SUMMER IS OVER! Extremely pumped to say goodbye to August. So many things are changing right now and I kind of can’t wait for what’s ahead. But before that, here were the highlights of the month.
Marla came for a visit and we did so many fun things. We saw Suffs on Broadway, ate at Thyme & Tonic (incredible), tried on a million gorgeous things at both locations of Beacon’s Closet, we rode the Staten Island Ferry, ate at the always-great Rubirosa, went to Little Island for the first time, went to some of the Chelsea Thursday galleries and we perused Chelsea Market so we obviously had to get some Seed + Mill.
Suffs on Broadway
Beacon’s Closet
Gorgeous Marla
Little Island
A rat scared us out of Central Park approx. five seconds after this photo was taken
Manhattan skyline from the (free) Staten Island Ferry
Fell in love with the restaurant Hillstone. On a mission now to visit all the locations eventually. The best parts about this place are the chilled salad plates, the chilled martini glasses that are replaced midway through your drink, an insane French dip sandwich (David Chang says that this sandwich “haunts him” and he’s right), a wildly good chicken caesar salad, servers only have three tables at a time so they can really focus on each customer, they don’t have food runners or bussers, the tables are drilled into the ground so there aren’t any wobbly ones, there’s freshly squeezed orange juice AND each table is designed to feel like it’s in its very own little VIP section. So impressed by the level of thoughtfulness at this place, I love it so much.
Caesar salad at Hillstone
Chilled glass at HIllstone
French dip at HIllstone
And speaking of hospitality, I read something recently that explains why I think I love restaurants so much. I’m the one who cooks at home (which I enjoy), but it’s nice to escape that sometimes and have someone take care of me in that way. It’s such a simple thought, but it blew my mind for a minute.
I finally deep cleaned my beauty blender by putting Dawn in some boiled water and then I let the sponge sit in that mixture for five minutes before rinsing in water. Reddit has all the answers.
I found a Sabon body scrub on sale at Marshall’s, which reminded me how much I love any Sabon products.
I’ve been living in the Essie colour Seas The Day.
Essie ‘Seas The Day’
Annoyance of the day: I absolutely hate that all brow pencils now come in that little mechanical tube (that always breaks). Remember when the Anastasia brow pencil was actually a real pencil that you could sharpen?? We’ve strayed too far from the light of god. It’s impossible to find a real, high quality pencil anymore.
Six Days, Seven Nights - even Harrison Ford can’t save this movie.
Trap - I liked the first two thirds of it, but everything went downhill as soon as they left the stadium. This review sums up my feelings almost precisely.
Falling Down - great movie.
Wall Street - weird that I’d never seen it before, Martin Sheen was a smokeshow.
Consenting Adults - great idea for a movie.
Longlegs - love an original horror script.
I would normally list the things I’m looking forward to this month, but things are changing so fast right now that I have no idea what the end of the month will look like. I’m hopeful and excited, but I’m also terrified and I sort of just want to let this month happen.
She’s done with summer
If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in July over here.
Sometimes you need a mini day trip to see a horse in New Jersey
Sometimes you need a mini day trip to see a horse in New Jersey
June was so packed with stuff, I can’t believe it’s actually over. Here’s what went down!
I started a new series of posts I’ll do for the whole summer - Summer Saturdays, which is just a summary of what I do each week. Volume 1 posted over here.
I bought this Aritzia 1/2 zip sweatshirt in both white and black and I’m really considering getting the pink one now, too. I might have a problem.
If you like dark chocolate, then you must make this dark chocolate cake. It’s the absolute best recipe I’ve ever tried. And with this chocolate icing? Unreal. It’s heavenly. (Pro tip: don’t refrigerate it, it tastes incredible at room temperature, even days later.)
Dad’s 100th birthday cake
I was about to talk about how great my dad’s 100th birthday went, but there are so many details that I’ll just do a post about it this week instead.
I will never get over how incredible the frozen yogurt at Freshii is. Nobody talks about this enough.
Freshii frozen yogurt might even be better than TCBY
Did you know about the secret, unadvertised Baskin Robbins deal? On the 31st of every month (on months that have 31 days), they offer 31% of all scoops and pints. Pass it on.
Always gonna be excited when Trader Joe’s drops a new candle scent.
Trader Joe’s salted caramel and pistachio scented candle
I tried some curried fried rice at a friend’s house recently and I can’t stop thinking about it, such a genius way to do fried rice.
I’ve been eyeing mattress toppers for a few months now (my mattress is old and springy), but they’re always too expensive. So instead I bought a thick comforter for about $20 and spread that underneath my fitted sheet and it is now the most comfortable bed in this country. It’s a strange feeling to have all the answers and still not be ruler of the world?
Officially into rhubarb now since I was introduced to this rhubarb syrup, which is a phenomenal mixer for anything alcoholic.
Lays, I love you. Never stop with your insane flavours.
Lays Italian Red Meat Flavor
I was in Canada for a bit and good god, it was a perfect spring visit.
Dinner in the sunroom during a blackout
Nephews & Baby Dog
These only bloom on my dad’s birthday
Fully recommend having friends who just GET IT
I went to Canada’s Wonderland with my nieces and there is nothing more satisfying than the end-of-day funnel cake you’re legally required to have before leaving. Also loved the new(ish) Yukon Striker.
I stopped by the new reincarnation of Zellers (it’s in a weird, small section at the back of The Bay) and the deals are wild. Go. If they bring back those Zellers diners with that gravy, they will be unstoppable.
I got a “root shadowing” done at Bloc + Mane in Etobicoke (by the lovely Amanda) and it was everything I needed. It’s a process that blends your hair colour if you’ve dyed it in the past year but you don’t want that aggressive grow-out line.
Since the new Indy was coming out, I rewatched Temple of Doom and wow is Kate Capshaw so unbelievably bad in it. Sure I’m no expert on great acting, but this is just torture to watch.
And Just Like That: I’ve said it before, but we’re in a hate/hate relationship. The dialogue is so horrid that it reinforces the idea that anyone can succeed in the entertainment business. Talent has zero to do with it.
The Bear (season two): absolutely LOVED it. Did they use an offensive amount of R.E.M. songs this season? Sure! But once you look past that, it’s a flawless season.
I bought these gorgeous olive coloured running shoes from Call It Spring that are beyond comfortable.
Men’s running shoes are eons prettier than women’s
Burger Au Poivre (everything should be au poivre, as far as I’m concerned)
Some things I’m looking forward to this month: are you aware that there’s a third My Big Fat Greek Wedding coming out?? And I can’t wait for some reason? Even I don’t really understand why, but I loved that first one so much when it came out. Other things: obviously excited for Barbie, my great friend Marla’s coming for a visit (!), I really want to find some good soft serve and I have a family trip to Scotland that I can’t wait for.
I hope you had the most merry Christmas possible, I really do. Mine was definitely different from our family’s norm, but it still turned out to be intimate and special. I never thought I’d get a Christmas with my parents and Nathan and Baby Dog all together at once, so that’s kind of a wish come true. In such an awful year, it felt so nice to get something so unexpectedly perfect. A part of it felt empty without Gary and Robbie, but if this year has taught me anything it’s to appreciate what you’re lucky enough to have right infront of you.
In other news, are you impressed with how on-time this end-of-month list is this month? I hope you are. I live to impress you. Here’s what went down in December:
I made my winter list of things to do for the season because I physically can’t stop making lists. It gives my life a sense of direction.
Instagram took away the option to embed your own photos (or changed it & I CAN’T FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO IT), so if you know how to please please god tell me.
When I was making the Nutella cookies for Christmastime this year, I finally learned how to successfully brown butter! It really helps to use a white-bottomed pan so that you can see the browning process happen.
We did the Polar Drive by the airport and it was very cute. Would’ve been perfect for kids.
I watched the first episode of the new Saved By The Bell and it was cringe city USA. Just really horrendous. There were oddly maybe two parts that were really funny, so the whole experience was just confusing.
Just learned about the existence of mod podge and crafting will never be the same again.
Someone on the Food Network suggested mixing ricotta and cheddar for something and I can’t get it out of my head, I never would’ve put those cheeses together but now it’s all that I want to try.
Such a good waxing experience at Waxon. The wax they use is like magic, it hurts so much less than at regular waxing places.
I have been washing Baby Dog’s face like this almost every night since I saw this video and she loves it.
Some movies I rewatched: The Craft (god, I love the outfits in this movie), Misery (great winter watch, still makes me sick to watch the feet scene), Reindeer Games (again, just a fun winter movie) and Alive (are you seeing a theme here? Love snowy movies without Christmas overtones).
I watched the Love Fraud documentary series and it was really, really good. Especially because in the last episode you get to hear from the main guy its based around.
In love with this white teeny tank I just bought. I have this fantasy of wearing it braless in the streets when we’re all vaccinated. Not sure if this will happen, but in my mind? Christ, it’s hot.
I made this cranberry-rosemary julep and yikes it was strong, but not delicious strong. Giada isn’t great at drinks, she should just stick to over-pronouncing Italian pastas and cheeses.
I reeeeally wanted this tulle bra from Zara but it sold out before I could get it, so I bought this blush lingerie one instead. I can almost guarantee that when I put it on Nathan will tell me to calm down.
I’m not a terribly original person, so I’ll forever love a life hack. Love this list.
I’ve been using this great hair finish every day for a month because it’s been laying around my parent’s house, but I can’t find it available anywhere online.
I find it boring that women posing on social media showing an inch of a fat roll are considered courageous and shocking. We’re all courageous. Every woman that leaves her goddamn house is courageous.
love how the new lockdown order is just like “it’s illegal to be outside your home unless you feel like doing an activity that either makes or spends money”
My dad has been doing a huge amount of childcare for us in quarantine so I’m delighted to announce my 1-year old baby gestures and shrugs like a 64-year old Jewish man.
I found this in a file. It has to be the best match of headline and author photo ever. Like Newsweek giving birth to The Onion. pic.twitter.com/Dw79Z6CZpz
I’ve seen Star Wars: A New Hope over thirty times, but this was the first time I ever realized that Chewbacca looks exactly like John Travolta. pic.twitter.com/An87eWxYMZ
my grandma just asked me if i had a boyfriend and i was like “no” and she was like “well i went to a random funeral because i was bored and that’s how i met your grandfather” ??????
One time Bill Hader came into the restaurant I worked at, stood directly in front of me, looked at the menu, noticed it was a vegan restaurant and said, “Oh sorry, I’m sorry” and left. Perfect interaction.
Vaccine companies need to team up with fast food companies because NOBODY has EVER questioned what's in a nugget/burger/spicy chicken sandwich from a building with a clown mascot or a paper crown
Some things that I’m looking forward to this month: all of the snow that’s coming, I’m excited to sit down and listen to Taylor Swift’s evermore album, I still want to watch the newest season of Big Mouth, I’m so f-ing pumped for the return of Riverdale, might bite the bullet and buy this Glossier lip gloss that’s apparently NOT sticky (how is that even possible?), I really want to watch Soul, I can’t wait to make this carbonara on New Year’s Day and I’ll definitely do everything on this list for January 1st. Also, if you’re reading this on New Year’s Eve, then get your ass over here.
If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in November over here.
High waisted leggings from Aerie. I can’t put in a link because they’re always changing the ones they sell, but the softest/best ones are the ones that are 88% Nylon, 12% Elastane.
This Zella Crop Hoodie from Nordstrom that I pretty much wore every other day since June.
Babaton Contour V-Neck Bodysuit (so far I have it in two colours, clay & scarab), they’re amazing. They’re like better quality versions of the old American Apparel bodysuits.
Forgive the lateness of this monthly post! I wish I could say it’s late because I’ve been crazy busy, but it’s really been because I’ve been lounging my ass around various corners of my parent’s house and trying my best to not watch any American news. Here’s what went down last month.
I started watching The Parkers and, as expected, it’s pretty great. Kim for life.
I got a lash lift aaaaaand it was bullshit. My eyes have never been more irritated and that’s coming from someone who went through corneal surgery. I think lash lifts are supposed to be for people who already have long lashes. But if you have long lashes, then why the hell do you need them to be lifted? SCAM.
Are eyelash curlers bad for people with short lashes? I was told they were. But that was by someone who also recently fucked my lashes, so I’m not sure what to believe now.
So many new movies were watched in October: Killer Klowns From Outer Space (absolutely great), Motel Hell (also great), Moment of Truth: Stalking Back (too real, a little hard to watch, but I’m really looking forward to watching other made-for-tv-movies from the series), Hush (a great movie, but again: too much, I might not be able to handle modern horror & I’m fine with that), Summer Camp Nightmare (great), Goodnight Mommy (parts of it were really cringe-y to watch but it was incredible), Mom (so, so underrated), Wolf (it was actually pretty good, how on earth had I not seen it before?), House on Haunted Hill (the old version and it was great! It ends abruptly but it’s still a fun movie), Elvira: Mistress of the Dark (80s as hell, but not as terrible as I thought it’d be), Creepshow 2 (just a good time), Frogs (terrible and not in a fun way), Cujo (just a story of neglectful pet owners), Night of the Demons (not bad, not good), This Is Paris (it was really, really good. It’s definitely hard to watch if you’ve dealt with abuse in any way, but it’s really well done) and I got through about nine minutes of Cats before I just had to call it.
Started getting the cashew yogurt from Trader Joe’s and it’s so addictive.
The new SNLs have been all right, nothing special. And look, I love Jim Carrey. Forever will. But he isn’t good as Biden. It’s such a weird choice. Highlight of the episodes this month? The Bieberperformances, surprisingly.
I made the Impossible Burger at home (you can buy them at any Fairway Market) and they’re absolutely the top veggie burger on the market today. So damn good.
There’s this restaurant in Mississauga (Erin Mills Pump & Patio) that does such a good job of replicating this now-off-menu pasta that I used to love from Snug Harbour and I’m so thankful to have found it. (It’s the Hunters Penne Pasta with chicken, cremini and shitake mushrooms, Italian parsley, black truffle oil in a white wine cream sauce incase you want to taste heaven.)
We went to Downey’s on Halloween this year and for the first time got their homemade cheese bread. Life will never be the same. Some photos of the day below.
The LCBO puts out a seasonal magazine with food and drink recipes that I looooove. One of my favourite magazines for sure.
I made a batch of hot ginger toddies and yes they were good but waaaay too high maintenance to make at home. It’s definitely a drink that’s easier to just order when out.
I made these ginger sesame noodles with caramelized mushrooms and wow. Definitely will make again. I’d never thought of having broth at the bottom of a bowl full of noodles, but it’s such a great idea.
If you watch it with the sound off, it looks like she's revealing to James Bond that she was on Goldfinger's side the whole time https://t.co/1Uy81p1fCc
I once had a coworker who had just moved here from France and she could not get over her horror that on Halloween we waste pumpkins by making lanterns out of them and not turning them into soup or whatever
Our whole lives we hear: Don't talk about your period. Don't talk about sex. Don't talk about infertility. Don't talk about miscarriage. Don't talk badly about a pregnancy. Don't talk about PPD. Don't talk about anything post-partum except the baby. Only a baby matters. Not you.
You don’t “make” $15/hr. You “make” 100s or 1000s of $$ worth of product each hour and sell it for $15 each hour. You didn’t make anything for yourself. You sold an hour of your life and your body for $15. Don’t let them convince you otherwise. Your labor value is getting stolen
— Bryan Lindstrom (he/him/we) (@BryanLindstrom4) October 11, 2020
Normalize starting over as many times as you need.
Just spoke to a friend who was beating herself up for not doing more with this year and I had to remind her (and myself) that we were only supposed to be doing this for 2 weeks! A month max! You didn't waste this year, it was stolen and anything you DID achieve is a miracle!
hey babe I really appreciate you taking birth control even if it fucks you up, it just feels really good on my penis to not wear a condom for the 15 minutes of sex we have twice a week
If you walk down the street and you're mad that people are living in tents, please direct your anger and effort towards creating a housing system that doesn't allow people to end up homeless because they lost a job, had medical debt, or faced a rent hike they couldn't afford.
i wonder if my cat ever looks at me while i’m sleeping and thinks “ok that is the cutest way i have ever seen someone sleeping in my life” or is it one sided
Some things that I’m looking forward to doing this month: reading Lindy West’s new book, decorating my parent’s house for the Christmas season, and SNOW.
The key word being was. We bought an air conditioner! We’ve been an A/C-free family for some time now, but since we’re spending so much time at home, we figured now was the time to be cool. In other news, everything still blows! What a shock! Here’s how I spent July.
I didn’t even know another Halloween movie was being made but of course I’ll go see it even if it turns out to be trash, you gotta support classic horror franchises, that’s just basic horror etiquette 101.
This is the most basic, boring-sounding sandwich on planet earth, but it tastes incredible I promise you (I didn’t add bacon, but I did add fresh mozzarella) and whatever bread you use, it’ll still be great. I find myself constantly forgetting about the greatness of mayo because I, my dear, am an idiot.
I ordered a bunch of new address labels on Zazzle because they were having a Christmas in July sale, so I bought some seasonally inspired labels to use over the next few months. If you’re not seasonally co-ordinating your return address labels, are you even living?
I attempted to watch the new Baby-Sitter’s Club on Netflix and it’s really not meant for me. I was never into the books or the movie or any of it, I never liked the idea of kids caring about making money, it seemed too sad to me. “Just be a kid!” I’d always thought.
Speaking of childhood nostalgia, I have started to watch reruns online of Sweet Valley High, which I loved as a kid. It’s no Breaker High, but it’s still pretty great to rewatch. God, Jessica really was an absolute bitch.
Some other things that I’ve rewatched: Con Air (practically a perfect movie, will always love, *Nic Cage forever* might be the only tattoo I’d ever get), Supermarket Sweep is on American Netflix and I was so excited (for about three episodes) then I moved on with my life, Sleepless in Seattle (still a very nice, average, reliable movie), Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (actually a really great summer movie, will always be a fun time to watch, will forever be a huge Keanu fan, I just feel like I could trust him??), and Dick Tracy (will always love this movie even if it has eight million too many montages, the set design is gorgeous, and this one outfit that Madonna wears makes me question… everything).
Some new movies that I’ve watched: Always Be My Maybe (so, so great! How did it take me so long to see this! So many good scenes, such a good movie), The Karate Kid (insane that I hadn’t seen it before, kids were uncomfortably mean in the 80s, favourite part was when Mr. Miyagi beats up the children, great movie), The Stepfather (pretty fun time, so happy we’ve starting watching horror movies again), Eat Pray Love (ugh, I don’t know, I do love movies about women just leaving and doing fun shit alone and abandoning their lives, but this was pretty lame, I hated James Franco’s character more than life and truly didn’t understand how Julia Roberts was even briefly into him), and finally the original The Hills Have Eyes (which I loved weirdly enough despite being incredibly tense the entire movie, I just thought it was so well done and scary and incredible, the rape scene is of course awful and I shut my eyes for that part, but that was the only thing I hated, it doesn’t make sense that I liked this movie so much).
I don’t know how to word this, but something is off with the reasonably priced (and almost too cheap) parmesan sold at Trader Joe’s. It melts weird. It doesn’t taste like normal cheese. Something is afoot and I won’t buy it any longer. I’m truly dreading and equally anticipating the day that all of Trader Joe’s secrets are exposed. Be warned.
That being said, obviously I’m in love with the seasonal summer candles that TJ just released. We have a complicated relationship.
Trader Joe summer candle trio, 2020
I made this gruyere mac and cheese with caramelized onions (I used almond milk and it still came out good) and can every recipe just include caramelized onions? The world is ending, let’s just put sweet, tiny, brown onions on everything and call it a day.
I have to remember that Essie’s vibrant colours just f-ing suck. Only their muted/bland colours are good. They should really just stick to those. And if you’re looking for loud colours that stand out, the summer collection at Urban Outfitters is my go-to (and there’s always a 3 for $10 sale with them).
I listened to Taylor Swift’s new album and so far my favourites are definitely: the 1 and this is me trying.
I’ve been thinking about cancelling my Ipsy subscription again (because I think I don’t care about makeup at this current moment in time) and when I logged on to cancel, they let me choose one of the items being sent next month as if they knew I wanted to leave! So I chose a Sunday Riley product (because any sample I’ve tried from them, I’ve loved) so maybe I’ll cancel next month?
I tried a sample of Drunk Elephant’s shampoo & conditioner (which smelled so lovely) and my hair did seem softer the next day. There’s something about this brand though, I feel like they might be tricking us with their beautiful packaging and minimalist persona.
I bought and tried the ancient Biore Strips and I have absolutely no idea if they did what they’re supposed to do. Are you supposed to see the blackheads or whiteheads come off onto the strip? It felt like it just tried to peel my face off. No idea what’s going on with these.
I have been in love with the Peter Thomas Roth Correction Pads, I use one pad before bed each night and I think they’re doing something good because I always wake up with no new pimples. It has even started erasing all of the redness I’ve been experiencing lately from the summer heat and sweat and mask-wearing. At this point, I can definitely see myself rebuying when I run out, and if I do then I’ll definitely not get them from Sephora because you can get them way cheaper at other online retailers.
I’ve also started using this Dr. Dennis Gross All-In-One face cleanser and I think it’s a good one. It’s hard to tell because I started using it the same day at the correction pads I mentioned above (yes that was a bad idea but here we are), so maybe they’re working together to make my face good? We’ll revisit this.
I finally opened up this Belif set I bought a few months ago and it’s really nothing special. I think the face cream is probably the best item in there because you truly don’t need to use a lot to feel moisturized. But the face cleanser? Meh. I don’t think it does very much, it definitely didn’t help any redness. And the toner? Don’t get me started on how I kind of think toner might be a scam. And the “eye moisturizer”? Seems superfluous. My eye area is plenty moist, thanks.
Perfect summer soap scent: Fresh Rainfall. If I can’t travel this year, I will escape into this scent. (Send help.)
So I heard that Lady M now ships their cakes to Canada and I was able to scream in excitement for approx. four seconds before looking into it and seeing that it’ll cost you over $100 to get ONE cake sent. THE GALL, I tell you. THE GALL.
I briefly looked into the app Sweatcoin after hearing good things, but it really just seems like an app where its main goal is to track you. And yes, your phone already does that whether you’re aware or not, but I think I’ll pass on the extra tracking.
I heard that the upcoming Halloween Bob’s Burgers episode will “follow the kids as they try to deliver a burger to the hotel on their street.” It’s such a sad little bit of tiny information, but I love their seasonal episodes so much that I’ll take any crumbs available.
Christ, why do I keep forgetting that Bareburger is absolutely nothing special? Why in the good fuck is it taking so long for a Shake Shack to come to Astoria?!
I ate on the patio at Hoja Santa in Astoria and the tacos were nothing to write home about. The service, drinks and chips were outstanding though, so I may have just ordered badly.
I refer to myself as dark skinned and people are like “wtf no you’re not” I refer to myself as light skinned and people are like “lmfaooo this bitch is delusional” so from here on out I will simply be referring to myself as....skinned
Hey, I think President Trump is on to something with this idea of limiting COVID infections by not testing as much. Who knew the secret for staying forever young was as simple as not celebrating your birthday?
small dog slander makes me sad. Of course they’re “yappy,” they have tiny bodies, it’s not a personality trait. They also have teeny tiny paws to put on your leg when you are sad
I woke up with a small, specific sadness: I miss being on a trip with family or friends and waking up to the murmuring sound of other people, already awake, having a conversation in the kitchen in the morning.
i remember my ex got mad at me bc i once tweeted i wanted to cuddle with shia labeouf, lmaooo like every argument we had he would be like “why don’t u go fuck shia” like bro i would if i could 😭
Has everyone stopped to meditate on the fact that an 87-year-old woman on chemo has to keep working full-time, full-force, because she's quite literally the only thing stopping the country's full slide into fascism?
Can’t keep 900 baseball players safe with almost unlimited resources but sure we can protect millions of kids jammed into schools where teachers have to raise money on GoFundMe for like pencils and shit.
My dog decided it was time to go to bed about twenty minutes ago. Off he went. I stayed on the couch, ya know, as is my right. I’ll me damned if he didn’t just walk back in here and look at me like “did I stutter? It is time for us to go TO BED.” Welp, good night, y’all.
I tried Thai iced coffee and it was so wildly sweet and too aromatic, I probably wouldn’t get it again. And I also tried a Vietnamese iced coffee and it was the perfect level of sweet! What’s the difference between the two, you ask?
I finally tried the katsu sandwich at Hi-Collar as takeout in the East Village and it was absolutely nothing special. No idea why people are so into it.
I haven’t been to Bite in so many months, so it was nice to get takeout earlier this week. God how I’ve missed their ciabatta bread. They use it on their sandwiches and it comes from Balthazar each morning and it’s always heavenly.
I tried a grapefruit shandy and holy shit, it might be my favourite new summer drink.
I ate on the patio at L’Artusi since it just reopened and good god, that carbonara will change you. So psyched to see they have the wagyu steak tartare on the menu now, too. The burger, the panzanella salad and the charred corn were all great, but that carbonara was the standout.
Yeah, I’m NOT gonna get a Manhattan??
Carbonara heaven, 'L’Artusi
L’Burger with roasted potatoes at L’Artusi
Sweet Irene!
Some things I’d like to do this month: I’d love to try this tomato toast with blue cheese mayo, I’m going to start using a new clothes steamer I just bought with the hopes of getting rid of my iron & ironing board, I rebought a tube of Revitalash because of how great my lashes were looking when I used it a few years ago so I’ll start using it on August 1st and track my progress to prove how great this product is, I can’t wait for Moesha to be coming to Netflix this month, and I am waiting waiting waiting until I can find time to return to Lilia (on the patio) to eat this incredible tomato focaccia & garlic butter (shown below).
If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in June over here.
Can someone just hit me in the face hard enough so that I wake up in 2021? As a favour to me? (Also I love that we’re all assuming that a new year means a completely fresh new slate and that none of the actions taken this year will affect the rest of our lives? It’s ridiculous, but it’s a type of logic that I can absolutely get on board with.) In any case, life is hell right now. Here’s what went on in hell this month.
I started doing Ipsy bag reviews again. The best find from the bag this month: a REALHER lipstick. Just amazing quality and I need to look further into their other products.
I tried hard seltzer (not White Claw, it was a brand called HOOT) and it was very okay, I just don’t see the big deal? I think we all have low standards for things being good.
God, I miss Jon Stewart. I find myself just watching old segments from his show which are sadly still incredibly relevant.
I visited this coffee shop in Astoria called Coffee + Cake that’s so lovely. They make freshly baked goods each day and homemade ice cream and I’ll definitely return. This is their tomato & parmesan focaccia bread.
I tried to eat the black stem for some reason too?? Not my smartest idea.
I started taking antihistamine eye drops for seasonal allergies and they’ve cured me completely. It’s insane. I love them.
I tried birthday cake Kit Kats because why wouldn’t I and of course they’re good. But they’re basically just… white Kit Kats… and that’s already a thing that exists… and look I’m not trying to hate on them, so I’ll keep my mouth shut about it from here on out.
If I became famous, the first thing I’d endorse would be Vicks (obviously), but the second thing? This dairy-free, almond milk yogurt DAH! Yes, the name is terrible. But the yogurt is heavenly. The madagascar vanilla will change you.
Finally made this ricotta jam jar with crostini and it was everything I wanted it to be and more.
I’ve been keeping a collection of photos taken of the city throughout the pandemic that are just gorgeous photos, here are a few.
April 2020, photo by Jerome Strauss
March 12th, 2020, the first night of Broadway going dark - photo by Gretchen Robinette for Gothamist
June 2020, photo by Benjamin Norman for The New York Times
April 2020, photo by Jerome Strauss
April 2020, photo by Jerome Strauss
I watched the Holy Chicken! documentary from the Super Size Me guy and it was okay. I did know a lot of those chicken facts already since we haven’t been eating meat these last few months, so it wasn’t anything revolutionary. And then after I watched it, I was reading about it and then came across all the gross behavior by the creator of the film and uggghhhh I wish I hadn’t watched and supported it now.
I tried this New Orleans cold brew and whoa. Good stuff. I don’t exactly know the difference between cold brew and coffee and it’s such a boring thing to look up, so… here we are.
Will forever love the food at The Thirsty Koala in Astoria. Thank you Katie, Greg & Irene for gifting us so much of their food this month! Truly so sweet of you.
Favourite tweets of the month.
They criminalize the homeless so that they don’t have to house them. They criminalize drug addicts so that they don’t have to address substance abuse as a public health problem. They criminalize the poor so that they don’t have to address wealth inequality.
— antifa’s bus driver (@Lwrathofkhan) June 6, 2020
Nothing more insulting than your dog walking into the room you're in, looking around and then leaving.
The US has tried to get rid of covid the way I try to get abs - I try really hard for a couple months then I get annoyed that it’s taking so long and decide abs aren’t real.
Remember when Pizza Hut pan pizzas were basically a goddamn culinary delicacy? They’d bring them out in a real fucking skillet that was piping at about 700 degrees Fahrenheit right as your third song kicked in on the jukebox after you’d played a game of Galaga. We were kings. pic.twitter.com/G7dQBRd3qQ
Imagine someone u love is fast asleep in bed after a long day of working to help others. Imagine that while she is asleep armed strangers break down her door & shoot her in her bed 8 times. If this was ur daughter or sister, u would want justice. #BreonnaTalyor deserves the same.
not everyone who has been sexually assaulted immediately recognizes that is what happened to them. it can take days or weeks or even years for someone to realize what happened to them was not okay. believe victims rather than questioning why it took so long for them to speak up.
My conspiracy theory is that time travel IS real & someone keeps trying to fix 2020 by changing something but every time they do, they unwittingly make it worse. How else do you explain the sudden disappearance of murder hornets? They saved us from those but at what cost?!?!
I bought a ton of underwear from Aerie since I don’t feel comfortable going into any stores or on the subway yet, and they’re actually pretty great quality (I’m sorry I didn’t get on this sooner, Marla.) The sizing is a little off in that one medium doesn’t fit like another medium, but once you figure it out, you’re good.
I learned how to make vodka martinis at home, so what I’m trying to say is that I’m better than you now.
Truly don’t know how I feel about this news, but I think I have to support it, right? I wish we could just leave good things alone. Why must we always want more.
I watched The Joy Luck Club and here’s my takeaway: don’t have daughters. And also maybe don’t have mothers? It seems like everyone is a disappointment to every character in this movie. I was expecting to love it, so when that didn’t happen I was a little disappointed.
I watched Dan In Real Life (mainly because of Steve Carell who was way too good for this movie) and it suuuuucked. Hated Dane Cook. Hated the plot. Hated the whole white, rich, we-dance-as-a-family type aesthetic of the whole movie.
I watched the first season of You and a few episodes of the second season and uuuuuuuggggghhhhhh what a garbage show. I don’t need to see anyone romanticize some pathetic Gossip Girl loser who I feel no empathy for. It’s actually just so badly written and how on earth did someone green-light this trash. Here’s a good piece written about it.
Also watched a bunch of reruns of 3rd Rock From The Sun and what an underrated, great show. Wish I remembered it more.
I’ve been on a real Harrison Ford bender lately and I can’t see it stopping anytime soon. I watched Sabrina (which was okay, the best part was seeing him play a nerdish, unlovable character). I also watched Working Girl (which is really not a great movie, but it was only watchable for Ford). Also saw Air Force One and what a movie. How on earth have I never seen it before?? Such a fox. If you haven’t seen it before, I shall entice you with this one line:
Rainier cherries are in season now and while I don’t particularly love a cherry, these are delightful.
I’ve been sucking down these Saratoga Springs sparkling waters for days and there’s no turning back, they’re refreshing in a way I didn’t think existed. Just pure magic.
The only summer salad that’s worth a damn is this panzanella salad, but make sure you add fresh mozzarella to it.
I never thought I liked biscotti until a friend recently made it, so maybe I’m just into chocolate biscotti?
I started watching Insecure but couldn’t really get into it, maybe I’ll give it more of a chance, maybe not. I feel like if you’re not hooked into a show within three episodes, it’s not gonna happen.
I rewatched Clueless and it’s really just a perfect movie. I could quote every line in this movie at one point in my life and I think I might still be able to. Still looking to emulate this perfect outfit one day.
Cannot stop making this broccoli pasta with Banza and the Beyond Meat sausage.
I finished watching Fuller House and I’ll never know why I wanted to, it’s such a corny/actually-bad show and yet I still watched. Thankfully it’s over forever.
Incase you’re looking for an alternative site to Amazon for buying books: Bookshop.org
It’s been a harder month than normal and I found myself watching The Land Before Time and uncontrollably weeping onto my yoga mat (I like to watch movies in the background when I’m working out). A kind of cry that comes around every decade or so where you can’t really breathe and you’re blinded my tears and everything is too much to handle. I know it’s a sad movie, but I think it was the movie and the combination of this month that made me react that way. In any case, I hope kids today still want to watch that movie. It’s a hard one, but it’s really still so good.
My grandmother Ma passed away this month and since travel is not allowed, it was especially difficult for this to happen now. I felt helpless being separated from most of my family so I wrote a bit about how it made me feel. I could talk about the greatness of this woman endlessly, how it’s insane that you could live in this day and age and not read or write and still enrich the lives of everyone you know, there’s no way to sum her up as a person. I’ll just miss her. Her voice, her endless encouragement, all of it.
Some things I’d like to do this month: I’d like to not sink into an unending pit of depression (that’d be great), I’d like to keep going on our nightly walks with Nathan, I’m likely going to buy these bike shorts as soon as they’re back in stock and you can’t stop me (I already have an outfit in mind, trust me it’s gonna look good), I was looking forward to movie theatres reopening (the Regal near our house specifically) but the date’s been pushed again to the end of July (which will likely get pushed again), and I’d really like to start and finish another book this month.
If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in May over here.
I’ve purposely put off writing this monthly wrap-up because, well, christ. January was a terrible month. I don’t need to go into the details of why, but the consensus from everyone that I’ve talked to fully agrees with me on this. What the hell happened? Starting a new decade is supposed to be great. In any case, I’ll always have high hopes for the future. And I’m just thankful to begin a new month. Here’s what went down in the pit that was January 2020.
First things first, I recapped how my 2019 resolutions turned out. Why don’t more people do this? Where’s the accountability in reviewing your past resolutions? They’re not fucking birthday wishes, they’re intentions! More people need to follow through with this, even if the results aren’t what you hoped for.
I rewatched (or watched for the first time, I truly can’t remember) The Staircase and it’s so good. I’m pretty sure Marla got me MP3 copies of this years ago and I did watch it, but I completely forgot about it in detail. Such a good watch. If you’ve already seen it, do you know about the owl theory? It’s a wild one, but, like, I think an owl did it now?
I’ve been using a small bottle of OUAI’s Wave Spray and if I can figure out how to not overspray it, it’s a great product. Once you use it though, your hair only looks good that day. After you sleep on it, your hair looks like shit. (Is that true of all hair products? I have absolutely no idea.)
Bought this Banana Republic top for $13 on sale and I love it because it does not feel like it cost so little.
I don’t know if it’s a Canadian brand but I have found a wicked alternative to Dollarama: Buck or Two. I went to one in Brampton and they’ve got everything.
I watched most of the SNL with Jennifer Lopez and wow did it suck. 99% of the sketches were basically “She’s pretty. That’s the joke.” Fucking hated it. They do this a lot of the time with certain actresses and I can’t ever tell if it’s because the actress loves doing these sketches or they’re afraid she can’t be funny. Whatever the reason is, blow my brains out, please.
I went to the Ear Inn in the city and it was lovely! Super old place. Service was great. Burger was great.
I went to Glossier with the intention of buying the cheek stain and then decided against it. It’s not a good product. I literally pinched my cheeks and got a better rosiness.
I came across probably my favourite winter children’s book of all time, The Snowman by Raymond Briggs. Look at one page of this magic.
I went to The Dutch again for Restaurant Week for their steak tartare and it’s just heaven on a plate.
I rewatched the great What Lies Beneath and man, it’s still just such a great movie.
As you may have heard, Papyrus is going out of business, so I’ve popped in twice to see what the closing deals are and they aren’t worth it yet (only 30% off! C’mon! I won’t get out of bed for at least 60%), so I’ll keep stopping in every so often until they’ve become desperate.
Love this part of a recent SNL (below). (If you can’t see it in Canada, search for “white male rage SNL.”)
I finally went to Boulud Sud for their pasta happy hour and man was it not worth it. The place has a terrible setup if you’re sitting at the bar, the food was absolutely nothing special and had ridiculous portion sizes. It’s also a bad sign when the bread is tastier than the entree. Super disappointing.
I tried on the bras and underwear from LIVELY in Soho and even though it’s priced reasonably, I couldn’t find anything I loved. I have a feeling that I could be into it though, so I’ll go again sometime in the future for sure.
I’ll forever love the lunch special at Pil Pil on the Upper East Side. I know I probably bring this up too much, but man. Love tapas.
I can’t stop buying sunglasses for sale at ALDO. And I won’t.
I finished season one of The West Wing and it was really good. I keep forgetting about it, but I should stick with it. People, like, loved that show, didn’t they?
I started using Sol De Janeiro’s Bum Bum Cream… on my butt. That’s what it’s for, no? So far, I mean… it feels smooth? It’s not at all greasy, which I like. Seems weird to have a cream just for your butt, but who am I to criticize.
Ate the fish tacos at Summer Salt and they’re good! It’s insane and great that they sell margaritas at a fast casual place, too.
Love this Wells For Boys sketch (below) from a few years ago that I just saw for the first time (thanks for showing me, Irene!)
I haven’t been there in years, but I went to Sweet Afton for happy hour in Astoria the other day and had the pickle martini which actually wasn’t terrible. Love that place.
Tried the lunch burger at Peter Luger finally! And yes it was a good burger (love that they use American cheese and the bun was very good even though it's not a potato bun). Steakhouse burgers are always hard for me to rate since a steakhouse burger is a real *entree* unlike the regular, everyday burgers that other places have which are not as big and overwhelming. An everyday burger is easy to rate since it's either great, overrated or shit. A steakhouse burger has nuances, how juicy is too juicy? How's the quality of the meat? What are the ideal toppings? Should someone shoot me for my extensive burger thoughts? Yes.
I went to see a free orchestral performance put on by Julliard at Lincoln Center and it was great. It reminded me so much of going to my brother Gary’s recitals when I was a kid, just loved it.
Had dinner at Portale. The pasta was insane. This place might be a rival for L’Artusi! Dare I say it! Every bite was phenomenal. MUST return. (Noteworthy: it also just got two stars in the Times.)
Maybe you don’t know this, but 90% of post offices in the U.S. have bulletproof glass between the workers and the customers. It’s obviously because awful things have happened, but I’ve been going to this one post office in the city on 23rd street that doesn’t have the glass and the workers are SO MUCH MORE PLEASANT. I wish all locations were like this one. Just a thought.
Mark down all holidays/birthdays/anniversaries (Valentine’s Day, Daylight Saving Times, Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Thanksgiving)
Check expiration dates for passport/license/health card/insurance and write down any important renewal dates
I’ve watched the first two new episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm and it fucking blows. There was only one thing I laughed at (when a server thought Larry was “oggling” her but he was really just keeping an eye on her tray with pigs in blankets) but OTHER THAN THAT, what a piece of shit season so far! I fucking hated the part in one episode where he videotapes the consent given between him and some woman as they’re making out. ALSO, and this has happened a few times over the seasons, he’s recycling fucking Seinfeld jokes. FROM THE SHOW. Talking about when it’s too late to get “Happy New Year-ed”? Are we kidding here?! Fucking lazy as hell. I might just stop watching.
I watched the new Taylor Swift documentary on Netflix and it’s really good. Even if you have zero opinion on her, I really liked it. (It also introduced me to this great song.)
Things that I’m looking forward to this month: seeing a Raptors game at Barclays Center, finally sitting down and watching season two of Shrill in its entirety, reading Joan Rivers’ book Enter Talking and and maybe going to another Restaurant Week lunch before the end date. February, please oh please don’t be as terrible as January.
If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in December over here!
One more filthy month to go before the best time of the year! Here were the highlights of July:
So you know how much I love the banana pudding from Magnolia already, but what you don't know is that it's probably my favourite summer dessert to make and bring to parties because people go fucking nuts for it. So for July 4th this year I made it, but I also bought some Coffee Crisp chocolate bars to Canadian it up (if you're in the U.S. then you can buy them in the international foods section at Bed Bath & Beyond), then dumped those bars into a food processor to make a COFFEE CRISP CRUMBLE TO GO ATOP THE BANANA PUDDING. And it was heaven.
I ate some of the best fish tacos in NYC at Tacoway Beach in Rockaway near the beach. They're crazy simple but so good, I try to get them once a year so I never grow sick of them. Tip: definitely skip the black bean tacos AND the elote because they are both wildly unpleasing.
I made this Sweet Potato Gnocchi in Spinach Cream Sauce but full disclosure: I bought the sweet potato gnocchi already put together at Trader Joe's, and then just made the sauce from the recipe and it still tasted amazing. There's something I'll never like about buying frozen food from Trader Joe's (I feel like I haven't completely given up on life yet?), but this gnocchi is the exception (this and their cauliflower pizza crust). Will definitely be keeping this one in the food rotation because it was delicious as hell.
I read two books this month and I refuse to stop saying that out loud to people, but I guess I have to move on since it's August soon, so that sucks. The Simpsons one I read was great and the Ijeoma Oluo one was even better!
I did start to read Steve Martin's Born Standing Up and wow was it dull. Don't get me wrong, I think Steve Martin is great. But I read about half of it before collapsing in extreme dissatisfaction. IT'S SO BORING. Why do people think that it's such a good book? Famous comedians will gleefully prattle on about how great it is to one another, which is why I wanted to read it in the first place, so this just doesn't make a lot of sense to me. I was going to just suck it up and keep going until I asked Nathan if it got any better and he very politely told me that it did not. Can someone tell me why it's supposed to be so good? It shoulda been called Bore Standing Up! Okay, that's not a good joke, I know, but it's better than WHAT'S GOING ON INSIDE THIS BOOK.
I tried the frozen Irish coffee at Passage in Astoria finally and... it was great! Duh.
Frozen Irish Coffee at Passage in Astoria, Queens
I watched Hannah Gadsby's Nanette on Netflix and didn't really care for it for the first half. The only reason I kept watching was because a friend of mine echoed the same thoughts of the beginning not being good but it getting good the second half. And she was completely right because the second half was powerful as hell. My real thoughts are just a general annoyance at people who plainly say, "It isn't standup." And maybe my opinion on this matters in no way since I'm not a comedian, but it just bothers me that there's this weird line of what standup should or shouldn't be, as if the idea of anything more being said with no punchline isn't worthy enough for the untouchable standup stage. She's a comedian! She said jokes! She also had more to say, which is great. Especially with what's going on in the world right now, it seems weird to purposely not want to comment on that and focus solely on what a comedian "is supposed to do." That idea just seems strange to me.
Nathan and I went to a wedding and it was fun and we looked great. Proof!
I saw a bunch of movies.
Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (in theatres) - I mean, a Macarena joke made me laugh so it obviously wasn't a good movie, but some of the kids had a good time so that makes it a success.
Can't Buy Me Love (Netflix) - I'd never seen it and it's a terrible eighties movie so I kind of needed to all of a sudden. Also it was on a list of things leaving Netflix in August so I suddenly felt the urge to grab on tightly before letting it go off into the distance? That's normal?
Girls Trip (HBOGO) - I have no idea why the urge to see this movie happened inside of me. It actually wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be. Not good, but not horrendous.
Ibiza (Netflix) - I guess I've been having real moments lately where I've just been missing certain groups of friends and watching these ridiculous movies puts me at ease a bit maybe? I don't know, let's not analyze it. Oh! The music from this one was really great, though. Also, Gillian Jacobs' eyes are so ginormous, I'm always shocked that men aren't looking for a woman with huge eyes instead of a huge ass or boobs, makes no fucking sense to me. Her eyes are insane!
Obvious Child (Netflix) - Jenny Slate can do no wrong and of course this movie was great. Other than all the cringe-inducing standup scenes (that are supposed to be cringe-inducing, I'm assuming), it was just a nice movie. The music from this one was pretty great, too.
I tried the new Crispy Chicken at Swiss Chalet and it was really tasty because of course it was, anything fried is most likely amazing. It's funny to me that they're not just calling it fried chicken. Obviously it's purposeful too, like they're thinking that if they did call it fried chicken it'd sound too Americanized or something. That's definitely something they thought. "No, calling it Crispy Chicken just makes it seem healthier, like it was just slightly dunked into hot, frying oil and not, like, submerged for hours."
I've had an iPhone 5 for three years and the battery had gone completely to shit (ie. dying at 80%) a few weeks ago, so I took it to Mobile Klinik (outside of Wal-Mart on the first floor of Square One in Mississauga) and they replaced the battery for me within an hour and it only cost me $60 and now it's been working amazingly. They were super nice and it came with a one year warranty, so definitely keep this in mind if you're ever in need of their services.
The only thing I've ever eaten at Dominique Ansel Kitchen was the burrata soft serve ice cream from a few years ago, but I stopped by recently and had the cold pear yogurt and hot toasted granola and maaaaaaan why can't the version I make at home taste as good as theirs. WHY.
Cold Pear Yogurt & Hot Toasted Granola, Dominique Ansel Kitched
A friend told me about this great site Zaful that has gorgeous swimsuits for crazy cheap and are actually good quality. Are you even kidding me with how gorgeous those marbled ones look?!
Tried the soft serve at Tom's Dairy Freeze in Etobicoke finally and it was goooooood because all ice cream is good.
Tom's Dairy Freeze in Etobicoke, ON
I went to see the Scarborough Bluffs with Marla and some of my nieces and it's such a beautiful place. So glad we went.
Finn & Marla!
Layla, me, Maya!
It's Restaurant Week in New York right now (it actually lasts a few weeks), so I'm hoping to eat at some places I've always wanted to go to. So far I've only gone to Astor Court inside the St. Regis hotel, but it was so, so good. Here's what I had.
And that was July!
I'm a little shocked that I'm still keeping up with these monthly posts, here are the ones from May & June if you'd care to read about them.
This baby is the most popular drink on Rockaway Beach - and rightfully so. I won't tell you how many of these I had in one sitting, but use your imagination. I will forever and always get one of these every single time I'm remotely near Rockaway Beach. It’s not too sweet, but it is crazy addictive. Watch yourself.
