Blood Harmony Vol. 41: Some Finds

Hello hello,

A couple of very useful things have come up in life lately and I feel compelled to share them with you wonderful readers.

Food

I know this is usually a Trader Joe’s food items heavy newsletter¹ but today I’m going to deviate and recommend three Target food items² just to mix things up:

1. You know what’s annoying about pre-made guacamole? How quickly it starts to go bad once you put it back in the fridge. Target has solved this issue. Yes, it’s guacamole in a ketchup-like squeeze bottle. Also a fan of their squeeze bottle sour cream!

2. Many moons ago in this newsletter, I recommended Vivian Howard’s recipe for making and then freezing caramelized onions. I still like to do this but it also takes a long time and makes my house smell like a hot dog stand. So I’ve taken to buying these same cubes from the Target freezer section.

3. Same as above but ginger that you don’t have to freeze and grate.

I was reminded via the wonderful O Caftan My Caftan that not everyone knows the “make your own granola because it is so much less expensive” trick that Lindy West shared in this issue of her newsletter. I haven’t remembered to put in miso yet but I do put in tahini and it’s tasty!

I baked this appeltaart recently and it was delicious and actually pretty easy. It is a crowd-pleaser. I also whipped up a batch of these classic blueberry muffins from Smitten Kitchen and they were great. I love that you can use frozen blueberries in this recipe.

Tech

In the shopping vein, I’m very into this free add-on to Mozilla Firefox that evaluates reviews on sites like Amazon and Walmart and gives a letter grade to tell you what has valid reviews and what has fake reviews from bots. It also pops up on independent seller sites and tells you if those are trustworthy.

Movie People

Someone created a brilliant Letterboxd widget that finds friends for you based on your four favorites.

Skin

I’ve learned a ton from

Jessica DeFino

’s newsletter and one of the most life-changing lessons can distilled down to this: when you wash your skin with soap it removes the natural oil and then you have to replace that oil with a topical product…so maybe just don’t wash it or wash it with something very gentle! I’ve been growing out my hair (past my ears for the first time since 2011!) and I thought I’d try the same thing with my newly luscious locks³ I have been using this product and I really like it but there are a whole bunch of options out there if you are interested.⁴

Toothpaste

I’m in no way anti-fluoride but I just really like this toothpaste. It makes my mouth feel squeaky clean.

Drinking

Like many folks, I reevaluated my alcohol consumption patterns in the aftermath of early COVID. I’ve had stretches of no-drinking since then but had a really difficult time framing sobriety for myself (Was I actually an alcoholic or more someone who wanted to drink minimally if at all? Did I need to go to meetings? Was I comfortable saying that I would never drink again?). I have no idea now how I found it but This Naked Mind by Annie Grace for some reason really made sense to me.⁵ It was maybe the first thing that I read that delved clearly and succinctly into the science of alcohol addiction and then posited that sobriety could be a joyful thing and not just a long and difficult slog. So I pass that book recommendation along for anyone who might need it. I also recommend

The Small Bow

for much better and more thoughtful writing about sobriety than I could ever hope to do.

Cartooning

My son and I have been making our way slowly through this free guide to drawing cartoons. It’s really fun! Pro tip, print it in color on your work printer if possible.⁶

Visible Socks

The youngs are really into visible socks! I was at first baffled but then I remember that kids have been into visible socks before.

Look at those tube socks! Incredible.⁷

High pants, more visible tube socks here on Ducky from Pretty in Pink, one of my childhood crushes.⁸ Wait, is this why I love Otis Redding?⁹

I decided to embrace this trend and acquired these socks in which to do so. As someone seasoned by life, I have learned that cotton socks aren’t great for your feet (the moisture sticks in them which leads to skin irritation and potentially the dreaded Athlete’s Foot even if you’re not an athlete!). So it was worth it to me to splurge for the wool version. But there are many a cheaper pair out there.

Corrections and Omissions

One of my oldest and dearest friends Jess reminded me that she definitely introduced me to wearing glasses just to look cool years before Obinna at an Ani Difranco show most likely in 1995. I’m sorry Jess!

Thank you for reading! Don’t forget to vote!

1. Not sponsored but certainly open to it!

2. Again, wouldn’t say no to free Target squeezable guacamole.

3. JK I have an asymmetrical bob so my longest hairs are chin length.

4. My friend has this one and really likes it! This bag would probably last someone at least 6 months as it’s quite large.

5. Unlocked something, if you will.

6. I would never do this.

7. "Wipe that face off your head, bitch.”

8. See also Johnny from Dirty Dancing.

9. "Blaine? His name is Blaine? That's not a name! It's a major appliance!