Heat wave in NYC!
This week's recap - The Bear review, Aesop & Hermes event, where to go when it's 98F outside, and summer clothes I recently bought
THIS WEEK’S RECAP
June feels like it’s flying by, and this week, despite the heat wave, I feel like I’ve been out there doing all of the things. Here’s a recap!
Sunday
Sunday was a pretty exciting day for many voters in New York, and I could feel it in the air. My local voting site was busy, and everyone seemed to be in a good mood. After voting, I treated myself to 2 bottles of orange from my favorite local natural wine shop, Wild Wines. Then I went to Trader Joe’s to pick up some ingredients for spring rolls this week. I had avocado toasts with chili crisp, pickled red onion, thick slices of heirloom tomatoes, and a side of fruit multiple times this week.
Sundays are usually my rest days, so I always try to make time to read. I took a quick little nap on the lounge chair in the backyard and started on this book, shared in last week’s newsletter.
The Brooklyn Bridge photo at sunset was actually from our Saturday walk after we spent a couple of hours working at a cafe in DUMBO. Highly recommend a sunset walk across the Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn to Manhattan because the views are unbeatable!
Monday
Mondays are my admin and email days, meaning I typically make time to apply for campaigns and pitch my ideas for potential brand collaborations (yes, it’s something that content creators don’t often talk about! This is what a manager or an assistant would do. I’m completely on my own, so I always am out looking for future opportunities while juggling past and present projects.
Tuesday
I started writing this week’s newsletter from the Walker Hotel lobby in Tribeca, drinking an iced cortado while taking an AC break. There's a block-long line for a beauty pop-up across the street, and from my window, I can see all the knockoff designer goods being haggled near Canal Street and Broadway.
It’s 1:11 pm and 98°F with an extreme heat warning.
I was glued to my phone because it was the last day for everyone to vote in the NYC 2025 Democratic Primary Election. I voted for Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old New York State Assembly member and democratic socialist, and was so thrilled to see the election results by the end of the night. He is set to be the Democratic candidate for New York City Mayor, making history as the first Muslim nominee! As I’ve said this many times before, I’m proud to be a New Yorker! I love this city and its people!
Wednesday
On Wednesday (Preview Day *press invite), I stopped by the Aesop Queer Library at Rockefeller Center to pick up a book and had the best time at Hermès MYSTERY AT THE GROOMS' event. Also, Jenna Lyons was in my close proximity when we were in line for our bag check!
LEMAIRE Spring/Summer 2026 collection (June 25, 2025) - one of the strongest collections form Lemaire I’ve seen in recent years! I would replace everything in my wardrobe to everything Lemaire if I could!
Thursday
I unboxed some packages and filmed the try-on/unboxing portion for this week’s Youtube vlog while prepping all of the ingredients for dinner. We had grilled butter beef, squid, and shrimps and made spring rolls with lettuce and herbs, pickled carrot and daikon radish, and my Vietnamese dipping sweet and sour fish sauce (recipe behind the paywall).
I finished 10 episodes of The Bear Final Season in one seating, and I did not like how it ended very much, especially for Carmy (ugh!). Plot-wise, there wasn’t a lot to discuss about, and it seemed like people were just trying to heal and learning how to forgive and to love? I wanted more restaurant actions, not just talks! The wedding episode was cheesy, and it felt like one of those youth group retreat activities we did back in the days (everyone, including me, always ended up crying at the retreats, and it’s crazy to think about it now! lol). There were a lot of closed up shots, yes, to focus on the emotions, but those were not flattering angles! My eyes got watery during one of the episodes that Syd (Ayo Edebiri) was in (or more her acting was pretty good!). Earlier this spring, I actually saw Ayo walking into a hotel in Midtown, just random, and I was just right there filming a fitcheck. I could tell that it was her right away because she looked exactly like how you’d imagine (even though it’s just a quick few seconds).
Friday and Saturday
Finalized this week’s newsletter for the 6 pm Friday schedule and edited Sunday vlog for the 10 am schedule. Fridays and Saturdays are my editing days, so my partner and I would usually head to a cafe in Brooklyn or Manhattan for a couple of hours then we go explore the area for the day. Even after 4 years (on our 5th now!), I feel like I still discover new spots, and it’s a new exciting day every day.
Dior Summer 2026 show (June 27, 2025) - Creatively directed by Jonathan Anderson! He killed it as his first collection for Dior, honestly!
High summer or heat wave in NYC
Here are my recommendations: where to go and what to wear + what I bought this week!
5 PLACES TO GO
TO COOL DOWN, CATCH UP WITH FRIENDS, WORK, CHILL, OR SHOP IN NYC
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