Floor Time
/flôr tīm/
noun
the 15-60 minute time period spent laying on the floor in the middle of the work day, typically as a relief from the soul-sucking reality of corporate America.
At this point, I’m not even sure how many of you are even in the country anymore. Every Insta story is either a Trevi fountain shot that shouts, “eat your heart out, Lizzie McGuire,” or a Guinness cheers from that insane England vs. Slovakia Euros game, or a luxury purchase in Paris, or a Dula Peep video from Glastonbury. All this to say, the girlies are OUT this summer. But, for those of us plebes who have decided to remain in the US of A, yearning to drown out the absolute trainwreck that is the road to the 2024 election, I wanted to provide you with an off-cycle special edition Tuesday Floor Time to get us all excited for the biggest American holiday of the summer. It’s the Fourth of July, baybee!
I have always been a summer kid—chalk it up to 14 summers of my life spent at the pool—so the Fourth is a delightful holiday in my opinion. But what makes it delightful, exactly? I’ll tell ya. Hope this gives you some ideas before the big day ;)
Clarice’s Fourth of July Hot [Dog] or Not List
Hot Dogs
HOT 🔥
I mean to no one’s surprise. Hot dogs are an elite food and if you don’t believe me, believe Eater or The Cut. They are the embodiment of summer: “A hot dog is meant to be consumed outside, standing up while clutching a beer and a plate of potato salad in your other hand” (Olivia Craighead for The Cut). ‘Tis the season for a hot dog and if I don’t see them at your Fourth party don’t even think about getting an invite to my inevitable Hot Dogs Only dinner party.
Pomegranate Margaritas (or any marg)
HOT 🔥
I feel like margaritas in general are a staple summer drank. This past week I hosted an informal “Hot Honey Summer” dinner party (because even an informal dinner will have a theme in my book) where I made Wishbone Kitchen’s Hot Honey Peach Margaritas. No when I tell you I will be drinking these for the rest of the summer…They are perfectly spicy, and take advantage of stone fruit season in the best way. The puree recipe yielded SO much puree I think I’ll have to freeze it and use it later in the summer, perhaps to make a frozen version. You can easily batch this like I did for the dinner party, and sip them Belly style all Fourth weekend long.
Camping
HOT 🔥
Listen, I am a Bay Area kid, and I feel like all of us have a base-level of outdoorsiness instilled in us at birth. There isn’t a single Californian I know that can’t manage a short hike or a night or two sleeping outside. Camping for me is a handful of things: phone-free bliss, a reset, an opportunity to hear myself think for once, lawn game tournaments, having deep conversations, swimming, drinking seltzers on a floatie, and grilling delicious foods. It took a couple years since moving to NYC to find people who were up for it, and maybe another year after that to find places that are close enough to NYC to drive to in a weekend, but we made it, fam! Find me on a floatie in a lake upstate this Fourth.
Swimming in Holes
HOT 🔥
There is nothing I love more than swimming in a hole—and you can quote me on that. The feeling of taking a scenic drive along a river or mountain, pulling over, then hiking to a gorgeous, refreshing swimming area to cool off is an incomparable feeling. When I think of all my core memories of summer growing up, they all include some version of this.
Long Weekend Concerts
HOT🔥
Back in the Bay, we have Stern Grove, the Greek Theatre, and Shoreline Ampitheatre that act as ideal venues for outdoor concerts. In New York, we have Forest Hills, once home to the US Open. Outdoor concerts in the summer are the way to go—witnessing the sunset over the sounds of your favorite artist, and perhaps even getting caught in a summer storm (one of my favorite Maggie experiences to date).
Hotel Pool Day
NOT ❄️
With a caveat! Finding a pool in NYC is harder to get your hands on than a Hamptons AirBnB for under $10,000 a night1. And this long weekend, I’m sure it’ll be a bloodbath. Luckily, there are a handful of pools that, through market research, I have determined are actually worth it. What I can tell you is even the finest of deals are pricey. For instance, the William Vale has one of the nicest rooftop pools in the city, and a day pass will run you at minimum $150pp on a weekday (which might mean a beach chair on the other side of the terrace with no pool view). I believe last year they had a 2-drink minimum on top of that day pass price which is barbaric, but it looks like they may have gotten rid of that this year. All in all, it’s pricey.
Hotel Staycation
HOT 🔥
Last year for my anniversary, we worked around this ridiculous day pass price by instead paying for a night staycation at the William Vale (I’m just using them as an example here, but other hotels like ModernHaus, 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge, and Coda Williamsburg have comparable prices/offerings) which ran us about $350. Definitely still a sum of money, but that included pool access, free room service, and two welcome bottles of prosecco. I have friends who are staying in the city this long weekend who are looking to do this. It may be last minute if you’re reading this now, but if you have an occasion coming up and are just dying for a pool day, I’d recommend revisiting this option.
Outdoor Movie
HOT 🔥 until kind of NOT ❄️
On the flip side of a bougie activity like a hotel staycation, there is the summer outdoor movie. Plenty of spots do this for free (most notably, Bryant Park every Monday, along with many other public parks) which we love, or you can purchase a ticket at spots like Rooftop Cinema Club for ~$30), and they’re playing one of my faves, Jumanji, on Friday! I think this is a hot activity because if it’s nice enough to sit outside at night, why wouldn’t you!? That said, one year I went to a movie on the water and got EATEN ALIVE by mosquitos. So, choose your venue wisely and bring citronella.
Pickleball
NOT ❄️ but maybe HOT 🔥 #conflicted!!!
You guys, I fear I am like one game away from becoming someone who Pickleballs. A Pickleballer. A Pickman. A Picklehead. A Pickme? Anyway. It actually is fun. I really understand the appeal of racket sports now, especially after my series of ankle injuries taking me out of anything high impact or that involves too much running (like soccer or volleyball, sad). Pickleball is a workout (and so is Padel, how I love her), but accessible to beginners, and less physically grueling than tennis. My issue with it is the barrier to entry. You either have to purchase the equipment (cheapest net I could find on Amazon = $60, cheapest fiberglass rackets = $36), or pay that same amount for an hour on a CityPickle court. I miss the days living in SF when me and my neighbor Michael would hike up to the Corona Heights tennis courts on Friday afternoons and play an hour of tennis for free then grab a Pliny at the bar near us. Maybe you’ll have such luck snagging an outdoor spot this weekend when many are out of town. But listen, New York, Pickleball doesn’t have to be that expensive. Could we just, not? Cause ya girl’s in need of a new hobby!!
Getting out of the City
NOT ❄️ until it’s HOT🔥
On any given weekend in the summer, making your way out of the city is hell-ish to say the least, and I am dreading what awaits me this weekend. It’s usually either sitting in traffic for a frustratingly amount of time, squishing into a crowded subway car, or fighting for your life (read: a seat) on the LIRR. But, for the flexible who can get an earlier start, once you’re out, you’re out, and it’s beautiful. One of my favorite hacks if you’re driving north is to take the MetroNorth out of the city, rent a car off the train at places like Albany or Poughkeepsie (for way cheaper than what you’d pay in the city), and then it’s a breeze. But godspeed to us all—remember, the promise of hot dogs, swimming holes, and an ice cold marg await us on the other side.
Something I Thought of in the Shower
Is House of the Dragon gonna get good at like, any point?
Something Pretty
The aforementioned Hot Honey Summer dinner, featuring the Hot Honey Peach Margarita.


Something To Laugh About
Here are this week’s gems:
I *know* Floor Time readers will get this deep cut, because ya’ll are the chosen ones.
I forgot to share this video on previous Floor Times but I have watched this SO many times. I’m obsessed with this man and all that he brings to the table.
Real question, is Kyle McLachlan the og brat? He had no business serving this hard, and yet…
Perhaps what brought me the most joy this week. He gives me such strong Greg from Over The Garden Wall vibes.
Not for laughing, I just really loved listening to this.
Something for Clarice
Hey! This newsletter is free and I intend to keep it that way. That said, if you love it and want to show your appreciation, buy me a coffee :)
By the way…I’m reading this.
It’s been a short week because of the timing of this Floor Time, so I actually haven’t finished Loveboat yet. Excited to get a lot of reading done lakeside this weekend.
And I’m watching this.
I saw The Quiet Place Day One in theatres this week. It was mid, but I love both of the main actors. That said, they were outdone by Schnitzel, the cat, who reminds us all why we don’t deserve pets.
Chat next week, when we’re back to our regularly scheduled Friday programming. Until then, happy Fourth—eat a hot dog, swim in a hole, get out of the city, and tell me all about it!
‘Til next time, Pickles. Your friend,
Clarice
is this a hyperspecific reference? but seriously who is paying for this? how are they paying for this?