Our winters are spent mostly reading...applications. So when summer comes around, we have time to dive into the books that have stacked up on our nightstands. Here, we give our current reading recommendations, as well as the things we're watching, laughing at, eating, and enjoying!
JT Duck:
- Watching: Ramy, on Hulu; Special, on Netflix
- Reading: On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong and The Deviant’s War by Eric Cervini
- Laughing at: lip sync scenes by juliancookies on Instagram
- Listening to: 90’s R&B, including Mary J. Blige, SWV, Mariah Carey, Jodeci, En Vogue
- Eating/drinking: Any and all baked goods from Stop & Shop
- Enjoying: the prospect of traveling again
Julia Dudley-Kramer:
- Watching: “High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America” based on the book by culinary historian Jessica B. Harris. This brings all my favorites together: food, travel, culture, and history.
- Reading: “Chinatown Pretty” by Andria Lo and Valerie Luu is such a sweet read (with amazing photos), and a great way to learn more about the history of Chinatowns across the country. https://www.chinatownpretty.com/
- Laughing at: Myself, mostly, when I realize I’ve been lip-syncing and making faces under a mask for a year and don’t know how to stop.
- Listening to: “Home Cooking” by Samin Nosrat and Hrishi Hirway on Spotify. They are hilariously goofy together, but I’m also learning how to cook things.
- Eating/drinking: Everything grilled. I do a lot of camping this time of year, and nothing beats an extra-charred veggie burger by the campfire.
- Enjoying: The WEATHER! Boston in the summer is truly my favorite, especially for a walk along the waterfront with a gelato in hand.
Rachel Brown:
- Watching: Mare of Easttown, Parks and Rec (for the ~7th time through), and always The Great British Baking Show
- Reading: The third book of the Mistborn trilogy - so good!
- Laughing at: Tik toks my sister sends me that have anything to do with Mamma Mia music
- Listening to: Dolly Parton's America podcast, "Chilled Dance Hits" radio station on Spotify
- Eating/drinking: new variations of tacos every Tuesday - carne asada + pico de gallo, shrimp + mango salsa, chorizo + pineapple. It's fun to be creative...but you can always count on guacamole.
- Enjoying: Reuniting with friends now that we're vaccinated. And the late sunsets in Boston and spending as much time outside after work as possible.
Paz Pitarque:
- Watching: This is a Robbery: The World’s Greatest Art Heist (On Netflix and it’s about the theft in Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum) - Highly recommend!
- Reading: Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
- Laughing at: @mattsurelee – he makes the funniest charts about anything and everything on Instagram
- Listening to: La Billirrubina (originally by Juan Luis Guerra but Juanes just recorded a new version)
- Eating/drinking: I can’t stop making chocolate chip cookies. Help.
- Enjoying: I joined the puzzle phase quite late into the pandemic. The New Yorker ones are my favorite.
Pamela Toscano
- Watching: The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley (super eye-opening!)
- Reading: Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love & Life from Dear Sugar
- Laughing at: The Frenemies Podcast
- Listening to: Sour—by Olivia Rodrigo (Tik Tok has had a heavy influence on my life lately haha)
- Eating/drinking: My mom’s homemade ceviche!
- Enjoying: See my little sister graduate high school!
Sayaka Smith
- Watching: Kim’s Convenience on Netflix
- Reading: Memorial by Bryan Washington
- Laughing at: My mum’s cat on FaceTime – Hana loves to just walk right in front of the camera
- Listening to: the Switched on Pop podcast
- Eating/drinking: Japanese curry. I like to make something like this
- Enjoying: My new houseplants and keeping them alive!
Beky Stiles
- Watching: Comfort re-watching RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 2
- Reading: The Inheritance Trilogy written by N.K. Jemisin
- Laughing at: Meg Stalter’s ICONIC performance on Hacks
- Listening to: Florence and the Machine (a better question is when am I not listening to Florence?)
- Eating/drinking: Sushi from Genki Ya (drool)
- Enjoying: Having AC for the first time ever in my house (sweat…who is she?)
Trenton Manns
- Watching: Youtube clips
- Reading: About how NASA is going to Venus, 2x!
- Listening to: Nothing, but currently searching for interesting series or podcasts! There are occasional radio stations that are great listens, like 105.9 which shares interesting news and perspectives.
- Enjoying: Seasonal changes. Happy the summer sun is soon to be here.
Lauren Wilkes
- Watching: Top Chef Portland, plus catching up on all of the previous Top Chef seasons
- Reading: Notes from a Young Black Chef: A Memoir by Kwame Onwuachi (If it wasn’t already clear I’m on a Top Chef kick, he’s a former competitor and current judge!)
- Listening to/laughing at: This NOW 1-50 playlist on shuffle on and laughing at all the memories associated with these songs
- Eating/drinking: Half Baked Harvest’s take on a Crunchwrap Supreme and gallons of iced coffee
- Enjoying: Long walks along the Charles River with my pup!
Kella Merlain-Moffatt
- Watching: Manifest, The Resident, Good Girls, All American, and The Good Doctor
- Reading: Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
- Laughing at: The Real Housewives of Atlanta. I'm watching from the beginning for the first time and it's too funny.
- Listening to: Israel & New Breed's Coritos Medley, Earn Your Leisure Podcasts, and Graham Stephan.
- Eating: This Ital stew for the first time. It's absolutely delicious!
- Enjoying: Long walks, trying out new vegan desserts, and attempting to make every dish that Chez Jorge publishes. They remind me of my brief time in Taiwan.
Aidan O'Shea
- Watching: Drag Race España
- Reading: NYT Food
- Laughing at: Bad TikToks my dad sends me
- Listening to: Lil Nas X (I mean, come on!)
- Eating/drinking: Mini cucumbers, homemade cornbread, Vitamin Water lemonade, fudgesicles, etc. etc. etc.
- Enjoying: Cheering on the new growth on my houseplants, and sweet corn in season at the grocery store
Susan Ardizzoni
- Watching: Broadchurch, Bosch, Handmaids Tale, and Ted Lasso
- Reading: The Alice Network and The Nickel Boys; also lots of audio books including Becoming (wow), and Say Nothing to get my Irish history fix.
- Laughing at: Watching Schitt’s Creek again! What a great way to brighten a mood.
- Listening to: I realized at some point over the last year that I missed listening to music so started to take advantage of Apple Music (some Essentials playlists, singles like One Republic's I Lived) and the playlist my daughter made (I miss my mom) that includes everything from Miley Cyrus and the Jonas Brothers to Mac Miller, Frank Sinatra and Ariana Grande.
- Eating/drinking: everything? My husband jumped on the sourdough bread craze so lots of bread! Love when there is a loaf of cinnamon raisin that sneaks into the rotation.
- Enjoying: a daily walk, often with our black lab Scout and taking in how in bloom and beautiful everything is right now