Thursday Things #97
First of all, "greg." But also: a great dress with a ridiculous name, an addition to the playlist, and summer-sanity-saving suggestions.
Every other Thursday, I share a handful of things I'm loving, reading, watching, listening to or just discovered. AKA the random good stuff we’d talk about over coffee or text, if we had one another’s phone number. I'm glad you're here!
Hi hi, I started to write “first things first” and immediately kept going with “I’m the realest” out loud, which led to laughing at myself and also at the incredible capacity of our brains to hold onto the most random of song lyrics.
ANYWAY, first things first, hello happy Thursday.
My To Be Read list sincerely thanks you for the book suggestions you left in the comments of TT #96.
Now, my Trying To Survive The Endless Summer self humbly requests your tips, ideas, snacks, meals, drinks, etc etc etc. Because this was me today:
No really. Live footage from my car:
One hundred and six degrees.
Fix it, Jesus.
Really though, can we crowdsource this? Link your favorite mini-fan, tell us about the best popsicles, recommend a podcast for end-of-summer roadtrips (that will be taken with the AC blasting), share a recipe that doesn’t require turning on the oven—all summer-sanity-saving suggestions welcome:
Crystallized lemon.
Here’s my contribution! I refer to this as “the lemon water stuff” because classy. My dad and aunt use these regularly and I’m adding myself to the list.
I’m not sure it counts as a “fun” fact, but 9 times out of 10, I’m going to order water with lemon if I’m at a restaurant. And then I’m going to ask for extra lemon when they bring the tiniest sliver of a lemon wedge. One packet (per water bottle) of True Lemon is enough for me so I think it might be magic.
If water with lemon isn’t your thing —> this variety pack includes packets for mango orangeade, limeade (regular, watermelon, and black cherry), and lemonade (regular, raspberry, and peach).
You Already Know.
There are the random lyrics we remember a decade later and then there are the songs that instantly take us back to a specific time, a particular place, an exact life event or happening.
This will be one of those for me.
I heard it years ago, but You Already Know has found it’s permanent home on my 2023 playlist of Set to Repeat Endlessly.
Lyrics from the beginning of the song:
Everything around me seems uncertain
My weary heart can't take much more surprise
I wish there was a point on the horizon
Something I could see with my own eyesI need to tell you that I'm scared
I feel completely unprepared
And nothing's what it was two weeks agoBut you already know
You already know
Everything I'm scared of
Everything I hope
You hold my tomorrow
And all tomorrow holds
You already know
I’m still laughing about “greg.”
It’s probably time to do another round-up of funnies, but I won’t keep this delight from you.
The contents of our lives.
Yes and yes and yes. (via @davidgatepoet)
The longest name, but a great dress.
One more summer(ish) contribution from me . . . The dress I wore to one of Erin’s bridal showers is 60% off and you better believe I’m about to order it in another color just as soon as I hit send on this email.
The Amazon name is actually ridiculous (Maggeer Women's 2023 Fall Summer Casual Short Sleeve Maxi Dress Smocked Floral Bohemian Tiered Flowy Long Dress) (really, that’s the name) but they’re not wrong.
It’s flowy. It’s light. It’s stretchy. It’s dressy but not too dressy. Depending on the color/pattern, it could easily work for spring, summer and fall.
(The price varies by pattern but it looks like they’re all marked down right now.)
(If it’s helpful, I got the light green in medium.)
P.s. If you’re subscribed to All The Things, don’t forget: our Author Chat will Holley is next week! I’ll send out the Zoom link again ahead of time, and as always you’re more than welcome to join whether you’ve read every word or never had a chance to open the book. We’ll leave a little time for Q&A, Fiercehearted-related or not. :)
P.p.s. Last week Holley shared with us a portion of the book that didn’t make the final manuscript. If you missed it, here’s the link!
Okay for real because I mean it, for the sake of us all: summer surviving suggestions wanted.
I hope you have a restful Friday and super cool weekend, in the most literal of literal ways!
Frozen grapes, ice cold watermelon chunks, and a water bottle that would keep your water cold even on the surface of the sun (I like Takeya thermal ones myself). And an ice face roller! These are all top items in my summer survival kit. 🫠
Water bottle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08QDSTZX2/ref=sspa_mw_detail_0?ie=UTF8&psc=1&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9kZXRhaWw
Face roller: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B087PYS6W4/ref=sspa_mw_detail_0?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A2BMB9GECNRNBO&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9kZXRhaWwp13NParams&th=1
Tonight I bought a rotisserie chicken. I try to go with cold foods, especially for snacks, when I’m working outside a lot. Making chicken salad, grass-fed beef sticks, cheese as a snack, peanut butter & apples, almonds that I keep in the fridge, Greek yogurt parfaits. I also use my grill A LOT to grill meats and veggies and keep the heat outside.