It looks like it’s going to rain all week along the East Coast, so in preparation, let’s get mellow. Jay Som has a history of recording everything alone in her bedroom, and the resulting sound is appropriately dreamy. Her latest album includes a few instrumentalists, but not to the detriment of that pristinely hazy sound. The title track of that album, “Anak Ko,” feels like an ambient romp through a desert, from the plodding, sandy percussion that roots its opening to the electric sandstorm that hits around 2:00— and the starry sparkles that lift at the end. Maybe we’ll see the sky one day, too.
Remember when all the cool startup offices were just starting to stock LaCroix? Welcome to the future, where next to the standard Pamplemousse lies an assortment of Recess cans and Sweet Reason bottles, ready to inject CBD into our stress knots as we hydrate. Sure enough, Eater has dubbed this year the “age of calming drinks,” a time in which we delude ourselves into thinking adaptogens and nootropics might begin to stand up to the anxiety we build for ourselves. And, look, if drinking a turmeric latte helps you chill out for five minutes, great. But please keep your wellness-tude in check. To kickstart that effort, here’s Kushbu Shah on turmeric milk in Taste. (Spoiler: you’ve been duped.)
Meanwhile, here’s Kalle Oskari Mattila in the Washington post explaining how all his dates in the US feel like immigration interviews. A Finnish writer who was on a student visa for some time, he’d go out for a drink and after the first sweet questions like “what do you do” and “where are you from,” would find himself facing the “how do you plan to stay here once your visa expires,” and “what’s your attitude toward [green card] marriage.” As if dating wasn’t unpleasant enough. Kalle now has the O-1 visa—the sweet “extraordinary ability” one, which he can renew indefinitely— and that has eased up some of the interrogations. But he’s keeping his guard up since most people still assume he wants to play them for residency. Somebody get this guy some CBD.
If we’re talking relaxing drinks, let’s not forget an old standby. Winc sends you several bottles monthly, learning your taste as you sip so you get new, interesting labels each time. You can order them for yourself, of course, or sign up someone you love as a gift. Either way, the first 100 of you to sign up will get 40% off your order. That’s 4 bottles for $39, and shipping is included. Get in there.
