The Weekender | No. 7

My candlemaking setup at a a candle making class taught by Paige’s Candle Co.

This week has been a bit of a whirlwind. The year’s end is always a busy time as everyone rushes to finalize the last deals of the year. On top of which, I have been interviewing in the hopes of landing a new job early next year.

I celebrated my birthday on Wednesday. Delicious dinner and drinks with the fam at the midtown Tex-Mex restaurant, Mexicue.

Thursday night I went to a candle-making workshop and made a lovely honeycomb scented vegan soy wax candle. Paige, from Paige’s Candle Co, taught the class and gave great descriptions of the types of candles that can be made and their important differences. We also learned the proper ratio of orange to candle wax. I’m a little excited by just how easy the process was. Maybe everyone will get candles from me next year!

Tonight I’m looking forward to a quiet day getting a little work in, and then venturing off to Rolf’s German Restaurant, renowned for its ultra-Christmassy/festive vibe. Tomorrow I have a podcast recording with Gayle and novelist Katherine Center, and then the family and I are going off for an excursion at The American Museum of Natural History. I don’t think I have been since I was a child/teenager. Good times!


Reading

In The Dream House: A Memoir – My club is meeting to discuss this next week. I had been wanting to read it, so I was thrilled to bump it up in priority. This has made several year end lists, and I can see why. I loved it. I have been reading so much in the space of abuse, most of it centering on the sexual violation of women. This unconventional narrative is Carmen Maria Machado’s series of meditations on an abusive relationship she experienced in the years she was studying and getting her MFA in Iowa. Each chapter/vignette imagines the relationship through a different lens, weaving literary and film criticism alongside ruminations on the chilling effect case law has on the safety and rights accorded to women in lesbian relationships. I loved this book so much The referenced case histories were fascinating, Machado’s writing and

Uncanny Valley: A Memoir – I’ve been reading so much nonfiction lately! This one is about a woman who gives up her life in book publishing in NYC to work at tech startups in Silicone Valley. I’m always interested in how actual tech workers view the effects of their work and the products that they work on. Wiener gets into some of that here, but her story is mostly about the ways that she grew throughout various customer service positions, what she thought of the industry, and how she ultimately chose to leave it. I was riveted for about half the book, the last quarter is a bit more meandering and dragged a bit as it shifted focus to her deepening emotional ennui, but this is still solid read that I tore through in just a few days.

A Good Neighborhood – I’m still processing all of how I feel about this book, but it gutted me. It’s told choral style (a collective “we” voice of the community, which I didn’t love), and it’s the story of what happens in just a few short months when a wealthy white family with a teenaged daughter moves next door to a middle-class single mother and her teenaged son. Tragedy ensues. This book received a ton of buzz at Book Expo over the summer, and I expect it will be all over the place when it’s released in March 2020.

Articles – Sobering view of the type of men who typically run our institutions, shape public opinion, and create legislation; this piece focuses on the media while this one is about medical abuses at the prestigious Mount Sinai Medical Center. Princeton is doing more to diversify their eating clubs. Continuing education from a discussion that Gayle and I had about skincare on a soon to be released podcast. Stepping away from plantations weddings. I’m much more productive, content and thoughtful without it: some tips to cut back on social media. Read this lovely and informative little snippet about my neighborhood bookstore. I’m not quitting anytime soon, but look at what happens when you do. I’ve been wanting to track outfit ideas and prep for the upcoming week on the blog, this is providing some inspo to get started on that.

The Essentialist


I ordered this dress to wear to the Christmas party in mom’s building. The Santa hats were a big hit. This one looks really cute as well, so maybe next year.

Bought this dress to wear to the Book Of The Month Holiday Party.

My cats surprisingly went for this. They are usually pretty nonplussed when I get them traditional cat toys. They prefer crumpled aluminum foil and beans. *smh*

I was listening to a podcast on Oprah and supposedly she is the one behind the big Uggs Craze that kicked off here. If you don’t like to wear them outside, these slippers are the coziest.

Michelle Obama’s book is the best, but I am dying to read this new biography on Melania Trump. What’s going on there? This lady purports to know.

This overnight seaweed night cream has been kicking around in my beauty cabinet for weeks now. Finally gave its try and it is so good. My skin was so soft and dewy the next day. A real noticeable change.

Reordering these for bath time. Love this fragrance for a bubble bath and this is such a good detox bath.

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