I’m Back.

They say distance makes the heart grow fonder & in this case, I definitely understand what they mean. I have been in the middle of quite a few life changes and needed to take a step back from blogging to adjust. I have missed shouting into the void over these last few weeks. There have been so many sports moves that have happened that I wanted to talk about. I have missed you all dearly.

But, in my absence, I fell in love with so many things. There has been plethora of arts & entertainment that have come across my desk that I have been adoring so deeply. This week was my breaking point of my silence. I needed to bring my obsessions to my wider audience. This list is quite long due to my absence but I need to play catch up.

Food & Drink

• Caesar Salad

• Pizza

• Hot Dogs from the Ballpark

• Salads

Now that we are entering into Summer season, I have been turning to one of my most favorite things in the world. Caesar Salad. Just absolutely no notes. She’s gorgeous & a staple to my weekly dinner rotation. Though, Summer to me in general is salad season. Any given day, I am in the search for a nice & refreshing salad. I consider it one of the best blank canvases the food world has to offer.

Pizza is probably my all time favorite food. I do go through periods of the year where it is really what I want at every meal, but if I did that I’d end up a million pounds and that’s not the vibe because I have a wedding I need to be in. Being home, there are so many local places that make amazing pizzas. Since being back I have slowly been exploring & reacquainting myself with them. Truly, one of the most difficult jobs but someone has to do it.

So, I am not the biggest meat eater. I think I can count on one hand the amount of times I eat meat any given month. My one exception to this is a hot dog from a baseball game. There is truly nothing better than sitting and watching a game & having a hot dog. I don’t know what magical spell they put on them to make them so much better than ones you make at home but they are delicious. Dollar Dog Night this upcoming Friday is calling my name, I am so excited.

Television

• Rivals

• Real Housewives of Rhode Island

Rivals is a show that is on Hulu in it’s 2nd season & it just keeps getting better. It has everything you would want - comedy, scandal, sex appeal, drama, & is set in the English countryside. It is one of the best shows coming out right now & I need more people to be watching it. We are about half way through it’s 2nd season, so everyone please catch up I need to talk to everyone about the cliffhanger the last episode left off on.

If there was ever a group of women just made in a Bravo lab, it is the women of The Real Housewives of Rhode Island. I can not explain my complete and utter fascination with the state of Rhode Island but this show is making me want to move there even more. This is one of the best groups that Bravo has brought to our screens since probably RHONY. They are living their lives so authentically & in a way that you know if the cameras were not rolling they would still be doing these things & acting this way. I am completely obsessed with each of them for separate reasons but my queens Jo-Ellen & Alicia will forever have my heart.

Music

• Kiss All the Time, Disco Occasionally

  • Are You Listening Yet?, Coming Up Roses, Dance No More, Carlas Song

• Drop Dead by Olivia Rodrigo

• hate that I made you love you by Ariana Grande

• Goodbye Henry by RAYE

• Material Lover by Sienna Spiro

• Falling Forever by Dua Lipa

• High Hopes 3000 by Role Model

There has been so much amazing music that has been put out since our last conversation. SO MUCH TO DISCUSS.

First of all, Harry Styles? Back. My king made his grand return & he did not disappoint me after all of that time away. His album has everything to service my dream of going to a rave one day. (Read: I will pretend I’m at a rave while listening because I simply can not deal with loud music & crowded spaces at the ripe age of 25) My favorites off of the album are Are You Listening Yet?, Dance No More, & Carlas Song. Coming Up Roses is so sick and twisted of him to put out. It actually gives me chills every time. I am a SUCKER for a string arrangement in songs. Chefs Kiss.

Drop Dead by Olivia Rodrigo would be in the running for song of the summer for me if I hadn’t already declared it to be Forever Your Girl. It makes me want to have a crush real bad. Just so fun and up beat and I missed her so much.

I don’t want to bore you with the break downs of each of the songs listed here because some of them are lead singles from upcoming albums so I will talk more about them later. But, Goodbye Henry by RAYE is my current favorite off of her new album. It is one of the best albums I have heard in a very long time. From start to finish, each song could be stand alone & it tells you a story that is so vivid & complete. I am just in awe of her artistry. Album of the Year. Other songs from that album I love are Nightingale Lane & I Know You’re Hurting.

Misc.

• Going to Baseball games

• Thrifting Books & DVDs

• Baking

• Building Legos

For Christmas I was gifting a DVD player & since moving home I have found a thrift store that only has DVD’s & books. It has been so dangerous for me to drive past it because each time I want to stop in and take a look. I have been able to build up my DVD collection of all of the classics (early 2000’s - mid 2010s animated movies) & work on expanding my collection of books from childhood that I love but no longer own. It’s one of my new favorite hobbies.

Speaking of hobbies, since moving home I have fallen back in love with baking. Living by myself I never wanted to bake because I simply would not eat 24 cupcakes by myself. I have always loved baking, growing up my biggest dream was to be a pastry chef. It is something that brings me an immense amount of joy & a sense of calm. Specifically, I adore baking for other people, so being surrounded by all of my favorite people again, I have been baking so much more than I have in awhile. I have missed it so deeply. Over the last few weeks I have made the following: Snickerdoodles, Tiramisu, & Lemon Cupcakes. I am itching to bake more so friends if you’re reading this, please submit something to me to bake.

Moving is a tedious thing. Having to pack up so much and make sure everything is in a place where you know where you can find it easily. During my move, I decided I needed to take apart all of my legos so that I didnt have to stress about finding ways to travel without them breaking. Now, in the aftermath, I get the absolute joy of putting them all back together & I am loving it. Since they are all put together now, I had a void in my life, so I went out & purchased the Lando 1000 grand prix helmet. If you need me this week - I’ll be here. (One comment on this post & Ill go buy Oscars)

Finally, going to the Ballpark. There is no sport I love watching in person more than baseball. The atmosphere, the weather, & the on field product - simply nothing better to me. I have been been to several games already this season & I plan on going back a lot more. I love love love being there. Again, I already have plans on going back on Friday for dollar dog night. I can not contain my excitement.

I absolutely loved writing for you again. This was one massive catch up post on everything but it needed to be done in order to get back on the same page. We have spent so much time apart.

I adore you all & have a stupendous week.

Talk soon.