We're Obsessed With You
Emily Hymes and Kyle O'Donnell are two best friends and late night television producers. When they aren't working, they're texting, DMing, and voice noting each other about everything they're obsessed with – both online and in NYC.
On We're Obsessed With You, Emily and Kyle invite their favorite personalities to dive into the things they can't stop thinking about. This is an interview show about hyperfixations, served with pop culture expertise and just a little bit of brain rot.
We're Obsessed With You
Obsessing Over Buzz Cuts, Rom-Coms & Erika Veurink
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
It's an exciting day in the WOWY Offices – Kyle has a new haircut and Emily discovered she has a big bellied baby. Plus, the TikTok dress she's so obsessed with she's worn it three days in a row and Kyle's newest find for staying organized.
Then author and entrepreneur Erika Veurink stops by the WOWY Offices to share her favorite rom-coms, where to buy the perfect white tee, her go-to tailor in New York City, and a surprisingly effective line for sliding into someone's DMs this summer. Later she reveals her ~SEXY~ obsession and an all-new round of Obsessed or Over It.
00:00 – Welcome to WOWY
05:30 – Emily’s Obsession
07:39 – Kyle’s Obsession
10:41 – Erika's Interview
30:23 – Erika's Obsession
39:38 – Obsessed or Over It
New show, new obsessions, every Wednesday.
Hosts: Emily Hymes and Kyle O'Donnell
Guest: Erika Veurink
Executive Producer: Julia Aubuchon
Technical Director: Drew Downing
Editor: Grace Harper
Graphic Designer: Maddie Jones
Original Music: Reuben Alexander
For RaffHouse Productions: Haleigh Raff and Glenn Raff
Keep in touch:
Instagram » http://bit.ly/4p5Dsxm
TikTok » https://bit.ly/47YvkbR
Email » wereobsessedwithyou@gmail.com
This Week's Obsessions:
Emily: TikTok Shop Cotton Gingham Midi Dress
Kyle: PurzInzert Bag Organizer
Erika: Books Under 200 Pages
We're Emily and Kyle. We started as coworkers in late night television and now we're best friends exploring NYC and our FYPs.
SPEAKER_03This is an interview show about obsessions. Ours, theirs, and maybe yours too. Welcome to We're Obsessed With You.
SPEAKER_00Signing off for the weekend.
SPEAKER_03One billion dollars. Emily, how are you?
SPEAKER_00Oh my god, Kyle, I haven't seen you in a hot minute.
SPEAKER_03It's been forever. We pre-taped so many episodes.
SPEAKER_00And you got a buzzcut.
SPEAKER_03I got a buzz cut.
SPEAKER_00Which now is like no longer a buzzcut. So I'm like so confused.
SPEAKER_03Hi everyone.
SPEAKER_00Oh hi.
SPEAKER_03We just got right into it. Welcome to We're Obsessed With You. I'm Kyle O'Donnell.
SPEAKER_00I'm Emily Himes.
SPEAKER_03This is a show where we talk to the people we're obsessed with. About the things they're obsessed with.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_03I'm obsessed with my buzzcut.
SPEAKER_00I am too, except it doesn't look like a buzz cut anymore.
SPEAKER_03No, I think it's also because I take like minoxidil just to like prevent balding. Um, but I've wanted to buzz my head for a very long time, as you knew. And then one day I was just like, I really just want to do it. So I took to Chat GPT and I asked them if I would look good. And they made doctored up an image. And when I tell you, that image doesn't do like justice to what I actually looked like. I look amazing. I keep catching myself in the mirror. And you're like, who's that man? I haven't had hair this short in 30, no, in 20 years, probably. Wow. 25 years actually.
SPEAKER_00That's crazy.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. So this is it. I love it.
SPEAKER_00Does it feel different like when you're like washing it?
SPEAKER_03Well, a couple of times I do like find myself like trying to like kind of like put it behind my ear, or like I used to like fluff it a lot, and and now there's nothing to fluff, so I need something else to do with my hands. But my barber refused me five times before he would do it.
SPEAKER_00Wow, he didn't trust you.
SPEAKER_03I walk in and I said, Do you do buzz cuts? And he goes, Yes, but not in you. And I was like, Well, I want a buzzcut. He said, I'm not giving you a buzz cut. And then it just like kept going until they were like really in my hair.
SPEAKER_00Did you show him the photo?
SPEAKER_03No, I was just like, just do it.
SPEAKER_00This reminds me of the flea bag episode with her um her sister, where she goes in with the outfit, with a horrible haircut, and they're arguing with him, and then you find out the picture that she showed was exactly what she got.
SPEAKER_03It was um, yeah, I just was like, let's do it. And then there was a minute during the haircut I was panicking. I was like, this is a grave mistake. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Well, you never know how to like come back. Like it could be so different.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. It could be like straight.
SPEAKER_00I know. That would be so weird.
SPEAKER_03No, I think it's fine. I didn't shave it. I just dust it.
SPEAKER_00Um you think I would look good with short hair?
SPEAKER_03Let's ask chat.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, we should. Well, actually, you posted your chat photo. Yes. And my friend Tecla was inspired to look up what she would look like with brown hair.
SPEAKER_03Well, my stepdad Mark, yeah, who's a listener, will um put into chat GPT certain facial surgeries he could get like lifts, upper left, upper left.
SPEAKER_00Is there anything that's cut it caught his attention? Of course.
SPEAKER_03If Mark had his way, his druthers, he would look like Chris Kardashian, truly. He's like addicted to plastic surgery. Um, what's your baby update? How many weeks are we?
SPEAKER_00I'm at 36 weeks. Wow. Yes. And um, the baby is a really big. I know I look so small and petite, but I went the other day for a scan, and um my aunt went came with me, and she was like, I want to know the gender. And I was like, We're not gonna find out the gender. So she was asking the nurse, like, please make us look away. Emily won't let me know what the gender is. Make us look away. And the woman goes, You're not gonna have to worry about that. Your baby is so big that we're not even gonna be able to see what the gender is. And I was like, it's just their leg, everything's so compact. She wasn't if she really wanted to, she could look in between the legs, but she just was like, I don't need to do that.
SPEAKER_03My god.
SPEAKER_00So the baby is like so big. Um, so it's measuring actually a week ahead.
SPEAKER_03Oh, okay.
SPEAKER_00So it's six pounds, ten ounces. Um and so, yeah.
SPEAKER_03Terrifying.
SPEAKER_00It's terrifying. But big babies.
SPEAKER_03Big baby. Big big baby.
SPEAKER_00Can you put that in? Drew, add it.
SPEAKER_03At it, Drew. Big baby.
SPEAKER_00Bigger babies supposedly have bigger stomachs so they can eat more and sleep longer earlier on.
SPEAKER_03Great.
SPEAKER_00So that's my tip about a bigger baby.
SPEAKER_03I'm gonna say something that's maybe dumb.
SPEAKER_00Don't talk about pee inside of me again.
SPEAKER_03No.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
SPEAKER_03That's not dumb. That's fascinating. Why do you have to measure what babies eat? Don't they just eat until they're full?
SPEAKER_00Yes, but when they're born, their stomach is the size of a um marble.
SPEAKER_03I don't believe that.
SPEAKER_00Well, I think that's crazy.
SPEAKER_01What?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it's really, really tiny. So if they're tiny, oh, that's another thing. I'm so sorry I forgot to mention my baby's on the bigger side, and some babies measure big heads.
SPEAKER_01Uh-huh.
SPEAKER_00And my baby is measuring big belly. Oh. Yeah, so it has a big belly. And the the doctor was like, we can't tell why. You don't have to be nervous, but it's um, it's a big belly. Great. Anyway, so a bigger belly earlier on they can eat more. And when they eat more, they sleep longer.
SPEAKER_03Great.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Um, before we get into our obsessions, oh yeah.
SPEAKER_00Find us on Facebook.
SPEAKER_03Yes, find us on Facebook, find us on YouTube. Uh, we're on TikTok, Instagram. You can email us at we're obsessedwithyou at gmail.com.
SPEAKER_00Yes. Kyle reads the emails. All of them.
SPEAKER_03Send us notes. Um, and if you're listening, please like and review us um in the podcast app of your choice. Give us five stars. Five stars or review. It really helps us. Emily, what are you obsessed with this week?
SPEAKER_00Okay, I am obsessed with this dress that I have on.
SPEAKER_03It's so cute.
SPEAKER_00I'm obsessed with it because as I get larger and my big baby belly is getting bigger and bigger, I just need something easy. It's so hot in New York City. I've worn this dress, I have to say, three days in a row. Um, this will be the last day.
SPEAKER_03But it's so cute for the Aural experiencers. It is a linen gingham cotton. Cotton.
SPEAKER_00It's cotton.
SPEAKER_03Sh not shift dress. What do you call this?
SPEAKER_00I kinda it's like an apron dress.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yes. It's so cute with pockets.
SPEAKER_00Oh, it has pockets, and it's not too long, not too short, so like mid-calf. Um, I'm wearing a size large, and the best part? $30.
SPEAKER_03Amazing.
SPEAKER_00From TikTok shop. I never buy TikTok shop. I think this is my first TikTok shop purchase. And I saw some girl in it, and she I wouldn't have bought it if I just saw an ad for it. Yeah. But seeing this woman in it who was also pregnant, um, sold it to me. And it's not maternity, you just size up. So I'm I think I'm in a large, but um anyone can get it.
SPEAKER_03How was the TikTok shop experience?
SPEAKER_00It was so easy.
SPEAKER_03Oh, that's so painful to me because I know I know. That's why that's honestly why I haven't done it because I know it'll open the floodgates.
SPEAKER_00The thing is, I don't see too many ads that are like speak to me.
SPEAKER_03No, I see the same ones a lot, actually. They're all like workout clothes.
SPEAKER_00Some things just don't speak to me, but this was just easy because I was like $30. It's the summer, it's just so easy, and it comes in so many different colors. It's really blue, pink, khaki, yellow. Great, whatever you want. Choose your own adventure.
SPEAKER_03Did it arrive quickly?
SPEAKER_00It arrived so quickly.
SPEAKER_03I'm fascinated by technology.
SPEAKER_00In like three days, and then I got to bring it to the Jersey Shore with me. Yeah, and the girls loved it. I sent them the link.
SPEAKER_03So cute.
SPEAKER_00So I just think if someone needs an easy dress for the rest of the summer, there's still a few weeks left.
SPEAKER_03Plenty of time. Yeah. Summer now goes until October 15th.
SPEAKER_00What?
SPEAKER_03I am like at the pumpkin patch, sweating. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Oh, I'll get this an orange for the pumpkin patch. Cute. Adorable.
SPEAKER_03Cute.
SPEAKER_00Kyle, what are you obsessed with?
SPEAKER_03I was influenced by a past guest.
SPEAKER_00Oh, look at us being influenced left and right.
SPEAKER_03Von Freeland. He came in with his boat and tote.
SPEAKER_00Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god. I know what you're gonna say.
SPEAKER_03I actually wanted to tell you about this for so long. I know.
SPEAKER_00I hate that we can't talk.
SPEAKER_03So if you know me, I have 10 million boat and tote. It is my favorite bag. I won't go for any other bag. And one of my big issues with it is that it's just a canvas bag.
SPEAKER_00It's hard to organize.
SPEAKER_03It's hard to organize.
SPEAKER_00Because it's so this one's a big one. What size is this?
SPEAKER_03This is large.
SPEAKER_00Large with long handles.
SPEAKER_03Long handles. Vaughn came in with a tote bag, and I looked in and he had an insert.
SPEAKER_00So we just we literally looked right into his bag.
SPEAKER_03And he had this insert organizer thing. So this is an insert that I got off Etsy called Purrz insert insert P-U-R-Z-I-N-Z-E-R-T. They have it for every single bag. The speedy, Louis Vuitton, Selene bags, the row bags, every single bag, every size boat and tote.
SPEAKER_00A long chomp probably too.
SPEAKER_03It has a laptop sleeve with a closure. It has three like individual slide things. So I have sunscreen because I may lay out. I have a joint because I may lay out. I have nothing else in these other pockets. I love that. I love the keychain. It's great. It's exactly what we were talking about with Liv Schreiber. Like this thing. Yes. This bag. This just helps me. A book sleeve, my Speedo in case I lay out, and something for my Stanley.
SPEAKER_00And it's a nice size for the water bottle.
SPEAKER_03Yes, and it goes right into my bag and everything's organized.
SPEAKER_00The color is also really fun. I know, I got orange.
SPEAKER_03Every single color.
SPEAKER_00How much was it?
SPEAKER_03I think like 40 bucks.
SPEAKER_00Fine.
SPEAKER_03Yes.
SPEAKER_00To organize your life?
SPEAKER_03To organize my life. Pressure. And it goes right in my bag. I'm obsessed.
SPEAKER_00I love it. I love it.
SPEAKER_03I use my bean bag as my gym bag, my work bag, everything like that. And usually, like I'm there, like, what are my keys? Where are my keys? I never carry my water bottle in it.
SPEAKER_00I typically will also like have so many different bags within the bag. So then I have like eight bags. I'm like, which one did I put my keys in? What's going on? Yeah. It's too confusing. So this is so nice.
SPEAKER_03I love this so much. Purs insert on that scene.
SPEAKER_00I'm obsessed with that. I just have to find the bag that I use all the time for that right now.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. I mean, mine was just the boat and tote. It's perfect. It's great. Let's talk about our guests this week.
SPEAKER_00I'm obsessed with our guests this week. Incredible. She's so cool.
SPEAKER_03So cool. Erica Verink. She is a writer, a like woman about town. She's fabulous.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, she's a fashion writer.
SPEAKER_03Fashion writer. Her book, Exit Lane, is out now. We're gonna talk to her about motherhood. We're gonna talk to her about Brooklyn, her Iowa roots, and fashion where she's shopping. So much of her stuff is about girlhood and making the mundane extraordinary. Yeah, little luxuries.
SPEAKER_00Finding the sweetness and stuff.
SPEAKER_03We love.
SPEAKER_00Which we love. If you don't follow her, follow her like right now before you start listening.
SPEAKER_03We'll be right back.
SPEAKER_00Erica Verink, we're obsessed with you. Welcome. Welcome. I'm happy to be here. Oh my gosh. So my sister started following you first, and then she put me on to you. And last year, when you found the goodnight moon stamps, she sent them to me. I bought them for myself. For Kyle, his birthday. And my sister for her birthday. And we just like loved them. And it was like, I feel like you find sweet things that just like bring joy to everyone's life. Like the whimsy, the romanticism. And so like that's why we're obsessed with you. Thank you. And like everything you do. So thank you for being here. I'm happy to be here. We want you to kind of just tell our listeners a little bit about Eevee Enterprises. There's just so much. There's a huge umbrella of what you cover and what you do.
SPEAKER_03We didn't even know like where to start talking to you.
SPEAKER_02Okay, so most importantly, I'm a writer. And I write novels and screenplay and um and a fashion newsletter that goes out once a week on Substack called Long Live. And I run an event series called Evie Salon with brands mostly in New York, but all over the country.
SPEAKER_00Oh yeah, my sister would like to get in on that. She can. Yes. She's like healthy today. She hits a good one. Yeah. Yeah. That's it. That's mostly it.
SPEAKER_03Amazing.
SPEAKER_00It's a lot.
SPEAKER_02It's a lot. It's a lot of stuff. How do you handle all this? But it's my dream. It's like sometimes I feel like I'm a kid. Like I just got an office. Yeah. And it's like my lifelong dream to decorate an office. And I work with one person, Evan. And she's like, okay, it's not my lifelong dream, but I'm really happy for you. Um and what's the vibe? And Dumbo. It's coming together. Okay. Um, but I have a huge Nora Front poster framed. Great. Of course. And I have a like a cheetah print rug. And that's it. They love cheetah. No table, no chairs. No. So minimal. Figure it out.
SPEAKER_03Are you have you yet to um romanticize your commute there?
SPEAKER_02Well, now I have a baby. So when I leave, I feel like a jolt of energy. Oh, wow. Um, and so I'll walk there, I'll take the bus, I'll take the subway, I'll take a car. Like it's sort of choose your own adventure every morning.
SPEAKER_00What am I feeling today?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, which is nice versus like I have to take the sea every day, 10 stops.
SPEAKER_03So I need to romanticize my commuting. Some days it's a roof.
SPEAKER_00I think I'd read something Martha Stewart had said, like, don't take the same way to work every single day. Try a different street or go a different way. Just to like keep things like fresh.
SPEAKER_03Queen.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. We love queen. Where is she commuting? I know.
SPEAKER_03To her garden.
SPEAKER_00I also say that, but I'm like, did Martha say that, or did I say that to myself?
SPEAKER_03She commutes wherever she needs to go.
SPEAKER_00Where the lights take her.
SPEAKER_03But as Emily said, we love how much you romanticize. What's is seemingly like the mundane and everyday thing. We were talking recently about the pill boxes.
SPEAKER_00Yes, fancy pill boxes, which are so chic. But I feel like you find these things too. Like you have like the leather-bound journals or business card cards.
SPEAKER_03Business card covers.
SPEAKER_00Like those little things that just like bring such like they're little things that just like bring so much joy to someone's life.
SPEAKER_03Are you always on the lookout for things like this?
SPEAKER_02Always. I mean, I'm lucky it's my job. Like with the newsletter, yeah. I'm always like thinking, will my readers like it? Could I make a TikTok about it? Which could feel like a burden, but to me, it's like I'm thinking about it anyway. Yeah. So it's again.
SPEAKER_00I feel like when I'm scrolling and trying to find these things, sometimes I go down a road of like, I'm like now in a black hole. Like of scrolling. How do you kind of stay on the right side of the search?
SPEAKER_02I mean, I am pretty ruthless. Like, I'm not, I don't have a lot of time. So if I can't find it, I'm gonna tap an expert. Like I I would maybe DM someone like Nan and be like, Yeah, I can't find the right China to give a friend for a wedding.
SPEAKER_00Do you know what to do?
SPEAKER_02Like, I love asking a friend.
SPEAKER_00Well, I feel like you're out right now trying to find the best red light mask.
SPEAKER_02I am because I was using one and it was gifted, but then it broke. And I was like, I don't know that I want to buy it. And I just need someone to be like, here's the science. Yes. Or like I would bet my life on it, and no one has.
SPEAKER_03Do you have an expert? I've a dermatologist.
SPEAKER_02Yes. I've texted derms and they're all like, yeah.
SPEAKER_03Oh.
SPEAKER_02Wow. No one, no one has been like, trust me, Erica. And the people who do, they're like, you have to use it twice a day. Yeah, right. Like all day you have to sign it.
SPEAKER_03You have to have that in your office. Yeah. Just like a panel of it.
SPEAKER_02It's stupid. And then you do have a charge. So I think I'm gonna let go of that. That hunt.
SPEAKER_00Well, I guess like you learn to you have to learn how to let go. Yeah. Tap out and then tap. No, tap in, then tap out. Exactly.
SPEAKER_03Part of this romanticism is that you have said that you want to be the next Nancy Myers and that she's a huge inspiration for you. What does that mean in your vision?
SPEAKER_02Wait, well, first of all, I didn't call myself that. People are always like, you say that you are the next Daisy Myers. I'm like, okay, uh, and a writer who I do are called me that at L Magazine. But to me, it means just like a body of work that feels extremely coherent and romantic. And I love a happy ending, and really am excited to get more into film. I'm already obviously into literature. And so that's the aspiration is just to keep building a body of work where you could pause a movie at any scene and be like, oh, Erica Varank made this. Like I recognize that dialogue.
SPEAKER_03Real autorship. Exactly.
SPEAKER_00And just like the look of it too. Great outfits. Well, a great couch, like a great van. Like just like the setting just like feels like happy.
SPEAKER_02Yes. Yeah. That's the dream.
SPEAKER_03What is your creative process like?
SPEAKER_02I mean, I'm just always uh tossing around ideas in my head and then like messy Google Docs, and I'm big on pen and paper. So I have one notebook that's unlined. This is my planner, and I wrote down my obsession so I don't forget. And um, it's unlined, and that's my like no hold spar creative journal. So I'm like, I can write anything in here. It doesn't have to turn into my next novel, or it makes me feel like I can play around. Um, but I'm just always thinking about it, thinking about my next project.
SPEAKER_03This is so interesting that you have this analog thing, but you're also an incredibly online person, and part of your version of celebrity is that you are online. Right. Like, how do you how are you at terms with this romanticism of the analog world?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, when I'm online, I'm working. Like that's what it feels like. And when I put my phone on the healthy mindset. Yes, totally. Oh, that's like the only way I can post is I'm not like, I wonder what she's gonna think. Or like, no, I'm like, I'm clocking in, like doing my retail shift, and I'm like selling the dress, and then I'm leaving, and then the notebook, it's like, sorry, it's just me and my ideas.
SPEAKER_03And yeah, I love that safe.
SPEAKER_00We have talked with so many people about things they do to stay offline, and whether it's um needle pointing or mahjong, and you really say like reading, like just read a book. Um, which I think like so many people just are like, what? Yeah, which is crazy, but it's not that hard. Once you get into a book, you're so into it, it really keeps you away. Completely. What do you think like are some of the good summaries? Like, what should people be reading right now? I well, I can't spoil my obsession.
SPEAKER_02Oh Julia over here, she'd be like, but I'm I just bought um the shampoo effect, which I'm really excited to read. Yes. Jenny Jackson is like such a she's actually an editor, so it's like her prose is just so sharp. Yeah, I'm really excited. Obviously, yesterday, like you hate yourself if you haven't read it yet. Like, I have sitting on it. I know.
SPEAKER_03I can't wait.
SPEAKER_02And I think summer is a good time to again crowdsource. Like, if you have a crush, it's a perfect opportunity to DM them and be like, what are you reading? Or like bring it up conversationally. That's hot to talk about. Erica? Oh my god. Don't ask me, ask your crush. That is really good.
SPEAKER_03That is also such a good entry point. Maybe because if they don't have a book, fuck that.
SPEAKER_00Take them out. Yeah, tap out.
SPEAKER_03Yes. Wow, you're on to something.
SPEAKER_00I'm on. Oh, I love that. I'm currently reading Exit Lane, it's in my bag right now.
SPEAKER_03Can we talk about the book cover?
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_03It's stunning. Thanks. I have nothing to do with it. How did what was that process like?
SPEAKER_02831, who I published it with, all of their books have this eight three-one ratio. So they came to me and were like, these are your colors. And I was like, I don't know. Yeah, I don't know. And they're like, trust us. And then by the time the book came out, I was fully obsessed.
SPEAKER_03And it starts purple and yellow, right? Oh my god, it's it's striking.
SPEAKER_02I know. I love it. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Oh, that's so good.
SPEAKER_02And I love the color red, but then they were like, no, we feel good about this. And red is so like easily tied to romance. So I like that this felt kind of collegiate.
SPEAKER_00It felt like the first one that was different than all the other ones we had done before. I haven't read the other 831s, but my sister has, and she graves about them. I really like set piece. I think you guys would like that one. You said you like a happy ending, so I'm hoping that this has a happy ending. Excellent. I love we've been talking about that because we've there's some books behind you that we've been talking about. There's just like there's something about the happy ending that sometimes that's what we just want right now. Yeah. It's like, I don't want to be stressed. I want to know everything's gonna be okay. Creative project takes so much time.
SPEAKER_02I mean, you guys know that so much time, so much effort. You involve so many people, and I'm like, if all of that work is going to go into it, I want it to be a positive, like a gift to the world and not a like, and they all die.
SPEAKER_03You know, what are some underrated rom-coms or romantic novels, movies, anything like that that you think people should be checking?
SPEAKER_02I'm really like, I think I'm gonna start a new series about modern rom-coms that I like because I'm kind of sick of hearing people complain about it. Yeah, okay, me and reading it today. Totally. I like I need to do something about it. Yeah, I just saw the invite. And while it's not wait, yeah, it's not necessarily a rom com. I want to like move it in that category and be like, this is a step in the right direction, like great dialogue, sort of a set piece. Yeah, um, so that's I like that like 500 Days of Summer is like a classic to me. Crossing Delancey is one of my favorite rom-coms of all time. Oh, it's from the 90s. So it's like it's not modern at the time, but it's perfect.
SPEAKER_03Great.
SPEAKER_02It's it's in sort of like uh Nora Efron universe. Um, I like Moonstruck a lot.
SPEAKER_03Great. I'm gonna I have to send you this video. Someone just posted on um Instagram. It's people interview in when Moonstruck was being filmed, they interviewed a bunch of people in Carol Gardens about it. And the women are like, I should have been in the movie. Like bummed out that people were like, Oh, Nicholas Cates is looking good. It's so good.
SPEAKER_02It's such a fun New York story. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. I love it. So obviously you live in Brooklyn now, but you're from Iowa and you're very proud of your Iowa roots. Yeah. What is it about Iowa?
SPEAKER_02What am I like? So I moved here to go to FIT and I sort of like decided during orientation, like, I guess I'm just gonna own this because there's no point in being like, fuck Iowa guy. There were a lot of kids from Ohio who were like that. And I was like, I I do love where I came from. I have a lot of fond memories. I go back like at least once a year. Um the Midwest is just so different. And it's it's like a different pace. And I have a lot of family that like farms and live a different lifestyle. And I think it's really healthy too if you live in New York, like get out of New York and come back and not get lost in the sauce.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Well, that's what I like about Brooklyn too. I do feel like it's a little slower because I always call it the suburbs. Yes. Completely. And it's like not to so many people, but it is. It is like a way slower pace, which I like about it. I love that about it. Yeah. Love Brooklyn.
SPEAKER_03How was being raised in Iowa impacted how you parent in Brooklyn?
SPEAKER_02Yeah. It's crazy. I mean, my daughter's eight months, so I don't really know if I have a lot of people. It's just like a potato. I'm like, eat it, not called. I think um I hope that she'll have like a lot of time outdoors. That was important to me growing up. And I had parents who were sort of like, You're excited about acting? Okay, you're really nervous on stage and you're quite bad at it, but we're gonna drive you to all the auditions and we're just so excited for me to try new things. And I think a lot of New York parents can get like competitive or intense. Like, I did this, I want my kids to do that. Um, so I'm hoping I can be open-minded. She's wearing a lot of headbands right now that I don't like. Oh is she choosing them at eight? Um, and it's my first practice of being like, okay, you have your own sense of style, and I'm gonna stay out of it. But it's hard.
SPEAKER_03I often think about that with children. Like, what if they're losers?
SPEAKER_00Well, I'm like, right now, this thing is does whatever I want it to do. Yeah, completely comes out, mind of its own.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, are you ready?
SPEAKER_00I mean, not the second it comes out, but like still, like it's I can't control it anymore. Do you will it be a Leo?
SPEAKER_03Yes.
SPEAKER_00My sister's a Leo and Kyle's a Leo. Yeah, Leo's amazing. Your baby, I mean, eight. My baby's a temple double Scorpio.
SPEAKER_02Oh girl. Wow. But my dad was a Scorpio and he passed when I was younger, and she came like three days before his birthday.
SPEAKER_03That's amazing.
SPEAKER_02So I said, You're that kind of Scorpio. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_03This is what we're in store for.
SPEAKER_02Love. Yeah. Yeah. Everything. It's signs like yesterday. I was like making a list of signs. Do you ever do that? I don't make a list, but that's actually how to turn your day around.
SPEAKER_01Okay.
SPEAKER_02You say, I'm looking for signs, and you open a notes app and you make a list of every single sign. You see, I sore I had seven yesterday.
SPEAKER_00Well, you did this with the banging of the Yes. Yes.
SPEAKER_03So I read this book, Signs, by Warwick Jackson. Of course I'm familiar. Yeah, so I read that book, and it was like you have to ask for them, right? So years ago, I was like, I wanted some, I needed a sign. And so I asked my grandmother for a sign. And she always would would like bang on pots and pans. Like they would march around with pots and pans, and at her um like bereavement dinner after her funeral, like everyone did that. So it's like I'm looking for this sign. I go to a lunch at John George. He says, you know what? When uh 25 years ago, when I got my first Michelin star, I had everyone bang pots and pans in honor of this new achievement. I don't remember what it was for. Like, that's what we're gonna do. And everyone came out banging pots and pants around the restaurant.
SPEAKER_02That makes me so emotional.
SPEAKER_03Isn't that crazy? I was like, where in New York am I going to have that?
SPEAKER_02It's such a gift. Yeah. And you can ask for that any day.
SPEAKER_03Yes.
SPEAKER_02So you have to say it out loud though. Or start a new note in your notes. Like, I know.
SPEAKER_00I was out, I went to a scan the other day with my aunt. My aunt came with me, and she was a lot at the scan. And afterwards, we were gonna go right over here to like a diner, and she goes, you know what, let's go to the mark. And when we're sitting there and we had lunch at the mark at a $50 burger, she remembered that right before I was born, she went to the mark with my grandmother. So we were like, Grandma is happy that we are eating a thousand dollar lunch right now. That's not as much of a sign, but we took that as a sign and ran with it to Zip. You get to decide. Yeah, there's no rubric. Yeah, that's true. My mom always, anytime she gets mother emails from the mother genes, she goes, truth. All the signs you can get.
SPEAKER_03She should buy jeans every time, though. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00It works.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, absolutely.
SPEAKER_00Um, so I do I consider you like a fashion expert. So it's Kyle. Yes. Thanks, Kyle. Um, we asked some of our viewers um what they wanted to kind of know about, like the best of the best. So we're hoping that you can tell us about a few things.
unknownOkay.
SPEAKER_00Do you have a favorite white tea? I do.
SPEAKER_02It's from a brand called Everybody World. Oh, I've heard of this brand. Yes, yes. It's LA based, and there's a heavy boxy tea that is incredible. Like, I have a very close friend who's also my stylist, and she's like the roe fancy. And it's always like contentious between us because I'm like, I'm from Iowa, and I wore this t-shirt around her, and she goes, Who makes that? And I was like, Oh my god. And I was like, this is really well. I love it. It's like $40. Yeah, yeah. And my my like tip is to steam it and hang it up, and it just lasts so much longer.
SPEAKER_00Than a fold. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Ballet flat.
SPEAKER_02Okay. I like the Margot ballet flat. Um, but I do think resoling a Chanel ballet flat secondhand is always gonna be I love resoling chicas. I do it every night. Yes, yes.
SPEAKER_00Me and my cobbler.
SPEAKER_01Yes.
SPEAKER_00That's real. How much I go to the place in 30 Rock, which I always think is scamming me. I have one pair of Chanel flats and I love them. Remember when I got them? I brought them in and we like freaked out about them. So sweet. And now I've had them for like six or seven years every year. It costs about $100 to resole. Well, that seems high.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, it's really high.
SPEAKER_00I think like $65.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_00I'm paying $95. So I'm getting scared. Do it in Brooklyn. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02I have a spot in Brooklyn Heights that I like. Do you have a good um alterations person as well? Yeah, of course. In Brooklyn. Yeah. I go to Alts and Brooklyn Heights. Oh.
SPEAKER_03They're so expensive.
SPEAKER_02Yes.
SPEAKER_03But you need a good for a suit, I'll go there. But otherwise, okay.
SPEAKER_02I like um G and G. Okay. In uh I think it's on West Broadway. Okay. They're really good. It's not as expensive, but like Tom Brown goes there sometimes.
SPEAKER_00Someone told me about a place where all the SNL people go to on Allen Street, or right around the corner from Eddie's.
SPEAKER_03Our Taylor went missing.
SPEAKER_00I I created a story. All of a sudden, expert Eddie was missing.
SPEAKER_03Yes.
SPEAKER_00And somebody else took over for him who wasn't as good. I hope he doesn't listen to this podcast. And I'm convinced he murdered Eddie to get hit the number one spot.
SPEAKER_03Kept the name, everything's the exact same.
SPEAKER_00But the alterations aren't as good.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_00A bad alteration.
SPEAKER_02It's like what could be worse?
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Anyway, okay. A watch. Okay, you have to go secondhand. Obviously. Yes. Okay, so I got this for my one-year wedding anniversary. It's beautiful. It's a men's two-tone tank, and I got it on the Real Real. My recommendation is to go into the store by us, and I think it's Carol Garden slash and try on a thousand different watches. See what works. Because it's not intimidating. Like you could go to the Soho one too, but they're really friendly at the Cobaha one. And just try them on for size, like different faces, different brands. And then once you can zero in on what you want, I still think the real real is like you can do the auction sites, but it's a bit overwhelming.
SPEAKER_00I always want to buy one in an airport when I'm traveling abroad because they're always on, like you can get the tax back and stuff.
SPEAKER_02I did that for the first time and it did blow so well. I like bought a Louis Vuitton toiletry bag.
SPEAKER_00And you're like scary for me. When's the flight gotta go? I don't think it's worth it. I know. I never, I've never done it. I just like in my mind.
SPEAKER_03Express lane about it. Totally.
SPEAKER_00I know. It's like we're running out of time. You have to like do like the kiosks to get the bat tax back.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Yes.
SPEAKER_03It's humiliating.
SPEAKER_02It's not romantic.
SPEAKER_03Um, we'll be right back with your obsession, but what's one word you would use to tease us?
SPEAKER_02Sexy. Oh, I can't wait.
SPEAKER_01That's a fun. That's a fun one. Yes.
SPEAKER_00We're back. Okay. You teased us with sexy. Yes. I know. We're feeling the fields. Okay.
SPEAKER_02What are you obsessed with? I'm obsessed with books under 200 pages. Oh.
SPEAKER_01Oh. What a dream. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02For a lot of reasons, but number one, it fits in a purse. Yes. Yes. It's paperback. Reading a book under 200 pages at a bar is an invitation. It's not a performance of like.
SPEAKER_00Huge. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02And you can feel accomplished. Like if you're in a bit of a slump or you haven't read in a while, like you can read this in a weekend. Absolutely. Yes.
SPEAKER_03There is something sexy about this. Also, just like I'm going to say, like, a lot of books under 200 pages are by independent imprints or something like that.
SPEAKER_01Right.
SPEAKER_03Knowing what an imprint is soha.
SPEAKER_01Yes.
SPEAKER_03Like, oh, this is just like it's a Cleveland imprint. It's like I agree.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Wow.
SPEAKER_00Okay, so what are some of your favorite sexy underraskin I was told to be prepared?
SPEAKER_02And at first I had them all in my back. I love it. And I was like, I don't think we have to bring that down. So I have a lot. Okay, fun. The first one is Bad Marie, which is about a nanny gone psycho. Love. The second is Speedboat, which is a classic. So you can buy this used for like $3 if you like John Didian or like want people to think you like John Didian. Read Speedboat.
SPEAKER_03I've only read the famous Joan Didian.
SPEAKER_02So you'll like this. It's super voicey. Okay. Other women, which is a tiny, tiny book.
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_02Or like, you know, there was a small run and then it was reprinted. You can definitely find it at McNally Jackson. Great. I love it there. Um I love that one. Train Dreams, which was a movie that I loved that movie. It's such a good movie. And it's a very sad book. So like you have to be in the mood. Yeah. But I love that one. Seduction Theory, I just read. That sounds sexy. It's like about professors upstate. Like there's an affair, obviously. But it all ties up in 200 pages. Yeah. Great. Like, how? How? Yeah. How do they do that? And then obviously Exit Lane. Yeah. But like all the A31 books. Like, I think just it's such a treat, a book that length.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. I feel like in the summer too, it's like you throw it in your bag, you go away for the weekend. You're like, we're gonna sit in the park. It's easy where you don't feel like overwhelmed.
SPEAKER_03I also like um moments that are then like tied to the book. So it's like this one weekend, I was reading Exit Lane. I love that and I did X, Y, and Z. Like I brought it with me everywhere. That's really like that's very sweet.
SPEAKER_00I just want to bring up a book that I think she might like that you brought me into, the French one.
SPEAKER_03I was just about to recommend it.
SPEAKER_00That's under 200, and that was I gotta look up the name of this. We have because we've looked it up before. It is like it pulls at your heartstrings. It's about these two boys who were in love in childhood and they separated, and it's like them, it's French.
SPEAKER_03Lie with me. Yep, by Philippe Besson.
SPEAKER_00Yes.
SPEAKER_03Take a little translated. Do you remember this?
SPEAKER_00No.
SPEAKER_03By one Molly Ringwald.
SPEAKER_00Oh yes. Yes. How?
SPEAKER_03She is a French expert, and she translated this absolutely stunning gay. It's also like it's a very intimate epic because, as you said, it spans years and years and years. And it I was reading it on the West Side Highway. Sobbing. Sobbing. It's not for lovers of a happy ending. But it is.
SPEAKER_00But there is some closure with it. Like there is something that you do feel whole at the end of it. It was oh God. Thank you. Yes.
SPEAKER_03It's phenomenal.
SPEAKER_00And those books do stick with you.
SPEAKER_03As a writer and someone who wrote a book under 200 pages, did you set out to do that, or is there a different process you go through and like attacking?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I did like because that's part of 831's like calling card. Is that their books are all shorter? Um, but I have a new book that we can talk about later that um is going to be shorter, but not that length. And I think I'm just more prone to keeping it a little bit you know to the point. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00You're bringing sports into this one, I believe. Yeah. I read. Yeah. Yeah. Okay, we love.
SPEAKER_02What sports? I'm really excited. Basketball.
SPEAKER_00Oh, that's what I have not been into yet.
SPEAKER_03No. I'm happy to add it to my rotation. So love it. Why basketball?
SPEAKER_02I grew up playing basketball. Um, and I didn't want to do a sport I would have to learn.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_02So basketball was.
SPEAKER_03Oh, great. I just read a great gay tennis book.
SPEAKER_02Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_03I love that book. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02I mean, there's one.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_02But there's actually a lesbian one that has like a magical realism in it. Oh. This isn't a recommendation. That's fine.
SPEAKER_03We'll leave it there. When people ask someone who has taste and is a writer, do you feel pressure when people ask you for advice on things? Like on book recommendations?
SPEAKER_02Yeah. My best friend used to be a bookseller at Three Lives, and she writes a book Substack. Oh, and so shut her out. What's her name? Ruby's Rex is the name of the Substack. Her name's Ruby. Um she has the best taste in the world. So normally my reads are like a filter down from her. Yeah. She tapped her in. Yeah. And I love to just send, I'm like, go subscribe. She writes a letter once a month. There's always a theme. Um, so I like to outsource to her. But then if I love a book, I'm gonna go like unbelievably hard on recommending it. But I'd rather do that for 10 books I'm obsessed with a year versus like try this, try this, try this.
SPEAKER_00That's my thing. Do you have a favorite bookstore, like someone who helps you with books? Like, I think like sometimes I don't know. I think a lot of these bookstores do know what they're doing. Yeah, but I think there's some are better than others. Three lives is the best. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02It's totally the best. You can't take photos in there. Like everyone who's there has such a specific taste. Yes. And I think it's when you find the bookseller who reads like you, then you can just default to them. And that's such a gift.
SPEAKER_03It's such a curated selection in there that like just by walking in, I feel like trusted. Yeah, yeah, completely. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00You posted about books that you should read um leading into motherhood. My I had a question if you had any books that your partner could read leading into fatherhood.
SPEAKER_03Because my husband needs to sense the shade.
SPEAKER_02No, and I am constantly shading my husband for the same thing. But I have to remember that like reading isn't for everyone. Totally. Um, but there's this book called Equal Partners. Okay. And that is the Bible. That's like I made my husband read it before we got married, and it was like the day of our wedding. He was like, cram man. I was like, well, that counts, I guess. I love you. But I don't, yeah, I guess that like there are like a lot of like really cheesy, like, come on, dad, like like ties on the cover. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't know. There's a new one that just came out about like being a modern dad, and I ordered it for my husband, and we'll see if he reads it. But like there's also a life kit podcast about it with the author. So like maybe that's like a better place to start. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Is your husband a reader in general?
SPEAKER_02No. But when we first met, he like totally hoodwinked me. And I was like, You should read The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenies. And he's like, I read it in a day, it was amazing. And you're like, and then we like moved in together, and I was like, What? Where are your books? Yeah, no books. And so now, six years in, I still give him a hard time, but he um like loves to cook and he used to be a private chef. And so he does all the food in our family. Sab. And I'm like, I guess I would rather you make Broma bakery cookies last night than like cozy up to a novel. Yeah. Yeah, that's fair. I guess. Because you can cozy up. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think that's fair. What's a favorite dish he makes? I really like we love going to fish tales in our neighborhood. And so like when he cooks a fish with a little like slaw or vinegar salad, like it's just simple and easy. Yeah. I love that. Yeah. Or stake.
SPEAKER_03You even romanticized your partner. You're with your private chef. Amazing. I know. I know.
SPEAKER_00I need to start doing that.
SPEAKER_03Me too. Yeah. I have like started hanging out with this guy, and I get so self-conscious about my book selections because I read like I'll read like high literature. Yeah. But then I'll read six strings of like smut or like mystery.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_03But I feel so self-conscious.
SPEAKER_01What does he read?
SPEAKER_03Books about like the economy and like war. Yeah. He's a very straight reader in that way.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Like are all these books like 800 pages? I think so. Yeah. So you should bring him a 200 pager. I should. That's romantic. Yeah.
unknownI love it.
SPEAKER_00I don't know anything about him, but I think he would love it.
SPEAKER_03We're running out of time, but we want to do a lightning round to get your takes on some hot topics. Great. Simply tell us if you're obsessed or over it. Three, two, one.
SPEAKER_00Pre-sliced cheese. Obsessed?
unknownSo obsessed.
SPEAKER_03Still in shadow.
SPEAKER_00Well, where do you like to get your pre-sliced cheese?
SPEAKER_02I like the brand Cabot. Oh, yeah, I love Cabot. I do their shit. Why is Cabot so good? Yeah, it's so cheap. I know. Vermont. There you go. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Book clubs.
SPEAKER_02Um, okay.
SPEAKER_03Great. That's how I feel too.
SPEAKER_02Okay, saying awesome sauce. No, pass.
SPEAKER_03Inspiration.
SPEAKER_02Obsessed. Caprize. Pass.
SPEAKER_03The scent tomato leaf.
SPEAKER_02Oh, obsessed. Old bay. Obsessed.
SPEAKER_03Summer storms.
SPEAKER_00Obsessed. Toe rings. Pass. Go home. Especially when it's not running on weekends. Okay.
SPEAKER_03One final question.
SPEAKER_00Are you obsessed?
SPEAKER_03We take three weeks off. Three, two, one. Are you obsessed with that?
SPEAKER_02Completely. Yay.
SPEAKER_00We're obsessed with you. Thank you so much for being here.
SPEAKER_02I'm Erica Varank everywhere, and my subseck is Long Live.
SPEAKER_03We love you so much. Thanks for watching. Thanks for tuning in.
SPEAKER_00Are you obsessed with us? Please like, comment, and subscribe.
SPEAKER_03Bye. Not casting me was the greatest mistake of their lives. I should have been in the movie. What part would you have played?