August 11, 2017
Tommy pulled on his Ramones teeshirt and clicked on his newsfeed
The air was heavy and wet, the condensation mixing with airborne ash leaving long, white trails down the blue paint. Still, he was lucky to have the place: A $1,700-per-month pod stacked on city land near the port until the developer decided to break ground. It was part of Vancouver's affordable-housing inventory and it was a score. [more inside]
You are the result of many hours of toil.
Gas station hot dogs don't take breaks. You may pull into a rest stop, refill your car’s tank, empty your own, grab some snacks, and peel out again. The whole time, the dogs will have been rotating, slowly, on their shiny metal rollers. When you finally turn in for the night, they may be turning still. Once it has begun its treadmill journey, how far does your average hot dog go before it’s sent to the Great Bun in the Sky? And if, for some reason, it kept going—spinning slowly, hour after hour and year after year—how far could it eventually get?
The Moon's origin
What Made the Moon? New Ideas Try to Rescue a Troubled Theory. "Textbooks say that the moon was formed after a Mars-size mass smashed the young Earth. But new evidence has cast doubt on that story, leaving researchers to dream up new ways to get a giant rock into orbit." [more inside]
Clean Up, Clean Up, Everybody Everywhere
Stop. Drop the sponge and step away from the microwave. Scientists have determined that there's really no good way to clean a kitchen sponge. Stock up now!
“What makes it a sport as opposed to a different kind of game?”
Should eSports be in the Olympics? [Polygon] “"As esports industry and its own culture is expanding, we, IeSF, as the international union of 44 member countries’ national federations, feel responsibilities to create esports’ own legacy, which can benefit all related parties especially the key stakeholder, the players." But the narrow interpretation of "sport" shouldn’t be taken as a slight against video games in particular, according to Dr. Mark Dyreson, a professor of kinesiology at Penn State University. This is a debate that extends back to Coubertin's first move to reinstate the games. "It’s a big question — what makes it a sport as opposed to a different kind of game? How much physicality should it have to be a contest? Chess was considered to be a sport in some literature, and Sports Illustrated used to cover chess up until the '70s." The debate about whether esports should be included in the Olympics needs to be considered in context, says Dyreson. Originally, Coubertin wanted the Olympics to focus on amateur athletes. That is, those who weren’t being paid significant amounts of money to compete.” [more inside]
"Don't be dumb" “You’re smart!”
Some people want you to care so much about typography that they create single-serve sites to make their points. Smart Quotes for Smart People tells you when you should use smart quotes (basically always) and how to do it. For a (very slightly) broader view, take a look at Quotes and Accents. If you want a wonderful and more in-depth guide to typography, Butterick's Practical Typography has you covered, including a 10 minute introduction to the 5 rules you need to know.
Joni Mitchell - Coyote (Live) - The Last Waltz
Joni Mitchell - Coyote (Live) - The Last Waltz A luminous performance of an amazing song. Reportedly written about a fling with Sam Shepard. [more inside]
State of the Climate 2016
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Thursday released its annual review of Earth's climate from the previous year. The 27th annual State of the Climate report has confirmed that 2016 topped 2015 as the warmest year in 137 years of record keeping. Numerous records were set, including global CO2 concentration (402.9 ppm), global sea level, and global surface temperature. While fossil fuels are a focus, Vice News argues the report "...appears to largely downplay the scientific consensus surrounding humanity’s role in causing climate change. " [more inside]
The frogurt is also cursed.
While Trump continues to ratchet up threats with North Korea, the military is not actually "fully in place" for such a conflict.
After Putin expels 755 U.S. diplomats and technical personnel, , the U.S. President expresses gratitude.
Meanwhile, Special Prosecutor Mueller's investigation, having already targeted the short-tenured National Security Advisor General Flynn, has also conducted a nighttime raid on the home of former Trump Campaign Director Paul Manafort and subpoenaed his bank records. Many speculate that Flynn and Manafort are just the first to be broken in an investigation that could lead to bigger fish.
Just ask the water for strength.
What It Takes to be a Union Activist
Phil Cohen, a yankee, became a hero to Southern working people. His stories of union activism in the South in the last half of the 20th century are sometimes uplifting and sometimes cynical and sometimes despairing. I kept wondering whether he'd been the model for Yellow Dog Contract by Ross Thomas.
This essay Thank a Union shows all the gains unions have given us.
The Legion Lonely
Over the past few decades, loneliness has reached almost epidemic levels, with men uniquely suffering its effects. How and why has isolation become such a threat? The phrase “No known relatives” appears repeatedly in police reports of the dead men’s homes. Letters of regret were found on floors and in backs of drawers: “I would like to see you if that’s possible, when you come to the city”; “It seems to me that our family should have gotten along.” The single rooms of the deceased are described as “roach infested” and “a complete mess,” indicating few or no visitors. The women...had people who checked up on them and so kept them alive; the men did not. “When you have time please come visit me soon at my place,” read another letter, unsent. [more inside]
Making excruciating decisions
When Should a Child Be Taken from His Parents? Judges must decide whether the risks at home outweigh the risks of separating a family.
CHARMANDER used DECONSTRUCT! … It's super effective!
“What if Friends, but with black people?”
Jay-Z released the music video for his latest, 'Moonlight' - starring Jerrod Carmichael, Lil Rel Howery, Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Issa Rae, and Tiffany Haddish. And Hannibal Buress. Directed by Jay-Z and Master of None's Alan Yang. (there is also a version with outtakes)
THIS ORGANISM IS RESTRICTED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
There are very few good roles for women on television. Tatiana Maslany played nine of them on Orphan Black, which will end its final season tomorrow with its 50th episode. The show never had huge ratings, but it did have #CloneClub and sophisticated portrayals of feminism and femininity. Here is An Oral History of Orphan Black from the Women Who Brought It to Life [more inside]
Of Valley Girls, Hoobastank, and Dirk Diggler
Two longreads from "Valley Week" at Curbed LA:
How ’80s pop culture typecast the Valley (Chris Eggersten): The region was overlooked in movies and music for years until Frank Zappa and ‘Fast Times at Ridgemont High’ came along
The rise of ‘three-car garage rock’ (Jennifer Swann): How the tony suburbs of the West Valley launched early 2000s alternative rock
Bonus 1: ‘Boogie Nights’ filming locations, mapped
Bonus 2: Bing Crosby - San Fernando Valley
How ’80s pop culture typecast the Valley (Chris Eggersten): The region was overlooked in movies and music for years until Frank Zappa and ‘Fast Times at Ridgemont High’ came along
The rise of ‘three-car garage rock’ (Jennifer Swann): How the tony suburbs of the West Valley launched early 2000s alternative rock
Bonus 1: ‘Boogie Nights’ filming locations, mapped
Bonus 2: Bing Crosby - San Fernando Valley
A woo-hoo heard around the world.
"In the spring of 1986, in the bedroom of a walk-up apartment on South Beverly Drive in L.A., a semi-struggling songwriter named Mark Mueller pressed “record” on his rudimentary reel-to-reel tape recorder, sat down at his Roland Juno 1 synthesizer, and started thinking about ducks." The Story of the DuckTales Theme, History’s Catchiest Single Minute of Music
I don't know how these cats got in this pizza hut
Commercials with cats. A cat branches out in the box business and packs a box for delivery. Gangster cats try to avoid getting baths: "We'll not endure bathrooms any longer!" Two roommates have trouble with their gravity defying kitten. Cats take over a Pizza Hut franchise (YouTube)
Need a little kitty pick me up? Chew some gum. And let the cats Nyalan and Deshi be your travel guides. [more inside]
I want to make beautiful things, even if nobody cares
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