I spent the birthday weekend doing what I do best — bopping around NYC, shopping until my heart’s content, consuming beverages — because I firmly believe that doing your best/favorite thing on your birthday is vital to a life well lived. But with each activity and each bop, I also tried to instill some change. I shopped around a neighborhood I don’t usually wander to, I bought an expensive necklace (more on that later!) that I loved but would usually hesitate committing to, I picked a restaurant for lunch off the street without any research ahead of time, I went to multiple stores where I felt the itch to buy something just because and held back to admire rather than rush, I made a spur of the moment cocktail and had my friend/neighbor over for an impromptu mini happy hour (PJs, no theme, not even a candle), I spent an hour roaming the book store without a time limit and let myself buy a combo of books and magazines rather than just one thing, I didn’t think about the pressure and stress of my job for three whole entire days, I tried a new restaurant in my neighborhood with a friend who I never get one on one time with.

In many ways and written on paper and watched through my Instagram stories, it felt like the most typical Serria weekend to exist. But even Saturday morning as I made my coffee and started this Substack post, I could feel something a little different: change.

A really new venture I took this year, that is now officially a birthday tradition of mine, was to choose a new perfume to blanket the year ahead. I’ve long loved fun body mists — long live Bath & Body Works, I am your biggest fan, please bring back the Mad About You scent!!!!! — and graduated into formal perfumes in my late 20s, but I’ve never been one to spend a lot of time or money on one statement scent. But when I saw an influencer (shout out ) share that she does this on her birthday, it spoke to me! I went to Nordstrom on a Monday at 11am and the store was basically empty, I took my time strolling counter to counter and sniffing fragrance to fragrance, I hemmed and hawed and touched 100 beautiful bottles. After what seemed like ages but was likely an hour, I finally landed on one — it felt warm and rich and young and fun and subtle and strong, something I never really associated with scents before, let alone something I’d buy. But as I stood in front of the the rows of shiny bottles and glass cabinets, sniffing my wrist and watching her box it up, I could feel something a little different there too: change.

I had dinner with my friends last night to celebrate my turning 33 — as if spending a small fortune across NYC wasn’t enough. I had a cosmo like I always do, and steak like I always do, we had tomatoes and gossiped and laughed like we always do, I had cake like I always do (more on that later!). And, like we always do, we played a little game where I ask them my friends to share their favorite thing about me (I realize I sound like an insane person but I swear every person should do this on their birthday!!!!! It’s a very fun time!!!!) and the responses felt different this year, maybe because they were really different or maybe because I was, I’m not sure.

And at the end of the meal, with my heart and belly and liver and head full, I declared it would be a year of new things and challenges and risks and learning for me. And I am scared! And I am excited! And I am anxious! And I am ready! Something in my body and in my head, something in the foundation I’ve been laying for years, something in the grounded sense of who I am becoming, is telling all telling me to brace for something big this year: change. 💌

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🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

Ina Garten’s new show: Yes, you read that right!!! In case you missed the announcement on her Instagram, Ina is dropping a new podcast called “Happy Hour” beginning September 16th!!! You guys… It’s in her NYC apartment? It features cocktails? She is definitely going to make cosmopolitans??? As someone who loved her memoir and watches old episodes compilations of Ina (and Martha) on YouTube, I am so freaking thrilled about this new series that I will gobble up like the store-bought Turkey Ina would tell me is fine. This joyous news comes on the heels of Whishbone Kitchen’s new Netflix series, which is another cheer for me because I watched the first episode this week and am already deeply invested. The more long-form, episodic, cozy cooking content for my smooth little brain to soak up, the better.

Susan Alexandra: I made my maiden voyage to the Susan Alexandra store this weekend and was pleasantly met with all the whimsy and colors and lunacy that I was pitched to me via my Instagram and TikTok feeds. To me, upon walking in, this felt like one of those Cool Girl brands that I would only ever love on the internet or admire women wearing around SoHo, but not really see myself getting to participate in. The store was STUNNING — every square inch packed wall to wall with out of the box and slightly insane themes, designs, patterns, products — and I left with a necklace I’m obsessed with. Turns out I am the cool girl I wanna see in SoHo, who knew? 10/10 recommend making a lil stop in if you haven’t before.

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Furious on Hulu: I know I mentioned it in last week’s Desk Dispatch, but if you aren’t watching this show then you are truly being left behind. It’s an incredibly written and acted and directed show, depicting female rage and incompetent law enforcement and messy trauma in such perfect detail I cannot look away. Emmy Rossum, Lola Petticrew, Quincy Tyler Bernstine — just give them all 100 Emmys right now!!!!! Not to mention, the creator & showrunner Elizabeth Meriwether is the woman who also created New Girl (an all time fave sitcom of mine) and No Strings Attached (a top tier romcom in my rotation) so turns out she is a genius knows no bounds or genres. The season finale dropped yesterday (as a birthday gift to me, duh), so you can binge the whole thing at once and it’s already been renewed for season 2, so… literally what are you waiting for???

🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

Poor naming practice from parents: I am so sick of you people naming your kids one thing with the outright plan to call them another. Nicknames naturally arise, we all know this — in classrooms, after parties, at the office, during holidays; from friends, from enemies, from teachers, from parents. It’s a natural part of growing up and growing into who you are, it’s how the world imprints onto you, it’s something you can never escape for as long as you try. And so what really irks me is when parents, out of the gate, naming their kid with the intention to call them something else. Now I don’t mean Jonathan to Jon or Elizabeth to Liz, I mean the ones where the original name is something long and unique (aka bizarre) or a familiar name they pick (aka are guilted into) where they have to tell us what they would really like to call their child but seemingly don’t have the guts to name them. “We’re naming her Eloise, but we’ll call her Ellie.” “We’re naming him Cornelius, but we’ll call him Neil.” “We’re naming him Maximilian but we’ll call him Max.” Just name the flipping kid what you want to refer to them as and call it a day, folks!!!!!! Do not override the lived experience they gain by getting their own nickname at their own rate and speed. And no, if you wondered, I never got a nickname and look at me I’m obviously fine.

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👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• Wild how this keeps happening, huh???

• My current fave would you rather question - lmk your answer in comments!!!

• 🍅 This week’s tomato item is the birthday cake my dear friend / neighbor / colleague Colleen made for me!!!!! SHE MADE THIS CAKE FROM SCRATCH YOU GUYS!!!! She is not a trained pastry chef, she is just a true genius and the best pal ever can you even handle it!!!!!!!!!

• Unfortunately this fairy is real and she visits me often!!

• This divorced couple competing in table setting competitions is everything to me

• Get me to the poolside patio of Casa Lawa immediately!!!!!!!

• Easily my favorite kid on TiKTok lmao

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• 📚 In the news of books: I purchased a Kindle. This is genuinely shock and awe to anyone who has ever listened to me complain about digital and screens taking away things like books and pens. Unfortunately for me, current reading slump is largely connected to the idea that I cannot keep carrying around thick ass books in my tiny ass bags around this god forsaken city I love so much!!!!! I need something smaller and I still need to read — wish me luck, part of me hopes I love it and part of me hopes I hate it. (And don’t worry I’m now over-indexing on purchasing real books to makeup for my betrayal.)

• May we all aim to be her, forever, in all things

• People like this man make me so emotional (complimentary)

That’s all this week! It’s been a perfect three days and now I’m getting back in the swing of it all. Thanks for reading, here’s to a year of change together! — bye <3

🎥 Alex Earle’s new reality show trailer just dropped

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👀 Both me and Kerry Washington are begging you to watch Furious on Hulu — this show is INCREDIBLE you want to be involved by the time the last episode airs in a couple weeks I swear!!!!

🎭 The 10 Things I Hate About You musical is all I am thinking about

—> In honor of Frank Beard passing away, a favorite tune of mine for your afternoon

🎂 I recently subscribed to here on Substack and I love it — really fun stuff, highly recommend

🔥 Mariska is on the cover of Variety and looks SMOKIN hot, all hail Queen Mariska

—> As someone with a grandma (x3), me either actually

⏳ Doesn’t it feel too little, too late?

🍹 This marg briefcase & laptop piñata! Sent to smash on a summer Friday! Jose Cuervo, the social/PR geniuses you all are! I hope this also went to editors sitting in actual offices and not only influencers!

—> The humidity in NYC is enough to make ya wanna scream really!!!

🎾 I’ve never gone to the US Open and I really want to go this year… just kind of an FYI

👨🏾‍🎨 Bits like this are what make the world go round (also: tax the rich!)

🧵 One thing about media is they will make up a word for literally anything — welcome to the stupid, temporary lexicon “hobbyamory”

Catch up on last week’s Desk Dispatch. Something to add? Don’t be shy, leave a comment. 💌

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🧶 The giant rolling K18 hairball in NYC is every publicist’s dream & just a brilliant stunt

🍪 If ever there were a collab made for me it is this stunning Levain Bakery x Crate & Barrel collection because now I need every piece of it

—> good morning to my fellow desk dispatchers

👨🏾‍🎨 This New Yorker who is an iconic sign painter!!!! I am crying!!!! I love him!!!!!

🖥 Um??? MySpace is returning???? Like, okay?????

🌮 The name chainlet is just so cute!!!!! And also I love a chainlet!!!

—> this week in “songs stuck in my head” news

🤡 We’ve let Ryan Murphy’s leash get a little long, as a society don’t you think???

🧺 I’m still not over the Wicker of it all, if you wondered

🎨 Hermés redid their website with hand-drawn illustrations by young artists and it’s just so sweet

—> I live everyday yearning to get home and do this

🏈 This iconic speech from a retired local sportscaster in Texas is all over my feed (complimentary)

🧑🏻‍🦳 The QVC blow job commercial is making me laugh multiple times a day

👀 Only recently learned the actual premise for “One Night Only” and I’m finding it odd that it’s marketed as a romcom and not a dystopian thriller (I will be seeing it regardless)

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We’re placing a larger and larger emphasis on ice cubes as a society, don’t you think?

It used to be a one size fits all situation, with everyone stuck with one of two options: (1) small cubes made with universal white trays (unmatched balance needed from the sink to the freezer, families torn apart by not refilling empty trays); (2) one massive frozen-solid bag from the gas station (demanded only when en route to a party, never correctly shaped for a freezer or a cooler).

First we started seeing cases of new textures: cubed, crushed, pebbles, chips, half moons, spheres. Restaurants and coffee shops pitted against one another, movie theaters increasing the options, refrigerator doors were never the same. These new textures not only played a role in the (alleged) enjoyment of the drink, but also began to shine a light on factors like length of coolness, quantity of scoops, too-early melt points. These questions had never been asked when enjoying chilled beverages, and turns out it was the tip of the no-pun-intended iceberg.

As if these new range and caliber of options weren’t enough, elitism began to rise in the ice cube community based not only on the ice you served but the ice you enjoyed. People you once thought were your friends, baristas you once trusted, strangers you were meeting for the first time — everyone felt comfortable shaming you for either enjoying the wrong kind of ice texture or not even realizing a better option existed. And everyone who was anyone knew that coffee needed different ice than Diet Coke than iced tea than lemonade than water, making every decision vital and chilling.

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More recently, two key trends are at the forefront of the beverage-based world: fun shaped ice and product-filled ice.

The one I started seeing flourish across the Instagram and Pinterest first were the shapes. It seemed the cubes and spheres and pebbles weren’t enough to satisfy beverage drinkers who also took photos, so the shapes needed an injection of whimsy and joy just to get your sips down. Stars, hearts, animals, letters, sunshines, flowers — if you need a shaped cube the odds that it exists are the highest they’ve ever been. It does call into question the amount of

Then came the product-filled ice. Sometimes this feels like a result of wanting to flavor a drink over time, and sometimes it feels like a result of wanting a pop of color in an otherwise plain (clear) liquid. Either way, the results themselves are getting a bit out of hand in my opinion. A lemon or cucumber slice for your ice water? Sure, totally. An olive or chili pepper? Now, let’s settle down. And of course because they look so visually interesting, they’re also just perfect to showcase at the next dinner party you host or for wedding guest you want to impress.

I’ve not yet ventured into these new spaces. I only just recently made the change from cubes to spheres in my own home freezer, a place where I’m able to take risks but must also operate within the small frame of reason that fits inside. That’s not to say I never will! After all, as a regular hostess of themed meals and parties where a unique ice cube could elicit an extra “Omg wait this is so cute” or Instagram tag, how could I not be tempted? But for now, I’m focused on making enough ice to supply my own rolling thirst needs, so the visual elements are taking a backseat. For instance, don’t we think I simply absolutely must make these tomato ice cubes for my next party?

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And of course, there are more themed ice features I didn’t even touch on: oversized for cocktails, embossed with words and names, ice made entirely of coffee. We’ve not yet reached the world where ice machines and restaurants can quickly create these unique new wave of ice options, but looking at where we were at the start of this beverage revolution, doesn’t it seem just around the corner? 💌

Oh and one last note just to make sure there’s no misunderstanding on the above thesis: Fuck ICE <3

🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

Wicker: You guys this preview is my whole entire feed right now and it looks absolutely insane and entirely incredible and I am so excited to see it. If you haven’t seen the preview, I am begging you to spend 2 minutes watching it here, I swear it’s deeply worth it. Olivia Colman plays a local fishmonger, mocked by her community and wrestling with the idea of living alone forever; Peter Dinklage creates her the perfect husband made out of Wicker; Alexander Skarsgård comes to life as a dedicated, sexy lover; the entire town freaks out and gets super jealous. If the award-winning actors don’t draw you in enough, consider that this may be the horniest movie of 2026 — step aside Wuthering Heights — and it features woman who is 50 (gasp!) having sex (gasp!) with a man who is also 50 (gasp!) and they are both smart and funny and kind, not just hot and naked (gasp!). If this is the romcom renaissance I was promised, then I am fully aboard. I hope it’s the next Odyssey: people clamoring to get a seat, everyone on the internet discussing it, think pieces on how it defines our current geopolitical and anthropological status. October cannot get here soon enough!!!

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🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

Petal by Ariana Grande: Upon first listen Friday morning, I found myself bored, only slightly intrigued by the song “never get over me” which I personally heard as an anthem to the dorky theater kid she broke up a marriage over, so… not great. Upon some more listens this weekend, I remain unimpressed. For me, Eternal Sunshine was kind of a perfect album and I was likely bound to hate whatever came next, but in this case what came next felt like the songs she didn’t put on Eternal Sunshine and for very good reason. I don’t see myself returning to this album, but given the way the internet now forces music repetition on my ears the way the radio used to, I’m sure I’ll get sucked into another a single or two eventually. It’s overall a PASS for me!

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• Finally, permission granted

• This fun bathroom makeover is pushing me to paint my own bathroom (a project I swore I’d wait to do until 2027)

• 🍅 This week’s tomato food item(s): this really fun round up of Food 52’s Tasting Notes” on Instagram — obsessed w/ Snack Time!!!

• Loving this lady saying that it’s kinda chic to do a ton of stuff

• It won’t last long, don’t worry

• Me, standing in Bath & Body Works in full psychosis, telling myself the math makes sense

• ✨ A room I would like to live in: this sweet lil kitchen with this sweet lil window

• “What’s wrong babe? You’ve barely touched your Minions salad from the diarrhea farm” — unfortunately I can never leave Twitter/X for this reason

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That’s all this week! I spent Saturday in the sunshine on a boat, and on Friday I craved a spritz and so I made a spritz cause I deserved a spritz. It was an incredible decision! May you go into this week with that approach: if you want it, get it or make it, cause you deserve it. — bye <3

Zeus’ Law actually says since you subscribe to me you have to read on & enjoy & comment & share! I don’t make the rules, Zeus does!

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The weather this weekend in NYC was picturesque and unreal, the kind that makes you wanna stay out all day and all night and never go home to reality.

I’ve been having a lot of fun quickly dropping in mid-week with the Desk Dispatch, I hope you’ve been loving it too! Sue me for being so online & needing to share it all the time with everyone I know :)

Oh, and August is around the corner which means so is my birthday!!!!!!

I got one of my all time favorite (repeat) summer nail designs yesterday and I am (repeatedly) obsessed with the colorful vibes — I mean look at them!

Okay okay, let’s get onto the good stuff, shall we! 💌

🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

Mercury in Retrograde is over: I’m not a die-hard astrology believer (contrary to this insane Big 3 breakdown I did once) but I have to admit it’s been a brutal *checks watch* a long ass window of time. And so who am I to turn away from the possibility of reprieve? According to spiritualweatherman on TikTok — and the 10 other astrologers who are then pushed to me as a result of watching one freaking video — the nodes of fate and destiny are leaving Virgo, where they arrived in January 2025 and have been causing “psychological warfare” and leaving us with an “It is what it is” attitude. I don’t wanna say this is entirely accurate to me but if you call my therapist I believe he would say “Well, yes.” So am I feeling lighter because of the moon and stars? Or because of my dedicated and deep work in therapy for years? Or because NYC finally had a weekend without rain? Who is to say, and who cares!

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The Odyssey: I was able to snag one single available ticket (!!!) this weekend in a center row, center seat (!!!) of an IMAX 6pm showing (!!!) and couldn’t believe I got a spot that wasn’t breaking my neck or starting at 2am. I didn’t read this poem in high school like many people, so I went in fairly blind — I knew Matt Damon was going to take a long trip home after the horse incident, but that was kind of it — and I must say I was pleasantly surprised! I found it wildly entertaining, even though it was a little too jam packed with celebrities; I loved all of the meanings and interpretations and layers, even though it was mostly about the idea that men are destructive and human behavior simply repeats rather than evolves; I was obsessed with the scary parts and gasped and laughed and clapped, even though I was alone. I will definitely be seeing it again, and in the meantime it’s (as always) just been a real blast and a half to enjoy the internet content.

A very good TikTok mocking Robert Pattinson

A TikTok for Odyssey AND Criminal Minds fans (me)

🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

“This past weekend” phrase: A newsflash to you all: you sound like idiots saying “this past weekend” when describing anything you did the weekend prior. What exactly is the point this specificity you’re trying to use? To make sure the person you’re talking to knows how recent the farmer’s market or movie or date you experiences was? Just say… literally anything else. “Last weekend” or “a couple of weeks ago” or the actual name of the actual day or “recently” — all of these would be better than “this past weekend” I assure you. It just sounds messy and juvenile, and I hate hearing it so much it makes me stop listening to your story. This has been a pet peeve of mine my entire, 30+ year speaking life and it feels FREEING to get it out!!! I hope those of you I interact with everyday take it to heart like I do.

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👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• Watch Ellen Pompeo encourage you to just be and act however you want!!!! It will empower you!!!! I swear!!!!

• Huge of me when you think about it

• This video re: SATC vs. Girls characters hasn’t left my brain space in a week

• Okay well hosted a little Christmas in July dinner and now I’m itching for Christmastime (complimentary)

• Some insights, if you wondered why you never get carded

• 🍅 This week’s tomato item is this insanely beautiful cake design that looks like real life embroidered tomatoes but with sprinkles! Hello!!!?? A girl can dream about a cake, even if she can’t make it ok!

• Weird does anyone know why this isn’t working? LMK

• I personally think people can just… repeat their outfits (aka wear their clothes)

• Hm, not so unique now are ya, you fools!!!

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• 📚 The book I just finished: The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston — Here’s the thing, is that this book was… fine. There were elements that I liked but double the amount that fell apart and I didn’t buy. It was my own fault for thinking I could come around to Poston’s farcical, death-and-time themed writing. But on the upside of things, I do feel it got me out of my reading slump and I’m eager to crack something new open. Onto the next!

• This simple little video is making me nostalgic and emotional

• The DREAM shopping experience actually

• Trader Joe’s always being dramatic and moving in the night

That’s all this week! I hope you’re rewarding yourself today for survive another bout of Sunday scaries. A little sweet treat, that long-awaited purchase, multiple iced coffees, or even just some outside time, can all go a long way in kicking off another monotonous week with a little reward for surviving the one before. — bye <3

🐴 Yes, yes I did get ONE ticket in a CENTER row/seat in an IMAX viewing of The Odyssey on a FRIDAY night at a REASONABLE hour, everyone clap!!!!

🤖 Substack is adding AI-detection to everything published on their site which is good in theory but also means they are basically running every word we write through AI to train a model, so, we kinda can’t win huh? (Also this is your reminder that I would never in 100 years use AI, I actually love an em dash in a pure of hear kind of way)

—> In advance of our lord & savior Kacey giving us a music video sometime today

🎀 Saw my first Bama Rush 2026 video this morning, we are so back

📵 Has anyone considered just… taking away Taylor Frankie Paul’s phone?

🩰 Often brands launch something that makes me go “Hey, I think you’re out of ideas” and Birkenstock x Repetto was the one this week

—> about no one in particular and everyone in particular

🥬 But speaking of that photo, are we gunna talk about the poop lettuce? Will we ever stop talking about the poop lettuce? Answer to both: no

✏️ It’s back to school szn!! Including cool ads!!! We virgos/eldest daughters/teacher’s pets live & die for this time!!!

🚨 Nancy Grace is back so let’s hope some folks go to prison really soon (this story makes me sick, I’m not able to read too much about it at one time)

—> consider this simply a follow up to the last Desk Dispatch

👀 Albertson’s launched a micro drama and you can only watch in their stores, so now it seems I must… find my way to an Albertson’s

⚽️ Can I say something? I’m glad the World Cup is over so I can stop pretending to be following a sporting event I’m not at all interested in. Anyway if you enjoyed it then I’m happy for you, too.

😎 NYC buildings: crumbling, LA roads: sinking; what a time to be a coastal elite

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🧩 The NYT Crossword recently robbed me of two gold stars from Sunday puzzles that I completed, without checks, within the 48 hour window so they WILL be hearing from my attorney (me in a stern email)

🎤 Marika Hargitay hosting the Emmy’s is the future the liberals (me) want

—> can’t stop listening to this song today, idk why

🧗🏽I know this happened last week (while I was on PTO) but I simply couldn't possibly care any less about these two people who climbed the Empire State Building and then got engaged.

😒 Look I want to care more about Jack Antonoff and Margaret Qualley breaking up I just… I can’t, don’t hate me </3

🫐 If you find yourself wondering “Who in the world could this new Bath & Body Works campaign and product line designed for?” let me answer: me.

—> NYPost please, we have enough going on rn

🤷🏽‍♀️ ……Queer Eye’s Karamo Brown and Jussie Smollett Are Dating….. I have no further comment

⏳ Hey so what’s the deal with Dune? A third movie? About the sand people? Seriously?

☎️ As always, the internet bonding over a shared joke is everything. This week’s is Mitch McConnell’s staff trying to pull off a Weekend at Bernie's stunt with pretend 20 minute phone calls, and the internet isn’t having it:

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And if you also wondered how I got past this feeling:

My friends said I don’t have to be mean to myself about taking a break!!!!!!!! So ha!!!! And with that, I’m simply moving right along!

It’s been a great month to be a New Yorker — the Knicks won in 5 (!!!) resulting in the city threatening Elmo and booing Trump & James Dolan and an incredibly emotional parade, Taylor Swift continues to swirl MSG wedding rumors and Swifties are losing their minds, and of course Mayor Mamdani strongly remains everyone’s favorite person on Earth and a certified cutie patootie!

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I took myself out last night for an NYC-ified evening of my own, including a crisp Cosmo and hot steak, live Broadway show with world famous actors, and a sweet little treat on my block. It was actual bliss! And as I was strolling home to my beautiful Upper West Side apartment — truly bursting at the seams with food and emotion and liquor and creativity and fuzziness — I caught a glimpse of my own reflection in a store window and kind of couldn’t believe 32 year old me is living 12 year old me’s dreams. How incredibly cool and striking is that? Very very very cool, if you ask me (both the 32 and 12 year old versions).

And now I get to prep for a whole different kind of week ahead! One of my closest friends hosts us at her parents house in a Boston beach town for the 4th of July and, having been in LA for some time, I haven’t gotten to go in a couple years. We’ll zip up the coast in a night, enjoy days of sun and food and wine and beach and laughs, and then be back in the city at the weekend’s end to start whatever the following week brings. How gloriously lucky that NYC gives me so much on a weekend here and so much on a weekend away, too? Very very very lucky, if you ask me (both the 32 and 12 year old versions).

I hope all of your weeks are cool — because the heat advisory is sickening across the country!!!!!! — and your weekends are blissful, whatever you’re doing! 💌

🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

Criminal Minds: Evolution is back: Nothing eases the female psyche like watching the brutal slaying of our people and learning why the psychopaths (men) do the things they do, and so the return of this long-running series is a big relief to me. In a world where everything on TV and film feels like an poorly-reimagined or unrelated reboot, I am begging producers to be more like Criminal Minds. Reboot if you must, but make it much darker than the original and make the characters develop in a way that makes sense, all while sticking to the format of the show we know and love. Every returning sitcom or drama should be following their lead!!!! (Plus, ya know, I’d do anything for even a minuscule chance to see Matthew Gray Gubler on my screen again.)

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Eli Rallo’s wedding content: I’ve been a growing internet fan of over the years — I was late to the game of the The Jar days and then started getting invested during the two-book-publishing phase — butI have always enjoyed her ability to just loudly be who she is and like what she likes and hate what she hates (some could say she’d be an excellent candidate for a guest cheer, jeer & mere entry someday!!!!). So finally getting to take in all of her wedding content was basically my Instagram superbowl a few weeks ago. Everything was so fun and so her; some of it I loved and some of it I wasn’t obsessed with; the whole weekend just seemed to be exactly what she wanted. What a fun bunch of content to take in!!!!! If you’ve not seen already or if you don’t know her, I highly recommend taking a minute and scrolling her account for a boost of serotonin and marital bliss. (This was my favorite look from her weekend!)

🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

Incorrect apostrophe use: Speaking of weddings, there are a lot of people on the internet missing the basics of the English language. I know that’s not news, but the glaring horror for me lately has been watching friends or relatives or influencers or strangers get married and then repost their friends saying “Cheers to The New Last Name’s!” …… Do you see where that apostrophe is? You guys please be serious. If you want me to believe that all of you really don’t know the difference between the possessive use and the plural use of S, specifically as it relates to names, well then you want too much from me. GROW UP, BE SMARTER. Hope this helps!!!!!!

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Our own living Veep episode: You guys know I don’t like wasting time or words on that Orange In Command, but I’d be remiss not to mention some of the actual insane meaningless and stupid bullshit happening right now at the hands of this administration. The literal destruction of the base of the Reflecting Pool (at a $14M+ cost to taxpayers, mind you!) and the joke that is the Great American State Fair (with multiple states not participating and tens of people in attendance!) are making every day feel like a real episode of Veep and it’s making me SICK cause I just wanna LAUGH but Americans are SUFFERING. At the very least we can all agree: he and his whole gang are such losers that it’s nice to see them fail so spectacularly and pulicly.

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• No I love the idea of them as a couple!!!!!!

• Yes, yes I do keep that thing on me, don’t worry

• Wishing well for all of us! <3

• 🍅 This week’s tomato food item is this hilarious, yet stunning, hot dog sun catcher… so do I order now or pretend to mull it over longer?

• The heat is really and truly turning me into this

• Hey so not to be dramatic but I would die for this dog

• When I talk about a need, not a want, this is what I mean

• Watching Europeans/visitors experiencing U.S. food was everything to me

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• 📚 The Book I’m Reading: The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston — I put this one off for a long time because I deeeeeply hated The Dead Romantics, but given I’m in such a reading slump (I hated the first two books I read this year and it dampened my excitement!) I wanted to return to my romance roots and pick up something light and breezy to enjoy. So far, so good.

• Finally someone is calling out these AWFUL sisters!!!!!

• Oh and I can’t get these colorful link chains out of my head either

• Hope this helps (???)

• This is my latest vocal stim I can’t stop saying it

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• ✨ A tablescape I’m obsessed with — are you kidding???? I need to recreate this immediately!!!!!

That’s all this week! Cheers to sharing bottles of wine and orders of french fries with your pals on Friday afternoon to kickstart an ideal weekend vibe! — bye <3

Yesterday, I had my first Bop Around Day™ of the season and it awoke a hugo-spritz-sipping, too-many-book-buying, Instagram-photo-dumping, NYC-obsessed beast within me who, frankly, I missed!

There’s kind of nothing better if you really think about it. Sure, making plans and reservations is fun and gives you something to look forward to — trust me, a Virgo, that will always bring me joy. But the unplanned whoknowswhat that comes after “Want to bop around today?” is freeing!

Who’s to say where we’ll stop into? What kind of money we’ll spend? Who we’ll run into? How many beverages will be had? What kind of gossip will be shared? What kind of chaos will ensue? How many steps we’ll take? What the weather will be?

I guess maybe this is just the free-wheeling, no-stress, loosey-goosey, play-it-by-ear energy that I hear so many people talking about but can rarely experience myself. Are the world and Type B people everywhere right that, perhaps, I need to think less and live more???? (No one tell my therapist I said this, I’m not ready to unpack it and would rather over-intellectualize it for a while first.)

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Anyway! Here’s a pic of my cute little haul which included three fun plates, two new pair of sunnies, one giant pencil, and (of course) three books. And if you’re looking closely at this photo and wondering “Serria, did you really buy a new copy of Twilight?” let me just get right to the answer: yes, I did. I see an adult reread in my future, and if that paints my own mental health in a certain light well then so be it!!!

I didn’t set out to get any of these items, I didn’t have anything specific to talk to my friends about, I wasn’t craving a coffee or hugo spritz (any more than usual), and I didn’t need to be anywhere. The Bop Around Day™ simply doesn’t call for it, you let the bopping energy tell you where you’re headed and what you need and I think that’s beautiful (even if my wallet doesn’t!!!!). 💌

🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

A really fab hair cut: Something happens to your chemical makeup when you shake off that cape and rise from the chair, doesn’t it? I once wrote about how horrific the post-wash experience is (wet, dull, vulnerable) and the post-dry vibes (styled, elite, clean) is the exact opposite. I walked into the hair salon feeling tired and defeated; it had been an exhausting week of work and socializing and I just wanted to lay down and relax, not sit upright at this appointment I’d booked three months ago and then forgotten to cancel. But as soon as the snips started snipping I could feel the weight literally lift off my head and I was reborn. Suddenly, new thoughts crossed my mind: should I get on the dating apps again? should I submit to a modeling agency? should I pick up a stranger at a bar? is my entire life now different? The answer to all that is actually a vehement “God no!” but my hair did / does look fab, so I’ll take that as a win.

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The “X Fictional Band has pulled out of the Freedom 250 Concert” Memes: Sometimes, this horrific president and his awful administration does something that unites the internet in mockery and I find those moments to be sacred. This week, upon news of artists bailing out of the concert at the Great American State Fair, the internet did its thing: turned it into a joke and beat that joke within an inch of its life. I personally love when this happens — because it’s a very small and light reminder that there are good people in the world and on the internet who also don’t approve of the insanity happening at the White House, so I’m a little less alone in that sense — so here are some that I really loved!!!!

🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

Tagging your friends on an IG post: Hey, so, why are you doing this to me, Instagram? Back in my day (a tee up of sorts for the next blurb) tagging your friends in a post on IG meant they’d get a little notification and could share it themselves if thought they looked decent enough. Now, a horrific thing started happening where you tag your friend in a post and it SENDS TO THEM VIA DM, making it look like you’re BEGGING them to like this silly little pic you tagged them in. “See what I posted! Do you like it! I sent it right to you so you can like it! See how cute I think I am in it!” because, oh yeah, it doesn’t even send them the pic you literally tagged them in it just sends the cover photo of the post which is usually just you….. it’s humiliating!

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The never ending “millennial core is dead” narrative: It’s like every other article on my feed and every other post from a news outlet and every other post from a stupid 22 year old is talking about how millennials and our cores are dead. Everlane sold to SHEIN, Glossier can’t keep a c-suite to save their lives, none of us can retire, we’re in like the 10th financial crisis of our generation. And yet let me tell you this: the unhinged, twee-built, house party destroying millennial core is not something that can be snuffed out on the internet or sold off to a retail giant or shamed out of us on TikTok. You can pry this ironic and unbeatable energy out of our cold dead hands!!!!!!

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• Really honorable, if you think about it

• You’re telling me this isn’t just a new Hunger Games arena?

• Makes ya wonder is all I’m saying

• ✨ A room I would like to live in honestly would be my own dining nook!!!! I posted a silly little TikTok this week highlighting the transformation and it reignited the deep obsession I have with this corner. Sorry but it’s actually perfect and I won’t ever really be over it!!!!

• Unfortunately a correct take on Travis LMAO

• Everyone clap for my skills

• 🍅 This week’s tomato item is this flipping adorable combo of Salt & Pepper Shakers and Cocktail Napkins (!!!!!!!!!!!) which my sweet grandma Judy — an avid reader of my Substack every week and my first paid subscriber! — sent to me after seeing them on road trip she took. She’s the sweetest icon I’ve ever know, everyone say “we love you Judy!”

• Those of you chasing the Dot Cakes are humiliating, btw!!!

• Yeahhhhhhhh I prolley need to do this

• If you have Threads and watch It’s Always Sunny and hate JD Vance, this one is for you

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• 📚 The book I’m currently reading: Discontent by Beatriz Serrano (Translated by Mara Faye Lethem) — I am roughly 30 pages in and I am laughing and/or gasping at basically every single paragraph as I realize I have never had a unique thought or experience all my life. When they say books radicalize people these are the ones they are talking about, if you ask me!!!

• OBSESSED with these TikToks of an old DIY / home reno show of two women doing some of the most heinous things possible to homes

• Makes ya wonder is all I’m saying

• This guy yelled at me (all of us) for making beds wrong and now I do it this way and it’s way better, I can confirm

That’s all this week! Happy start of June to all of us and here’s hoping you all get your own little Bop Around Day™ very very soon — bye <3

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So with that in mind, tonight’s opener is short and sweet. To all my fellow procrastinators: ily, keep going, never start early!!! 💌

🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

Joshua Henry: The Tony Award are on June 7th and I promise each of you reading that if Joshua Henry doesn’t get win for Best Actor in a Musical I will riot. This man!!!!!! He has long been a broadway star, I am not discovering him, but his current run in Ragtime this year rocked me (and apparently much of the city, too) to my core. He’s getting full page features in the New York Times, he’s performing Whitney Houston (!!!) at the opening of the Met Gala, he’s playing guitar and being vulnerable on TikTok. He deserves the Tony and the world and I just love him. PS — If you find yourself in NYC for any reason before Ragtime leaves Lincoln Center, I cannot express enough how vital seeing this show is right now. Unreal in every way.

Hugo Spritz: I had my very first Hugo Spritz when I went to Europe for the first time last year and I don’t think I’m overstating when I say that it changed me. I was originally turned off by the idea of the drink because 1) I hate an Aperol Spritz, so I assumed I just hated all spritzes, and 2) I typically don’t like Elderflower in cocktails, because I don’t like drinking plants. But, to my surprise and delight, I love this drink and could have 100x of them with seemingly no effect other than bliss. It’s my new summer go-to in between a chilled red wine and crisp cosmopolitans so patio season here we come!!!

🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

72nd Street Trader Joe’s Closing: New Yorkers, together we hang our heads as we mourn the (temporary) loss of everyone’s favorite TJ’s to hate, the 72nd Street location. The one silver lining to this horrific news is that my very own close friend Colleen heard this juicy gossip first hand while shopping and overheard two store employees discussing where they’d be transferred during the shutdown. She reported this intel to beloved local outpost I Love The Upper West Side (keep journalism alive!!!!!!!) and from there the news was literally off to the races. Sure, it’s thrilling to know the whistleblower who brought it to light but at what cost? What this really means is that hoards of NYers who frequent that location are now going to flood my personal, quaint, simple TJ’s and make it that much harder for me to shop with the ease I prefer. Who exactly made this decision? Could we not have just renovated the space in the middle of the night like the MTA or the construction men outside my bedroom window? And what is the plan on restocking my smaller TJ’s? I’m assuming we have rolled in extra fridges and freezers, right??? I just don’t know that I have it in me to shoulder check a whole new wave of people with their strollers and bags and lack of spacial awareness for 3+ months!!!!! And please know this: today’s cheers, jeers & meres is certainly not my first complaint about a Trader Joe’s and I assure you it will not be my last.

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• And don’t you forget it

• Tough / beautiful to see other people living your dream

• Every week a new DIY project gets pushed to me that is so in my wheelhouse I have no choice but to do it

• I have quite literally always said this!!!!!!

• 🍅 This week’s tomato item is this sweet lamp I saw someone DIY on Pinterest that I certainly think I could recreate myself? Right?????

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• Should I… do this…? Yeah, maybe!

• Nice to know there are similar-minded people out there

• Honored to be making new traditions <3

• LMAO I watched this 10x it’s so objectively hilarious

• Spotify why did you do this???

• You know, a really fair question, actually

• ✨ A room I would like to live in: I’m in desperate need of a rug (two, actually) and this one is inspiring me in a reeeeeeal way.

• I reeeeeeally don’t like whatever’s happening here

• LMK! thanks!

• Type A / Eldest Daughters / Gifted Kids, rise up (and cry)

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That’s all this week! NYC is facing a horrid, no good, very bad, historic heat wave of 90 degrees this week and so, well, god speed to all of us (and to those who don’t live here, well lucky you!!!!!) — bye <3

But like clockwork — and, I assume, in large part due to whatever timeline the Grammy’s force artists into — with the new blooms and slight sunshine, artists show up just in time to give my ears something fresh.

There’s even more to come, thank god, but here’s some I’m playing on repeat at the moment. 💌

• Drop Dead by Olivia Rodrigo: If you’ve seen my IG in the last two weeks or spoken to me for five minutes then you already know how obsessed I am with this song! Accurately, it feels exactly like the beginning of a crush (and you know I love a crush) and I could/do listen to it back to back to back. Can’t wait for the full album we’ll get soon!!!

• Middle of Nowhere by Kacey Musgraves: I have been waiting to obsess over a new Kacey album for a while, and this one delivered. Feels like the best parts from past albums, and it’s got everything: the old self meets new self merging, hometown could-have-been-imagination, a strong distaste of men paired with deep rooted horniness, and that sweet perfect combo of all-encompassing loneliness and strong-willed confidence. I was obsessed w/ the single, Dry Spell, but now am doing the hard work of picking my new favorite track to obsess over this week.

• The Great Divide by Noah Kahn: No one gets how to be sad quite like Noah and for that, as a deeply sad person, I am so grateful for every new song and album where he finds a new way to describe the same sad you’ve had your whole life. This whole album is exactly what I wanted/needed, plus Noah finally got to do NPR’s Tiny Desk and it’s soooooo good. Here’s to crying all summer!!!

• Dandelion by Ella Langley: I didn’t know who Ella was 3 months ago but, turns out, I am addicted to the sound of her voice so kinda perfect timing that she dropped a new album last month just for me. The rate at which I am listening to Choosin’ Texas would have you thinking I very recently lost a boyfriend at a two-step bar in Texas, when in reality I don’t know how to two-step and I’ve never been to Texas and I haven’t had or lost a boyfriend since high school.

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🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

Tulip season: You guys it turns out I love tulip season????? I’ve never been drawn to the flower in the past, they have such a short life span and are only really beautiful for even less time than they are alive. But going to the tulip fields in Amsterdam last year woke something up in me because I am apparently obsessed!!! This year I was at home, looking back at photos from that trip and feeling nostalgic. So I took myself on a walk as a pick me up and literally stumbled across a long-standing community garden that was, wouldn’t you know it, having an annual tulip festival! I strolled through, I took 1,000 photos, I sat on a bench. Yeah I love tulip season!

Abbott Elementary: I spent the last few weeks watching the entire series for the first time and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Obviously, I was the target demo for this show (I love a mockumantary, I’m a sucker for a cable sitcom, it has multiple strong female black leads) but I still was slow to get to it for some reason. To no one’s surprise, it makes me laugh out loud and I could watch this cast for 100 years! The unexpected piece of this watch was how much it literally tugged at my heartstrings — who knew that phrase would ever feel real? I’m not sure how much of it is the actual writing and how much of it is seeing little Serria in all the faces of the kids, but I am crying at every single episode even when only good stuff is happening so! Let’s leave that to be evaluated by my therapist and instead, for now, let’s just say I really love the show.

New neighborhood bodega: One thing I desperately missed when I lived in LA was the classic NYC bodega. The energy, the options, the hours, the ease, the chaos — it’s a special place that cannot be recreated and I was soooooo excited to get back to them when I moved back. Sadly, my new neighborhood didn’t have one within the distance I needed (aka under 3 blocks). Bodegas are everywhere in this city and the UWS is not lacking them, my individual block just happened to be suffering a bodega drought. Until a few weeks ago!!!!!! A new one opened a mere 2 minute walk on my literal block and I’ve never been more thrilled. My breakfast order is alive, the iced coffee is flowing, a drunken late night trip is imminent. Welcome to the neighborhood Upside Deli I hope we never part <3 <3 <3

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🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

RIP Spirit Airlines: Who among us has not been 22 and flying somewhere we technically couldn’t afford? Who among us has not been in our bargain shopping era? Who among us has not refused to give Big Airlines™ our money but still needed to get where we were going? I’ve taken Spirit Airlines multiple times in my past (completely against my will and at the same time entirely by choice) and to know it will simply cease to exist is devastating — not because the airline was comfortable or kind or enjoyable, but because it was always there. I will miss the internet content it created as we all watched & shared the most insane situations unfold in the air, I will miss the shared understanding of “we flew Spirit” following any level of post-flight complaint, I will miss what has to be the ugliest and most alarming color possible for a company operating planes. We’ll miss you, but you’ll always be in our traveling hearts in Spirit </3

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Figuring out what jacket to wear: For the love of god if the weather doesn’t figure itself out soon I’m going to have a meltdown. As if dealing with global warming isn’t enough (which we are past the point of no return, as a reminder) we now have to deal with an elongated fake spring — which I have already jeered about, mind you!!!!! — and that means I literally never know what the temperature on my phone really means and so I never know what outerwear to put on. I’m in a jacket, sweating. I’m in a thin cardigan, shivering. A scarf is called for sometimes, gloves might be nice, the puffer coats are insane. The rain provides a suffocating humidity and a bone-chilling cold. Layers are useless! Layers are helpful! I am begging the sun and the sky and the air and the Weather App to have a quick touchbase and align on KPIs and deliverables going forward. I can’t keep living like this!!!!!!!!

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• This is my next DIY project, if you wondered!!!!!

• Really good advice

• This and this is what summer in NYC is all about

• NYT crossword people… were you gagged? I was gagged

• The entirety of the Taylor Swift x NYT Songwriters video interview gave me life

• No cause this is my favorite part too

• 🍅 This week’s tomato food item was encompassed by my long-awaited trip to visit Big Night in the West Village. I was tempted to spend every dollar I have to my name there, but instead was really brave and took pics so torture myself with later!

• Gossip Girl fans rise up (I was never a Blate/Nair stan but still cute)

• Wild to never have had an original thought, huh?

• These punchcards are exactly what an eldest daughter like me need

• 📚 A recent book I DNF: Death on The Nile by Agatha Christie — Look I wanted to love it, it’s not only incredibly famous but I also love a cozy mystery so Agatha Christie felt like something missing in my reading repertoire. But all of the funky quips and language style was annoying and kept getting in my way of actually caring about any of it. So I kept the bookmark (in case I go back to it!) and added it to my Did Not Finish shelf on Good Reads and moved on. Mostly, I’m thrilled about Good Reads finally adding a DNF shelf!!!!!!

• Don Draper always understood the assignment

• Anyone else watching the INSANE Starbucks drinks get made? just me? ok!

• Just more weird stuff I need for my apartment!!!!!

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• 📚 AND the book I’m starting this weekend: Be Ready When Luck Happens by Ina Garten — I am in desperate need of inspiration and hope and creating direction for my life, so I’m finally reading this one and will hopefully find… even a sliver of any of that. I’ve heard great things and am excited to dive in.

• No, actually, this has never happened to me!

• Working hard to make these kinda built ins a reality, watch this space

• It’s not right, but it’s okay

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That’s all this week! Welcome to all the new subscribers!!!! Thrilled to have ya joining us and can’t wait to hear your week’s cheers, jeers and meres if you wanna share in the comments. In the meantime, here’s me in a jacket that is sometimes perfect and sometimes horrible (be the weather can’t make up its mind) but cute 100% of the time — bye <3

Bonjour! It’s been two weeks since my return flight landed and let me just say that the rumors are true: roaming around Paris, eating and drinking and spending money, with no responsibilities, does change you.

I got no less than 1 million recommendations for my trip, but since it was my first time in the city and there is so much to see, I made myself very very very (can’t express how many verys) few plans. Core action items were: see Eiffel Tower, drink wine, see the Louvre, shopping, sit in a park, more wine, desserts.

The majority of my time was spent wandering. I’d pick a neighborhood, get a coffee, and then stroll from there. I couldn’t believe how moved I was by the architecture? Beautiful cities and buildings and outdoor spaces aren’t lost on me, but this place really was everything they said it would be and yet I still found myself a bit, well, stunned. The poets and the internet were both correct, how often does that happen?

A lot of time was also spent shopping, both spending actual money and lusting after shelves. This year, and in turn, this trip, I’ve focused on allowing myself to really embrace my love of home decor rather than treat it as a silly habit I cannot break. Well thankfully, Paris delivered in spades! There were candles and mugs and pots and totes and clock — oh yes, and there was a huge butter haul.

And, of course, so so much time was spent drinking and eating. Because what else are you even going to the beautiful land of butter and wine for, if not to enjoy it?

I realize this may feel like a very short and uninteresting little recap of an iconic city, and you’d be right. No matter how detailed I get in my Instagram stories or texts or phone calls, there’s just no way for me to pack every single thing I saw and ate and visited and drank (don’t worry, my travel journal has the detailed recount!) into a recap after a trip like this. Because, even more, there’s no way for me to accurately capture the impact this had on me.

Spending four days doing only exactly and only what you want to do, in a city where you do not speak even a tiny bit of the language, in a new place where you don’t know a single thing or place, it has the capacity to really let you breathe. I expanded, while I was there. I could feel my jaw loosen and my shoulders unwind. I didn’t have to pretend I liked something or act like I was someone I wished I was, I just got to be. And did it help that my surroundings were beautiful and manicured and fresh? Of course. But to me it felt like more. It felt transformative and easy and layered and simple and deep and shallow. I felt different, or maybe I felt the way I’m supposed to feel and have just been missing.

I know they say we’ll always have Paris, but I’m really trying to make that true and keep bits of what I found there with me in my normal life. Maybe it was the architecture, maybe it was my (excellent!) playlist, maybe it was the wine, maybe it was the espresso, maybe it was all in my head, or maybe it was just really me. 💌

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🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

Themed Hosting: I’ve always loved to host (see!) and I’ve always loved a theme (see!). These might just be the real loves of my life and my life calling — but who has the time to assess one’s true passions — so, no, it doesn’t get old and, yes, it deserves a cheer this week. Easter was last weekend and while I hadn’t planned to do anything, my best friends suggested I host for a little brunch-and-learn to catch them up and recap my Paris travels. And because my desire to entertain is much higher than my desire to be productive (something I should likely mention to my therapist but, again, who has the time!) I excitedly agreed. That meant I got to set my Spring table with only things I already owned: self-arranged bodega florals, small porcelain bunnies I was gifted, candle sticks I’d put off burning, cloth napkins I never get out to use, and of course some of my new Paris purchases like beautiful silverware and French butter. The fun layout + delicious spread + my bffs made it a perfect hosting morning!!!

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The Drama (of a full movie theater): Now, I wouldn’t say this was my favorite film I’ve seen in recent years, but seeing it in a full screening really added to the experience! The movie itself was entertaining, the big “thing” is revealed relatively soon, the cast is phenomenal, the apartments and wardrobe are visually everything I want in life. But aside from all that, the drama (pun deeply intended) that rolls out is something made even better by sitting in a packed AMC theater and gasping/laughing/cringing with a room full of strangers like you are besties at your shared friend-of-a-friend’s wedding. If you’re going go see it, I highly suggest doing so with lots of people around — friends, strangers, both — and running to the internet afterwards to see the drama (sorry, I can’t stop) unfolding on social.

🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

Post-Paris: The one and one jeer of my short-lived Parisian holiday was, of course, returning back to my normal life. Not to say I have a bad life or don’t live in an incredible city myself (because I do!), but after spending four days with no deadlines, responsibilities, emails, timetables, plans, or pressures, it’s hard to come back to the real life rebound of all those things. Here I am with my purchased, frozen, packed butter — one of the remaining portals I have keeping me mentally afloat.

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• EAGERLY awaiting what is sure to be a fabulous sad girl album

• NY Magazine wrote a story about why crushes making us so annoying, which is funny because I wrote about the very same thing last year (during my most recent crush psychosis)

• Noah Kahan, you sweet little sad man ily so much

• The world was made with you in mind………

• Oh, the Kentucky family who rejected a $26 million offer to turn their farmland into a data center? Love them, love this spokeswoman, love this patriotism

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• 🍅 This week’s tomato food item are these flipping adorable Farfalloni Pasta Pot Grips from the MoMA Design Store!!!!!! Adding to cart as we speak!!!!

• The Kristi Noem husband drama happened while I was away and it deserves some credit ok because, lol, what

• Hey, just a thought for you guys! Take it leave it! Or take it!

• The correct take on what will help

• 📚 Two books I just finished: Sky Daddy by Kate Folk and You Shouldn’t Have Come Here by Jeneva Rose

  • Sky Daddy — I found this book strange and not worth the read. Sure, the writing is great and the premise (woman sexually attracted to planes) is odd to start, but as my book club so lovingly put it: “It could have gone waaaaaaay further.” I agree with that, which is why I found it simply odd for odd’s sake with no heart and no point. It’s incredibly challenging for me to not hate a book fill of characters I don’t care about, and that’s ultimately what this was.

  • You Shouldn’t Have Come Here — This one, on the other hand, was entertaining as hell and forced me to start and finish it in a single day. The writing was quick, the rollouts of the turns were perfectly timed, and the final pages twists were solid. Really fun thriller to read and a standout for me that I’d recommend to anyone in need of a great plane, beach or park read.

• Could I be any more clear????

• I promise you this is worth the watch & giggle

• Another pop culture win that happened while I was away — Own Hunt haters, rise

• Corporate America girlies, you get it

• 📺 TV show I’m currently watching: The Walking Dead — I have long been a fan of this show, having binged it all once and watched the last handful of seasons live, and there’s just nothing like a good rewatch to remind you of what we can expect when the impending end of the world doom sets in any day now. I’m not sure I have what it takes to survive an apocalyptic event on my own, but I am sure I have what it takes to create my own sick little cult camp and band of followers. I’ve not watched the reboots or spinoffs, but this year’s re-screening has me considering them all. PS: Fellow fans of the show should really enjoy this lil clip.

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That’s all this week! I finally got to stroll through the area of Riverside Park near my apartment this weekend, and it was such bliss that I took actual iPhone photos of the flowers and trees (something I’ve always reserved for the elderly and botanists) so, idk, enjoy!!! — bye <3

Oh hi, it’s me! Back (to the keyboard) after a couple weeks off (writing). As always, I got down on myself for missing a couple of these regular posts but then I snapped to and reminded myself that I too am human (like each of you) and so I too get busy and tired (like each of you) so, actually, it’s fine!

To catch you up, let’s do some quick highlights from my world the last couple weeks.

cheers, jeers & meres hit 200 subscribers!!!!! Actually at 205 as you sit there and read this!!!!! I love all of you showing up here to ponder and giggle and hate with me!!!!! I can’t believe it!!!!!

I hosted a housewarming! My sweet NYC apartment was full of friends and snacks and music and light, and it just warmed my stone cold little heart. I still have a lot of work to do to bring my vision to life, but it was really fun to get to share all the work I’ve done so far with my pals. The kitchen shined and the living room was cozy (turns out people loved my art picks!). I made punchy jell-o shots and ordered Raising Cane’s chicken tenders (crowd pleasers!). But the real star of the evening was my beautiful Tiffany-style lamp I thrifted in Connecticut last month!!!! My personal vision for this was to bring a warm, 90s-style-Pizza Hut-meets-Applebees-inspired light to complete my cozy breakfast nook — and, frankly, I nailed it. These pics and this corner have both (rightfully) become my entire personality as of late.

My solo (and first-ever!) trip to Paris is… well, here! I leave on a redeye Wednesday night, so I’ve been busy outfit planning, restaurant plotting, reservation making, site mapping and butter strategizing. I can’t wait to explore a new place and have some solo time, something crucial to my mental sanity and also perfect for doing exactly what I want to do on a vacation. Food and shopping are at the tippy top of my to do list, with sights and one single museum are also on there. A full report to come next week, a la last Spring’s first European trip report. PS: Here’s the playlist I’m listening to — it’s a combo of French music, music about Paris, and mentally Paris-adjacent tunes (i.e. the TSITP playlist)

And now, onto the main event and the reason all 205 (!!!) of you are here. 💌

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🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

Dumpling Bag from Esenes Worldwide: Yet again, the internet has watched every keystroke I’ve ever made and found a way to target me with the perfect purse. Have you ever seen a more perfect bag than this one?????? No, you guys, truly, I think this a very real thing I very truly want to purchase and then take out to eat with me the next time I consume 100x dumplings.

Paint Swatches: Towards the top of my long list of next Apartment Projects is painting my IKEA bookcases! While the sanding and priming part won’t be fun, the part that has been fun is choosing the color. I know I want a light blue (more on this vision some other time, ok?) but which light blue! My need to be thorough and intentional ultimately means I got to stroll through the paint store and pick up a wealth of paint swatch cards to mull over, and... well, they are so fun! They are an iconic medium for someone like me (insane) who can truly see the subtle differences between two versions of something, whereas more easygoing people may not even notice contrasts — you should see me at a nail salon choosing between reds, it’s something special. I even whipped them out at my housewarming and let people weigh in, so they served as a conversation tool too!? Anyone else see a future of these cutie strips becoming art of their own in my apartment someday? (I do.)

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🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

False Spring: Everyone knows it, but it’s been False Spring™ all over the country and people are getting excited without thinking ahead. You little doofuses, what do you think this is? Is this your first time on the planet? Have you forgotten every time you work shorts one day and a sweater the next? How quickly the realities of weather escape our minds when a cold beer on a patio is involved. How seamless the transition in our heads from Winter-to-Spring, but not the other way around. And I will publicly say, yes, I’d prefer it to simply be one temperature, of course! While I’m not always eager for the sun and heat, I do frequently long for consistency. So, sure, technically the inconsistently STUNNING days we’ve had the last couple of weeks are seemingly a cheer, but it’s fleeting and I have come to terms with that, unlike the rest of you choosing to embrace the joy that a perfect, breezy, False Spring™ day brings without grounding yourselves in reality. Wake up!!!!

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• I haven’t stopped laughing at this SNL Tucker Carlson impression you guys its SO FUNNY and SO GOOD

• Do you get it? Do you??????

• As always Hunter Harris has the right idea, folks

• You couldn’t handle it — hope this helps <3

• So many people do this to me

• This news has brought me to life in a reeeeeal way

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• 🍅 This week’s tomato / other food item is a combo of really cute bowls + dishes I got specifically for my housewarming party, plus a beautiful pasta dish towel my best friend brought me as part of a housewarming gift. Yes, the hosting bug is deep in my brain at the moment!!!

• Their spouses are sooooo brave

• Aw, thanks for noticing!!!

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• Just a quick little tip for all you health nuts out there… ever considered this???

• Having dinner with me is exactly like this, join at your own risk

• 📚 The book I just finished: Heart The Lover by Lily King — You guys….. this was not what I was told it would be. Not to say I didn’t enjoy the writing, not to say it wasn’t easy and quick little read. Just to say I did not have the emotional reaction everyone else seemed to, so I was left a little unsatisfied. Don’t worry, I’ve already given my copy to my best friend so I don’t have to keep looking at it and rolling my eyes.

• It’s on repeat! Ok! REPEAT.

• A lot of people sound like this talking about Sinners, by the way

• No this should be illegal, frankly

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That’s all this week! I also went to some of my favorite bars & restaurants last week which is always a treat. Here are some cocktails & big pepperoni cups from Bad Roman (salivating) and some interior & exterior shots from Trailer Park Lounge (classic). Hope you eat and drink well this week, too — bye <3

For those of you who remember last Spring, I spent months thinking and planning and shopping and stressing for my first trip to Europe with my best friends. Well this Spring brought a whole new version of my insanity to the surface, as I booked a flight to Paris and I leave in 30 days! Goodbye long-term planner, hello short-term stressor.

Spontaneity has never been my strong suit but I’m trying hard this year to spend more time doing and less time thinking.

So consider this upcoming solo trip to the first step in the right direction — and if you have favorite sites, restaurants, bars, neighborhoods or other things in Paris I am actively taking recommendations!! 💌

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🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

Wuthering Heights: I liked it, ok!!!!!! No, I didn’t read the book and no I don’t have a film degree, but I am still allowed to like things!!!!! I had very mediocre expectations and they were met gleefully with stunning visuals and great outfits and sexy tension. And sure, I can’t say I bought into the wigs and the charli xcx of it all didn’t really makes sense to me and it’s not winning any Oscars, but I had a really fun time. Jacob Elordi is hot, Margot Robbie is beautiful, they stand next to each other and kiss a lot and make each other miserable and for me that is good stuff, ok!!!! Leave me alone!!! Quit trying to make every film a think piece and let me just have fun with my friends and big bucket of popcorn!!!!!

Antiquing Galore: I’ve spent the last two weekends antiquing and thrifting, on the hunt for knickknacks and tchotchkes and books to fill my new apartment’s shelves, and it’s been so fun!!! I’ve brought home some really fun things, and left some other incredible ones behind (regretfully), but mostly I’ve found real joy wandering through the aisles of other people’s memories and discoveries, seeing ways to make them my own memories and discoveries. I have a lot of shelf space to fill so if you have a favorite NYC thrift spot please leave me a comment so I can add it to my list!!!

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Jonathan Groff on Good Hang: Overall, this is a perfect podcast because Amy Poehler has cracked the code on guests and content and cadence, so I love every single episode. But this one was particularly fun for theater kids and highly emotional people — 10/10 recommend a watch or a listen, even if you aren’t a podcast person.

🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

Men at the Olympics: I know I already wrote about not caring about the Olympics, and I stand by that. But something incredible happened over the last couple of weeks, and it’s that men managed to make the Olympics even worse by behaving like vile children on an international stage. Amazing how they always matter to make something so much worse, isn’t it!!!! First, Norwegian Olympian Sturla Holm Lægreid announced, unprompted, that he cheated on his girlfriend and pretended that it was some sort of heart felt apology rather than an attention grab designed to guilt her into dating him again. Sturla, sir, do you know what I guarantee she’d have enjoyed more than a pathetic, on-air fake apology? Not getting cheated on in the first place!!! Only for him to come out with a stupid “I didn’t mean to unwillingly force her into the spotlight” statement when what he actually meant was “I didn’t think about her at all this televised stunt was actually only about me” — pathetic. Second, Breezy Johnson completes an incredible downhill skiing run at the Olympics, only for her boyfriend to ask himself… how can I make this incredible achievement of hers, allllll about me? frankly, men who propose to women after the woman have just completed a monumental achievement (running a marathon, earning a degree, celebrating their most recent year of life) deserve jail time, if you ask me. And while sure she seems thrilled and yes Taylor Swift commented on their post, I do think it’s time to ask the important question: why can’t these men read the f*cking room and let women have a moment of their own spotlight? The answer may (not) surprise you.

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Tyra Banks: I watched the 3-part docuseries on Netflix about the iconic-slash-horrific series America’s Next Top Model and while I did enjoy seeing some of my old favorite women from the show and the delightful Jay, Miss J and Nigel, I’m here to report that Tyra Banks is a bigger villain than she was before. Every episode was Tyra essentially saying she’s glad she put these women through some of the worst traumas of their lives and they should be grateful she gave them the chance. She’s wearing what some are accurately calling an Inspector Gadget trench coat, she refuses to speak about a girl’s horrific experience with assault on air, and she shows little-to-no remorse for most of the photo shoot themes (you guys she put a woman in black face and called it “changing ethnicies” like the theme was “candy land”!!!! hello!!!!). Anyway the only positive thing to come from her being a psychotic on-air narcissist who is entirely out of touch with reality, is that the internet agrees and is absolutely dragging her.

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• Deeply true, I fear

• Oh, this has… tickled me! hehe! wow!

• This woman is showing some of the most insane Starbucks drink orders known to man and they are making me sick

• Unfortunately my real life!!!!!

• I’m not a mom but I will be making one of these nonetheless

• 🍅 This week’s tomato item is this perfect lil light from Urban Outfitters that I… kind of can’t believe I haven’t already bought?

• Real Grey’s Anatomy fans will understand this one

• ✨ A room I’d like to live in: this chandelier is something out of a dream

• The correct take </3

• Yeah sure technically I am “down for anything” I guess!

• Would have been the perfect gift for me, by the way

• Unfortunately my real life!!!!!

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That’s all this week! I’m currently obsessed with my perfect half winter/half spring manicure and had a fun lil night out last night with my friends to celebrate a birthday, I hope your Q1 is going by as quickly or slowly as you need it to — bye <3

I grew up in a home with a mom as the designated BCD maker in our friends and family circles. Friends called/texted/stopped by just to triple confirm she was bringing it, people called her as they stood in grocery store aisles asking for the ingredients they should be buying for their own gathering, family members started asking “in addition to BCD, what will you be making” as we planned holidays. She was (and still is!) the one responsible for plugging in that crockpot and loading up on ingredients and ensuring the scoops are purchased.

As I’ve gotten older, I’m really lucky to be in a friend group where someone else is the designated BCD maker. I am, of course, capable if need be — after all I come from a long ling of BCD makers and it runs in my blood — but there’s an extra layer of luxury attending social events where you know you’ll get to enjoy BCD without being responsible to supply said BCD.

People sometimes treat the Super Bowl as the only core time BCD is fitting, but I am here to tell you that’s a farce!!!! You can actually have it anytime you want, with a group or on your own, for a snack or as a meal, football or no football on the screen. It’s a perfect option for literally anytime you are looking to gulp down cheese and buffalo sauce and ranch and cream cheese (aka something I look for everyday) in a socially acceptable way.

Maybe you’re like me, mostly unable to eat spicy food but addicted to snacking on whatever is placed in front of you — never fear, this is still a dip you can and will overeat. It’s a creamy dream, it’s a filling bite, it’s a warm hug, it’s a perfect comfort. Serve it in a giant bowl or individual chips, make it in a pan or crockpot, keep some aside for yourself or dish it all out, eat it the day you make it or the next day on a sandwich.

So please be sure to thank your designated BCD maker because they have a lot of pressure on them this weekend (and any weekend you now start asking them to make it for you) and I’m willing to bet they are already feeling full and sick from all the “taste tests” they’ve been doing as they prep for you to arrive.

And let’s raise a Tostitos Scoop to the dish that brings us all together and sends us writhing with heart burn: Buffalo Chicken Dip. 💌

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🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

Birthday parties w/ activities: It’s not always fun to be an adult and have to plan your own birthday, but my friend Bridget recently did an incredible job of it! While party guests and food availability and time of year natural impact a birthday, this one was especially fun because she 1) went all in on a theme and 2) had an activity for people to do: playing BINGO! I know, I know, some people just wanna stand around at a bar or lay by a pool or eat dinner alone — all of these being valid celebrations!!!! — but sometimes it an be so fun to actually do something. We’re all in desperate need of something to hold our attention that doesn’t live on a screen and this silly fun birthday was just the ticket. I should note that while I loved it, I did not win, and luckily I’m being very mature about and getting over right away.

Speaking of birthdays… digital party I threw last week: Yes, yes this is just a shameless plug for me but who cares, it was fun! Go read it if you haven’t yet (or even if you have)!

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Making stuff with my hands: As I’ve shared time and time again (aka won’t shut up about) I am deep in the settling in phase of my new apartment. And while, yes, I did write an entire jeer specific to the assembly of an IKEA dresser — which, by the way, I still stand by — there have been some really nice waves of pride and satisfaction that comes from a lot of the work I’m doing with my own two hands. I used to think that things like furniture I built myself or decor I hand paint or displaying my small crafts were all just temporary placeholders until I got grown up or rich or good enough to have “real” things; how sad is that as a mindset for somewhere I spend all my time and money? It’s joyful to see the frames I painted on the walls, it’s calming to see my shelves after I styled them so meticulously, it’s pleasing to see the furniture I put together, it’s hilarious to see the assortment of things I’ve collected over the years. 10/10 recommend doing or arranging or making something this month and setting it out for you to see the accomplishment everyday.

🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

IRL ordering vs. App ordering: Sure, sure, ordering ahead is convenient. Except, is it??? Making a smooth coffee pickup on the way to the office, not needing to haul kids out of a car to get dinner, picking up your friends order when you re there anyway — these are all really good uses of ordering ahead. However, I fear that we’ve lost the plot when the digital to-go orders are overpowering those of us standing at a counter or sitting at a table. People order too far in advance (grow up and learn better time management skills), people order things that are too complicated (grow up and say it out loud to the person taking your order), people order too many things (grow up this just annoys me but feel free to eat/drink as much as you want). If I have to find myself standing in a Starbucks while 10x digital orders sit untouched, or sitting at a Chinese restaurant waiting on dumplings while to-go orders pile up, or barely dodging a grocery shopper taking up the whole aisle while they fulfill a pickup order…. WELL, I’M GUNNA LOSE IT, I GUESS!

The Olympics: I am being really brave and vulnerable today with what I think is actually an incredibly hot take: I do not care about the Olympics. I know lots of people do I know lots of countries do I know lots of athletes do, but this is MY newsletter, not theirs! So!!!!

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Costco French Roast Coffee Beans: You guys I really hate this flavor of coffee from Costo that I’m forcing down my throat every morning due to my caffeine addiction needs. I drink enough coffee at home that I buy beans by the pound — fiscal responsibility much??? — and when I moved from LA to NYC I was left with limited, new options (why they don’t just all sell the same beans, I’m not sure) that, turns out, I hate. Now, I’ve been met with an overage of the grossest/muckiest/blandest coffee beans someone has ever owned and I can’t keep living like this. (Note: Since this Substack post was originally written, I called and complained and was juuuuust annoying enough that my angel parents actually went to their Costco and are shipping me the kind of beans I do like so…. crisis averted…. for now…..)

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• I’m literally salivating at The Drama preview I cannot wait

• Good Hang w/ Amy Poehler is always good, but this episode with Ryan Coogler was especially exceptional and everyone should listen to it!

• Real, true, accurate, correct

• Reminder you should watch The Montgomery Brawl in honor of Black History Month

• You really can do this, by the way

• A sweet February mood board I found on Substack <3

• 🍅 This week’s tomato item is actually just the entire Damson Madder Collection at Anthropologie…. of which I need the entirety

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• Yet another movie preview I’m gagged and fawning over, duh

• I love the Bike Bus so much

• I found this music video cute and cozy and I enjoyed!!!

• A really accurate take on an LA —> NY girlie

• Me, constantly agreeing with Hunter Harris

• ✨ A room I’d like to live in: I love stripes on walls so much that I think I simply must paint them myself really really really soon

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That’s all this week! Here’s a little photo story of a tiramisu I had with my besties this weekend that was so good we ate it in 2 minutes and then ordered a second — bye <3

Shouting a great big HBD to me and you and this Substack, because we have been hanging out and giggling together and storming inboxes for one whole year!!!!!

This was such a fun year, pals! I can’t believe 192 of you are here and welcome me into your email every single Sunday????? Are you guys insane???? (If so, I love it, never change <3) And, yeah, sure, if you’re a historian or whatever, technically my first official scary “hit publish” moment was technically January 26th of last year, but I already published an issue this week so I have been a little behind, ok, sue me!!!!

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On a more serious note, over the course of the year I got to write about so many different things and it was a freedom I didn’t realize I needed until I started doing a deep dive for this post.

I let myself rant and rave about so many things that I’d maybe other days use my mean inner voice to tell myself “no one wants to hear this” or “you are too old to care about that” or “stop being negative, be more positive” or “pull it together you sound like an insane person.” But I ignored that judgy little voice, and instead I pushed forward and wrote about some really fun stuff that I actually give a shit about and I let myself enjoy putting words around them and finding cute visuals and pairing good music. 🍝 I went to Europe! 💔 I was vulnerable about having trouble! 🌞 I obsessed over TSITP! 🎶 I created Autumnal playlists! 🧠 I had visual brain dump meltdowns! 🤠 I, myself, had a birthday!

I also took a ~big risk~ this year and turned on paid subscriptions, something I had to spend a lot of time talking myself into. To my delight, some people really showed up supporting me when I turned “One More Thing” on, PLUS this extra outlet let me explore a more focused, more creative, more personal style of writing from time to time. 💄 I interviewed my friend and beauty expert Hana! 🦃 I created a Thanksgiving consumption guide! 🎄 I shared a sweet and sad holiday essay!

If you’ve ever spent a birthday with me — mine, yours, or anyone’s — then you know that on birthdays I like to play a little game where you recall your favorite thing and/or memory about the birthday boy or girl. Well my cutie Substack is is no different, so below I’ve rounded up my personal favorite cheers, jeers & meres from the last year of publishing. I hope you enjoy reliving my love and complaints and internet bits along with me!!!

And for your listening pleasure as you scroll: While this isn’t for my personal bday, I’m still sharing a great playlist created for me on 30th birthday by my friends, because I think it’s fitting to the ~vibe~ of cheers, jeers & meres.

Okay, so…. now what, exactly? 👀 Well nothing at all and everything at once. Oh, don’t worry, have plans and goals and visions to keep pushing myself, keep trying new things, keep taking risks, keep writing consistently — but the beautiful thing about a birthday is that you get to celebrate another one 365 days later! Nothing but more room and days to figure out whatever is next.

And finally, a really major huge giant massive serious THANK YOU!!!! if you’re reading this very post. Whether you are a paid or free, a friend or stranger, a writer or reader or both, having words to write and seeing them read by people can, turns out, alter your brain chemistry in some really lovely ways. 💌

🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

• Issue #025 - Big coffee in big cups: To know me is to know I love iced coffee, and lately I have been enjoying it out of big containers that chefs use to meal prep. There’s something truly special about holding a giant vessel to feel like a small child but being so chock-full of caffeine that you have the energy of a small army. And why stop at a food storage container? I’ve been seeing these buckets of iced coffee all over my TikTok and now I need to go locate on in LA immediately because I deserve to dream bigger – buckets, barrels, barges.

• Issue #002 - Romcom Month: Since I almost made this my *only* cheer for the week, I felt it deserved prime real estate. I assembled my trusty list over the course of last year and found it inspiring not only because I was finally able to start labeling my favorite romcoms, but also because there are SO MANY! It’s a fab genre and has some true classics (and true horrors) for literally every trope literally anyone could be looking for. The streamers have been churning out new titles and previews for months, so I admit there are some holes, but it’s a starting point. PS — before you ask: no, I really haven’t seen The Parent Trap.

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• Issue #037 - My (new) local neighborhood paper: I’m discovering new things and falling more in love with my neighborhood everyday (its only been 6 days) but this week’s #1 find has been the local Upper West Side newspaper, The Spirit. I love print journalism and I love anything hyperlocal, and this paper is bringing me both!!! What a precious treat that is delivered to my building lobby every single week!! Everyone should be subscribing or reading or supporting their local journalists, ok?

• Issue #007 - The time I highlighted the importance of crushes

• Issue #034 - The Return of the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: It should be noted that I am not a reality TV person. I watched MTV reality-esque television in its heyday: cast-driven like The Real World and Laguna Beach, the gamified ones like Room Raiders and NEXT and Parental Control, the ones you couldn’t believe like My Super Sweet 16 and A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila, and the classics like Jersey Shore and 16 And Pregnant (aka Teen Mom). But today’s Bravo and Kardashians and country music stars simply don’t appeal to me. Everyday that I spend surfing through streaming slopI makes me miss that sociopathic, borderline soap opera quality of the early 2000s programming even more. But worry not, the SLOMW has quickly filled this gap for me. The women are unhinged, the events are pointless, the fight are manufactured, the production value is just good-bad enough. I am a Whitney apologist (sorry, I know, I know), I hate every single husband more with every episode, and I would watch this show on death row to remind myself that it could, in fact, always be worse.

• Issue #009 - Bad Bunny x Calvin Klein: I don’t really feel I need to explain? I am, however, sharing the video for those of us who desperately thirst for need a reminder.

• Issue #026 - The time I obsessed over this post about old school Panera Bread: Rather than recreate the sweet narrative Jenna O’Brien’s Feeling! Magazine has already masterfully put together, I’m just pulling out a couple of my favorite parts from her post below and encourage you to go scroll & read through it for a lil trip back to a simpler, You Pick Two time. 💌

• Issue #038 - BIC 25th Anniversary Pen: The incredibly iconic (albeit, terribly-functioning) Bic Cristal pen is turning 75 this year and to celebrate they made the pen design into a larger than life (ironically, fully-functioning) light!!!!! It’s such a brilliant idea for a product like this, and while Bic is simply not my brand — I’m a Fine Point Pilot G2 or Paper Mate Flair Felt Tip kinda girl, myself — I still absolutely need to figure out how to buy this lamp when it finally goes on sale.

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• Issue #011 - The time I outlined my big three according to cultural references: For you zodiac-avoidant folks, according to Co—Star: your sun is your role in life and self core, your moon reflects your emotions and who you are when alone, and your rising is the mask you present and how you first come off to people. So for some fun this week, I reflected on my Big 3 a bit more unconventionally.

  • 🍸 Sex and the City: Miranda Sun, Charlotte Moon, Samantha Rising

  • ✨ Taylor Swift Albums: Folklore Sun, Speak Now Moon, 1989 Rising

  • 💊 Severance: Harmony Cobel Sun, Irving B. Moon, Helly R. Rising

  • 🔥 YA Series: Harry Potter Sun, Twilight Moon, Hunger Games Rising

  • 🚑 Grey’s Anatomy: Miranda Bailey Sun, Lexie Grey Moon, Christina Yang Rising

  • 📱 Social Media: Instagram Sun, Twitter Moon, Substack Rising

  • 💗 Norah Ephron Classics: You’ve Got Mail Sun, Sleepless In Seattle Moon, When Harry Met Sally Rising

  • ☕️ Gilmore Girls: Emily Sun, Jess Moon, Lorelei Rising

  • 💁🏼‍♂️ The Chrises: Hemsworth Sun, Pine Moon, Evans Rising

🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

• Issue #005 - Celebs dating celebs: This is an old hatred of mine that resurges every 4-6 months when a celebrity crush of mine gets a new girlfriend — last year it was Paul Mescal x Gracie Abrams and today it’s Zoë Kravitz x Noah Centineo (and don’t even get me started on Austin Butler x Kaia Gerber x the breakup that took too long). Candidly, I’d be a fantastic WAG to a celebrity, ok? Can’t you see me, dressed in a sensible gown on a red carpet, on the arm of a hot actor who barely speaks, cracking my own jokes with the E! host, headlines the next day that say “We are obsessed with [B-List Celeb]’s Wife Serria Thomas and you should be too”? Can’t you see it????? I know, me too! But how am I supposed to get there if these celebrities just keep dating *other* celebrities??? Aren’t these publicists sick and tired of cycling through whoever is the last to leave a celeb birthday party? Seek out normal partners elsewhere! My Instagram DMs are open! Give these men a real shot at love and laughter (with me) you cowards!!!! I deserve to be part of the Chic Normals celebs date or marry!!!!!

• Issue #017 - Trader Joe’s Sundays: I usually try to time my trips to TJ’s on a mid-week evening, so as to avoid the chaos and stupidity I’m met with on a Sunday afternoon, but sometimes we face the unfortunate consequence of changing schedules and lazy spurts. Which is how I find myself now bracing for the impact of grocery shopping at the single best and worst place one Earth on a busy Sunday afternoon. It’s not just the crowds, ok (I get that everyone needs to buy groceries) it’s that Sundays are packed with the dumbest people alive who have… seemingly never grocery shopped or been in a public place with other human beings before? Hey, what if you guys, idk, made a grocery list and then looked at the food in front of you and operated as if this was a normal place to make a purchase!!!! Zero spacial awareness at the banana tower and apple shelf, standing so close to the cheeses and veggies and meats that you can see hot breath colliding with fridge condensation, total avoidance of traffic pattern flow within aisles, ransacked shelves where eggs used to sit (maybe, idk, never seen them stocked), carts abandoned everywhere you look by people stronger than you who just gave up, couples making out in front of some of the most insane chip flavors you’ve ever seen, employees desperate to stock shelves but seemingly wearing blinders as they do, the slowest reading you’ve ever witnessed of every single identical frozen food item. And don’t even get me started on the most convoluted parking lots these stores sit in — traffic jams and blaring horns for small spaces no one can turn in or out of, just what we need in LA. How can we be expected to live like this? I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, there should be dedicated days for people to grocery shop who know what they are doing and have a list in place. The rest of you, idk, get better or just be hungry I guess!!!

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• Issue #024 - The time I lost Wifi and behaved like a child

• Issue #033 - Faux innovation: What’s old is new! Everything comes back around! No one has new ideas! Apple has apparently patented a new AirPods case with an interactive display, or, to some of us, an iPod Nano… which was discontinued in 2017. This is your reminder that brands want us to think they ~innovated~ and invented something new that we really need, when in reality they just iterate on the same product over and over until the new buying generation doesn’t realize it’s all identical!!!!

• Issue #020 - The NBA x Free Throws: Every now and then I find myself sitting in front of a screen that’s playing a professional basketball game, especially this year because the Pacers made it really far and I am from Indiana so the feed has been overrun. Anyway, anytime I’m watching these games, without fail, these professional NBA players are MISSING free throws. I’m not imagining it — these players miss 25% of their free throws. You guys they are called free throws… they are literally free?? It’s not like we’re watching a local high schooler or amateur pickup game between loser frat bros who haven’t seen the inside of gym since they were getting rejected at prom — these are professional, full-time athletes, missing the most basic shot available to them. There’s no one blocking or fouling, there’s no running or jumping. Picture any TV show or movie you’ve ever seen where the main character is learning to play basketball: what are they doing? Yeah, your imagination is serving you well, they are shooting free throws. It’s the literal building block for the sport, and yet the millions of dollars on their paychecks cannot guarantee they remember the basis of their whole career. Imagine me missing 25% of my emails, missing 25% of my meetings???? These men are people’s HEROES!! That’s psychotic, ok!!!! It just is!

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• Issue #014 - Bundled basket baby photo shoots: Hey, why are we doing this? I obviously understand the desire for baby photos — they grow up so fast and they look just like mom/dad and they had on the cutest onesie and we put a lot of energy and money into raising this kid so we’re going to document our success. I get it! I’m not anti-baby photos, I’m not a monster. But why are we doing this incredibly strange thing where the kid is, to be frank, folded like a pretzel and then put into a basket or a pumpkin or a wheelbarrow? The hands always folded up under their chin as if the baby is pondering how in the world they ended up inside this giant mason jar or cauldron or watering can; the blankets wrapped so tightly that the kid might actually break out as butterfly in 3-5 weeks; the sepia tones and light airbrushing to, I don’t know, hide the pretzel baby’s blemishes? Sunflowers, bunnies, gourds, eggs, doilies, all scattered around as if these are anyone’s — let alone a newborn baby’s — true hobbies and interests. It’s so weird, please stop doing it. There are so many other normal ways to take baby photos that it begs the question: is it the parents who wish they themselves were folded in a basket? Idk but it’s weird either way.

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• Um, yeah, actually, yes

• I couldn’t possibly

• Please don’t forget that bullying is actually really important <3

• If you’re too weak to be with a Virgo, just say that?

• Haven’t stopped thinking about this NYT piece about how everything we consume lately — food, content, clothes, drinks — is just slop

• She was the blueprint, ok!

• You can’t can you??? Didn’t think so!!!

• Is anyone else’s TiKTok feed *entirely* filled with old Nikki Blonsky From Hairspray media interviews and content and cameos? No??

• Are you…. kidding?

• Hope you don’t wanna hang out anytime soon or you’ll be getting this survey

• It was a different time, is all

• This is important content because 1) I am included in it (!!!) and 2) I just love Ceasar salads so read & enjoy

• No this is actually a really good question

• Reminder it’s important / healthy to be a hater <3

• It hurts when it’s extra true but at least it’s a little funny

• They will put this on my headstone one day

Share cheers, jeers & meres

• 🍅 And, of course, the best tomato (or food) items I’ve obsessed over…

  • The Peri Quilt Bedding Set that my bestie sent to me and I immediately added to my shopping list

  • The room scent — I kind of can’t believe no one has purchased this for me so I guess I have to do it myself

  • Top tier tomato party content (and it was already my entire feed) so I guess what I’m saying is YES OK FINE I’ll throw a tomato themed party this year! Oh, and speaking of tomatoes I love……

  • Replaced with multiple butter 🧈 items — this incredible light I must purchase and this tiny couch I’d like to cuddle up on

  • These Tomate Placemats & Napkins from Bed Threads that…. yep, turns out I do need

  • A precious kitchen timer from Michael’s “Italian Kitchen” collection (of which I need everything from)

  • This great hook brought to my attention by Chelsea Zeferina’s Instagram + Substack notes from chelsea!! where she (thank god) linked it for people like me to immediately purchase!

Thanks for celebrating with me!!!! Here’s your lil reminder that hot girls get a little sad on their birthdays — even cheers, jeers & meres <3 Ok I love you all, see ya next week as usual!!!!!

Between work chaos and social plans, the state of the world and heaviness of the internet, the blandness of January and exhaustion of every waking day… I think we can all agree, it’s been an insane couple of weeks, no? Armed henchmen are roaming the streets kidnapping and murdering and beating people. Every swipe and tap and share and comment brings new horrors to my fingertips and it’s impossible to escape but important to see and tragic all around.

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I do not have a smooth transition to get away from the bad. Sorry if you were expecting one, but there actually is no escape because it’s real and happening in front of us and there’s no simple way out. So, with that in mind: close your eyes, unclench your jaw, roll back your shoulders, take a deep breath.

Last week, in an effort to give my brain a moment’s rest and focus instead on an IRL bright spot, I got to enjoy some time with my mom!

She visited and bravely stuck out the first NYC snow storm of the month, and we just bopped around like girls do. We went to my neighborhood diner and had a ginormous tiramisu and strolled through Zabar’s and drank no less than 100 iced coffees. It was a nice break from the chaos — and a fun time to hang out with my life’s source!!!

I know, I know. It doesn’t feel easy or light or even bearable these days — but hopefully today’s read can be a fun break for ya with silly little joys and complaints and bits. And one more time for good measure: close your eyes, unclench your jaw, roll back your shoulders, take a deep breath. 💌

🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

BIC 25th Anniversary Pen: The incredibly iconic (albeit, terribly-functioning) Bic Cristal pen is turning 75 this year and to celebrate they made the pen design into a larger than life (ironically, fully-functioning) light!!!!! It’s such a brilliant idea for a product like this, and while Bic is simply not my brand — I’m a Fine Point Pilot G2 or Paper Mate Flair Felt Tip kinda girl, myself — I still absolutely need to figure out how to buy this lamp when it finally goes on sale.

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Valentine’s Day Core: It feels like the last few years have really escalated things when it comes to Valentine’s and Galentine’s Day. Clothes, dishes, decor, balloons, parties, dinners, content. It didn’t used to be this way, right? Once upon a time it was just paper cards at elementary school and avoiding restaurants on date night, but now it’s like a whole new marketing funnel has opened up and we’re all getting sucked in. That includes me this year!!!!! I got cutie new sheets, I got a fun new mug, I got precious PJs. I’m going to make myself paper chains, I’m going to a brunch with my gal pals with games and crafts. I’m buying in this year because the world is in such desperate need for joy!

🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

“All Out” on Broadway: I’ll take basically any excuse to see a broadway show, especially since I’m back living in NYC, but wow I’m not sure I can recommend against this one enough. I’d never heard of Simon Rich before, so perhaps the joke is on me (and every tourist getting duped into seeing this) but this show basically has the greatest casts you’ve ever seen paired with some of the most lame and boring jokes you’ve ever heard. Sarah Silverman, Craig Robinson, Heidi Gardner, Jason Mantzoukas! That was my cast! And instead of laughing nonstop all evening, I was forced to sit through 85 minutes of droll “essays” and “stories” and “bits” that I spent all of my high school and college years trying to avoid. The high points of the show were live musical performances from theater-kids-meets-iPad-kids come to life, Lawrence. Incredible talent, irritating vibes, the classic vibe of a brother and sister who are too close. Don’t go see this show, but if you do then take joy in the fact that it’s only one act.

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👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• I keep rewatching the Bad Bunny Super Bowl preview because it’s making me emotional in the best way

• Anyone know???

• This Hinge view edited into a horror film is too accurate

• I don’t miss LA but I do miss this kind of smug phone call

• We are in a literary crisis and so I believe this is actually something we should enact ASAP

• 🍅 This week’s tomato item is this cutie set of taper candles my friend Jen got me as a lil housewarming gift! I cannot wait to burn them, but also don’t ever want to burn them… either way, they too good!!!!!

• This is as bad as it gets for me, personally

• I wish we would just call this something normal instead of making up a new, stupid, gimmicky name, but generally yes I am thrilled we are returning to analog and normal (sans screen) hobbies!!!

• Some of us remember Pixar films! Sorry to you losers who don’t!

• World Market tempting me & my wallet, yet again

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• 📺 The show I just started watching: Tell Me Lies on Hulu — So everyone around me keeps telling me I need to watch this and is shocked when I tell them I haven’t, so I gave in and gave it a try. It’s kind of awful, it’s slightly okay. I have no urgency to binge all the seasons in one day, but I also find myself attached if only because of the internet culture around it. And if you haven’t started the show or don’t know what it’s about, let me fill you in: everyone on this show is lying, and everyone on this show is the worst person you’ve ever known.

• NYC is wildin out with the snow and it’s so cute

• And, like, for what?????

• ✨ A room I’d like to live in: While I (or anyone) do not need this many pieces of Le Creuset bakeware, they doooooo look awfully pretty all stacked up against this stunning tile.

That’s all this week! I hope you’re doing your best and staying warm amid the (physical and psychological) chill currently sweeping the nation. — bye <3

First, let me say welcome to the newbies subscribers who joined us over the holiday break and early days of 2026! cheers, jeers & mere’s is a really fun place to read and I am thrilled to have you — comments agreeing or arguing or sharing is encouraged, so welcome to the club!

Second, let me say how sweet this first week back in NYC has been! It’s been busy and chaotic and exhausting, of course, but it’s also been a nice return to a city I love so much. The boxes runneth over, my new neighborhood is stunning, my friends and I had a sandwich picnic.

And while the apartment is taking time and the decor will come together eventually — I am saying this more for me than for you guys — the thing that’s already come together is me and my besties!!!! My literal first evening back we went to a fabulous dinner and caught up and tried to settle into the fact that I am not in fact just here on a quick trip, but permanently. Something fun but challenging for us to grasp!

Lastly, let me say how thrilled I am to be back writing this weekly Substack. The holidays were insanely busy and then I got sick (twice!) so I gave myself a little EOY break, but typing away this morning has reinvigorated me for the year ahead. Welcome back, pals!!! 💌

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🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

My (new) local neighborhood paper: I’m discovering new things and falling more in love with my neighborhood everyday (its only been 6 days) but this week’s #1 find has been the local Upper West Side newspaper, The Spirit. I love print journalism and I love anything hyperlocal, and this paper is bringing me both!!! What a precious treat that is delivered to my building lobby every single week!! Everyone should be subscribing or reading or supporting their local journalists, ok?

A personal brand: Ok, ok, relax, ok? I am not suggesting that you run to Canva and create yourself a logo and color palette and pick yourself out a font (though this is something I will be doing later this year), so don’t freak out. But I am suggesting that you should decide on the things and vibes you like and then you should shout that from the rooftop to any friends or family that will listen and thus you should establish and raise awareness of your ~brand~ or whatever. Why would I be cheersing this, you ask? Because due to my own brand being established — and, more so, due to having incredibly thoughtful friends who love me — I received the perfect gifts upon arriving to NYC this week!! Two separate friends of mine, unplanned and unbeknownst to each other, got my the same juice glasses! So, not only did I feel giddy and seen and thirsty, I also now have a full set of these glasses to add to my collection — oh yeah, and they are the icon glasses I’ve been wanting for literally months! Kinda perfect, huh!!! Go make a brand and tell your friends!!!

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🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

IKEA dresser assembly: As you can imagine, moving means lots of lists and lots of purchases and (for those of us who aren’t wealthy) lots of furniture assembly. Generally, I have always found this process of assembling furniture pieces to be sort of soothing — I get to go at my own speed, I get to use my hands, I get to follow instructions, and I get a beautiful result at the end. How amazing! All that said, this entire ethos fell apart as I stood hunched and sweaty over my IKEA dresser yesterday, begging my emotional support friend, who had watched me get to this state, to just put me out of my misery. It was one of the worst experiences I’ve had in the assembly world and I am begrudgingly pleased to report that the dresser did get finished (and I’m still not sure if it was worth it).

My double life: I’ve spent the last ~6 months living what some would call a double life. When I say some, I don’t really mean regular people, and certainly not people who are actually living a “traditional” double life with multiple families and cross country escapades, but I do mean myself!!! Life 1: work has been incredibly busy and overwhelmingly stressful for what feels like every second of the day with no breathing and no letting up; Life 2: I haven’t spent a day not thinking about moving and boxes and furniture and Amazon orders and organization and money in, well, I’m not sure how long. It’s so hard spending 8+ hours a day only focused on work with the move looming in the background, and it’s even harder trying to spend the rest of the day and weekend enjoying and setting up my new home with all the work that needs done hanging over my head. It’ll all settle soon (right?????????) and so I keep trying to remember that I’m doing this insane work for future me, but wow double lives are not for the weak…. how do men keep these up day after day while they ruin their lives and marriages and families? Wild!

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• In case you need help <3

• Please don’t forget this as we enter a cold winter

• 🍅 This week’s tomato item is this fab piece by Ukrainian artist Julia Stankevych — but to be clear I’m obsessed with all her art, so!

• Representation matters, especially in fashion

• I couldn’t possibly

• Phoebe Waller-Bridge changed lives, ok!!!!

• 📚 What I’m about to read: Heart The Lover by Lily King — everyone I know personally, as well as everyone I don’t know personally across every social media platform, has been pushing this book on me and I am finally going to commit, ok! I got a ton of books over the holidays and this is my first pick to crack open. Perhaps not the best emotional omen for the year but, alas, I am doing it anyway!

• This woman is changing my life over on TikTok, by the way

• Actually really true

• A fab list of cozy NYC bookstores that I personally can’t wait to utilize

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• ✨ A room I’d like to live in: We all deserve bookshelves and walls like these, but especially me

That’s all this week! Hope you’re all doing your best to hang in there, even as everyone else is circling back and picking up projects they put off till the new year and returning back to normal life. — bye <3

And with that, I’m using this week’s newsletter to share a piece of writing about the holidays that I originally published three years ago. I’ve started my own personal tradition the last few years re-sharing this essay as a little reminder to myself that 1) I actually do like some of the craziness, 2) I always feel a lot of feelings, and 3) writing can still hold value even when it’s not shiny and new.

Today’s issue of One More Thing is free to everyone, because I hope you all are liking and feeling and hanging in there this week. 💌

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I like this time of year.

I like the insanity that unfolds inside of a grocery store. Nothing sold out, but your newly discovered, shopper fight-or-flight self leaping toward a shelf in a way you haven’t since you were a child in the gas station candy aisle. Racing against the clock as you run back to find the one item you forgot, hoping the Designated Cart Watcher doesn’t reach the register before you return. Making eye contact with them over the heads of other stressed shoppers to gauge whether it should be an olympic sprint or a leisurely stroll back to the checkout lane. Giggling as you see people picking up the typical items — green beans, aluminum foil, cheese — only to turn around and pick up the butter you’d promised. A unique makeup of people rushing in through automatic doors in their sweatpants meant only for home and hair they thought no one would see, sent out by the house chef for the items they forgot when they shopped last week. Everyone’s list looks different, pages long or slowly disappearing from their minds as they roam the aisles.

I like the unruly madness of the streets. Cutting through and speed walking past strangers on the sidewalk in a secret, olympic-level race to the same fully stocked (or picked-over) shelves you’re all headed to. Driving the slowest you ever have driven in your life while you search for the best available parking space; convincing yourself and your passenger that you can find something better and will “come back to this one” if you don’t; circling back to find it had been taken by someone with better snap decision making skills. The nonstop lane switching on the highway in hopes of gaining a few centimeters on your fellow drivers, only to see the lane you abandoned gain inches on you at the next interchange. Once the busy hours have simmered, that silence and solace of driving around this place you only come a few times a year, filled with shiny streets and trimmed with soft lights.

I like the feeling of stomachs working overtime. Potluck dinners with dishes you wouldn’t even dream of the other months of the year. Laughter that feels like a combination of 100 sit ups and 100 hours of yoga, almost as if you haven’t thought to laugh this much since the last time you were all together. Big fancy — or not-at-all-fancy — breakfasts that dad only cooks on special occasions, where the beverages are limitless. A flood of butterflies when you spot the ex who you’ve tried to forget, when you see the family members you’ve been meaning to call, when you share the newest life announcement with the people you’ve chosen to be yours. Warm and tucked into layers of tights, sweaters, slacks, belts, jackets, vests, skirts, sequins. The snacks and treats you obsess over but seem never to crave in your normal life. The absence of knots that you’ve been yearning for all year.

I like the absolute mayhem of shopping. Strip malls, suburban malls, outdoor malls. Targets, Macy’s, Dick’s. Thinking you’d figured out who you need to shop for only to realize you’d forgotten almost every person that counts. Everyone around you seeming like this is their first time in a store or in a public place with other human beings, as they trudge through aisles with big empty carts and panic-filled eyes darting from shelf to shelf. No one dressed appropriately for the freezing exterior vs. boiling interior temperatures — sweaty matted hair, hot limbs piled high with coats and scarves, socks slipping down heels. Holding up a sweater and screaming at your shopping partner to ask if they think the giftee “would like this one? But would they really like it? But what about the thing from the last place? Would they like that more?” Throwing your hands up in exhaustion and failure as you conduct an FBI-inspired search for the nearest Auntie Anne’s or local Mexican restaurant or Chili’s Bar & Grill. The feeling of camaraderie when you’re in this giant place looking for the same thing everyone else is looking for, and yet something entirely unique.

I like sleeping somewhere that isn’t yours. Couches and pull outs and bunk beds, all small enough to fit you and you alone. Sheets with strange stripes or flowers, a picture into what your hosts once found special and comforting but now only good enough for guests. A strange combination of pillows, making it so everyone in the house is not quite propped up enough, but excited, nonetheless, to have these many heads on flattened pillows. Announcing that you’re going to bed only to sit on the guest-prepared blow up and chat for another 30 minutes about things that could absolutely wait until tomorrow. That cozy feeling of returning after a long day — of socializing or shopping or planning — to the little space you’ve carved out for yourself, protected by the extra blankets and hum of the silence.

I like traditions, even when they don’t feel like traditions. Traipsing all over town to see houses with insane Christmas lights, and (what must be) insane electric bills to match. The fancy dinner with grandparents and aunt and uncles, everyone dressed up in ties and shoes they can’t wait to take off in the car. Putting decor up together and having the same arguments you always do, wondering why you didn’t fix that problem last year. The Big Run to the liquor store, ensuring there will be options for every thirst that comes up. Rolling, cutting, baking, frosting, eating some of the ugliest and tastiest cookies ever created. Having an annual lunch with a friend to catch up on all the changes you’ve watched unfold online during the last year. Settling into what you know is tried, true and effortless.

I feel it, too.

I feel the subtle bulldoze of grief. The one that you think you’re avoiding so well but then suddenly comes to knock you over at the sight or smell of a memory you hadn’t even realized you’d missed. The first feeling after you wake up when you’re forced to remember what won’t be this year. An empty chair or an empty bed, an old tradition shaken loose in the same breath a new one is forced on you. Relationships that used to be simple and easy, now difficult and unknown. The comfort in the conversations replaced by tiptoeing and restraint. The grief is almost enough to eat you, burn you, drown you or suffocate you in a single sweep.

I feel the uneven balancing act of anticipation, enjoyment, and regret. So many plans, or so few plans. Expectations set at an unattainable level no matter where the bar lands. It’s confidence-boosting outfits and a new job to talk about; it’s quick catch-ups over drinks and short laughs about things that you’d forgotten were funny; it’s remembering you meant to get a photo and realizing you didn’t ask that question you actually wanted the answer to. New babies, new spouses, old news, bad endings. Firsts and lasts across the board, and no one knows quite how to prepare for any of them.

I feel the stress that never seems to dissolve. Travel plans littered with costs way out of range and ETAs you can’t possibly calculate. Early arrivals, late departures, trips cut short or recalibrated halfway through. No less than a million things to do, with the only thing more stressful than an huge, itemized agenda being no plan, paired with never ending “shoulds” people keep casually putting on you. Stress on your skin, your feet, your heart — all trying to adjust to this new normal for the next 24 to 168 hours. The stress on relationships that are kept alive in large part due to thousands of miles between the two parties, now with only a ten-minute car ride between them. Not knowing what to get or what to say or how to show up, a stress you’ve felt 100 times in the last year but now carries new weight.

I feel the old version of myself come to life (again) and die (again). The first part, with you reminding everyone who you are and why they’ve missed you so much — that memory was wild, that situation was hilarious, what a sad thing we did, how did we make it to here? The old essence of who you were when you were in this place before, flowing so easily back into your veins that you didn’t realize just how much you’ve changed. And the second part, spending what feels like a fraction of the time trying to softly introduce the new person you’re trying to grow into. Saying goodbye, again, to that old version as the new version barely gets its feet wet in this new-to-her social pool — never without fear that the old version is the only option. Constantly assuming the “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” mentality is rolling through your once-closest companions heads as they listen to you talk about the new plans and goals and vision you’ve built in the safety of your own brain.

I like and I feel the chaos that comes with the holidays. Emotional chaos, logistical chaos, planned and unexpected chaos. It feels hard and fun, it feels awful and wonderful. People spending time together and people spending time apart, everyone doing what they like best or what they hate most. I like twinkly lights that feel like a blanket when you look at them. I feel excited for everything to come and I’m already sad that it’s over.

I like it and I feel it.
I work hard to like it and feel it — and I hope you do too.

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If you’re new here, welcome to the party! One More Thing is a special section of my Substack, (usually) only available to paid subscribers. If you’d like to upgrade for next year, this is a fabulous time to do that — otherwise, I’ll see ya next week with my regularly-scheduled and free issue of cheers, jeers & meres!

Please know that if I follow you on Instagram and you posted your Spotify Wrapped on your story, I really enjoyed seeing it and appreciate you sharing. Sometimes people get very ‘“who cares!” about content like this and I’m here to tell you, ME! I CARE! SHARE IT MORE! ENJOY MINE! WHO CARES! 💌

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🎉 cheer: (verb) to utter a shout of applause; (noun) light of mind and feeling

Knives Out 3: Wake Up Dead Man: I looooooooove the Knives Out franchise, ok!!! While I’m definitely a romcom enthusiast I believe murder mysteries are a very very very close second for my fave kind of watch. And no one is doing murder mysteries like Rian Johnson with Knives out — they are so dramatic, they have all star casts, they are silly and well-written and detailed (aka everything you want in a feature film!), and this third installment was no different. I saw it in the limited theater release and it was, as usual, so fun to watch in a packed theater with people who love the films as much as I do. I will be rewatching all 3 this winter because, while they aren’t all tethered together like the Harry Potter or Hunger Games series, they are actually all the perfect stay-inside-weather movies.

Holiday Movie List: To know me is to now I love a list, and the long line of movies to watch for a dose of holiday cheer is no different. For your viewing pleasure the last two weeks of December, here is my comprehensive list of festive movies or mini series. (Note: the 🤏🏽 emoji indicates that while the film itself may not be *entirely* Christmas , there is a little bit of the holiday or the essence included) Don’t be shy, tell me in the comment what your faves are or what I missed!!!

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Snow: I am living my personal midwestern dream this month because I arrived in Indiana two weeks ago and the ground was covered in snow! If there wasn’t enough proof that I am *not* meant to live in California, it’s that I literally rejoice for the arrival of snow — from the early weather warnings and to the light hour one dustings to the shovel-laden driveways. I welcome the below 10 degree temperatures! I enjoy wearing coats and hats and scarves! I love everyone having a reason to stay home! Enjoy this view as much as I did for a little snowy moment of peace.

🗑 jeer: (verb) to speak or cry out with derision, mockery, or insulting remarks

Reading slump: I haven’t read a book in a month and I hate it!!!!!!!! Mostly I haven’t had the time, and when I’ve had the time I haven’t had the focus. It’s frustrating and, frankly, boring, to not have a new story to get into and I feel like I am missing out on the peace it brings me to sit down and hunker down into pages with nothing else to do. When I get settled into my new apartment, LOOK OUT, because it’s about to be bookapalooza every single day! Ok, maybe not every day, and maybe not in the more ~literal~ reading sense, BUT, definitely in the ~buying books I may or may not get to read~ sense.

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Christmas gifts 2025: I am, most often, a great gift giver. I am a person who listens all year long when people in my life complain about the thing they have or gab about the thing they aspire to buy or rant about the thing they are obsessed with. I know my close friends and family particularly well AND I have great taste, so this is kind of the perfect combo for people receiving presents from me. But this year? My creative well has run dry, my mind has rolled over to play dead, my idea box is empty and collecting dust. I have to assume it’s due largely to the fact that I’ve had little-to-no brain space to dedicate to thinking about nearly anything else in 2025 outside of The Europe Trip and The Move this year. So either I’m transforming into a worse person to have around by the day, *or* I need to cut myself a break this year and remember my friends & family love me regardless of he gifts I offer them……. who knows which it is, oh well!

👀 mere: (adjective) being nothing more than

• It is what it is, ok?

• This woman tells you why you’re in therapy based on your favorite holiday movie and…… well, prepare yourself

• Miss Frizzle still educating us, wise beyond her years

• The RFK sleep demon TikTok is gold

• “It’s like… really bad.”

• Hey sorry I just need a second to decide

• 🍅 This week’s tomato item is this VERY cute little butter dish!!!!

• The closest we’ll ever get to the feeling of magic

• I just….. please….. <3

• Happy holidays to eldest daughters everywhere

• 📺 TV I recently binged: Stranger Things, Season 5 (Part 1) — Got through the first four episodes of the final season and while the writing is suspect at best, I do like the direction they’re taking and how the finale is shaping up! I also just cannot get enough of the 80s music and food and clothes, so I’d probably watch the last season eve if it were entirely terrible.

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• Not usually one for pranks but this simply hilarious

• It’s important to me when my interests overlap (Wicked x The Grinch)

• The comments here are worth it!!!!!

• ✨ A room I’d like to live in: I remain a sucker for an arched doorway + multicolor kitchen tiles, ok! sue me!

That’s all this week! We’re half way through December and my brain is flooded with 10x the normal amount of thoughts I have which is…. too many!!!!! — bye <3