Issue #002: The Spread
Groceries as status symbols, a trip to coastal MA, and chic sneakers
Did you miss me?
I took an unexpected break last week to visit family and spend some time on the coast in Massachusetts. It was restorative and relaxing and everything that I needed it to be. But in order to be relaxed, I had to close the laptop and keep it closed. I’m back in the city now, sitting on the couch with my assistant Ramsay (our French Bulldog) writing this second Weekly Spread. While I did distance myself from the internet and its happenings this week, I still found some good nuggets for you. In this issue, you’ll find my thoughts on the future of grocery shopping, the best things I bought for my vacation, my gnocchi recipe obsession, a dystopian sci-fi food novel, and more.
One note- I’ve been highly considering switching this newsletter send to Sunday evenings, but I really, really would love your input. Friday morning or Sunday evening? Pretty please drop your preference in the comments for me.
Let’s get to it!
While I was on my trip to the coast I finished two of the books I hadn’t read from my New England Summer reading list and they did not disappoint. More on these in the July reading wrap up I’ll share next week!
The Cliffs | J Courtney Sullivan | Contemporary & Historical Fiction | Finished
Little Monsters | Adrienne Brodeur | Contemporary Fiction | Finished
Father of the Rain | Lily King | Contemporary Fiction | Started
The Myth of Making It | Samhita Mukhopadhyay | Memoir | This one is factually dense & taking me quite a bit! I typically don’t like to start another book before I finish one but I’m taking this one in chunks.
In case you missed it, here are my May and June reading wrap ups. July coming soon!
*Side note - how CUTE is this IG @bookcooklook where she pairs food photography with books? I’m obsessed*
In other reading news…
I saw this week that one of my favorite childhood series, The Uglies, is being turned into a movie. Based on the reaction I got when I posted this on Instagram, many of you also loved this series and are impatiently awaiting the adaptation. So that brings me to this question - who wants to do a reread!? I’m like… really serious about this. Let me know if you’re interested and we’ll have a fun little book club moment. Isn’t it fascinating that the speculative dystopian fiction of our childhood is still relevant? More on this coming soon.
I’m aiming to use better discretion in my purchasing, so I’ll share precious few items here that have really caught my eye - mostly so that you can dissuade or persuade me accordingly.
Symbole Sunglasses | Prada | $520
I have been considering these Prada sunnies for what feels like years now… wait, has it actually been years? I recently bought a very similar style and I actually loved the shape, which feels classic enough to last but interesting enough to be contemporary. So basically I’m sold. They’re obviously a huge investment, so I’m looking into some resale sites to see if I can score a secondhand pair for around 20-25% of the price. What do we think?
I’ve been working hard to reduce my social media doomscrolling these days, which means I’m reading more articles and consuming more intentional content - which I LOVE. These are the things that caught my attention this week.
Some quick picks:
I *need* this shirt - the Lit girl continues to be a thing
Ina Garten x The Today Show in Paris is the Olympics coverage I’m interested in
Hello Kitty is having a popularity resurgence - but she’s not a cat, FYI
Kind of obsessed with the idea of keeping a salt tin in my purse
Miaou put out a statement about extended sizes and I have… thoughts
Content, Journalism, and the Internet
I came across two Substack posts this week that made for an interesting pair - the first being “Even the NYT is creating “content” and the second being “Trend Journalism”. The first highlights the NYT’s robust content and social strategy, and discusses the Best Books list they recently released, describing it as a “highbrow Buzzfeed listicle”. By making this list interactive - providing tools for people to memeify and customize templates about it, submit their own best books lists, and share on their socials - they majorly capitalized on the reach and impact of what could have otherwise been just a flat piece of journalism that made a one-time impression. It’s true- this journalism is content at its finest. I’ve been saying it for years: good content is shareable and serviceable. I’d love to know the (likely astronomical) reach numbers on this project as a whole.
On the other side of the coin (content as journalism) we have the second article which discusses how trends hit the internet and then subsequently become topics for more traditional journalism outlets. For example, the “Hot rodent boyfriend” (decidedly not nice) or the more recent phenomenon of the Kamala as Brat / coconut craze. I couldn’t help but wonder will the lines between journalism and content become more blurred as time goes on?
The Future of Grocery Shopping
It escapes me where I read this, but I recently saw someone describe their income level as making enough to buy expensive groceries but not enough to go on expensive vacations. As I mentioned last Spread, I genuinely think the most telling indicator of someone’s economic status is how and where they grocery shop. The rising price of groceries and the prevalence of grocery stores that connote a certain lifestyle are making this more true than ever. Although, allegedly, grocery prices are plateauing.
I thought this article from The Atlantic on the “sad future of grocery shopping” was fascinating (it is behind a paywall), and it reminded me a lot of a speculative dystopian book I read and loved earlier this year, Land of Milk and Honey. The article references the rapidly decreasing availability of certain ingredients due to climate change and other factors in our world today. The book centers around an extreme, near-future version of that exact concept, following a chef who cooks extravagantly for the 1% in a private compound while the rest of the world starves due to crop failures from smog.
And because I went down a grocery store rabbit hole - how Asian supermarkets are changing the grocery store landscape, grocery store tourism (x2), and the unexpected supermarket that beat Wegmans for the most popular grocery store in America.
Big Pharma Strikes Again
There’s one thing that Americans love more than a get rich quick scheme, and that’s a get thin quick scheme. I’m just as tired of Ozempic coverage as everyone else, but it’s not going anywhere any time soon - and it’s only getting more dangerous. Not only are the cultural impacts of the rhetoric dangerous, but the drugs themselves are wreaking havoc. I bookmarked this quote from Alec Ginsberg in this issue of Feed Me:
“Something I find so interesting is that we live in a world after the opioid epidemic and shows like Dopesick where people are less trusting than ever of Big Pharma. We are all hyper-aware of the Sacklers and the greed involved in the business of drugs. And now, we have a perfect example of an unsafe situation where profits are being put above healthcare. Yet the general public is happy to turn a blind eye just because there is a chance they will lose weight. I’m not sure there is anything in our culture right now that more perfectly embodies the state of the world.”
It’s astounding - pop culture HAS annihilated Big Pharma and the opioid crisis in recent years with books like Demon Copperhead and shows like Dopesick and Painkiller. But have we learned nothing about their desire to exploit our most vulnerable for profit?
This section will be an amalgamation of products, rituals, and more - anything that I’m just really into.
Tomato Nails!!
I mentioned last Spread that I was going to get some tomato inspired nails… and I did! I tend to gravitate towards things that are simple, streamlined, chic - and there’s nothing wrong with that preference. But occasionally doing something FUN is the boost I need. Now I get to stare at little tomatoes while I type. Cute!!
Vacation Fashion Finds + The Color Red
I don’t purchase fashion items from Amazon often, but because I decided to take a trip last minute I found myself needing *wanting to buy a few things that would be delivered very quickly. So in addition to the sunnies I mentioned earlier, I also got:
This really good red bathing suit. It actually has an impressive, very comfortable fit and it’s adjustable on the sides and straps. I didn’t even wear the other suit I brought because I loved this one too much. Comes in many colors!
This orangey-red cap sleeve knit top. I’ve been really into a vest-ish top, and I love a knit I can wear in the summer. I now want to get the white version to pair with this flowy white skirt I bought from Old Navy recently (yes, I’ve joined the white skirt cult - it’s what the girls are doing, evidently).
This pair of very reasonably priced chic sneakers. My last pair had a literal two inch hole in the bottom of the right shoe which is not ideal in these dirty city streets. It was time. I deviated from my longtime commitment to an all white sneaker, and I think the two colors + gum sole on these make them look expensive IRL.
I also got this effortless dress in black from Old Navy and I am eyeing the other colors. I find myself constantly reaching for the one other easy breezy dress in my closet during the summer, so this is a wardrobe category I want to expand because I know I’ll get good cost per wear.
Face Sunscreen I Actually Wear
I was always skeptical of Glow Recipe because of the candy colored packaging and corresponding sweet scents, but I’ve been proven wrong this year. I love several of their products (the Avocado Face Cleanser, the Plum Plump Moisturizer, the Watermelon Toner - all very good) and I grabbed their face sunscreen stick before hitting the beach. I love it. For me, the best sunscreen is whatever I will actually wear, and I look forward to putting this one on.
IN THE HOUSE: I have hardly been in my own kitchen for the last week or two, but on the days I’m home I’ve been whipping up some easy gnocchi recipes. These feel like elevated mac and cheese, and the possible combinations are endless. Also they’re EASY to make - you can truly throw in whatever is about to go bad in your fridge and freestyle something delicious.
It started with this recipe, and then I started adding mushrooms - either way I throw in a scoop of garlic & herb goat cheese to add some flavor and make it super creamy. I already can’t wait to make butternut squash and pumpkin versions when we finally escape the hellscape that is summer in New York City.
ON THE TOWN: While I was away, I achieved my only summertime goal of eating as much seafood as I can. I ate haddock, shrimp, scallops, fried clams, and a delicious lobster roll made by my uncle who promised it was the best one around (it was).
Being on vacation, for me, really means that I consume far less content of all kinds (besides books!). And that’s what I love about vacation - a quiet mind with no distractions. But I did watch a few things since we last spoke.
The Martian | Amazon Prime
I mentioned in my last Spread that I read The Martian as a follow up to Project Hail Mary, one of my favorite reads this year. While I far prefer PHM, I really enjoyed this movie and definitely cried alone in my living room watching it. I’ve also finally realized who I personally have cast as the lead in both of these stories in my head - Michael C Hall!! (of Dexter* fame). Can we recast Ryland for the upcoming PHM adaptation please?
*speaking of Dexter, has anyone seen this weird prequel series they’re making? I just found out and I have questions and concerns.
Longlegs | In Theaters
My boyfriend is a major horror fan, so I have consumed an unbelievable amount of scary movies in the last 4 years. I enjoyed this one, but I also thought it was missing some of the context or backstory we needed towards the end to really explain what tf was happening. What it lacked in context, it compensated for with vibes.
Chuck and Hailee | TikTok
I have cut my TT screen time down to maybe 10 minutes a week, but this is the one thing on the app that has maintained my rapt attention. I log on every Friday JUST to watch Chuck and Hailee, two professional chefs who happen to be partners, make their Friday night dinners. There’s a reason that they’re so successful on the internet: they’re cool in a way that feels accessible, they’re so sweetly in love, and their food looks GOOD. Chuck’s Hailee tattoo? Obsessed. We <3 C&H in this house.
If there was a section or topic in this newsletter that you most enjoyed reading about, I will be forever indebted to you if you would kindly drop that info in the comments so I can tailor these newsletters to your tastes. Also, if you’re reading / watching / buying / eating something good, I’m dying to know what it is.
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The tomato nails are IT. Also I need that lobster roll NOW.
Tomato nails are so cute! Also, I wanted to watch Longlegs but it was too hyped up, thanks for being honest about it!