The other day when I was out being cool on my motorcycle (the great thing about motorcycles is that no one can tell how terrified you are under your helmet) a squirrel waited until just the right timing AND THEN JUMPED IN FRONT OF MY BIKE. I, being the kind and virtuous soul that I am, screeched out of the way and risked my life to save this suicidal squirrel. My motorcycle mentor, when I told him about my saintly deeds, begged me to never do that again. “Just kill the squirrel” he said. He’s a cruel man, but probably right.
I told you that story because Elise told me to and I do everything Elise says.
After having recovered from my near-squirrel-death-experience I went to the movies. Alamo Drafthouse is BACK! I have been dying to see Everything Everywhere All At Once since I saw the first trailer back who knows when. I didn’t know what it was about but all I need to hear is “Michelle Yeoh” and I am first in line. But, as soon as the movie was released everyone was raving about it so I had to see it immediately. I did. And then I went back to Alamo and watched it again the next day. It is profound. Hilarious. Beautiful. Gross. Immature. Extraordinary. And has the best editing since Beyonce’s Homecoming film which featured editing so smooth people were talking about it on Twitter. I am not kidding. The Academy may think that editing is not important but the rest of us know that it is absolutely everything and the editors of EEAAA deserve alllll the Oscars. All of that to say, go see it immediately. And then two more times. And then call me to discuss.
Now that we as a society have decided to pretend that COVID is over and the next surge isn’t happening it’s really starting to feel like summer in LA. The it girls have pulled out their it bags (if you don’t have a Dior book tote do you even exist?), the Soho House rooftop pool is absolutely packed at 1pm on a Wednesday, cultural events are in full swing, people are having actual parties which is weird and unpleasant, and everything feels weirdly normal. I even spoke at an actual happy hour. In person. At a wine bar. It was uncomfortable. I really think introverts deserve one more year of lockdown but nobody listens to me. So now I am facing the reality of having to buy clothes and put on what little makeup I can figure out and going out into the world to reconnect with old friends and make new ones, all without the comfort of a mask. Hello Brave New World, I would like to push you off for another year or two.
That being said, if you or someone cool (but not too cool, this is me we’re talking about) is in Los Angeles or coming to Los Angeles soon, ping me. Like the future brides of Bridgerton (yes, I did finally watch that yesterday) and the mother of Tracee Ellis Ross I am coming out and I may as well have a little fun. SUMMER IS HERE! Huzzah!
Watch:
Life After Death with Tyler Henry (Netflix): I am not a Hollywood Medium person but I am a “my mother’s past is mysterious and filled with murder and intrigue” person and the B plot of this saga is worth tuning in for. WARNING: he’s a kind fraud but a fraud and there is a lot of talk about death because of the ghosts and all.
Wanda Vision and Loki (Disney+): As we prepare to enter Cycle 4 of the MCU Stan Lee is smiling down on us and has bestowed us with a couple of really really smart side stories that I cannot recommend enough. I’ve only seen the first episode of Moon Knight so I’m reserving judgment but who am I kidding, it’s Oscar Isaac, it’s worth a watch.
Lucky Grandma (Showtime): After you watch EEAAA watch this movie that I have been raving about since 2020 about a hilarious Chinese grandmother who gets a little lucky and then outsmarts everyone.
Listen:
The Right Stuff- RadioLab (Podcast): We all know that astronauts are the greatest human beings but this incredible podcast episode explores the possibility that perhaps they could be even greater if we changed our perspective on what makes an astronaut great and why people with disabilities might just have the most rightest stuff ever.
Beditation- Donna D’Cruz (Spotify): Q1 was about as stressful as it could be and everyone is miserable and stressed out (see the Atlantic article below) so if you need to calm down and tune out before bed, try my favorite bedtime meditation pun: beditation.
The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical (Spotify): Two women who couldn’t get a foot in the door of the extremely sexist world of (everything) musical theatre wrote a musical on tiktok, submitted themselves for a Grammy, and WON!!! Take that Andrew Lloyd Webber (who they beat!!!). Three cheers for sisters who are doing it for themselvs.
Read:
Everyone is miserable. The Atlantic tells us why.
This book by my dear friend Evan Weissman. Buy lots of copies in lots of languages and give it to everyone since we seem to have forgotten that its midterms this year and voting is still a thing even if we’re over it.
I found out today that not everyone knows about the Sarah Lawrence dorm cult and I am agog.