PicoBlog

Hello and welcome to the first issue of Wooden City, a newsletter about London.  If you haven’t come here via @caffs_not_cafes, I'm a writer called Isaac Rangaswami and this is my new Substack. Over the next week, I’ll be publishing a three-part guide to my favourite caffs in the capital, covering 50 places in total. This issue introduces the guide and is all about central London spots.  On Wednesday, I’ll publish my favourites in east and west London, followed by north and south London on Friday.

Welcome to another edition of Love, Peace, and Tacos, a weekly newsletter where I share what I’m currently feeling, loving, and eating. I’ve been back in Canada for a few weeks but still lingering in all things Mexico City. Whenever I travel to a new place, I tend to organize my days around eating and shopping. Some may scoff but I think shopping is a great way to get to know a city.

These weekly My Favourite Things (MFT) posts are available as a premium for paid subscribers only, but this one is free to all for what I hope are obvious reasons. It wasn’t what I’d had planned for today or this week or any day, but Sinéad has gone and here we are. TW: suicide, abuse She fought so hard to stay on this side of the Veil. At least, that’s how it seemed from my vantage point as an observer and a fan for decades—since we both were teenagers.

After an offhanded joke onInstagram stories wondering whether the end of a long, arduous day called for wine or bourbon, I was kind of amazed that every single person who responded voted for bourbon. And it wasn’t even an official poll! Just a wildly diverse array of people who have very strong opinions about adult beverages. So much chatter went on in my comments, I decided to put together a dedicated bourbon gift guide, as a fun break from all the other gift guides I write for a living.

I’ve mentioned here a few times that I’ve been working on a lot of new projects since my Marvel exclusive ended. It’s probably not a complete shock that one of them would wind up being a Batman book. Seemed the right way to finally make my proper debut as a DC writer. Though this is a different sort of Batman story. One that sees a young Dark Knight undertaking his very first trip into space.

Today, my friend E. Jean Carroll, advice columnist par-excellence, one of The New York Times most stylish people of 2023, courageous leader in the fight for justice for women, all-around badass turns 80 (!). I’m not entirely sure how that’s possible as she continually runs rings around the rest of us but . . . If you’re interested in a master-class in superb, sophisticated, and stunning writing; a big-hearted, empathetic approach towards the vagaries of human existence; and/or a chance to be a part of a community the members of which (the legendary Conflab) always have each others’ backs, please subscribe to Ask E.

“We should be on a Margaret-Sally basis now,” said The Hon. Margaret Rhodes, Queen Elizabeth II’s first cousin and intimate friend since childhood. We had settled down for lunch at a pub near The Garden House, her home in Windsor Great Park. Margaret (which I’ll call her, since she gave me permission) was eighty-three years old at the time, and this was our second get-together in the winter of 2008. Over the next eight years, we would have a dozen conversations, including five over drinks or lunch—invariably simple fare such as lamb chops that she prepared herself.

MAID came out five years ago today. The time since then can best be described as a breathtaking ride. About six months before its release, I had photos taken of me and my two girls, coincidentally on my 40th birthday, and they are by far some of my favorites. I’ve stared at them over the years, in awe of the ease in my expressions and posture. My smile is genuine. I look, for lack of a better word, happy.

Embedded is your essential guide to what’s good on the internet, written by Kate Lindsay and edited by Nick Catucci. Most weeks, we quiz a “very online” person for their essential guide to what’s good on the internet. Today we welcome Brynn Wallner, the founder of Dimepiece, a “femme forward resource launched in 2020 for anyone who might be into watches, from newcomers to seasoned collectors.” She has also written about watches for Harper’s Bazaar, GQ, and The Financial Times.