Erased History and Discontinued Products [#85]
Oh hai,
Thirty years ago, China was so achingly close to a different trajectory. My feeds are full of images of Tiananmen Square in the run-up to the June 4, 1989 massacre. The events have been effectively erased from the Chinese internet and barely exist in the minds of young Chinese. The images are astonishing, because as many of you know, these days, a medium-sized family can't congregate in that square for more than a moment before drawing the authorities.
The People's Republic of Amnesia is a good non-fiction book on the erasure. Meanwhile, this beautiful poem by David Gorin, elegizing dissident Liu Xiaobo, who died as a prisoner of the Chinese government, is worth a read.
Reading
This lede paragraph really sums things up. The science behind high-class people getting away with incompetence. Three questions to ask yourself when you're at career crossroads. It always will be about serving your audience. The Trader Joe's employee Reddit AMA was taken over by people asking about discontinued products. The Domino's Pizza tracker, an investigation. Air Pods are a tragedy. HBO's Succession should be a cultural obsession on the level of GoT. Toe wrestling now has a world champion (video). Man died trying to get to Tokyo after ingesting 246 packets of cocaine in Bogota. Different man had a nine-DAY erection, he survived. Virgin births ARE possible, if you're an anaconda.
Werk and Musings
Polarization, vanity, outrage, poor mental health, it's all linked to tech platforms designed to addict us. It's Been a Minute with my drinking buddies. Thinking through pain, and how women are supposed to wear it. The Mizzou commencement speech, which Friend Jason was so kind to endorse as, "breezy but brilliant, self-aware and subtly emotional." (No one has ever called my emotionality "subtle" so, thanks!)
Watch and/or Listen
Keanu Reeves in Always Be My Maybe, and the songs from the movie's band, Hello Peril
An explainer on the interchangeable Rs and Ls in some Asian accents
All year, television has been really good but finally there are two offerings at the "OH MY GOD THIS WAS PERFECT" level. Fleabag season 2 (BBC and Amazon Prime) and Deadwood the movie (HBO) are worth going nuts for. Much of Deadwood is written in iambic pentameter, y'all.
Two of the radio greats — Howard Stern and Terry Gross — in conversation about their best interviews, how they draw people out, how they cut people off and Terry challenges Howard on his sexism.
Help?
Just in time for summer travel, I am cooking up three episodes of NPR's Life Kit, our newish podcast with how-to guides on various subjects. We have money, health and parenting guides so far, and I am tasked with how-tos on TRAVEL. Fill out this form and leave me a voice message with your lessons and stories and maybe I can work 'em in!
Freedom,
Elise
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