Nonpareils - 2
Read:
Check In With Your Black Friends - We Are Unwell (Thought Catalog)
I work for an amazing non-profit as dedicated to its staff as its clients and every two weeks, we host an open Zoom call where folks can talk, share and listen about what’s on their mind. I’ve learned a lot from these calls and am grateful that we have a space like this. Things have been really hard lately. Take a moment to check in with the folks you love. They need it and so do you.
In Strong Defense of Molly Yeh’s Popcorn Salad Recipe (Food 52)
I eat a dumb amount of popcorn. I’m literally eating it now as I type this and I was on the popcorn and wine for dinner thing long before Olivia Pope….only mine was born out of being broke + low-key depressed.
I can understand why people would recoil at the notion of popcorn + mayo, but I also kinda get it? Jess Kapadia makes the astute comparison between this and chaat and I love the latter when it’s a little soggy and saturated with various chutneys and pomegranate seeds.
While I’m not about to toss my popcorn kernels in mayo - I would 10,000% toss them in tomatoes, parmesan, garlic powder, basil and balsamic because Caprese popcorn sounds amazing.
A List of People I Am Mad At (Scaachi Koul)
Scaachi Koul is one of my favorite writers and every week, she makes a list of her grievances. It’s like Frank Costanza meets Richard Nixon’s enemies list but I agree with like, 98% of it because Matt Gaetz (super fuck that dude) does look like a defective Crank Yankers puppet.
The Redemption of Justin Bieber - I was never a huge Bieber fan (but will gladly admit that What Do You Mean? is a fantastic pop song) but John started playing his new album this week and liked it so much, he made mention of it in his Away Message at work. This piece is a fascinating, vulnerable and insightful look at a young man who stood on the precipice of being devoured by celebrity and is clawing his way back to a sense of normalcy.
Listen:
Crawling Kingsnake - The Black Keys
The Black Keys have released an album of Mississippi Blues covers - Delta Kream - which I just fucking love because I love the blues and I love the Black Keys. This is a truly excellent cover of a John Lee Hooker classic and you need to get you a cold drink and put this on repeat.
Superposition - Young The Giant
I have loved this song since it first came out a few years ago and even scored our honeymoon video to it. I fell in love with it all over again this weekend. It’s a STEM love song and the soundtrack of my life right now.
Watch:
Season 2 begins in July and I couldn’t be more stoked. Never have I ever (see what I did there?) related more to a character than Devi (played pitch-perfectly by Maitreyi Ramakrishnan).
I wish this show would have existed when I was in high school because it would have made me feel….seen? Understood? A little more comfortable in my own skin?
Literally multiple pages from every journal I’ve ever kept.
But I’m stoked it exists now. If you haven’t already, catch up on the first season on Netflix. John McEnroe (yes, that John McEnroe) is the narrator and it is just perfect.
Eat/Drink:
Carnation Chocolate Malted Milk Powder
My new favorite drink at Starbucks is the iced chocolate almond milk shaken espresso. Love the flavor, love the fact that it’s 140 calories and I really love the 255mgs of caffeine. I do not love the fact that I pony up $5.45 for a grande. That’s some super bullshit cutting into Will’s college fund and med school is expensive, y’all. So, I found this great recipe from Milk and Pop. The malted milk powder also tastes great in banana-peanut butter smoothies so wins all around.
Egg Salad Sandwiches from Howley’s
Typically, I like my egg salad with lots of mustard, black pepper and fresh herbs but there is something super comforting about Howley’s egg salad sandwich.
I get mine toasted on rye with lettuce, tomato, onion and cheddar cheese. Add some seasoned tots and a half-sour (the best of all pickles) and it’s a perfect meal.
Great in-house but really great when wolfed down in the sunshine in your backyard when you’re hanging out with your kid (he tried egg yolk for the first time and liked it!).
Misc:
Spoons of Dilli Instagram
There are a million reasons to visit India - explore my own cultural heritage, introduce Will to his heritage, Goa, Mumbai, tea plantations in Assam - but let’s be real. The main reason I want to visit India is because I want to eat ALL of the street food.
Everything - EVERYTHING - is better when you add cilantro, chili, onions, tamarind, mango and pomegranate seeds
A Much Needed Cut and Color
I last got my hair cut and colored right before I got married.
I got married in December 2019.
Turns out a global pandemic and pregnancy really puts a ding in your hair care schedule.
If you’re in Palm Beach County and looking to go lighter, see Shelby (@theblonding_babe on Instagram) as she is capable of magic.
While I was waiting for my appointment, I hung out in my car, drinking cold brew and listening to You’re Wrong About…Courtney Love and guys, it was better than any club I have ever been to. Mostly because I was wearing a maxi dress and flip flops.
Guys - remember when we wore uncomfortable clothes, packed into tight spaces, paid usurious amounts for crappy drinks and dealt with annoying dudes? Why did we ever do that? That was dumb.
The View From The Nursery
Bougainvillea blooming in the sunshine - it’s perfect.
We’re in the slow process of redoing the house and my plan is to plant bougainvillea, frangipani, snake plants, mangoes and citrus all over the damn place.
