Cool Kids Never Have the Time

Cool Kids Never Have the Time
Which is why this newsletter is over four hours late.

By Natasha Cejudo

Last night I stepped back into the nineties with a little help from the Smashing Pumpkins. Not much of a step, honestly. I never fully left. I still carry that Gen X je ne sais whatever.

The difference this time: my daughters were with me. A dream come true. A Siamese Dream, if we’re being precise.

The timing couldn’t be better. Mid-October, grunge at full volume, and that eeriness we all secretly love, creeping in a little earlier each night. I’m lucky my kids have come to love the things I do. The music, for starters, which they could have rejected on principle and didn’t. But mostly the rest: the meaning we give things, the feel of a room, the memories that keep playing long after the house lights come up.

And for the encore: Hispanic Heritage Month ends tomorrow, and since we opened it here with a Latino writer and musician, we’re closing it the same way. A Mexican novelist, a Mexican songwriter, both fluent in longing and a little haunted.

READS & RHYTHMS: What We Don’t Let Go

This week’s read takes holding on further than I’d recommend.

READS
Monstrilio, Gerardo Sámano Córdova
A grieving mother in Mexico City, an old folktale, and something living inside the walls of a crumbling family estate. That’s all you get. Sámano Córdova writes grief the way it actually behaves: hungry, unreasonable, loyal well past the point of sense.

RHYTHMS
“Azúcar Morena,” Carla Morrison
A love song sung like a ghost story. Morrison sings it close and unhurried, all ache, the kind of longing that follows you from room to room. The video matches: black and white, a candlelit dinner party, one woman watching someone across the table a beat too long. Start with the stripped version on Amor Supremo Desnudo and play it after dark.

A NOTE FROM NATASHA

Houses hold things. Hopefully not too many monsters. But definitely the history, the meaning, and everything we’ve loved, even in our grungiest, most disaffected moments. Especially those. Still, you can’t live on Memory Lane forever. Side B is usually better anyway. Call me when you’re ready to flip the tape.

Cool kids have time for this.

Natasha Cejudo

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FAQ

What neighborhoods does Natasha Cejudo serve?
Natasha specializes in Saint Paul’s historic neighborhoods, including Macalester-Groveland, Highland Park, Summit Hill, Summit University and Merriam Park, with a focus on architecturally distinctive homes.

What is WOW?
WOW is Natasha Cejudo’s weekly Wednesday newsletter. It covers life, culture and design in Saint Paul’s historic neighborhoods, with real estate kept to a short note at the end.

What is the Saint Paul housing market like right now?
In Saint Paul’s historic neighborhoods, homes with character and thoughtful pricing continue to draw serious buyers, and inventory of well-kept older homes stays limited. For current numbers on a specific neighborhood or house, contact Natasha directly. She tracks average sales prices block by block.

Who is Natasha Cejudo?
Natasha Cejudo is a luxury real estate advisor with Sotheby’s International Realty in the Twin Cities. She has been in real estate since 2005, is a Macalester College alumna and a NAHREP member, and works with longtime owners, buyers and sellers of Saint Paul’s historic homes.