Quick Spin: This Week Felt Like the Start of a Disaster Movie
I’m not built for this much cognitive dissonance.
I know we all spent the week laughing at the Trump-Musk feud (I personally texted my friends that I was obsessed with it) but now that the drama’s settled a bit and we’ve gotten our memes out of it, it’s actually pretty horrific and embarrassing. You guys, we are all living in the setup scenes of an apocalyptic movie right now…..The US President and his unhinged ex-bestie get in a huge public breakup. Armed ICE raids and attacks on protestors in LA. One of the world’s most beloved climate activists’ boat seized and everyone detained by Israeli forces.
This week, just as the ICE raids happened and protests started, I saw dozens of people in the running community descend on LA for Nike’s After Dark Half Marathon. No shade to the content creators, journalists, and PR folks at that event—we should still be allowed to find joy while the country is actively unraveling—but watching those two versions of LA unfold on my Instagram Stories in real time this weekend was unsettling to say the least.
My newsletter isn’t supposed to be political. But it’s impossible to stay in a tidy lane when my brain is overwhelmed by the sheer chaos of it all. Sorry!
I’m currently working on a story about how all-inclusives—once considered kind of passé—are suddenly appealing to younger travelers again. Turns out, being burnt out makes the idea of having zero decisions (or trying to stick to a budget on vacay) very attractive. And to their credit, all-inclusives have evolved. A lot of them now cater to people who want to be active, healthy, or even have a little adventure baked into their trip.
If you’ve been to your first one recently and loved it, message me! And if you're a PR rep with an all-inclusive client doing something genuinely cool or unexpected, I’d love to hear about it for the piece.
I used to think my journalistic beat would be public lands—national parks, forests, wild places we all deserve access to. I don’t write about them as much these days, partly because there’s just so much else to keep up with. But I’ve been watching closely as the Trump camp keeps pushing bills and policies that threaten public access and environmental protections.
Even some Republicans are pushing back—Montana’s reps, for one, deserve some credit here. If you haven’t been following, The Guardian has done a great job of covering what’s happening (a push to open up and/or sell off pretty much all of our lands for resource extraction and selfishness) and what’s at risk. Here’s another piece from the Oregon Capital Chronicle published today that’s pretty comprehensive. The TLDR; public lands are a bipartisan issue. Nobody—except developers—wants them owned by corporations.
Things I’ve Liked These Weeks:
🎧 Jessie Reyez and Jessie Murph are my safe space right now.
👟 Just received the new colorway of the Adidas Adizero Evo SL running shoes and took ‘em for a spin last night. They’ll super versatile and will definitely become a staple for long runs and speed work. Very similar feel to my current favs—the New Balance FuelCell SuperComp Elite v4—but they are $100 cheaper (because they don’t have a carbon plate but feel just as poppy.)
🌴 I went to Aruba this past week for a press trip at the Divi & Tamarjin resort and brought my sister along. She got me started on the ACOTAR series (I know, I know, I’m late), but I figured the beach was the best time to dive in. I’m 150 pages in and not yet hooked. Will someone please tell me if/when I’m supposed to lose my mind?
🍔 I was excited to see Delta is adding Shake Shack to their flights until I realized it’s JUST FOR FIRST CLASS. Rude.
💒 I would love to see more creative stories like this one about why Christians love AI slop. (Not surprised tbh…) Of course it’s published by a independent media company.
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K, love you, bye! 🍓
Maddie covered in sand is so adorable.
The second book will hook you, you don’t need to read the fourth book & the fifth book is the best one. 🖤