Morning Brew - ☕️ Hot cocoa

Good evening and happy Monday. Today is October 19, the day Cher released her hit single, “Believe,” in 1999, and my half birthday. I just found out that you share your birthday with 20+ million other people in the world. Anybody else celebrating today? 

— Rachel Cantor

Giphy

When Hannah Montana premiered in 2006, a star was born. I’ll never get tired of jamming out to “Rock Star” or “Party in the U.S.A.” but Miley Cyrus’s covers are just another reminder that she’s a vocal powerhouse who can’t be tamed. In honor of her spirited performance at the virtual Save Our Stages Fest this past weekend, here are some of my favorite Miley covers. 

• The most recent MTV Unplugged “Backyard Sessions” special 
• Going back to her country roots with “Jolene” 
• Her cover of The Beatles’s “Help!” 
• Every Miley Cyrus cover, ranked

I’m secretly hoping she’ll do “Valerie” next. Any recs for this cover queen? 

On time and on task: As a loyal Moleskine notebook user, I’m loving the brand’s minimalist productivity apps, Timepage and Actions. Timepage makes me feel like I’m a fully functioning adult who has her life together. 

Y=mx + b: See if you can graduate from high school by solving these 13 math questions. I don’t remember how to calculate the area of a trapezoid; not your fault, Mr. Posner. 

Productivity hacks: Check out these iPad productivity tips, and my favorite quarantine app discovery, the digital library Libby. 

Ever tried to socialize with a robot?

It’s beeping boring. And social media is full of robots. 

Voice—the humans making social human again—recognizes the irony.

So they created a platform that’s the opposite of everything bad about social media. 

Only human beings are allowed to hang out on Voice. Sorry, R2D2; even you need 2leave2.

If you’re a human being who likes being social, click here to receive an invite to Voice.

Smitten Kitchen

Bread baking: Banana bread is so March 2020, but this marbled banana bread recipe is about to make you the most popular guy or gal in your quarantine house. 

Veggie tales continued: Last week I shared my go-to brussels sprouts recipe (let me know your thoughts). If you feel like the rest of your veggies aren’t getting the attention they deserve, try these five easy ways to make your veggies 10x better. 

Change of scenery: For a better home office view, watch these 10 nature webcams, paired with some vibey albums. 

Game nights: Instead of rewatching Gilmore Girls this evening, I’m organizing a family game night. These are the best board games for families, adults, couples, and more.

Currently trending: Stay calm. You can buy the TikTok-famous hot cocoa bombs I mentioned in a previous Essentials at Costco. You’ll find me scouring the aisles later this week. 

Follows: 

• TikTok: This clay sculptor creates realistic celebrity models. 
• Instagram: Check out Emily in Parasite for a good laugh, as Emily Cooper moves from Paris to Seongbuk-dong. 
• Twitter: Take a look at Tomoko Sato’s whimsical fruit and vegetable carvings. They’re so beautiful I wonder if they’re actually edible. 

Memes: Here are the best memes of 2020. It’s not cake, I promise. 

Feel the force: A real-life lightsaber is here. 

Matteo Colombo/Getty Images

This week’s Happy Place is brought to you by Essentials reader Izzy. Manarola is a small town in Italy’s Liguria region, the birthplace of pesto. It really should be deemed a Unesco World Heritage site. Reply with your best pasta recipe (extra credit if it’s homemade pesto pasta). 

Ciao. See you on Thursday!