Weekend Reads #305

Weekend Reads

I shared on Instagram that my dog chewed my favorite blanket and a lovely individual sent me a link to this wool blend throw from H&M in my favorite colors. I may be putting it on my Christmas list…

People fill old newspaper boxes with movies, call it ‘Free Blockbuster.’ (The Seattle Times)

Spanx made her a billionaire. Will Sneex be her undoing? (Wall Street Journal – gift link)

Urban Outfitters admits it doesn’t know how to sell to Gen Z. Now it wants to pull off an Abercrombie-like turnaround. (CNN Business)

D.C. seniors are among the nation’s hungriest. Punks to the rescue. (Washington Post – gift link)

If you're looking for a well-made, comfortable, yet chic ankle boot I cannot recommend this one enough. Size-inclusive, chic colors, luxe leather, and designed with a podiatrist for true all-day comfort. Use code WO2 for 10% off.

You are okay. (Humaning)

How technology may be erasing our memories. (Jennifer Walsh for Medium)

America must free itself from the tyranny of the penny. (New York Times – gift link)

Looking for a gift for a hard-to-shop for the person who is an active alumnus? I was served an Instagram ad for these silk scarves representing the architecture of 22 different college campuses. They also have scarves representing popular summer vacation destinations and The West Village.

Fans are reeling from Liam Payne’s death — and disturbing online discourse. (Washington Post – gift link)

Miscarriages are incredibly common. Abortion bans have made them less safe. (Vox)

The ‘#1 restaurant in Austin' doesn't exist. (UserMag)

Jodie Foster talks Nyad, True Detective and aging in Hollywood. (W Magazine)

And for visitors and local yokels… they're opening up a cafe and wine bar on the National Mall! (Popville)

See/Hear/Read

I shared in the Wardrobe Oxygen Community that I was looking for my next audiobook as I have my monthly Audible credit. And as soon as I did, the Libby app let me know that my hold for Yellowface by R.F. Kuang was available. I still have my Audible credit, and I gobbled up Yellowface in just a couple of days.

I lost sleep, used my Hydrow rower more than usual and found myself sitting in parking lots and driveways staring into space to finish a chapter or catch a few more minutes of this riveting novel. I think because at times, I could see parts of myself, my career and peers, and my life in it.

I didn't start blogging to be famous or make money. I wanted a place to jot down my ideas about style, dreaming of being a fashion book writer, but who would buy a fashion book from a middle-class 30-year-old in a suburban Maryland cubicle? Over time, I gained an audience, and I found I really enjoyed the online community that came with blogging.

I started in 2005, and the first few years were fun. I connected with other bloggers, I sometimes got free things in the mail, I even made “beer money” from the ads in my sidebar. And then 2010 hit and suddenly my random niche blog was the primary type of blog, and women a decade younger and with several more 0s in their bank accounts took it up, and did it with more strategy and business savvy.

I raced to keep up with them. My husband began taking my photos with a DSLR. I bought clothes, shot myself in them, and mailed them back. I partnered with clothing rental companies to keep things fresh and new. I got on social media and began attending influencer events. It helped, but I felt like I was always a bit too much of one thing and not enough of another to keep up.

My content was colored by my jealousy, resentment, and frustration. I followed their blogs on Google Reader. I lurked on message boards where folks talked about bloggers and occasionally contributed to them. I would gripe on GChat with fellow blogger friends, talking about our peers and getting glee out of when they were called out for Photoshopping, not disclosing partnerships, or misleading their audiences.

And then, in 2014, I ended up the topic on one of these message boards. The next day, I was in the ER with a broken arm and spent the next few weeks on short-term disability, feeling sorry for myself as I scrolled through the thread about me.

This ate me up inside, and to get a grip, I crafted an Excel spreadsheet breaking down screen names, a number of comments on the threads, and if they were “troll,” neutral, or “white knight.” I realized most of the “troll” comments were from one individual. The world didn't hate me, just a couple of folks and primarily one of them was the ringleader.

It took a lot of Brene Brown and therapy to get my sh*t together and move forward, but I can still feel that tinge of jealousy dribble out from time to time. The content creator world isn't that different from the publishing world, which is the topic of Yellowface; and June, especially at the beginning, reminded me of my early 2010s self. And as the book continued, it confirmed why I chose to move my business in a different direction from my peers and continue to do so.

Comparison is not only the thief of joy but also of reality. It's hard to see what makes you great when you're filling your mind and time with the actions and approval of others.

At times, Yellowface seemed like it was going to go into Fight Club territory, and other times, it seemed a bit more like The Girl on the Train or even The Yellow Wallpaper. The ending surprised me, and portions of the book made me say, “Wait a minute,” because they harked back to a previous chapter, making me see that scene in a whole different light.

As I've said before, books come at the right time, and I feel Yellowface came at an important time in my life to remind me of who I am, who I was, and who I can be. And that some books are so fucking genius they will flip you on your head and have you thinking and changing and growing for years after they are read. In fact, I think I need to make a calendar reminder to revisit Yellowface a year from now.

For Your Entertainment

I can bet that if you're reading this blog for grown-ass women, you've heard of De La Soul. The group's album, 3 Feet High and Rising, was on repeat in my boom box, and the first bars of “Me, Myself, and I” will transport me to driving down Route 50 in my 1982 Toyota Corolla with a carful of friends singing along.

De La Soul has been working since, though you may not have heard their name so much. In fact, in 2006, they won a Grammy for their collaboration with Gorillaz on their single “Feel Good Inc.” Fighting over the rights of their music and profits from streams and the death of Trugoy the Dove in 2023 have been difficult, but the band marches on, opening for Wu-Tang Clan and Nas last year, and this year releasing the 35th anniversary version of 3 Feet High and Rising a live album, a one-day donut shop pop-up, and this song, which was filmed at said donut shop.

The video features cameos by the following artists, actors and personalities, all to honor the legacy of Dave, aka Trugoy the Dove: Common, Black Thought, Questlove, James Poyser, Q-Tip, The Jungle Brothers, Forever and Zavoire of Y.L.F., Stephen Hill, Rick Gonzalez, Ebro, M1 of Dead Prez, Umi, Laya, Yummy Bingham, Renée of Zhané, Masta Ace & Leschea, Tony Touch, Zane Lowe, Lord Sko, and Statik Selektah.