What Do You Like About This Newsletter?
I’d love to hear your thoughts in my new reader survey
Life has been coming at me fast this year. I finished a first big, edited draft of my book, Neighboring, a few weeks ago, and have also squeezed in some time-sensitive work projects.
Now and I can finally take a breath and think a bit about what this newsletter should look like for the coming year.
In the past year, hundreds of new paying members and thousands of free readers have joined The Double Shift. I want to take a temperature check to learn more about who you are and what you are most excited about in terms of my content offerings. This is incredibly helpful to me as a plan and as a way to make sure this newsletter is serving you, my readers. If you fill out this survey by Thursday 11:59pm on March 26th, I’ll include you in a drawing to win a $50 Bookshop.org gift certificate as a thank you for your time!
I’m keeping this newsletter short and sweet with a few recommendations this week.
What book I’m reading: Good Woman: A Reckoning. A powerful, thought-provoking series of essays that will stay with you, exploring all the ways women are channeled into being good. What we eat, how we tend, and how we subsume our own needs, Savala Nolan really goes there. Selected as the Most Anticipated Feminist Book of 2026 by Ms. Magazine, this book is a must-read for fans of Angela Garbes, Kate Manne, and Rebecca Traister!
I can’t stop thinking about: The New York Times article, It’s March. Do You Know Where Your Kids Are Going to Camp? The lack of supply, affordability, and logistical challenges are problems across the country that I’ve been reporting on for years. However, NYC’s situation is like the rest of the country on steroids. I nearly fainted at the over $9K pricetag for one kid to attend a full summer of day camp that “boasts of two large swimming pools.” If your family is spending this kind of money, please read my guide to traveling abroad with kids on a budget (while working remotely). You can save some serious $$$!
Potluck anyone? I decided I needed a go-to Deep Casual potluck dish so I didn’t have to spend a lot of bandwidth thinking about what to bring for future potluck invites. I’ve landed on these meatballs with any meat from NYTimes Cooking. (You could also use ground plant-based meat.) I used a combo of ground beef and Italian sausage, and they were easier and faster to make than I anticipated. They cooked quickly in the broiler, and every single one was devoured at the potluck I took them to last week.
Don’t forget to fill out the survey! You might win a $50 bookshop.org gift certificate!
I live in Columbus, OH and just went through the summer camp gauntlet. We are lucky to have some very affordable city and county park day camp programs, but the supply is a whole different thing. This year, every week filled up in 90 seconds after opening. We managed to snag one week, which felt like a win. It’s insane.