Undone bobs, Costa Rica shrimp, and a guidebook haul

Here’s what’s happening in September

On The Cusp is about becoming the next version of ourselves. That means experimenting with the breadth of our interests, exploring the depths of anything that captures our imagination, and learning to embrace uncertainty along the way.

Welcome! This is letter #59.

Today’s dispatch is a Friday postcard: a chatty letter in which I share a more immediate, intimate look at daily life. Here’s what’s going on this month!

A podcast that actually made me excited to buy expensive shampoo. Next month, I’m taking a big vacation…and I don’t want to waste half of it blow-drying my hair. That means I’m also getting a big haircut before I go.

Yes, that’s me Googling “Aubrey Plaza undone bob” to find the appropriate inspiration for my stylist!

It’s been awhile since I’ve had to manage shorter hair, so this change also has me trawling Sephora for the appropriate styling products.

That’s how I ended up on Briogeo’s website recently, reading the biography of CEO Nancy Twine, who founded the company in her twenties after her mother’s sudden death. Upon reading this, I felt an immediate (if parasocial) bond.

After listening to her speak with Guy Raz on NPR’s How I Built This, I was bowled over by her passion and energy—she built the company on the side, while working full-time—and decided to sample some of her wares. I’ve especially loved the Sleek Stick, which smells divine and is perfect for ponytail days.

A stack of guidebooks. As a reformed vacation overplanner, I’m making very few explicit plans for our upcoming Europe trip. Still, I needed a way of gathering context on our destinations (and finding a few good spots for tactic #3 on this list!)—and realized that there’s no substitute for a good old-fashioned guidebook.

There are infinite travel blogs and vlogs to lend context and help ID great restaurants—and I’m not eschewing either entirely. But when I want to learn about a city’s layout and neighborhoods, and avoid spots that were built for social media virality, there’s no better resource than something comprehensive, reliable, and well-edited: an actual, physical book.

Bonus: it’s way less overwhelming to flip through a single tome than consult The Entire Internet for trip ideas.

So far, I’m loving DK Eyewitness “Like a Local” guidebooks, as well as this UK import from Hardie Grant’s Off The Beaten Track series.

My other favorite travel resource so far? Conversations with friends! So if you’ve been to Edinburgh, the Isle of Skye, or Amsterdam, don’t hesitate to drop your favorite eats and memories into the comments.

Kitchen design inspo. I have zero interest in renovating my kitchen—or any other room in my house, for that matter. But that didn’t stop me from plucking Sophie Donelson’s Uncommon Kitchens off the shelves at the Book Larder.

I’m in love with the layout—each flip of the page offers a fun, inventive way of arranging content—as well as the ethos, which is all about breaking bland kitchen design “rules.” I’ve been opening it whenever I need a jolt of inspiration.

If you’d like, you can get a peek inside the book via

Laura Fenton

’s piece “Why gut kitchen renovations are out.”

A novel about grief, love, and creativity. Lily King’s Writers & Lovers is one of the books I took from my mom’s house, and I just started digging in. So far, it’s a beautiful examination of loss and romance, endings and beginnings. I might have to follow it up with Kathryn Schulz’s Lost & Found!

A thought-provoking piece on clutter. My friend Rebecca is a pro at systems thinking, so I’m always turning to her newsletter

Your House Machine

for wisdom.

In “The hidden clutter creator right under your nose,” Rebecca shifted my thinking about how to manage the creeping influx of stuff in my life: by considering outflows as thoughtfully as I do inflows.

I visited Seattle to see Cup of Jo’s

Joanna Goddard

and poet Kate Baer share the stage at the SIFF Cinema Egyptian. I ate a scoop of Molly Moon’s vanilla ice cream topped with a Hello Robin chocolate chip cookie and enjoyed a hilarious, heartfelt conversation between two friends.

They say “never meet your heroes,” but: I beg to differ!

You can find the recap (and podcast recording) of the event, which also included performances by cellist Gretchen Yanover and dancers Nia-Amina Minor and Akoiya Harris, right here:

The August Edit (and Seattle Photos!)

All the absurd movies. After a particularly grueling stretch in our ongoing catio build (the side panels, door, and rafters are complete! Next up: roof and shelves!), we collapsed on the couch to watch John Cusack in Better Off Dead. In doing so, I discovered the perfect tonic for a stressful day: a movie with a ridiculous premise.

Something zany enough to take me completely outside of my own head for 90 minutes? I’d call that a win! And we chased it with Magnolia, which was excellent—but still had me texting my brother to ask, “What the heck was that movie about?!”

Finger food. I loved this recipe for Costa Rica shrimp, courtesy of

Erin Henderson

. It’s citrusy, spicy, easy, and the perfect foil for a fresh baguette. It also made me realize how delightful it is to eat with your hands once in awhile!

More pizza. Are you following along with my year of pizza on YouTube? Here’s this week’s installment of the In Depth Cookbook Club! ⬇️

Step into my kitchen, where I’m making the BBQ Chicken Pizza (p. 53) and Classic Creamy Coleslaw (p. 54) from 

Alexandra Stafford

’s wonderful cookbook Pizza Night.¹

As always, I’d love to hear from you. What’s captured your imagination lately?

Warmly,
Maddie

1. If you buy Pizza Night through my Bookshop.org affiliate link, you’ll be supporting this video series! That’s because each purchase made through the link earns me a small commission. All opinions are honest and entirely my own, regardless of affiliation.