Hot take from MM but March is theeeeEeE best month of the year! Arieses rise!!! 03/24 included lots of friendship, flowers, and Fletcher. Tune in for the full skinny xo

How did you spend your spare time this month:

* MM: flowers!! Friends! Solo time at home in DC! Busy bee-ing! Packing! Driving! Light wedding planning!

* AA: Boston 2x , friends, babies, listening to so much music and being happy about it , brandi IRL 

Best/Worst:

* Worst:

* MM: our a/c breaking on the drive down to Miami 

* AA: how does a person get better at trivia 

* Best: 

* AA: getting engaged again but honorable mention same as u MM + Kacey

* MM: being with my friends <3 + Fletcher & Cowboy Carter

Spare Time Rec:

* AA: Mr & Mrs Smith 

* MM: listening to other people’s playlists

Culture / 3 Things You Need to Know: 

* Fletcher and Shannon are dominating my brain once again oooooh

* How’s your reading journey been going / books on our TBR we are excited about

* The chili crisp thing 

Look Ahead:

* MM: Miami and that is truly it!

* AA: YTT! Chicago! NYC! A nutritionist??? We’ll see. Do we care about Maggie and Taylor 

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Two girls with a lack of spare time for the month still somehow manage to speak on the topic for nearly 90 minutes. We are nothing if not verbose! Tune in for sandwiches, Kate Missington, and more!

How did you spend your spare time this month:

* MM: so….busy…..being eternally ill. Working! Truly riveting content! Missing my friend Alissa!

* AA: Missing my friend Marie! Also working but feeling fulfilled overall! Wow! Celebrating Hen, Cape Cod, Boston, NYC 

Best/Worst:

* Worst:

* MM: Your Only Friend

* AA: an overdressed Caesar that made me gag @ Macs 

* Best: 

* AA: Dame NYC and friends who you trust

* MM: I made some good soups! Shoutout to fish stock and to Rancho Gordo beans. 

Spare Time Rec:

* AA: buy tickets to small venues for artists you don’t know or don’t know well

* MM: the daylist feature on Spotify

Culture / 3 Things You Need to Know: 

* Kate Middletongate aka Kate Missington - link, link, link, link, link

* March + April Music - Ariana (brother/bf comparison pic for your reference), Fletcher, Bey, Kacey, Maggie, Taylor, Waxahatchee, GIR, Lizzy, Katie Pruitt 

* Strands NYT

Look Ahead:

* MM: THE music month is here!! Aries season, birthday celebrations, visits from friends, preparing to move my family to Miami for 5 weeks, more work! But also…FLOWERING TREES!!!!! The best thing on this earth maybe.

* AA: Leaning in to things that make me feel like myself <3, back to the cookbook journey, celebrating my number one girl and number one boy with a perfect weekend, Brandi Carlile, music foreverrrrrr, the release of Health Nut I am so ready.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit inyoursparetime.substack.com

Celebrating the first ep of 2024, an amazing new song, an anniversary weekend, and much much more, but, most insanely of all: celebrating five years of the Spare Time Pod--in all her iterations

How did you spend your spare time this month:

* MM: wintering (real) and wintering (Miami), making some treats, getting engaged again, watching movies

* AA: anniversary weekend, Fam, playing in snow!, willing myself to knit, going to the theater!!!, seeing JOSEPH <3 

Best/Worst:

* Worst:

* MM: sorry but Hannahs sweet potato mantou (from Tenderheart)

* AA: the obvious (honorable mention lutèce) 

* Best: 

* AA: TBIL / Rasika 

* MM: spontaneous dim sum at China Garden Han Gong (highlights: shumai, green beans, chow fun)

Spare Time Rec:

* AA: The Curse? Good Material by Dolly Alderton 

* MM: “Right Back to It” by Waxahatchee (also…Fool Me Once??? sorry)

Culture / 3 Things You Need to Know: 

* Oscar Noms / The Grammys 

* The new Fletcher album / the new MR album 

* Mean Girls movie and any other films 

Look Ahead:

* MM: Leap day!!!! Shoemaker family gathering, Lunar New Year, Miami…the dawning of Marie’s Busy Time™️

* AA: Boston/Cape time, new music I think, Portland Maine, bubby time basically 

Spare Time Sundries are here!

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Another year gone by! The sands of time! Recap the full spin around our fav burning gas giant with our bests of the year in many silly and serious categories.

MOVIE:AA: Past Lives MM: Maybe Theatre Camp but idk

TV SHOW:AA: Jury Duty (Amazon Freevee)MM: The Last of Us (HBO)

BOOK:AA: The Rabbit Hutch by Tess Gunty (runner up: Tom Lake by Ann Patchett)MM: The Land of Milk and Honey by C Pam Zhang (runner up: Big Swiss by Jen Beagin)

ALBUM:AA: Girls Of My Dreams, Fletcher (runner up: same as MM + Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever), Noah Kahan and The Sun, JOSEPH)MM: the record, boygenius (runner up: Snow Angel, Renee Rapp, and GUTS, duh)

SONG:AA: As of this moment “The Wedding Song”, Renee Rapp and “The Tree”, Maren Morris for the vibe but for real it’s gotta be True Blue, boygenius for the real winner one of the most gorgeous songs on earth imo MM: “Not Strong Enough”, boygenius (honorable mention for a song that has been in my head for the last month: “Femininomenon” by Chappell Roan)

CONCERT:AA: sorry but it’s The Eras TourMM: it’s a tie! Boygenius or the MUNA set from All Things Go

MEAL:AA: Bar at SarmaMM: lunar new year dinner party

BREAKFAST:AA: Brown Butter Corn Cake at Radio Bakery in NYCMM: Bagels etc??????

LUNCH:AA: fennel, bean, olive, pecorino, sunflower seed, apple sal on repeat at least 1000 times (picnic in alethia tanner was the best) or the sweet potato, cucumber, citrus, peanut, lettuce, with the Cindy's Kitchen sesame ginger dressing MM: Cart Driver in Denver (honorable mention: Sofra with FOTP Sophia, perfect turkey sandwich on a picnic blanket in the park on March 26th)

DINNER:AA: Kowloon Fried Cauliflower at Little Donkey in Boston MM: Walrus Rodeo in Miami

DESSERT:AA: 3 citrus sorbet at weckerlys / hot fudge sundae hillstone MM: forever and always creme brulee from Le Dip

PURCHASE:AA:  Classic Easy Tote by CuyanaMM: not at all sexy but weekly compost pickup service

DISCOVERY:AA: I’m more of a literary fiction girlie I guess! Phony negroni MM: Quaker meeting (honorable mention: Dot’s Pretzels, Wegman’s ginger seltzer, slippers)

TRIP:AA: cape cod <3MM: Taos, NM Gaycation

#1 RECOMMENDATION: AA: take your lunch break / tell your friends that you love them MM: Is it too lame to recommend paying a professional to come clean your house monthly because that is my honest to god recommendation lol

What completely ordinary thing are you most grateful for right now in your life? MM: Modkat top entry litter box and tiny $2 digital clock from ikea, AA: Bouldering Project <3 and specifically the yoga, pilates, cardio, and strength instructors there that have truly brought me back to a version of myself I have really missed 

2024 Mood Inspo:

* Sunlight flooding the kitchen after a few rainy days

* Feeling a little manic in the car and blasting a crazy song you forgot about until that very instant (“I Gotta Feeling” by the Black Eyed Peas, par example)

* Sitting on the couch having the giggles about nothing with your friends

* Getting complimented by a child

* When you’re at a concert and it’s the moment between songs and then the first notes play and you see two friends look at each other like “OH MY GOD THIS IS OUR SONG”

* Being really cozy and reading a book you can’t stop thinking about

* The special satisfaction of finishing a jar or tube of something

Thank you for spending your Spare Time with us in 2023. Looking forward to much more this year 🤍

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Happy 2024, friends! On our last regular ep of the year, we discuss drag bingo, a truly catastrophic cookie recipe, and...an engagement! Tune in next week for a special ep recapping 2023.

How did you spend your spare time this month:

* MM: Holiday-ing! Loving on friends and fam in DC, PA, MIA, 

* AA: drag bingo, scrapbooking, not knitting SOS, holiday shows, holiday dinners, baking cookies, spending christmas with my baby nephews 

Best/Worst:

* Worst:

* MM: two major fails: whole fish + cookies

* AA: the bon appetit smores cookies - seriously wrong 

* Best: 

* AA: everything I ate at I Egg You and the carrots at yellow: wood-roasted carrots tahini ranch, urfathing spice 

* MM: Getting enGayged 0o0o00o0o

Spare Time Rec:

* AA: Culture Study Pod + Your Sweaters Are Garbage 

* MM: The Land of Milk and Honey and The Book of Difficult Fruit

Culture / 3 Things You Need to Know: 

* The Iron Claw - I just have to give everyone a warning 

* Goodles 

* 2024 Book & Music Release Radar

Look Ahead:

* MM: trad-wife life lol, more themed dinner parties, more moving, thrifting, driving (!), and many more new year’s resolutions, new journeys for us both (stay tuned for more teehee), and old journeys aka reading 

* AA: D&D???? 75 Hard continues, TBIL weekend, going to the cape, reading I go so hard in Jan and have so many arcs, and the soon to be famous cookbook journey, Subscription Box - more to come!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit inyoursparetime.substack.com

November was a big for family, food, work, and being tired! I know that’s pretty unique but hopefully one or two of you can relate! Beyond that we discuss nutrituional yeast vinegar, Spotify Wrapped, and sharing a shave ice with friends. What’s not to love??

How did you spend your spare time this month:

* MM: working big time, being in Miami, recovering from working, holiday-ing, recovering from holiday-ing! Fam time, etc.

* AA: Boston! Friends! So many work dinners and things, NYC, Family, Friendsgiving, Touring the West Wing, etc. 

Best/Worst:

* Worst:

* MM: Cooking two Thanksgivings in a row

* AA: Chocolate peanut butter croissant at Radio Bakery lol 

* Best: 

* AA: the shaved ice dessert at Tonchin in Brooklyn but it was mostly the company probably 

* MM: Stock party! Best of Thanksgiving: Eric Kim’s Cheesy Scallion Stuffing

Spare Time Rec:

* AA: Have You Heard of Christmas by Matt Rogers 

* MM: Purchasing a gift from our gift guide (and The Dry Down newsletter)

Culture / 3 Things You Need to Know: 

* Spotify wrapped wrapped

* MOVIES (Good Grief, LTWB, Renaissance, Hunger Games, Past Lives, Saltburn, May December)

* Nutritional Yeast Vin 

Look Ahead:

* MM: December! You’ve always been a problem child! Reminiscing, daydreaming, thinking about the year ahead! Celebrating Christmas! Listening to my best of all time playlist! READING–I’ve got 14 books left to crush to hit 100 lol

* AA: Yearning for the Sara B album I guess, knitting I sure hope, reading, watching movies, snowboarding, celebrating Christmas with my nephews which will be too cute I think. 75 hard?

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit inyoursparetime.substack.com

Surprise! It's a Thursday episode. Sorry for tardying, November really snuck up on us. Tune in for our October updates. It was giving friendship, soup, concerts, for one of us...Covid, and much more. Let’s dig in.

How did you spend your spare time this month:

* AA: seeing the greatest band(s) in the world, watching my best friends get married, acquainting myself with NJ culture, pumpkin patches, QT with my friends 

* MM: concerts concerts concerts! Also weddings weddings! Covid :( watching lots of movies and catching up on my reading goal

Best/Worst:

* Worst:

* MM: aside from the obvious –gestures broadly at the state of humanity– my cats smashed our chemex and I made a truly atrocious smoothie

* AA:  why do we have jobs :( & two of my former employers declared bankruptcy today 

* Best: 

* AA: brown butter corn cake from radio bakery / portobello sandwiches at home 

* MM: matzo ball soup from Celebrity Delyi courtesy of Ted Bristol

Spare Time Rec:

* AA: Boda Borg

* MM: Julia Turshen’s charts

Culture / 3 Things You Need to Know:

* What's happening in Women's Soccer

* Hunger games prequel now that we have both completed the journey 

* Britney Spears The Woman in Me

Look Ahead:

* AA: thanksgiving, fall in NYC, am I going to run a marathon, 3 books away from 100 

* MM: hosting family, MOVEmber, catching up on reading, being a bike girlie

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit inyoursparetime.substack.com

How did you spend your spare time this month:

* AA: fell in love with a new yoga instructor, moving 6x days a week (!), concerts!, time with old friends

* MM: being break-neck busy!!! Working, tutoring, wedding season!

Best/Worst:

* Worst:

* MM: more airplane travel (but with a silver lining <3)

* Weird “healthy” tiktok frozen yogurt….patties…

* Best: 

* AA: Hozier - rly fell in love with his new album Unreal Unearth (specifically Francesca and De Selby Part 2) / did you see hozier w/ boygenius 

* MM: honestly….the college essay

Spare Time Rec:

* AA: Naked Attraction if you dare + FYI

* MM: @moss_en_place

Culture / 3 Things You Need to Know:

* Joe and Sophie / our personal opinion on the band The Jonas Brothers 

* Sara Bareilles mental health discourse on the internet 

* Taylor and Travis - do we care and if so discuss  

Look Ahead:

* AA: Honestly more of the same + fall things 

* MM: living my truth in October, famously the March of the fall (? what could I have possible meant by that), less concerts (in a good way), hopefully to crushing the lads at pickleball, thinking about p!nk flying through the air

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit inyoursparetime.substack.com

How did you spend your spare time this month:

* AA: at the pool basically, reading, playing pickleball, making time for peloton and yoga, long dinners with friends 

* MM: on the road again! concerts galore, finding my inner peace about airline delays, and tutoring

Best/Worst:

* Best MM: Beyoncé, seeing many long distance friends, and New Mexican food

* Best AA: 2 Amy’s blueberry chip ice cream / honorable mention the chocolate mousse from Etto - always get dessert!!! + my book streak has been so good lately + im moving towards nigiri + using my brain in a new way at work. WOW BESTS GALORE!

* Worst MM: forgetting to book my flight lol

* Worst AA: I once again hate all my clothes and need to get rid of all of my things

Spare Time Rec:

* AA: AliRo tomato pie can’t stress it enough 

* MM: the city of Albuquerque

Culture / 3 Things You Need to Know:

* Date Bark - taking the internet by storm 

* Oppenheimer + Barbie review 

* Former bachelorette Gabby dating a woman now 

Look Ahead:

* AA: so many concerts, staying very active, eating out less I rly hope - rly want to make macarons the claire saffitz NYT video inspired me. Ready for fall and crisp air!!!

* MM: concerts with AA <3, weddings of beloveds, more travel but also a little less

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit inyoursparetime.substack.com

How did you spend your spare time this month:

* AA: Cape Cod, reading, hanging, eating fried seafood and ice cream, floating in the pond 

* MM: Travel travel travel busy busy busy hot hot hot

Best/Worst:

* Best MM: Cart Driver and this trout, all-time biggest group read

* Best AA: Sarma - experience and snap pea salad 

* Worst MM: Regal Cinema Ballston

* Worst AA: are lobster rolls bad? Tried the tiktok thing

Spare Time Rec:

* AA: chocolate shop / blind chocolate tasting 

* MM: podcasts whoa!!! Scamanda and The Retrievals! 

Culture / 3 Things You Need to Know:

* Strike? 

* Rice krispy treat on the fire 

* World cup

* Alissa’s birthday!

Look Ahead:

* AA: cooking maybe? Eating the summer produce 

* MM: More traveling lol! Scary! Also Beyonce

Thanks for spending your spare time with us! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit inyoursparetime.substack.com

How did you spend your spare time this month:AA: concerts! Home! Sewing! Spending time with family! Swimming with my king MM: Doing pride things, being home in June, concerts, smoky air, rock climbing

Best/Worst:Best MM: Lamb chops from DaruBest AA: little donkey / brandi carlile Worst MM: Echo Stage bullshitWorst AA: grays hall 

Spare Time Rec:AA: The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue MM: be a simple syrup girlie

Culture / 3 Things You Need to Know:The Supreme Court is garbageMovies / barbie / oppenheimer Submersible - a moment in timeOlivia Rodrigo/Taylor Swift beef–what do we think?

Look Ahead:AA: cape cod basically and knitting MM: back on my travel bs

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit inyoursparetime.substack.com