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I am not a game person. Mahjong, is the only game in my repertoire. I can't seem to retain the rules of card games, and I’ve never tried Sudoku nor do I possess the patience to finish a crossword puzzle. Enter Wordle, which has nothing to do with friendship, reading, cooking, writing, television, or anything I usually mention in this newsletter. Wordle is a simple word game with a no-nonsense website reminiscent of the early internet. It’s all the rage. You know how sometimes things get really popular and you don’t understand why. Wordle is not in that category. It makes perfect sense why so many people love it. If you want to read about its sweet origins, The New York Times had a recent story. I appreciate that Wordle makes me challenge my brain to guess the word, doesn’t take much time, has zero frills on the site, and only allows you to play once a day. In an entertainment universe where we have access to more more more with a simple click of the "next arrow,” it feels quaint and nostalgic to wait a day for another turn. This is not a game that will help you make and keep friends. It’s a solo, brain push, satisfying 5-10 minutes of your day. Are you playing and enjoying it? Let me know!
I’m still collecting voicemails for a few future episodes:
#1. Thoughts on the friendships in “And Just Like That,” the sequel to Sex and the City. #2. Favorite friends in books. If you’d like to participate in either episode, leave me a voicemail or email (ninabadzin@gmail.com). You can stay anonymous.
Want to meet other DEAR NINA listeners? Join us on Instagram and in my private Facebook group!
RECENT EPISODES AND BLOG POSTS Episode 14: "Plan Ongoing Activities To Make Deeper Connections With Friends" My guest--and my former advice column editor--Jessica Smock, helped me answer a question from a listener who has plenty of friends in her “new” city (she’s been there for over a decade), but does not feel her friendships are deep enough. Jessica could relate and shared her own experiences. 
Episode 15: "The Art of Small Talk and Body Language When Making New Friends Ali Wenzke, author The Art of Happy Moving, and I continued the conversations from episodes 13 and 14 about making new friends as an adult. Some of the lessons in Ali's book can be applied to adults looking to make new friends whether or not you just moved.
Featured in Lake Minntonka Magazine What a thrill to participate in a piece in Lake Minnetonka Magazine about ModernWell. In “Return to the Well,”  Kira Schukar tells the story of how Julie Burton and I started our writing classes, first as the Twin Cities Writing Studio and later, when Julie opened ModernWell, as The ModernWell Writing Studio. Julie talks about her vision for ModernWell and all that it offers now. It’s grown so much! I was happy to get a mention of my podcast in there too! The piece also focuses on other amazing women of ModernWell: Dawn L. Johnson, Belén Fleming, and Stephanie Pierce. We had fun getting our photos taken in ModernWell’s amazing lighting. Thank you to Tiger Oak photographer, Chris Emeott. The Shows I Watched in 2021 I wrote a thorough list of what I watched in 2021 organized by what was the best, what was good, and what was “just okay.” The Books I Read in 2021 My book page has pithy reviews (1-2 lines) of everything I read in 2021. I finished 33 books, which is a lot less than usual. I blame that on starting a podcast in 2021, and okay fine, also on watching too much TV. See above. Can’t do it all! I already started my 2022 page. Friendship Roundup #4 I see so many friendship-related things throughout the week, either because I find them myself or people send them to me. I share them on my site 1-2 times per month. There are always some good gems in these posts.
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