Great rabbitholes to fall into!

It’s that weird time where if you’re on a break from your job you don’t know what day it is and every day feels weirdly long. I suddenly realised it was Thursday which means tomorrow is FRIDAY NIGHT CHATS!

Friday Night Chats is a special thing for paid subscribers of Emily Writes Weekly but I decided in the spirit of Christmas I’d make this special holiday edition of Friday Night Chats free for everyone. If you subscribe you’ll have access to all of the last four years of Friday Night Chats!

Usually for Friday Night Chats we share what we are reading, watching, and listening to - and I’ll still do that. But first!

So why not fall down a rabbit hole? A wholesome one! One that won’t leave you feeling like an anti-vaxxer who needs to find their twin flame and turn blue from drinking silver colloidal!

Here’s a list of a bunch of topics you can lose an hour or two to.

Neil the Seal

Neil the Seal is my summer icon. He is a 1,300-Pound beach bum who spends all his time terrorising people. Ummm goals?! He/They is a southern elephant seal as well as an internet sensation. Neil is also a climate change activist, he regularly blocks traffic. Go Neil!

I need to know more: Internet Sensation Neil the Seal: Here's What We Know About the Adorable Interloper

I wanna scroll: Neil is on Instagram so you’re in luck.

I wanna watch: Look up Neil the Seal and you’ll find not just Neil’s antics but also his devoted fans. Hashtags to follow: #neiltheseal #neiltok #elephantseal

But why: It’s just very funny to see a seal that big chase Australians.

@candacceNeil deserves all the naps in the world #fyp #foryou #animals

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That Nine Month Long Cruise

Basically it's a nine month long cruise (clue is in the name) that people are documenting online. I mean why wouldn’t you want to watch a bunch of people trapped together for nine months?

I need to know more: TikTok's latest obsession is the 9-month Royal Caribbean World Cruise

I wanna scroll: Really the best place to watch it all is on TikTok but if you must use Instagram try: #WorldCruise2023.

I wanna Watch: You’re in luck, TikTok is the home of Nine Month Cruise content. #Ultimateworldcruise #royalcaribbean #royalcaribbeancruise #9monthcruise #cruisetok

@brodielancast3rCannot get enough of the #cruiseship

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But why? Is it a dream or nightmare to be on a cruise for nine months? For me? Dream. I'm very lazy and being literally taken on a world trip while someone shows me the highlights and does my laundry? Well, if I got offered that free I’d lose my morals in half a second. The fun thing in watching is trying to work out if the videos sway you either way. None of us are actually going to go on a nine-month cruise so it’s a brain break.

Advanced Style

Ari Seth Cohen is the creator of AdvancedStyle documenting senior style and wisdom. I am obsessed with the outfits of the wild New York ladies. They're also just smart and sassy and are turning the idea of invisibility in aging on its head and I love that. It’s so fun to watch.

I need to know more: Advanced Style: the fashion blog that is putting older women first

I wanna scroll: You can follow Advanced Style on Instagram! I would also recommend NZ stylists Mo Doy and

I wanna watch: Of course you can follow the official Advanced Style account on Tiktok but really all of these hashtags are great #dontcallmegrandma #ladiesofnewyork #advancedstyle #agingfashion #fashion #style

But why? Because it’s inspiring! I always find I dress up a little more after having a leisurely stroll through AdvancedStyle. I sometimes look at Maximalist Style and I dunno it’s just not as charming when Gen Z dresses like this haha. Terrible! I know! I’m a bad person!

Svalbard Night Days

Cecilia Blomdahl lives in a cabin on Svalbard, an island close to the North Pole. I first learned about Savalbard from my son, who explained its a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. He was particularly enamoured with Svalbard because it’s not part of geographical Norway, but it is part of the Kingdom of Norway. I like it because there’s polar bears. The midnight sun lasts 99 days and polar night 84 days - so it’s a very strange place to live!

I need to know more: How an Arctic Influencer Embraces Months of Darkness - Svalbard, an island in the Arctic, has about one of everything, including a social media influencer with millions of followers.

I want to scroll: Cecilia is also on Instagram. Tags are #svalbard #longyearbyen. The #Artic tag is also very cool.

I want to watch: Watch Cecilia’s official Tiktok Sejsejlija. And follow the hashtags: #svalbard #longyearbyen #northpole #polarnight

But why? Did you know they have to have vitamin D supplements all year round because they don’t get enough sunlight? And her dog Grim is cute. AND look at these lights?!

@sejsejlijaWOW!! #svalbard #northpole #viral #foryou #phenomenon #longyearbyen

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So! I hope one of those appeals to you! If not you can also try: Eel Pit Guy, Tunnel Girl (also known as Suburban Mining Lady), and Hidden Pool house. I would love to hear your faves!

What I’m reading: The inane comments of Nazi edgelords on Substack lol. Does that count? Nah, seriously - I have a big list of things to read on Pocket that I’m hoping to get to. It’s just that the kids are wanting a lot of my time right now.

If you want something to read - here are my most read posts from the year:

What can I do to stop this genocide?

The Man - this is from last year but it’s still super popular!

"They don't care if you live or die"

The Bad Thing - Wow, these are all really depressing.

The new dawn is not miraculous - but you might be.

It takes like five villages - Why is parenting so hard and other daily complaints.

Lauren Dickason and the future that could have been

Christopher Luxon knows the truth about mediocrity

I promise... - On the stars we pin our parenting hopes on.

What I’m watching: We rewatched This is Spinal Tap on TVNZ and The Princess Bride with the kids (also on TVNZ). I also binged season two of Dr Death (also on TVNZ). It was so depressing. Like, the most depressing.

As a family we started watching the Beckham doco on Netflix. I was out-voted in watching it but actually, I’m totally hooked. It’s a fascinating series.

I saw All of us Strangers at the movies. It was devastating. I was like dehydrated from crying so much. Just incredible but emotionally painful. Especially if you’ve lost people this year which I know a lot of us have.

What I’m listening to: To be honest, mostly just a basic ‘acoustic songs of the 80s and 90s’ playlist haha. I know! We have been playing a lot of chess because Eddie got a chess set. And a lot of Uno which is excruciating because I am very competitive and Eddie changes the rules constantly. So it’s background music to me trying not to yell “YOU CAN’T DO THAT! THAT IS NOT UNO RULES!”

What are you watching? Reading? Listening to? How was your Christmas?

I look forward to seeing you next year and I want to thank you all for supporting me to continue writing. It means the world to me it truly does. I’m so grateful.

Happy New Year - ngā mihi o te tau hou!

Arohanui Emily x

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