reading the whole internet
What's it called when by the time you finally read through all your tabs you don't have time to write your own thing anymore? Just Mondays, or...? I might subscribe to too many riveting newsletters. I want to share some of those with you here, for your reading today!, or for whenever your pituitary gland betrays you and your entire body becomes slack with exhaustion due to an impending period (or similar).
Must read: my friend Nada Alic's extraordinary piece My New Life, in the No Tokens Journal. Here is a gripping excerpt:
"Now that I’m married, I have a hard time remembering men’s faces. There is nothing that makes them stand out unless I guess if you were hideous, I’d probably remember you as a courtesy. Liam ordered our drinks and I listened politely as a circle of men discussed exotic trips they were about to take or had just returned from...After a while, I couldn’t remember what I was doing there. Everything lost its meaning and all I could think was: don’t touch anyone’s penis—don’t do it. Imagine what would happen if you did, like right now. Think about anything else. Look up at the ceiling tiles. What is that, distressed tin? Elegant choice. Very modern. But once I thought it, I couldn’t stop. I fixed my gaze on the varietals of black dress pants before me. They all looked so vulnerable, so up for grabs; concealed only by a thin layer of fabric. I imagined them as windchimes waiting to be struck. The impulse wasn’t sexual, it was destructive. I just stood there, not touching anyone’s penis, quietly frightened by who I was and what I was capable of."
Jessica Stanley's always, always, always beautifully-curated monthly newsletter READ.LOOK.THINK, which features links to extremely compelling essays, articles, recipes, books, and more. It's where I first learned about my new obsession, the Australian writer Helen Garner. I just finished my third book by her - This House of Grief. Order immediately. Only stop to pay taxes and shipping. I am not a "murder trial" reader but this book is extraordinary. (I'll never be able to thank you enough for introducing me to her, Jess...!)
DID YOU KNOW you can take select courses online at Harvard for free...? I'm going to start this one soon.
I get many of my book recommendations from Molly Young, my favorite Tumblr writer turned New York/Vulture literary critic. Sign up here, new worlds are waiting.
I am never NOT overwhelmed by the Ann Friedman newsletter but she really does compile the most must-read essays and articles of each week. I usually open them several weeks late, open 20 tabs and read them all in the sweaty fervor reminiscent of the days leading up to the AP exams in the heinous junior year of the IB program, feeling utter and total relief when one of the fascinating articles she's linked to is a pay site for which I am not a paying subscriber. Relief. Next tab. Inhale. Learn more. Remember a little.
My dear one, Ani, has a delightful new newsletter called A Little, As A Treat. Treat yourself and subscribe.
Now, please watch these mid-century Soviet soldiers dance to Ariana Grande, and have a lovely day.
Yours,
Kira
(Sorry the formatting is all over the place on this one, no idea why some of the paragraphs are SO LARGE. I could NOT for the LIFE O' ME figure out how to change it.)