Meet the Mess

Move over, Meet the Press—it’s time to Meet the Mess! Before we begin, Senator Lindsey Graham died last night, and we won’t be giving sympathies today. Instead, we'll save our thoughts on his legacy for next week’s podcast. Now, let’s continue! This week on the podcast, Jen and Karyn weigh in on the explosive diarrhea that’s sweeping America. Then, in a seamless transition from one bathroom topic to another, they discuss Trump flying his 💩 back to the U.S. from Turkey.

Move over, Meet the Press—it’s time to Meet the Mess! This week on the podcast, Jen and Karyn are joined by Emily Freda Foster and Deanna Cheng from How To Be Less Old for the ultimate Love Island roundtable! Whether you’re a newbie to the show (like Emily and Karyn) or a superfan (like Deanna and Jen), we’ve got you covered. Plus, are Taylor and Travis getting married this weekend?

A few weeks ago, Karyn’s friend Nicole suggested that we add a new segment to the podcast called Questions From a Lesbian, where she asks us questions about straight men that genuinely confuse her. It all started with that viral video of Travis Kelce slamming a beer in front of a stadium full of Chiefs fans while Taylor Swift sat beside him. Nicole wanted to know: Do straight women find that attractive? Does watching a man shotgun a beer awaken something inside us?

Here is my State of the Summer Union, thus far. I know it’s only technically been summer for four days, but summer in Chicago begins the moment you can drink outside. Listen, I don’t make the rules. (Yet.) Meet the Mess is a reader-supported publication. To receive our new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. (Those drinks aren’t gonna buy themselves.) I debated saying “drink outside without a coat” but that doesn’t feel like something we do here.

For the last couple of months, I’ve been thinking Bertie might be an asshole. Not a total asshole. Just enough of an asshole that I keep asking him, “Why are you like this?” Why do you knock everything off the tables? Why do you swat at me when I walk by? Why do you go from happily accepting my pets to suddenly biting my hand off? I assumed he was being difficult. I assumed he enjoyed testing my patience. I assumed he woke up every morning thinking, How can I annoy my mother today?

Move over, Meet the Press—it’s time to Meet the Mess! This week on the podcast, Jen’s in a mood and nothing is safe! (Especially small potatoes.) Also, Hunter Biden’s social media blitz, Gwyneth Paltrow’s controversial commercial and opinions about arugula, the hottest TV shows of the summer, and the great tipping debate: How much is too much and when is it not necessary?! Plus, the etiquette of becoming friends with a friend’s friend, 33 side quests guaranteed to make life more interesting,...

Hello and happy June, where we seem to be stuck in the same Groundhog’s Day of last month (and the previous month) in terms of the news cycle. But cracks of resistance are showing, whether it’s vociferous boos at the Knicks game or Kristen Welker holding a pair of Florsheim-clad, swollen orange feet to the fire. Plus, it’s (un)officially summer and we’re drinking wine outside, so we’re feeling cautiously upbeat. And with that, we bring you our May wrap-up.

Hello, it’s Karyn. We need to talk about The Real Housewives of Rhode Island. I wasn’t planning to watch it. In fact, I haven’t seriously watched a Housewives franchise in years. But Jen kept telling me it was good. Other friends kept telling me it was good. The internet kept telling me it was good. So now here I am, ten episodes deep, with strong opinions about complete strangers and a burning desire to discuss them with others.

Move over, Meet the Press—it’s time to Meet the Mess! This week on the podcast, Jen and Karyn discuss the best books to bring to the pool, the cocktail of the summer, and the celebrity couples you forgot were a thing. Oh, and a Nobel Prize-winning psychologist thinks he's cracked the code on happiness. No big deal. In entertainment news, the story of Mackenzie Shirilla's deadly crash is detailed in the documentary The Crash.

Speaks to How Long It's Been So… hi! HAPPY SUMMER!!! It’s officially summer because the Rectangle of Sadness is up and running! This year, we added a fountain water-return on it, so it’s not just a stupid kids’ pool; it’s a stupid kids’ pool with an additional WATER FEATURE! As soon as I figure out where the batteries go, it’s gonna have a little light show, in case you didn’t think it was trashy enough.