internet explorers club | darkness & light
Hello friends. I know it’s been far, far, too long since I’ve sent out one of these—I’ve gotten a new job (and a freelance gig or two) so my time hasn’t quite been my own, but I want to get back into this newsletter because it’s something that I love, and a small amount of joy that I can bring people.
Before we get into that, one brief pause to recommend a piece in the New Yorker by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who I posit is one of the best writers of our time. It’s called “Now Is the Time to Talk About What We Are Actually Talking About,” and I keep coming back to it in the few months since she wrote it:
“Now is the time to resist the slightest extension in the boundaries of what is right and just. Now is the time to speak up and to wear as a badge of honor the opprobrium of bigots. Now is the time to confront the weak core at the heart of America’s addiction to optimism; it allows too little room for resilience, and too much for fragility.”
Onward: I’ve been writing more for the Los Angeles Kings, on the subjects of the building of the Fabulous Forum, ARPANET, Ed Ruscha, historic preservation in LA, and Valley Girls. As a result, I’ve found quite a few articles on Los Angeles that I want to share. First off, a discussion of the evolution of ‘Like.’ Then, because Clueless is one of the greatest films set in Los Angeles ever, take a tour of all the sights from the film. An Ode to the Valley before it changes. The Science and Poetry of the Light in Los Angeles, which I love so, so very much:
“That light: the late-afternoon light of Los Angeles—golden pink off the bay through the smog and onto the palm fronds. A light I’ve found myself pining for every day of the nearly two decades since I left Southern California.”
I’ve been fascinated by this tinyletter about dust, particularly this one that talks about the cleaning of the Houses of Parliament. Limestone, as it turns out, is porous, so you can’t power wash it like you can other façades. So an artist developed an installation of the rubber coating used to pull the dirt off the walls. The author does a much better job than I in discussing it, so please go forth and read!
I am fascinated by this art installation / mirror house in the desert that appears transparent
Having lived in the South for some time, I very early learned of the tradition of eating Hoppin’ John on the first day of the year. Serious Eats dove into why the dish is so often seen as bland, when traditional sources talk about it being delightful. Turns out a huge difference is the fact that the beans and rice we use today are drastically different from those in the Olden Tymes. On the other part of the continent, Sean Sherman, a Lakota chef, is working to research what Native people were eating pre-Contact—and is opening a restaurant (The Sioux Chef—!!!) to highlight the results of his work. If anyone wants to take a trip to Minneapolis to visit, please bring me along.
A memorial statue commemorating those lost in a mysterious octopus attack on the Staten Island Ferry appeared recently.
Lots of great science news! First of all, this piece argues that we need a new definition of magma. I do understand the reasoning behind this, because when one says “a magma chamber is under Yellowstone,” it gives one the impression it’s completely liquid, when it’s more semi-solid.
How Do You Dismantle a 90-Ton Whale? Start With a Strong Stomach and a Machete. My favorite quote is obviously this one: “Dead whales are usually blubber-wrapped buckets of soup by the time they wash ashore. These whales were a gift.” but this is also a great peek into the world of blue whale research, which is apparently difficult because the whales tend to sink (!!!) instead of float once they die.
I love that this map exists.
Long Reads: The LA Times did a serialized version of the story of a woman in Irvine who a fellow PTA mom tried to frame for drug smuggling (!!!) (67 minutes). Vanity Fair interviews Lee Radziwill about her “complicated sisterhood” with Jackie Kennedy (35 minutes). A deeper dive into the life of the mountain lions of Griffith Park, of which our dear beloved P-22 is the most famous (28 minutes).
Etcetera: I literally cannot top this headline: Princess Beatrice 'slices Ed Sheeran's face with ceremonial sword' while attempting to 'knight' James Blunt at party. There is an electric eel who “tweets” every time he zaps. Exorcism in Italy a job 'too scary' for young priests.
