Make this your resolution

Hey, it's Justin. And I want to kick off your 2023 on positive note [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Hey there everyone, it’s [Justin Ocean](, and by the time you read this, 2023 will be firework sizzling across the globe. Have you set any resolutions yet? This year, I only have one: to worry less and enjoy more. That’s no small feat given there’s a lot to in the news these days to get your scruff up: impeding recession, climate change, the next virus-du-jour, etc. etc. But if the last three years of pandemic life taught me anything, it’s not worth stressing about what we can’t control, and instead to take pleasure in the things we can. And in a major way, that means being satisfied with less. It’s kind of an odd attitude to have when I consider my job. In showcasing how you can live your best life—buy this [luxury bauble](, look at that [multimillion-dollar penthouse](, fly to this [private Caribbean island](—there can seem like an implication that if you aren’t (yet), you’re doing it wrong. Status anxiety omg! Just breathe… Illustration: Gizem Vural But it’s not true. Our coverage is meant to inspire, entertain and inform. It’s not meant to mandate anything. Have fun the way you want to, and when you want to splurge on the right occasion, we’ve got all the intel you’ll need. Here’s a small example of what I mean: What bottle of bubbly are you popping tonight? Did you splurge on [$500 vintage Dom](or did you grab a [$19 cava]( from the cold case? This evening I’m not drinking, so I went for [Töst](, a tea and berry nonalcoholic fizz, which reminds me in a nostalgic way of sipping Martinelli’s sparkling and feeling like the fanciest little lad in the land. But generally you’d find me grabbing something in the upper-middle of the price pack with a jazzy label. 12 other incredible nonalcoholic options for sober celebrating. Source: Three Spirit Drinks Because you know what? Wine is hard. It’s not what I chose to spend my time on. And I don’t know if I’d derive 2x, 5x, 10x the pleasure by spending that much more on a “better” bottle. If you are that person, Elin McCoy, our wine critic, [has columns](that will teach you more than you ever want to know about ultra-premium wines. (She also is an expert on [bargain wines](!) But I’m not. Liquor on the other hand, I do put in the time. Especially with these winning new rums, whiskies, vodkas, mezcals and more. Source: Vendors My dad likes to tell a story about finding overstock wine in a Central California dollar store and after buying a few bottles to taste in the parking lot, brought home cases of the best stuff. Later, he decanted it for a dinner with his snooty friends and they lapped it up, as well as the white lie that it was from a “little boutique winery” he discovered on his road trip. He’s probably exaggerating, but I like the truth in the tale: You know when something is gross and you know when something sings an aria in the pleasure centers of your brain. And then there’s everything in between…. Whenever I’ve had those brain zaps, that a-ha moment in which I finally “got wine” or “understood leather briefcases” or ate mind-blowing sushi in Japan, I invariably ended up thinking, “Wow, I’ve been buying sh-t all these years.” But the reality is that the gulf between “this is decent” and “this is incredible” is huge, and there’s a lot of perfectly fine stuff that only seems mediocre when you think about how amazing it could actually be. Every week you can navigate that gulf with our “The One” product reviews. Photographers (from left): Chelsea Kyle, Libby Volgyes, Janelle Jones In moments like that, remember to cut yourself some slack. It’s lucky to be able to try the amazing stuff occasionally, but it’s even more lucky to be satisfied with the stuff that’s just simply good. And there’s also a lot of really smart people with really big budgets to make you think otherwise. Which, if you’re still with me, is all to say: We’ve got you. Wherever it is you want to invest your money or your time, Team Pursuits will keep telling you about the great and the good, so that in 2023, you can worry less and enjoy more, too. Happy new year! Connect with Justin on [Instagram]( or [Twitter]( or [via e-mail](mailto:askpursuits@bloomberg.net). It’s hard to pick… But I’ll try. Here’s five of my favorite stories we published in 2022. [“How’d You Get That Car?”]( A 1965 Ford Ranchero pickup may be my new dream car. [Chefs Share Their Juneteenth Cookout Menus]( Rich visuals and interviews make for a very tasty read. [Why This Fund Manager Paid $15 Million for a Painting Estimated at $200,000]( This one won an award! [Dry-Aging Fish]( Not yuck! But also yuck. [One Thing Most People Don’t Know About Birding]( Bonus: There’s a related piece about petting baby whales. What else I’m enjoying. I saw [Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery]( in theaters and had so much fun, I just rewatched it at home on Netflix. Believe the hype! It really is better than the original. Live in a city? Need a quick nature break? [Getaway cabins](may be teeny tiny monuments to twee, but as far as just-pack-a-toothbrush vacations go, they couldn’t be easier or more comfortable. I may have told them it was my birthday... Photographer: Justin Ocean/Bloomberg I read Don DeLillo’s White Noise in college and like every insufferable Ivy Leaguer loved it so much. That was 20 years ago, so I can’t really say how well Noah Baumbach hits the adaptation mark, but his sharp [genre mashup of a film]( buzzes into your brain on its own lush merits. Better late than never: [Severance]( on Apple TV+ is the best series I’ve seen in years. It’s a surreal, stylish, sinister puzzle-box of a thriller that asks big questions and absolutely nails the landing. Remember to breathe during the season finale. And I can’t leave my soapbox without talking about fancy soap, [my favorite everyday luxury](. My latest liquid obsessions for winter: [Fir from Tangent GCÂ]((insanely piney) and [Amass Four Thieves]( (clove and eucalyptus). That’s a wrap. These are just a few highlights of the many year-end lists and essays we published. For even more, as well as intel on the year to come, [click on through](. [Five Powerful Places That Reminded Us Why Travel Matters]( [The Best Cars We Drove This Year]( [The 16 Best Dishes of 2022]( [... 13 Incredible Beers!]( [Our Favorite Luxury PhotosÂ]( [Just for Fun.... The 2022 Betting Odds (From January)]( And if you’ve got some time. Because you can’t find it all on Bloomberg, every year we honor our media peers, competitors and rivals with the the biggest compliment of all: jealously. Here’s 54 acts of [annoyingly great journalism.]( New for subscribers: Free article gifting. Bloomberg.com subscribers can now gift up to five free articles a month to anyone you want. Just look for the "Gift this article" button on stories. (Not a subscriber? 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