Issue 33: 10 Ways to Feel Cozier This Christmas

Melody WarnickBuy local, Love Where You Live experiment

A few years ago I read a book about the Danish concept of hygge, which roughly translates to coziness or charm or, I don’t know, specialness. Hard to pin down and harder to say—aim for a Viking horn–like “HYOO-guh”—the concept nevertheless stayed with me for putting a name to a kind of cozy contentment I’d experienced before and kept trying … Read More

Issue 31: The #1 Thing I Learned in England

Melody WarnickLove Where You Live experiment, Place love

I wanted England, where my family and I went in May on a long-obsessed-over trip, to overwhelm me with its Britishness. And it did, it totally did. We’re not exactly world travelers over here. There was a thrilling amount of novelty in BBC-style accents and a pocket full of foreign coins. Each strange new thing filled me with a giddy … Read More

Issue 29: Spring Will Heal You

Melody WarnickBlacksburg, Love Where You Live experiment, Place love

In early March I got a message from a reader in Calgary, Canada, who was like, “I’m really struggling to love my city right now.” I said, “Girl, everybody hates their city in winter.” It’s weird because some data from Robert Putnam suggests that levels of social capital are higher the farther north you go. The theory is that in … Read More