At the intersection of diary entry, listicle, wishlist, and acrostic poem lies the ~ R.E.P.O.R.T. ~
MY MFKIN BIIIIIIRTHDAAAAAAAY~~~ I considered making this the year I start lying about my age but not in a “I’m afraid of getting old” way, but in a Samantha Jones “It’s not any of your business” type of way. I think it’s more fun and more accurate to identify with an age range vs. a hard and fast date BUT I also want to be a living example that a woman’s life doesn’t lose value after you turn like, 26. I am certain my 30s will keep getting better and better. I’m more secure than ever in who I am and what I want, plus I have the means, the support, and the (growing) confidence to make my dreams a reality. cheers to me~
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Whenever I come across this sound in the wild on Tiktok, I listen to it about 5-6x in a row, in awe of Haddaway’s ability to create a euro dance hit that sounds just as good now as it did when it was released in 1993. And you know who else is 31-years old and better than ever? ME.
R - reading
I’m back on my magazine grind HEAVY. Magazine pilled, print journalism maxxing, physical media brained. Not since Carrie Bradshaw opted for Vogue over dinner have magazines been so chic.
With NYLON relaunching their print issues this year and PAPER back on paper, it would seem 2024 is marking a print magazine revival. Someday, when I finally escape New York City’s talons and have a beautiful, spacious home in a town where a goddamn box of Triscuits doesn’t cost $10, Iconic Magazines will be one of the places I miss most.
Most recent Iconic Mag haul below:
I originally picked up this issue of HIGHSNOBIETY for the Pam Anderson spread (my birthday twin!) because I love her in Givenchy menswear but the André 3000 article was the surprise highlight. Not two weeks after buying that issue, I was talking to Andre 3000 IRL about the article (because my life is full of magic and wonder and synchronicities.)
E - eating
I had a wonderful week celebrating my birthday in Montréal with my boyfriend. I got to practice my French and we went NUTS on the city’s vegan offerings. My birthday dinner may have been my favorite of the whole trip, a prix fixe meal at a chic vegan sushi spot in Old Montreal. Also, the Canadians may be onto something with those ketchup-flavored chips…
P - playing
After the floptina that was Hello Kitty Kruisers, I didn’t have high hopes for the future of Nintendo Sanrio games. It should be a crime that they’re still charging $39.99 for that barely functional abomination of a MarioKart knockoff. When a new Sanrio game showed up the Nintendo eShop, I only took a gamble on it because it was discounted to $2.99 but I’m so glad I did. Hello Kitty and Friends Happiness Parade is a ryhthm game, as cute and sugary sweet as it sounds with varying levels of difficulty, mesmerizing graphics, and surprisingly catchy music. You strategically assemble a parade of your favorite Sanrio characters, choose a route and song, then dance your way through town dodging enemies and collecting powerups. I’m gonna play it the moment I press send on this newsletter.
O - obsessing
R - recommending
Writer/Director Jane Schoenbrun’s I Saw The TV Glow punched me in the gut months before it was even released. I’m an unashamed A24 fangirl and much of my algorithm reflects that. I saw an early version of the teaser trailer while trolling around on Xwitter . After just a few seconds of Yeule’s haunting cover of Broken Social Scene’s “Anthems For A Seventeen Year-Old Girl” playing over an sweeping nighttime shot through eerily familiar suburbs, they had me hook, line, and sinker. I hadn’t heard of Schoenbrun’s work before seeing this trailer but in anticipation of the films’ release I watched her first movie to tide me over.
I’m glad I watched We’re All Going to the World’s Fair (2021) first. Both films deal with themes of loneliness, voyeurism, and gender identity as explored through digital media. Both films are a thinly (if at all) veiled allegory for transness. TV Glow feels like a more fleshed-out and frankly, better version of the creepypasta-esque World’s Fair. It’s inspiring to see the evolution of an artist’s creative process over many years. The idea that your first, second, third, whatever, attempt at expressing something doesn’t have to be your best or final attempt is quite comforting.
I thought about reaching out to Schoenbrun for months but was never quite sure how to go about telling them how much TV Glow affected me. Because, as previously stated, my life is full of magic and wonder and synchronicities, I ran into them a couple weeks ago around the block from my apartment. I was moved to tears talking to them, in part because I really was touched by their work but also at fact that the universe tossed me such a freebie.
Speaking of freebie- here’s a link to I Saw The TV Glow for free :) enjoy
T - treating
Puppy time, a true treat.
Happy Tuesday, talk soon 🫶
xo mal