In her shoes
Blisters, peach pie, and caesar salad
Sometimes things are too good to be true. A few weeks ago, I wrote about finding the cutest (unworn) pair of shoes on my walk to dinner. I wondered briefly why someone would leave shoes like that on the street but it’s New York and selling things online can be time consuming. Maybe she got the wrong size and the company sent her a replacement.
Now I know why she left them on the street. These shoes cut up my feet more than any shoes I’ve ever worn and I’ve had my share of blisters (I went to college in the era of ballet flats, boat shoes, and ridiculously tall heels). I had to go home after work and change shoes so I could make it to dinner plans. My sleep was interrupted by the pain. I’m still recovering and wearing exclusively Birkenstocks for the next few days—I even got a new pair to try and tilt the scales back in my direction. As for the shoes, they are in the garbage. I thought about selling the shoes to recoup some emotional damages but I can’t have that karma out there. The shoes have been discontinued by Reformation and honestly they made the right choice.
One thing I know about myself is that physical discomfort often leads to emotional distress. I can get very down in the dumps when I’m sick or injured and the shoe incident was no exception. After a bit of moping, I’m feeling a lot better. The things that helped are the same things that always help: spending time outside, moving my body (once my feet healed enough so I could use the Peloton and take a Sky Ting class with Natalie), eating regular meals, listening to podcasts that make me laugh, talking to friends, etc.
I hope you have a blister free week ahead and thank you for being here. On a lighter note, save August 22nd for a This Needs Hot Sauce early birthday happy hour! More details to come.
Now, let’s dive in.
Something to cook:
As I planned, I roasted some small potatoes with paprika, garlic powder, olive oil, and salt until they were nice and crispy. While the oven was on, I roasted some white beans and made some delicious bowls with the beans, potatoes, spinach and a patatas bravas inspired sauce of mayo and calabrian chilies.
I made Ovenly’s peanut butter cookies for July 4th which I accidentally burned a bunch of. The tray that didn’t burn were delicious and I love a 4 ingredient one bowl recipe. Julianne and Ian’s party was lots of fun and Julia made pie crust (and peach pie) from scratch for the first time and crushed it!
Alicia had a lovely birthday barbecue, that was so inclusive for all kinds of eaters. Allergens were clearly mentioned and labeled, there were drinks of all kinds, veggie burgers, gf buns, all the things! I even got to try the Pittsburgh delicacy of strawberry pretzel salad and there were delicious summer cherries (I just finished Tom Lake so I have lots of thoughts about cherries).
We celebrated Natalie’s birthday in Fort Greene Park with warm weather essentials: watermelon, cherries, french rosé in a bag, and sweaty hugs. Summer is a busy birthday season!
Leah celebrated her birthday with champagne and cake at her apartment, a delightful way to end the weekend.
Something to order:
We celebrated Hillary’s new job with dinner at Da Francesco and before that, a lil outdoor happy hour at Cozy Royale, where they have very full wine carafes. We ordered four pastas to create a little sampler platter and the vodka sauce was my favorite.
Dale and I went back to Keg and Lantern and I once again got the caesar wrap with fries and a seltzer, an ideal meal.
Rose and I tried out Lucia Alimentari, which has smaller versions of the famous slices from next door. The creamed spinach and plain pies were so good with a flavorful thin crust, it really lived up to the hype. Reservations are hard to get (it’s really small) but we saw people walk in on a quiet-ish holiday weekend
Dale and I got brunch at Le Fanfare on Sunday, which is always lovely. I like to steal a few bites of his lemon ricotta pancakes and get something savory.
You can and should order food to Common Mollie’s—for Leah’s birthday we got burritos from Homemade Taqueria, their avocado and mushroom burrito is so good and I’m glad I saved half for lunch today.
Something to read:
The rise of chic piercing parlors. I love getting ear piercings and have had good experiences at Rowan and Studs.
From
’s newsletter: China’s young people are revenge saving. This seems smart.Kyle Maclachlan’s TikToks are a reliable source of joy.
is an ice cream sandwich expert. Confirmed.I was at Coney Island for the Cyclones games the night they shot this.
Happy 100th birthday to the Caesar salad. Frida wrote about vegan versions (the Scarr’s one is incredible).
Effort to restore NY Harbor's oyster population encounters problem: They keep dying. The article is not as hopeless as the headline–it takes time to establish oysters where there’s a small population and the benefits are worth continuing to try.
White evangelical Christians are some of Israel's biggest supporters. Why?
Potatoes Are the Perfect Vegetable—but You’re Eating Them Wrong. I will never forgive diet culture for demonizing the potato (and many other sins).
Loved
’s F&W debut: How to Embrace Sobremesa, the Mexican Art of Lingering at the TableWNBA tunnel fits, matching sets, and the perpetual self-reconciliation of the female athlete
How I Made Peace With Hunger and Decided I’d (Probably) Never Go on Ozempic
New Accounts Of Torture In Israeli Detention
Take care this week and choose your footwear carefully!
xo,
Abigail