3 things that make your life better

plus the best recipe I made all month, and a fun quiz

I love a good list, and I love a good shortlist even more. Even though a lot of what I write about here relates to fashion and style, I’ve been informally keeping notes on all the other miscellaneous small things, life hacks, and habits that I’ve discovered over the years that are great and worth sharing. These are the inexpensive (or free) optimizers that really make a big, positive impact in our daily lives. They may be unglamorous, but they deserve shout-outs too!

It’s a bear, it’s a fan, it’s a phone charger! Mini fan + Kindle + Uniqlo bag = my trifecta of summer on the go essentials.

1. an inexpensive mini fan that doubles as a backup power bank — a lot of gadgets tend to end up as novelty clutter, but this is really a game changer for travel and any kind of summer activity that involves, say, standing around in the heat (outdoor concerts, amusement parks, stuffy public transit stations, waiting for a table at that hyped brunch place etc). I always pack my mini fan on warm weather trips now (this was the MVP when I went to New Orleans), and I also throw it in my everyday bag all summer because it’s so handy to have a backup phone charger and a personal breeze-generator all in one. (There’s a flashlight on the tip too.) The three fan speeds are legit (I mostly use it on the lowest speed and it’s plenty strong). It runs for quite a long time on a single charge, and the tabletop stand option works well (it’s a little tippy if you bump it, but on a flat surface it stays upright without issues). I’ve also found it effective for helping keep mosquitos at bay¹ on a warm evening dining alfresco or hanging out past dusk. Anything that makes it easier and more pleasant to enjoy the outdoors is a win win in my book!

2. Catalog Choice — My go-to free service to opt out of junk mail and unwanted catalogs. This is such a worthy cause that I make an annual donation. What’s that famous line about “death, taxes, and junk mail?” (Ok fine, I added the last bit, but if Ben Franklin were around today I think he’d agree.) What’s more American than getting junk mail? Alas, we have pretty crappy consumer privacy protections in the US compared to the EU. When the unsolicited, hulking 17-lb RH catalog “Source Book”² started showing up alongside the daily pile of normal-sized junk mail, I decided that enough was enough. Catalog Choice was a godsend. Their well designed site makes it easy to submit opt outs and track the status. For even more opt out intel, check out the FTC’s resource page. Minimizing junk mail declutters your home and mental space — and it always feels good to do something to help the environment.

3. a 5-10 minute full body stretch — stretching is such an underrated habit! Taking a stretching break (especially if you’ve been working at a desk) is an easy way to do something nice for your body and mind. Yoga with Adriene has great free videos, but if you already subscribe to a fitness app like Peloton, don’t sleep on all the great stretching content. We tend to tense up unconsciously when working, stressed, or just mentally focused on something for an extended period of time. It’s so good to get into the habit of getting out of your head and shifting the focus to some kind of physical movement at intervals throughout the day, even if it’s just for five minutes. And if you do any kind of regular workouts, a full body stretch on your rest days makes a big difference in recovery and performance gains.

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I love to cook almost as much as I love to eat, and this is the best recipe I made all month:

True story: crab cakes are always expensive at restaurants but often disappointing. These Baltimore-style crab cakes are 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 delicious. The only modification I made was to coat in panko and bake at 425F for about 35 minutes instead of pan frying. Drizzle a little evoo on top for crispy browning. Recipe via NYT Cooking / Pierre Franey. Definitely make the French-Creole rémoulade too — goes perfectly with the crab cakes, and the generous recipe yields enough leftover for a really good dipping sauce for all kinds of seafood, burgers, etc.

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This short and fun friendship style quiz reminds me of those throwback personality quizzes from Seventeen and Cosmo. Frothy, yet somehow pretty accurate. I’m very curious how everyone’s results pan out. If you take the quiz, be sure to post your result below! ⬇️ 🫶🏻

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Finally, I’m celebrating four months (!) here on Substack, and am so grateful to have all of you as readers and subscribers here. Feel free to message me with what you’d like to see more of/less of + what you’ve enjoyed the most so far. And if you’re reading primarily over email, don’t be shy about popping over to ♥️/comment now and then on the site — I always appreciate hearing from you 😊

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PS: I’m putting together my summer reading list, any recommendations?

1. My trusty rechargeable (and portable!) Thermacell works wonders to keep outdoor summer evenings mosquito-free. No mess, scent-free, DEET-free.

2. See Amanda Mull’s piece in The Atlantic on the curious case of the RH catalog and the direct-mail business in the age of digital.