Greetings from the cusp of the official start of summer. The kids are gearing up to have their first lemonade + bake sale (brownies + butter mochi) stand in the park this Saturday and Jacob and I are working hard at not micromanaging it and overburdening them with the operational demand of such a task. Ada wanted to price the baked goods at $6.50 a piece, and we advised her that might be a steep, even at 2023 grocery prices. Anyhow, a quick list of miscellaneous recs to carry you through Memorial Day Weekend and if you’re on the south side of Prospect Park on Saturday afternoon, you may see the kids engaged in their first attempts at earning money, then bickering over what they spend it on.
Recs for the kids:
To play: Ada introduced me to Quick, Draw, a Google doodling game that challenges you to rapidly draw six random objects accurately enough to be identified by AI. We’ve been playing together and it’s pretty fun (and funny).
To pre-order: Abby Hanlon’s Dory Fantasmagory series was the first set of chapter books that really grabbed my kids’ attention. At long last, Dory Fantasmagory: Can’t Live Without You—the sixth book in the series has been announced, and you can pre-order it here.
To read: The Lulu books—Lulu and the Brontosaurus, Lulu Walks the Dogs, Lulu’s Mysterious Mission, and Lulu is Getting a Sister—by Judith Viorst (of Alexander and the No Good, Very Bad Day renown) have also been a big hit and are hilarious and fun to read aloud.
Softest tees: These bamboo t-shirts from Oso & Me are *the softest*. Julian is a very big fan.
To play: My kids are kind of annoying at board games—both competitive and sore losers???—but Jacob grabbed Clue Junior at a sidewalk sale and it’s been a big hit.
To visit: Skatetime 209 in Accord, NY, a great classic rollerskating rink, recently reopened after being purchased by popcorn company, BjornQorn. It’s one of our favorite spots upstate, and they now have new merch, better food, and occasional DJs.
Recs for grown-ups:
To wear: I found one of these Le Mont St. Michel work jackets at a thrift store last month in a railroad stripe denim and it’s suddenly my most complimented piece of clothing ever? Best light layer, kinda want it in all the colors, A+, highly recommend.
To listen: This interview with (Leslie) Feist on the Broken Record podcast is a great listen. Whatever you think of her music she’s a very thoughtful creator, a mother, and has an incredible way with words. At the end she talks about having an epistolary relationship with film director Mike Mills while he made C’mon C’mon and it’s so lovely.
To listen: Switched On Pop’s 4-part series on Daft Punk (part 1 + part 2 are out now). Again, whatever you think of them, the history of electronic music, sampling, use of synthesizers, creation of an ongoing narrative, and robot vs. man debate is super fascinating.
To watch: Queen Charlotte, if you’re a Bridgerton fan, which has a stronger Shonda Rhimes hand in the writing and invents a fun backstory for Lady Danbury and the Queen. (It’s a prequel to Bridgerton). The New Yorker has a good piece on some of the historical accuracies it’s trying to capture (as well as the many anachronistic embellishments).
To eat: The branzino with fava beans and mint at La Rina is so delicious and spring-y.
To eat: The popcorn chicken and cocktails inspired by the flavors of Taiwan at WenWen are also worth a trek.
To do: The Brooklyn Art Book Fair is coming up June 2-4 off the Grand St. L stop.
To read: Rachel Aviv’s piece in The New Yorker on the exoneration of the accused rapist of author Alice Sebold (who wrote The Lovely Bones) and their lives, which were intertwined by a faulty system and the fallibility of memory and identification. Like so many other great Aviv pieces, is very much about who owns the narrative, the impact of story on lives and experience, and living with the pain we can inadvertently cause others.
To read: Mother Tongue, issue 4, which is now out, and is the best print magazine in years.
Currently Reading: Yellowface, R.F. Kuang’s satire of the publishing industry.
Sunscreen: My go-to face ultra light sunscreen for the last many years has been this stuff from Shiseido. Highly recommend.
To make: This cherry tomato pasta with burrata and fresh basil is one of our go-tos and it always hits.
What else are you all watching, reading, and loving these days? See you next week!
My kids are the same about board games! We have been into memory lately, and for the 4yo’s sake, we start by laying out all the cards face up first to get a good look before flipping.