How Casey Lewis Spends Her Sundays
"I do think a BEC heals all."
There are very few people in life outside of my family and coworkers who I interact with nearly every single day. But after discovering Casey Lewis’s newsletter, After School, it became such a part of my daily routine that I knew I needed to pick her brain about how she spends her Sundays.
Covering youth trends and Gen-Z behavior, Casey is one of the most tapped-in voices in today’s digital landscape. After sitting down for an early 2000s AIM-style conversation with her, she’s now not just someone I read — she’s someone I’d genuinely love to spend a Sunday with.
Here’s how Casey spends her Sundays.
Will deFries: Casey! As someone who reads your After School newsletter daily, I’m so excited to have you on mine. Are you a Sunday person?
Casey Lewis: Thank you so much, Will! I would consider myself a Sunday person, and even more so now that I’m “self-employed,” which I find really lessens the Sunday evening anxiety waves. I’m very lucky in that regard, as I know Sunday Scaries (unplanned newsletter plug!) are rampant for many.
Feel very much the same way, yet self-employment definitely can come with anxieties that permeate more days than Sunday. Do you have a Sunday outfit that you gravitate to?
You can almost certainly find me in Levi 501s in the winter or Levi cutoffs in the summer, and probably with Birkenstocks or Supergas, because Sunday tends to be the day my husband and I meander. Yesterday, for example, we did 11 miles!
Okay, so already far more productive than my Sundays tend to be. Do you make it a goal to get out of the house? I’ve wondered how the regular churn of your newsletter affects things.
I have two dogs, which helps force me out of the house whether I want to go outside or not. But in general, I’m a big outside person. I also need to be pretty active or I get anxious. Generally if I’m not on the computer working, I’m outside.
I’m sure that helps get your weekly screen time off to a good start. Most aren’t, but are you willing to divulge your Sunday screen time?
I have no shame, Will! I average about four and a half hours a day. This morning, I was trying to find a TikTok I’d seen yesterday, so I dug into my watch history. The app allows you to filter to just the last 24 hours, and I was shocked to see how many TikToks I’d consumed in a day even despite having spent most of the day offline strolling! My daily average screen time on TikTok alone is almost two hours, which is insane, because most TikToks are like 15 seconds.
I don’t think I have the stomach to dive into those numbers on my end, but that’s a respectable number! Okay, I want to pivot to your routine. Are you a coffee drinker?
I love coffee so much but I’m not a coffee snob. I drink at least two cups a day.
Are you a “go out and grab one” type of person or an at-home enjoyer? How do you take it?
Most days, we do drip at home. I like it very strong with a big splash of whole milk. But we live near an excellent coffee shop called Sweetleaf so once a week, we’ll grab coffee there, either in the morning or an afternoon pick-me-up. They make something called “Rocket Fuel” that’s extremely good but very potent.
A woman of taste, exactly how I take mine. This doesn’t pertain to Sundays as much as it might Friday and Saturday, but do you drink?
I do, mostly wine. I really don’t know anything about wine, but my husband is really into it, and I get to benefit by also enjoying the bottles he collects.
Well that’s certainly a nice hobby of his to benefit from. Any wines in recent memory you loved?
We got married at a vineyard in Oregon so I’m very partial to Willamette pinots. I live near Dandelion Wine in Greenpoint, and they always have a great selection and really, really good recommendations.
Our family has recently decided we’re “all in on Oregon pinots,” so this is great news for us. Let’s hypothetically say you have one too many — do you have any hangover cures or rituals?
Should we ever find ourselves in the same city, we need an Oregon pinot-forward double date.
I rarely get hangovers, not because I’m a teetotaler but more so because I sip pretty slowly and drink a lot of water, maybe? Or perhaps what I do drink tends to be high quality/low-intervention/natural/insert bougie buzzword, which I’m convinced results in fewer hangovers. But I do think a BEC heals all.
You don’t have to ask me twice. Where’s the go-to spot for the bacon-egg-and-cheese bagel?
I love a corner bodega BEC, but I’m also an Apollo Bagel loyalist. I know they’re divisive, and I would never wait in an hour-long line for any food, but I do think they’re perfect. The secret is that you can also get them, without a line, at Leo on the weekends because Joey, Apollo’s owner, is also a co-owner there.
I should’ve eaten lunch before this because this is making my mouth water. Okay, bagel in-tow headed back to your place, do you have any emotional support television shows or movies you gravitate toward to pass some time?
This is such a boring answer, but I’m really not a TV-during-the-day person. The only exception is if the weather is terrible or I’m sick. (Totally OK doomscrolling all day, though!) If the sun is out, I’m taking my bagel to a sliver of sun, either in the park or on my patio, and reading the New York Times.
An answer most of us aspire to have — I think that’s healthier for the psyche than back-to-back-to-back episodes of Love Island. Any Sunday comfort music or podcasts in your headphones?
If I’m strolling with my dogs, I’ll catch up on How Long Gone or Retail Therapy. I’ve also been listening Playboi Carti’s new album on repeat [laughs] and then we’ll often get some jazz going later in the evening.
Flattered! Well if you need an 11-hour jazz playlist I’ve been curating since 2014, I’ll shoot it your way. My ideal Sunday dinners vary by season, but I do think everyone has certain dinners they gravitate toward to wind down the weekend. Anything stick out for you?
I love something simple on Sundays, like salmon or chicken, especially now that it’s grill season. I do also like dining out on a Sunday evening — it’s fun to stretch out the weekend until the last minute.
Distraction normally helps settle things, as does a clean kitchen from not having to cook! Okay, final question: What does your perfect Sunday look like?
A great question! My husband and I like to wake up a little early, around 7. Walk the dogs, grab a coffee from Sweatleaf, then stroll up to the waterfront. I’ve historically been a brunch hater, but there are a few places in the neighborhood that have won me over for having actually great mid-day menus (Glasserie, Radio Star, Nura, Oxomoco). Then we’re taking the ferry to either Dumbo, Wall Street, or Midtown (a surprisingly chill ferry stop!), and then bopping around from there. Maybe grab a snack or a glass of wine on a sunny patio, maybe post up on a lawn with a book. Then we’ll make our way home, throw something on the grill, and hang out with the dogs. Then maybe a little TV before bed? We just started Jon Hamm’s new show, which is great but a little depressing for a Sunday, so maybe we’ll just stick with another Girls rewatch instead.
You can subscribe to Casey’s newsletter, After School, here. And if you’re already subscribed, here’s that jazz playlist I referenced during our chat:
I ❤️ Casey
Casey, you live in the best neighborhood in NY (my old one obvs). Love your Sundays!