Holy Hades, It's Hot

I'm melting; media opp; and an easy, breezy phrase that I loved

Taking a dip with the Dutchies.

July has arrived in blistering fashion, y’all: a high of 96 degrees Fahrenheit (that’s 36 Celsius) today. I went for my morning walk/run/slog around 9:30 am, which is usually still beautifully cool, but temps already felt like the inside of a hair dryer.

But hey, it’s summer, it’s hot, and that’s that; I prefer the sun and heat to their winter weather cousins (gray skies and wind blowing the rain sideways) anyway. Over the last week, we’ve welcomed the season with all the summery things: joining the locals for a bracing canal dip (it was a vibe, and the photo above does not do it justice); a boat ride and barbeque with friends; sinking our teeth into corn and watermelon; and, almost every night after dinner, sitting outside our apartment, where it’s much cooler than inside, and blasting our kiddo with a water gun. It’s a great end-of-day energy burn for him and a sweet, nostalgic reminder of childhood for me, when my brother and I would have epic battles with our own plastic pistols.

We’re headed to the States this week for our summer trip, and I know even these unusually hot Amsterdam temps will be nothing in comparison to the brutal humidity of a Florida summer. But that’s what dips in the bayou and air conditioning are for.

Media Opp

For Afar, I’m writing a four-day destination guide to Berlin. I have a good idea of what I’ll be including, but if you rep a hotel, restaurant, or museum that should be on my radar, please let me know by sending a SEPARATE email with the subject line: BERLIN REC, and a few sentences that sum up why this should be included.

Deadline: August 1

Easy, breezy, effective: This publicist’s phrase just nailed it

Amidst the usual blur of emails, I wanted to share a phrase that really stuck out to me this week. It came from the lovely Mindy Bianca, owner of a firm whose clients include several Gulf Coast destinations I’m familiar with. Mindy and I have been trading emails about a possible visit this summer to one of them, and about a week ago, this is how she ended an email resurfacing our communication:

Let me know if you’re still interested. No pressure/no rush … just didn’t want the opportunity to slip by if it’s something that interests you!

Here’s what I appreciated so much about this sign-off:

It’s direct. “Let me know if you’re still interested.” It’s a friendly, non-pester-y reminder about our previous chats.

It demonstrates subtle understanding. The subtext of Mindy’s phrase: She innately gets the challenges facing so many journalists of the constant firehose of press releases/embargoes/invitations/requests, many of which have deadlines, and figuring out how/if/when an in-person visit will work. Seeing “no pressure/no rush” is like a Popsicle on a hot day: so refreshing and exactly what’s needed.

It’s honest. “Just didn’t want the opportunity to slip by if it’s something that interests you!” Nailed it again. I’m glad she reminded me (again, kindly, not pestering) about what we’d talked about, and we got the conversation rolling again. This phrase was easy, breezy, and perfect — just like summer itself — and whether or not this visit works out, Mindy is exactly the kind of professional I want to work with.

And That’s a Wrap!

A photo of the little guy running through the sprinklers a few years ago.

I cannot believe we’re already midway through 2025 — time is just flying. But the next few weeks are all about slowing down a bit: I’ll be pausing the newsletter over the next few weeks to enjoy some time off, and I hope you’ll be doing the same.

Wishing you a fab Fourth of July and a spectacular summer.

Stay cool (ha),

Blane