watch.listen.snack. it's ridiculous how much I love a good list!

+ everything you need for a cozy movie night, a great to-be-read stack, writing podcasts, + an easy autumn snack

Dear Ones,

A good list! My desk is covered with them. I love lists because they reveal to me my own good intentions. Wow…look how productive I want to be! Look at me, crossing things off. Look at my aspriations:

• things to include in my newsletter!

• places to visit!

• classes to take!

• friends to invite over for dinner!

• groceries…

• chores…

• appointments…

you get the idea.

Sometimes just holding a pen in my hand and writing milk butter eggs sugar calms me -Abigail Thomas

I love when I find a list in the world. I used to have a collection of found grocery lists, mundane and humorous. I remember one that listed a flock of antidepressants. I’ve lost them, which I suppose spurs another kind of list.

• things I regret losing…

• things to quit…

• apologies to make…

• apologies I’m waiting for…

• revenge!

Ummm, maybe joking? And anyway, far too bleak. Yet what a great thing to give to a character, all these lists of aspirations and grudges.

A quick goggle search revealed a website, The Grocery List Collection. Check these two delights:

So much booze! And thank goodness for commas, otherwise the shopper on the left would be seeking a meat baby. And the shopper on the right? I never realized a grocery list was a fabulous place for idle threats!

What kind of lists do you write?

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watch:

A listicle came across my desktop, 5 Cheap(ish) Things for a Cozy Movie Night at Home. I thought, wonderful! All the things! A list. Cozy. Movies. Home. I’m going to make one of those lists for myself.

First, the movies.

BOTTOMS is hilarious and silly with sometimes horrible sound effects. It’s a send up of high school comedies. In this one, a couple of queer girls are afraid they will leave high school still virgins, which would be a shameful burden when they show up for freshman year at Sarah Lawrence. And so, they start a self defense/fight club for women in order to meet and seduce potential hook-ups! Emma Seligman takes all the tropes of high school movies and inflates them to absurdity! We watched with some pals and had many guffaw moments. Rent on AppleTV

Seligman also made the film SHIVA BABY which is tense, not silly, still very funny, and complicated. Rachel, the main character, attends a shiva, a funeral gathering, for a family friend and finds herself trapped between an ex-girlfriend and her primary Sugar Daddy whose financial contributions to her life are essential. Walking into the shiva her mother tells her “Just try to behave yourself.” The astute viewer knows is this chide is akin to Chekov’s gun on the wall. If it appears in act one, it must go off by act three. If you’re interested in causality and plot, this film is your jam! Watch on AppleTV.

Next the things:

Begin with this essential App: JUST WATCH, which will tell you where to find movies you’d like to stream.

1. As far as I’m concerned, the only way to make popcorn: The Whirly Pop

2. This bright blanket to snuggle beneath: Dusen Dusen Dot Throw

3. I need something to do with my hands while I’m enjoying a movie. Enter the best knitting kits. This snood is a beginner project, and I’m liking this one as well.

4. Some call them Performance Joggers, some call them Quitters. Guess which camp I’m in? Either way, I lived in these comfy bottoms through the pandemic and I’m embarrassed to tell you how much I wear them… all the time.

5. Perfectly salted and buttered popcorn calls for a good, full red wine, no? My husband and I recently enjoyed this Sangiovese selected for us by our good friends at Division Wines.

I wish you a rainy evening. I wish you a comfy couch and a good movie. Please, do let me know what I should put on my to-be-watched list!

Quick little blast of reading because I cannot resist. Here’s my TBR stack:

• FAMILY LORE, Elizabeth Acevedo. Flor has a gift: she can predict, to the day, when someone will die. So when she decides she wants a living wake--a party to bring her family and community together to celebrate the long life she's led--her sisters are surprised. Has Flor foreseen her own death, or someone else's?

• THE CREATIVE ACT, Rick Rubin. "A gorgeous and inspiring work of art on creation, creativity, the work of the artist. It will gladden the hearts of writers and artists everywhere, and get them working again with a new sense of meaning and direction. A stunning accomplishment." --Anne Lamott

• AFTER THE FUNERAL, Tessa Hadley. She is one of my absolute favorite writers. The day a new Hadley book comes out is always a cause for celebration in my world.

• THE BOOK OF (MORE) DELIGHTS, Ross Gay. I start each morning with my coffee, and one of these delightful mini essays to set the tone for my day.

I've made a read.write.eat. Bookshop Store, where you will find many of the books I've recommended. Buying books from my shop is another way you can be a friend to the newsletter. I will earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase.

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listen:

There are a slew of wonderful writing podcasts in the world. Here are a few I’m enjoying, plus an episode you may want to check out:

• THE 7am NOVELIST: Check out this great conversation with Jim Shepard.

• FIRST DRAFT: A DIALOGUE ON WRITING: Her interview with Mona Simpson (please scroll through the list to find her name), talking about her book, COMMITMENT is wonderful. I thoroughly enjoyed both the conversation and the novel.

• THE ARCHIVE PROJECT: There are so many good lectures and conversations, it’s hard to choose. Maybe begin with these: Ada Limón, (who just received a MacArthur Grant), Lauren Groff, and then, Reckoning, Memoir of Trauma and Resilience.

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snack:

Gorgonzola Cranberry Schmear

• 1c cottage cheese (I know! It’s back and I’m loving it.)

• 6oz gorgonzola cheese, crumbled

• 4T dried cranberries

• 4T toasted pecans, chopped

Place cottage cheese, gorgonzola and cranberries in a Cuisinart and blend until smooth. Scoop into a bowl and stir in the pecans. Delicious on apple or pear slices, crostini, or a bagel. It’s also a staple for Thanksgiving appetizers chez moi.

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That’s about it. Thanks for reading. Here is your prize: Stanley-the-beautiful, on a bike, enjoying the autumn light.

If you'd like to buy my books, you can do so here and here.  

Please, remember to tell your people you love them, and take good care of your skin. 

xN