miscellaneous muses #19
it is hot as hades, here is what I've been reading, watching, shopping, and cooking
Hello! I am back! I hope your July is off to a great start! Ours started out busy busy busy. We were at the lake with Dylan’s family for Fourth of July weekend, then went straight to Palm Beach for a work conference last week. We got back Thursday evening, and we were exhausted! I am looking forward to a week in the office to catch up! Outside of work, this week is shaping up to be pretty eventful. I’ve got a girl’s night tomorrow night, book club Wednesday night, and a meeting at our museum on Thursday night. I think this weekend we are planning to lay low, see some of our friends, and just all around chill!
reading, writing, watching
I listened to Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey. I really wasn’t expecting to love it as much as I did. Not only is Matthew’s story entertaining and engaging, his lessons about life and living are truly inspiring. I still think about this one routinely! It could be because it’s just what my brain needed at the moment, but this really is one of the best memoirs I’ve read. I really do recommend this for everyone! 5/5 stars for me!
Our book club pick this month is One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune. Having just finished Every Summer After and eating it up in two days. I was so excited to start this one, and it does deliver! The story follows a photographer named Alice who has just gone through a bad breakup that makes her question everything about herself. Her grandmother, Nan, undergoes hip replacement surgery, and Alice has the bright idea to take the summer off and take Nan to one of their favorite past summer spots to help her recover - Barry’s Bay. As Alice soaks in the charm and nostalgia of Barry’s Bay, she meets Charlie, the very cute and flirty man across the lake. Things start to heat up and unravel in the best summer romance kind of way. I won’t say anymore, but it is a great summer read! There is also a good bit of character and storyline crossover between Every Summer After and One Golden Summer. Although you can read One Golden Summer first with no issue, I loved reading them in order and picking out all the easter eggs from the first story.
Dylan and I decided to escape the heat this weekend and saw F1: The Movie in theaters. The film stars Brad Pitt as Sonny Hayes, a once rising Formula 1 star in the 1990s, whose career was derailed by a horrific crash. He returns three decades later at the invitation of his old friend-turned-team-owner to rescue an underperforming F1 team, APXGP, and mentor a fiery rookie named Joshua Pearce. Hayes is racing once more toward redemption and a final chance for victory! We absolutely loved it! It’s got adventure, romance, comedy, excitement, everything to make it the blockbuster hit it is! I strongly recommend seeing this one in theaters as the cinematography and the score are both incredible when seen and heard on the big screen.
Dylan has similar taste in television to my parents (not too dark, scary, or weird, loves a classic action/romance) so whenever they have a recommendation for us, I know it’s something we are both going to love. Per their rec, we watched The Night Manager on Amazon Prime. This TV miniseries follows former British soldier Jonathan Pine (Tom Hiddleston), now working as a night manager in a luxury Cairo hotel, who is recruited by a MI‑6 officer to go undercover and dismantle the global arms empire of a ruthless dealer. This one is also exciting, adventurous, and kept us on the edge of our seats until the end! We were surprised we had only just now heard of it when we found out it was released in 2016 and nominated for several awards!!
In other news: I loved this feature on actor Kerry Condon. Among other noteworthy roles, she most recently plays the first female technical director of an F1 team in F1:The Movie. Walter Goggins is narrating Jimmy John’s sandwich smut? Consider my interest peaked. The New York Times released its top 100 movies of the 21st century. How many have you seen? I also loved this piece on real North Carolina BBQ and have added a few of these to my restaurant bucket list. Is family-mooning going to become a thing? Would you take your family on your honeymoon? And lastly - I enjoyed this piece about the book cover trend we are seeing everywhere and why it works.
On Substack: This piece on how to shop The RealReal by Taylor of
is very important information. This note by Yana of about how to pay attention again really hits home. I loved this piece on resetting your nervous system on . ’s roundup of hostess gifts that won’t get shoved in a drawer had me giddy with excitement! I love giving people the right gift, and these ideas are goooood!
cooking, eating, baking
It’s been all about the summer produce alongside easy lunches and dinners at our house. We haven’t been home very much over the past two weeks, but this weekend we made blackened mahi tacos with some mahi we caught ourselves! From sea to (taco) shell! Along with a copycat Costco cilantro crema and pico de gallo/salsa fresca with everything fresh from our garden. These were some of the best tacos we’ve ever made. I cannot get over how amazing the salsa fresca is!
shopping, buying, trying
This ruched one-shoulder swimsuit from J.Crew has the biggest hold on me. I now have it in three colors. It’s supportive, has great coverage, and still feels chic! I always keep an eye out because they all go on sale at some point in time. I had to snag the black and cool cypress one this last round.
My sister’s birthday was earlier this month, and I was so excited to gift her this stunning emerald green vase from Noon and Moon. I love this brand. Everything they do is just so exceptional and unique.
I hope you have a great week! xo Liz
Cheers to summer fun!! Loving all these great ideas, recipes, and books! Can’t wait to see what the rest of the summer holds🥰
Good read, Liz! Keep up the good work.