Reading List: Emojis and Auctions and Hamptons, Oh My!
The furry demon hath mercifully granted me thirty minutes to tell you what I am reading this weekend, so LET’S DO THIS.
Tom Galvin, The Auction - Y’all know me: if it’s a dystopic look at an uber-capitalist hellscape wherein 22-year-olds are auctioned off to the Big 7 companies for a percentage of their lifelong earnings so their parents can afford to retire, thus creating a uniquely American caste system, in a debut novel built around a smart and complicated female protagonist who isn’t reduced to rote physical attributes (yay!), I’m going to read the crap out of it. I was completely sucked into this book, and it doesn’t hurt that it’s the work of a treasured former boss and current mentor who is basically the reason I aspire to be a kind and collaborative manager who my colleagues want to work with. SO GO READ THIS BOOK, I’m halfway through and can’t wait to finish bingeing this weekend.
Emma Goldberg, The 37-Year-Olds Are Afraid of the 23-Year-Olds Who Work for Them (The New York Times) - Yes, as a 37-year-old manager I sent this to my younger colleagues (some of whom subscribe to this here newsletter, ahoy younger braintrust, I appreciate you!) and basically said OH GOD, IS THIS ME? And they kindly assuaged my anxiety and told me I’m OK. But yes, I’m absolutely aware that my generation is moving out of the upstart phase of our lives and are now in that uniquely cringey position of not understanding what others think of emojis. But let it be known I will continue to end every second Slack message with a 🤪 whether or not it is lame because my people-pleasing properties demand that everyone know I am being lighthearted.
Anne Helen Petersen, How to Become Your Own Influencer (Culture Study) - Like a maniac, I tweeted at Petersen after reading this piece to tell her to get out of my head, because once again, a piece she’s written cuts through years of self-imposed editing and makes me ask who in tarnation made me think the way I do. I mean, for the love of God, this excerpt is everything:
““Flattering” is the vernacular of body discipline. It is a way of convincing ourselves that an item of clothing is or is not for us, simply because of how someone else thinks a body should look in clothes. If that sounds weird to you, it’s because you’ve been swimming in this understanding of how your body should look in clothes your entire damn life: that legs should be long, breasts contained, skin smoothed, waists pronounced, measurements proportional. That if something does the opposite to our body, it should be rejected.”
Polly Mosendz and Eric Roston, Unlimited Sand and Money Still Won’t Save the Hamptons (Bloomberg) - Just started this one, pulled in by the fabulous lede graph and spooky graphics.
Sam Whiting, Beatrice Bowles, a San Francisco heiress who cast off high society to host parties for the counterculture, dies at 78 (San Francisco Chronicle) - May we all aspire to have an obituary like this written for me when we pass. My goodness, she sounds like a wonderful woman.
You’re all fabulous. Since it’s Friday, take a moment to breath deeply, pour a cup of your favorite hot beverage, and be kind to yourself.
xoxo Amy