The August Edit
Three summer reads, a quiet luxury granola recipe, secret swimming holes, and using AI.
August was slower, the lazier part of summer, not quite boring. It was perfect.
Just like the Italians vacate the cities for the month of August, I decided to vacate my social media accounts for the second act of summer. This august break situation will likely be an annual affair, I am nostalgic at heart and the freedom from scrolling felt really good. I’m already putting an article together for September to share about my offline experience in more depth; let you know my before/after screen time stats, how my fingers held muscle-memory of the app placements, and my plans for returning (in a way that suits me better).
I read three books this month, which may seem like a small feat for some, but I’ve been out of the reading game for a while and this felt victorious. They were all easy and light summer reads - a pleasant way to spend an afternoon in august.
Yellowface - This one kept me hooked till the very last page, and I enjoyed the writing, but I wasn’t left totally satisfied. "This contemporary psychological thriller follows Juniper Song, a bestselling author who is not who she’s pretending to be. She didn’t write the book she claims she penned, and she is not Asian American.”
Tom Lake - What an absolute delight, I was completely mesmerized and already want to go back and read it all over again. I highly recommend for a feel-good escape. "This comforting read has it all - summer theatre, a gorgeous cherry farm, young love, and deep mother-daughter relationships."
The Maid - I thoroughly enjoyed every minute with this quirky and brilliant story. There is a sequel coming out in November and I’ve already put my name down at the library to borrow it. “A Clue-like mystery and a heartwarming journey of the spirit.”
Apart from reading, I played some leisurely tennis with Scott, went on lots of walks, and had a few great evenings with friends. We also took a weekend trip up island to visit family. It started with my brother taking us bouldering at the local climbing gym, continued with swimming in secret lakes on Quadra Island with our Aunt, and finished up with an epic thunder/lightening storm. The days were sprinkled with delicious food and islander traffic in our car that has no A/C. It was a classic summer adventure to say the least!
Lauren’s List Vol. 3
New fave everyday earrings.
10 women share how they use AI at work.
A fast food joint I would visit for the aesthetic alone.
The mascara I will be purchasing again (and again).
The frothy saga of the Jacuzzi family. (*nyt gift link)
A recent listen: Are rich people bad?
Resting in the summer is ok too (and remember, there are 7 types!).
Scott made us the best chicken & tomatoes. I made us spaghetti with sweet corn and chanterelles. (Both so, SO good).
Do you know what your co-worker’s handwriting looks like?
This salad serving set is beautiful.
Made me laugh.
The granola I’ve been making, enjoying, and gifting all month. You didn’t ask for it, but you’ll be glad I shared.
After spending far too long googling and reading food blogs that had more ads and pop-ups than I’d like to ever see again (excuse moi, I’m on a social media break!), I got an idea. An awful idea. I got a wonderful, awful idea.
I decided to ask Chat GPT for a granola recipe. This was the first question I ever asked an AI before. I’ve felt hesitant to break the seal on this software. It was weird, and I hate to admit, it was very satisfying.
Within seconds, it typed out the most clear, classic, easy, simple, and fully customizable recipe I could ask for. No fuss, no muss, and no scrolling through ads. I dropped a few ingredients, added a few, swapped a few, and came up with the ultimate Quiet Luxury Granola that is guaranteed to impress your guests. Featuring pistachios, pumpkin seeds, sour cherries, apricots, vanilla, toasted buckwheat, raw cacao nibs, and more!
I wouldn’t say it’s cheaper to make your own granola by the way - this put me back a pretty penny and I don’t want to misguide you or pretend like I didn’t notice. I thought making my own would be more cost effective - but I think it only inspired me to buy even fancier ingredients than the store bought brands. Oh well, it was fun, creative, and truly delicious! I was able to gift a few jars to friends and family since we don’t actually have guests who sleep over and require breakfast, sadly (we live in a 450 sq ft apartment after all). But you get the idea.
I tried floating this month - you know, the sensory deprivation tanks that suspend you in highly concentrated epsom salt water for 75 minutes and leave you to experience (quite literally) nothing? Seemed fitting for my month of offline relaxation but I didn’t catch the hype. Have you tried it? Thoughts?
All in all, august was a slow gentle exhale. I tried to savour the sweetness of the longer days as best I could. If only it were so easy to hit the pause button on life or bottle up these moments to visit on a later date. Maybe that’s secretly what I’m hoping to accomplish with these newsletters? Either way, I hope you’ve been enjoying your last few weeks of summer. Thank you so much for reading and being a part of this. As always, my goal is to initiate conversations and connection, whether that’s in person the next time I see you, or here online. I’ll leave you with a few questions:
How was your month? Really, what did you do/see/eat/wear/learn/enjoy most of all?
Do you have a favourite summer read?
Have you used Chat GPT? What has it taught you?
August felt the opposite for me. We have been spending majority of our weekends zoned in on walls as we paint. I thought painting would be therapeutic and relaxing but instead we get so tired that we start arguments about how we can see each others streaks or drips haha.
Books: I’ve had a list forever that I just never get to. I thought audible would simplify things but I really can’t get into it! I think once I create some space on my weekends that a book will be an intentional way of setting the tone. I’ve got Yellowface on my radar and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (yes I’m late to the party).
Please share the dessert pizza recipe. Yum!
Can’t wait for issue #8! xx
The secret swimming holes are still a secret somewhere on Quadra Island. The earrings aren't my style, but do I even know what my style is. Where's my granola? I probably should read and get away from the stoopid screens that have me mesmerized way too much. Damn the days are getting shorter and I don't like it. Fun read as always Lauren Marie.