Just Good Shit: 04.18.21
This week, I got my second dose of the vaccine, something I feel incredibly grateful for. Getting such an effective vaccine this early in time feels like a miracle, and I feel very overwhelmed when I sit with the reality of how lucky I am to have made it to this point. It’s impossible not to think about this in the context of not just the 566,452 known COVID deaths in the U.S., but also in the context of Daunte Wright and Adam Toledo and George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and so many other people who are no longer with us who should be. I feel hollowed out by all of the gun violence and racism and misogyny in the U.S., and anxious about re-entering a society where, vaccinated or not, it’s pretty hard to feel safe.
Here’s what else I had going on this week…
Writing
On Thursday, I published the big feature I’ve been plugging away at for a while now: Shantay, You Pay: Inside the Heavy Financial Burden of Going On ‘Drag Race’. I enjoyed working on this article so much. Everyone I spoke to for it was wonderful — thoughtful and generous and genuinely funny — and I learned a ton from every single interview I did. (I think my first draft was…11,000 words? lol) It was also really nice, after a year of sameness and sadness, to talk to a bunch of really talented artists about making stuff. I miss making stuff! Anyway, I’m really happy it’s out in the world, and I hope you enjoy reading it!
On another note, there’s a new episode of Oh, I Like That this week: “Breaking Up with Friends and Other Ways to Prepare for a Post-COVID Summer.”
Reading
Police Say A Lot Of Things, Defector.
“Let me tell you how bad the gun problem in this country is.”
How You, Personally, Can Fight the Anti-Trans Bills Surging Across the U.S., VICE.
The Soul of Bravo, Vulture.
The Political Media Is Having a “Gotta Hear Both Sides” Relapse, Slate.
Baby proof: talking to kids about what it means to be transgender or non-binary., Reading My Tea Leaves.
I'd Like This To Stop: Praise For A Promising Young Woman, Ayesha A. Siddiqi.
Perfectly sums up everything I disliked about this movie!
Watching
We’re still watching The Nanny, which I’m enjoying so much. We also watched Operation Varsity Blues on Netflix, which was good/infuriating, and started This Is a Robbery (good so far!) and Couples Therapy (ehhhh??????).
Have a good evening. ✨