Here we are, the end of the year. I wish I had some trenchant missive to share with you all as we conclude this year’s activities and move on to the next’s, but I don’t, really!
I do think it’s kind of hilarious that in a year where I published over 30 written pieces, 12 cocktail videos, 11 episodes of Recipe Club, judged a spirits competition, shut down a drinks company, and wrote a whole-ass book, I still feel like kind of a slacker. I think there is a really fine line between holding yourself accountable to the type of person you want to be and indulging in unhelpful negative self-talk.
In addition to doing whatever it is I consider work I also spent a lot of time on Youtube watching music videos, particularly those from Utada Hikaru’s new album, so do yourself a favor and check them out.
Michael and I also said goodbye to our cat Felix, and hello to two new cats, Freda and Tetris. We found them via the Brooklyn Cat Cafe and I would highly recommend them to anyone who’s looking to adopt a cat.
I’m not even going to bother with my predictions for next year, as pretty much every year for as long as I can remember has rolled out in completely unexpected ways. When I was growing up, my mom clipped out this New Yorker cartoon to put on a bulletin board in our kitchen, and I think about it all the time. In a subconscious way this has informed many of my life choices:
I don’t know if in the 90s, when I looked at this comic, I would have ever imagined that mildly-retired bartender/writer/video guy/male lipstick advocate/temporary entrepreneur would be the job I ended up with. So, I’m not going to predict much about next year.
I will say though that 2023 will take me to at least one restaurant, Cafe Mars, where I’m working with the chefs Paul and Jorge on the cocktail program and the vibe is stylish, unhinged minimalism that those of you familiar with my personality and aesthetic will most certainly recognize. And they are definitely hiring!
Beyond that, I might have two or three other restaurant consulting clients in the pipeline, which is cool! I probably won’t ever return to active bartending again (old) but calling the shots from the sidelines is something I’m definitely comfortable with now that I’m 40.
And burying the lede here somewhat but my next book, Saved By The Bellini, comes out on April 25th. If somehow you are one of the 309 people who are subscribed to this newsletter but have not pre-ordered the book, please fix that as soon as you are able. Pre orders are a great way for buyers at smaller book stores to see what books to buy, so the bigger numbers at the main online retailers signal more confidence that the book will sell when it comes out, plus you GET the book when it comes out. I’m not making predictions but I do anticipate the rollout will be quite different from Drink What You Want, which came out on June 2, 2020…
That’s all I got for now! Recently many of you have asked about my skincare routine, so instead of writing it out over and over, I recorded a video: here is a very rudimentary skincare video where I detail my AM routine. PM routine will come out some time before the end of 2023 lol.
Happy New Year!