Hey friends!

I'm at the part of the summer where it’s extra kicking in that not only am I washed, but the stuff I did in my 20s doesn’t exist anymore. No more Northside Festival, no more House Of Vans. I went to like, at least one free Mad Decent Block Party. I didn't even get to New York in time to go to the McCarren pool. What does making the most of the season look like at this point?

July in particular sets off this feeling that I should be going to camp or on study abroad and making brief, intense connections with a bunch of strangers. Is that even possible with the brain chemistry of a 30-something? But hey, reconnecting with people I already know is also good. If you've been liking what you've been reading–or even if you haven't, I guess–feel free to get in touch!

Wet Hot American Summer vets David Wain and Ken Marino are back with Gail Daughtry And The Celebrity Sex Pass, a modern adaptation of The Wizard Of Oz about trying to hook up with Jon Hamm. (The Mad Men star appears as himself, as does John Slattery.) The absurdist comedy definitely delivers, and don’t miss the post-credits scene. Gail Daughtry And The Celebrity Sex Pass is in theaters now.

Again: I do not know anything about any sports, but I have listened to Asfar Shamsi's song about nostalgia for the 2006 World Cup a lot. I did spend that summer in England and was a lot more exposed to the goings-on than I would've been in California; the Zidane headbutt is in my brain forever even though I didn't watch it live and can't explain anything else that was happening. (I was 17 and also feel a great fondness for the time; Shamsi is roughly a decade younger and has another song about climate change and how the world has been in crisis for her entire life.)

Every so often, I do get the urge to listen to a British person with an acoustic guitar strum a little ditty. Right now, this Jasmine Jethwa album is fitting the bill.

One thing about not getting really into Nine Inch Nails until after my brain finished cooking is that now something I find relatable about Trent Reznor is "having moved to the South for a number of years and developing a mildly amorphous accent." I think I'm down to the last instrumental album before I more or less complete the discography?

Eddie Huang Drops the Tough Guy Act (New York Times)

Jesus Took My Taste (Teen Vogue)

Thanks for maybe reading all that. Find me on Bluesky or whatever.

Until next time!