My 8 Favorite Articles From 2018
1 | On Subtlety by Meghan O’Gieblyn
“In ancient Rome, there were certain fabrics so delicate and finely stitched they were called subtilis, literally “underwoven.” The word — from which came the Old Frenchsoutil and the English subtle — often described the gossamer-like material that was used to make veils. I think of organza or the finest blends of silk chiffon, material that is opaque when gathered but sheer when stretched and translucent when held up to the light. Most wedding veils sold today use a special kind of tulle called “bridal illusion,” a term I’ve always loved, as it calls attention to the odd abracadabra of the veil, an accoutrement that is designed to simultaneously reveal and conceal.”
2 | First Comes The Shocking News. Then Comes The Navel-Gazing. by Nausicaa Renner
“You can’t prepare to be shocked. It arrives, by definition, suddenly — a jolt that makes us pause, stuck on a thought, unable to process it. When we recover our senses, something about us has changed — our movements are a bit shakier, our minds carry a slight disturbance.”
3 | Nuance: A Love Story by Meghan Daum
“This is the story of the past three years of my life. It’s romance in a way, but it’s also a breakup story. It begins sometime in 2015, a year during which my life was coming apart in various ways. In addition to the unraveling of my marriage, I began to sense some fraying around the edges of my social circles. Both online and in real life, people who’d once shared a common set of assumptions about the realities of the world and the nature of human behavior now seemed oddly divided. Questions that had once been treated as complicated inquiries requiring scrutiny and nuance were increasingly being reduced to moral absolutes, especially as far as liberal types were concerned.”
4 | How To Talk To People, According To Terry Gross by Jolie Kerr
“Tell me about yourself.”
“Those are the only four words you need to navigate a potentially awkward conversation, whether on a blind date or at a cocktail party. Ms. Gross avoids asking more pointed questions (for example, “What do you do for work?”) that presume information to be true.
The beauty in opening with “tell me about yourself” is that it allows you to start a conversation without the fear that you’re going to inadvertently make someone uncomfortable or self-conscious. Posing a broad question lets people lead you to who they are. As an interviewer, Ms. Gross’s goal is to find out how her subject became who they are; as a conversationalist, make that goal your own.”
5 | What Do 90-Somethings Regret Most by Lydia Sonn
“preconceptions about older people first began to crumble when one of my congregants, a woman in her 80s, came into my office seeking pastoral care. She had been widowed for several years but the reason for her distress was not the loss of her husband. It was her falling in love with a married man. As she shared her story with me over a cup of tea and Kleenex, I tried to keep a professional and compassionate countenance, though, internally, I was bewildered by the realization that even into their 80s, people still fall for one another in that teenage, butterflies-in-the-stomach kind of way.”
Full piece here
6 | The Power of Positive People by Tara Parker-Pope
“Are you spending time with the right people for your health and happiness?
While many of us focus primarily on diet and exercise to achieve better health, science suggests that our well-being also is influenced by the company we keep. Researchers have found that certain health behaviors appear to be contagious and that our social networks — in person and online — can influence obesity, anxiety and overall happiness. A recent report found that a person’s exercise routine was strongly influenced by his or her social network.”
7 | How Walking and Talking Allows Men To Be Vulnerable by Jeffrey Bissow
“My senior year in high school, my friend Mariano and I made a habit of walking around St. Paul, Minnesota every Friday evening. It was an odd activity, and our homeboys would often make fun of us for it, but those walks were surreal — they were a disruption from our dysfunctional lives. At around 4 p.m. when classes were over, we’d hop on a bus to the Highland area in St. Paul, and then play basketball for a few hours at the Groveland rec center. After tiring ourselves out, we’d walk a mile down Cleveland Avenue to grab a burrito at Chipotle.”
8 | Enjoy Every Sandwich by Zat Rana
“It was a surreal interview. Raw and insightful, and it would be his last.
David Letterman, the late-night TV host, had cleared up the whole hour for the show. His old friend Warren Zevon was coming on.
Zevon was a rock musician that rose to popularity in the 70s and the 80s. He was best known for his thundering melodies and his complicated storytelling. If you heard his music, you would probably agree that he played in his own way.
On this particular night, the mood was a little uncertain. It was October 30, 2002.”
Full piece here
If you’re wondering how I store all of these throughout the year, I use a wonderful Chrome plug-in and site called Instapaper.com. Highly recommend.
