Hey there,
It's the third night of Chanukah, the perfect holiday for this year of quarantine. A holiday all about things lasting longer than you expected? Check. Everything in 2020 has lasted longer than it was supposed to. A holiday that gives you permission to cook and eat oily foods at home? Check. We have all been doing that for months already. A holiday where children are encouraged to gamble, because the long-term stability of their investment in chocolate coins is uncertain? Check. Google "bitcoin millionaires" as you eat the coins you just won.
Growing up in an interfaith house, we always celebrated both Chanukah and Christmas, although we famously lost the privilege of getting presents at Chanukah after my brother and I complained ungratefully when we were given the wrong color Pokemon games for our Nintendo Game Boys. Chanukah was never really about presents anyway. It's not even that important of a Jewish holiday. But it's nice to light some candles and eat a potato pancake. And if anyone is looking to invest in a cryptocurrency based on chocolate or sell a Pokemon Yellow, you know my email address.
Upcoming Events
LIVESTREAMS:
-TOMORROW. Sunday, December 13th at 3:30 p.m. Pacific / 6:30 p.m. Eastern
Dancify That: Cacao I'm the comedian judge for a holiday chocolate edition of this hilarious show. More info here
-Wednesday, December 16th at 5 p.m. Pacific / 8 p.m. Eastern
Hidden Expert. From the National Academy of Sciences and LabX, this is a storytelling show where the audience tries to figure out which storyteller is actually a scientist. More info here
This week’s list
GREAT:
I've been reading David Sedaris stories for longer than I can remember. He's the master of the odd detail and the self-deprecating personal essay. His boyfriend Hugh is his comedic foil, who appears in the stories to shake his head at the Sedaris family nonsense and clean up their messes (both figuratively and literally). But I knew almost nothing about the real Hugh and that's why this profile of him (the first he's agreed to) is so enjoyable. If you're a Sedaris fan, it's a very fun read: Hugh Hamrick — David Sedaris’ Boyfriend — Finally Tells His Side of Their Story
FUNNY:
I normally link to longer pieces of writing or standup or a video. But sometimes the thing that has made me laugh the most in a week is short and just bizarre. I cannot stop thinking about The King's Hand. It's a food that a person ate in their dream and then spent a week figuring out how to recreate. And it's out of control. The King's Hand (h/t Edith Zimmerman's great newsletter)
INTERESTING:
Since the covid vaccines have been announced, I've been thinking about how incredible a scientific achievement it is and how quickly medicine has advanced in even my lifetime. Genetic tools and testing are going to save millions of lives. But there are ways in which our rapidly expanding understanding of genetics are outpacing our cultural conversations about what they mean for our future. This article, by Sarah Zhang, very sensitively lays out the benefits and the moral quandaries that we're going to face more and more of. "Prenatal testing is changing who gets born and who doesn’t. This is just the beginning."
That's it for this week! Thanks for reading. If you're enjoying these emails, please forward to a friend or spread the word. If someone forwarded you this email but you're not yet on the list, you can subscribe here.
Spinning round and round in my office chair like a human dreidel,
Chris