From small talk to group se—intimate activity.
My parents read this newsletter.
Hello! I spent last night looking confused among images of West African royalty at Tate Modern’s A World In Common exhibition. Highly recommend if you’re in London before January 14. Otherwise, stick around for a spot of wanderlust by way of Instagram, commiserate with me over a missed connection fit for Nora Ephron’s cutting room floor, and learn how to make peace with the inevitability of becoming the elder in the family.
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In need of some escapism and wanderlust? Lose yourself for five minutes in this, the loveliest Instagram account right now.
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‘Good’ storytelling is subjective, but I think being audacious has something to do with it. It takes courage to make words jump out from a page and touch you, as these sentences selected by the Paris Review team do. Two sentences I loved this summer are actually from 97 summers ago, out of Sylvia Townsend Warner’s Lolly Willowes: “One doesn’t become a witch to run round being harmful, or to run round being helpful either, a district visitor on a broomstick. It’s to escape all that — to have a life of one’s own, not an existence doled out to you by others.” I am not a witch, nor do I wish to become one, but I enjoyed this perspective (and book) very much.
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What comes to mind when you hear the word “siesta”? Maybe it evokes ease and a good quality of life, or perhaps you think of southern Europe! Contrary to popular belief, the siesta is almost purely utilitarian. It helps people who live in countries with unbearable midday sun stay alive by resting during peak heat. The practice may become a necessity in countries like Germany and even the US as climate change forces us to adapt to intense temperatures. By Siri Chilukuri.
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With age (or, really, just with life) comes the creeping worry about what happens after the people we love are no longer with us. ¡Hola Papi! columnist JP Brammer validates the anxiety of one reader facing the burden of becoming the elder: the person responsible for storing generational memories and traditions when those who did that for us are gone—and passing those heirlooms on.
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Daniel Khalife Twitter, do your thing: I need your help tracking down a missed connection. Check out my other newsletter to read. If you want to! I can’t tell you what to do.
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Artist Andrea Luper describes her process as pouring “the mess out of my head judgement free, allowing my thoughts to be as wild and ugly as they need to be.” The result is a confronting and playful portrayal of the parts of our everyday lives we keep to ourselves. Hang is my fave. By Yaya Azariah Clarke.
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Gen Z—like any generation before it—has its unique set of challenges to contend with. Social media is not just a phenomenon for them, it’s a fact of life. So it’s only natural their creativity and self-expression online extend to matters that older folks may feel reluctant to share publicly. Plus, depending on where you live, university is bloody expensive! Beauty influencer Bethany Werth tells The Cut’s Andrea González-Ramírez about funding her college tuition through her TikTok vids.
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Not okay, boomer: A cocktail of problems, such as high housing costs, is causing homelessness to rise among younger baby boomers in the US. “The fact that we are seeing elderly homelessness is something that we have not seen since the Great Depression,” Professor Dennis Culhane tells the Wall Street Journal’s Shannon Najmabadi.
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There are two kinds of people in this world: Those who hate small talk and…those who initiate it, lol. While there’s value in both surface-level chitchat and the good ol’ DMC, how can we best approach the awkwardness of meeting someone new? “It can be extra challenging when the terms of that relationship are not really established in any way.” This clarifying Radio Atlantic conversation might help you feel less stiff.
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^ Once you’ve mastered how to say hello and make eye contact with strangers, leap into the joy of group sex. Sex educator Ruby Rare shares how exploring her sensuality among friends has opened up more creative sexual experiences.
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I’m a COS girli— wait, let me start again. I’m an Old Céline girlie on a budget. If you’re also partial to a bit of Phoebe Philo, COS often scratches that itch and the A/W 2023 ready-to-wear collection is no exception. Related: Philo is reportedly making a comeback THIS MONTH. Related related: I need this bag like I need air. Very expensive air…I’m hyperventilating!
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On that note: The perfect SoHo loft doesn’t exi—anyone have $8.5 million to spare?
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Share to sweeten someone’s day—and enjoy the rest of your week!
Isabel :)
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