It's Time to Upgrade Your Life (We'll Help)

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In today’s email:

• Skin Tint and SPF: A simplified summer beauty routine. 🌞 

• Houseplants: Plant Mom, your babies need space. 🪴

• Happiness: The characteristics of the happiest Americans.

• The Four Horseman: Of communication in relationships 😔.

• Culture: 🎶 It’s in the air — an interview with my favorite cellist of the Pittsburgh Symphony

BEAUTY: Great combos of history — PB and jelly, Batman and Robin, milk and cookies, Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy — and a skin tint with SPF. SPF is non-negotiable to slow aging. Plus it’s efficient - it’s two AM beauty routine steps in one! This seems to be the internet’s favorite (you’ll have to actually go in to match your skin tone). This one has squalane and hyaluronic acid for ultra-moisture. Place a pea-size amount in 5 places — your forehead, on your left and right cheeks, your chin, and your neck (decolletage).

For super sheer coverage, just layer tinted moisturizer over this SPF.

PLANTS: Green thumb bliss or black thumb blues? 🪴 Either way — it’s the time of year for effective repotting. Mid to late spring is ideal to repot so that your plants can continue their beautiful growth. They need the summer to spread roots through the new soil. You’re going to need a few things — potting soil, gloves (especially if you’re cactii or a plant with an irritating sap), a watering can, a new pot, and a repotting mat.

Here’s the step-by-step.

HAPPINESS: What do happy people have in common? The 12% of respondents in a recent survey calling themselves “very happy” were asked by the Wall Street Journal, and here is what they said (these might surprise you):

• Marriage - 67% of very happy people said marriage was very important to them (comparied to only 43% of overall respondents in the survey).

• Religion - They believe in God. 66% of very happy people called themselves religious. Less than half of the other survey respondents said the same.

• Older - People 60 and older accounted for 45% of the happiest people, even though they made up only 30% of overall respondents.

• Exercise - The very happiest prioritize fitness and exercise compared to the rest of the respondents.

What wasn’t that important to happy people? Political party or affiliation. Most of them just don’t care that much. 🙂

RELATIONSHIPS: The Gottman Institute calls these 4 communication style relationship killers — they call them “The Four Horseman” because they bring about the end of relationships.

They are criticism, contempt, defensiveness, and stonewalling. We’ve all done them at one time or another. 😒 If your relationship communication is suffering, it may be because you are resorting to one of the horseman. There’s a lot to unpack here, but maybe start with this helpful chart of “antidotes”:

• 📚 Every Pulitzer Prize for Fiction winner of the 21st century.

• How to snack Italian style — perfect for spring picnics and lemoncello.

• Square? Oval? Circle?😵‍💫 We got your coffee table woes covered.

• How to elevate a cheap dress. Hint: You need Bettina. 🔥

• The essentials for arranging cut flowers into beautiful bouquets.

I’m still learning these myself - believe me. But, I’m starting to think all of our “adult” problems can be avoided (or at least mitigated) if we:

• Pray.

• Regularly work out.

• Eat real food.

• Get outdoors for a minimum of 30 minutes every day.

• Cultivate 3 close friendships.

• Live below your means.

  - Mr6am

☝🏼Can I get an “Amen”?

And now for injection of culture, beauty, and wisdom: our interview!

💞Meet Karissa Shivone, cellist for Pittsburgh Symphony💞

Karissa Shivone is wife to Thomas Shivone (an unbelievable father, opera singer, real estate agent, teacher, and whiskey enthusiast). Together Thomas and Karissa reside in Pittsburgh with their beautiful 20 month old daughter and another sweet soul on the way. When she’s not spending time with her lovely family, Karissa loves to grab coffee with friends, arrange flowers, and paint. Karissa is finishing her seventh season as a cellist with the Pittsburgh Symphony (PSO) and kindly agreed to share the beauty of her profession with us at Mrs6am.

What was your first year like working with the Pittsburgh Symphony? My first year with the PSO was a wild ride! I landed the job at the tail end of my junior year of undergrad, so I had to figure out how I would start playing in the orchestra and also finish my degree in Los Angeles. I commuted about once a month to Los Angeles from Pittsburgh. I would hop off the plane at LAX, go straight to Blue Bottle Coffee and then into a lesson with my legendary teacher, Ronald Leonard. In hindsight I think it was great preparation for the intense European tours with the PSO that I would later get to experience!

I will truly never forget that first rehearsal of Mahler’s 5th Symphony. I know it sounds cliche, but it felt like I had stepped into a Ferrari! I was hooked instantly!

Other than working with amazing professionals and traveling, what is your favorite thing about playing in a symphony? I absolutely love getting to spend my career playing some of the greatest pieces of music ever written. We recently performed and recorded Mozart’s Requiem for future CD release. I was holding back tears after each performance! Only a few short weeks prior, we had the inimitable Yo-Yo Ma soloing with us and he generously agreed to perform a piece with just the PSO cello section! It was definitely one of those “pinch me” moments.

I have to ask: how has your cello playing changed while you were pregnant and after you had your first child? Playing the cello at the end of pregnancy is definitely a challenge since your belly starts to make it difficult to reach high notes! It was quite liberating to play the cello again after my daughter was born, and I could play my normal range. I also felt a lot more comfortable taking risks after having her because I could always tell myself, “This is not nearly as difficult as childbirth!” I’ve had to be more creative with finding practice time while raising her, but my incredible husband is also extremely hands on with her and makes it all possible for us!

Tell us, the laywomen, what you wish your non-music friends understood more about the symphony? I wish there was more awareness of the joy, hope, comfort, and healing that can be experienced by attending the Symphony. I recently heard one of our patrons say so eloquently that the PSO ministers our community through the beauty of music. What a gift! I also wish more people in Pittsburgh understood what a gem of an orchestra we have here in this city! Lastly, attending the symphony is one of the last remaining experiences in our world where you escape any kind of screens and cell phone usage. I believe that’s something our culture needs desperately; the chance to sit and experience beauty without any other distractions.

Any hacks/tips on how to attend a symphony? Each symphony hall has seats where the acoustics might be a little more ideal. I find that sitting upstairs at Heinz Hall gives you both a beautifully blended sound from the orchestra as well as a wonderful view to be able to watch all of the players. I would suggest spending a little bit of time listening to the work on Spotify or YouTube.

Many of us are trying to expose our children to beauty through music. How can we nurture a love for classical music? I would say… Go to any weekend at the Pittsburgh Symphony! Experiencing music live is deeply impactful for children. My parents took me to my hometown orchestra, the Seattle Symphony, all the time as a kid and it’s what made me fall in love with music. Online resources are a great way to prepare for going to a concert but it truly can’t replace the beauty of attending in person. I grew up before any of those platforms were prominent and I’m actually thankful for that!

Thank you, Karissa, for your inspiration, encouragement, and witness!

If you’re like us and can’t get enough of Karissa, give her a follow at @karissashivone and @pghsymphony on insta. And yes, she’s one of those gorgeous people, inside and out. I had the PRIVILEGE to experience her playing this Dvorak piece, and my children and I were blown away.

If you liked this interview and want more, hit “reply” and let me know who you want to hear from next.

Ciao, my friends!