Hey friends <3 It’s been a week since the election results, so I hope you’ve all been forcing lots of cuddles on your pets and drinking bone broth or something—whatever gets you in good spirits. 

Shocker: I’ve been buying lots of treats at the grocery store, avoiding cable news (which I do generally, tbf), and crocheting like a maniac. I finished a beanie I was really excited about only to find that I made it too tall and it looks really dumb on my head. If I showed you you’d probably be like “omg it’s not that bad, it’s cute,” and to that I say, shut up! I hate it! 

But I started working on a scarf that I’ll probably never finish, so don’t worry about me, I’m doing just fine!!

On My Brain

Current Podcasts in My Rotation

I commute to an office like, 1-3 days a week now (okay girl boss), so I’ve been on my podcast grind. Historically, I did not enjoy listening to podcasts on the train because the noise around me plus the sound of people speaking in my ears was overstimulation hell. But noise-canceling headphones help, and I like to giggle, nod, and frown along with the below podcasts as of late. I’m no pod expert, though, so if you have any recs, I’m all ears (lol). 

Every Outfit came to me via a rec from my friend, Sophia, who is one of two of my most fashionable friends (shoutout Kaileigh as well). This pod started as a recap of every single outfit on Sex and the City, but since hosts and ~fashion girls~ Lauren Garroni and Chelsea Fairless did, in fact, cover every outfit, they now cover pop culture, fashion news, their personal lives, and all things SATC. I’m not even a SATC girlie (though I’ve been considering doing a full watch through now that I’m a real adult woman, as I’ve only ever seen it in fits and spurts) but I love listening to these two chatter about anything, really. They’re funny, fancy, and whip-smart, and I love to hear smart women speak about regular things! This podcast is a good replacement, imo, for The Toast, if you’re like me and can no longer stand Claudia and Jackie for a number of reasons. 

Celebrity Memoir Book Club is one I turn to when I don’t know what to listen to. Turns out, I don’t actually care about most celeb memoirs (no offense John Stamos and Jada Pickett Smith), but there are still plenty of episodes that appeal to my own cultural interests. Ashley Hamilton and Claire Parker are another set of very smart, funny gals who I could listen to talk about anything. They bring a level of emotional intelligence and humor to the convo that I enjoy so much, I don’t even need to care about the celeb at hand. But there are some specific episodes I sucked down with rapt attention: Britney Spears, Terri Irwin, Julia Fox, Anna Marie Tendler, and Andy Cohen. 

I’ve also been listening to The Daily most mornings (I know, it’s like, we get it girl you work at the New York Times), because it’s highly digestible and makes me feel like I’m at least making an effort to stay informed. And you know what? I do feel more informed! I’ve taken a break since the election because I simply need a beat to get away from that news cycle, but I also really like The Daily’s non-political coverage of NYT pieces, like the one on the rise of marijuana addictions and another on corrupt mental health facilities. It’s cool too, because these are technically my colleagues, and I have actually seen Michael Barbaro in the cafeteria. Fun! 

Anora Was So Good

I’m literally live tweeting from the train platform after seeing Anora. You’ll be reading this in the am but just know, I click clacked this out in real time.

And side note: Something crazy about seeing movies in NY is coming out onto the street and feeling like you’re still in a movie, especially if the movie you saw was set in NY, and especially if you pop your Airpods in and start listening to music right away. Channeling main character energy is one of my favorite pastimes, and it’s best done alone, on some sort of transportation, and listening to music that you feel in your chest. I don’t make the rules!

Speaking of things you feel in your chest: Back to Anora. The algorithm served me the trailer for this movie months ago, and I was quite pissy to find out it wasn’t being released until October. And like most movies, I figured I’d wait for it to come to streaming to watch. But! My most frequent movie goer friend, Maura, said let’s go see it, and I said: Yes! I heard it described as “Pretty Woman meets Uncut Gems” and I think that’s a very fair read. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole movie, and the ending caught me by surprise when a few tears sprung forth from my eyes. No spoilies! It was just moving, that’s all. It’s funny, well-paced (though some may think it needs editing down), poignant, and kept me engaged the entire time. Get yourself a reclining movie seat and a Diet Coke and go see it, will ya?

In My Cart

Plane Tickets to Playa del Carmen

Mmmyeah, I finally decided on a bachelorette location, and it’s Playa del Carmen, Mexico. I originally chose Puerto Escondido on the west coast of Mexico, but since it would be an onerous travel day for a group (6+ hours to CDMX and then a transfer to another hour-ish flight), I pivoted to Playa del Carmen. FWIW, Puerto Escondido does look extremely cute and much less commercial than a lot of Mexican beach destinations, so I’ll pocket it for another time. 

Playa del Carmen is on the east coast (read: shorter flight) and it’s smack dab between Cancun and Tulum. I started some initial research, and I think we’ll be able to live out my favorite girls’ trip itinerary: sitting in the sun or doing an activity, showering and napping and/or going on phone time, getting ready and drinking margs at dinner, then returning to the Airbnb for menace behavior. There’s cenotes, Mayan ruins, snorkeling, boat rides, and guacamole galore, and I can’t friggin’ wait.

In My Belly

I Literally Dream About Katz’s Pastrami 

Last week I went to Katz’s, and in case you didn’t know or haven’t been, their pastrami is truly manna from heaven. The classic sandwich is very simple: just hot, freshly sliced pastrami on rye with brown mustard—and it’s perfect. The pastrami is the correct amount of fatty, tender, salty, smoky, and juicy, the bread is soft and slightly soggy on the bottom, and extra mustard squeezed on each bite cuts through the richness and clears out your sinuses in one go.

Now, as far as customer service and experience go, Katz’s is kind of ass. They’re real sticklers about their ancient ticket system, but it’s inefficient and often dramatic, and I wish they would get with the program. Everyone gets a ticket when they walk in, and even if the person you’re with gets everything on their ticket, you still must present your blank ticket to the bouncer (I shit you not) on the way out. What happens if you lose your ticket, you ask? Well, they’ll either verbally harass you, or in the latest instance, they’ll tell you to idk, pick through the garbage and try to find it? 

Apparently it’s a $50 fee for a lost ticket (which was whispered to us by one of the bussers) but they don’t seem to want to reveal this info until you argue and try to leave, so… don’t lose your ticket. It sounds insane for some pastrami (because it is), but I do keep going back, so I suppose it’s worth it.  

Din Tai Fung Chocolate Mochi Xiao Long Bao Are In NY, and Also In My Belly 

You know what I haven’t done in a long time? Stepped into a big, expansive restaurant that actually evokes a fancy feeling. Is the new Din Tai Fung New York location really fancy? No, but it’s a big ass restaurant that clearly costs a lot of money to rent and operate (in the old Mars 2112 spot!) and there’s something to be said for the slick midtown restaurant energy. It reminds me of being a kid or a teenager and coming to the city with my parents or friends, and going out to eat in midtown because that’s all we knew at the time. It’s nostalgic and special, even if it’s surrounded by the critters and tourists of Times Square. 

Anyway! The food is not mind blowing per se (lol the Times gave it a 1/4), but I really liked the green beans and cucumber salad, and appreciated the service and vibe. I especially love the fishbowl style window in the middle of the restaurant so you can watch the dumplings be rolled, stuffed, and pinched in real time. The star of the show, in my opinion though, are the chocolate-filled mochi xiao long bao with a side of salted cream. My god, we devoured these. What a genius idea to make dumplings out of mochi and fill them with molten chocolate? We have no choice but to stan!

You Ask, I Answer

Q: I can’t seem to make overnight oats correctly. Do you have any suggestions or recipes?

A: Great question, and even though I’m not an overnight oats girl, I will do my best to provide an educated answer. If I were to pick a recipe from the first page of Google results on my “overnight oats recipe” query, I would probably go with this one from Love and Lemons because I’ve consulted their recipes before (they’re very good at the SEO game, they always show up on the first page of results) and all seems sound recipe wise.

It seems like a lot of recipes call for a 1:1 ratio of oats to milk, but like chia pudding, I’d probably err on the side of a little more liquid to ensure that the mixture doesn’t clump up. This recipe also says you can add chia seeds for fiber and texture, and Greek yogurt for protein and creaminess (and I would definitely do both).

I also saw someone on TikTok recently blend the oats and milk together before letting it sit overnight, and they said the texture was preferable to the typical rolled oats version. I myself am partial to hot steel cut oats (I like the little bite and less gloopy texture), and I make them with milk, a pinch of salt, and sometimes a pat of butter for some richness. I always eat them with crunchy peanut butter and preserves of some sort (strawberry, raspberry, cherry, blueberry) for a delightful PB&J moment.

Need a gift suggestion for your mother-in-law’s birthday? Stuck on how to rearrange the furniture in your living room? Want to know what to do with a jar of marinated artichokes? Come to mama. Hit me up with your questions, and I'll answer them in an upcoming letter.