I Try [#49]

Jun 06, 2017

Annyeong!

How are y'all doing? In Seoul, the school year is almost over, which means a lot of my military and diplomatic pals are preparing to PCS to new locales. (PCS is guvmint-speak for permanent change of station, and our neighbors here use it as a verb, a la, "We're PCS-ing to Fort Hood.") So, there are a lot of graduations and goodbyes going on. Speaking of which, if you're feeling like some inspiration, my all-time fave commencement speech is (predictably) "This is Water". But a more recent one, George Saunders' 'Congratulations, by the way," is up there.

What I'm Reading
If you read only one thing from this newsletter, make it Rebecca Solnit on Donald Trump. Hunter S. Thompson said there'd be days like these. This frightens me. Russia's VEB is not a bank. A callous legislative session could make Texas a turn-off. The most harmful thing about a secret isn't its content. Friend Liz reflects, a year after going public about being raped. Goodbye, Frank Deford. A race to save what's on old VHS tapes. Barack Obama and the Most Interesting Man in The World, a bromance. "Life loves the liver of it." There's something zen about the return of Jim Carrey. Silicon Valley's played out Asian stereotypes. The geography of hip hop. All-you-can-eat, in New York. People today are 10% heavier than we were in the 1980s, even with the same diet and exercise levels. McSweeney's nails it with a parody of baby boomers (h/t @dannydb). Profanity is pain-relieving.

Latest Creations
Not quite back at work but a side project, a video series called "Elise Tries," launched last week. It explores curiosities across my patch of Korea and Japan, and the pilot features a harrowing few moments with raccoons. Future episodes are less dangerous but arguably more humiliating.

Watching/Listening

WYNC On the Media episode on how using normal news language effectively normalizes the president, without intending to.
Hasan Minhaj: Homecoming King, the stand-up special from the Daily Show correspondent and chief roaster at the recent White House Correspondents Dinner.
Season 2 of Netflix's Love, starring Gillian Jacobs from Community. I found the first season meandering, so if you're looking for a binge you could just start at season 2.
Coming in October: Esther Perel's new podcast! Perel is beloved and brilliant. Her pod will let you listen in on actual couples in therapy with her, which promises to be fascinating.

Hu's Letter?

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