Inspiration Diaries With Sandy Sanchez of Small Pleasures

Another week, another fabulous internet friend gracing the Inspiration Diaries. I’ve followed Sandy Sanchez’s beautiful Substack, Small Pleasures, for at least a year before I officially met her (at the most adorable Galentine’s party a mutual friend hosted!), and I remember being so excited to finally meet the woman who’s inspired me on Substack for so long in person (exposing myself as a fangirl here lol). I just love the way Sandy sees the world: the colors, angles, patterns, and overall design of the photos she takes, even the simplest of pictures, are stunning. And her attention to the little details — ohhhh, the small pleasures! — make me want to look at all the details too. You’ll see what I mean when you read, and I think you’ll be inspired too. :)

xx Brianna

I got back from a week-long trip to Costa Rica a couple of days ago and have been seriously feeling the post-vacation blues. Work and life had been so busy for months and months now, so I desperately needed some time off. I was away from my phone 99% of the time and all I did was read and journal and explore and spend time with family and just be. Coming back to Brooklyn felt extra difficult this time but I’m slowly getting back into my routine. I’m feeling sluggish, though. I’m currently reading East of Eden, so I read in bed for a bit before officially starting my day.

It’s not a Sunday without a visit to the farmer’s market, so I walk my dog and we head over. Today’s haul: green vitamin juice, arugula, honey, salsa verde, French radishes, baby onions, basil, and sun gold tomatoes. This is my comfort ritual and I feel it bringing a sense of normalcy back into my day.

I spend the rest of the afternoon doing some last minute updates to my newsletter that’s going out later in the evening. I ask Aaron (my now-husband as of a month ago!) to draw a few illustrations for it and I publish. We have the World Cup games playing pretty much all day. For lunch, we eat jambon beurres, and enchiladas rojas for dinner.

In between games, we finish the last episode of Widow’s Bay. I love how it combines horror and comedy and amazing storytelling in such a beautiful way that we don’t get to see often on television!

For dessert, we have the last of our key lime pie from Mishie’s Pies. Her pies are incredible. I’m mentally preparing myself for work tomorrow. I’m excited to get back into it, but also wish I had more time to just lounge. I make plans to watch a movie with friends later this week and go to bed.

Back to work! I work from home today. I have a dermatology appointment that I made months ago and don’t feel like going. But it’s important to do your annual skin screening!

Breakfast is iced coffee and oatmeal. I head to the West Village for my appointment and then quickly come back home. The day is a bit of a rush with work and catching up on things. Before I know it, it’s 5:30 pm. I need to be away from my computer, so I go to the Italian market to get fresh pasta for today’s dinner.

I’m currently obsessing over Essex Honey, Blood Orange’s most recent album. I remember listening to his music when I was in high school. Years later, he’s still part of my life. Got the record on vinyl and it’s finally here!

Also: I had an exciting call today about attending a writers retreat in August and I’m so so excited. I’ve never been on one before! It’s on a farm…

I brought back a ton of coffee from Costa Rica and I enjoy a cup of it in the morning. I decide to work from home today because I need quiet focus time. The day goes by and I watch the World Cup games on and off.

I’m doing a reading on Friday for my friend’s chapbook launch party—my first reading ever! I have an idea I’ve been playing around with for weeks now. I’ve kinda been writing parts of it in my head, but I haven’t sat down to actually write it. I tell myself I’m going to write it this evening, but I’m tired, so I just jot down some bullet points and hope that I have more energy tomorrow after work. Only a few days left. Why am I like this!

I read more of East of Eden before going to bed.

It’s a beautiful day. After work, I meet up with Aaron at The Long Island Bar. We split our usual meal: deviled eggs, little gem salad, and crispy chicken sandwich.

The piece I need to write…it’s not fully written yet, but on my walk to the train earlier, I recorded some notes in my voice memos. I think it’s getting closer!

I end the evening by tidying up and watching Mexico vs Czech. Mexico wins! It makes me deeply miss Mexico City. I was there for half a year a few years ago and it’s such a special place. Making a mental note that I need to go again soon. These games always inspire me and make me so emotional.

The day is a blur, once again. I wrap up work and meet my friends at Leo, a sourdough pizza spot in Williamsburg. We share a salad, beans, and pizzas before walking over to the theater to watch Disclosure Day. I thought it was an okay movie! I went into it not knowing anything—my favorite way to go into movies. Loved Emily Blunt’s performance. And love Josh O’Connor. He’ll never not remind me of Linguini from Rataouille (the best movie ever, IMO).

Update on my piece for tomorrow’s reading: we are almost there…

Thank goodness it’s Friday. WE MADE IT. I wake up early to put finishing touches on my piece before starting work. The reading is at 7 pm and I need to leave the house by 6:15. Of course, it’s 6:00 and I’m making a few last minute tweaks and trying to figure out what to wear.

I’ve never done a reading before so I’m nervous!!! But excited!! My friend Grace Ann Leadbeater (incredible photographer and writer) released a chapbook called Spools of Thread with Choo Choo Press. It’s about objects and so she invited a few people to do a reading for the launch party at Dear Friends Books in Bed-Stuy. I read a piece called Not On Display about the special boxes that we hold our special things in. It covers everything from love letters to baby teeth. The night goes beautifully and a few people come up to me and say the sweetest things to me. Feeling so grateful that I got the opportunity to do this reading and also proud of myself for doing something that scared me. I go home, feeling fulfilled, and order Tacombi for dinner (burritos and esquites forever <3).

All I want to do today is have a chill Saturday. We make chilaquiles for breakfast and then I decide to clean out the medicine cabinet in the bathroom. I have Pilates at 1 pm, which is something I look forward to every week. I always feel so good after. I’ve been casually doing reformer pilates since 2017 and it’s my favorite way to move.

The rest of the day is perfect: showering, making smoothies, watching World Cup games, cooking, tidying up, and writing a letter to my friend who lives in Canada. We primarily communicate via postcards and it’s so fun.

I also finally got my World of Interiors magazine in the mail. Love print media so much. Current subscriptions in our household: World of Interiors, The Paris Review, Interview Magazine, The Fly Fish Journal, Apartamento, and Never Too Small. The best! I spend the day thinking about how I really want to paint my kitchen pink. We will see!

***

Connect with Sandy here:

Substack: Small Pleasures

Instagram: @sndy_snchz

Thank you for reading The Mood Board! It means so much to me that you are here, and I hope you found bits of inspiration here today. Say hi on Instagram here, shop my faves here, and read my other writing here. And if you want to buy me a coffee, you can do that here. :)

Upcoming Workshop: Intuitive Writing

·

Jun 24

Do you have lots of ideas for things you want to write about but don’t know where to begin? Do you feel like there’s something you can write about but you’re not sure exactly what? Do you want to write more but aren’t sure how to carve out the time?

The Mood Board #044

·

Jun 17

June so far has been so sexy and queer and fun, and I’m feeling so incredibly grateful. I’ve had fun celebrating Pride Month by going to my local pride parade, sending stupid memes to my queer friends, talking about being bisexual, and drinking an inhuman amount of iced lavender lattes with oatmilk.