Reading List: All Hail Chunky The Turtle And His Scaly, Clawed Feet Of Justice.
Happy Friday, poppets! Today’s a lazy Missive, as I’m off from work for Zeno’s annual “Day Of Play”, an all-firm holiday where we are encouraged to get out and go do something good for ourselves. I plan on doing online therapy, seeing a friend for lunch, and then getting a massage - basically, what we should all get to do on the regular if we are so lucky. So if any colleagues are reading this, have fun! And I sure hope you’re not reading this because you’re checking your email :)
Also, from Friend of the Missive Shmul, Canadian government social media staffers are savage nerds:
TO THE LONGREADS!
Sy Montgomery, Shell Shock (Orion) - I don’t want to say much about this fascinating and sweet piece on a rescue turtle sanctuary, sent in by Friend of the Missive Daniel. Just start reading, and enjoy.
Annie Vainshtein, A jar of used N95 masks. An orb filled with ashes. These are the pandemic objects Bay Area residents are holding onto (San Francisco Chronicle) - This devastating and beautiful piece starts by remarking “Time can feel impossible to distill — too opaque, too varied — but often we find ourselves holding on to things that become talismans, totems to mark a certain period of our lives”, introducing us to the myriad ways Bay Area residents have marked two years of pandemic. And there at the top is Friend of the Missive and conceptual artist Michael Garcia, adding a layer of familiarity and fondness.
Kylie Robison, Furries are developing vaccines, building your favorite apps, and crashing Microsoft meetings. The inside story of how one of the web's oldest communities became a force to be reckoned with in the tech industry. (Insider) - Robison describes the outsized impact that this “subculture with an interest in anthropomorphic animal characters” that has “long found themselves as a punch line” in an empathetic and in-depth piece. Quite enjoyable and, dare I say, fascinating!
Max Bearak and Isabelle Khurshudyan, ‘All art must go underground:’ Ukraine scrambles to shield its cultural heritage (The Washington Post) - Remember: “The deliberate destruction of a country’s or culture’s heritage is considered a war crime, but UNESCO has not yet canceled its next summit, which is scheduled to take place in Russia.” (Screams into the void after reading that sentence.) And this quote from the director of the Lviv National Art Gallery guts me: “Putin knows that without art, without our history, Ukraine will have a weaker identity. That is the whole point of his war — to erase us and assimilate us into his population of cryptofascist zombies.”
Hugo Lowell, Trump White House aide was secret author of report used to push ‘big lie’ (The Guardian) - Not surprised, but also coolcoolcoolcoolcoolcoolcoolcool sigh.
Paul McLeod, Everyone Was Surprised By The Senate Passing Permanent Daylight Saving Time. Especially The Senators. (BuzzFeed News) - What a fabulous little description of the weirdness of our democracy. As someone still dealing with that damned time change, I salute it! But as someone who likes to wake up early, UGH SO MUCH DARKNESS, why can’t everyone be a morning person like me?!?!
And finally, I highly encourage you to listen to Trevor Noah’s take on the Kim/Kanye awfulness, if only to be reminded that what we have here is an awful divorce, a possessive husband backed into a corner (by his own doing) and a woman asking, imploring, BEGGING her ex to please, just stop.
I appreciate you all. Drink some water, be kind to yourself, and do one thing today that makes you smile.
xoxo Amy