We Love a Day at the Beach
Weekend Reads v. 7.11.2025
I started this week by watching people enjoy a Sunday at the beach. Two young parents took their little one to meet the ocean for the first time, perhaps recalling their own childhood memories in the sand. An older couple waded out until the water was at their shoulders and then remained a constant fixture on my horizon for over an hour while they talked. Teenager boys splashed in the water while teenage girls took long leisurely strolls along in the surf, hoping to be noticed. Some people soaked up the sun, while others – like me – camped out under the rotating shade of an umbrella. We all at some point stopped to marvel at the sheer power before us.
For centuries, people have been doing exactly what I witnessed on that small stretch of sand this week. To be sure, the bathing suit styles have drastically changed (mainly by disappearing), but a day by the sea has been a pastime for ages. I didn’t realize it then, but this vignette was an important one that would carry me through the handful of days that followed.
As this week tumbled along, I replayed my realization from the beach many times. You probably noticed that this was another one of those weeks where the volume on the differences in people was cranked up so high that it was nearly impossible to hear anything but a blinding fear of what’s to come. And yet for all the fancy bells and whistles brought to us by technology and all the seemingly superior knowledge acquired over time, the core of humanity remains remarkably unchanged.
People want to belong, to be comfortable, and to have hope. People gather around tables to share a meal the same way people have gathered since the dawn of time. People set off on adventures hoping to see more of the world only to discover a bit more of themselves in the process just as people did thousands of years ago. People are still simultaneously. And people are still surprised at how the passage of time can catch them off guard, leaving them scared of aging and wistful about the past.
Throughout the week, people sharing all these attributes took to social media to make wildly varying statements about elections and world events. Some people I knew, others were strangers to me. The whiplash from one message to another was dizzying, and it left me feeling anxious and isolated. Am I the only person who views the world the way I do? Of course not. And if these talking heads on my screen took a beat, they’d see they have more in common with their neighbor than they let on.
It is so tempting to despair when news is grim, markets fluctuate, and politics is everchanging, but there is power in remembering the horizon never changes. There is power in recognizing the many ways we are alike. And there will always be comfort found in serving another person. These are truisms in the way the shoreline has always been a magical place to spend a day.
Now, enough of all that. Would you like to see some photos I snapped in Puerto Rico? Most of these were quickly captured with my phone, but they’ll give you an idea of what a lovely place Puerto Rico is. I highly recommend!
I have a thing for tropical plants, and Puerto Rico did not disappoint. The colorful houses were especially cheery when the skies were overcast, and it was fun to see giant versions of some of my house plants in the wild (take note of the potted plants on a street corner in a photo below).
I didn’t do quite as much research ahead of this quick trip as I might usually do for a trip, but one place that lived up to the hype was the bar El Batey. For five decades, this dive bar has been a laid back and very relaxed place for people to grab a drink. From Frommers,“The spot is on the short list of favorite bars of any sanjuanero worth hanging out with and also attracts an eclectic group of world travelers. El Batey has been cool since Allen Ginsberg read poetry here back in the 1950s.”
Mario the bartender was endlessly cool — playing the perfect music and serving up some of the best cocktails I’ve ever had (but without crazy high prices). When patrons asked if they could write on the graffiti-covered walls, he said, “I don’t have a Sharpie, so just use whatever you have to write whatever you want.”
He even created a cocktail on the spot inspired by Chris Cornell after our discussion about just how perfect a musician he was. It was quite literally the best cocktail I’ve ever enjoyed.
We had a perfect meal at Cocina al Fondo followed by another fantastic meal at our beachside hotel Aire de O:live. The dishes were so simple and tasty that I wanted a way to bookmark them. I decided to create a photo with caption, so to speak, that I could reference later on. The result is a handy photo with description that I will be replicating on future trips!
We also took time to visit one of the two historic forts where we met a giant iguana and saw “historical graffiti” likely drawn by a Spanish captain held at the fort. In addition to the sailing ship you see in this photo, there are reportedly over 400 markings on the walls of the fort.
Have you ever been to Puerto Rico? It’s a charming place!
News that 2026 will see the last issue of the Farmer’s Almanac hit me surprisingly hard. Maybe it’s my age – I got fitted for progressive lenses at the eye doctor this week, what joy! Or maybe this is one of those chapters in history filled with the rapid replacement of tools and habits. Whatever it is, RIP to things like Farmer’s Almanac and rotary phones and card catalog cabinets at the library. I miss you!
Despite your personally religious beliefs, have you ever noticed “in almost all fictional worlds, God exists”? This essay by Robin Hanson stopped me in my tracks earlier this week.
“Most people who say they are atheist or agnostic still believe in supernatural powers:
In the United States, 38% of people who identified themselves as atheist or agnostic went on to claim to believe in a God or a Higher Power. While the UK is often defined as an irreligious place, a recent survey … found that … only 13 per cent of adults agreed with the statement “humans are purely material beings with no spiritual element”. …
When researchers asked people whether they had taken part in esoteric spiritual practices such as having a Reiki session or having their aura read, the results were almost identical (between 38 and 40%) for people who defined themselves as religious, non-religious or atheist.
This is plausibly reinforced by fiction, which (as I’ve said) serves similar functions to religion. In almost all fictional worlds, God exists, whether the stories are written by people of a religious, atheist or indeterminate beliefs.”
A fascinating (to me, anyway) look at the quirks and history of our “magnificent bastard tongue,” the English language.
A sobering statistic that reminds me of the importance of community: “For older people loneliness is twice as unhealthy as obesity, and chronic loneliness increases a person’s odds of death in any given year by 26 percent.” (h/t Rob Henderson)
Fountain pen clubs are a thing now, and members are taking issue with the cheap replicas flooding the market. (WSJ Gift Link)
Vogue asks: is having a boyfriend embarrassing now? See also: annoying ways desperate magazines attempt to get readers? Vogue, you are the one who is embarrassing these days!
Could infidelity be contagious?
Has anyone else ever heard of the Katharine Hepburn Brownies? I noticed them in the chat of a recipe posted on Substack, and I had to look them up. Turns out, they are a recipe that many people swear by!
Here’s to a weekend spent with people you adore in places you really like. Take gentle care of yourself!
This was such a beautiful and thoughtful read!