve done, and what I want to move towards.
I thought it might be fun to try to recap my 2024 with some lists. In between each one is a photo I’ve taken at some point during the year :)
Favourite albums of 2024
the past is still alive by hurray for the riff raff
phasor by helado negro
keeper of the shepherd by hannah frances
be something by caroline kuhn
bright future by adrianne lenker
tourist by allan hill
what a devastating turn of events by rachel chinouriri
100’s of 1000’s, millions of billions by blitzen trapper
chandler by wyatt c. louis —> my no. 1 fave!
brat by charli xcx
charm by clairo
paint a room by chris cohen
for eden by boy golden
the aching taste of blue by clay pigeon
welcome to the party by your hunni
short n sweet by sabrina carpenter
manning fireworks by mj lenderman
dunya by mustafa
leash by never better
dance of love by tucker zimmerman
Every movie I watched in 2024
saltburn
aftersun
poor things
force majeure
all of us strangers
zone of interest
love lies bleeding
harry potter and the prisoner of azkaban
the holdovers
her
theatre camp
challengers
train spotting
inside out 2
sing sing
juno
american fiction
we need to talk about kevin
anora
pretty women
i saw the tv glow
my old ass
wicked
the substance
the lobster
Every book I read in 2024
crying in h mart by michelle zauner
demon copperhead by barbara kingsolver
the five invitations by frank ostaseski
behind you by catherine hernandez
the talk by darrin bell
a visit from the goon squad by jennifer egan
small worlds by caleb azumah nelson —> still reading!
one hundred years of solitude by gabriel garcía márquez —> still reading!
Every concert I went to in 2024 (not including shows I saw by virtue of sharing a bill with the artist!)
eve parker finley @ the wilmot church, fredericton
ryan beatty @ beanfield, montreal
burs @ casa, montreal
jeremie albino @ bar le ritz, montreal
olivia rodrigo @ centre bell, montreal
townie @ quai des brumes, montreal
étienne coppée @ foufs, montreal
clay pigeon @ casa, montreal
forager @ la sotterenea, montreal
katie tupper @ la ministère, montreal
burs @ quai des brumes, montreal
devarrow @ la sotterenea, montreal
sam tudor @ the tranzac, toronto
sister ray @ sala, montreal
eliza mcclamb @ bar le ritz, montreal
katie tupper @ studio td, montreal
field guide @ casa, montreal
adrianne lenker @ olympia, montreal
wyatt c. louis @ l’esco, montreal
patrick watson @ place des arts, montreal
Best things that happened in 2024
went on my first tour
did a music residency in the woods
wrote 3 songs
moved in with my partner
got my driver’s license
saw the staged production of llinois in NYC
started working with very good and talented people who just really get it (I shan’t say more quite yet)
my testosterone-induced acne finally chilled the fuck out
lessened my phone addiction thanks to buying this flip phone & this app (I still have an iPhone but it doesn’t have a sim card, so I use it exclusively for music & socials — it’s basically a glorified iPod touch. plus, with said aforementioned app, I’m locked out of socials for most of the day. it’s beautiful.)
made cool art with cool people
booked my first vacay! I’m heading to mexico in a week weeee
In for 2025
emojis
whimsy
irish goodbyes
udon noodles
the 16oz (teeny tiny) nalgene
leading with love and light
the colour brown
getting scouted for jury duty
exclamation mark use in emails
being the naked neighbour
buying flowers
putting some lemon or cucumber in your water
winking
mixing metals
military time
driving
a subtle hickey here and there
knowing where the emotion lives in your body (second year on my list)
Olivia Coleman
being a twin
mustard
The Muppets
deltoids (the muscle)
flossing consistently
boredom
Out for 2025
biopics
seasonal allergies (DEATH to all of them!!!!)
AI
fried eggs
being a bad texter
the electoral college
“content”
events that start at 6 (if the event doesn’t include eating)
being a hater
being annoying about someone not having imessage (aka being a hater)
superfoods
dishes that are over $20 at a non-fancy restaurant (ie $26 salad). same vibe with $10 coffees
now that we’re on the subject, inflation
loose mason jars clanking around in tote bags
edge lords
loud concerts
“where are you based?” as a question
QR codes
push-ups
What I’m most looking forward to in 2025
new music
new music
new music
shows
new music
more moustache
new music
new music
That’s all for me. May the holiday season be warm, kind, and gentle to you <3
What I’m listening to —> Messy by Olivia Dean, Steve Reich: Electric Counterpoint by Steve Reich and Mats Bergström, Tapestry by Carol King, and… Wicked: The Soundtrack (my partner thinks all the songs sound the same fml)
What I’m watching —> Okay this will be third (and final) post in which I mention The Substance. I honestly found the close up shot/sounds of Dennis Quaid eating shrimp way grosser than the actual body horror stuff. I’m proud of myself for not looking away as much as I thought I would
What I’m reading —> My friend Hayden lent me One Hundred Years of Solitude and I’m loving it so far
What I’m eating —> I went on a work trip to Lac-Saint-Jean for my day job a few weeks ago and the hotel I stayed at was attached to an Italian restaurant called Pacini, which I’m Obsessed with. They have flat screen TVs everywhere with slide shows of Italian landscapes and a giant GIY (grill it yourself) bread bar. It’s Michelin-worthy, in my opinion
you are my hero!
I remember your lists from high school and telling you that my dad does the same thing lol