April Musings

an epic playlist, Victoria Pedretti, and flowers I didn't pick

I’m dispatching this newsletter from my studio in Greenwich Village, where I have lived for the past four-ish months. I feel very New York in this neighborhood, which is not something a New Yorker would say—but alas, it’s true. A novel struts past me every day and I’m left no choice but to take notes. Below are some of those notes & observations I scribbled in April that felt right to share. We’re a week into May already, so let’s get going!!!

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Music

Creating a monthly playlist for my newsletter is the only promise I’ll make to you. Below is the one I made and added to when I remember it existed. Listen while you read! Or don’t!

I listen to a lot of music, but I don’t often create new playlists. Shuffling through my ‘liked’ songs makes me feel nostalgic and reminds me that I still like what I’ve always liked. It also comforts me to know that I could have had worse music taste in eighth grade. Maybe I’ll share an old playlist one day.

In the spirit of No Rules, I didn’t make a rubric for the playlist when I created it; I just added songs that came on in April and made me go Oh! The April Playlist! Also…just because it’s on the playlist, doesn’t mean I just discovered the song. My ego wouldn’t let me proceed without mentioning that. I’ve been knowing!!!

But! I’ve also been discovering!!! I’m not totally sure how I came across Leah and Seeing Double (probably a recommended for me radio, where I find most new music), but it only took me a few seconds to get groovy with the song and a few more to learn that the band broke up back in October.  Big sad! I hate break-ups, especially when bands I never got to see live are doing it.

Anyways, let me know what you think. What’s your favorite track? Are you sitting on any song recommendations? If you send me a song maybe I’ll feature you in May’s Junk Drawer. May-be!!

People Sightings:

I’m throwing in this section not because I’m a fangirl, but I literally ran into so many known-folk this month it would be a miss if I didn’t include it.

• Lorde. That’s right. I spotted Mother Ella walking towards the downtown entrance for the 2/3 at Union Square. I’m not a stalker for knowing the specifics, she just happened to be at my stop. She floated down the block in a long black cape, her big hair head-banded with AirMaxes, which is exactly what I would expect from the Patron Witch of Synth-Pop. When she passed, Rory and I looked at each other, stunned, and jinxed, That was Lorde, which came out sounding very much like a chant. It was witchy. I later learned that Lorde tests an album before releasing it by listening to herself on the subway, so…forthcoming album when? You heard it here first, folks!

• Elle Fanning. I absolutely bodied this meek blonde beauty on my way through the automatic doorway of my neighborhood CVS. I actually have a lot to say about the mechanics of this specific door, but I’m not trying to get worked up right now. I’m sorry, Elle! I had tunnel vision for an orange Celsius before my on-camera meeting!!!

• Victoria Pedretti: If you were at all curious, all the hottest girls I know get pizza at 4am in the Village. I don’t make the rules, but I do eat late-night pizza. Or is that technically early morning pizza? Not sure.

• Zack Bia. My little brother thinks I’m really cool for this one. I wouldn’t have known who he was if it wasn’t for a wide-eyed NYU-er asking him for a picture in the middle of the sidewalk on University Place. He was wearing camo pants, which seemed…intentional.

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Talking to Strangers

April 29, 2024 2:12pm

A guy somewhere in his early-thirties interrupts me while reading in Washington Square Park. I am at first afraid that he is a man with a mic, but relax slightly when I realize he is just a man. Squatting uncomfortably at the foot of my blanket, he tells me how he noticed me sitting here and, shifting his weight, says “I love that you chose to spend your Tuesday afternoon reading by yourself. I couldn’t walk past you without saying something!” I smile and aw, thank you so much!! and attempt back at my book. He tries to keep the conversation going, asking about what I do for work, if I’m European (no, just wearing linen) and if I feel “passionate” about corporate communications (sir, huh?). I am disappointed when it becomes apparent that the next question could be for my number, so I hurry him along and thank him, once again, for interrupting me to say something kind, despite feeling weird about double-extending the gratitude. It’s not that I don’t like compliments—I have a stellium in Leo and a decades-old Good Girl Complex. It’s just that I pass a hundred flowers a day that I don’t pick. That’s all.

Some flowers I didn’t pick.

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Reading

I lead the women’s book club at my company, and in April we started Machiavelli for Women by Stacey Vanek Smith. The TL;DR is that it’s about how the modern woman (?) can use 16th century Machiavellian principles to navigate … wait, I’m sorry. This is *my* newsletter, and I just got bored writing it. That’s just not the vibe. It’s hyperlinked if you’re craving more info. I’m OOO, baby!

On an exponentially more thrilling note, I’m 71 pages into Andrea Lawlor’s Paul Takes The Form of a Mortal Girl. I stole this book from my dear friend and fellow Substack-inista, Calista (Youngest Daughter) during the book swap at the Writer’s Retreat I just returned home from (more on that another day) and I’m sorry, Calista, but I have no regrets about the robbery. I could summarize it for you, but I could also tell you that Maggie Nelson called it Hot, Eileen Myles Tight, and Michelle Rea Deep. Less than 100 pages in and I haven’t read anything like this book—and that’s on craft! You will be the first to know when I finish it. If you’re curious, this was the book I was reading and then not reading in the above story.

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Google Search History (abridged):

These are copy + paste from my browser. Don’t have much to say about them. Enjoy!

• Can you actually not teach an old dog new tricks

• Fun dictionary to read for pleasure

• Earthquake nyc today

• Good Luck, Babe! Lyrics

• How clean suede 

• Being upset but wanting to forgive emotion

• How long microwave frozen chicken nuggets

• How to know if blocked iPhone

• Wash whites no bleach

I’m out here learning things! I’ve got 499 open tabs and no intention of closing any of them.

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Scraps

• I took two weeks off of work this month because I’m transitioning from contract to staff on my team (yay for benefits!). All the free time made me long for the days (months) I was unemployed when I first moved to the city, but then I remember how un-fun that time period was and I am grateful that when these two weeks end, I will have a job that I didn’t have to write a cover letter for. Praise be.

  • Note: May 6 was my first day back at work! :(:

• I had a 12 day streak of having no alone time this month. You read that right. Twelve days. I am surprisingly good at not being alone. Is that a disorder?

  • Rory visited for 7 of those days! She got a tattoo of my initials on her forearm, and if I was a better sister I would have gotten her initials on mine, but RGO isn’t as epic as CEO, and I wanted a ? on my left wrist to challenge the ! on my right. I don’t have any good pictures of my tattoo yet.

• You read this earlier, but I went on a Writer’s Retreat in Alma, Colorado with my amazing writing group!!! I’m still digesting the whole experience, but will share more about that another day.

Okay! That’s it for April. Thanks for reading! Stay close.

Soon,

Callan