FMG: This is mostly a love letter to my current favorite foods
plus an inexplicable excuse to bring up Eddie Munson
Good morning!
I don’t necessarily have words for the complicated, nuanced thoughts I have about the world/country right now (and frankly, I/we are not built to process/articulate thoughts on insane shit at the volume and rate we’ve had to for the past several years), but what I do know is that it’s important to me to make it abundantly clear (as I have previously) that I’m firmly opposed to gun violence of any kind, and that the need for gun reform in this country is urgent and desperate. No one deserves to die at the hands of gun violence — and that includes everyone from innocent children in a classroom to public figures, no matter how staunchly I disagree with their ideology. It is my sincere prayer — and my continual, unflinching vote — that gun violence be eradicated in this country, and that the same anger and empathy spawned by this week’s news can also be directed towards all victims of gun violence and therefore channeled into tangible, lasting change.
Despite heavy news and very painful division, it is our right, duty, and privilege to allow joy, light, and art to coexist with and fight against the darkness. A few of my current light sources are as follows:
Food, Part One: Every so often, I’m introduced to something that changes me — something I love so much that it becomes integral to my personality and to my very being (previous examples of this phenomenon include the first times I saw Eddie Munson* and Paige Bueckers). It’s rare for me to know as it’s happening (rather, it takes about two weeks before my friends say, “Can we actually talk about literally anything else?”) — but this week, I became aware of a brand new obsession literally as it was taking over my brainwaves. My office is in River North, and every time I’ve walked there for the past six months, I’ve passed a sign declaring that a Mendocino Farms was making its way to Clark Street. The fast-casual restaurant finally opened a few weeks ago, and the rest of my life will now be divided into “before I tried Mendocino Farms” and “after I tried Mendocino Farms.” The food was SO good — I got half of a “not so fried” chicken sandwich and half of a kale/apple salad, and I need you to hear me say that it was the most pleasantly satisfied I’ve been by a lunch in a long time. My coworkers and I ate our lunches on Tuesday (then looked at the menu TWICE more to decide what we’re going to try next time — I’m thinking the chicken parm dip), and we were in SUCH GOOD MOODS for the entire rest of the afternoon — all because the food was so tasty, filling-but-not-heavy, and fresh.
*Speaking of Eddie Munson and, therefore, Stranger Things, I’d like to share that I did something brave this week. I had an ST-related TikTok go relatively viral a few years ago (right when season four came out) — and as it was gaining virality, I received approximately two (2) negative comments on it. I panicked so deeply that I archived the TikTok, which my friends have been teasing me about for (literally) several years. “Stop caring so much what strangers think of you!” they say. This week, I followed their advice, and the TikTok is back in its rightful place on my page (buried way down deep). Cheers to growth.
Food, Part Two: The fall items have arrived at Trader Joe’s! On Sunday, I made the most delightfully autumnal grocery run, and I snagged the following seasonal products (and I recommend them all!):
Harvest Vegetable Hash Egg White Bites: I eat TJ’s egg bites twice a week, every week (the days I’m in the office), and this new version is VERY flavorful. It’s heavy on the rosemary, which I love.
Pumpkin Spice Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate: I don’t like my pumpkin-flavored coffee to be sweet, and this one certainly fits that bill. I make it with one part concentrate, two parts water, and a splash of oat milk.
Honey Roasted Pumpkin Ravioli: Remember how much I love the Calabrian Chili Spicy Pasta Sauce? It’s sooo good on this ravioli.
Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese: This is it! This is the one! I am being so serious when I say that if I could only eat one thing for the entire rest of my life, it would be this frozen mac & cheese. I really want you to try it, but I also don’t want it to sell out, so do me a favor and buy it in moderation. I promise to try to do the same.
TV: The next few weeks are going to be positively filllllled with joyful television, beginning with the season premiere of Dancing With the Stars on Tuesday, September 16. My current top three favorite pairings are Jordan/Ezra, Dani/Dylan, and Whitney/Mark, but I can’t wait to see them all on Tuesday. I’m already familiar with/fans of those three celebs (and a few of the others), but one of my favorite parts of DWTS is how much it makes me care about celebrities I didn’t really know/care about before. This is going to be such a good season!
I sincerely hope you have a wonderful weekend. I hope it’s filled with people you love, TikToks that make you laugh, food that brings you joy, and some rest & relaxation — we all deserve it!
XOXO,
Gail
The news is heavy and it’s important to protect your peace — but it’s also important to read/watch/listen to journalism from trusted, verified sources. Factual, unbiased journalism is one of our best weapons in the fight against misinformation and oppression, and I promise that it’s cool to care.