Sunday Soup: Savannah Bananas, Summer State Fairs, Flexing Your Happiness Muscle
These are the articles, streaming ideas, and books that caught our attention this week.
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From an interview with the founder of the Savannah Bananas to the ultimate guide to summer state fairs, we’re back with another bowl of fun-loving Sunday Soup.
Even with Middle East tensions escalating, and the market fretting over potential Fed policy comments, our reading continues to turn up fun stuff. There are also some more important items to share such as how diet can impact your health and how to flex your happiness muscle. Plus, if you’re getting ready for that summer vacation and the pool, beach, or lake, we’ve got another summer reading recommendation.
If you have a recommendation to share, we’d love to hear about it in the Comments section below.
Now enjoy this latest offering of Sunday Soup.
Articles 📰
"Inside the platform that gave us Hot Ones, Michelle Khare, Chicken Shop Date, and Good Mythical Morning—not to mention Justin Bieber and MrBeast—as it embraces bingeability and more."
How to Strengthen Your Happiness Muscle
"Our drive to seek out happiness is a muscle that we can develop. So is our ability to relish experiences. And almost anyone can learn to amp up their reward sensitivity by training themselves to notice and savor their positive emotions. That’s even true for people with depression and anxiety who struggle to experience pleasure, a condition called anhedonia."
"If there were any truth to the running joke—or conspiracy theory—that the NBA rigs games so that big-market teams like the Los Angeles Lakers end up in the NBA Finals, then this year’s matchup between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers would be disastrous for the league. In reality, NBA owners have gotten exactly what they wanted."
Regional Roundup: Is the Sun Setting in the West?
U.S. economic growth was broad based in 2024. In the West, spending growth has been significantly higher than other regions over most of 2025, but it has also slowed the most, decreasing around five percentage points since February, according to Bank of America aggregated credit and debit card data. This suggests that there may be some economic moderation in the second quarter of this year in this region.
The Ultimate Guide to Summer State Fairs
"As we turn the corner and face summer head-on, it's time to start planning your summer travel plans. Soon, we will start seeing all of the best summer state fairs opening their gates for the season, and I, for one, can't wait! I love state fairs. I love the weird and wacky food you can only find at a state fair, I love the carnival rides, and I always walk away with at least one piece of jewelry or knick-knack from a local vendor as a souvenir."
What We’re Streaming 📺📲
The Reading List 📖📚
Mansion Beach by Meg Mitchell Moore
"It’s the beginning of the summer, and Nicola Carr has just arrived on Block Island, RI, eager for a fresh start and some R&R. But her plans for a tranquil summer are derailed as the extravagant parties from the grand home next door pique her curiosity. She soon discovers the home belongs to Juliana George, an enigmatic entrepreneur with a past shrouded in mystery.
Juliana George, CEO and founder of a hot fashion-tech company, is at the top of her game. She’s spending the summer on Block Island preparing for a major IPO. But she’s chasing her dreams in more ways than one. This summer she hopes to rekindle a flame with a man from her past—a man who has a surprising connection to her neighbor Nicola.
Taylor Buchanan, the wife of Nicola’s cousin, is second-in-command of a real estate empire. Her life is exactly the way she planned it: she has the wealth, the family, the prestige, and the power. And there’s nothing she’ll let get in her way of Having It All. But when everything suddenly verges on the edge of collapse, she has no choice but to take matters into her own hands.
As Nicola, Juliana, and Taylor’s summers unfold, the three women are set on a collision course that leads to inevitable self-discovery, unforgivable betrayal, an unavoidable love triangle—and, most unexpectedly, a dead body."
