Reading List: The Miracles Of The Human Body, Healing Pot Brownies, And Val Kilmer's Immortality.
It’s a gorgeous morning in San Francisco, and we’re embarking on another quarantined weekend. Personally, I might start re-watching New Girl and/or Brooklyn Nine-Nine, because I need some warm and cuddly banter to cradle my isolated soul right about now.
Got some light stuff for ya before we get into the longreads: sometimes my weird friends (h/t Colin!) send me thirst-trap remixes of the Canadian Prime Minister at a press conference and I’m not even mad. And speaking of unfairly attractive men, if you haven’t seen the Melodica Men play Flight of the Bumblebee whilst in bee-themed attire, YOU’RE WELCOME.
Brian Resnick and Umair Irfan, What immunity to Covid-19 might actually mean (Vox) - I had a striking conversation this week with an East Coast friend about how absolutely special it is that after trillions of years of evolution, countless mutations and environmental changes, and endless tiny moments when the path of life could have altered, we sit here now in the bodies we are in. It’s an absolute miracle. And this is piece is an informative but also absolutely lovely ode to the human body and all it does to protect us from threats like the novel coronavirus.
Jennifer Senior, This Is What Happens When a Narcissist Runs a Crisis (The New York Times) - And on the non-lovely spectrum of things, this won’t help you sleep at night, but for those of us that have experience dealing with narcissists personally, it’ll hit uncomfortably close to home. Which is why we say, again and again, thank god for, and then fight to elect, empathetic and effective political leaders.
Alex Pappademas, Val Kilmer Doesn't Believe in Death (Men’s Health) - I was reading this in the bath last night, and it’s like every sentence gets even more curious than the last. It. Is. BONKERS. Did you know that Val Kilmer is selling handpainted self-portraits of Val Kilmer… painted by Val Kilmer… FOR ONLY $150?!?! Which makes this a good time to mention my birthday is at the end of May sooooooo…..
Marc Andreessen, It’s Time To Build (a16z blog) - A few folks sent this in (specific hat tip to FotM Tre) and I was going to give it a close read to provide insightful critical commentary on it, and do my best to further the concepts raised, but I didn’t get around to it, so please give it a read and send me your hottest of takes.
Alia Volz, My Mom's Pot Brownies Were Legendary During the AIDS Epidemic. This Is Her Recipe. (Bon Appetit) - And Tre sent in another gem, this affectionate remembrance of a time when weed was illegal in San Francisco, and family-run black market businesses would sell medicine to soothe the victims of the last great plague. This is a gorgeous book excerpt, and I can’t wait to read the whole thing.
That’s it, that’s all. I appreciate you. So be kind to each other, mmmkay?
xoxo Amy