Coming through with some thoughts on the intersection of friendship and ambition, covered wagon core (not to be confused with cottagecore!), and ~summer movies~.

Following up on our Wilder conversation, we’d like to discuss covered wagon core. See Kim K.’s CR Fashion Book spread “The Pioneer Woman,” Rudy Jude, Salter House, and making jam. 

Re: actual covered wagons, Conestoga does a luxe wagon and a bar wagon, both, and Pioneer Woman has a roundup of campgrounds with covered wagons.

Rainesford Stauffer’s “We Should Be Ambitious About Our Friendships” for Elle sparked our convo about friendship ambition—she’s also the author of An Ordinary Age: Finding Your Way in a World That Expects Exceptional and the new All the Gold Stars: Reimagining Ambition and the Ways We Strive. 

We love this tweet about friendship discussion agendas. As for books, this topic calls to mind Courtney Martin’s The New Better Off, Kayleen Schaefer’s Text Me When You Get Home, Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman’s Big Friendship, and Hua Hsu’s Stay True. 

On our TBR list: Sheila Liming’s Hanging Out: The Radical Power of Killing Time. (In the meantime: “The Case for Hanging Out” by Dan Kois for Slate and The Ezra Klein Show episode "The ‘Quiet Catastrophe’ Brewing in Our Social Lives.") 

Bring on the summer movies! Obsessed with Past Lives, itching to see Theater Camp, Joy Ride, Problemista (see also: I Want to Be a Vase by Julio Torres), Red, White, & Royal Blue, Challengers, and, of course, Barbie (all the prophecies, including Margot Robbie in Vogue and Greta Gerwig in Gentlewoman, whet the appetite).

Do you have easy, low-pressure ways to keep up with friends? Let us know at 833-632-5463, [email protected], or @athingortwohq—or join our Geneva! And for more recommendations, try out a Secret Menu membership.   

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Find more weeknight dinner recipes at Pillsbury.com. 

Take advantage of the Partner to Empower program for entrepreneurs of color from Brookfield Properties—apply by August 11.

YAY.

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