Spreadlings,

So much has happened in the two long weeks since we last spoke! First and foremost the happy, healthy arrival of Miss Valentine, our—okay, fine, technically Rachel’s—hotly anticipated Spreadbaby, the 9th wonder of the world, who is already celebrating her 12th day on Planet Earth (mazel, V!) by cluster-feeding like a champ. Both mother and child are doing beautifully, which means we can now address the big questions, like: Any recs on must-watch maternity leave TV, or philosophies on what makes for ideal maternity leave viewing? Maggie is usually no fan of the network sitcom, but she recommends Parks & Rec to every new parent:  It comes in short, manageable episodes; can be enjoyed with little brain power and, like, a 14-percent attention span; and is powered by Leslie Knope’s world-beating optimism—just what the doctor ordered when you haven’t slept in 36 hours and are facing down your eighteenth diaper of the afternoon. What would/did you choose, Spread fam? Let’s hear it.

What you see below is mostly written by Maggie, with the odd celebrity cameo (i.e., footnote) by Rachel—yes, Mama’s comin’ in hot, even though Maggie told her to stay in bed! May this mini-newsletter nourish you like a brewer’s yeast-and-flax-seed lactation cookie, and get your intellectual juices flowing, too. We’ll be back with another set of bites before you know it. 

Nom nom nom,

Maggie & Rachel

Break-Up artiste.

This past June, I went to see Chelsea Handler’s standup act

Listen to “We Can Do Hard Things with Glennon Doyle” here.

She sees both sides.

By now you’ve probably come across Jia Tolentino’s New Yorker story, “Is Abortion Sacred?,” which has made the rounds of Twitter and Apple News—but it’s long, everybody’s busy, we get it. If you haven’t taken the time to really read it, take this late-breaking reminder: Do that now. Among all the recent stories about abortion—the legal ramifications, the rhetoric, the future of feminism—this one covers a lot of ground and feels like what will be a foundational piece, one you will want to know, and reference. It comes at the issue of abortion from a perspective it seems safe to assume is not that of your average Ivy-educated New Yorker writer: That of someone who was once deeply Christian, raised in Texas to believe that abortion was the ultimate sin. Tolentino is now the mom of a toddler, and weaves her own pregnancy narrative around a history of religious views on abortion (reminding us that pro-life absolutism is a recent theological development). Importantly, she does so with a deep conviction that abortion should be a woman’s right, but also real empathy for the views of the other side; views that she once shared. Much of what Tolentino writes echoes what Rachel has often said in this newsletter: She’d never been quite as militant about the necessity of abortion as she was during her own pregnancies—when she became painfully aware of what this was doing to her life and her body, by her choice.—MB

Read it here.

Run, Anne Helen, run!

When my much-sportier-than-me friend Sarah popped Anne Helen Petersen’s latest Culture Study post into the group chat, I recoiled: “The Quiet Glory of Aging into Athleticism” did not sound like something I could relate to (though—progress!—I did just manage to delete the self-deprecating joke I was about to insert here about what state I am aging into! Self respect, it’s a journey, right Chelsea?). Growing up, Petersen never considered herself athletic; here she writes about a decades-long process of un-sticking herself from a notion of exercise that is “purely utilitarian and utterly joyless”—checking a box in the name of “body regimentation”—to evolve into the kind of person who runs 27.7 miles to complete some fresh hell called a Ragnar relay. For fun! And, OK, I’d love to say I can relate to that, but no dice. But I’m sure lots of you will. Sarah, the story recommender, has accomplished exactly what Petersen writes about here: She loves her long runs, is sad when she can’t do them, and like Petersen, only began to self-identify as an athlete in her forties. So maybe there is hope for me yet? —MB

Read it here.

Cuckoo for Keke

With Jordan Peele’s Nope number one at the box office, star Keke Palmer is everywhere—in a way that I’m finding weirdly enjoyable. If, like me, you’re late to the party on Palmer, I suggest starting with her Wired magazine Autocomplete Interview—highlighted this week on fellow Substacker Hunter Harris’ newsletter, in which Palmer’s lightening wit and sheer charisma will make you wonder why the rest of us are all operating at half speed, and want to know everything you can about this superhuman creature. Then progress to Niela Orr’s insightful profile in the New York Times Magazine, titled, “The Gag is: Keke Palmer is a Movie Star.” The headline is pulling double duty here: A) Palmer is queen of the meme, often leading into her best comedic bits with “the gag is…”. Also, she’s been a working actor (and singer and voice-over-er and writer and…the list goes on) since she was a kid

We will not insult your intelligence by recommending FX’s The Bear.

Just like we’re not going to tell you that “Barbiecore” is a thing—we know, we know: You know. But if you’re wondering why a show with no sex is the sexiest show of the summer, may we put on your plate this tasty morsel of an essay by Sarah York for Bon Appetit. Title: “Everyone’s Horny for the ‘Sexually Competent Dirtbag Line Cook.’”  York writes, “What if Pete Davidson drank even less water? That’s what Sexually Competent Dirtbag Line Cook looks like.” The five-minute read will add infinite enjoyment to the second most stressful show you’ll watch this summer. Find it here but if even that click is too exhausting for you, allow me to serve up a bit that will ring true to every former and/or current single woman: “If you’ve ever waited in vain for a text back from a man with no bed frame in his apartment, you’re already pretty familiar with this type. Imagine no-bed-frame man, but he only drinks from plastic quart containers and cooks a spaghetti carbonara that will make you write in your journal for the first time since high school. Has he showered today? No. Are you going to be the one to change him and make him want to settle down? Also no!” Ah, summer love.—MB