Nearly a year ago, I realized there was some chance I would be single in the semi-near future. I thought about what I enjoy and decided, naively, that I would buy a sailboat and learn to sail in the Caribbean. I liked the idea of trying something completely different from city life. New York is my favorite town but the cycle of life there can become unhealthy and draining. I thought a real break would be good for my mental and physical health.
I imagined that I would take to life at sea immediately. That I would swim and grill fish and dress in resortwear and make a ton of boating friends and never miss anything about my old life.
That has not been true. I love the ocean, I am learning a lot on the boat, I do not regret this adventure. But I also miss my friends and the convinces of city life. I miss getting dressed and expensive lattes and steak tartare and long lunches. I love writing these letters to you and I love creating Tiktok and Instagram content. But the nature of my content, particularly in Bahamas where there is less “fluff” like outfits and martinis to talk about, is that it is very personal and- at times- emotionally draining.
It became very clear to me on Monday that I needed to take a week off from creating content, including writing this newsletter. I am spending this time focusing on my physical and mental health, creating a more structured schedules for myself and for my content, and planning a trip back to the states where I can see friends and have a bit of a break from boat life.
The issue of time off for freelancers and influencers is difficult. I feel extremely fortunate to be able to make an income writing to all of you. It is truly my dream job and I am so fortunate that you all read what I have to say. I do not take my obligations to produce these essays lightly. I feel extremely guilty for taking this time off. Believe me, it was imperative. I’ll tell you more about it in due time.
In the spirit of that, I would like to offer to you all, as an apology, the same offer I made to my paid subscribers on Tuesday. If you have a paid subscription (or if you sign up for one by Saturday) and would like an additional month added to your account for free, you can email me at moxiebyhs@gmail.com. I will send you an email to confirm your added month over the weekend. I am so thankful that you are here and I hope you’ll stick with me. If you’d prefer to remain on only the free list, please know how much I value your support and accept my sincere apologies for skipping this week’s essay.
If you’d like some content in the mean time, I have a new podcast- Sense & Sensitivity- with the extraordinary creator Cece Xei whose Substack I’ve linked here. You can listen to the first episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. I hope you enjoy it!
Thank you all for your understanding and support. I love you so much.
Looking forward to being back next week,
Hannah Stella
I think its wonderful that you've determined you need some time and you're taking it. I think most of us struggle with that and doing, and saying it out loud helps us all do the same when we need it. xoxo
SOOOOO good you are consciously choosing to take a deliberate break. It’s really hard to do - take all the time you need. I love your content and reading this post made me love it even more.