Syllabus #11

We're deep into summer in these parts.  I've carved a comfortable groove right down the middle of the chasm that lies between hedonistic blob and Type-A masochist.  I take a lot of walks, have a few daily routines to keep me honest, eat an embarrassing amount of fruit, read a ton, and listen to podcasts.  That might sound like the montage at the beginning of an Ensure commercial, but I like to think of it as creating a sustainable lifestyle that I can enjoy whether I'm 33 or 93.  I mean, sleeping until noon and getting blackout drunk by the pool is a perfectly achievable lifestyle for a nonagenarian, too, but it's not really my jam right now.

Have you picked out your summer wardrobe yet?  Maybe this will help.  I hate to include a link to the NY Post, but the Daytona Dong Sarong Jeado Swim Brief is important enough to justify it, just this once. 

In other sartorial considerations - to side boob, or not to side boob?  For me, the answer is always and forever a hard no.  With these puppies, it wouldn't be a cute whisper of side-titty, it would be like someone squeezed an overflowing fistful of anemic hued Nickelodeon Gak into the front of the garment and let it ooze out both sides. 

Speaking of Fleabag, I loved this show.  British people!  Fourth-wall breaking!  Only twelve 22-minute episodes!  Can ya handle it?

All my childhood nightmares are about to come true.  As a librarian I can vouch for the continued popularity of the Scary Stories books.  In my previous job, they were in such constant circulation that they never made it back onto the shelf before kids would snatch them from the check-in cart.  As a child living in a house in the woods, which all my friends already deemed scary and haunted, I was utterly incapacitated with fear of the outdoors after reading The Wolf Girl story.  Taking the dog out after dark became a form of psychological torture no less devastating than waterboarding.  I haven't been to the movies in probably 3 years but I am 1000% going to see this the second it's released wait for it to be available on Netflix and maybe watch it 6 months after that.

Sarah Silverman and others are speaking in a short documentary about comedians and mental health. I can't wait to say I'm going to watch this and never follow through.

Swedish library boats:  I love how much Scandinavians in general and Finns in particular value literacy.

“The Scandinavian countries have a long history of [the] welfare state where literacy and learning are considered important,” says Päivi Jokitalo, a Finnish library specialist. “The library systems stress equal access to literature and knowledge for all, regardless of background.”

I'm crying because...I cut myself shaving?  How do we feel about this ad?  Do we take a consequentialist view in which we put cynicism aside and celebrate the beautiful content of the ad and applaud the outcome of inclusion and positive visibility for trans people?  Or do we question the self-serving motives behind this corporate wokeness?  Can we feel both ways about it?  

Sometimes what you want and what you need are exactly the same.

Whenever you learn about the passing of a 96-year old your first thought is probably, well, that makes sense.  But reading about someone who lived such a humble yet outsized existence, doing something she was passionate about until the age of 96 (!), makes you think about maybe starting to get your ass in gear...tomorrow.

I'm still on the yoga every day train (since January 1, 2018...so namaste here until I get my participation trophy, guys).  Why not a little rainbow yoga for Pride month?  

I don't live alone but I still want this giant toilet paper roll in my life.