Covid-19
Children of quarantine: What does a year of isolation and anxiety do to a developing brain? This is a gut punch. (The Cut, ~29 min.)
Why everyone’s suddenly hoarding mason jars. My fave kind of story, current with a splash of history. (Marker, ~13 min.)
“They’ve been following the science”: How the pandemic has been curtailed in Cherokee Nation. A pretty incredible bright spot. (Stat, ~14 min.)
A 19-year veteran of the Butterball Turkey Talk Line on how callers changed this year. I continue to be fascinated by the fact that this exists at all. (Slate, ~7 min.)
With the help of Fleetwood Mac, the mailman, and 68 high school students, the author of Heavy finds hope for the future. Love this. (Vanity Fair, ~7 min.)
Don’t eat inside a restaurant. The various ways people are justifying their behavior would be funny if they weren’t so appalling. (The Atlantic, ~8 min.)
The best of the rest
The promise that tested my parents until the end. Oh, my heart. (GQ, ~18 min.)
The losses we share: Perhaps the path to healing begins with three simple words:
Are you OK? If you haven’t yet read this essay from Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, you must. (NYT Opinion, ~5 min.)Smitten Kitchen chef Deb Perelman on pandemic cravings, cooking ruts, and the upsides of a strange Thanksgiving. I’m a fan. (New Yorker, ~18 min.)
The return of Eddie Murphy: Without a road map, he blazed a trail for Black performers, and then lost his way. Now he’s back. A truly great celeb profile. (The Atlantic, ~25 min.)
The rich kids who want to tear down capitalism. More of this, please. (New York Times, ~9 min.)
False labor: How Lena Dunham came to give up on motherhood. This hurts. (Harper’s, ~22 min.)
One in three Americans didn’t vote. Should we force them to next time? Intriguing … (BuzzFeed News, ~11 min.)
Hugh Grant never wanted to be Hollywood’s “romantic Englishman.” So he gave it up. What a funny guy. (Los Angeles Times, ~12 min.)
If you read one thing this week
What my dad gave his shop. Masterful. (The Atlantic, ~14 min.)
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Thanks for reading.
Kirsten