Weekend Reads for February 21 & 22

I've always found it's February, not January, when I start to figure out my focus for the coming year. January is birthdays (me, my sister, my daughter, and several friends), January is often illness and bad weather, and January is trying to get my sh*t together from sort of letting things coast during the holidays.

I really have let things coast since the passing of my mom at the end of 2023. The past two years I have experienced a lot of writer's block, and I've been thinking a lot about what is my purpose, what am I going to do with this one wild and precious life, and how does Wardrobe Oxygen fit into all of it and the current state of the world and our country?

I've submitted the many many tax documents to my accountant. I've celebrated the birthdays, survived the winter sickness, and finally the D.C. area is seeing the snow melt. And I have found my 2026 focus for Wardrobe Oxygen: I'm giving this place a glow-up.

This doesn't mean I am playing with a new theme or logo, but I am working under the hood to clean up what exists while continuing to create new content. After your feedback, I decided to return to Mediavine, my old ad network. I have updated my menus to focus on the categories that matter the most.

I taught myself how to create blocks where I can call out relatable blog posts, create a “Tl;DR” for long posts so folks can get the idea and determine if the rest of the content is worth their time, and a “bio” block so I can offer information on those from the community who write reviews (and to introduce myself to those who visit me for the first time via my high-traffic and popular posts). I will be adding it to new posts and updating old content where it can prove beneficial.

Behind the scenes, I am reorganizing categories and tags so it's easier to find things. I am making descriptions for different categories, to help you better understand what the content there is, what is the best, where to start if you're new here. I am updating high-traffic content in ways that make it easier to read, has current information, and I'm learning how to create content that AI will not just copy and paste but see is worth linking to for more information.

As always, I want your feedback. You, the regular readers of Wardrobe Oxygen, are who are my primary focus. You “get” me, and what this community is about. You notice the changes, and you can give me the best and most honest suggestions. Never hesitate to share with me your pain points, your favorites, what you wish was here, etc. I may not implement it, but I will consider it, and it will color future changes to Wardrobe Oxygen.

This site ain't going anywhere, and I don't plan to change the kind of content I offer. But I am inspired by giving Wardrobe Oxygen a glow-up, and seeing what impact it makes for you, and future readers of this site. I thank you for sticking through all my stages and changes, let us continue to grow and evolve together!

Weekend Reads

George Washington by George W. Bush. (In Pursuit on Substack)

Not Born Broken: A Prophetic Rewriting of Psalm 51 (Blessed are the Women (and other Good News for all of us) on Substack)

Instagram Is Stealing Our Content to Sell Knockoffs — and Yours Could Be Next (Trade Offs on Substack)

Confessions of a Former Body Positivity Influencer. (YouTube and a reminder that sharing does not mean an endorsement; I look forward to think pieces on this video)

How the women of Utah blogged and posted their way into American hearts and wallets. (The Cut)

I am really into this dress.

Etsy sells second-hand fashion app Depop to eBay for $1.2bn. (BBC)

Decades after she charmed Scorsese, flirted with Letterman, and made friends with Madonna, Sandra Bernhard is still giving Babe Paley—she’s giving high glamour, she’s moving forward—and the audience loves it. (Town & Country)

Alice + Olivia's NYFW Presentation Was the Fashion Equivalent of ‘Let Them Eat Cake' (Fashionista)

Like the look of these pants, and appreciate they go up to 14 in petite and 16 in tall.

This is how a child dies of measles. (The Atlantic – gift link)

The Atlantic’s Elizabeth Bruenig on her “hypothetical,” heavily reported measles essay. (Nieman Lab)

The Worst-Case Future for White-Collar Workers. (The Atlantic – gift link)

If you're looking for an Amazon alternative, did you know QVC beauty is currently offering free shipping no minimum?

Speaking of which, TODAY ONLY (Saturday), use code NEWQ30 at QVC for $30 off $60. This works across the site, not just on beauty!

Braden Peters, known as Clavicular, has emerged as a beacon for a group of narcissistic, status-obsessed young men. He wants to take his fixation with “looksmaxxing” mainstream. (New York Times – gift link)

I'm a fan of Spanx denim (hello regular, petite, and tall up to 3X) and right now Spanx jeans are on sale 30% off!

Jake Paul and his $65 million fortune are gaining influence in Silicon Valley. (Fortune)

Peter Thomas Roth is in the Epstein Files. What Happens Now? (Kirb on Substack)

How to Lobby Your Representative’s District Office | A Field Guide. (The 50501 Movement)

GQ names Adam Baidawi as its top editor. He says he wants the magazine to be a “North Star of masculinity.” (New York Times – gift link)

It's National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend and Girl Scouts of the Nation's Capital is celebrating by giving away a year's worth of Girl Scout Cookies to one supporter. Any customer, no matter where they live, who purchases cookies online this weekend (2/20-2/22) will be automatically entered. Whether they're shipped, delivered, or donated, any purchase through Digital Cookie counts. If you haven't yet bought Girl Scout cookies and want some and don't have a nearby Scout or troop, my daughter is a Girl Scout and would appreciate your support!

Style Inspo & Sale Alert

For my local yokels, some of the coolest grown-ass women I know in the D.C. area are having a closet sale March 6-8. We're talking former fashion writers, world travelers, creative home designers, personal stylists, and overall badass women in a range of body sizes and types who have downsized their closets and giving proceeds to charity. Learn more about this sale at my friend Jenn's post on Substack, and to get the best of the best and support N Street Village, you can RSVP for VIP night at this link.

When scrolling through Gap's New Arrivals for an upcoming capsule wardrobe, I was thrilled to see so many items 100% merino and 100% cotton. And I knew many of you would be thrilled, too.

• This classic cotton crew is under $80 and gets great reviews
• This under $50 merino shell is perfect for work or an elevated t-shirt alternative
• This colorful number is the kind of thing you usually only find in acrylic or for $300
• This super versatile and pretty and bra-friendly dress (available in tall and petite as well as misses XXS-XXL) was on sale under $80 when I wrote this yesterday afternoon with an extra 10% off in the app.
• Shop all my picks at this link

See/Hear/Read

If you could spend eternity with one person, who would it be? Would it be your spouse of 60+ years… or would it be the one who got away? Or would it be neither of them? That's the premise of the movie Eternity, currently on Apple TV+. Starring Elizabeth Olsen, Miles Teller, Callum Turner, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, and John Early, this is a romantic comedy that envisions what happens in the afterlife.

In this movie, when you die, you end up the age you were when you were at your absolute happiest. So when 80-something Larry (Miles Teller) dies unexpectedly but knows Joan, his wife of 65 years has terminal cancer and will be dying soon, and he has only one week to choose his eternity, hijinks ensue. Add to it Joan's first husband (Callum Turner), who died in the Korean War, has been waiting for Joan all these years to join her in eternity. When Joan (Elizabeth Olsen) arrives, she has to make a decision that will determine the rest of her afterlife… and those of the men who love her.

This movie is goofy, and cute, and sweet, and stupid, and we found it the perfect movie to watch Valentine's Day night when we were both feeling under the weather from the side effects of getting the shingles vaccine. If you can relate to being in a relationship where love is getting vaccines together and preferring a night on the couch in cozy pants, you may really love this film. Eternity is a film that is best served to grown-ass folk in long-term comfortable relationships.

So I finished The High Tide Club. My sister did too. I wonder if I would have liked it better with a different narrator because this voice actor was horrible. I don't recommend it, but as my sister said, she never considered DNF-ing. It did keep me engaged until the end, I didn't really expect it to go the way it did, but I didn't like a single character.

For Your Entertainment

A few years ago, I caught the middle of a show on PBS where this kid in goofy pants and spiky hair was creating music with the audience. He'd have them make different sounds and conduct them as they got louder and softer, higher and lower, and it was amazing. I wished I was in that audience, what a cool experience.

That kid was Jacob Collier, and this past summer, thanks to Wolf Trap, I got to do exactly that. When Collier's tour came to Virginia, I and my friend were provided stellar tickets for a truly immersive experience. And it just made me even more of a fan of this very talented person. Just last week, Collier released a music video for his single, “Something Heavy,” off the album he released last fall. This song sounds best with headphones or earbuds.