Serbian wedding playlists, travel MVPs, The Hilderbrand ETC.

and maybe some other stuff occupying my mental space this week

Hi! It was HOT this week, wasn’t it? My entire household took to waking up at 5:30am, going on dog walks/working in the yard before 6, and trying to finish work before 4pm so we could lay in the hot puddle that is our (tiny) pool. But it seems to be getting better? Maybe? Hopefully?

Anyway, this week’s newsletter has NO theme whatsoever but that should make it more fun, I think.

1. Possibly the single worst playlist anyone has ever linked to in newsletter? So, as I maybe mentioned 1001 times already, my Brother got married a week or so a go. We are Serbian, my now sister-in-law is Colombian, they live in Miami, and the wedding was 3 doors down from our family’s beach house in Montenegro. The result? Possibly the most competitive dance floor / scream-along situation of my life and, according to the wedding venue, the rowdiest, funnest wedding they’ve ever witnessed (maybe they’re lying but then… maybe they’re not). Anyway, I am a jaded, not-overly-joy-sparked nightmare these days, but something about seeing people I went to kindergarten and elementary school with (all of us, a minimum of 5’11”, regardless of gender) and with music I have not heard in at least 20 years but IMMEDIATELY remembered all the terrible lyrics to made me the happiest and most alive I’ve felt in a while. So, I made you this Serbian Wedding Playlist, and you can use it to scare feral cats, or to maybe have a slightly better understanding of the (traumatic yet joyous) asylum of a country I was raised in.

2. On the same note - that whole trip was A PACKING NIGHTMARE - because we went to a city (London), to a beach, and to a wedding. And since it is summer, apparently packing advice is #sohot right now (Gwyneth is all over it, for one). So, since no one asked for it - here are the 4 things that I wore and rewore (and rewore):

• This linen tank from Quince - I currently own in in 4 colors (white, black, yellow and nacy) and will maybe own it in 6 before the month is over - extremely accessorizable for day-to-night moves

• This linen shirt/colarless summer jacket/cardigan hybrid from COS - great alone, great over a camisole, great under a jacket etc (I also have a similar-but-more-kimono-y Massimo Dutti number in kind of a water-y gray)

• Madewell white Harlow jeans (I bought mine in regular lenght because a slight crop felt good for summer, and sized a size down - I find the jean version of the Harlow to be a little bigger, but maybe that’s just me)

• Converse all stars (my nostalgia ridden footwear situation is never not happening)

• These woven slingbacks

Seriously, this is all you need, no matter the summer travel situation.

3. The Best Books of 21st Century - is the best idea NY Times has ever had? Especially the ballot thing (which became a mini-viral fantasy bookball thing on instagram in 30 seconds flat) and, in general, asking writers to participate. What would be on my ballot?

1. The Imperfectionists - Tom Rachmann

2. Dutch House - Ann Patchett

3. Birnam Wood - Eleanor Catton

4. Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn

5. Fates & Furies - Lauren Groff

6. Disappearing Earth - Julia Phillips

7. Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro

8. The Latecomer - Jean Hanff Korelitz

9. Nobody Belongs Here More Than You - Miranda July

10. Life After Life - Kate Atkinson

BONUS:

1. Zadie Smith, Elizabeth Strout and Ann Patchett as institutions

2. and for 2024 purposes: “Dead in Long Beach, California” - Venita Blackburn / “Martyr!” - Kaveh Akbar

ANYWAY! Tell me yours!

4. Elin Hilderbrand is having a big week! As she should - Swan Song is crushing the NY Times best seller list, her ballot for the NY Times thing was surprisingly on point (though I’ve never been able to get past the first chapter of The Night Circus) and most importantly, she gets her first streaming adaptation in September (24 years into a best selling literary career, n

5. o less). So it makes sense that it is not just ANY screen adaptation: Susanne Bier is directing, Nicole Kidman, Eve Hewson, Liv Schreiber, very pregnant Dakota Fanning (etc) are all in the cast, and it looks like they snatched the Nancy Meyers set decoration team in the mix. No expense or talent spared! CANNOT.WAIT. WATCH TRAILER HERE.

   

   (photo: SEACIA PAVAO/NETFLIX)

6. We saw MaXXXine at the movies - and loved it. There is some momentum around “boring girl summer” (I am not necessarily against it, but something about equating low-keyness to “boredom” irks me on principle) but I’d love to put a vote forth for Mia Goth Summer - the vibe is: muscle tanks, good jeans, gold hoops, bleached brows, punky eyeshadow, nude lips and *not being afraid of blood (Shia LeBoeuf Vegas wedding/divorce as an optional accessory). The kids are already on it. Bonus read - this costume breakdown.

6. Also, Shelley Duvall, arguably the Mia Goth of her generation, passed away at 75 this week. It is summer, and America has all but forgotten how to make original feeling cinema, so my immediate recommendation is for you to watch Altman’s “3 Women” as a tribute. If you need your brain re-assembled through conversation later - I’m here.

6. Aside from “Presumed Innocent” occupying my mental space (which, BTW - DID YOU REALIZE THE CAROLINE POLHEMUS CHARACTER IS PLAYED BY THE LEAD FROM “THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD”????) I did a rare dip back into true crime and watched “The Perfect Wife” on Hulu - and it was so bonkers, I highly recommend it (but only if you don’t already know the Sherri Pappini story, which I somehow didn’t). Bonus: produced by Erin Lee Carr (the powerhouse behind “Mommy Dead and Dearest”, “Britney Vs Spears” etc), with score by Dan Deacon. So cool. I can’t give any spoilers but once you see it/if you’ve seen it, lets discuss it?

And, I think that is it from me for this one. Anything else I’m missing???? Have a wonderful weekend, regardless.