Somethings + Nothings: December 8, 2017
We're off to buy a Christmas Tree tonight, for a bit of Friday Night/Date Night action! I wanted to get one the day after Thanksgiving, but that has somehow been put off for two complete weeks and here we are on December 8. We are traveling less than usual this holiday season, something I'm grateful for, so I'm hoping the tree survives our mere five day absence and I can carry it through into January. Apartment Therapy published this handy guide to picking out your perfect tree and based on it's guidance, I am hoping for a balsam fir (strong scent and long-lasting needles) but we'll certainly be at the mercy of the local Home Depot. There's only so many places you can quickly grab a tree in East Los Angeles on a Friday. night. The house has a big ("historic") front window and putting a tree in it was one of the first things we talked about when we were pondering making the purchase last year, so we're very much looking forward to finally putting that plan into action tonight.
Andy got me a six-week series of introductory pottery classes at Cobalt and Clay, a studio in our neighborhood, for my birthday after listening to me ponder the idea of taking the classes for several weeks. I wondered if it wasn't the most middle-aged thing I could possibly be doing, but apparently pottery is the new pilates, so I think I'm good. Classes start in mid-January (concurrent with my jury duty!), and I'm psyched.
This fancy pants camper comes in at an unattainable price point of $63K+, but we saw one in person last night in an outdoor clothing store on La Brea and I cannot die that it is not only lovely, but must be the greatest personal camping experience that money can buy. Something to aspire to, I suppose.
Master of None is without question one of my favorite things on television these days, but Harling Ross's article on the problematic portrayal of Dev's season two love interest, Francesca, is insightful. Something to work on for season three.
A fascinating essay in the New York Times on making the mind read. Maybe we take for granted how much knowledge a reader has to prepossess in order to "fill in the gaps" presented in any piece of writing, or perhaps we should do a better of creating a society educated enough to follow along.
This article on some new research indicating that prehistoric ladies were badass working-moms with insane upper body strength has been lighting up the internet and is worth the read, for both it's undermining of common assumptions in evolutionary anthropology and for the gym inspiration.
I can't drink wine at the moment because I've been fighting some digestive issues, so I'm comforting myself by reading about it instead. Here is a list of 5 Books to Give Wine Lovers this year in case you're looking for gifts. I'll go ahead and add Marissa A. Ross's Wine. All the Time to the list in case you love humor, which you obviously do because you're not a monster.
We had a heated discussion about the topic of gender fundamentalism over a backyard fire pit during Thanksgiving weekend, and it turns out my stance was in the minority - most Americans do believe the genders are fundamentally different and have specific traits, although this article is worth reading, as we seem to insist that they do not have fundamentally different characteristics in the workplace (which, in my opinion, makes no sense and must be causing a lot of very uncomfortable cognitive dissonance).
Has anyone heard about the bizarre health problems coming out of the Cuban diplomats? This story is crazy and worthy of more press attention than it's getting. Sign me up for a Google Alert on this possible Cuban conspiracy.
The times are a'changing, but on a less rape-y note than some, it looks like enough people are considering parental leave a high enough priority that companies are beginning to offer it as a legitimate benefit, to both parents and folks adopting as well. It's high time and I've been happy too see many of my New-Dad friends take it when its available.
And lastly, this wonderful article on raising a teenage daughter, annotated by said teenage daughter - makes sure to hover over the highlighted text for personal notes, which is an aspect I missed on the first read. Such an intimate and insightful look at how even the closest relationships come replete with two entirely individual points of view.
