5 things i love right now

1. the iced oatmilk latte from dunkin' donuts

PLEASE, DUNKIN', NEVER TAKE AWAY THE OAT MILK, I BEG OF YOU. i've been using oat milk lately to make chia pudding so i'm on a bit of a kick, and when i saw that i had a dunkin' perks free beverage reward to redeem, i spared no expense and went balls to the wall with their latest offering. i swear to god it was the best coffee beverage i've ever had? 

...to make sure it wasn't a fluke and because i couldn't stop thinking about it, i obviously had to get it the next morning and my opinion remains unchanged. the creaminess of the oat milk and the bite of the espresso are just unreal. and i got it with one sugar, so maybe that takes it over the top. try it and let me know what y'all think.

2. this song by mad wave, "caroline"

i don't know what it is about september, but i feel like historically, my spotify september playlists are my favorites. the songs on them are just, like, much better than those from other months for whatever reason. and every year, there are one or two tunes that really stand out to me and capture the feel of the month. "caroline" is that song for september 2020. it's got a great, chill groove and earworm chorus and the harmonica is an unexpected and cool touch. it sounds like apple picking, the first day you put on a scarf, and pulling down your mask on a coffee shop patio to take a sip of your cider. :(

3. this extremely accurate gemini meme

personally. attacked.

4. this new hgtv show, selling the big easy

when i visited new orleans with gleni nearly 7 years ago on one of the best vacations ever, i was immediately obsessed and have been thinking about going back ever since. it's historic, charming, colorful, mystical and magical and slightly spooky, and full of amazing food and drink. so basically, it's me in city form...heyyyo (along with st. augustine, florida and savannah, georgia). 

while that return trip obviously won't be happening any time extremely soon, i can now live vicariously through folks who are shopping for amazing shotgun-style houses in the french quarter thanks to this show. it's essentially just house hunters: new orleans, but so what, who cares?

i must say, though, that HGTV really dropped the ball on the show's name; so many catchier options! ownin' NOLA, french quarters, big easy digs, etc.  

5. rediscovering this performance of kurt vile's "bassackwards"

to me, no musician quite captures the spirit of autumn quite like KV. i mean, yeah, i listen to him excessively all year anyway, but i go nuts when that first cool breeze hits—i've probably played "jesus fever" 20+ times in the past week alone. this mini-documentary on youtube that came out last fall is beautiful and autumnal and worth a full watch if you have 20 minutes to spare, but i always come back to this porch performance of "bassackwards." the rain is pouring and it's so earnest and cozy and brings a tear to my eye every time. can i just go hang in a huge catskills house with kurt vile and bake pies? i feel like it would be a great time.