And Also! Extras | Vol. 8
A diary of my New York adventures, five great reads from interesting women, a vulnerable share on pursuing your creative dream — and so much more!
Thank you for reading And Also, a weekly newsletter featuring personal stories and things I've learned to help you navigate life ✨!
Welcome to an extra-special Saturday edition of And Also! Extras. What makes it extra-special, you ask? Only that I was able to squeak it out — albeit a few days late — this week during the tail end of quite a bit of travel!
I’m writing to you now from Los Angeles, where I’ll be attending one of my closest friend’s baby shower. Earlier this week, I was visiting some other friends in New York (more on that below!), and before that, I was in Birmingham, Alabama, for an offsite with my team.
It’s been A LOT of airports and connecting flights and packing more and more (and more!) books like I’m playing a game of literary Tetris — but it’s also been so much fun, and I’ve felt so lucky to get to revisit some of my favorite places and see so many of my favorite people.
Can’t wait to share some of it — as well as more about what I’ve been reading lately — in this week’s issue. Let’s get into it!
P.S. As always, this is a long one, so you may need to read it in your browser or click “View entire message” at the bottom to make sure you catch everything!
New York Diary
New York City is one of my favorite places in the world! Though I sometimes think I’ve missed my moment to live there — is 40 years old too old to live in a small studio apartment with my boyfriend and my reactive dog?! — I still dream about it every time I visit. And what a visit I had this time!
This week, I thought I’d share a diary of my most recent trip to New York — both to share ideas for anyone who’s planning to visit soon and to preserve my own memories of another great visit 🙂
Thursday: I flew into LaGuardia (which is such a nice airport, y’all — apparently, one of the best in the world according to some very prominent signage!) from Birmingham, and met Jordan there. Together, we took a Lyft to our friend’s apartment in Sunnyside, which is the cutest neighborhood. It’s like New York with some breathing room – slightly less traffic, speeding bikes, horns, and such, but still very much on brand for the city. (Coincidentally, while we were there, a friend of the friends we were staying with released this short video all about the history of Sunnyside!) That night, we walked to Max Bratwurst und Bier for dinner, and later got drinks (bitters & soda for me!) at Claret Wine Bar just a few blocks from their apartment.
Friday: On Friday morning, I met up with my writing mentor,
, at Butler in Williamsburg. I only had coffee there, but the menu looked great! I had such a nice writerly conversation with Georgia about my creative priorities — when I told her I was behind on novel edits because I’d been so focused on growing my Substack presence, she asked me sincerely, “Do you want to be a famous Substack writer?”, and that has been ping-ponging in my head ever since. While I love writing and building a community here, it’s even more important to me to prioritize the writing I do on my current novel (and the many other book ideas in my head)! After meeting with Georgia, I walked through Domino Park, stopped at McNally Jackson (my first bookstore stop of the trip!), then wandered around Williamsburg for a bit while I waited for Jordan and our friends to catch up with me. After we reunited, the group of us meandered down to the piers by the Hudson River and hopped on Citi Bikes, which we rode along the waterfront and through Central Park — so much fun and only slightly terrifying. After parking our bikes, we got the best hot dog in the city (can neither confirm nor deny given a low sample size, but it was tasty!), before lazing on a blanket in the park for an hour. While laying there, we also watched our friend’s new Youtube show, Board Interviews. (Watch it! It’s such a clever concept, the host is hilarious, and the nostalgia is high.) Later that night, we went back to Brooklyn to catch a talk show-style comedy show at The Gutter. The show was hosted by Simon Bloch, featured some super funny comics like Jake Letizia and Liza Treyger, and inspired a conversation between Jordan, our friends, and myself, on the significance of creating, continuing to put your work out there even when it feels cringe, and never knowing how far you are in the arc of your creative journey (so, on that note, not quitting even when you might feel like giving up). It was such a fun, creatively inspiring, full day from start to finish!Saturday: We kept things a little more low-key on Saturday. We started the day with breakfast at Curley’s, and explored Sunnyside for a bit before heading over to Prospect Park to watch our friend’s roller derby bout with Gotham Roller Derby. We got caught in an unexpected downpour on the way there — and intermittently throughout the outdoor event — but it was still so much fun! I’d never watched roller derby before and I got so into it. It was especially fun watching our friend, Shannon, play! I already knew she was significantly more badass than me, but this officially proved it. I’m excited to check out more bouts in Portland!
Sunday: On Sunday, I went out to Cobble/Boerum Hill to meet up with my friend,
, at Cafe Volkan. (I’m genuinely sad that I only got coffee there, as the menu looks amazing!) After a long overdue, just-what-I-needed kinda catchup, we walked around Books Are Magic together (bookstore #2!), which is maybe my favorite type of friend date with a fellow reader? No rushing, occasional recommendations, and lots of encouragement to spend all of our money on more books for our TBR (to be read) piles. After Amanda and I went our separate ways, I took the subway to Greenwich Village to visit Three Lives & Company (another bookstore, another book) before meeting my friends at The Ear Inn. Later that afternoon, we walked to Sweet Pickle Books (that’s bookstore #4 for those keeping count and such a cute spot and incredible concept — we got pickles, books, and a hat!), stopped at this speakeasy, and got caught in a big ol’ rainstorm on our way out. Nonetheless, we trekked through the wet to Lil Frankie’s (forever my favorite) for dinner before heading to Terra Blues to see Jr Mack Band perform until way past my bedtime. (It was so worth it!)Monday: We had another chill day in Sunnyside on Monday. We got lunch at Bolivian Llama Party (what a name! such good food! highly recommend.) and coffee at Chakra Cafe, before stopping in cute neighborhood gift shops, Lockwood and Bliss Vintage & Handmade and the Sunnyside Book Swap (not sure if this counts as bookstore #5, but I did pick up three more books) at the corner of Skillman Avenue and 43rd Street. Later that night, we got apps and drinks (the Mary Ann Moriarty mocktail was perfection) at Valerie before seeing Ariana Madix perform in Chicago! She was somehow even better than I’d expected (and I had no doubt she’d be incredible!). It was such a treat and my friends were such good sports, as I wanted to stay afterward for a Q&A with Ariana and to meet her at the stage door following that!
Tuesday: On our last full day of the trip, we took the train out to Coney Island! Jordan had been once when he was younger, but I never had. Tuesday was also our best weather day of the trip — sunny but breezy and not too warm. We walked the boardwalk, got hot dogs from Nathan’s Famous and ice cream from Paul’s Daughter. There was a small group with an enormous boa constrictor snake and further down the boardwalk, a small fight broke out. Classic Coney Island! We stayed through the afternoon and into the early evening to catch a Brooklyn Cyclones game, too. Though they lost, we had a blast enjoying some old-school classic Americana baseball game fun!
Wednesday: I had to leave pretty early to catch my flight back to LA, but I’m glad I got to end our trip with one last visit to Aubergine Cafe — I’ll definitely be back!
There are always so many more things to do than days I have to spend when I visit New York, but I felt good about everything we packed into a little under a week. Still, I’m already counting down the days until our next trip!
Godshot & Heartbroke by : I got both of Chelsea’s books from the library in quick succession just ahead of seeing her speak at Creative Mornings in Portland. Both her novel (Godshot) and her collection of short stories (Heartbroke) were, in fact, heartbreaking — but they were also so real, so relatable, so endearing in the way that they reminded me none of us ever have any idea how or why other people believe what they believe or do what they do . . . and how we too might be more susceptible to the pull of seemingly impossible behaviors when in dire circumstances.
Men Have Called Her Crazy by Anna Marie Tendler: I found AMT’s memoir on the shelves a week early at my local Barnes & Noble and tore through it in under 48 hours. I was a little surprised that she didn’t mention her famous ex-husband at all — especially given that she featured other significant relationships with men in her life — but I appreciated that she focused so singularly on her own story and experience, and removed him from her narrative. The book is a beautiful, if searing, picture of navigating the ebbs of one’s mental health and exploring the ways our psyche is affected by the experiences of our youth. Anna is a beautiful writer, and though part of me wished for a little bit more — even if it would’ve been tabloid fodder — I loved reading her story.
The Well-Lived Life by Gladys McGarey: This book was recommended to me by a friend of a friend, and it was a sweet, easy read on life lessons learned from 102-year old holistic physician, Gladys McGarey. There wasn’t much that was new or surprising to me throughout, but I appreciated the curated reminders — and the validation of McGarey’s own long lived experience! — of the simply, if not easy, ways to ensure a well-lived life.
Body Work by : This book might be especially interesting to writers — especially those who are pursuing more creative nonfiction-focused work — but I’ll recommend anything Melissa writes to anyone, and this recent craft book of hers is no exception. In the small tome, she explores how we think and write about intimate experiences. Yes, it’s a guidebook for writers, but I think it’s also helpful for anyone who is trying to explore and understand their own personal narratives — whether or not they want to write them down and share them with the world.
The rage I’ve felt around a certain Vice Presidential candidate’s comments on childfree women lately is . . . palpable. Here’s a nicer way of putting it: Discounting Kamala Harris Because She’s “Not a Mom” Is Absurd
Erin Claire Jones is one of my favorite Human Design experts, and she’s offering this incredible resource for free on her site — make your own personal manifesto with just your date, time, and location of birth!
Think like an Olympian: This is a fun article on the power of mindset from the perspective of this summer’s great unifier, the Olympics.
White-Collar Work is Just Meetings Now (“meeting-industrial complex” made me laugh-cry)
Speaking of “you never know where you are in the arc of your creative journey”, I so appreciated this vulnerable share on preparing to audition for her dream musical on Broadway from Chelsea Marie Meyer.
Virgo season started last Thursday!
writes my favorite monthly horoscopes (based on your rising sign!) — they’re so detailed and in-depth and the perfect guide for every astrological season.
Are you all caught up on my previously-curated good reads and life haps? ⬇️
Loved following along on your NYC trip. Also, seeing all your tattoos in the picture on the subway got my tattoo envy going. I have a half sleeve I gotta keep working at. Just added Body Work to my TBR list. 🙏🏼