Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability

Vacationing in San Sebastián, salty design critique, an interview with Wade and Leta, natural wine caves, beautifully gross photos and more

Kyle was calling me, I assumed to tell me that he as downstairs waiting with the car. “For some reason, they won’t let me rent a car without an international drivers license.” Our plan was simple: rent a car, like we had once before, and drive with the dogs and our friend Kate up to San Sebastián, where we’re staying for a month to avoid the heat and humidity of Barcelona. We did some more searching. No trains until Wednesday, silly flights on Vueling, or maybe we luck out and find another car rental? Not a lot happens on Sundays in Barcelona. Gratefully, we managed to find maybe the last car in the city that would fit 3 adults, a good amount of luggage for a month-long trip, and two adorable dogs.

The journey north was pretty remarkable. It was similar to the one I was so used to driving back in California, the six to seven hour drive from LA to my hometown in northern California. Here though, the landscape and scenery changed surprisingly every few hours. Our descriptions ranged from Tatooine to PUBG, Arrival to Jurassic Park. Experiencing so many microclimates one after another made the time pass by quickly, with the help of some very eclectic DJ’ing from Kate.

Now we’re settled into our apartment, a roomy space with lots of windows kitschy antique furniture. The photo above is the view from our living area, the Atlantic ocean lying just beyond. It’s exciting to finally feel like we’re really exploring Spain, seeing how different this part is compared to where we live. I’m also stoked for all the good eating we’ll be doing here. Multiple reservations have been secured at some of the best Michelin starred spots. Trips to France and Bilbao are in order as well, adventures abound. I hope the summer is treating you well, and if you have any places you think I should visit, feel free to email me or leave a comment.

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🍗 — Wade and Leta Go Behind-The-Scenes of A24’s ‘Scrounging’
I spoke with Wade and Leta about their photography work on A24’s film cuisine inspired cookbook, ‘Scrounging.’ The whole thing seems like it was a blast to work on the photos turned out disgustingly great.

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🧂 — New York Times Gets Salty Over Diamond Crystal Rebrand
There was a silly article in the NY Times that discussed the recent update to Diamond Crystal Salts visual identity, and I got thoughtful and critical about the piece. tl;dr it’s good design work, and this piece is clickbait ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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🪑 — Studio Bruch Builds a Strong Identity for Hea
I am super impressed by the workt Studio Bruch did for carpentry company Hea, including a beautiful typeface inspired by the simplified form of a wooden board. The color palette is spot-on too.

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👾 — Junkama Illustrates a Nostalgic Vision of the Present
Stumbled upon this illustrator who goes by Junkama who creates works that feel like drawings of scenes that were taken with an old digital camera. It’s a really intriguing style that feels incredibly unique.

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🥂 — It’s a Wine Bar but It’s Giving Cave
Plantea Estudio designed this super cozy and charming wine bar called Gota over in Madrid and the interiors are so good. It’s like a secret hideaway with a secret rocky backroom where a DJ spins and you’re drinking natty wine.

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💈 — Craig Green Presents His New AW23 & SS24
It’s always surprising and exciting to see what fashion designer Craig Green will come up with next, and his most recent offering, a hybrid of his AW23 and SS24 collections truly knocked it out of the park.

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🛑 — Anton Repponen’s Street Signs of New York
This fun project from Brooklyn designer Anton Repponen explores the meaning and symbology of street signs, giving them a vibrant, alternate expression that is delightful.

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🍑 — The Grotesque Beauty of Photographer Maisie Cousins
Can something be gross and beautiful at the same time? I think so, and that’s what I see when I look through the photos of Maisie Cousins. Her work features weird depictions of fruits and bugs and Björks and it’s all great.

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by my partner, Kyle Raymond Fitzpatrick, is a sharp and insightful look at all the things going on in the world, arriving every Sunday to your inbox. Highly recommended, obviously.