I keep writing and deleting things like “Rough couple of weeks, huh?” As Kelsey said on Instagram, we’ve always wanted Normal Gossip to be a bright spot on dark days, a little break waiting for you whenever you need a laugh or just the feeling of getting a drink with a friend. I hope the show has been keeping you company. I hope you’re taking care of yourself and your loved ones. Even if you’re the kind of person who would eat a night burger—and if we’re being honest, I am—you’re not alone.
Take care of yourself and enjoy this week's newsletter. Also, it's the time of year where our friends at Radiotopia are raising money to support podcasts across the network. If you want to help support the work of shows like ours and our friends, think about making a donation.
- Jae |
Meet my favorite influencer |
Last week I wrote about Heidi Clements, an influencer who is 63 and so, so cool. I wrote this before Election Day, but the things I'm thinking about in the blog feel even more relevant. Clements reminds me that your worldview doesn't have to narrow as you age, and she's a blueprint for a type of aging that gives me hope.
- Alex
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Things we are liking right now |
Alex
- I recommend taking a bath if you have access to a tub. Right now I'm very much still processing my feelings about the election, and taking half an hour to be alone in hot water helps.
- Rachelle Hampton's blog from the weekend, "It Was Too Warm This Week," which perfectly captured the bizarro malaise I've felt from Wednesday onward.
- Danzy Senna's Colored Television, which I read in two days. I especially recommend this for my fellow biracials, as it's 300 pages of owning our nonsense over and over again. I laughed out loud, which I don't often do when I'm reading.
- Get Trader Joe's Slightly Coated Dark Chocolate Almonds for the prediabetic (or diabetic) in your life!
Kelsey
- The spookiest girl to ever live, my queen Ethel Cain, has a new single out that I'm putting on repeat,
- My friend Margaret Eby has a book out next week called You Gotta Eat, which is all about how to feed yourself when you're depressed or miserable or tired. I cannot recommend it enough. You truly do, gotta eat.
- I lose all self-control during the Sephora sale every year, and this year it was the Twin Flames Liquid Eyeshadow. I have no idea where I am going to wear this, but I love it! So shiny!
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Kelsey's bake off to meltdown |
My journey into hell (the imaginary Great British-Bake-Off tent) with my co-worker Chris continues. Each week we bravely attempt to bake the technical challenge given to the talented bakers on the show, despite all acts of god begging us to stop. The most recent act of god was actually an act from the show's host Prue Leith, who assigned us to make something called a vegan parkin that I hated so, so much.
- Kelsey |
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Can I say something bitchy? |
Parking lots and garages are my current particular hobbyhorse, and I am confident this is not just due to my lack of driving skill. A shopping center near me recently redid its parking lot as part of a rehab that will also add more apartments to the site, presumably for people who want to be as close to a strip mall Olive Garden as they possibly can. There was a time when I could drive in and park near the back, walk to the supermarket or the Olive Garden and escape without harm. |
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The new parking lot forces drivers to go all the way to the lane parallel to the stores, then turn back into the lot. A few shopping centers near me have also adopted this design. I could not find an engineer to tell me if there were new guidelines inspiring developers to create lots with this new design I hate. (I tried.) Now traffic backs up as cars wait to turn in and out of the lanes, narrowly avoiding pedestrians. One day someone is going to drive right into that Olive Garden!
I hate so many places I park regularly now. One recently-constructed underground garage is so cramped it had to reconfigure traffic flow with plastic barriers and hire people to direct traffic. Another parking lot painted new lines, but some of the arrows now point cars in the wrong direction, and everyone always forgets and follows them anyway. Look, it’s not important to know if I’ve done it more than once!
I once looked into a class for adults (or teens! whoever!) about how to be a better driver that was not a pointless driver’s ed class. OK, what I mean is: I asked the writers of a car blog if such a thing existed and they didn’t answer that part of my question. I might have to go as far as doing an internet search this time. Maybe there’s a special course for parking lot driving.
- Dan |
My best friend HATES her engagement ring... I helped her fiance pick it out.
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Have some amazing gossip you'd love to share with us? You can email us at normalgossip@defector.com or leave a voice message at 26-79-GOSSIP. You can also follow us on Instagram. And remember we anonymize all stories we use on the show! |
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