Sasha DuBose's Empties
"As a college student, the microwave is one of the fastest tools I have for a quick and delicious meal."
🌀 Welcome to Empties! 🌀 This is a new series where we go deep on three healthy and healthy-ish things cool people are using to the last metaphorical drop. These can be legit, science-backed healthful or simply health-adjacent, as long as they don’t impact their wellbeing in a negative, unhealthy, or toxic way.
Today, we’ve got Sasha DuBose, a senior at NYU majoring in Food Studies, and they recently submitted their application for the Queer Food Conference.
I recently discovered Sasha’s Instagram @snackwithsash where they share how food touches every aspect of life. Sasha makes the most magical and creative dishes out of their dorm room, like a homemade Starbucks PSL, dorm room ramen, a full Rosh Hashanah spread, and microwave shakshuka. Everything is deeply nourishing and deeply approachable.
They thinks it’s 😎 cool 😎 that wellness can be anything you want it to be. “Wellness at its best is a very body-forward way of living. Lately, I’ve been constantly asking myself, ‘What does my body need at this moment?’ and ‘How can I navigate my day-to-day life in a way that honors those needs?’”
On the other hand, Sasha thinks that the wellness industry’s entrenchment in white supremacist ideologies is 👿 insidious 👿 . “I practice health and wellness that honors my ancestry as an African American, which subverts how people traditionally think about what a healthy lifestyle looks like!”
Let’s take a look at three of Sasha’s favorite items they use to the last drop:
The College Dorm Set — Anyday
💞 Healthy or healthy-ish?
Healthy
⏰ At what point in the day do you use this?
I eat at least one meal from an Anyday dish (glass microwave cookware) everyday. And if I don’t, it’s because all of them are already in my fridge.
🤔 Let’s get introspective for a moment. Why do you think, deep down, this serves you? Or is it not that deep?
I’m an RA on campus, and last year I did not have access to a kitchen — meaning it was me, my mini fridge, and my microwave against the world! As a college student, the microwave is one of the fastest tools I have for a quick and delicious meal.
Finding Anyday saved my life and changed the way that I cook. Now that I have a full kitchen, my Anyday dishes are still my most used kitchen item. I cook, reheat, and store my food all in one dish, which is absolutely perfect for a busy student like me.
☎️ You have the product designers on the phone. They said they can grant you one wish: You get to make one change or adjustment to the product to make it even more indispensable. What is your wish?
I think I could die happily if I had a pink Anyday dish. I would actually cry tears of joy.
⏳ Is this something you can see yourself still using in 10 years, or will it have run its course/be obsolete?
I’ll still be a microwave menace in 10 years. For me, cooking in the microwave isn’t a trend, but a lifestyle. I recently gifted my mom the Everyday Set, and she uses it all the time — I’m taking that as proof that my Anyday isn’t going anywhere.
👽 Aliens from another planet just arrived on Earth. They’ve never heard of this product. How would you describe it to them in just one sentence:
The Anyday College Dorm set helps humans cook yummy meals quickly from scratch — IN THE MICROWAVE!!
💬 In one word, describe how this set makes you feel:
Nourished :)
You can shop Anyday’s sets on their site.
Yeti Rambler Water Bottle 36 oz
💞 Healthy or healthy-ish?
Healthy
⏰ At what point in the day do you use this?
All day. Every day. My Yeti never leaves my side. I’m more likely to forget my laptop than my Yeti (and yes, this has happened).
🤔 Let’s get introspective for a moment. Why do you think, deep down, this serves you? Or is it not that deep?
I have water bottle trauma. Every reusable water bottle I’ve used has leaked all over my bag, which causes me great emotional distress. The Yeti Rambler is the first water bottle I’ve had that is TRULY LEAK PROOF AND KEEPS MY WATER ICE COLD! I lay my water bottle on its side so it can fit in my Telfar, and I haven’t had any spills.
My water bottle is also DECKED OUT with stickers. The stickers on my water bottle are a snapshot of myself. My favorites at the moment are my People’s Free Food Program sticker, my Studio ATAO stickers, and my Miffy stickers!
☎️ You have the product designers on the phone. They said they can grant you one wish: You get to make one change or adjustment to the product to make it even more indispensable. What is your wish?
I wish the lid was easier to clean! This is a problem easily solved with a dishwasher, but in my dorm it’s me and my dish sponge getting the job done.
⏳ Is this something you can see yourself still using in 10 years, or will it have run its course/be obsolete?
I will use this water bottle until it disintegrates. If it does, I’ll buy another one. And cover it with stickers.
👽 Aliens from another planet just arrived on Earth. They’ve never heard of this product. How would you describe it to them in just one sentence:
The Yeti Rambler makes sure humans stay hydrated and keeps their water safe and cold.
💬 In one word, describe how this water bottle make you feel:
Hydrated!
You can buy a water bottle on the Yeti site.
Bubbies Mochi
💞 Healthy or healthy-ish?
Healthy-ish
⏰ At what point in the day do you use this?
When sweet treat o’clock hits, which for me is roughly every couple of hours.
🤔 Let’s get introspective for a moment. Why do you think, deep down, this serves you? Or is it not that deep?
I first found Bubbies mochi at a dining hall on campus. I was in dire need of a sweet snack and did not want candy, so I turned to the often neglected freezer section. Lo and behold, I see a Vanilla Madagascar Bubbies mochi beckoning for me to grab it. I heed the call, and enjoy the best mochi EVER.
I’ve been hooked since that life-changing moment. You can find me inspecting the freezer section in the dining hall or shoving handfuls of mochi in my cart at Whole Foods. I can’t live without it.
☎️ You have the product designers on the phone. They said they can grant you one wish: You get to make one change or adjustment to this product to make it even more indispensable. What is your wish?
One box of six pieces is not enough! I am a mochi ice cream monster. If you’re reading this, the six Bubbies mochi in my freezer are already gone. An easy fix would be to practice restraint, but offering the mochi in 12, or even 24, packs is a much more indulgent one.
⏳ Is this something you can see yourself still using in 10 years, or will it have run its course/be obsolete?
I’m an ice cream person through and through. In 10 years, my heart might be set ablaze by another cold and creamy product. Despite this, I think I’ll always have at least one of Bubbies mochi in my freezer for when sweet snack o’clock hits.
👽 Aliens from another planet just arrived on Earth. They’ve never heard of this product. How would you describe it to them in just one sentence:
Bubbies mochi is a delightful bite of goodness: Chewy mochi wrapped around lush ice cream that will make you forget about all of your worries.
💬 In one word, describe how this mochi ice cream makes you feel:
Joyful.
You can buy Bubbies mochi ice cream on the brand’s site.
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Header and illustrations by Olivia Fu