Notes on Hope, Cake, and Other Sweet Things

Friends, good morning! I’m so grateful we get to catch up today. How are you feeling?

Me? Well… a little distractible, if I’m honest, but doing my best to stay on task. The slow change of season has me holding onto hope. Summer was a heavy lift for me this year, and I’m craving the different kind of energy that fall always seems to bring.  I can already feel it in the air via the apple cider doughnuts I made a few days back.

In the spirit of fresh energy, I volunteered to bake a cake for a dear friend’s 40th birthday.  It’s a big, cocktail-attire, restaurant-rented kind of celebration. It feels like the perfect excuse to make a bit of a showstopper. I’m imagining a tall, two-tier doberge-style cake, finished with fresh flowers (obvi I’ll be raiding Trader Joe’s!) and maybe even a little gold leaf for good measure. Of course, I’ll need to brush up on my dowel skills, cake transport strategies, and maybe whisper a prayer to the baking gods because it’s been a long time since I’ve made such a cake.. But I’m looking forward to spending my off-hours this week in a proper project. Effort for a friend entering the best decade yet feels exactly right.

Here’s this week’s offering, friends. As always, take only what you need.

•  In this very unsteady moment, I really appreciate Ross Douthat’s thoughts on the assassination of Charlie Kirk.  “The decisive battle, now as always, is inside the individual human heart. At his wisest, Kirk knew this.”  I mourn for Charlie Kirk and his family. May he rest in peace and may God be with us. (NYTimes)

•  This essay, Joy is Collective Medicine, is such a lovely reminder that joy isn’t frivolous. Joy doesn’t have to wait until after the hard stuff is over; it’s part of how we move through it. A beautiful perspective on why joy belongs right here, right now, and why it’s stronger when we share it. (Substack)

•  I didn’t want September to get away from me without making a batch of Apple Cider Doughnuts (minus the rose water, and with an overnight rest). I immediately scarfed a fresh doughnut and took the rest to the nurses at a doctor’s appointment this week. What really takes these particular doughnuts over the top is the freeze-dried apple pulverized into the cinnamon-sugar topping.  (Serious Eats)

•  This is brilliant: How to include kid’s without centering them. (Substack)

•  Be honest, how many people can you maintain daily texting with? I can maintain a solid five to seven text threads daily, but beyond that, I’m bound to miss some replies.  Within those seven threads, I wouldn’t say I have a capital-B Best Friend. No, You Don’t Need to Have a “Best” Friend reveals that the truth is, most of us don’t have that one all-encompassing BFF. It’s more about the patchwork of people who bring us joy.  This article left me with my head nodding yes.  (Self)

•  We have a few good days of September left to make the rest of the year feel fresh!  This week on Substack, a little inspiration to just clean to car for a few minutes this weekend: 10 Things I Do That Make September Feel Like The New Year. (Substack)

•  Social media chaos had me down bad this past week so I pre-ordered a very offline holiday project to do with my mom this December.  It’s the vintage-inspired Hello Bargello holiday ornament kit. Take me away!

•  I made the mistake of falling in love with Tulsi and Snow Mushroom Cleansing Milk after using a sample and… I just can’t justify a $60 face wash. Taking your recs for a creamy cleanser as we sneak into winter. Also: snow mushrooms!? 

•  In related news/retail therapy: this cute little necklace hopped in my amazon cart this week and I didn’t fight it. (Amazon)

•  Erica went and made the epically fluffy Golden Diner Pancake, and now I’ve got two tabs open: one for Delta flights to NYC and one for the NYT Cooking recipe. Pancakes or plane ticket? Honestly, both feel necessary. (Instagram) 

•  The dogs were good again this week. (TikTok)

My love to you, friends! Take good care.

xo Joy