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Reading List, Intellectual Freebird edition

"We predict a hot summer. We always do. It always is." - The Fool-Killer, Pores Knob, North Carolina, 1st June 1925

Image: Rafa Recuenco via Yesterday’s Print

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Pirates of the Ayahuasca [Sarah Miller, n+1]

How far can we go on the old hippy trail?3,000 miles by bus and train to Georgia, the current the eastern limit of independent overland travel [Annapurna Mellor, The Guardian]

"We biked up and down the neighborhood, pooled spare change for candy that we ate at the park, and skinned our knees doing cartwheels and playing red rover. We made the best of every single day and even when we did nothing, it felt like we’d accomplished everything." Here's to a feral summer [Amil Niazi, The Cut]

Scientists on their neurodiversity, and how they get things done [Julian Nowogrodzki, Nature]

The Most Mysterious Cells in Our Bodies Don’t Belong to Us The science of how we carry pieces of our mothers within us - and they of us, too [Katherine Wu, The Atlantic]

This Is Your Priest on Drugs On the religious leaders who swear by psychedelics [Michael Pollan The New Yorker]

"In the modern technological world, airports can also be seen as ‘thin places’. They are liminal zones where boundaries fade. On a literal level, national borders dissolve. Once we pass through security, we enter a no man’s land, between countries. The concept of place becomes hazy." The weird psychology of airports [Steve Taylor, Adventure.com]

"Every example that’s offered is somehow not right, not enough, not built to facilitate the specific kind of experience that person is looking for, even though specific experiences aren’t really what third spaces are about. So what do people want out of third-place socialization?" What Is a Third Place? [Jaya Saxena, Eater]

Stephen Hawking’s Electronic Voice Conveyed a Self [Sarah Bell, Nautilus]

They Asked ChatGPT Questions. The Answers Sent Them Spiraling. [Kashmir Hill, The New York Times]

My Parents Expected to Be Retired. Instead, They Are Raising My Sister’s Kids [Frances Dodds, The New York Times]

Can a nicotine patch fix brain fog? [Hannah Singleton, Slate]

Creature of the Late Afternoon [Tammy Kim, n+1]

Why does every film and TV series seem to have the same plot? What other stories are there to tell? [Eliane Glaser, Aeon]

"With love, please be siller." The case for weir writing [Emily Bernay]

Mary HK Choi found her old lady haircut [Mary HK Choi]

Tilda Swinton on why it's okay to take your time making stuff - a LOT of time.

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Fish and chips: The immigrant roots of Britain's national dish - Eaten

Fish and chips are as British as the Beatles and the royal family, but once upon a time it started out as "fish fried in the Jewish fashion", keeping working class people going in the East End of London. For Eaten, the food history magazine, I wrote about the remarkable journey of what Churchill called "the good companions", as fish and chips went from immigrant food to everyman food – because there's nothing better than a perfect chip. Eaten's summer issue, The Sea, is out now.

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Before Sun­rise and the ulti­mate intimacy - Little White Lies

Today (16th June) it’s 30 years since Jesse and Céline met in Vien­na with no phones, no pho­tos, and no future - and Before Sunrise’s intense atten­tion has nev­er looked more attractive. For Little White Lies I wrote about my personal Roman Empire - why it got me then, and why it continues to get me every time 🌅

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How a second passport became the key to European freedom for Brits - The Independent

In the decade after Brexit, hundreds of thousands of Brits - young and old - have faced up to heavy bureaucracy to regain their European rights. But what starts out as a practical project, to become a UK-EU dual citizen through ancestry, tends to turn into an emotional journey. I've usually written about citizenship from the European immigrant perspective, and it was interesting to see it from the other side in this story for The Independent - so many Brits still feel European.

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Reading List, Wrote for Luck edition.

"I'm at that stage of my life where I keep myself out of arguments. Even if you tell me 1+1=5, you're absolutely correct. Enjoy." - Keanu Reeves

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"Possibly, I should be writing this on the intake form at a neurologist’s office. Maybe the fog never cleared after my third round of COVID. Maybe it’s the self-severance of having two young children but pretending for half of the day that I don’t. Maybe this is exactly what my mother warned me about twenty years ago when she discovered my passion for marijuana. But I get the sense that quite a lot of people are feeling like this all the time now, too." My Brain Finally Broke [Jia Tolentino, The New Yorker]

"I want more Silly. More Fun. More people who are Silly and Fun for Silly and Fun’s sake." [Emily Bernay, The Unmoored]

Start a weird ritual! Spread positive gossip! The Best Advice I’ve Ever Heard for How to Be Happy [Jancee Dunn, The New York Times]

"The capital of Switzerland is not a holiday to be made for social currency. The pics will be mid. It’s a perfect vacation from everyone. Including yourself." In Bern [Mary H.K. Choi, The Places Review]

My Miserable Week in the ‘Happiest Country on Earth’ Molly Young goes to Finland for The New York Times, and also, this postscript about Finnish coffee cups from her Substack

It turns out you’re never too old to go Interrailing around Europe [Phil Mongredien, The Guardian]

This Fear of Flying Subreddit Is the Most Heartwarming Corner of the Internet [Hannah Singleton, Condé Nast Traveler]

Souvernirs are a sham - why do we keep buying them? [Michelle Baran, Afar]

Cellphone data shows that people navigate by keeping their destinations in front of them – even when that’s not the most efficient route [The Conversation]

The hidden world beneath the shadows of YouTube's algorithm [Thomas Germain, BBC Future]

Did you know that if you set your phone to grayscale, you can make it a lot less appealing for your stupid brain? Prune your algorithm [Sally Weale, The Guardian]

"Plain and simple, it was an explosion of passion that kept up for years. And, yes, I also liked guys, but that was not a conflict with my love for Diane. I can’t explain it to myself or to the world. It simply happened to both of us without motive or manipulation. In some cosmic way we were destined for each other." The Truth About Barry Diller and Diane von Fürstenberg [New York Magazine]

Death, divorce and the magic of kitchen objects [Bee Wilson, The Guardian]

What Ever Happened to Laundry Chutes? [Elizabeth Yuko, Dwell]

How millennials became uncool [Chloë Hamilton, The Guardian]

Jennifer Romolini on the Small Bow podcast

At the intersection of Silver Lake and Sunset Blvds in LA, there is a sign

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Why your brain needs silence - New Humanist

Modern life is spent in headphones, but what happens to our brains if it's never ever quiet? I went down the rabbit hole on this question as I tried to get the answer to a feeling I've been having - that I need it to be quiet more often, even when that's a little boring (especially when it's a little boring). It turns out our brains do a lot when we're not watching, and I for one have been enjoying leaving mine alone more. The story is out now, in the Summer issue of New Humanist.

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The case for the Scandinavian duvet divorce - Dwell

If you’ve ever suffered a nocturnal cold draft down your back, courtesy of the blanket hog next to you, I invite you to consider a small but mighty nighttime revolution: a duvet divorce, also known as the Scandinavian sleep method.

My new story for Dwell: why two duvets are better than one - or, why my mother was right all along <3

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The joys of being a regular - The Simple Things

One of my favourite things about living in the city is to find the places that I like going back to again and again - pubs hidden in backstreets, winebars with a little table by the fire, and restaurants where the menu never changes. For the May issue of The Simple Things I wrote about the joys of being a regular (and why I really don't like pop-up restaurants), and the case for finding our loves and keeping on loving them. The May issue is out now.

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Påskekrim: Why Norway goes nuts for crime at Easter - Atlas Obscura

Easter means reading or watching crime stories, right? In Norway it's such a natural part of the season that until I left the country at 19, I had no idea no one else does this. For Atlas Obscura, I reported on the curious origins of this unique tradition. I also explored why such a peaceful country loves crime and gore - no country is perfect, everybody is going through something, and we all love a good scare.

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Reading List, What Feels Lighter edition.

“God wants us to walk, but the devil sends a limo.” - Val Kilmer

Image: Robert Longo, "Men in the Cities" (1979) *

Women are getting stronger, for themselves. Big shoulders are in [Bonnie Tsui, Elle]

"To get me through it, a nurse gave me a daily heavy dose of Xanax, and I watched the Netflix dating show Perfect Match. The girls, in bikinis and crop tops, all had magnificent breasts. Some of you will lose them to cancer, I thought, unkindly." After A Double Mastectomy, What’s Next For My Breasts? [Jean Hannah Edelstein, Vogue]

"Behold the decade of mid tech!" The Tech Fantasy That Powers AI Is Running on Fumes [Tressie McMillan Cottom, The New York Times]

You're Being Alienated From Your Own Attention [Chris Hayes, The Atlantic]

It's happening on Reddit. ‘I just want to hang out with other nerds’ [Amelia Tait, The Guardian]

"Autistic-coding can be accidental. Dan Harmon didn’t intend for Abed Nadir’s character in his sitcom Community to be autistic but, on hearing from autistic fans that they recognised themselves in Abed, Harmon did some research on autism to ensure he depicted it correctly – and discovered he had it too." Undiagnosed entertainment: how Hollywood awkwardly dodges autism [Pierre Novellie, The Guardian]

The Ultra-Introverts Who Live Nocturnally [Faith Hill, The Atlantic]

If Straight Relationships Are So Bad, Why Do Women Go Back for More? [Jessica Bennett, The Cut]

Desperate for Botox [Sarah Miller, The New Yorker]

"The problem is that there is so little to be done." Your kids will get you sick. And again. [Kathryn Schulz, The New Yorker]

"Frito-Lay can move around the ingredients and swap real cheddar cheese for cheddar cheese “flavor” because they already have you. What are you going to do, try another white cheddar popcorn you might like even less? The reason I and others assumed something was wrong with us is because we trusted Smartfood to taste a certain way. We had built up a lifetime of nostalgia and goodwill toward the brand, and were willing to keep going even if our tongues were telling us something was wrong." It's enshittification all over again [Jaya Saxena, Eater]

Aerial photos of Canary Wharf in the 80s [Londonist]

"All of these efforts at control — planning and scheduling and documenting and legally protecting every minute of your life and putting your body through a daily obstacle course — are aimed at a way for your mind and heart to finally find rest and peace. The irony, of course, is that this quest for eternal life  is actually a quest for death: No more tormenting, neurotic thoughts, no uncertainty, no unknowns, no awkwardness, no misunderstandings, no sickness, no fear, no distrust, no sadness, no decline, no messiness, no conflicts, no bewilderment. You will remain exactly this smart and fit and beautiful forever. Cue The Beatles: Nothing’s gonna change my world." 'Why Do I Try to Get Out of Every Plan?' [Ask Polly]

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After 20 years, I thought I knew London – then I walked the Capital Ring - The Independent

It's spring! Let's go for a walk and gush about how nice it is to be out. If you want a bigger London adventure, may I suggest the 78 mile Capital Ring, which will show you things you didn't know existed and also, bring you the pleasure of connecting up the city's neighbourhoods in a way that's only possible by travelling on foot. Here's to the satisfaction of a full circle.

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Reading List, Spring! edition.

Image: Eric Stefanski

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"When I get too convinced of the right way to approach a morning, a conversation, a meal, a relationship, I start to feel kind of swimmy and off, almost carsick. So I get out of the car and in doing so, realize there was no car. (This is the sort of notion an editor would suggest I “unpack a bit for the reader”.)" How’s it going for those who have travelled a long way to get here? [Miranda July]

"What happens to our culture when websites start to vanish at random?" The disappearing internet [SE Smith, The Verge]

Reddit: The nicest swamp on the internet [Adrienne LaFrance, The Atlantic]

Do we all just have brain fog now? [Katie Arnold-Ratliff, The Cut]

"Scientists are still trying to understand how reasoning works in the human brain — nevermind in AI." Companies say AI can “reason” now. Is it true?[Sigal Samuel, Vox]

We’re All Nostalgic for a Fake Past [Kathryn Jezer-Morton, The Cut]

"It’s been said that “news is the first rough draft of history.” But maybe it’s actually Google Reviews." The Strangely Beautiful Experience of Google Reviews [Will McCarthy, Longreads]

"We have a system in our brain that is designed to move away from stress. What happens in depressed people is, you end up having a sensation of anhedonia, where it’s not worth it to move towards the reward, or you develop learned helplessness, where you need to move but you cannot. ... The mental pain is related to the inability to move.” On learned helplessness [Elizabeth Hlavinka, Salon]

Unfortunately, we are going to have to keep making dinner for the rest of our lives [Rachel Sugar, The Atlantic]

"People rarely want to have sex with someone they resent or a person they see as just another chore on a long to-do list." ‘I felt like I was his carer’: why straight women in relationships lose interest in sex [Alyx Gorman, The Guardian]

"People have tried before to find a new model for local news in London. They have typically failed. The reason is at least partly psychological. The city is both geographically and spiritually amorphous. (Around forty per cent of London’s population was born overseas, a slightly higher proportion than in New York.) It resists coherence. I wonder, on some level, how much it wants to know about itself. “London is a disparate capital,” Greenslade, the former journalism professor, said. “People in East Ham are not interested in what happens to the people in Southall, and the people in St. John’s Wood really couldn’t give a toss about what happens south of the river. So it is very difficult.”" London Is a Local-News Desert. What Comes Next? [Sam Knight, The New Yorker]

Hackney Marshes: Rewilding efforts sees 'overnight' animals rebound [Josef Steen BBC]

The Outrun, now on UK Netflix

The Small Bow - a podcast about recovery in all its forms, by AJ Daulerio

"Divorce helped me clue in that, in every arena of my life, I can bail. I don't have to do this, whatever THIS is! I have a few requirements in the world: I have to pay my rent, I have to be nice to my friends, I have to call my mom, and I have to fight fascism. But everything else? Every argument with a man who doesn't see my worth? Every inch of anger I gather over being disrespected professionally? Carrying shame from relationship to relationship, none of which was my shame to begin with? Fuck that." Scaachi Koul speaks to Heather Havrilesky [Ask Polly]

You Haven't Even Begun to Portal [Anne Helen Petersen]

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Couple more small bits from the other day at the Velvet Underground 🖋️💜

Tattoo 23 is an egg, added on the arm that I think may turn into a kind of sloppy sleeve eventually?? An egg can somehow stand up on its end, as long as you pay attention to maintaining the balance. It’s like that with people sometimes too 🥚🤍

Tattoo 24 is the water - it took me ages to find a design that represents water that I loved, and this is perfect. I love being in the water and I love looking at it. Water is the good place 🌊

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My brand new cherry bomb 🍒 in celebration of my fun times 🎉💖

My 22nd tattoo is by Theresa Vendetta, masterfully, at the Velvet Underground in East London 💜

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Reading List, Doing My Best edition.

Image: “Clouds” (2019-20) by Anne Rothenstein

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You Bust Loose From Heaven And Now Your Life Starts* Should you blow up your life? [Miranda July]

Who Gets "Quality" Leisure? [Culture Study by Anne Helen Petersen]

Nobody wants this, but we can't spend another four years feeling like the world is ending - so we're getting sweaty [Avery Stone, The Cut]

"A packer faces three obstacles. There’s contingency: a variety of possible futures must somehow be tamed. There’s consumerism: the junk you own needs to be winnowed into a useful curation. And there’s comfort: we want to be cushioned against transit’s sharp points. Staring down these monsters can be unpleasant. It’s embarrassing to realize that you live in uncertainty despite your hoard of objects, and to admit that you need your blanket. Maybe, if you were someone who could roll with the punches, and who lived a tougher, less acquisitive life, packing would be easier. So there’s actually a fourth obstacle: you." Why Can’t You Pack a Bag? [Joshua Rothman, The New Yorker]

"Hypergraphia is the compulsion to write excessively and without obvious purpose or profit. Hypergraphics tend to exhibit flamboyant penmanship and fill every inch of space on a page. They favor colored inks and CAPITAL LETTERS. They write in response to internal rather than external pressures — so, not to achieve tenure or impress girls." Pregnant With One Child and 295,233 Words [Molly Young, The New York Times]

My Breast Reduction From Hell [Katie Heaney, The Cut]

How Jonathan Franzen Learned to Write a Franzen Novel [Adam Moss, Vulture]

Men Texting With Men, struggling [Matthew Schnipper, The Atlantic]

Let’s Put The Pagan Back In Christmas TL;DR go outside [Nell Frizzell, Vogue]

In praise of Old Lady Clubbing [Gaby Hinsliff, The Guardian]

Bang the World [Nathan Adrian West, The Baffler]

"With older media, the friction of the interface provided some space for reflection and hierarchizing significance. What was on the front pages or what led the news bulletins was what we heeded most. Music had to be sought out and didn’t come with an infinite stream of more. Digitization has become a “universal solvent” for all information, fed to the same device on the same platform with a convenience and ease that becomes a curse. We have evolved to seek, says Carr, but with the internet, there is no natural curb to that desire, and never any sense of satiation. Reality can’t compete with the internet’s steady diet of novelty and shallow, ephemeral rewards." The Case for Kicking the Stone [Philip Ball, Los Angeles Review of Books]

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Let them eat oranges - but only in winter - The Simple Things

These day I eat an orange or satsuma every day - get them while they are in season! And for the rest of the year steer well clear, as they are no good. I wrote about my love for winter citrus for the January issue of The Simple Things, and how satsumas were a treat we waited all year for when I was a kid. I mean, I still do 🍊

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Rose, snowflake, star, sun – Hazlitt

Norway has claimed the Selburose as its own, but you can find it all over the world - so who does it belong to, really?

For Hazlitt I spent a year reporting on the origins of the eight point star, and found that actually, it belongs to all of us. This was an incredible journey and I'm so pleased that I can finally share it. This is one of my all time favourite stories I've worked on, weaving together threads from my own life with something that ended up stretching all across the world.