The magical week between Christmas and New Year’s is cherished down- time for The E List. We close up our laptops, ignore emails and, for the most part, get cozy on the couch. This year, however, I woke up on 12/23 to excruciating pain in my back and could barely get out of bed. Luckily my orthopedist (thank you, Dr. Mark Lorenze!) squeezed me in on Christmas Eve day and propped me up with some pain killers to see me through a plane flight and Christmas in Erie, PA with my in-laws. An MRI on the 29th revealed the cause: several bulging discs! The point of all this? I’m a girl who never stops. I can barely sit down without hopping up with another task to be completed. This crazy couple of weeks of doctors appointments and lying on the couch almost seemed like it was meant to be: a forced rest from the dizzying pace of publishing the list week in and week out, no matter what. I read a few books, wrote thank you notes, and started my new planner with goals and ideas for 2017. While I wouldn’t wish this on anyone, in my case, it wasn’t so bad, a chance to reflect on what really matters. Happy New Year, dear readers, and here’s hoping for a healthy one.