What’s your ‘grandma hobby’?

Good morning. I’m Jenna Perlman, a video producer at the Globe, here to explain why calling a young person a grandma isn’t as much of an insult as you think.

But first, here’s what else is going on:

• The federal government acknowledged that immigration agents violated a court order when it quickly deported a Babson freshman en route to her home in Texas for the holidays.
• Time Out Market in the Fenway was the city’s first modern food hall. Managers of the 27,000-square-foot space have told its vendors that the market will shutter its doors on Jan. 23, Janelle Nanos reports.
• Why did Boston shelve building a long-planned laboratory and affordable housing for a new high school? Mayor Michelle Wu has a plan, Shirley Leung writes, no matter what the neighbors think.

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TODAY’S STARTING POINT

What’s old is new again.

People like me, in their 20s and 30s, are leaning into so-called “grandma hobbies.” That includes everything from crocheting and knitting to bread baking, gardening, and canning. Hobbies that fell out of popularity with boomers but have come back in full force with millennials and Gen Z.

This is not a new trend by any means. USA Today dubbed 2025 the year of “Grandma core,” and in 2026, there’s no sign the trend is going anywhere. There are millions of videos online of young people proudly baking sourdough, sewing their own clothing, and tending to houseplants.

But the question is why. After all, we can find anything we need year-round.

The answer, I think, is that grandma hobbies are the antithesis of our hectic, unpredictable, and high-anxiety environment. These hobbies promote mindfulness and slowness in a mindless and fast-paced world.

We are living in an age of information and stimulation that humans have never encountered before. The average adult spends seven hours a day looking at screens, according to a 2024 study. The CDC found that one in five adults say they feel anxious, and Google searches for words like “mindfulness” have increased over the past couple of decades.

In a time full of overstimulation and doomscrolling, grandma hobbies bring people out of their phones and into the real world. You can’t scroll if you’re hands-deep in yarn or covered in dough.

These hobbies also build community. I hold craft nights at my house, where friends and I sit in a circle in my living room, catch up, and make things. It’s a time for us to be present, enjoy each other’s company, and remember what’s important in life.

There’s also a sense of nostalgia – a yearning for a time that felt simpler, slower, and more intentional. So much of life right now feels disposable, digital, and arbitrary. There’s comfort in making something tangible with your hands.

Friends call me a grandma. They mean it as a joke, but I take it as a compliment. Calling me mindful, steady, and stable? That’s a win in my book.

Maybe being a grandma isn’t about your age at all. Perhaps it’s about choosing calm over chaos, presence over productivity, and finding joy in real, tangible things.

Thinking about starting some grandma hobbies? Here are my favorite local spots:

• Make and Mend in Somerville: It’s a double-whammy. The secondhand art and craft store lets you thrift and create at the same time.
• Gather Here, also in Cambridge, offers craft supplies, but also advice and community.
• Kitchenwich in Jamaica Plain has everything a baker could possibly need.
• Allandale Farm is a place for plants, seeds, and fertilizers for your garden.
• Your local hardware store: I swear, they have almost everything. Canning jars and lids, soil, actual hardware, even friendly neighbors and employees who will answer your silly questions.

Do you have a hobby that you love? Email us! We’d love to know what it’s added to your life.

🧩 8 Across: Contradict | ☁️ 50° Scattered showers

POINTS OF INTEREST

She helped feed Boston: Over 30 years, she engineered the growth of the Greater Boston Food Bank to get meals to those in need. A search is underway to fill the shoes of “national treasure” Catherine D’Amato.

ICE killing: Six US prosecutors in Minnesota quit after the Trump administration urged them to focus on the background of Renee Good’s widow in the probe of the slaying. Also, with clashes rising, it’s “like a military occupation“ in the city.

Tiny value, big headache: Massachusetts stores are struggling with the demise of the penny. Some are begging customers to sell them their one-cent coins.

Not a bargain, but ‘less’ costly? Is January still the best time to buy a home around Boston?

Boosters: A group of Massachusetts tech companies, including Whoop and DraftKings, formed a coalition to promote AI business expansion in the state.

Next up, Texans: The Patriots will have to find a way past the best defense they have faced all season to take the division championship Sunday — and keep their postseason drive alive.

A controversial past: Michael Drescher prosecuted two cases of students detained by ICE on flimsy reasons before their release. Now Drescher, who departed from the US Justice Department and was nominated to the Vermont Supreme Court, is speaking out ... a little bit.

Drought: Despite recent rains, drought is deepening throughout Massachusetts. Worst-hit: Nantucket and the north-central part of the state.

Mississippi coverup? The US, investigating fraud in blue states, quietly shelved a massive welfare fraud investigation in red-state Mississippi involving public funds diverted to former NFL quarterback Brett Favre and others. (HuffPost)

Carbon: In a reversal from previous years, the United States spewed 2.4 percent more heat-trapping gases from the burning of fossil fuels in 2025 than the year before. A cool winter and the rise of energy-hogging data centers and cryptocurrency mining were cited for the rise.

BESIDE THE POINT

By David Beard

🦸 A working mom’s new superpower? How moms (and dads) are discovering AI’s potential to organize a hectic household. I can hear my Aunt Barbara, no fan of trends, wisecracking: “But can it change a diaper?”

🍿 Winter movie guide: Odie Henderson gives us a rundown of the season’s hot films, which feature Rachel McAdams sending for help, Alexander Skarsgård in a leather-filled love story, and a slew of edge-of-your-seat movies.

💌 Love Letters: “I have feelings for a friend, but she can be kind of mean.”

🎂 Birthday Eats: This couple shares a birthday. Here are the five restaurants they have agreed upon over the years to celebrate at. Also, what it’s like to eat, once again, at Cafe Sushi Nisei.

👅 The world’s most popular language: Hint: It is not the native language for nearly three-quarters of its speakers. What is it? (Visual Capitalist)

🎤 RIP John Forté: The musician, producer, and composer, best known for his work for the Fugees and on two recent documentaries, died suddenly on Martha’s Vineyard. He was 50 and leaves behind two children.

💭 ‘Dilbert’ and disgrace: Scott Adams created a beloved comic strip, but his empire self-destructed with his increasingly racist and far-right commentary. Adams at 68. (AP)

Thanks for reading Starting Point.

This newsletter was edited by David Beard, who is listening to “Davy Crochet” by The Backseat Lovers.

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