1. Fried pickles — Coming in hot this week are fried pickles, your favorite bar food. Slices, not spears please!
2. Pink glittery cowboy hats — I was in Nashville over the weekend, where we saw plenty excellent options, from this to this to this. It’s fun to partake in the cowboy culture of Broadway Street and I just love Kasey Musgraves. It also has me asking…Is the “yeehaw” trend actually cultural appropriation? Cowboy hats and boots have long been a part of southern culture, but I wonder about it’s more mainstream influence. I’d love to hear others’ thoughts on this.
3. Key Lime Tea Cookies — This is perhaps my best and most worthwhile Trader Joe’s impulse buy. They’re buttery, sweet, yet just the right amount of key lime. I could (and will) eat the whole box.
4. Daisy — My family’s sweet dog that passed away over the weekend. We got her and her sister (Lily) at the same time when I was 14. She died at 12, suffering from mouth cancer that eventually made it too difficult for her to eat. Daisy was so friendly and always excited to go on walks with my brother. She looooved to lay right in front of the oven while you were in the kitchen, which made cooking an interesting challenge! Since my family lives in Florida, Daisy always loved being on the dock and barking at whatever sea creatures swam by. In the final minutes before she died, my mom prayed she’d get to see a dolphin one last time, and a minute later, one swam right by. Rest in peace, my sweet pup.
5. This article about Little Women — My love for Little Women is deep and wide. As time goes by, I relate to it more and more. It’s makes me feel understood, hopeful, and all the other feels. I hope to write more about it one day. This article does a pretty fantastic job. “Each March sister recognized that her strength required her sisters’—this is part of their devastation at losing Beth. The three remaining sisters know they’ll never be whole again,” writes Ann Napolitano.
6. Frothy Monkey — A restaurant and coffee shop. I went to their Chattanooga location all the time in undergrad, but I just visited a Nashville and Franklin location over the weekend. Delicious coffee with an excellent food menu!
7. Rooftop restaurants/bars — Even if the food or drinks are subpar, the fact that you have a view makes the experience significantly better!
8. Friendship rituals — I love the niche rituals we develop with close friends. With one friend, it’s the routine of watching the same show on a certain night, with another, it’s a shared coffee shop we can stop going to. With others, it’s eating from the same Indian restaurant to the point we can’t even consider other options. It’s like Pavlov’s dog at this point; the ritual just sticks.
9. This piece by Sarah Bessy — I love the honesty and gentleness of Sarah Bessy’s writing. I subscribe to her Substack, and she wrote this post, “God doesn’t want to use you” a couple weeks ago and I’ve been meaning to share it.
10. Listening to the Eras Tour setlist — *screams The Man, cries to marjorie, dances all around to Don’t Blame Me*
Awesome writing! Fun and real