october faves: east coast autumn, passport renewal, and sweet corn lattes
I am so happy I feel like I'm going to die
After May, October is my second favorite month of the year. So many good things happened to me in October that I’m overwhelmed with the feeling that I might die. I know I need to learn to accept the good as easily as I expect the bad, but that’s just how I’ve been feeling.
October reminds me how lucky I am to have been born on the East Coast and to call this corner of the earth my home. A few weeks ago, I was driving upstate with my dad, and we were talking about how beautiful the Catskills look when their colors change; he told me that when my 102-year-old great-grandmother visited in October of 1999, she couldn’t stop talking about the trees and their leaves. She’d come from Medellin, the city of eternal spring, and I like to think that in that moment she felt young and new, seeing a world she’d never known where even the oldest things could be reborn.
Ciao October, thank you for these favorites.
secondhand J.W Anderson sweater
I had some credit on The RealReal and used it to buy this J.W. Anderson sweater, so it was essentially free. It’s actually a pullover sweater, though I only realized that after weeks of wearing it since I’d just been throwing it on top of everything. I love the strap details, and it’s incredibly comfortable and cozy. I think it helps make my lazy outfits feel a bit more intense. I had a really lovely moment with a security guard at the county clerk’s office who complimented it; I’ll keep that moment to myself, but just know it happened.
spooky festivities
I feel like I leaned into the darkness of October in a way I haven’t since I was little. I watched a ton of spooky movies, ate a bunch of candy, wore a lot of black, listened to vintage Halloween playlists, and welcomed every chilly morning with open arms.
white lace bodysuit
Bodysuits are such an interesting layering tool and I’ve been playing around with this white lace one as both an underlayer to dresses and outfits with cropped pieces like wide shorts and baby tees. It’s fun when my belly peeks out from under a crop top and it’s covered in lace. I like the second skin type of feeling.
Lynn Yaeger’s closet sale
You may remember I went to Lynn Yaeger’s closet sale to shop and photograph people who dress well. It was my first closet sale and second practice in street-style photography. I made some new friends, met Chloe Sevigny, and bought some of her clothes. It was an event I’ll probably never forget.
a quick trip to MA
My dad and I made a day trip to western Massachusetts to pick up a red Vespa for my mom. When she lived in Venezuela she’d ride a bike like this one to get her around. Growing up she always referred to it as her “moto,” which translates to “motorcycle” in English, and I fully thought she was a biker until I realized it was more like an electric scooter. Either way, I love to see her be young and wild and free and now she’ll be driving around town on her new old bike.
finally, a cute passport photo
I have a few trips planned for later in November, so it was time to renew my passport. In my last passport, I was fifteen and had taken the photo after a summer of lifeguarding. In that picture, I’m awkwardly smirking with the worst lifeguard nose tan you’ve ever seen. This time, I was determined to have a cute passport photo, and I think it turned out pretty well despite the fact that I can’t see without my glasses and I always end up looking a bit like a deer in headlights.
autumn leaves and last glimpses of turtle friends (hopefully)
The park near my house is the closest green space to me, and I’m a little mad at myself for not spending more time there recently. But over the last week of October, I’ve been trying to make an effort to get back into my routine of taking long walks in the park. One of my favorite things about the park is the turtles in the lake (I might’ve mentioned them to you before). They usually hide away in the winter, but since it’s been warm here lately, they’ve stayed sunbathing on the rocks longer than usual. It’s nice to see them, though I hope they get to hibernate soon (do turtles hibernate???).
sweet corn latte from Round K by Sol
I’m not usually one for sweet drinks—I like my coffee dark and bitter—but last week I tried the sweet corn latte from Round K by Sol, and it was so well-balanced for a sweet iced coffee. The coffee itself was unsweetened, but the foam on top had a natural sweetness from the corn, and mixed with the drink made for an incredibly satisfying treat. 10/10 would recommend.
trick-or-treaters
I spent Halloween working and got to hand out candy to kids in the Lower East Side. It reminded me of trick-or-treating at storefronts when I was little and feeling annoyed that it was so cold I’d have to wear a coat over my costume. This Halloween, it was almost 80 degrees, which I’m sure the kids loved—but it’s bittersweet for other reasons.
Omega (feat. Ralphie Choo) by Rosalia
I’m so sure that this is going to be my most listened-to song this year on my Spotify wrapped (or Apple Music wrapped cause I’m insane and I use both.) My favorite line of the song is puedo ser Celine Dion y un tigre because, yeah.
I hope you all had a cozy October <3 thanks for being here <3
I hope november makes you feel so happy you feel like you will live
There’s a song by Blonde Diamond called I’m So F*cking Happy I Could Die - you would love it!