Live Everyday Like It's Grimace's Birthday
I'm in my purple shake era.
Welcome to another edition of Love, Peace, and Tacos, a weekly newsletter where I share what I’m feeling, loving, and eating. In case you missed it, there’s a new episode of We’re Never Doing This Again where I interview the iconic Nancy Jo Sales about online dating, women & shame. Listen to it here or on your favorite podcast app!
Also, if you love Law and Order, a few weeks ago I was a guest on These Are Their Stories: The Law and Order Podcast. Come for the hilarious theme song (it’s so. good.) & stay for our breakdown of a completely unhinged episode of Law and Order SVU.
Hi friends!
Originally, I was going to include this story as a footnote (under “things I’m loving”) but upon further consideration, it deserves its own spread.
Every so often something happens on the internet — like the recent influx of TikToks featuring Clarabelle the Cow vogueing her way through Disney — that restores my faith in the internet and humans in general. That moment for me is Grimace’s Birthday. Yes, Grimace, the furry purple guy from the McDonald’s of your childhood.
Earlier in June, Grimace posted a selfie and announced that he was taking over McDonald’s Instagram (“it me Grimace”) in honor of his birthday on June 12th (which makes him a Gemini?!) To celebrate, he’s launching his very own birthday meal, which includes a purple milkshake.
Maybe it’s the fact that his selfie looks like the kind your uncle would take when he borrows your phone or that the swaggy promo materials are giving “rejected footage from Purple Rain” (the custom vanity plates!), but I’ve been glued to the account ever since.
I’m not the only one who’s embraced Grimace-core. According to Bon Appetit, Grimace’s fans have declared him a queer icon. In the words of Lizzo, it’s about damn time.
If you don’t believe me, read this delightfully wholesome twitter thread. Grimace is the plus-sized purple king we didn’t even know we needed.
Naturally, with this level of exposure, the internet has questions.
Namely, what is Grimace?
It’s a question that Almie Rose and I explored in the very first episode of We’re Never Doing This Again and the reason I started this deep dive into McDonaldland lore in the first place.
A quick Google research reveals that Grimace is a giant anthropomorphized taste bud 🤯 🤯🤯 However because identity is a complex issue, he might also be “the embodiment of a milkshake.” Either way, Grimace contains multitudes and this new marketing campaign is genius.
Food has always been an emotional experience for me. For better or worse, McDonald’s was one of my first experiences dining out as a kid. I got to pick what I wanted to eat (the Filet O’ Fish, always forever), and enjoy my meal in a fun, acid-trip-like environment complete with singing Hamburgers, talking trees, and friendly purple blobs (the McD’s of the ’80s and ‘90s are unmatched). Once it was over, I got to anticipate doing it all over again.
I recently wrote about how dining out has become less joyful as of late. Grimace’s erasure turned social media takeover (which
recently wrote about) works because it harkens back to a simpler time when dining — and life — was more carefree.Seeing Grimace celebrating his birthday with his friends, is a cultural deep cut for those of us who remember doing the same as kids. Surrounded by friends and family, you could enjoy a fried fish patty slathered in tartar sauce on a deliciously soggy bun with zero pretension or gastrointestinal concerns.
Plus, I think there’s something we can all learn from Grimace. On one of my favorite Instagram accounts Filming in McDonaldland, a former McDonald’s art director shared a BTS look at the “Ronald McDonald and Friends Specification Manual” they put together for the original commercials.
(Note: Ronald McDonald is not featured in the new Grimace commercial, likely because clowns are fucking terrifying.)
In addition to being fond of milkshakes, here’s what they have to say about Grimace:
“Grimace is very enthusiastic and eager to try new things. His joyous spirit helps people overlook the fact that he is a little slow and clumbsy sometimes (and often confused about what’s really going on.
Clumbsy or not, Grimace enjoys being active — playing sports, skateboarding, jumping, dancing, etc. Grimace can be shown doing things incorrectly, but never anything that’s dangerous. (He can skateboard with boards on each feet, or hold the wrong end of a baseball bat, but he wouldn’t go bungee jumping.)”
Grimace is also a body-positive king who isn’t afraid to turn a look and is often shown wearing fun items like Hawaiian shirts, headbands, nightshirts, and bunny slippers but, “never anything that would disguise his basic shape and color.”
He likes to have fun and isn’t afraid to be himself, even if he looks silly. In other words, carpe diem and “think purple.”
Someone I follow online posted a meme that said something along the lines of “If you’re not cringing, you’re not improving and growing.”
None of us are born experts, yet far too often, we’ll talk ourselves out of wearing that outfit, posting that selfie, or doing something, because we’re afraid of what other people will think (i.e. that we’re “too much,” or “cringe”) — myself included. However, many of my favorite memories involve taking big chances and opening myself up to potential embarrassment (i.e. flying across the country to attend a blogging conference with a bunch of people I’d never met & learning to ride a mechanical bull in the process.)
Allowing yourself to be “cringe” every now and then simply means you’re learning new things, taking risks, and stepping outside your comfort zone — and isn’t that what living big (like, Grimace big) is all about?
What if you took a page out of Grimace’s playbook? How would your life change if you let go of other people’s opinions and instead, did the things that truly bring you joy? What would it look like to show up as your most authentically weird self every day? (I’m talking outfits! vibes! career changes!)
What if we all just lived purple?
These are just a few of the questions I’ve been pondering lately.
In a cruel twist of fate, the Grimace Birthday Meal (which includes the shake) is not available in Canada. So, if you happen to be stateside this weekend, I encourage you to lean into your inner Grimace. Sing karaoke off-key, post that selfie without shame, skateboard with two skateboards like no one’s watching, and enjoy a purple Grimace shake on my behalf (so I can live vicariously through you).
I imagine it tastes like joyful, purple ambiguity.
What are some of your favorite childhood food memories? Leave a comment or hit reply. I’d love to hear from you.