Table of Contents
Do not index
It's been one of those weeks where I've wandered down unexpected tangents. You know how it goes: you start researching one thing, stumble across a question that makes you pause mid-scroll, and suddenly you're pondering something completely different that somehow feels more important.
Winter's settling in here in Kentucky - less sunlight, snow possibly coming Monday - which has me thinking more about the health changes I'm working through and what small choices actually matter.
So grab your coffee (or water, or whatever your drink is). Here's what's been on my mind.
Chasing Sunlight: My Vitamin D Journey
Winter's here, which means less sunlight, which means I've been thinking about vitamin D. If you're trying to get it from food, fatty fish are your best bet; just 3 ounces gets you about 95% of what you need for the day. Egg yolks, fortified milk, and orange juice help too. Here's more on vitamin D foods if you want the full list.
Most of us aren't getting enough. Thirty-five percent of American adults fall short. I'm one of them. Both my doctors, the ones in DC and the ones here, told me I wasn't getting enough, so I've been taking 1,000 IU supplements year-round. For people who are deficient, year-round supplementation is typically recommended since food and sunlight alone usually aren't enough.
Thanks for reading Toby Geeks Out!! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.
What really surprised me about the research on vitamin D: targeted vitamin D3 cut the chances of a second heart attack in half for people who'd already had one. I mean, I knew that not getting enough of something could mess with your health, but I had no idea vitamin D deficiency was tied specifically to heart health.
Since becoming diabetic, I've been eating two or three scrambled eggs every day for breakfast, part of keeping my blood sugar stable with regular meals. The eggs should help boost my vitamin D, too, and I'm working on finding more vitamin D foods that fit my diet. If I can raise my vitamin D levels, maybe I can eventually get off the pills.
If you're trying to boost your vitamin D without relying solely on supplements, spending 10-15 minutes in direct sunlight a few times a week can help your body produce it naturally. Speaking of which, I should probably get out of the house more for that. Eating fatty fish like salmon or tuna regularly also makes a difference. My problem is I don't eat fish as much as I'd like to, they perish quickly, which makes me resist buying them. But I love salmon, so I'm going to try to eat it more often.
What Food Defines You?
Speaking of food, I came across a question that's been rattling around in my brain.
There's this blog post from software engineer Cassidy Williams, where she asks people a question I can't stop thinking about. (Side note: she calls her daily December blogging "Blogvent," a portmanteau of "blog" and "advent," which I'm absolutely stealing for future use.)
"If Jesus's body and blood were bread and wine, what are yours?"
Her answer? Lasagna and a root beer float. Her husband went with fried chicken and boba. Friends and readers answered with everything from sushi and beer to fried plantains and Pepsi to Costco rotisserie chicken and a Manhattan cocktail.
What gets me about this question is that it's not really about your favorite foods. It's about what defines you. Williams says learning someone's answer helps her know that person better, and I get it. There's something revealing about which foods feel central to who you are versus which ones you just happen to like. When her husband threw her a surprise lasagna-and-root-beer-float party for her 34th birthday, she wrote, "I felt so known and loved."
Before I was diabetic, my answer would've been instant: fried chicken and Pepsi. Now? I'm still figuring out what represents me in this new reality. The drink would have to be the safe answer, water, but everyone loves water. I hope I'll find my favorite drink eventually. The food is harder to pin down when you're navigating what you can and can't eat anymore. I'm genuinely curious what my answer would be. And I'm more curious what yours would be, if you're reading this.
Mediterranean Sunshine for Under $4
I saw this kitchen renovation that made me stop scrolling: a London couple turned their IKEA cabinets into bright-yellow, striped beauties inspired by the towels and umbrellas at an Italian seaside hotel where they vacation every year. The genius part? They used painter's tape, not paint.
Dorian Caffot de Fawes (an antiques dealer) and his husband Thomas Daviet (an interior designer) wanted to bring some Mediterranean sunshine into their London home. They bought rolls of yellow painter's tape, under $4 on Amazon, and wrapped their cabinet doors in vertical stripes. It's durable enough to last but removable whenever they want something different.
Their tips: go vertical to keep it calming (horizontal stripes make your eye move faster), and match your stripe width to other design elements in the room so everything feels harmonious. If high-wear spots start peeling, just replace those sections.
I love how simple this is. Living in 480 square feet, I'm always looking for ways to add personality without locking myself into permanent decisions. This feels like the design equivalent of giving yourself permission to play around.
All Movement Counts (Even the Aimless Kind)
I love to walk. Back when I lived in DC, I'd spend hours on weekends just getting lost in the city with my camera, capturing whatever caught my eye. Those long, meandering walks were never about hitting a step goal; they were about exploring and discovering. Turns out all those hours of wandering were doing way more for my health than I realized at the time.
Two recent studies offer some encouraging news about movement and how it protects us, and the takeaway is that how and when you move matter less than moving itself.
One study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology tracked over 100,000 adults and found that people who took a single long walk each day had better cardiovascular outcomes than those who spread their steps across multiple shorter walks. Even when the total daily step count was the same, concentrating physical activity into a single session was linked to a lower risk of heart attack, heart failure, and stroke.
Meanwhile, a University of Gothenburg study followed over 4,000 Swedish women for 20 years and found something even more encouraging: any movement, no matter how light, can significantly reduce stroke risk. Women who were physically active had a 58% lower risk of stroke compared to inactive women. The key? The activity didn't need to be intense. Housework, gardening, casual walking, it all counted and helped.
Since moving back here, I don't get much chance to walk around like I used to. I miss it. But these studies remind me there's no single "right" way to be active. Whether it's one long walk or staying gently active throughout the day, consistent movement, in whatever form works for you, is what protects your heart and brain.
Bonus: A Moment of Beauty
I stumbled across this photo of Lago delle Baste in the Dolomites and had to share it. The contrast between that deep-blue alpine lake and the golden autumn grasses, with those dramatic Dolomite peaks rising in the background, is breathtaking. Sometimes you need to pause and appreciate something beautiful.
That's it for this week! See you next time.