If you’ve been to a live show, you know the “burning questions” segment has quickly become our favorite. In an effort to bring some of the fun to the newsletter, we’ve added a few new prompts to the live show to share in your inbox.

Get seated for some Tiny Tea.

What is Tiny Tea? Small, petty, or the most unserious nugget of gossip you’d only confess to your group chat or take to the grave. Here are a few gems from our last show.

Speaking of sharing at the live show…

We kinda hated the idea of going all month without a live show so we decided to add a very special holiday hang this week at our fav wine stop, The Bohemian.

What will it be? Your favorite live show segments plus a special time to hang out and tell us what you think about… well, everything. We want your thoughts and feedback so we can keep making this community the best version it can be.

📚 Plus we’re doing a book swap table. Bring a book (or a few) and take a book or two!

Get your tickets here.

It feels like a painfully critical cycle of girliehood to lose a former best friend for life. You go from intense bonding experiences, shared secrets, sleepovers, and sister promises… followed by a gentle (or sometimes dramatic) drift.

Whether it was your kindergarten bathroom buddy or a bridesmaid at your wedding, sometimes the very women we are positive will be an inseparable part of our lives become little more than a memory triggered by a song or chain restaurant.

🔑 Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried have been hitting that PR circuit for their film The Housemaid. The internet is divided on if they actually are good friends, with Amanda saying she could see her in a Mamma Mia sequel, or if they are really good at carefully veiled frenemy energy.

🎤 Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson took over an NY bar to sing Sweet Caroline. Somewhere the head of marketing is smiling at this “spontaneous viral moment” ahead of their upcoming movie, Song Sung Blue.

💇🏼‍♀️ Jessica Simpson’s new hair is giving winter menu. Her stylist took this blondie to the dark side and delivered locks of hot chocolate, roasted chestnut, and golden butter.

❤️‍🩹 The World Wide Web was used for good this week. A viral TikTok revealed Ed Bambas, an 88-year-old veteran, was still working after losing his pension and facing his late wife’s medical bills. The online collective rallied and raised $1.6 million so he could finally retire. I’m crying, Ed’s crying, you’re crying.

💒 “When I said I didn't believe in marriage, that was a lie.” Multiple sources confirm Taylor Swift’s extremely casual wedding venue and we will never give Rhode Island peace. Rumors point to a not-so-shocking date of June 13, 2026.

⬜️ Pantone’s color of the year is… white. A local CLT girlie so aptly summarized the situation that even NPR noticed.

🏈 Sports girlies know last week was chock full of Lane Kiffin drama. The former Ole Miss coach kept the entire college football community on pins and needles as he hyper dramatically decided he was taking a head coaching job at LSU. Right in the middle of Ole Miss’ historic run to the playoffs. Anyone and everyone was taking a dig at Kiffin’s hyper theatrics, including the girlies at his former hot yoga studio.

💰Some girlies spend Thanksgiving weekend eating leftovers and these girlies spend it in a Parisian fever dream. Le Bal des Débutantes or “Le Bal“ is a yearly debutante ball with hand-selected girlies dripping in couture glam and generational wealth. Famous alums of the event include Margaret Qualley, Lily Collins, Apple Martin, and Ava Philippe.

Skylar: This week I was told my musical taste made me 18 by Spotify Wrapped, and my leggings made me a boomer by social media.

And yes, sure, “age is just a number”… until it’s absolutely not. Because that number carries legal, biological, and (let’s be honest) deeply psychological weight. Age is not neutral. Age is a weapon. It’s used to other us, measure us, categorize us, and judge whether our choices, looks, or status “match” the number on our driver’s license.

So much of our self-understanding has always been filtered through age. I wrote a Substack exploring why I feel conflicted about “not subscribing to an age,” as if refusing the number automatically frees you. Because realistically… it doesn’t.

Carol: I’m a Christmas gourrrlieeee. I love everything about Christmas. The movies (#1 The Family Stone, #2 Christmas Vacation, #3 Home Alone). The songs. The (possibly slightly forced) joy that I aggressively encourage in everyone around me. I love Santa and I love that the entire globe participates in his magical lure. I love that I get to festively judge people’s colored light choices.

Yes! Christmas! Nostalgia!

Absolutely not. LED horror. Why?! WHY?!

I love how, for one miraculous month, everyone suddenly decides to participate in life again. The way we suddenly say yes to plans we’d normally decline. People who haven’t allowed another human inside their home since 2019 suddenly whisper, “Should we do a little wine-and-cheese thing?” YES. YES, YOU SHOULD. I love how people show up. I love that so much of the tradition is simply being with other humans, tossing on a red lip and a sequin, having a sausage ball, putting our damn phones away, and actually talking to one another.

I love the effort we put in. To curate a tablescape. To make a cheese board. To tell people not use those terrible LED colored lights. To put a velvet bow in your hair. To book a flight to the North Pole… just to see. To bake something. To watch an instructional video on how to wrap an oddly shaped gift. To text someone we haven’t talked to in months.

The magic isn’t really in the holiday itself, it’s in the joy we experience and the way we treat each other while it’s happening. It’s not about the stuff. It’s about the feeling, it’s about being together and finding joy. I always find myself wishing we would bring a little bit of this energy through the rest of the year, even when it’s not seasonally mandated. I know what you’re thinking: “what an original thought, Carol.” Oh, wait.

If you need some additional deep dives, spirals, or true crime fixes;

Sean Combs: The Reckoning is the Diddy docuseries taking over Netflix this week. It’s eye-opening, very emotionally nuanced, hard to watch, and yet I still at times wanted more. The series was produced by 50 Cent, a notoriously vocal hater of Diddy.

19-year-old Texas A&M cheerleader Brianna Aguilera’s death was ruled a suicide. Despite witnesses reportedly hearing her cry “get off me” moments before her death.

Jacob Pritchett, an 11-year-old from Brooklyn, has been missing for months. When police knocked on his mother’s door? She denied ever having children.

If you're looking for a way to give back this season, Mountain Strong (non-profit co-founded by Carol) is offering two impactful holiday programs to spread some holiday cheer. Help them clear the wish lists for families who need a little extra support this year with The Giving Tree and/or donate a toy to Santa’s Toy Drive.

If you’re looking for a meaningful way to show up for local girlies, Girls on the Run Greater Charlotte is recruiting coaches for their upcoming season. No running expertise required, just a willingness to help girls build confidence and community.

📩 [email protected]: send us your tips, tea, or story that deserves to be unpacked at our next live show. We know there’s already family drama brewing for the holidays.

We haven’t lost ya? Reply to this email with an emoji that best describes your holiday vibe.

And lastly, if you have not yet, make sure you text your group chat, send them this email, or forward them the Substack so they can join the chat.