In today’s “Cabin Fever Diaries,” we check in with Ashlee Margolis, the founder of the influencer agency, The A List. She’s currently spending lockdown with family on the West Coast and is using the time to learn new things and to literally stop and smell the roses.
Where are you right now and who are you with?
Beverly Hills, California, upstairs in my bedroom, which has become my home office. Downstairs are my three boys, my husband and our nanny who lives with us. I’m incredibly grateful for her.
Have you learned anything new about yourself or the person you are with since social distancing?
I’ve learned that my husband is even more amazing than I could have dreamed for. He’s been an incredible partner.
What has been the biggest change to your routine?
Driving less, working out more, and spending more time with my family. Before Covid, I dropped them off at school and barely made it home for dinner. Now I’m having three meals a day with them. It’s heaven.
What do you miss most about life before the quarantine?
I miss being in my showroom and interacting with people everyday, including my team because we’re all really close. I also miss being able to hug my family and friends.
What are you doing to decompress?
I’m trying to wind down the work day around 5:30, by ending it with a family walk and leave my phone behind. That afternoon walk really helps me shed all the work angst and connect with my family. It’s also such a beautiful time of day and I find myself appreciating nature more than ever. We are literally stopping and smelling the roses. Sometimes we steal them, too.
How are you staying active?
Every morning my husband and I hike in our neighborhood and then come home to do a Zoom class with one of our favorite yoga teachers, Tom Morley. We listen to the NYT Podcast “The Daily” or “Baby Beluga” when our 2-year-old dictator yells at us to play it on repeat.
How’s your sleep?
On nights I’m sober, I sleep pretty great. I do love some weed (Lowell Farms) and some wine (anything from Helens Wines), but I don’t sleep as well with either. I’m also trying to power down all devices as early as I can, but that’s easier said than done. The later I’m looking at my electronics, the harder it is for my brain to unwind.
What are you doing to help others?
I’ve been featuring small business owners and various charities on the A List Instagram account every week, doing Live [chats] with them and allowing them to do takeovers. I’m also making sure that everything we purge out of the house gets donated to various causes from Baby2Baby to just our canvas and paper bags for Communities in Schools, that needed bags to distribute essentials to those in need. As a family we delivered 60 meals to Children’s Hospital LA through an organization called Dine 11, who are also doing great work.
If you could be in self-isolation with anyone, who would it be?
I’m truly loving being with my family, but if I could add one more person to the mix, it would be my lymphatic massage therapist Lisa Gainsley. (@thelymphaticmessage). I’m missing her hands on my boobs and bod! I miss circulating the stagnation in my body.
What’s the weirdest thing you’ve found yourself doing since isolating?
I learned to use the oven. My mom still can’t believe it.
What are you most anxious about?
The uncertainty, the layoffs at the company of long-time employees who feel like family, and my parents and mother-in- law’s health.
What have you been watching on TV?
Unorthodox, Schitt’s Creek, John Oliver.
What have you been eating?
My house is Vegan. My husband has been making incredible sourdough and we are big on avocado toast. There’s definitely a strong rice and bean game happening here. We get our Mung Beans from Surya Spa in the Palisades and on nights we have desert, it’s always Coolhaus Vegan Ice Cream.
Have you accomplished anything since self-isolating?
I’ve purged almost every part of our house, starting with the old beauty products in my bathroom to the clothes in all of our closets. I have been meaning to make some Mac books of all our digital photos and i haven’t gotten there yet. Though I attempt every night to get started
What music have you been listening to lately?
The song Collateral Damage by Burna Boy on repeat. I can’t get enough.
How has the experience changed your outlook?
I am loving this pace and I don’t want to go back to the way I was grinding before. It wasn’t healthy for me and I wasn’t seeing my family enough.
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1 comment
Eww, get this hideous zionist monster off of my screen