Friendship at First Sight [#33]
Annyeonghaseyo,
I write from Seoul, where lawmakers resoundingly impeached the president of South Korea, following a corruption scandal that involves spiritual advisers, dressage horses and the country's biggest conglomerates. It brought millions out to the streets in protest in recent weeks. Next week I will return briefly to a place of roiling political winds of its own — Washington, D.C. Suffice to say everything's feeling pretty heavy.
What I Read
How to win at life, according to The Notorious RBG. Love gets all the attention, but friendship is where the action is. Like love, we form friendships at first sight. Gifts for your mom. Self control is showing empathy with the future you. Job interviews disadvantage quiet go-getters. The clear-eyed James Fallows on the age of Trump. The best (and scariest) thing I've read about Trump's war on reality. Why Republicans don't rein him in. The real bubble is rural America, y'all. What TV shows can teach us about Trump. Despots are everywhere. Terror in the Philippines. Why the Taiwan call was a big deal. This man knows what he's talking about when he talks about North Korea. This is not the natural state of things. My NPR colleague on covering Trump as a Muslim American. Pretty great dilly dallying right now. Journalists, we need to do our jobs. New rules for coverage, which is a lot like how foreign correspondents cover authoritarian regimes around the world.
What I Wrote/Made
Not much, because after Okinawa I lost my voice for more than a week. But what I did do was all about the scandal upending Korea, and the impeachment of the president. And the drama ain't over.
Recommendations
The New York Times has this handy list of hot new podcasts of 2016
I love my new Japanese day planner/notebook/journaling system, the Hobonichi Techo. Order yours if you want to do this with me in 2017!
Ciao for now,
Elise subscribe | archive | instagram | tumblr | twitter | facebook