Welcome to the first issue of S.O.M.E. Newsletter!
I (Nicola) have been kicking this idea around my little head since the global pandemic began approx. 200 years ago. I am excited to finally be done procrastinating so that I can, at last, share some thingies with whomever has elected to receive this newsletter.
This inaugural issue is going to be all me, but in the future I’ll have guests sharing stuff, too. This week is a big mix, very “throw it at the wall and see what sticks” kind of approach. Hope you find something you like, and please go ahead and smash that “forward” button to share with others who may enjoy. Okay, let’s go.
Read: What’s In Prince’s Fridge? Heavy Table, April 2011
I can’t remember how or why I found this, but I think of it often. I guess this site does (or did?) a recurring feature about what people keep in their fridges. I love voyeur content like this, especially for something so practical and (sorry “foodies”) mundane as the contents of one’s fridge.
I’m sure at this point there are manicured and styled fridge interior shots on Instagram or something, I’m sure they’re called something awful like #fridgies, but this article is from before people thought to do things like that. Back when a fridge was honest. Pure. A portrait of a life.
Plus, it’s Prince (rest in power).
The editors make note of a few stipulations that went into producing this piece: the Prince team wouldn’t allow photographs and The Artist wouldn’t be on site, but would be available to answer questions by email after the fact. Both the contents and the quotes are terrific, I implore you to read and I leave you with my personal favorite part:
Yak milk, one quart
“This stuff is TOO AMAZING. It clarifies your skin and your mind. It is given freely by the yak, so U can truly enjoy it. Great with Chex – Rice Chex, Wheat Chex, whatever!!!”
Also:
Summer 2020, Part 10 Natasha Stagg for Spike, August 2020
Oliver Burkeman's last column: the eight secrets to a (fairly) fulfilled life Oliver Burkeman for The Guardian, September 2020
Watch: ‘Singapore Social,’ 2019
I know a lot of smart people who are able to find joy in reality television, but I personally can not. The pitting of women against each other, the squabbling over trivial personal issues, the manufactured drama… it’s just not for me. There was a period in the early 2010s where I regularly kept up with the Kardashians and even some of the Real Housewives, but I found the exposure was literally making me meaner to my sweet boyfriend at the time, warping the way I talked and the things I said. I stopped watching and I’ve never missed it.
But there is a time and place for everything, and the reality genre does make damn good background noise. In the process of packing up my house in LA and moving back to my apartment in NYC last month, I indulged in both “Selling Sunset” and “Indian Matchmaking.” It was like eating white bread after a decade of whole grains: soft, easy, simple, habit-forming. I wanted more and more and more.
When I got to my place in Brooklyn, my friend’s Netflix account was logged into my TV (a “smart” TV circa 2014). There were four profiles on the account so I picked the one that wasn’t my friend, wasn’t his mom, wasn’t his sister, but was some name I didn’t recognize (Samantha?). I mention all of this because it’s sort of exactly why I started this newsletter: on Samantha(?)’s Netflix, there were shows my Netflix has never told me about, programs my algorithm has not been trained to know I would enjoy.
Among my discoveries was “Singapore Social,” a one-season reality show about a group of high-profile millennials in the small city-state. What made “Singapore Social” special in my eyes was that the cast was actually cool. Well, the guys on the show are ultra corny, but it’s hard to be a rich guy and not be corny. It come with the territory. But the girls? Very cool. Great outfits. Among them: a pop star managing a new relationship while her recent ex remains her artistic director; a burlesque performer looking to shed the traditional pin-up aesthetic; a fashion influencer in her late 20s whose parents want her to finally go to university.
Also:
American Vandal, 2018
Feels Good Man, 2020
Listen: ‘Al Anonymous,’ 2019-Present
The global pandemic has turned me into a real pod head. I actually have to remind myself to listen to music because I have so heavily defaulted to podcasts as my audio of choice.
I found “Al Anonymous” through “Red Scare” co-host Dasha Nekrasova, who did an episode back in April on Wellness, Wellbutrin, and Weight, topics that occupy decent chunks of my atrophying gray matter. The host, Al, is sober and most episodes touch on forms of addiction or disordered behavior including rage, fame, rehab, sex & love, and religion. It’s not holier-than-thou “all figured out” and it’s not depressing or glorifying of fucked up shit. It’s just honest in a way that feels really, really refreshing and tbh inspiring.
Also:
“The Great Toilet Paper Shortage of 2020” Post Reports, April 2020 (Even though the TP panic has long passed, I still think about this all the time, particularly how toilet paper was originally marketed when it was a new product. Think about that for a second. When toilet paper…was…new……)
And, lastly, some imaginary retail therapy.
I lost my job in March along with ~30 million other Americans, so my only income source at the moment is unemployment, which doesn’t even cover my basic expenses (rent, utilities, food, credit card payments from foolish spending years and years ago). This isn’t a pity cry, just context. I’m aware that most people on planet Earth are less food secure, less securely housed, less educated than myself and the socioeconomic class I inhabit. Still, sometimes the Instagram ads get me and I find myself in a state of consumer lust. Here’s what I’d buy right now if I could:
Notte Jewelry ‘Happy Together’ Earrings, $79
My mom instilled an appreciation for “balanced asymmetry” early on and these hit the mark for me. Mismatched but proportional in both visual weight and attitude — the formality of pearl offset by a playful ceramic smiley face. Perfect.
Los Angeles Apparel Unisex Canvas Jacket, $125
I’ve been looking for a so-called “chore coat” and have found it exists at two ends of the retail stratosphere. On one end is “workwear” (Dickies, Carhartt, etc) — affordable, no frills, but doesn’t come in the off-white color I envision for myself and the outward-facing logos have become a bit ubiquitous in the “creative class,” those who work with computers to make advertising campaigns rather than, IDK, welding steel to make buildings (don’t ask me, I am an unemployed member of the creative class). You can also find this style at a much higher price point in the realm of capital-F Fashion, but they usually have some kind of fussy fabric or detail and they cost, um, far too much. This unisex jacket from Los Angeles Apparel is the best middle ground I’ve found so far — not much pricier than the workwear brands, understated, good weight, good color.
We here at SOME Enterprise support Los Angeles Apparel despite being led by Dubious Dov [Charney] because they pay factory workers living wages, are employee-owned, and a bunch of other good stuff which you can read about here.
Bed Threads Build-Your-Own Bundle, from $350
This girl I follow on IG but do not know IRL got some sheets from this company and I’ve been a bit obsessed ever since. The Build Your Own Bundle tool is so fun for imagining a “perfectly imperfect” bed and the colors are so beautiful and complimentary you probably couldn’t make an ugly set if you tried.
That’s a wrap on Issue 1! Hope you liked it and have, like, eight new tabs open after reading. Please forward on to anyone you think may also enjoy. Bye!