MUSIC
Sheryl Crow + MJ
Siedah Garrett co-wrote one of Michael Jackson’s greatest hits, “Man in the Mirror,” and sang lead vocals with him on “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” from Bad. When the album went on tour, Siedah chose to pursue a solo career, and a search for a new female vocalist began.
A recent L.A. transplant and former high school music teacher, Sheryl Crow, showed up to the audition in her humble teacher clothes. mj offered her the job on the spot.
Crow later returned to L.a. and joined a songwriting group called the “Tuesday Night Music Club,” which inspired the title of her hit debut album.
Watch Sheryl Crow sing “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” alongside Michael Jackson on tour.
FOOD
martinis + tarot
raoul’s has been a soho staple for over 50 years and even made an appearance in sex and the city: the movie (the scene where carrie and miranda share a v-day dinner together).
It’s always busy, but if you make your way to the bar, order a drink (they serve the crispest lemon drop martini in NYC), and navigate the tight spiral staircase upstairs, you’ll discover a lounge with a nightly tarot card reader ($50 per session as of 2026).
It’s a quirky, sensory little escape that appeals to all of my senses.
FILM
Lion
this astonishing film from 2016 is based on the true story of Saroo Brierley, who, at just five years old, boarded a train in a remote Indian village, became trapped in a train car, and arrived three days later in Calcutta (nearly 1,000 miles from home), with no id and only his first name to guide him. what follows is Saroo’s decades-long search for his long-lost home and family.
My tears are surely still staining the velvet seats of NYC’s Paris Theater, where I first saw the film. Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman received praise, but for me, the absolute dynamo of the film was young actor Sunny Pawar. Also worth noting: Sia’s end-credits song, “Never Give Up,” is an inspiring bop!
Performance
30 rock 20th anniversary
I recently performed as a backup dancer at the 30 Rock 20th Anniversary Reunion Benefit Show at Radio City Music Hall alongside Tina Fey, Jane Krakowski, Tracy Morgan, Alec Baldwin, and the rest of the gang. One highlight was performing with Lin-Manuel Miranda as he sang “Werewolf Bar Mitzvah” to a crowd that went absolutely INSANE!
the most beautiful part - Every star, from Tom Hanks to Jon Hamm to Conan O’Brien, stayed in the wings to watch and cheer on their castmates the entire show. It was a genuine love fest that felt more like a family reunion than a showbiz event. Proof, once again, that Tina Fey is God.
WELLNESS
eucalyptus body wash
As a dancer on a budget in NYC, I’ve realized that while a massage feels great, the occasional one-off doesn’t do much. I need daily rituals that nurture my body. Enter Molton Brown Infusing Eucalyptus Body Wash. At $37 (in 2026), it’s pricey, but worth EVERY PENNY. It fills your entire bathroom with the most lung- and heart-opening eucalyptus scent imaginable. Nothing else even comes close. Rub a little into your skin, let the warm shower spray hit it, and you’ll swear you’re in a five-star hammam in Istanbul.
travel
zipolite, mexico
Being gay adds an extra layer to travel: Are the locals “ok” with us? Mexico’s Pacific coast has a rising star among LGBTQ travelers, a remote gem that feels like paradise - zipolite. With the nearest airport over an hour away, it’s not the easiest place to reach, but the reward is one stunning beach after another.
The highlight? Playa del Amor. After climbing a natural stone staircase, you’re greeted by a tiny thatched-roof bar serving freshly squeezed lime mezcalitas and an ocean horizon framed by two rocky outcrops. Not a single ship, boat, or distraction in sight. ZERO. It’s a 10/10 slice of gay heaven. (hetero friendly too!)
ART
local gay art
While wandering the main drag of Zipolite, Mexico, I stumbled into a local shop called Casa Mexoni and fell for several plein air impressionist paintings by Mexican artist Juanjo Sainz (such as the one seen here). Growing up, despite my fair share of art museum visits, I can’t recall ever seeing depictions of gay couples or gay love. When I first encountered gay art in my 20s, I was startled by my own discomfort. I imagined that if I ever owned a piece, I’d have to hide it whenever family came to visit.
Flash forward to today, and I’m slowly learning to embrace these paintings as tender little capsules of connection and love. I didn’t purchase any (purely due to lack of funds haha), but I look forward to the day I own a piece I can proudly display, without ever feeling the need to hide it from anyone.
roller coaster
jack rabbit, clementon park, clementon, nj
My mom is from Philadelphia/South Jersey, where a little local amusement and water park called Clementon was once a beloved summertime staple but is now sadly closed. The park had an incredible wooden roller coaster called Jack Rabbit, dating all the way back to 1919! (and designed by the same coaster designer behind the similarly named Jack Rabbit at my beloved home park, Kennywood). It wasn’t tall or fast, but it was pure, old-fashioned fun.
I miss the days of small, community amusement parks. Conneaut Lake Park, the closest one to my hometown in pa, has also recently closed. support local!
coffee
Aúna Café, 139 anatole france, mexico city, mx
Open-air cafés, bars, and restaurants are everywhere in Mexico City, with so many gorgeously designed, inviting spaces that the city honestly puts NYC to shame. My first coffee stop in CDMX also happened to be my favorite: Aúna Café. their latte was perfectly balanced, and the custom ceramics from saudara it was served in were equally drool-worthy vessels to sip from.
literature
young heroes of the soviet union by alex halberstadt
Alex Halberstadt’s 2020 memoir was admittedly not a title that initially called to me, but after reading the first chapter, I was hooked. Through the lens of a gay, Soviet-born man, Halberstadt explores epigenetic inheritance, the idea that traumatic experiences may leave biological marks that influence future generations. As he examines his ancestors’ histories, he begins to recognize echoes of their experiences in his own present-day life.
little wonders
dim sum
I learned several years ago that “dim sum,” the popular Cantonese tradition of small plates like dumplings, cakes, rolls, and buns originating in Guangdong, China, translates roughly to “touch the heart.” My favorite interpretation of the translation, however, is “little touches of the heart,” And if you’ve ever had amazing dim sum, i think you’ll agree that might just be the most perfect description of them ever :-)
