July 2026 Grab Bag

Emma Casley

— 3 min read
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Poster for the TV show Widow's Bay: A vintage illustration of two people in a rowboat in front of a small island with a lighthouse and buildings.

I’ll be honest: this month’s recommendations are a little sparse because I’ve been spending most of my free time screening films for a local festival and I can’t talk about any of those yet. I’ll just say I love indie cinema and it’s so fun to see creative, unique ideas come to life – even when some of them fall flat. 

But that doesn’t mean I haven’t had time to engage with other things I can talk about! Here’s what I’ve been thinking about recently:

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  1. The new podcast What to Carry, What to Burn, hosted by the Internet’s favorite dog sledder Blair Bravermann, is my new favorite thing. Each episode she retells a story of wilderness survival with such tenderness and intimacy, it makes you feel like you’re sitting around a campfire together
  2. New Phoebe Bridgers! Catchy and thoughtful
  1. Had the pleasure of watching School of Rock at a local bar. Loved to be amongst a group of people who grew up with the film. Stick it to the man!! 
  2. Finally finished Widow’s Bay and found it just as good as the promising premise. My favorite episodes were the Patty-centric ones – “Beach Read” and “Your Baggage.” Love that weirdo
  3. A less talked about Apple TV show I’ve been enjoying is Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, starring Tatiana Maslany, who has been one of my favorite performers since Orphan Black
Poster for the TV show Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed: a bright pink background with an illustration of actress Tatiana Maslany with red scribbles around her face and shoulders.
  1. If you like cool action set pieces, you will love They Will Kill You
  2. If you love camp you will love Vamps. Boggles the mind that this is the film that brought Amy Heckerling and Alicia Silverstone back together after Clueless. 
  3. I was revisiting Tom and Lorenzo’s “Mad Style” fashion recaps of Mad Men, which inspired me to rewatch the show and man is it good. If you’ve been deterred because you think it’s stodgy and boring please know the most bananas things happen in it all the time, even if there’s also a bunch of moody staring into the distance with a cigarette and an old fashioned. 
Cast photo of Mad Men: a group of the main characters sit in formal wear at an outdoor event.
  1. It’s been ungodly hot in NYC so the only thing I’ve been in the mood for is chill, brain off videos. Which is how I’ve gone down the rabbit hole of watching a city planner play the video game City: Skylines. I’ve played City: Skylines and I’m terrible at it so it’s fun to live vicariously through an insanely talented player.
  2. Also this month, I donated blood for the first time! I’ll be honest that it did leave me feeling a little queasy but also was less scary than I imagined it being. If you’ve ever been curious about it, I encourage you to try it out! Plus now I finally know my blood type, which is fun. 

I’ll leave it there – I’ve been sooo tired from the heat wave and the constant fireworks these past few nights. Please share your most relaxing, no thoughts required recommendations below. 

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Each month I highlight an organization that’s important to me. I encourage people to check out the cool work they do, and also to find causes within their community to support as well.

Today I’m highlighting the Ridgewood Food Co-Op, which recently lost almost 4K due to mail theft.

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