Links we sent our friends #58
With guest links from money writer Lindsey Stanberry — plus, Aliza asks a personal question about therapy.
Hi! Aliza here. Going into the weekend, I was feeling pretty burnt out. The tiny tasks, like restocking toilet paper and cleaning out the fridge, felt like they were just piling up. But then we got in the car Saturday morning, drove up to Portland for a baby shower and a beach day with friends, and left our laptops (and a bit of a mess) at home — not to be seen again until late Sunday evening.
The distance worked. I’m in a much better headspace going into Monday morning. And especially because of today’s guest!
has been writing about women and money for a decade — and that’s about how long Aja and I have been reading her excellent work. Lindsey was the founding editor of the infamous Refinery29 Money Diaries and has held leadership roles at Refinery29, CNBC, and Fortune. Last year, she decided to throw caution to the wind and quit her full-time job to launch one of our favorite newsletters, : a newsletter about the intersection of money, motherhood, work, and relationships.
Do we seem chill?? We’re not. It’s a true honor to have Lindsey as a guest contributor today. Let’s get to the links!
Lindsey’s Links:
I know some people had *feelings* about The New York Times list of the best books of the 21st Century so far, but I really enjoyed the roll out and the tech component, as well as the additional book recommendations. The whole project was so fun, even if I don’t agree with all of the books on the list. That said, Bel Canto by Anne Patchett is DEFINITELY one of my all-time favorite books. Highly recommend! (Aja: That’s one of my favorite books too!)
I was in Cape Cod with my family over the July 4th weekend, and I found some fresh peas at a local farmers market, plus we picked up cod from the fish market. I was inspired to make this spring pea fish chowder from Epicurious. It was so easy and delicious!
Speaking of cooking, I learned a lot of what I know because I was lucky enough to sit next to author and recipe tester when I worked at Martha Stewart, and I did my best to soak up all her wisdom (and try everything she brought out of the test kitchen). Lucky for everyone, she recently launched a new Substack newsletter, Seasoned.
It was my mom’s birthday over the weekend (Happy Birthday, Mom!), and she loves pottery. In the past, I’ve given her a platter and bowl from Chloe May Brown, who I think makes just the prettiest pieces. (I have a candlestick holder myself, and plan to add more to my collection at some point!)
Aliza’s Links:
An older yet timeless Dear Sugar entry from : If you’re undecided about whether or not to have kids…
The mom jeans I never want to take off. I’m 5’3 with an “athletic” build — and these are such a nice fit. (Not to mention a great price point for quality denim.)
To all my other work-from-home buddies: Have you visited Caffè Nero yet? It’s giving Starbucks meets WeWork, and locations are popping up all over Greater Boston.
Does Jude need these?
Aja’s Links:
The broccoli perm is taking over, and I am not mad about it.
Bookmarking this site and this one for cute homewares gifts. (Aliza: There was some homeware mind meld between you and in today’s issue. So many cool pieces!)
How do you feel about a Devil Wears Prada sequel? After the disaster that was Mean Girls 2, I’m Team Leave a Good Thing Alone — but let’s be real, I’ll still show up to the theatre opening night.
I thought this perfume had to be overhyped until our friend Suz showed up to dinner wearing it, and I couldn’t stop inhaling.
Wishing I needed a wedding guest dress. (Aliza: Ooh, I do…)
And a bonus link: If, like me, you’re always saving cool recipes and then losing them in your phone, check out Pestle. It’s an app that will auto-import recipes from anywhere on the web, even Instagram Reels, so it’s easy to find and then actually make them.
Question we asked our friends:
I (Aliza) just started regularly seeing a therapist (I know — what took me so long?) I’m planning to talk more about this in Thursday’s issue, but in the meantime, I’d love to know: How do you prepare for therapy? Do you go in with a list of topics you’d like to cover? Or do you simply see where the conversation takes you?
I’ve also realized I like to keep my journal nearby so that I can jot down any notes / reflections after a session while the thoughts are still fresh.
What else? Tips are welcome!
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Oh good question re:therapy. This is meta: I actually recommend talking to your therapist about this. as a super type A “perfect student” I thought I had to prep for therapy, so I asked my Doc about it. It taught me so much about her practice and how I can make our time together into my time.
When I do therapy over zoom I try to do a 5 minute meditation to transition from my work zone and into my space. I’ve found that helps me communicate my emotions a bit better. A journaling practice is my holy grail but I’ve never been consistent. Good luck!
I think talking to your therapist about this is a great idea! In my own life, I see my therapist biweekly, so I just jot down any thoughts or topics I’d like to discuss as they come to mind in an ongoing note on my phone. Quick and simple, but it makes it easy to reference.
Love the idea of journaling after the session! That would be really helpful to me, but I’ve never thought of it!