No one should ever feel ashamed about how much they love books. Recently when some guy insisted that I stop reading immediately and put down my book, I ignored him and finished the chapter. He even tried to guilt trip me by saying he felt unsafe and that I should get another driving instructor.

Please keep doing vlogs, you actually motivate me to read more literature, and finish my degree. I typically don't comment. Your awesome

Drinking coffee, grading papers and watching the new Emma video...very civilized way to spend the morning. And hey, I always figure if I go crazy with my library card, it's saving me money! Libraries are amazing creations. And don't worry--Hemingway has been depressing people for the last hundred years, lol. Enjoy your week, Emma! 🙂P.S. Can't wait to read your book--let me know when I can order a signed copy!

Man, I'm not a reader, but I am trying to pick up some interesting books and changing this for the coming year. Thanks to your channel for inspiring this guy!

Living in the city is so so hard! When I've had to do it in the past I would break out crying all the time. The homesickness for trees and open nature spaces or even just the sight of a ladybug was overwhelming. Youre a strong woman for touching it out. Also can't wait for those writing vlogs!

paused at half way...a book??!!!! omg. just would love, love, LOVE a book by you. ok, now to finish lol

“and this book broke me” running to the bookstore asap

“Calcifer, I can’t believe you’ve done this!” haha I love your videos, they really bring my mood up and motivate me to read. ❤️

Seeing how obsessed you are about hotels. I am 100% sure you will love A Gentleman in Moscow. It was an amazing read. Without spoiling it, there is a hotel.

I absolutely LOVE aerial yoga. It helps a lot with back pain. I'd recommend trying it again and trying it at different times of the day. I tend to get headaches if I do aerial or circus classes at night and have no issues with morning classes, but it varies person to person.

It’s really strange when I hear that someone feels suffocated by the city life, since I’ve always lived in a city. And in the other hand, I feel super small and threatened when I’m in the middle of nature. I feel powerless and scared, but I know that it’s due to my not having the opportunity to be in nature😢 I feel that it is an opportunity to face out fears and challenge our minds to what they’re not used to❤

Emma you are wonderful! Have to just tell you that. I’ve been watching you for the last couple of years and you have really helped me become such a happy little reader. I read all the things I truly am interested in even if it’s strange to others, you gave me this new found freedom in novels and I appreciate you so much ❤ Also I recently tried Ariel! That’s so cool I hope you loved it as much as I did I had a blast and plan on doing it again. I’m sending you healthy vibes while you go through this health journey ✨

Writing a book? Instant buy from me. ❤. Also that DRESS! Stunning. And the Calcipher love this week. It reminds me of my little rescue girl I found last July. Warms my heart to the point of melting. 😻

" I am trying to write a book" the idea itself is just exciting.

omg emma!! the end of this vid made me smile so much, you're a fairy!! i totally get what you mean with anxiety in city/urban settings, went to the busy grocery store yesterday and wow!! it can be hard. soooooo excited about your book!! love the research you're doing and you're inspiring me to think about hotel aesthetics too. of course cal is the cutest as always! thanks as always for sharing your beauty light and honesty with us!!

I love the grocery haul and the check-in, thank you! it feels good to know about other parts of you - other than literature.

Nice long juicy vlog! 🍄 Happy Sunday Emma! Also, it really is such a lovely UPGRADE your new camera in your last several (and I know it’s probably more than 10 videos!) Calcifer is so darn big! 🥹 I think I might get a kitty too this year.

I'm so glad you are writing a book! Just earlier today I was watching Carolyne's video and when she mentioned her book I thought about her, that I can't wait to read her book and then I thought about you and wondered if you ever thought about writing. And now you say you did and you will write a book and I already know it is on my TBR too. I am happy for you guys - you said you started your chanels kinda at the same time and now you both are writing a book! I wish you all the best! P.S.: sorry if my English is not very good

I've been also struggling with anxiety and sadness since the start of this year. The fear of letting go has kept me from enjoying these first weeks of the year. I hope you can find your way to peace in your own self, and sometimes it includes anxiety and sadness now and then. I'm very glad to hear about your book!!!

Emma, you should check out ‘Moon Of The Crusted Snow’ by Waubgeshig Rice, it’s by an indigenous Canadian author and has a similar premise to ‘Leave The World Behind’ but in winter, I think you’d love it!!

hearing about your interest in hotels reminds me of when COVID hit i had to roadtrip 15+ hours to go and clear out my school dorm and on the way i had to stop at a hotel overnight and it was MASSIVE like meant for hundreds of people but because it was the pandemic it was completely vacant, like no one at all except a couple workers and it was one of the most haunting experiences ever, seeing a space meant to be full of life so empty, i felt like i was living in a post-apocalyptic universe, very liminal spacey! so happy for you and your book idea, what an exciting setting/topic!! love your videos

I think I speak for everyone when I say I would be the first in line to buy your book!!❤❤

My daughter goes to Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida. The dorms are in an old hotel called the Hotel Ponce de Leon that was built by Henry Flagler in 1888. It's a gorgeous place with a ton of history and it's haunted. You should add it to your list of hotel research. 💞

Omg Emma!!! I'm so happy to hear that you're planning on writing a book :) Hotels make such interesting settings, I can't wait to read it already ✨ I made a purchase from Lacemade recently too the dresses are so prettyyyyyy

Emmie inspired me this year to finally set my reading challenge goal to 85! It might not be a lot, but watching your vlogs make me feel motivated to read again :) thanks for another wonderful video, friend!

Emma's videos always brings so much joy

hi Emma :), my dad just opened a hotel and I'm currently obsessed with the literary possibilities in books about hotels whether that hotel is an extended metaphor or a Japanese magical realism style type of book. i think of 'after dark' by Murakami when i think of the type of hotel book i want to write with the whole concept night and day - thank you for that recommendation that book lives in my head rent free 😭😍 during a couple of weeks ago I was doing shifts from 3 to 11:30 at night and it's so fascinating the concept of booking strangers in a room to sleep and relax whilst people a downstairs working through the night. the possibilities when it comes to using juxtaposition OR using it to symbolize a particular philosophy of living or exploring the concept of feeling comfort and rest and how a hotel compares to domestic life. by working at a hotel you can essentially experience a fragmented part of someone's life. you can learn a lot about a guest an unusual mix of how they feel in the morning, to their relationship with their partners, family drama and home life. having to be professional limits the experience a bit i love your videos ☺sorry for the long comment that probably makes no sense we have a lot in common its comforting to see someone so openly share the things i love and also similar thoughts curiosities and desires ps, i have a tough English lit tutor any advice?

i think your passion for hotels is beautiful, i love them too, in movies, in books, in real life… there is some kind of beauty and magic and also mystery about them… i am so happy you will be writing your book , good luck Emma ❤ you got it ❤

Love that you're going to write a book where the story takes place in a hotel or about a hotel. I would definitely buy it!

Borges is quickly becoming my favorite author. His collection has been mind expanding for me! Exited for you to enjoy him as well.

Oh my gosh! You are writing a book! Carolyn is writing a book! How amazing!!!! 😃😃

thank you emma for always inspiring and motivating me when it comes to my readings >

It's such a joy seeing you having fun with those hotel themed books. I know and cherish the feeling of necessity of weird research. It is 1) really fun 2) never in vain 3) changes you. The more you research the things you like, the more they grow on you, the more we become ourselves. Good luck with the new project! And the corridor book looks too intriguing!

Ahhhh, reading random textbooks to research for a novel idea is my favourite part of the writing process! In fact, I rarely get beyond that point. 😂 I wish you better luck! Also, almond butter is my favourite food. 😋

Toronto folks in need of nature and quiet small town life, there are some pretty and relaxing nature trails and waterfront to enjoy in Port Credit. There’s also a quaint little strip of shops you can walk through. The old part of the town is heritage protected and can’t be built up. Port Credit is a little lakeside town in Mississauga and only 25-30 min GO Train ride from Union station on the Lakeshore West Line. Port Credit was how I survived working in Toronto.

your vlogs are such a great comfort! usually I'm not the one of long vlogs but I'm always looking forward to yours and never want them to end. there is just something so calming about them and soothing about your voice 🥰

it’s been a while since I watched one of these and so much has changed !! reminded me how much I miss your channel and how much comfort and joy it always brings me to watch these little snippets of your everyday life

your videos are such a comforting thing to watch

I should be working right now but couldnt resist starting my day with an emma vlog and a cup of tea. Thank you for being you and sharing your life with us!

your videos bring so much light to my day i love you and this channel so incredibly much

Ahhh the clothes look amazing!! So great seeing you get excited over doing your own research for topics your passionate about

Your weekly vlogs are my comfort place on youtube!

Thank you for talking about mh so openly on your channel! I think its something we all go through and its almost a relief to know that other people go through it too, and you're not alone! Also ahhh, I'm scared to read A Farewell To Arms now 😂 I've not really tried Hemingway yet, I've just read one very short story by him 'Hills like white elephants' and learnt about his 'iceburg' style, so I'm curious to see what a full novel is like!

This vlog has immaculate vibes💗 and you look so happy and beautiful in those pieces!

Really nice video. Watching this suddenly reminded me of your older videos of that first apartment. I loved that vibe, specially that view from the balcony, it was whole different. It's hard to believe how time passes and things change. I'm happy that you're trying new things and moving forward. Don't forget to share if you do some baking.

Emma, I love you and your videos so much. They've motivated me to read again. I have lots of your recommendations on my tbr but I recently purchased House of Leaves and The Phantom of the Opera because you've made them seem especially thrilling to read. I can't wait. Thank you.

I loved this video! I only recently found your channel as I got more into reading and all of the videos are so relaxing and nice. Thank you for motivating me to read more this year!!

ive got a new emma video and a rly good cup of coffee this is the perfect morning

emma you are so special and so freaking precious. these videos help so so much. just...thank you.

I think you should be living in Prince Edward Island, in a beautiful cottage, cozy fire and rooms filled with books..

a very welcome video on this depressing and cold Sunday :)

Borges is everything to me; he waltzed into my life in my early 20s and he gave me wings, along with the iridescent things on wings. I have never wept tears of gratitude as I have with Borges, literally muttering under my breath 'thank you' over and over again in between pages. I still catch myself repeating or recalling some of his pithy phrases whenever I feel blue. Borges is medicinal in every respect. Please read his interviews (conversations) when you have the time. They brought me so much joy, and the world of literature owes a great deal to him. He makes me laugh just as much as he makes me weep. I have an entire shelf dedicated to him, and I will never tire of his short stories, poetry, musings, and most of all, his humanity. Have fun :) I envy you for having the privilege and the luxury of reading and discovering him for the very first time. then again, rereading Borges always feels like the first time - one is never fully done with Borges, one dies and is perpetually resurrected with Borges - like an artichoke, he is multifold... and, one finds yet again, another artichoke right smack in the middle . Happy New Year, and happy reading!

ok first i love your fairy dress sooo muchhhh❤ and second good luck with writing your book i'm so excited and i can't wait to read it 🧡

youe vlogs are my happy place

you, your aura and your personality 🤌 you're just so beautiful 🧿🧿

Love it when our erudite and beautiful host tells us about her life.

Glad to know I’m not the only one with a weird fascination with hotels and similar liminal spaces! So excited to see where your writing project goes :)

I'm so glad I'm not the only person who is obsessed with hotels!! That is such a cool thing to learn about you!

I'm not sure if you have read 'A Gentleman in Moscow ' by Amor Towles. It is set in a hotel. The main character is on hotel arrest during the Soviet era.

My heart melts for your kitty!! I’ve got three of my own and love them to bits. Your hide and seek with him is so cute!! I’m here for the books but live for your kitty!

Hey Emma!! This month is also hectic for me. My ptsd and anxiety triggered me so much but I am doing better now. I am trying to read Farewell to Arms but it is my final week, and I am english lit. major so I have to read so many other books.. I have Shakespeare exam tomorrow!!! Thank you for this video, you really make me feel so serene. I forgot all of my problems while watching your videos💖🌸 Have a good day/night!

I enjoyed hanging out with you in this video, I like your enthusiasm for learning and you and your cat are a gift to each other.

I'm so excited you are finally reading Borges!!! :)

I get so much anxiety when being around a lot of people in very busy places as well. Thankful for this video from you.

EMMA i was so happy when you said you want to write a book!!!!!! so so happy for you

i'm really excited for your book, but also calcifer is the sweetest, bestest boy 😭

Ooooh a long vlog! Yay! I love this! And I felt *kilig* when you said that some people are not jiving with Hemingway's writing style because that was my comment on your IG post! (: I finished A Farewell to Arms already, and agreed. That ending was so raw and strong!

😩😩😩😩 ahhhh , i miss you're vlogs 🥺❤️

I remember finishing A Farewell to Arms a couple of minutes before a English class. So I had to hold in a waterfall of tears for over forty minutes before getting home and crying my eyes out. And being a guy it was also the first time I had fully cried in a LOOONG time. If felt great and horrible at the same time.

I loved your transparency with anxiety. Something I struggle with too! After working all day, I often have to go to my kids sports games and sitting there surrounded by people and having to try to make small talk stresses me out so much lol all I want to do is go hide at the top of the bleachers with my Kindle lol. I always try to repeat the wise words of Adriane from yoga with Adriane when she says “ok party people...my anchor is my breath, my breath is my anchor..” just wanted to say, you are not alone! ❤ loved the vlog and best wishes on your new writing journey!

So exciting that you're planning to write a novel! Hoping to see writing vlogs from you, they are so motivating for me as a writer :)

I am a new (and french) subscriber, and I watch your videos everyday, you are so calming et seems so nice, I love your work. My boyfriend is hearing about you everyday haha

Hi Emma! I am so happy you tried aerial yoga! I've been doing it for almost 3 years now and I am obsessed. The nausea or headache from the invertions does go away, just listen to your body and don't stay upside-down too long! Hope you will try again ❤️

omg i'm so happy you're reading Borges!!

As someone who has only been to hotels a handful of times , I totally get your fascination with them , I see them kind of like trains or long haul coaches and a liminal spaces I rarely enter. also cant wait for your book , will be the easiest book purchase to make 😊and hope you have a great week.

I needed this vlog after a frankly bad week. ❤

The peace you bring to my Sundays (and any other day) when you upload is unmatched. Totally random, but did you hear that Netflix made a movie out of Leave the World Behind? You're the reason I read the book, and I loved it - and I know you enjoyed it as well. It's not out until December of this year, but I am looking forward to it!

Love your check-ins and lifestyle stuff ♥️

the third policeman! 😍 One of the trippiest book i ever read.

BORGES??? I had your video on while I was cleaning my room and I was vaguely hearing what you were saying (I’m sorry I love your videos though) and I couldn’t understand what author you were talking about. I check the screen and I see the Borges book! Omg 😭❤️❤️❤️ I’m Argentinian and I love his work! We study him and Cortázar during secondary school. Everything he has written has impacted me so much! I’m so happy to see you are enjoying his work ❤️

I worked in hotels for a collective 8 years, mostly overnights. There are so many stories to tell!! They were all basic chains though, nothing grand or historical. But still, they are such interesting and haunted liminal surreal places, especially when everyone is asleep.

I heart Calcifer content!!

I love that Borges collection - I read it a few years ago. It's worth noting that the first collection (A Universal History of Iniquity) is rather different from most of what follows, so even if for whatever reason you find yourself not loving those ones, it's still worth continuing with the others.

Why are you so calm? I really enjoy your videos.

i miss your writing vlogs. they were so atmospheric and never failed to motivate me to write.

Calcifer❤️ is the cutest !

I'm so looking forward to the discussion on A Farewell to Arms! Can't wait to start Once There Was a War, I fell in love with Steinbeck last year, but I want to actually hold off until next month.

🛐 the way I clicked on the video. I love your content so much. 😌💜💛

Hi Emma, I’m praying for your anxiety to go away, but also know you are not what you feel, your anxiety does not define you, it will pass. You are beautiful and precious in His sight!❤Have a great day!

Yooooo I initially found your channel through your writing vlogs! I feel like the first one I watched was a July Camp NaNo one where you were on vacation with your family? In the woods somewhere maybe? Anyway, I would love to see them make a comeback! ✨

Good for you for trying something new at the gym. I could totally relate to how you felt about trying a new activity

Reading Borges in Toronto - that strikes a familiar chord with me. Years ago, I was in Toronto for a week of classes, and bought Borges’s _Ficciones._ I read stories from it in my hotel room, and in restaurants during the week.

Borges is amaaaazing! 💖 That dress is so beautiful too! 😍

hi emmie!! id love to see more cooking / what i ate in a day included in your vlogs im low on alot of my vitamins so ive been trying to incorporate a more diverse diet with fruits , veggies etc. i think seeing some quick vegan recipes in your vlogs would be really inspirational :))

love the new water bottle, and yes, it is big

Hey Emma, I'm new to this channel, I've only been watching since the end of 2022. But your recommendations and passion has invaded my life in such an intense way. I am so excited to see your videos pop up on my feed (especially your Agatha Christie solving the mystery vid! So far my absolute fav!). I play you in the background as I begin my day and it's like having my friend updating me on their day, as well as calcifer meowing back at my own two black cats! You are also the first person I've ever found to know my favorite childhood book series (The dark hills divide). Keep making at your pace. I love them. Just wanted to let you know. That I have you on my mind and on my heart with all your joy and struggles. And because maybe you will read this, here is a fun recommendation for a swedish author about a proud and perhaps naughty (not in the sexy way) old lady. An Elderly Lady is Up to No Good by Helene Thursten Hi again from Seattle 🦥📚

SOO EXCITEEDDD FOR YOU EMMAAAA.......

Borges, my favorite writer

I'm super curious about what kind of book you will write! Exciting! :)

i was planning on reading Hemingway for the rest of the month but ended up finishing it in four day. so good!!