What it looks like to embody Delusional December

For those stateside, today marks the final stretch of what was hopefully a long weekend filled with rest, reconnection, and really good leftovers. I got back to the West Village last night after my Thanksgiving travels to Virginia feeling so ready to sink into the city’s full-blown holiday magic for the next ten days before I’m wheels-up to Australia.

Today also marks is also the last day or so of BFCM sales. While I’m personally feeling a bit shopped out (!!!!), in case you missed the last two editions of The Sunday Series, be sure to check out Your Black Friday Cheat Sheet and 88 *NICHE* Gift Ideas for Very Particular People. FWIW, the most popular items have been the Hatch Alarm, Lingua Franca’s ‘Meet Me at the Bookstore’ sweater, the Sabre set, and the TheraBody LED Face Mask. And as always, everything I’ve mentioned (plus a few new finds) live on my ShopMy!

• What it means to embody Delusional December

• Journaling prompts to dig into Delusional December

• The Vault (Paid Subscriber Exclusive): What I’ve been watching and loving these days!

December 1st. The final chapter of the year. The moment when everything feels both sparkly and slightly unhinged. In that vein, I’m officially declaring this month: Delusional December.

by Case Kenny

Not delusional as in ignoring reality—delusional as in choosing the better narrative. Dreaming a little louder. Letting yourself believe in possibilities that feel one size too big. December is already a time of romanticization, but this year? There’s a deeper undertone, a sense of “something is shifting,” even if the shift is still just under the surface.

Part of that is because we’re in the final stretch of the Year of the Snake. In the lunar calendar, the new year won’t begin until February 17th, when the Year of the Horse finally kicks off. But these last months—November, December, January— form a kind of energetic runway. Snake years are all about shedding, releasing, reorienting, and quietly setting foundations. The Horse is movement, momentum, intuition, and boldness. But we’re not there yet…we’re in the liminal space.

This timing makes Delusional December feel perfectly timed. It’s the month to start thinking like the Horse even though we’re still technically in Snake season. To let your imagination stretch a little ahead of reality. To believe in the “next version” of yourself before the calendar catches up.

What does that look like?

• Acting as if change is already on its way. Even if you can’t see it yet.

• Letting the month be softer than the year was. Snake energy is intense; December can be gentle.

• Treating your goals like inevitabilities instead of hypotheticals.

• Romanticizing the seemingly mundane things. Grocery runs, the last pages of a book, reorganizing your Notes app.

To fully embody this notion of Delusional December, naturally, I’m going to suggest putting pen to paper. Here are five prompts to guide your writing as you sink into this mentality this month.

1. How would I act differently if I truly trusted the timing of my life?

2. What’s one thing I can loosen my grip on?

3. What did this year quietly prepare me for?

4. What small shift would make December feel softer and more aligned?

5. What am I ready to shed before the Year of the Horse begins?

Welcome to Delusional December. Let’s make it deliciously unrealistic…in the best way possible.

My toxic trait? Thinking I don’t watch that much TV… and then realizing I’ve watched the vast majority of scripted series everyone is talking about. So, here are the shows and films I adored this year.

Your Friends and Neighbors: Apple TV

This show nails the dark side of accumulation—money, status, ambition—and how those pursuits can quietly warp even the most “normal” suburban lives. I loved its commentary on the slippery slope between aspiration and obsession. It’s one of those series that leaves you thinking long after the credits roll.