So the first episode of HBOMax’s White Lotus is out and I am chuffed! Although I do miss the douchiness of Jake Lacy from Season 1, the view’s not so bad over here in Season 2. Theo James? Aubrey Plaza? Will Sharpe? The Queen of Awesomeness Jennifer Coolidge? I’m there.
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Why aren’t more people talking about Catherine Called Birdy? I knew I wouldn’t hate it because … Andrew Scott!!! Hot Priest is back, hotter than ever as Hot Dad this time. Gotta give Lena Dunham credit where credit’s due, albeit grudgingly. (I can’t stand her.) Enjoyed every minute.
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I’ve been obsessively listening to Smartless since the pandemic, a podcast by Jason Bateman, Will Arnette and Sean Hayes. One of them invites a guest without the other two knowing his/her identity, resulting in genuinely spontaneous interviews. The banter is hilarious, mainly because the three of them are really good friends and they just take jabs at each other all the time. God, Jason Bateman’s the best. He and Arnette were so great in Arrested Development, which is one of my top 10 series of all time. And also, The Ozarks. Give the show a listen, if you haven’t yet.
Also, what started as a way for them to keep in touch during the pandemic has now reached Podcasting Pinnacle – their most recent guest was the actual President of the United States. WHAT!!!
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Bet your ass I’m planning to check out Charbon, the newest venture of Paul Pairet (Polux, Ultraviolet, Mr & Mrs Bund) in Shanghai. I am only human, I cannot resist the call of open-fire grill BBQ and ice cream. I so want to try the bipolar culinary combo, but this damn Zero Covid bullshit keeps getting in the way. It’s located on the 6th floor of IAPM, you see, and that’s running the huge risk of being locked down for a couple of days should even one suspected case visit the same mall at the time I’m there, busy stuffing my face with BBQ. There is no rhyme or reason to the lockdown rules anymore… better safe than sorry?
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My usual jianbing place is the famous kiosk at the corner of Shaanxi Nan Lu and Changle Lu, but lately I’ve been heading over to Fumin Lu’s OllieNollie, where the lines are shorter (for now… seems to me that it gets longer every day) and the coffee is the jolt-you-awake kind. Don’t listen to what people are saying — it’s not hipster just because it has one jianbing on the menu, dammit. It’s minimalist! But do you know what isn’t minimalist? The coffee choices. Oh god I love having a ton of coffee choices.
Currently listening to:
Phoebe Bridgers
Punisher