Welcome to this edition of Dimanche (That Means Sunday), a roundup of things that caught my eye this past week.

This week was the first one that’s felt like spring, so naturally I spent most of it outside. I went on a run Wednesday through Forest Park and halfway through, I saw the heron in the above photo. It was my first heron sighting of the season. I also saw another one across the prairie but I didn’t want to walk to get a photo of it because technically, the prairie is being renovated. So I just admired it from afar.

Friday, I had the chance to spend time with my friends Martin and Lynn Weber from Edelbrand Pure Distilling at their farm in Marthasville, MO (more on that below). We had a great time even though we encountered a nasty storm on the way home from dinner Friday night. We made tiramisu, talked, ate good food, and I played with their dog. It was relaxing to get away from the city for a while and spend time with good friends.

Speaking of good friends, I got to see my best friend today for lunch. Rachel lives in D.C. so I don’t get to see her as often now. Whenever she’s in town we meet up for lunch or dinner. I’m glad I got to see her and catch up.

WARNING: This might get a little gushy. Being with Lynn, Martin, and Rachel reminded me of the importance of carving out time for good friends. I usually do this anyway, but sometimes it’s easy to start prioritizing work and putting relationships on the back burner. I try to find a balance. I always feel so much better after spending time with people I care about, so it makes sense to try to do it as often as possible.

Without further ado, here is Dimanche:

I’ve been following this story about how Philly cheesesteak made it into a symphony at Carnegie Hall and it’s WILD. The composer, who has already penned symphonies about other cities, decided to concentrate on sounds unique to Philadelphia for his latest symphony. I liked the part of this story in The New York Times where he says that while he was recording the cheesesteak, he got close enough to the meat to singe his hair.

Junot Díaz is one of my favorite authors but I didn’t know much about his personal history until recently. Then I read this story in The New Yorker last week and cried at my desk. Díaz writes about childhood trauma and how it’s impacted his life, especially his romantic relationships. The story is powerful, heart-wrenching, and raw. I’d highly recommend reading it, even though you might feel like stopping at some points because it’s so intense.

On a lighter note… Food & Wine released their top restaurants of 2018 recently. The list includes eateries in Houston, D.C., and New York. I really like what Chef Justin Yu said about sandwiches in the article. Yu, who helms Better Luck Tomorrow in Houston, said that a sandwich can only be something between two fully-detached pieces of bread. In other words, hot dogs and falafel don’t count. I couldn’t agree more.

Can we talk about the new Drake song? I can’t stop talking about it. Some music writers said it’s Drake’s response to the #MeToo movement, and this seems right. After all, most of the lyrics praise women and talk about how they have to put up with so much nonsense from men (i.e., “nice for what?”). Aside from its sociocultural implications, though, the song is an artistic gem. I read some nice things about it in this Pitchfork review.

As I mentioned earlier, I spent some time with my friends Lynn and Martin Friday and Saturday and we had a blast. Lynn and I made tiramisu from scratch, something I’ve only attempted once before and to less-than-satisfactory results. Our tiramisu was delicious. We ended up having slices Friday because we couldn’t wait for it to set overnight. I’ll share the recipe with you later this week.

In other food-related news… I tracked down Balkan Treat Box last Monday during lunch. It’s a rare treat because they don’t always come close to where I work. I got the chicken döner and it was on. point. I wish I could eat there every day, but I’ll have to settle for when they’re on the road.

Last but certainly not least, I stopped by The Clover & The Bee in Webster Groves for breakfast earlier this week when I had a half-day at work. I love spending time there writing and drinking coffee. The interiors are very whimsical and everyone sitting in the café is generally in a good mood. You can check out their menu here.

Enjoy your week! Here’s a song to get you started.