I waited in line for over an hour to buy some pastries.

In recent years, the bakery line has become an increasingly common sight in Chicago. Sometimes stretching blocks long, these lines have mostly mystified me, as there are perfectly good bakeries with no or minimal lines and I am from a generation that is constitutionally opposed to waiting in lines for things. I had always regarded these lines with the cool detachment of someone observing something that has nothing to do with them, like people playing beach volleyball. The bakeries with these lines all seem to be focused on laminated pastries, and I am not sure why that is or what it means. I suspect TikTok? TikTok has become my (partially joking) answer for why anything perplexing is ever happening. But I do think some of the impetus for enduring a long line for a croissant is to be able to snap a photo or take a video with an impressive pastry. Spoils of war! And people have always seemed especially impressed by laminated doughs even if one of my biggest icks is someone showing me a cross-section of a croissant to impress me with their lamination.

Anyway, I found myself in line in part because my husband had thrown out his back. Not enough that he couldn’t move but enough that most of our plans for the weekend had been cancelled. So we figured, why not wait in line for some pastries? I almost instantly regretted it. In the first half hour of the line, I suggested at least 3 times that we should leave. This is crazy. And then more existentially. What are we doing with our lives? The other people in line were mostly much younger than us and seemed at peace with their decision to spend their morning waiting. A lot of them snapped selfies or photographs of the line itself but they mostly just scrolled on their phones. By the 45 minute mark I had just submitted to my fate. People across the street snapped photos of the line, presumably to send to friends. Can you believe all of these idiots waiting in line? But nothing bothered me at this point. I was a part of the line and it was a part of me. read more+++

I turned 50 years old at the very end of 2025. I don’t really have any perspective on that, though I keep thinking I should. I certainly don’t feel like a 50 year old man and I am sometimes surprised by the old guy looking at me in the mirror. But, as they say, it beats the alternative. I am somehow both more opinionated and confident and also less sure of how to live as I get older. I am also aging into what feels like an increasingly horrible world. Do all people feel like this when they reach my age or am I as special as I have always suspected (slash is the world as horrible as it seems)? (please do not answer this question)

We threw a party for my birthday, after a considerable amount of indecision on how to handle the milestone. A party turned out to be the right decision. What I felt more than anything was that I wanted to see people I loved, and that has remained a primary goal of this year. One of the things I am most proud of in my life is the collection of friends I have made along the way. They’re all so cool. I wish they all (somehow!) lived next door so I could see them whenever I like.

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Leo Costelloe Bow Pin

Starting off with a splurge (in this economy!) which was a gift to myself for the milestone birthday I am barreling towards at the end of the month. I have admired Leo Costelloe’s work from afar for years, and a special collection of it is currently available stateside from the always incredible Old Jewelry in NYC.

Glass Jars

This would maybe be a weird gift for someone else, but is a great gift to yourself. Those of us with chronic health conditions could stand a break from the horrible plastic orange pill bottles our prescriptions come in. After years of hating looking at them I made the very simple decision to just put the pills in different containers, ones I liked the looks of. I wish I had done it sooner. Now they sit out on my dresser and they don’t give me anxiety. I put a piece of tape on the bottom that identifies what is in the bottle.

Niwaki Secateurs

Garden chic!

Melin Tregwynt Blanket

The pattern of this blanket from Welsh weavers Melin Tregwynt is based on one they originally created in the 1950s and adapted in several colors for Toast. Toast is so expensive that it almost didn’t make it to this guide, but if I am being honest with myself, it is the shop I probably find most irresistible. And this blanket became an instant prized possession.

Tom Dixon Bell Lamp

I could not capture just how fluorescent the finish of this lamp looks in real life. It’s insane. I can’t stop looking at it. The surface glows. It also is nicely weighted, portable, and gives good light.

All That Crumbs Allow

My dearest Camilla (Wynne), truly one of my favorite people on earth, wrote ANOTHER banger of a cookbook. This time with her good friend Michelle Marek. It is all about breadcrumbs! This book given with a stale loaf of bread, or better yet some breadcrumbs you have made yourself, is the ultimate holiday gift for the baker or cook who has everything. Truly! You will be a hero. (More on the book here!)

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Bryan and I were supposed to be in England for 3 weeks back in April. A few days before we left Bryan broke his foot, forcing us to postpone the trip. It was a bummer. We eventually managed to get to London for a shorter visit in late May. Despite the delay, and shortened trip, there were some silver linings. The postponement meant that we were able to center the new trip around gardens. We fulfilled a long-time goal of attending the Chelsea Flower show (obsessed), and visiting Great Dixter and Prospect Cottage (life-changing?). We also returned to Charleston, one of my favorite places on earth. It was all pretty incredible.

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The bloggiest thing I could possibly do is to apologize for being away for so long. Gift guide aside, the last time I wrote to you it was about mediocre films and cookbooks, a year ago. Which I find myself thinking about again but I will keep my thoughts to myself for once. For now.

WHAT’S COOKING

Over the last year a handful of recipes have been in regular rotation in our house. I have come to terms with the fact that I hate daily meal planning and production. I just don’t care! It’s so boring and unsatisfying. So finding reliable recipes that fit into my life make this kind of cooking a little less of a slog.

This tomato and lentil soup is so simple, cheap, and delicious. You can have all of the ingredients on hand at any time. So much more than the sum of its parts. Serve with some crusty bread.

This meatball recipe convinced me conclusively that I don’t need to brown meatballs and in fact I prefer them like these, poached in sauce, because it’s so much less hassle. I think this is the perfect meatball. I like to serve them on polenta and turn leftovers into meatball sandwiches.

I probably shouldn’t have needed a recipe for this, but these blackened chicken breasts are in regular rotation, usually destined to top a Caesar salad (still using Julia Turshen’s genius Caesar salad dressing recipe). Is blackened chicken Caesar salad my favorite food? No, mozzarella sticks are. But it is close. And they’d make a great pairing.

Bronwen Wyatt (who has a fantastic newsletter and is one of my favorite recipe developers) created the most perfect cornbread recipe ever. Highly recommend ordering the cornmeal she uses in the post—it is very good. I tend to make this and serve a slice with a fried egg and a pile of greens.

It is probably weird that most of these are New York Times recipes. But I can’t handle searching for recipes anymore and the totally deranged results, all from some website called something like Sandy’s Yum Yum Adventures. Help.

If anyone has other reliable dinner recipes, would love to see them in the comments. read more+++

Galvanized Tin Vase by Fabien Cappello

One of my favorite shops, Gardenheir, sells these wonderful vases by Fabien Cappello. I love Cappello’s work and his commitment to galvanized tin. Recently he posted a photo of some salt and pepper shakers he has developed that I think about a lot and hope to someday own. Also, check out those tin frills!

Petal Collection by Monsoon Pottery and Martha Mae

Incredible beautiful collection of teaware from two of the coolest people in Chicago (Danielle and Jean). I love the small plates for cookies or candies. They’re so beautifully made and a treat to hold. I encourage you to visit them in person at The Center for Order and Experimentation (one of the best gift shops in Chicago!).

Candle Portraits by Janie Korn

I think I first saw these years ago when Tavi Gevinson posted a photo of her holding a candle version of herself. Last year Helen Rosner included them in her gift guide (one of the best guides on the internet!) and I realized I needed Bryan and me to be immortalized (sort of) in candles. I love candle us.

Trash Raglan by Everybody.World

I bought this sweatshirt not totally understanding what it was, but sometimes those are the best clothing purchases. It is kind of bell-shaped and just super comfortable to wear. Good color.

Corndogs Bumper Sticker

We recently parked behind a car that had this bumper sticker and I screamed when I saw it and immediately knew that my friend Abra needed it (spoiler alert if you are Abra…sorry).

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I don’t recall why, but I decided to watch all of the films that were nominated for the Best Picture Oscar this year. I think I did this once before, years ago, and am learning the same lesson as I did then—the films aren’t that good. With a couple of exceptions, I have found them mostly mediocre or actually bad. I’ve been posting flippant reviews of the movies as I watch them on Instagram for a laugh and a few people have messaged me to say that I don’t seem to like anything. Well, yeah.

What has surprised me about the tone of these comments (accusations?) is that they seem to come not from a place that is aware of how mediocre most cultural production is, but from a criticism of me as a spoil sport or unnecessarily critical or worse, mean. Which baffles me. Taste being subjective and all, we have all surely encountered a work of art that we think is really, really good. We know it is possible. So why would we ever settle for less? And to be clear, I am not talking about enjoyment here, I am talking about quality. I happily can enjoy (and do!) bad things all of the time. Two of my favorite tv shows are The Bachelorette and Midsommer Murders. They are indefensible, and I love them. If you tell me all of the reasons they are bad, I will agree with you but I won’t stop enjoying them. Just like I am not going to act like I think Past Lives is a good film because it is nominated for an Oscar. And how you can still enjoy Maestro and feel connected to it even though it is so very bad. read more+++

It is important for you to know about this bran muffin recipe that was making the rounds a few weeks ago on Instagram. I learned about it from Hailey who learned about it from Camilla. But the origin of the recipe is here.

I don’t know that I have ever had a strong opinion on bran muffins. But Bryan loves them and I have been thinking I would like a reliable recipe. I’m in love with these beauties and if you are at all curious I implore you to give them a try. The real genius of this recipe is that you mix up a batch of the batter and it sits in the fridge for up to two weeks. You can then bake a couple of muffins every morning which means all of your bran muffins are fresh from the oven. It becomes a lifestyle, really. Slathering salted butter on a warm muffin is now just who I am. read more+++

Coming to you today with one of my most treasured and strange holiday recipes. Versions of this oddity appear all over the internet on sketchy food sites that are mostly ads for weightloss drugs and recipes for “salads” off of the back of packaged goods. I got my version from a chef friend a few years ago who described it as the best dessert ever. Which it is. But it is also bonkers. read more+++

Continuing a tradition started last year, I again managed to convince five of my favorite people to share their gift picks with all of us. I could not be more excited to bring you this very special edition of the gift guide. Once again I have already ordered multiple gifts from these lists. And in case you missed it, my annual guide was published last week—check it out!

SAMIN NOSRAT

You probably know who Samin Nosrat is from her best-selling cookbook (another is on the way!),  television shows, podcast, or world tour (which I had the pleasure of hosting on her Chicago stop!). But you should also know that she is a dear friend who has impeccable taste. The kind of taste that feels effortless. I’m always learning something new from Samin, which is in itself such a gift!

From Samin:

Over the last few years, I’ve found myself spending more of my time considering a single question: “What is a good life?” Another way of asking the same question might be, “At the end of my life, how do I want to have spent my time — which is to say, my most limited, and hence most valuable, resource?”

I’m in the midst of a shift in my life, toward making the answers to these questions — and a handful of others — the points on the compass that guide my decisions, both large and small. And so, in some ways, it feels odd to offer gift ideas when the thing I’d really like to suggest is that you give the most valuable gift of all, which is your time. Yet I hardly make all of my own gifts, nor do I spend time with the people I love the way I wish I could, so I can’t suggest that. Anyhow, I’ve found that often, people most appreciate a gift that allows them the time or encourages them to do a small project they’ve been putting off, to cook a dish they’ve been wanting to try, or just stop and make a cup of tea each afternoon in their new favorite mug. In that spirit, I offer this handful of suggestions:

Blackthorn Sea Salt
This year I tried Blackthorn Scottish sea salt for the first time, and it’s heavenly. Made by master salters using traditional methods along the Scottish coast, the huge, white flakes are gorgeous and clean-tasting. A 3 pound bucket would make a wonderful gift for any avid cook (or eater), and last for ages, too.

Japanese Mandoline 

After nearly 20 years of using the narrower version of this mandoline at home, I recently upgraded to this “Big Beni,” and the only regret I have is not having done it years sooner. Every kitchen needs a mandoline — just glancing at mine hanging on a hook in the kitchen inspires me to make shaved salads with all sorts of fruits and vegetables I might not have otherwise thought to use that way.

Black Walnut Cutting Board 
I’ve had this work of art sitting on my kitchen counter for over a year now, and I never tire of looking at it. It also makes slicing and dicing feel a little bit luxurious, every time.  Add the optional feet and finger grooves, and it’ll make an extraordinary gift for any aesthete with a tiny kitchen who needs to expand their counter space. (And don’t forget to get the Board Butter, too!)

On the Necessity of Gardening
I’ve had this gorgeous book on my coffee table for over a year now, and never tire of browsing through it and reading a little essay or bit of history. It’s inspiring and surprising and has led to much careful thought on my part on the role of the garden in my life. It’d make a lovely gift for any avid gardener or nature lover.

Gregory Parkinson Tablecloth, Placemats, or Napkins

Setting my table with Gregory’s gorgeous double-block printed textiles makes every single meal feel special. Digging through my bin of napkins to find the ones that best match each diner’s personality is a true delight. Any of his offerings would delight a textile lover, but a few sets of napkins would make a truly luxurious gift for anyone who loves to host groups of friends for long dinners around the table. read more+++