By Willa A. Cmiel

• America is still blue.

• Nora Ephron’s must-reads include The Great Gatsby and Barbara Ehrenreich’s upcoming Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America. “Ehrenreich convinced me so completely that I hesitate to say anything so positive as that this book will change the way you see absolutely everything; but it just might.”

• Another list: The Best Novels About Being Broke. First three are Oliver Twist, Hunger, and, my personal favorite, Down and Out in Paris and London. On Knut Hamsun’s Hunger: “Basically imagine what Williamsburg or The Mission would be like if people’s parent’s weren’t paying their bills.” Ayyye.

• The High Line is high maintenance.

• Much more exciting than Mandy Moore’s rendition of Umbrella, Antony tries out Beyoncé’s “Crazy in Love” (and succeeds). I like the oboe.