August in los angeles has a way of slowing everything down — the light stretches later, the tomatoes finally taste like something, and the only reasonable plan most days is to follow whatever's closest to shade. This month's list reflects that pace: art that asks you to spend real time with it, a meal that doesn't need embellishing, and a record that's been on repeat since june. Here’s a little bit of everything that's been keeping me company this summer.

Eat:Graciela, a new Argentine tavern by chef Pablo Rivero, just opened in NYC, and I don’t think it could be tastier. sit at the bar, order the eggplant dip and half steak, and enjoy every last bite.

Read:Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver. the Pulitzer prize-winning contemporary reimagination of Dickens’ classic, David Copperfield, is impossible to put down. 

Watch:Tony. a bold swing to make a movie about one of the greatest food writers of our time, and it pays off, big time. both an excellent coming of age story and a uniquely special ode to everyone’s favorite, Anthony Bourdain. And, if you somehow still haven’t read Kitchen Confidential, move that to the top of your list (ideally before you see the film).

Listen:Steve Lacy’s new album,Oh Yeah?, will now forever remind me of summer. especially the title track, which hasn’t left my rotation since it came out.

Visit:animal, the listening gym at pioneer works. composer Ash Fure built a room where sound moves through steel structures you're meant to press, lean, and lift against. less like a concert, and more full-body listening session.

Wear:linen, everything, fromFrank & Eileen. the uniform of an august that refuses to cool down — soft, a little rumpled by design, and better for it with every wash.

Make:ceramics with Daniel Dooreck, the potter behindDanny D's Mud Shop, who left a career in wine to throw pots out of his echo park garage and somehow never looked back. everything is wheel-thrown and hand-carved: cacti, cowboys, desert flowers. spending an afternoon at the wheel with him is guaranteed fun—and a real lesson in the craft. 

Drink:avocado margarita with frozen avocado pits. we take the no-waste thing seriously here. but I promise, it’s not as scary as it sounds. 

Admire:sā Ladakh Biennale, the world’s highest regenerative land art exhibit, staged above 3,000 meters along an ancient trade corridor in the Himalayas. Artists are working directly with retreating glaciers and centuries-old villages, and the land is both the canvas and the cause.