Sunday Best: July 28, 2019

A quick and dirty update because something is usually better than nothing (though not always).

Tarantino.

The cinematic mastermind’s penultimate film finally came out this weekend, and I snagged tickets to the 70mm screening of “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood” at Alamo Drafthouse up in the city. I’d been following early reviews all last week (Mick LaSalle‘s and A.O. Scott‘s were two well-written favorites), and did some light background reading courtesy of Michael Hainey’s conversation with Tarantino, Pitt, and DiCaprio in Esquire. For the viewing, I channeled Sharon Tate with some high-waisted jean shorts a friend recently gifted me (thanks, Thuy!), a vintage striped tee I just snagged at a Bumble clothes swap on Wednesday, and loose braids a la Tate, Cannes ’68. Give me any reason to dress up, and I’m elbows deep in my tickle trunk.

I’ve been on a bit of a Tarantino kick as of late, re-watching “From Dusk till Dawn” just a couple of weeks ago. I still remember seeing it for the first time. I was helping my best friend’s boyfriend Brad paint his living room, jumping around on the furniture to reach all of the nooks and crannies as Salma Hayek gyrated about onscreen and (spoiler alert!) Clooney and Tarantino violently dispatched the bloodthirsty vampires of The Titty Twister. Thanks for this louche piece of cinematic gold, Robert Rodriguez. May we never have to see such a gratuitous foot shot in a movie ever again.

Edit (7/29): I spoke too soon. At this rate, Tarantino’s final movie is just going to be completely foot shots. Also, funny story: the audio cut out at the climax of the film, which most of the audience (myself included) chalked up to an artistic decision. About a minute later, the video cut out completely, and the lights started to come on. I’m not going to lie, it would have been jaw-dropping if that were the ending he chose (a teensy bit too artsy for Tarantino’s style though). But, Alamo got their sh*t sorted out, and the film resumed shortly thereafter.

The great outdoors.

I returned from my Fourth of July long weekend camping trip battered, broken, and bruised. You know, just a typical girls’ weekend.

I went 300% too hard during the ATVing portion of the trip, managing to give myself what I think was a mild concussion in addition to a bruised windpipe, injured wrists, scratched jaw, cut-up knee, and five massive baseball-sized bruises up and down both thighs.

For the first night, I snagged us a beachfront camping spot in Morro Bay. I snuck my Mavic Air out for a low fly at 5:45am the next morning, catching the misty sunrise over Morro Rock. We spent the day ATVing in sand dunes before heading to our next site, a glampsite with a hanging bed and delightfully bohemian common area, where I put on The Pretty Reckless’ “Take Me Down” and shot a few hoops. That evening, we finally showered, and got dolled up in fur jackets to attend a VIP art installation in Paso Robles (photo above, details at the bottom). Our last day, we went wine tasting and camped again, this time at an eccentric group campsite we weren’t sure we would survive the night in. Distinct Buffalo Bill vibes, to be certain.

At the risk of sounding insufferable, I want to say that the whole trip had me feeling just so blessed. Give me delightful company, a night sky blanketed with stars, cans of cold brew and beer dripping with condensation straight out of a cooler, ash-smudged and marshmallow-sticky hands, sandy woven blankets, backseat naps snug between bags of luggage, and I’m a happy, happy, happy girl. The weekend was a daze of love and appreciation revisiting life’s simple pleasures.

I’ll write a more in-depth post at some point sharing the exact locations and stops we made, so others can enjoy! For now, a few favorites I discovered: Citrus, maple, and Douglas fir lattes from Scout Coffee in San Luis Obispo, and folk artist Dulcie Taylor’s “The Woman I Used to Be.”

Giving back.

I like making websites, and I like volunteering, so I decided to combine these and applied to create a new website for the Eating Disorder Resource Center of Silicon Valley. They finally got back to me this week, so I’m hoping to work with them to have a new website up and running by the end of August (although the Visual Composer plugin is giving me a migraine right now—why aren’t you loading, dammit?!). Eating disorders are a cause near and dear to my heart, although there are many others I believe in supporting as well. I’ve had my own experience in dealing with developing and maintaining a strong, positive body image, and have many people close to me who have struggled with related issues.

I’m always on the lookout for how I can help, and where my skills might come in handy—I really enjoy supporting people in achieving their goals and furthering their passions. In today’s day and age, having a good website is so important to business, and in increasing exposure. If you know any others that could use a hand, shoot me a message!

Bon Appétit.

I’m finally attending Outside Lands for the first time this year, and they recently released the GastroMagic line-up. Culinary royalty Bon Appétit is co-curating one of the stages, and I’m speechless at the programming they have lined up. A live rendition of “Back-to-Back Chef” with Ella Mai and BA Senior Associate Food Editor Molly Baz; segments with BA Senior Food Editor Andy Baraghani and rapper CupcakKe, and BA Editor Adam Rapoport and Big Wild; and “Test Kitchen” Live with Jimmy O. Yang?! I already have about a million other things to see on my list (i.e. Beer Lands, Wine Lands, Cheese Lands, and Bubble Tea Party), and let’s not forget the actual music…but have a feeling I’ll have a tough time tearing myself away from the GastroMagic stage.

I only wish Kat, my gastronomic partner in crime (and other countless other escapades), could also be in attendance for this. I don’t know anyone else who would luxuriate in this experience to the same degree.

Work.

Things have been ramping up for the busy fall arts season, and a returning client just informed me that my account this year includes Jason Alexander (of Seinfeld fame), John Malkovich (of John Malkovich fame), designer Isaac Mizrahi, and author Mitch Albom. J’ai hâte.

Music.

A curated playlist of recent recommendations and discoveries—this one’s definitely a bit more introspective than my last mix, as I’ve had a lot on my mind lately (see my latest post). In particular, “​two nights part ii” has been eliciting all of the feels…

That’s all, folks.

I’ll be back soon…but I always say that.

The top photo is from the art installation we attended on our Fourth of July trip, called Bruce Munro: Field of Light at Sensorio, located in Paso Robles, California.