1. Drink Juiced!
ANN CHRISTENSON, SENIOR DINING EDITOR
At this very moment, my fingers dancing away on this keyboard, I’m sipping a bottle of Juiced!, made locally and found in refrigerator cases everywhere from Sendik’s to Metro Market to Beans & Barley. My taste buds are very partial to a flavor called Eternal Life, a blend of pineapple, orange and ginger – and that ginger stays with you, which I love. The bottle also visually pops, thanks to the label artwork by local painter Reginald Baylor.
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2. Read A Place of Greater Safety
ARCHER PARQUETTE, MANAGING EDITOR
Hilary Martel is probably best known for her historic novel Wolf Hall (which dumps all over one of my heroes, Thomas More, and so I have as of yet been unable to finish it). But before that, she wrote this novel, which covers the French Revolution from the point of view of three key figures: Maximilien Robespierre, Georges Danton and Camille Desmoulins. It follows these revolutionary leaders from their childhoods over thirty years to the Reign of Terror, when their efforts led to the mass guillotining of thousands. The book is almost aggressively English, with a lot of witty repartee amidst the bloodshed, but all in all, it’s a gripping and insightful look into a beguiling, relevant and horrific moment in history.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
3. Watch “Bridgerton” Season 2
BRIANNA SCHUBERT, ASSOCIATE DIGITAL EDITOR
Yes, I watched “Bridgerton” last year, along with the 82 million other households who watched the show in its first 28 days. Then, I thought about the massive reveal of Lady Whistledown’s true identity for a year, and now I’m working my way through Season 2 – which, admittedly, is taking longer than expected. It has started off a bit slow, in my opinion, but as I am heading into episode five, the tensions are high. I can’t wait to sit down with a nice cup of tea and watch the next episode tonight. If you haven’t started watching it yet, this author recommends that you should get started right away (then you’ll understand my reference there!).
4. Order a Compost Bin
CHRIS DROSNER, EXECUTIVE EDITOR
I’ve told y’all about some of my more aggressive tactics to acquire material for my compost. Well, now’s the best time to get the bin. The city holds an annual sale of absolute Cadillacs of compost: the Home Composter, a 128-gallon beaut (better than most in stores) with a locking lid and sliding door for access to your black gold. It’s big enough to hold a whole bunch of fall leaves in addition to whatever food scraps and garden clippings you’re throwing its way. Park it in a corner of your yard near your back door and save room for gutter pumpkins.
$65, order by April 15; pickup in the Menomonee Valley on Saturday, June 11.
5. Check Out Currents 38: Christy Matson
ALLI WATTERS, DIGITAL AND CULTURE EDITOR
This weekend, I was at the Milwaukee Art Museum (700 N. Art Museum Dr.) to check out “Art in Bloom,” a fantastically springy event that celebrates the talent of local florists. While I was exploring the arrangements, I decided to finally pop into Currents 38: Christy Matson – a gallery I’ve been dying to see since I previewed it in our Spring Arts Guide. Matson creates “woven pictures” that are designed to resemble contemporary paintings using traditional weaving techniques. There are nearly 50 of her works, plus a video – projected onto a piece of fabric – that shows her creating them. It’s all so interesting and absolutely worth checking out before the show closes on July 17.
