FMG: This newsletter is not about Taylor Swift
...but it also obviously is
Happy Friday!
I’m going to get the obvious opener out of the way and say that I could NOT be more excited for a new Taylor Swift album. In her podcast debut (where she was interviewed by her boyfriend’s brother while sitting next to said boyfriend, aka a real rom-com lover’s dream), she announced that her 12th album, The Life of a Showgirl, will be released to the world on Friday, October 3rd. The album was produced entirely by Taylor, along with Max Martin and Shellback — the exact team who produced many of your (yes, your) favorite Taylor Swift songs (“Don’t Blame Me,” “Blank Space,” “Wildest Dreams,” “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” etc.). In the podcast episode, Taylor shared that the album (written and recorded entirely during the Eras Tour) tells the story of her life behind the scenes of the most successful world tour of all time, all set to a poppy, upbeat sound. As much as I loved folklore, evermore, and The Tortured Poets Department, I’ll be the first in line to scream reputation-coded Taylor lyrics and beats once again. (Shameless plug here to watch my TikTok video about the pod ep and how closely it resembled one of my favorite SNL bits.)
Now that that’s covered, let’s dive into what’s taken up (the very small remaining amount of) my brain space:
TV: You know when someone tells you to watch a show, and then you put it off, and then you finally watch it and it becomes your entire personality and you’re mad at yourself for waiting so long to give in? I do! My sister started The Hunting Wives last week and recommended I give it a shot as a former Texan, a lover of Brittany Snow, and a passionate viewer of thrillers. I took my sweet time in starting, then of course watched the first three episodes in one single sitting. I still have two episodes left (no spoilers please!!), but I can confidently say that it’s one of the most unique and gripping shows I’ve seen this year. As a true pundit of 2000s rom-coms, I’d recognize Malin Akerman’s beautiful face anywhere — but it was fun (and horrifying?) to see her genuinely disappear into the role of a gun-toting Texas politician’s wife. Did you know that the actress who plays Callie (the redhead) has an Oscar? What a cast.
Movies: Speaking of star power, my parents and I watched the new Amazon Prime movie Deep Cover last week, and it was a surprising delight. Bryce Dallas Howard, Orlando Bloom, and Nick Mohammed play three stand-up comics who take a “gig” going undercover on a drug bust with the
hotbad guy from National Treasure, and hilarity obviously ensues. I watch a lot of celebrity interviews (this one ranks as my favorite of all time), but the best one I’ve seen in awhile featured the cast of this very movie. As a pop culture fanatic, I hope to see a lot more of this interviewer.Books: A few weeks ago, I got a notification on my phone that my Libby hold for Lucy by the Sea was available. “What on God’s green earth is that?” I asked myself. I have absolutely no memory of placing this hold, but I was delighted to discover that Lucy by the Sea is by the Pulitzer-Prize-winning author Elizabeth Strout and is about a woman named Lucy and her experience throughout the COVID pandemic (I LOVE the version of myself who reserves books by Pulitzer winners at her local library!!!!). It’s a weird book — its events are both incredibly mundane and deeply traumatizing, which I guess is the perfect exhibitor of our collective COVID experience. It was unique to read about the emotions we all shared in such a thoughtful way, but the book itself left me saying, “Huh.”
I immediately followed that up with Wild and Wrangled, a sexy romp of a tale set on a ranch in Wyoming. Stasis has been restored.
Food: I’ve been open about the fact that I very rarely cook, but that I do “cook” pretty much every day — i.e., I’m very good at mixing various pre-prepared items and calling it a meal. One of my favorite things to make is homemade pizza, and I like to volley between traditional pies and a buffalo chicken variety (both made on the irrationally good Banza crusts — see, none of this is done from scratch). I get the Banza crusts at Whole Foods, so I’ve historically also picked up the Carbone pizza sauce while I’m there. It’s important to note that I do almost all of my grocery shopping at Trader Joe’s, but that I genuinely hate the Trader Joe’s pizza sauce that comes in a little tub and can be found by the soy chorizo (it’s like the one time Trader Joe’s has ever disappointed me). Imagine my delight, then, when I discovered that Trader Joe’s discontinued this and instead now offers a jarred pizza sauce by the jarred pasta sauce (reminder that this one is the best of all time), and the jarred pizza sauce is AMAZING. It’s so cheap, it makes several pizzas’ worth, and it’s SO delicious. I love a new TJ’s find.
May your weekend be filled with excellent onscreen material, delicious food, and quality time with people you love (like, for example, Taylor and Travis). Cheers!
XO,
Gail
P.S. Have you read or listened to news from a trusted source today? I’m begging you to! It’s a crazy, overwhelming, and stressful time in the world, and unbiased journalism is one of our best weapons in the fight against misinformation and oppression. It’s cool to care!!