Desert Island Picks

Summary

Podcast Summary: Bad On Paper – "Desert Island Picks" Release Date: July 9, 2025

In this engaging episode of Bad On Paper, hosts Becca Freeman and Olivia Muenter dive into a fun and introspective "Desert Island Picks" segment. Stripped of the usual advertisements and introductions, the conversation centers around personal highs and lows, as well as what they would choose to bring with them if stranded on a desert island. The episode is rich with personal anecdotes, thoughtful reflections, and playful banter, making it both relatable and entertaining for listeners.

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1. Personal Highs and Lows

Becca Freeman's High: Family Time Becca shares a heartwarming highlight from her weekend spent in Boston. “Yesterday we went to the Cheesecake Factory with my friend's two kids... I taught my friend's son, who's the older one, thumbs up and thumbs down, which was a big hit” (00:49). She emphasizes the importance of maintaining relationships with her friends' children, even though she personally doesn’t desire having kids of her own.

Olivia Muenter's High: Avid Reading Olivia discusses her newfound passion for reading, attributing it to her disciplined approach to reducing phone usage before bed. “I've just found that my reading has gone up exponentially. I'm like averaging four or five books a week right now” (01:54). She details her routine of reading two hours every night and an additional hour in the morning, along with weekend reading sessions.

Becca Freeman's Low: Financial Uncertainty Becca opens up about missing her June income goal, marking the first time this year she fell short. “I kind of sent me into a little bit of a spiral... I just don't like the uncertainty” (04:21). She discusses the challenges of a non-traditional portfolio career, including inconsistent income and the stress of not having financial visibility.

Olivia Muenter's Low: Dealing with Allergies Olivia shares concerns about her partner Jake's severe allergies, which were recently diagnosed by an allergist. “Turns out he is quite allergic to dogs. Oh, no. And not only that, but trees. Like, all trees” (05:49). She expresses empathy for Jake's predicament and the impact it has on their daily lives, highlighting the difficulties of managing unexpected health issues.

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2. Desert Island Picks

Books to Read for the Rest of Time

Becca Freeman's Choice: Becca deliberates on selecting a book that offers depth and the potential for repeated readings without growing tiresome. She considers The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer and The Wedding People by Alison Sbach, appreciating their complex characters and rich storytelling. “I need something that I can constantly be rereading and finding new layers to” (12:01).

Olivia Muenter's Choice: Olivia opts for titles that resemble modern classics with substantial content. She chooses Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver and The God of the Woods by Liz Moore, both of which she believes offer intricate plots and character development suitable for sustained engagement. “I savored it. There's so much to think about” (15:02).

Beach Reads

Becca Freeman's Pick: Becca selects People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry, praising its fun and romantic elements. “This book is Vacation in a Book. It's so fun. It's a little sexy” (17:53). She notes the upcoming Netflix adaptation as a testament to its popularity.

Olivia Muenter's Pick: Olivia chooses The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller, describing it as a "thinking man's beach read" due to its strong emphasis on place, water, and atmospheric beauty. She acknowledges the book's darker themes but appreciates its overall depth. “It's so much based on, like, place and water and sky and beauty” (17:09).

Favorite Books to Recommend

Becca Freeman's Recommendation: Becca advocates for The Idea of You by Robinne Lee, highlighting it as a top-tier romance novel that can serve as an excellent gateway into the romance genre. “If you're a romance reader, it really hits the marks” (18:40).

Olivia Muenter's Recommendation: Olivia recommends Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, praising its universal appeal and storytelling. “It's a very rare thing to be as universally appealing as I think this book is” (19:08). She discusses the allure of its trailer and the star-studded cast, expressing excitement for the film adaptation.

Movies to Watch Forever

Becca Freeman's Choice: Becca selects The Family Stone, appreciating its affirmation of the human condition and the balance of humor and drama. “It's about family loving each other... it feels like it has kind of a spectrum” (25:08).

Olivia Muenter's Choice: Olivia picks Ever After, admiring its romantic narrative despite some quirky casting choices. “It's just beautiful, too. And I also just love a poofy sleeve” (27:39). She humorously critiques Leonardo da Vinci's inclusion in the Cinderella story.

TV Shows to Watch Forever

Becca Freeman's Pick: Becca opts for New Girl, valuing its consistent humor and the density of jokes across episodes. “A lot of episodes... I laugh out loud at something every episode” (29:07).

Olivia Muenter's Pick: Olivia chooses Fleabag, lauding its sharp writing and memorable scenes. “I could watch that all the time” (28:53). She reminisces about iconic moments from the show, such as the "hot priest" scene.

Actors' Filmographies to Watch Forever

Becca Freeman's Choice: Becca decides on Julia Roberts, citing her extensive and beloved filmography including Notting Hill, Erin Brockovich, and Pretty Woman. “It gets me a lot of movies that I enjoy” (31:19).

Olivia Muenter's Choice: Olivia gravitates towards Cate Blanchett and Toni Collette, appreciating their versatile acting skills across various genres. “I always like everything that Cate Blanchett is in for the most part” (30:11). She also humorously mentions Jesse Plemons and Robin Williams as ideal picks.

Food Choices

Becca Freeman's Pick: Tacos Becca chooses tacos for their versatility and ability to be endlessly varied with different fillings and toppings. “I think that you could put in different fillings... I could keep it up for eternity” (39:16).

Olivia Muenter's Pick: Poke Olivia selects poke for its satisfying combination of flavors and textures. “I could do it all day, every day. Honestly. Send me to Hawaii, someone” (38:27). Despite Becca’s concerns about the monotony, Olivia remains enthusiastic about her choice.

Breakfast Choices:

• Becca Freeman: Chooses chilaquiles for their hearty and varied components, avoiding egg-based meals due to fluctuating preferences. “I'm going chilaquiles in this fictional world where I can only have one” (40:47).

• Olivia Muenter: Settles on a balanced meal of sourdough toast with butter, medium eggs, and jam, appreciating the mix of sweet and savory. “It was the exact thing I needed” (40:08).

Dessert Selections

• Becca Freeman: Opts for funfetti cupcakes, reveling in their simple joy and frosting. “I have never been not delighted when presented with a funfetti cupcake” (44:45).

• Olivia Muenter: Prefers dense, moist cakes like yellow cake with thin chocolate frosting and sticky toffee pudding. “I love a dense, moist cake” (45:07).

Beverage Choices

• Becca Freeman: Chooses grapefruit seltzer for its refreshing yet specific flavor. “I think that it is the most neutral tasting seltzer that isn't plain” (46:45).

• Olivia Muenter: Selects Diet Coke, balancing between practicality and personal preference. “I would have to go with Diet Coke” (47:28).

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3. Additional Segments and Personal Obsessions

Personal Obsessions:

• Becca Freeman: Enthralled by Cozy Earth's temperature-regulating bamboo sheets, which help her maintain comfortable sleep despite her hot apartment. “I am obsessed with this. This was exactly what I needed” (53:16).

• Olivia Muenter: Fascinated by the Australian brand Dish, particularly their flowy linen dresses. She admires their timeless designs and high-quality materials, despite the limited sizing options. “I love discovering new brands” (55:07).

Book Club Selections:

• Olivia Muenter: Shares her recent reads, including Tilt by Emma P. Petit, Migrations by Charlotte McConaghey, The Turnout by Megan Abbott, and The Compound by Ashlyn Rawl. She highlights each book’s unique qualities and the emotional impact they had on her.

• Becca Freeman: Recommends Heart the Lover by Lily King and Aftertaste by Daria Lavelle, praising their deep narratives and exceptional writing. She also mentions choosing Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid for their upcoming book club.

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4. Conclusion and Community Engagement

Becca and Olivia wrap up the episode by encouraging listeners to join their community on various platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and Substack. They invite audiences to engage in discussions, defend their unique choices (like grapefruit seltzer), and stay connected for future episodes.

Notable Quote: Olivia emphasizes the importance of community and shared experiences, saying, “Let’s get out of this and into some men matter” (53:16), illustrating their blend of seriousness and humor.

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Key Takeaways:

• Personal Connections: Both hosts value meaningful relationships and personal growth, reflected in their highs and lows.
• Diverse Preferences: Their desert island picks showcase a wide range of tastes in books, movies, and food, highlighting their individuality.
• Community Focus: Engaging with listeners through social media and book clubs underlines their commitment to building a supportive and interactive audience.

This episode of Bad On Paper not only provides delightful insights into the hosts' personal preferences but also offers listeners a chance to reflect on their own choices and connect with a community of like-minded book and movie enthusiasts.

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Feel free to join the conversation and share your own desert island picks on their social platforms!

Transcript

[Olivia]

Hi everyone and welcome to Bow Paper Podcast. I'm Olivia, mentor.

[Becca Freeman]

And I'm Becca Freeman.

[Olivia]

Becca, tell us about this episode.

[Becca Freeman]

It's a weird one. I thought we could play a little game, kind of a game. We're going to do a Desert Island Picks episode. I feel like it's a weird week in the scheme of things. I feel like with the holiday last week, some people are taking this week off. If you're at your desk, you're angry about it, like it's not a serious week and we're not going to be serious people.

[Olivia]

We need something light.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah.

[Olivia]

Well, tell me your high.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay. So last weekend I was in Boston visiting friends and that was a high in and of itself. And my specific high was getting to spend some time on Sunday with my friend's two kids who are 2 and 3. And I haven't seen them in so long. And even though I don't want kids myself, it is important to me to spend time with my friend's kids and for them to know me and to, I don't know, be a person in their life. And so on Sunday we went to the Cheesecake Factory with my friend's two kids. Very nice. I think they're frequent flyers there. They live very close to it. And we hung out all day. I taught my friend's son, who's the older one, thumbs up and thumbs down, which was a big hit.

[Olivia]

Oh, that's like. That's crucial development as a human big hit.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah, I really liked thumbs up and thumbs down.

[Olivia]

Very impactful.

[Becca Freeman]

But it was so fun.

[Olivia]

Good. I'm so glad. It sounds like such a nice, relaxing, low key time.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah. What about you? What was your high?

[Olivia]

I have just been reading so much lately.

[Becca Freeman]

Indoor cat summer.

[Olivia]

Yeah, I. I'm reading some out. Out outside too, so. So, you know, reading in all the places mostly it's a lot of reading in bed though. I have been more disciplined about keeping my phone away from me when I'm in bed. So I've just found that my reading has gone up exponentially. I'm like averaging four or five books a week right now.

[Becca Freeman]

Oh my gosh.

[Olivia]

Which is really extreme for me. I don't know what happened. I just. My brain kicked off.

[Becca Freeman]

How much earlier before you go to sleep, are you getting into bed?

[Olivia]

Two hours.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay.

[Olivia]

So. So I'm. I've been reading for probably like two hours every night and one hour in the morning.

[Becca Freeman]

Wow, you're getting ready.

[Olivia]

And then on the weekends a few hours. So yeah, it's been good because Man, I have some books to go through, so it's been, it's been really nice.

[Becca Freeman]

Can't wait to hear about them.

[Olivia]

What's your low?

[Becca Freeman]

So my low is that you all know that one of my goals this year is to really focus on my income situation and figuring out diversifying away. Away from books and focusing on other revenue streams. And I missed my June income goal, which was the first time this year that I've been off. And it kind of sent me into a little bit of a spiral. I think this is the part of having this type of like portfolio career non traditional job that I really hate because even when I was freelancing, I feel like I had, you know, like, people don't pay invoices on time or, you know, you don't have a lot of work one month, but like, you have visibility into that going forward versus I feel like I come into every month and it's like, okay, clean slate. What's gonna happen? Which is scary. And I don't have visibility, which I don't like. So we didn't get paid for the podcast because we had a few lower months for advertising. We need to pay out all of the people who work for us. Our editor Maddie, who does our show notes and social media, Courtney, who does our advertising. We need to pay them out first. And so we didn't get paid, which is fine. And then substack. I guess I just didn't have enough, like bangers of paid posts to get people to subscribe. I don't know. So I didn't hit it. I don't think it's a trend necessarily, but I just don't like the uncertainty.

[Olivia]

Yeah, I know that feeling very well. And there will be a month, though, that you will exceed. That's always how it goes in freelancing. You have months. You're like, what happened? Why was this so different than last year's June? Or whatever, but especially I think towards the end of the year with holiday shopping and stuff and affiliate linking. Like, I think it'll all balance out, but I know that feeling. It is. It's not great. Yeah, it's not great at all.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah. And I don't get my next book payment until it's done. So, you know, we're a little ways from that.

[Olivia]

Yeah. Well, here's to a good July for us all.

[Becca Freeman]

I hope so. What about you? What's your low?

[Olivia]

Milo is just that I have been waking up with like a really sore, not really sore, but just kind of an irritated throat, like for the Past week or so. And I think maybe it's because of the air conditioning. We've just been running it on full blast. So it's like, you know, a dry wasteland in my bedroom. But cold, which I'll take.

[Becca Freeman]

Sure.

[Olivia]

And I've had, like a little bit of post nasal drip. This is also kind of a related low. So I think I've talked to you about this before. Jake has been congested as long as I've known him. Basically, like, he will just have these moments throughout the day. Right. And he got surgery thinking this will fix it. And it's just. I can tell it's uncomfortable for him. Like, it's very random. So finally, he went to the allergist this week.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay.

[Olivia]

Turns out he is quite allergic to dogs. Oh, no. And not only that, but trees. Like, all trees.

[Becca Freeman]

Oh, no.

[Olivia]

And I'm like. And so the allergist was like, so you're working inside all day with your dog next to you, and then you go outside and work outside for hours amongst the ragweed. He's very allergic to. And trees. Should we get him on the dog? He's allergic to basically all trees. So, anyway, I've just. I had allergies on the mind, so I've been wondering, like, am I having allergies or something? But no, I feel really bad for him because now he has to decide whether to do half. Have you heard of allergy shots? Yeah, I've never heard of. I'm, as far as I know, not allergic to anything, so I've never heard of this. But it's a long process. Yeah. And so the doctor was like, you have to decide, like, you know, do you want to feel better in three years, basically, or do you just want to live with this as you have been for many, many years? So anyway, I feel bad for him. He's allergic to cats too, apparently, but less so than dogs. And yeah, he was like, I feel so weak. I'm like, this is such a man reaction.

[Becca Freeman]

Does he.

[Olivia]

You literally have no control over this.

[Becca Freeman]

Jake, does he ever feel less congested? Have either of you noticed when you're on vacation away from Winnie?

[Olivia]

Sometimes, yeah. It's just. I mean, we've been trying to figure it out for years. It's just very random.

[Becca Freeman]

Huh.

[Olivia]

So sometimes yes, sometimes no. But also, I kind of think he's also allergic to certain foods and drinks. He did the environmental panel, so I don't know. We'll see. Jake. So fragile.

[Becca Freeman]

Our fragile boy.

[Olivia]

Our fragile boy.

[Becca Freeman]

Anyway, put that on a T shirt. You know I love making a one off merch. Just make him a T shirt that says our fragile boy.

[Olivia]

I love that. Yeah, but he'll survive and that's most important. So that's it.

[Becca Freeman]

Shout out to our fragile boy. But before we get into thoughts and.

[Olivia]

Prayers to our fragile boy, does Jake.

[Becca Freeman]

Listen to the podcast anymore?

[Olivia]

He does, but like sporadically.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay, I can't wait to see. I can't wait to see if he listens to this. And this circles back.

[Olivia]

I have to tell you, by the way, this news, if you think it's changed how Jake spends time outside. Absolutely not. Like every time of day I'm like, where is Jake? Outside with the trees. Like literally just outside with the exact tree he's allergic to, cutting it down or trimming it or whatever. So you know, he can't be stopped. He will push through. He will persevere.

[Becca Freeman]

Thoughts and prayers. Before we get into this episode, let's take an ad break. We were talking about dream summer dinner parties last week and three things and it really planted something for me. And I'm on one. I have not been invited to a single dreamy outdoor chef catered, candle dripping, wine soaked dinner party this summer. And maybe you haven't either and you're inspired to try to make this dinner party a reality. Or on the flip side, maybe you're just hosting some fun summer barbecues this summer. Well, Wayfair is your one stop shop for outdoor entertaining. Whether you need the big things like patio tables, lounge chairs, grocery stores, grills or umbrellas, or the small stuff like serveware, string lights to set the mood, tabletop decor, and more.

[Olivia]

Personally, I have been in search of something very specific which is a non ugly kiddie pool for adults. Oh, because I just want to sit in a body of water and read my books right now. That's all I want. And in our backyard we have this circular garden and I'm always like, what am I going to put in the center of that circle? The grassy area? And I'm like, I think I should put some sort of acute adult pool. Love that video. Plastic or something. I don't know. Anyway, you know who has a lot of options? Wayfair. And Wayfair really does make it so easy to find exactly what you're looking for. Even something as specific as an adult kiddie pool. And I do realize that is contradictory. But if you use their extensive filters for color, price, material, dimensions, and so much more, you can truly find the exact thing you need for your outdoor space. And if you're In a time crunch. They also have free and fast shipping and even on the big stuff, so you can prepare for those very hot days ahead of time, even if it's just a couple of days ahead of time.

[Becca Freeman]

Wayfair has something for every style and every home, no matter your space or your budget. Shop outdoor furniture, grills, lawn games, and way more for way less. Head to Wayfair.com right now to explore a huge outdoor selection that's W a Y F A I R.com Wayfair Every style, every home. Okay, Olivia, I have curated way too many prompts for us today across a myriad of categories. I saw this in a newsletter, I think, last summer. Hillary Kerr, who has a newsletter, I think it's called, hey, everybody, did you can only have one? And I think it was mostly fashion and beauty centric, but I just loved the idea. I mean, it's basically just favorites. Well, it's favorites, but I think it's a little more strategic than that.

[Olivia]

I struggled with this because I kept thinking, first of all, I really struggled to choose one thing.

[Becca Freeman]

I know it's really hard to pick favorites as an adult. Like, as a kid, I was like, my favorite color is pink. My favorite movie is this. I was so certain. And as an adult, you're like, well, what does this say about me? Well, I like this, too. Is this my favorite? Like, it's just I have a lot less confidence in something that is purely personal opinion.

[Olivia]

I also, like, kept thinking about the desert island of it all.

[Becca Freeman]

Yes.

[Olivia]

Like, I kept actually thinking about the desert island, which changes things.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah. I don't know if it's desert island in terms of, like, you are Tom Hanks with your coconut on the beach.

[Olivia]

I was thinking that, like, I think.

[Becca Freeman]

It'S just you can only have one. So it's your life, but you only get one for the rest of your life.

[Olivia]

Well, let's kick it off with books, obviously.

[Becca Freeman]

Honestly, Olivia, this is actually. These ones are the hardest.

[Olivia]

I opened the outline this morning and I was like, I don't know.

[Becca Freeman]

I know.

[Olivia]

I stared at my book pile and I was like, what do I choose? I tried to. I tried to approach these from specific angles, though, so I'm curious to hear if you did too. But. Okay, what about one book to read for the rest of time? It's so big.

[Becca Freeman]

It's so cruel and unusual. Okay, so the way that I was thinking about this was that it probably needs to be something that I can constantly be rereading and finding new layers to. Like, it can't be something easy breezy, because I feel like after a few reads, you would get annoyed. You would get annoyed, and you would not want to read it again, and then you would have nothing. So I came up with two options, which I know is not the prompt, but I truly cannot come up with one. So the first one is something that I read a long time ago and I've been wanting to reread. So I'm not even sure if I stand by this, but the Interestings by Meg Wolitzer is a book that I loved. I probably read it in. I don't know, like, whenever it came out. 2013, 2014. I'm not sure.

[Olivia]

When did it come out? I've never read this.

[Becca Freeman]

Came out in 2013. And it's a book about these friends who meet at summer camp as teenagers or preteens, and then how they're still in each other's lives as adults, which is a topic that I'm really interested in. It has dual timelines. I think there's a lot of, like, richness in terms of the relationship complexity. So I'm like. I feel like this is something that I could read and reread and, like, maybe focus on different characters with each read or kind of discover new things reading it multiple times. Because the other thing is, I don't want to punish myself. Like, I don't want to be like, I want Anna Karenina because it's really long, and then you're just stuck with Anna Karenina for the rest of your life.

[Olivia]

Yeah, that would be an insane choice.

[Becca Freeman]

The other one that I thought of that came to mind was the Wedding People by Alison Sbach, because I loved the richness of Phoebe and there's so much density of the character and the background story that I feel like I could read it multiple times and, like, discover new things to be delighted by.

[Olivia]

Yeah, I do agree with that. That was a strong choice.

[Becca Freeman]

How did you approach this? What did you come up with?

[Olivia]

Similarly, I was thinking, I need things, first of all, chunky. I need something that's going to keep my attention again. This is because I was like, I'm on the island.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah.

[Olivia]

Kept going back to. I was like, olivia, that's not the point. But then I just kept going back to being on the island. And I think it works for this one, actually, to kind of have that mindset as well. So I was thinking books that feel like classics, but that I like currently as an adult. The first one I thought of was Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver. I absolutely Loved this.

[Becca Freeman]

On a second book.

[Olivia]

Great. A big book. Took me a long time to get through, but I savored it. I enjoyed it. There's so much to think about. I am confident I would learn something about life and writing were I to spend a lot of time with it. For example, the rest of time.

[Becca Freeman]

That's an interesting facet that I didn't think of. Of what would make you be a better writer.

[Olivia]

Yeah, I was thinking about that for sure, because I was like, I think I'm gonna want something where I can really spend time with each sentence and get something out of it because, you know, I have the rest of time. So similarly to that one, I was thinking of the God of the woods by Liz Moore, which to me also really reads like a classic in a lot of ways. The line level writing, stunning. The plot, great. The mystery keeps you reading. There's multiple characters and points of view, so I think I could approach it. Like, each read I would sort of read focusing on a different character maybe. It's also quite long. I think those are good. It's like modern classics to me.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah, both of those.

[Olivia]

Yeah.

[Becca Freeman]

So we've already completely failed by picking two each.

[Olivia]

To be fair, you chose two, and then I felt emboldened to choose two.

[Becca Freeman]

So we're not doing great at the prompt, but okay. I think we can get better from here. Okay. What about. You can only have one beach read?

[Olivia]

This is so hard. Why?

[Becca Freeman]

You don't even care about beach reads.

[Olivia]

I care about reading on the beach.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay.

[Olivia]

So. And therefore I care about beach reads. And I find that the reading on the beach experience is heightened if you have the right type of book. So for me, I tried to think of the book that I read on the beach that I had the most memorable, life changing, atmospheric, gorgeous experience with. And that had to be the Paper palace by Miranda Callie Heller. Even though it's like the opposite of a beach read in a lot of.

[Becca Freeman]

Ways, it's a thinking man's. It's the thinking man's beach read.

[Olivia]

It's true. Am I the thinking man in this story?

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah, you're the thinking man who's married to our fragile boy and together.

[Olivia]

What a couple we make. Yeah, but it is so much based on, like, place and water and sky and beauty. And so to me, that's the type of beach read I love. As well as absolute banger of a page turner. My opinion. Sure. Is there a little bit of darkness and child abuse in there? Yes, but that's fine. You get past that. You're Great.

[Becca Freeman]

Maybe I'll finally read this. I don't think this year, but maybe next year.

[Olivia]

It's divisive. It's really divisive. So I. I'd be curious to see where you net out on it, but. Okay, tell me yours, which is probably a more sane pick.

[Becca Freeman]

I would pick People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry, which is my number one. Emily Henry. Also, they announced a release date for the movie. It's coming to Netflix, which I didn't realize it is coming. I think January 9th of 2026, which is kind of weird timing. Feels like a summer movie. But I was thinking about it and I was like, my cold, sad, January self might be pretty happy to have this.

[Olivia]

Yeah, that's a good point. And I kind of feel like if they were like, this is the soonest we can get it out. They were like, we're gonna get it out then.

[Becca Freeman]

True.

[Olivia]

You know, true. Because everyone will watch it no matter what time of year. But I see your point.

[Becca Freeman]

But yeah, I think this book is Vacation in a Book. It's so fun. It's a little sexy. I've read this many times and I could keep rereading it.

[Olivia]

That's a huge vote of confidence right there. Okay, what about your favorite book to recommend?

[Becca Freeman]

Obviously, the idea of you. I think that the idea of you is a best in class romance. So if you're a romance reader, it really hits the marks and I think it's a good gateway drug. So the drug being romance. So I think if you're not a romance reader. I've had many people say that this is what converted them. So, yeah, I'm going with the. The idea of you.

[Olivia]

It's a good question.

[Becca Freeman]

What are you going with?

[Olivia]

I'm going in different direction, but I think it's a good one because it gives us a chance to talk about something which I feel we must touch on at least briefly.

[Becca Freeman]

Yes.

[Olivia]

My book to recommend always is Project Hail Mary, We Know this by Andy Weir.

[Becca Freeman]

I think that's an incredible recommendation. Crowd pleaser.

[Olivia]

Thank you.

[Becca Freeman]

It really is crowd pleaser. And also doesn't matter if you think that you would like this book.

[Olivia]

Yes, it's a very rare thing to be as universally appealing as I think this book is. Okay. Have you watched the trailer?

[Becca Freeman]

Obviously I have.

[Olivia]

What did you think?

[Becca Freeman]

I thought it looked really good. I thought that it was a little more spoilery than I expected. I won't repeat the parts that I think are spoilery here because I think there might be some people in the Audience who want to read the book before the movie comes out a little more spoilery than I expected. I think it overall looks really, really good. When the Harry Styles song started, I was like, yes, absolutely incredible music. I think it's going to be great. You know that my main reservation, which I still have not scene addressed, is how Rocky comes across in both visually and sound wise.

[Olivia]

We got a little taste of it.

[Becca Freeman]

Just the tiniest, but not enough to know because I feel like this could go so accidentally funny so fast if. If they don't get it right.

[Olivia]

I hear you. I. I have faith in them. But speaking of humor, one thing about the trailer, which overall I loved, I was like, oh, this is going to be a movie event I'm excited for. I didn't find the jokes in the trailer that funny, and I don't think that's a huge problem, but I do worry that they. Do you ever watch a trailer that's hilarious and then you get to the movie and it's like, oh, those were the best jokes.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah.

[Olivia]

And nothing else is funny.

[Becca Freeman]

I don't think this is supposed to be a particularly funny book. Like, at no point did I laugh out loud during the book. It's kind of like a type of laugh.

[Olivia]

Yeah. I mean, I found parts of it very funny, and I found the tone of Ryland very funny. But I guess I'm. Maybe it's not that it wasn't funny. It's just like some of the tone didn't match the book exactly, in my opinion. But it's just the trailer, you know, I will say Ryan Gosling as an elementary school teacher is everything I've ever wanted.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah.

[Olivia]

It's just. It worked for me. I thought he was so cute in the trailer. Not the, like, full beard and the spaceship version, but, like, when he's in the classroom, I'm like, great. I'm into it.

[Becca Freeman]

Honestly, I don't know that There are many incarnations of Ryan Gosling that don't do it for me.

[Olivia]

What about Ken? I wasn't into Ken.

[Becca Freeman]

I thought it was so funny. I thought it was just like, such. Well, yeah, I mean, commitment to the performance.

[Olivia]

The performance was great, but, like, at no point was I, like, that's my type.

[Becca Freeman]

No, me either. But, like, would I say no?

[Olivia]

Well, I'm excited.

[Becca Freeman]

Me too.

[Olivia]

March 20th soon mark our calendars. Not really. It's like, basically a year. All right, well, okay, let's move on to the next category, which I find very difficult, but you have a good pick for. And that is the one book to gift.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay. I love to gift a book. I think it is like an ultimate love language to gift somebody a book that I have loved. Last summer, I was gifting people, the wedding people. Not even for an occasion, just because somebody I know who loves to read, I wanted them to read this too. I think that as kind of a one size fits all book to gift, I would pick Big Magic, first of all, because it's been very impactful to me, so I would like to share that with other people. But also because I think no matter whether you are professionally a creative person or are just somebody who works in a non creative field, like, I think we all have creativity within us. And I think especially given how addicted we are societally to our smartphones, like, I just think that anybody could get something out of this.

[Olivia]

That's a good choice. It's a good book.

[Becca Freeman]

Did you come up with anything?

[Olivia]

No, I do not give books.

[Becca Freeman]

Interesting. That is actually fairly surprising.

[Olivia]

Really?

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah. For somebody who loves buying books so much, I would think that at some point you would be like, oh, my gosh, my mom would love this. Or because you have other people in your life who are big readers, like, I would think that you would get kicks out of matchmaking people with books.

[Olivia]

I think of it kind of like gifting someone a book to me feels very vulnerable. In the same way that when I come on here and I'm like, I love this book with my whole soul. And then someone in the Facebook group is like, I hated every second of this. I'm like, crushed by it. And it's like, oh, no, I failed you. I feel like I'm wrong. I put myself out there and I was wrong. It feels very vulnerable to me, I guess, is what I'm saying. I also think that when people, for example, when you say, oh, you're gonna love this book, I believe you. And, like, I keep an eye out for that book. But, like, there are so many other books in my head, you know, and so I don't always get to it right away. And I don't know, I'm not really making a point. Maybe I just am hoarding all the books for myself. I'm now realizing maybe I'm just selfish.

[Becca Freeman]

I don't think that's true. But I understand what you're saying, that it is very personal versus I just want to force my taste on everyone. Because if I love it, I want everyone to love it so we can talk about how much we love it.

[Olivia]

I approach book recommendations, like, I love this. That's all I can tell you. Because everyone is so individual, you know, like, sometimes I've gifted people books. I'd be like, you're going to love this. Don't like it at all. And so you've been burned, I've been burned. You know, all I can tell you is I loved it. Do with that what you will.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay, let's go to the next one movie. I cannot tell you how hard I struggled here.

[Olivia]

I need to hear about your pick because I think it's a very interesting choice what you've gone with. I get it.

[Becca Freeman]

But, like, literally had so much trouble. So my preferred watching is a rom com. I think I would get annoyed so fast with only having that to watch for the rest of my life for most rom coms, because there's usually something silly or annoying that, like, would just become grating. I'm willing to overlook it when I watch it, you know, spaced out over the course of months or years. But if I'm watching it every day, no, we can't do that. I don't even think this is my favorite movie by a long shot. But for some reason, I came up with the Family Stone because I think that I want something that is ultimately affirming, like, about the human condition, which I think the Family Stone is. It's about family loving each other. It's about these Sarah Jessica Parker being this very uptight, somewhat unlikable person coming into this family situation and, like, finding acceptance. So I like the positivity. I think it has funny moments. I think it has sad moments. Like, it feels like it has kind of a spectrum. Like, I could watch it when I'm sad and cry. I could watch it when I'm happy and laugh. I don't know that I stand by this pic if you ask me again in two months. But that is where I landed after honestly, not an insignificant amount of consideration.

[Olivia]

It's a tough question. I also really enjoyed the Family Stone. I think I've talked about this here before. The scene at dinner where one of the parents yells at Sarah Jessica Parker's character because she says something completely rude and inappropriate.

[Becca Freeman]

Yes.

[Olivia]

Is the most secondhand discomfort and awkwardness I have ever experienced in a film in my life. I remember watching it as a teenager and just being like, oh, my God, this is the worst I've ever felt in my life. But it's also a good movie and the vibes are immaculate, I think. I agree.

[Becca Freeman]

Good cast, too.

[Olivia]

Very, very good.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay. Where did you find yourself?

[Olivia]

It's gotta be ever After. I mean, no one is surprised that knows me, but I think it's just.

[Becca Freeman]

The best I should rewatch that. I haven't seen that since I was a kid.

[Olivia]

I mean, you have to contend with Drew Barrymore doing, like, a vaguely generalized European accent, despite the fact that the movie is taking place in France. But. And there's also Leonardo da Vinci, which. I don't know why he had to be in it, but I accepted. But honestly, it's very romantic.

[Becca Freeman]

Or Leonardo da Vinci.

[Olivia]

Oh, no, Leonardo da Vinci is a character. You're like, when does he come into the Cinderella story? Well, never. You'll have to watch to find out. Oh, also the costumes.

[Becca Freeman]

Oh, yeah.

[Olivia]

Oh, I can quote it all, which just feels fun, you know, it's like I'm kind of having a conversation with the movie. It's like a test.

[Becca Freeman]

Yep.

[Olivia]

Like, oh, a game. It's just beautiful, too. And I also just love a poofy sleeve. You know, the wings, the face glitter, the wings, the hair of the prince. I don't know if you've looked up this guy in a while. He's been in my.

[Becca Freeman]

Remember him at all? I remember that one shot of Drew Barrymore. Oh, the, like, iconic one.

[Olivia]

He's a handsome lad. It's a great head of hair. Excellent TV show. Also difficult. At first, I thought Boy Meets World because there's so much of it.

[Becca Freeman]

So much of it, yes.

[Olivia]

So much of it is cheesy. So much of it is bad. But a lot of it is still funny and has held up. But I will go a little more highbrow and I will say fleabag. I will go. I could watch that all the time.

[Becca Freeman]

I think that's a very. A very good choice.

[Olivia]

Do you remember watching the hot priest, like, kneel scene for the first time? Is that also burned into your memory? Yes, I just. It was, I don't know, formative for me somehow. Okay, what's yours?

[Becca Freeman]

I would pick New Girl Again. A lot of episodes.

[Olivia]

Great choice.

[Becca Freeman]

And I feel like not all of it holds up, but I do feel like the density of jokes and I feel like I laugh out loud at something every episode.

[Olivia]

It's it. Yes. So funny. I think that's enough of the time.

[Becca Freeman]

I want to be laughing. If I can only have one show for the rest of time, it's a good choice.

[Olivia]

That's a high ranking for me as well. Okay.

[Becca Freeman]

I was really proud of this prompt. Okay. You can only watch one actor's filmography for the rest of time. Where are you going?

[Olivia]

So I Chose one man. Well, I chose two women and one man, which is not one.

[Becca Freeman]

Not at all.

[Olivia]

So we're. We're failing left and right here. Okay. So I always like everything that Cate Blanchett is in for the most part, except for really not a Wes Anderson person at all. Just for the record, need to watch.

[Becca Freeman]

All of it, but it's just, like, the only stuff you have.

[Olivia]

Yes.

[Becca Freeman]

So what does that get you? What does this net you that you're really excited about?

[Olivia]

I don't know. I mean, I approach this just as I really like them as actors, and I think they're always an interesting thing. So, like, there's a lot I could discover.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay.

[Olivia]

I think she's great in Carol. I watched. Watched that a couple years ago. It was very good. I just watched her in that HBO Max show, that, like, true crime sort of drama adaptation of a book. She was really good. I also really like Toni Collette, I think is good in almost everything.

[Becca Freeman]

You approach this very differently than I did.

[Olivia]

Yes. I approached it like, here's an actor I like, and I would like to watch everything they're in. I would like to have more to discover. Not.

[Becca Freeman]

I approach it like I've watched everything. Like, I'm trying to, like, get ownership of things that are certain properties.

[Olivia]

Explain that to me.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay, so I think I'm netting out on Julia Roberts, because that gets me Notting Hill, which I love. That gets me Erin Brockovich, which I think is a great movie. That nets me My Best Friend's Wedding, the Ocean's Movies, Pretty Woman, Closer. Like, it gets me a lot of movies that I enjoy.

[Olivia]

I see. This is definitely a different approach.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay.

[Olivia]

And. And I respect it. I appreciate it. It would definitely change my answer as well, but I'd have to think about it.

[Becca Freeman]

I was trying to annex things that I enjoy.

[Olivia]

Okay. That's hard because I enjoy such a wide range of things. You almost have to choose the most prolific actor.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah, you're definitely choosing from a smaller pool. I considered Meryl Streep because that gets you Mamma Mia. That gets you The Devil Wears Prada. That gets you. It's complicated. I haven't seen a lot of Meryl Streep's early work, so I don't have any nostalgia for it. And it's probably good, but I'm like, I don't know that I care as much as, like, I care a lot about Julia Roberts early work.

[Olivia]

Okay. See, I also had Jesse Plemons on my list. Cause I think he's always in really Interesting things. And I weirdly love the movie Game Night, which he's in. It's like this. But he also just super serious things. So I. I was like, oh, it'd be interesting to watch his career choices. And I think his career trajectory has been interesting as a whole. But then I would have to watch a lot of Yorgos Lanthimos. Is that how you say is the director's name movies? And I truly cannot do that. Like, I can't pour things like the whole kinds of kindness. No, I. Not for me. Pass. But anyone else I would pick if.

[Becca Freeman]

I was doing an actor, as in a male, I would pick Robin Williams because that would get me Mrs. Doubtfire. That would get me the Birdcage. I loved Patch Adams when I was a kid. I haven't seen that in a very long time. It would get me. It would get me a lot of things.

[Olivia]

That's a solid choice. What a loss for all of us, honestly. What a person.

[Becca Freeman]

Truly.

[Olivia]

He was a special actor.

[Becca Freeman]

I don't think we have an equivalent currently.

[Olivia]

No, I don't think we do. And I honestly don't know if we will.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah, I agree. Okay, quickly on these next two, because we agree. Phone app.

[Olivia]

Well, I said text.

[Becca Freeman]

I said text.

[Olivia]

But then I was thinking, like, if we're actually on the desert island, maybe I would need entertainment.

[Becca Freeman]

Oh.

[Olivia]

So I got confused. But textile.

[Becca Freeman]

I'm saying text because I would want communication. It would be difficult because for practicality, I should probably say maps. So I am able to stay in contact with you, but am I going to be able to find you? Tbd Depends where you are.

[Olivia]

It's true. Do you ever think about the fact that like 20 years ago or 30 years ago, people just went places and just kind of, you know, were like following signs just on the road and not using their phone to get absolutely everywhere. Like, I think about people going on road trips. Like, when I go on a road trip, I'm like, we're gonna stop here. We're gon to stop here. We're going to stop at this weird place. Truly, people were just out there with physical maps. And I realize that's a ridiculous statement, but I rely so heavily on my phone for directions. Like, I could not. I could get to New York City.

[Becca Freeman]

But even in my city and places I go frequently. If you took away maps, I would be anxious.

[Olivia]

Oh, yeah. I would not be able to function, which is disturbing. Like, if you gave me a map of the physical map of the United States and you were like, get to Oregon, Olivia Maybe, but maybe not, you know. Okay, what about social media substack? Care to expand? I I feel like similarly I feel.

[Becca Freeman]

Like it's less addictive. I feel like it is higher in quality and substance and I feel like it's where I'm currently getting the most enjoyment.

[Olivia]

I I would agree. I get the most like knowledge out of substack and good feelings. I still do find it addictive, but that is me personally. I think it's less so than pretty much every other social media app.

[Becca Freeman]

So it has become clear that I have vastly over planned in terms of content. So I'm going to put it to you Olivia. This is choose your own adventure. As far as a second category, would you prefer to do clothing, beauty or food?

[Olivia]

Food.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay, great. Let's take a quick ad break and we're going to come back with food. I think my sleep quality is a lot more variable in the summer because I cannot sleep if I am too hot. And in my very old apartment without central air conditioning that can be a challenge. So right now I'm all about the extras that make my sleep a little bit better. And one of those things is Cozy Earth's temperature regulating bamboo sheets. These are made with viscose from bamboo and naturally wick away heat and moisture helping you to sleep several degrees cooler. And I was really skeptical about this claim, but I can actually tell a difference when I have Cozy Earth sheets on my bed versus not and they just keep getting softer and softer the more times I wash them.

[Olivia]

Take it from someone who sleeps with two heat radiating creatures, the Cozy Earth sheets make a big difference. And if you are still skeptical you should know that Cozy earth offers a 100 night sleep trial so you can try them during the very hottest nights of the year. And if you are not as in love with them as we are, then you can return them hassle free. And I think this is probably the best part of Cozy Earth and the best proof that it really is as good as we say they are. They also have a 10 year warranty on all bedding products so you know that you are getting high quality bedding that will last longer than just one season or two.

[Becca Freeman]

I'm pretty sure these have been on Oprah's Favorite things before and with good reason. So upgrade your summer go to cozyearth.com and use code BOP for 40% off best selling temperature regulating sheets, apparel and more. Trust me, you'll feel the difference the very first night. Again, that's cozyearth.com and use code B O P for 40% off. Sleep cooler, lounge lighter. Stay cozy. All right, Olivia, you have chosen food as our second topic. Food.

[Olivia]

I don't know why I did that.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay. You can only have one meal for the rest of time.

[Olivia]

I realize now, looking at this outline, that I have chosen three.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah, you've chosen about seven for each of these categories.

[Olivia]

I'm so sorry. I was like. The point is one thing that was like. No.

[Becca Freeman]

How about five?

[Olivia]

Steering away from that. Okay. This is such a hard.

[Becca Freeman]

It needs to be. It's supposed to be a hard question.

[Olivia]

Okay, I guess I'll go with the first thing I wrote if I had to, which is dumplings with black vinegar. Soup dumplings are also great. Specifically, I want the steamed soft dumplings. I do like the fried crispy ones. There's nothing better than just, like, a chewy, gooey dumpling with vinegar. I can't even tell you. It is. I don't know, my lifeblood.

[Becca Freeman]

Wow.

[Olivia]

I'm in a really goofy mood.

[Becca Freeman]

I don't know if you can tell. Hey, that's okay. I think it's good for the episode.

[Olivia]

But also, I have to say. I'm sorry. I have to say I'll cut it down to 2. I love poke so much. Like, I love it so, so much.

[Becca Freeman]

I would not pick poke, as you can only have it for the rest of your life. Imagine eating raw fish for the rest of your life.

[Olivia]

It's like, no problem.

[Becca Freeman]

Oh, no. There are so many situations where I do not want raw fish.

[Olivia]

It checks so many boxes for me. I love.

[Becca Freeman]

You're sick.

[Olivia]

You want raw fish.

[Becca Freeman]

You're hungover. You want raw fish.

[Olivia]

Yeah.

[Becca Freeman]

It's like 100 degrees out. No.

[Olivia]

Perfect. It's cold.

[Becca Freeman]

No.

[Olivia]

I could do it all day, every day. Honestly. Send me to Hawaii, someone. I could be a poke ambassador.

[Becca Freeman]

Big Poke.

[Olivia]

If you're listening, just give me as much sodium as possible. I am there. All right. What about you?

[Becca Freeman]

I'm going tacos. I think that tacos is a meal I could continuously eat, not be sick of. I'm not sure what the rules of this are, but if I can mix it up, you could put in different fillings. Also, even if I can't mix it up, I do think that you could, like, take your taco and put it in a frying pan, and you can kind of make it into a quesadilla if there's cheese. Like, I think the taco is a versatile food that has many components. So theoretically, if I can dress my tacos differently, like, sometimes I could Put, like, guac on them. Sometimes I could put, you know, like, I can. I could, like, mix it up for eternity to, like, keep it interesting.

[Olivia]

A good strategy. I love a taco, but not as much as poke.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah, not as much. What about breakfast? You get one breakfast, you're only eating it for the rest of time.

[Olivia]

Okay. I have two slices of sourdough toast before me. One of them. Well, no, both of them have butter. Good butter.

[Becca Freeman]

Yep.

[Olivia]

One of them has two medium eggs. So the yolk is not solid, not liquid. Yep, medium. And then you use a fork and you smush them so the eggs become a sort of, like, paste. And then on the other toast with the butter, you have jam. So you have sweet, you have savory. You have the butter that sort of cuts everything with this nice, rich fat. Yep, that's it. I was gonna keep going, and then I was like, oh, no, no, that's it. You reached the end.

[Becca Freeman]

Great. You did put two in here. I was wondering if you're gonna try to jam that in. I am staying Mexican and going with chilaquiles.

[Olivia]

That's a good choice.

[Becca Freeman]

I think that I don't wanna do anything that's too egg based because sometimes I feel like eggs are disgusting. Like, I feel like I go in phases where sometimes eggs are great and sometimes eggs are disgusting. And so you could have chilaquiles without eggs. Like, there's chicken, so there's some protein. I thought about doing avocado toast, but I was like, if I was really hungry, I just don't feel like that would be enough. So I'm going chilaquiles in this fictional world where I can only have one. I think my blood pressure is out of control because I'm just eating so much sodium.

[Olivia]

Well, I said black vinegar and dumplings were my lifeblood, so I, too, am not doing well. Yeah, that's fine.

[Becca Freeman]

I think also with my sandwich, which is a buffalo chicken wrap, I'm just also adding on the sodium. Oh, my God. Did you see that opinion article? I can't remember where it was, but it was like a takedown piece about the wrap. And it was like, the wrap is coming back, and it's all about diet culture and the rap sucks and it's inferior to a sandwich. And I was like, I disagree. The point of a wrap is the ratio where, like, sometimes you want the bread, sometimes you want a bready sandwich, but sometimes you just need a vehicle to hold everything together. In the case of a buffalo chicken wrap, and I'm like, I don't want bread too. That's not the star.

[Olivia]

Right. Also, it's a texture thing for me. Like, I love the chewiness of a rap. Also, you know what is a wrap? A burrito. Yep.

[Becca Freeman]

Justice for wraps.

[Olivia]

Justice for wraps. Also, like, don't. Wraps are the one thing that diet culture has not taken from me. Let me have my wraps in all of. Let me have my wrap and let me dip it and ranch.

[Becca Freeman]

A wrap. That's what I want self is like 200 to 300 calories. Like, it's not a diet food.

[Olivia]

No, we've twisted it around because remember when everyone thought wraps were healthy or I mean, healthy is relative. But you know, when everyone thought they were like, low carb, I'm like, guys, no, they're delicious and we should prioritize them as a people. But yeah, I didn't even read it. Ridiculous.

[Becca Freeman]

I was so out. I didn't either. I was outraged by the headline, head.

[Olivia]

To head Buffalo chicken wrap Caesar. You're gonna choose the buffalo chicken?

[Becca Freeman]

Nevermind.

[Olivia]

Yeah, to me, it's like a mood thing. Whether I want the crispy chicken Caesar wrap dipped in like, some sort of a thing or the buffalo dipped in the ranch.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay, sure, I could, you know, if I want less sodium, I think I could also eat a classic turkey sandwich for the rest of my life and be really happy. Like turkey, cheese, avocado, lettuce, tomato, some mayo, mustard.

[Olivia]

Mayo's important.

[Becca Freeman]

But we're gonna here in this world where you can only have one, we're gonna live fast, die young of a heart condition because we're having way too much salt.

[Olivia]

I only died while washing Pretty Woman. Yeah.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay, what about you? What sandwich did you pick?

[Olivia]

My favorite sandwich is one where I make it. I'm at the beach. I take whatever is in the fridge, usually some selection of lunch meat, some pickles, some UTs, potato chips, lots of mayonnaise. Do you want to talk about one thing that diet culture took that I'm reclaiming? Mayonnaise is delicious. And I don't trust anyone who thinks otherwise. Who thinks?

[Becca Freeman]

I mean, I know people who are grossed out by mayonnaise, but I don't know anyone who's not like, oh, I.

[Olivia]

Just grew up in a household where it was like, we eat mustard on sandwiches. Oh, and do you know how sad that is? I think that was like, that was a thing in the atmosphere for a while. But I just love mayonnaise. Part of why I love poke, I think, is the spicy mayo.

[Becca Freeman]

Oh, the spicy mayo.

[Olivia]

Yeah. Anyway, this beach Sandwich is very large. Oh, important. It has to be on a Martin's potato bun.

[Becca Freeman]

Yum.

[Olivia]

Those are the best.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah.

[Olivia]

The combination of the textures is everything. Okay, dessert, I think I'm going simple.

[Becca Freeman]

I have never been not delighted when presented with a funfetti cupcake. Never.

[Olivia]

Good choice.

[Becca Freeman]

I think you could give me one every day, and I would be equally delighted. I would never be like funfetti again.

[Olivia]

It has to be, like, the cheap kind, not fancy funfetti. Like bullshit.

[Becca Freeman]

No milk. And also that's, like, really, like, so light and fluffy in a way where. Because I'm really in it for the frosting as a vehicle.

[Olivia]

See, this is where we. This is where we differ.

[Becca Freeman]

So I don't want a dense cake because I want the. I'm just using it as a way to eat frosting.

[Olivia]

Yeah, see, I could skip the frosting. No, my choice. My choice here was a dense, moist cake. Specifically, I just love the texture of a super dense, very moist cake. Like a deliciously moist yellow cake with a thin layer of chocolate frosting would die for it. Also, sticky toffee pudding is a similar texture to me. Like, very dense, very moist.

[Becca Freeman]

So we have different cake preferences.

[Olivia]

Yeah. I don't light. Light and fluffy. No.

[Becca Freeman]

The only time I like a dense cake is chocolate.

[Olivia]

I do. I love a dense chocolate cake.

[Becca Freeman]

I have to go to a picnic after this, and I might get chocolate cake for it. I have to pick up dessert.

[Olivia]

It sounds so good. Sounds so good. What about ice cream?

[Becca Freeman]

Coffee Oreo all day? It's so rare. I do not feel like coffee oreo is a common flavor.

[Olivia]

You said this like, it's like rocky road. Like, I was like, I. I've never heard of such a combo. No.

[Becca Freeman]

I feel like at ice cream places, sometimes there is coffee Oreo, and it is my favorite. It's certainly not as common as, like, chocolate vanilla, but everyone should have coffee Oreo.

[Olivia]

Well, my choice is cookie dough. I had two listed, but I'm going to restrain myself. Chocolate chip cookie dough. It has to be big globs of cookie dough, though. I don't want those tiny pieces.

[Becca Freeman]

Great.

[Olivia]

This next one. I read this outline this morning, and I thought, what is this? What is this choice that you have made, Becca? What? Tell us the one beverage that you want.

[Becca Freeman]

I don't think there's anything wrong with this.

[Olivia]

This is an insane choice.

[Becca Freeman]

I said grapefruit seltzer. I think that grapefruit is the most neutral seltzer.

[Olivia]

It's grapefruit seltzer.

[Becca Freeman]

I. I think that it is the most neutral tasting seltzer that isn't plain. I wouldn't get sick of it. And I think that even if I couldn't have regular water, I think I could survive on only carbonated water.

[Olivia]

My jaw is on the floor. Okay. I actually had a question about this one, which is, in this scenario, do we have water or is sure okay?

[Becca Freeman]

Don't pick water. That would be so boring.

[Olivia]

Of course that would be. But I would have to go with Diet Coke. But it's only if I also have water, because I can only really do.

[Becca Freeman]

Why is my choice insane?

[Olivia]

Grapefruit seltzer is nuts. I. What? It struggle. I'm not shaming you. Why, but it is so highly specific. Grapefruit is such an intense flavor that clashes with so many things.

[Becca Freeman]

No, it isn't. Haven't you ever had a pomplamous lacroix? Like, it is neutral. It is a whiff of grapefruit.

[Olivia]

Not by choice, but then why not do regular?

[Becca Freeman]

Because I want something a little fun. Those aren't fun enough. And, like, orange vanilla is too fun. It's too.

[Olivia]

To answer your question about the. Why is Diet Coke different? I'm glad you asked. I thought about this too. So I think that it's more of a change from water. You know, it's more of a direction. Like, it's. It's less like water adjacent and more like this is a different thing entirely. I don't mean to shame you, though, but it struck me as. I just. I was like, what is this? Grapefruit seltzer is your one beverage?

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah. I wish I had one right now. Okay, what about a cocktail? One cocktail forever.

[Olivia]

I'm not a cocktail girl, but I do like a Hugo Spritz.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay, well, I don't know how you're gonna feel about this, because it's also grapefruit based. I said a paloma.

[Olivia]

I. That's. That's more acceptable. Why?

[Becca Freeman]

How is that more acceptable?

[Olivia]

It's just. You say the words grapefruit seltzer to me. I'm like, would it have been better.

[Becca Freeman]

If I said pomple mousse?

[Olivia]

No. It's just like, no. Part of me is like, yes. All parts of me are like, but that's a personal preference. And to each their own. Someone has to fight for grapefruit. And why not you?

[Becca Freeman]

I love grapefruit.

[Olivia]

I do, too. But yeah, we're. We're. It's like the beach plum flavor. It's like, I never think about a beach plum. Or is that an actual fruit or is that just the.

[Becca Freeman]

I have no idea. That one. I have no idea if that is an actual fruit.

[Olivia]

Okay. All right, well, let's move on to condiment.

[Becca Freeman]

I'm going cholula hot sauce.

[Olivia]

I'm with you. I support this 100% again, sodium.

[Becca Freeman]

Also. I assume in this situation I can have more things, because if I only have the above things that I've picked, like, I'm not sure why I also need hot sauce, but, like, hot sauce. What about you?

[Olivia]

Delicious mayo.

[Becca Freeman]

So, you know, I'm not a big mayo person. Like, I. I obviously use mayo to make, like, tuna salad, chicken salad. I make at home sandwiches sometimes. But I got sent a PR package with Molly Baz's line of mayos, and I was really excited. And then I was like, I don't use that much at home mayo that. I'm, like, going through this.

[Olivia]

Yeah, I think you have to make a lot of sandwiches. And I don't know about you, but I rarely make a sandwich at home. It's like a special occasion. I'm on vacation.

[Becca Freeman]

I go through phases, but it's not always on.

[Olivia]

I do have to say, to be clear, I'm riding hard for mayonnaise and shitting on grapefruit. And I. I feel that the people will come for me because that's kind of. I. A lot of people don't like mayo. And I'm out here like, how can you not like mayonnaise? Why would you drink grapefruit?

[Becca Freeman]

That either of those choices are as controversial as you are making them out to be.

[Olivia]

I feel. I feel like making some bold statements here that I usually don't, but. I don't know. Something in the air. All right, restaurant to eat at.

[Becca Freeman]

Easiest one in the bunch, Hillstone. I think Hillstone has a very broad menu. They have sushi, so I could have sushi, but they have classic American fare. They have some salads. Everything I've tried is good. I would be so happy only eating at a Hillstone for the rest of my life. Great martini.

[Olivia]

It's like an elevated chili. So. Yeah, that doesn't make sense for you.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah, I know. It is kind of a. Kind of a diss that I didn't pick Chili's. I could.

[Olivia]

Listen, I got Chili's to go the other night because I've been seeing a lot of videos of the triple Dipper, and it was just in my brain, it was disappointing. Except for I got the chips and salsa, I think. Have you ever gotten the chips and salsa to go?

[Becca Freeman]

Yes. It's great.

[Olivia]

They give you a plastic, like, bag. Yeah. Like chilies full of chips. Speaking of sodium, I was like, I. At a certain point, I hit a wall. Not like I was full. I was like, I simply cannot do this or my body will break down. They were so salty. But everything else was like, yeah, I.

[Becca Freeman]

Don'T think it's a food meant for takeout.

[Olivia]

Yeah, I agree.

[Becca Freeman]

What would you pick out for your restaurant to eat at?

[Olivia]

Okay, so this one was hard. Very hard for me. Ultimately, I chose this restaurant, actually. You've been there. This Italian restaurant we went to called Via Cassia in Hudson. And the reason I chose it is not because it's very consistently good, in my opinion. Good vibes, good food. The reason I chose it is because every time we go there, the woman who works there at the front hostess stand says, nice to see you guys again. And I appreciate that. She recognizes that we're there all the time. And I find that to be a really rare thing. And especially up here where we go to the same places again and again and again. And the bartender who I've met like 150 times, still doesn't like, say, hey, Olivia. I appreciate that. She recognizes our consistent visiting of the restaurant.

[Becca Freeman]

Well, and it's paying off for her in terms of. You picked it as your only restaurant for forever.

[Olivia]

Yeah, I just want to be seen, you know, that's all. And eat some pasta as well.

[Becca Freeman]

This was fun. If listeners like it, I have two more categories going of clothing and beauty. We could do at some point. Also, I was already thinking when I thought we would get through all of this, I was like, oh, we could do this with home stuff. We could do this with travel, office supplies. Like, I'm sure we could come up with more book categories.

[Olivia]

I don't know, people.

[Becca Freeman]

Do you want to hear us fight about low stakes things? All right, let's get out of this and into some men matter.

[Olivia]

What are you obsessed with?

[Becca Freeman]

Okay, I have a big obsession. I bought and they are an advertiser, but I bought this myself. No prodding from them. Like, there was no reason I did it other than, like, I chose and wanted this quince I bought. It's called their organic airy gauze blanket. So I would say right now, my bedroom, the coolest it's getting is 75 degrees. Not my preference for sleeping. And I need something over me that is thicker than a sheet. A sheet alone does not do it. Like, I need to feel cocooned, and a sheet does not cocoon me. So I got this blanket. And it literally is kind of like a baby swaddle. Not kind of. It is the material of a baby swaddle. It comes in 8 million colors. I got it in kind of like a off white oatmeal color. It's king size, so it's like the full bed. I am obsessed with this. This was exactly what I needed to be more than a sheet that I still feel cocooned, but the lightest thing possible.

[Olivia]

Sounds great.

[Becca Freeman]

Oh, my God. I am thrilled with this purchase. And it was cheap. It was like, I don't know, 60 something dollars maybe.

[Olivia]

Oh, nice. That's important. 75 is too warm. You gotta adjust things at that point.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah. What are you obsessed with?

[Olivia]

I'm obsessed with this Australian brand called Dish I saw on Substack. Actually someone I follow was wearing a dress from them and it was very sort of flowy and linen, very cute, like high neck maxi linen dress. And I was like, oh, it's from Dish. I will try it. Thing is, they only go up to a US 12 and I am not a US 12. And I was like, ah. Sometimes the pieces are oversized. I can like make it work. And the pieces arrived and I was like, why did I do this? It came all the way from Australia.

[Becca Freeman]

I'm sure I returning anything to Australia.

[Olivia]

Is a thousand dollars. I've ordered three things. They're not cheap items. And I was like, what possessed you, Olivia, to make this choice? You are not a 12. And you know what? The items came and they all fit and I love them. And one of them is this sort of like tiered ruche top that I've been wearing constantly. It's linen. I've already gotten like 10 wears out of it. Maybe I've been looking for something just like it. And I love discovering new brands. So do I wish they made bigger sizes? Yes. But I'll take what I can get. And I do really, really like the pieces and they feel really well made.

[Becca Freeman]

So I have only heard about this brand in the context of you sharing it on Instagram, but I'm on their site right now and very cute, very cute.

[Olivia]

And also the pieces are so, like classic. You know, you can wear them in 10 years and they're still gonna be cute. I bought three things. One of them is pretty much true to size. Two are very oversized. So, you know, keep that in mind.

[Becca Freeman]

We gotta talk about reading.

[Olivia]

Yes.

[Becca Freeman]

This has been your.

[Olivia]

Yes, we do.

[Becca Freeman]

This was your high. Tell us what you read that led it to be your high books.

[Olivia]

Okay. Starting out, I read Tilt by Emma P. Petit. And I've been seeing this book around quite a bit. I actually also heard about it because at the Jenna's Book Club Festival, the Reader Jenna Festival, she mentioned in one of her segments, her interviews, that she almost chose this for a book club pick.

[Becca Freeman]

Oh, that's a fun tidbit.

[Olivia]

And then I saw a lot of other people posting about it. So this is about a woman who is shopping at Ikea. She is very pregnant. I want to say 36 or 38 weeks pregnant. And she is dealing with all of the emotions that come with, you know, being about to give birth. And an earthquake happens. And it's like the big one. I don't know if you know anything about this earthquake that is supposed to hit the. The west coast at some point in the next few decades, I think. Anyway, so this earthquake happens and she has to find her way to her husband. And it's about her journey. And it's this super intense, but also very funny and heartwarming. Just page turner. It's very short, maybe only a couple hundred pages. I read it in two mornings. Loved this book so much. Okay. Loved it. I could not put it down. I cried, I laughed. Wow. It's just such. It's so beautiful.

[Becca Freeman]

Do you consider disaster fiction in your normal wheelhouse?

[Olivia]

I do like disaster fiction, yes. However, someone did message me and say, should I read this if I live in the west coast or will it trigger me? And I was like, I wouldn't read it. Like, it would really upset me if I lived. It's set mostly in Portland. And I was thinking, like, I'm glad we already went to Portland because I'm really glad I didn't read this before going there.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay.

[Olivia]

Because it is. It is very terrifying that this could happen. So. Oh, gosh. Also, I maybe wouldn't read if you're pregnant. Okay. Or proceed with caution, but loved it, loved it, loved it. One of my favorites of the year. So then I read migrations by Charlotte McConaughey, who wrote Wild Dark Shore as we know, one of my favorites of the year. This was such an interesting read because it's both highly similar to Wild Darkshore and also totally different. Ultimately, if you liked one, I think you'll like the other. I didn't like it as much. So it also has a lot going on that I probably will not cover all of it. But basically it's set in a version of the world where most of the world species have died out. And this woman who is very interested in birds, finds her way onto this commercial fishing vessel that she is, like, morally opposed to the idea of commercial fishing, but she kind of lies her way onto it and follows these two. These two remaining birds that she's tracking. And along the way, you find out that she is actually on parole and she was in jail before this, so she's, like, kind of running from the law. And it's very much an atmospheric read that is highly dramatic, lots of twists and turns. I think I read it in two days. I didn't like it as much, but it is beautiful, and I think it's worth reading.

[Becca Freeman]

You haven't read Once There Were Wolves, right?

[Olivia]

No, I haven't.

[Becca Freeman]

Okay. I'll be curious once you eventually get to that, which I think I assume you will, what your Charlotte McConaughey power ranking is.

[Olivia]

Yes, I will report back. I also read the Turnout by Megan Abbott. After Clemence Michelin was on talking about Megan Abbott and how much she loved her, I was like, I have to read a Megan Abbott book. And it was so different than what I was expecting. The Turnout is all about these two sisters who inherited this dance studio from their mom, and one of them is married to this other dancer who ended up living with them as a teenager, and they kind of grew up together and got married. So I don't know. I think I was kind of expecting, like, I kind of equated her with, like, the mega Miranda's, you know, the. All of those sort of thrillers that have a very similar sort of COVID But, oh, my gosh, this was totally different. I read a lot of reviews where this is described as psychosexual. Oh. So it's very Black Swan. Very. And it's so interesting because this was also a read with Jenna Pick, and it's probably the most out there, like, bold pick that I have seen her do. It's very divisive. The writing was stunning. It's very, very gothic. I am not a dance novel person.

[Becca Freeman]

I have realized, which is very tempting to me, even though I fear this might be too scary for me. I love anything set in the dance world.

[Olivia]

Yeah, it's. Yeah, you might like it, but it's more disturbing than it is scary. So, like, I. I kept putting down the book, being like, what the fuck? Which I don't do with many books. So that's a credit to the author. But I will definitely read more from her. And then, very excitingly, I read the Compound by Ashlyn Rawl.

[Becca Freeman]

One of your most anticipated.

[Olivia]

One of my most anticipated. Oh, this was so good. This was so good. This is described as Love island meets Lord of the Flies. I have not watched Love island and this inspired me to watch it because I needed to know how similar it was. It is just the most page turning social commentary I could possibly imagine. Basically, these. The. It is Love Island. These people wake up in a compound and they have to pair with another person there of the opposite gender and share a bed or they get banished. Oh, my gosh. It's so good. I need this to become a movie. It's just. I loved it. It's the perfect beach read, in my opinion.

[Becca Freeman]

Interesting. Okay.

[Olivia]

In the sense that it's page turning. It's all plot, all vibes, all getting you to think about consumerism. It's so good. It's. Oh, it's so good. Okay, enough of me. What have you read?

[Becca Freeman]

Okay, I read two things. I finished Heart the Lover by Lily King, which is out October 7th. I said last week in three things that I thought that this might be my favorite book of the year so far, hands down, 100%. This book, wow, is fantastic. I'm still coming down from how good it is. It is told in three parts. I can only tell you about the first part, or I believe I should only tell you about the first part. The characters are in college in maybe the late 80s, early 90s, and this woman finds herself in a love triangle between these two men who are best friends. And it's a great campus novel. Like, oh, really loved it. In the second two parts, they are adults and they come back into each other's lives, and she has to kind of, like, deal with the choices that she made as a much younger person. This book is so good. I will tell you that right now. It is. I am picking our October book club pick, and it is my lead contender. We'll see. Things may change, but, oh, my God. I really want to talk about the second two parts with somebody. So if nothing else. Olivia, you need to read this.

[Olivia]

Oh, I will. And also, I looked at my library for writers and lovers, and it wasn't there, but I'm gonna get it.

[Becca Freeman]

Oh, my gosh.

[Olivia]

I'm read this too. It sounds. What? High praise.

[Becca Freeman]

Oh, my God, it's so good. Okay, so I loved that. And then I read Aftertaste by Daria Lavelle, which is a debut that just came out in May, I believe. And I have nothing to compare this book to. It is so singular. So it is about a chef who learns that he can cook meals that reunite people with their dead loved ones. So if you watched the bear and were like, I would like a sad, tortured, talented chef, but I would like there to be more ghosts. This book is for you. It took me a minute to get into, and this might be personal, that I don't love reading about a male character. Like, I don't find that I connect as much. So it did take me a little bit to get into. But I read the second half all in one sitting and the ending is spectacular. Also, if you love descriptions of food, this is some of the best food writing I have read. Like, it is magical. I am surprised that we are not hearing more about this book. Frankly, I.

[Olivia]

The COVID confuses me.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah, the COVID is a little bit bland.

[Olivia]

Yeah, I think that might be why, honestly. But I have heard good things about this and it sounds like the perfect book to read when you feel like you don't know what you want to read because it's different than everything else.

[Becca Freeman]

You're like, I'm sick of everything. I want something completely different. I think this is a great pick. Also, if you finish the bear and you're like, I need more of this.

[Olivia]

Well, if none of those appeal to you, you have a lot of choices. But also there is atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid, which is our July book club pick chosen by you, the listeners. This is a sweeping love story set against the background of the 1980s space program. I have literally seen nothing but five star reviews for this on my feed. I mean, every time someone posts a review of this, I actually make a point to look at it because I'm like, did they not like it? But no, everyone loves it and I'm excited to read and discuss.

[Becca Freeman]

Yeah, same. I'm saving it until right before the book club so everything's fresh. But I'm very excited for this one. Also, if you want to talk about whether grapefruit seltzer is a wild choice, please come defend me in the Facebook group Under batonpaper podcast. You can also join the Geneva group, which is like a big chat room type app. It's like Slack for not work. Under BatonPaper Podcast, we're on Instagram atonpaperpodcast and I am on Instagram ecamfreeman and my newsletter is@becca freeman.substack.com and I am.

[Olivia]

All the places at Olivia Mentor.

[Becca Freeman]

We will see you next week.

[Olivia]

Bye Bye.