issue 3, level 3

lockdown is back, and so is clipboard!

August 16, 2020

Welcome to clipboard, a newsletter by Reilly Hodson about Auckland, culture, and other Good Things.

So there we have it: on Friday evening, Jacinda Ardern announced our future for the next couple of weeks: Auckland is back at Level 3, staying at home but still being able to eat takeaways. It’s much nicer to have some certainty about it all, and having faith in our public systems to be effective in their dealing with the outbreak (border blunders aside) is a welcome contrast to the experiences of the people I see online in the US and UK, or really any other country to which New Zealanders compare ourselves. 

Two more weeks of Auckland lockdown has a number of implications, and this issue of clipboard is here to be a guide to the least consequential ones. First, what to wear?

lockdown fits

When we did lockdown last time, I settled into a routine of dressing that was comfortable but not too slobby (though if you want to go full slob, be my guest, whatever you need to get through). I found that balance to be a pretty good way of keeping my spirits up without getting in the way of what I really want to do all day, which is more or less lie in bed or sit on the couch. Basically, every day features some combination of: 

  • some sort of comfortable jumper, which can be fancy (like this one from Kowtow) or more chill (like this low-key wavy hoodie from Commoners which I’m trying to talk myself out of buying) 

  • a t-shirt (the best graphic tees are merch tees, like this one from Good Dog Bad Dog, and the best blank tees are these ones from Buddy)

  • a pair of shorts (Patagonia baggies are the only shorts you’ll ever need, get the 5” inseam and be on the right side of history and TikTok teens)

  • if the weather is not shorts appropriate, or you live in a rental property without adequate heating, a pair of comfortable pants (see last week’s pants issue for my picks, and if you want to go full sweatpant, these ones from AS Colour are the best)

  • comfy socks (like these from Jiho Store) and a pair of Birkenstocks (I have the EVA Bostons which are cheap and do everything that the fancy cork ones do). I’m a house shoes enthusiast, though I do occasionally wear outdoor shoes inside like a heathen.

I’ll be spending a fair amount of this round of lockdown at work in my barista uniform (battered raw-hemmed Dickies, Blundstone boots and a t shirt, cuffed beanie optional), but that’s how you’ll find me when I’m home. I’m interested in your lockdown fit essentials, so get in touch on Instagram and send me your looks! Next we’ll talk lockdown food, but first, some links from this week, which was luckily not entirely filled with anxiety.

clips

  • Vox finally explains all of those cutesy social justice instagram slideshows, about which I feel deeply ambivalent.

  • The brilliant new local fashion publication Ensemble launched its website this week, with a really interesting membership business model (I recommend almost all of their partner brands, signing up is probably worth it for the discounts alone) and this is a great explanation of their point of view.

  • Checks is having a Very Good Sale.

  • The Spinoff’s Policy tool is a really good way to become an informed voter, and voting while informed about issues is an extremely satisfying thing to do.

  • Alice Snedden skewers some “free speech advocates” who just happen to hate trans people and also expression of free speech.

  • This sudoku app has wrought absolute havoc on my screen time over the last few weeks. 

  • Jamie Loftus’ podcast ‘My Year in Mensa’ is only four episodes long and is worth every minute of your time.

lockdown eats and drink

The biggest bright side of avoiding another stint of Level 4 lockdowns is that we can still get local takeaways, which means that you can be a local-economy-supporting hero and also have delicious food and drinks. Here are the places I’ll be supporting (full disclosure: I live in a Ponsonby-Karangahape-Road-adjacent part of Grey Lynn and am listing places which are walking distance from my house, so this list is definitely biased towards a certain type of “new-school” hospo operator based in that area).

For coffee: Daily Daily make the best coffee in town, bar none. There are maybe 6 baristas in Auckland I trust to make me a good coffee every time, and two of them are Josh and Albert at Daily Daily. I love everything about this cafe, and although you can’t experience the decor or brilliant ceramic collection at level 3, no one will make you as good a pour over or flat white, whatever your flavour. 

For wine: Clay were in clipboard last week as a brilliant bar, but they also have an off licence and offer wine delivery. Of particular interest to me is this 1 litre reusable bottle of Libiamo Giallo. Delicious natural wine sustainably packaged? Yes please. Also of note: the fine people behind Celeste and Cantine have fast-tracked the launch of their wine store, Star Superette, and have a similarly good range of bottles that you can get delivered to your door.

For extremely yum food: Ockhee is my favourite restaurant at the moment, and they started doing takeaways yesterday. Ockhee is best enjoyed in-house, but even without the exceptional service and great vibe, the food is still delicious, flavourful and very good value for money, so buy takeaways now so that we can all go and have soju and bo ssam there in (hopefully) a couple of weeks’ time.

For vegan food: Wise Boys make delicious burgers that happen to have no animal products in them. My favourite is the Crispy Fried Chick, a chickpea burger that sort of approximates a chicken burger without trying too hard to be “meat-y” and instead just being delicious. They also make the best vegan mayo and aioli. A great introduction to plant based diets, and a great addition to a carnivorous one.

music

reminder: you can find a playlist of all my favourite songs at the moment on Apple Music here. new additions will feature on this newsletter every week, and there’ll be links here to the songs on all the major streamers.

Vibey supergroup Leisure have a new song ‘Spark It Up’ which is, unsurprisingly, vibey and super. Apple Spotify YouTube

Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion team up for a Very Inappropriate (don’t click these links please mum) banger on ‘WAP.’ Apple Spotify YouTube

Dua Lipa’s Big Tune ‘Levitating’ has been remixed by The Blessed Madonna, featuring Madonna and Missy Elliott. Sign me up. Apple Spotify YouTube

I’ve only just been able to start listening to Fleetwood Mac again after over-exposure at an old job, and folks, ‘Dreams’ is a Tune. Apple Spotify YouTube

I’ve been revisiting some of Taylor Swift’s music after listening to folklore a lot, and ‘Getaway Car’ might be my favourite of her shiny pop era. Apple Spotify YouTube

notices

That’s all for clipboard this week. You can follow me on twitter and instagram, and send me an email about whatever. You can also read the back catalogue of previous issues here. See you next Sunday (or perhaps before, if another emergency occurs, let me know your thoughts on a Wednesday extra issue). If you enjoyed this issue, click like and forward this email to your coolest friends. If you were forwarded this email, make sure to subscribe here.