Moving to Australia (from the UK) "makes you more attractive. At least that’s what young expats who moved down under claim as 'the Australia effect.'"

I'm reading "Moving to Australia made my fiancé more attractive/Young adults find travelling down under does wonders for their self-esteem and sex appeal. It’s what happens when you live life without stress, one says" (London Times).

Among the scores of travellers showing off their “glow-ups” is Abigail Phillips, 29, who posted on Instagram her fiancé’s transformation from pale and formal to a surfer boy with a golden tan, mullet and trendy moustache. “I really do like the ’tache and the curly hair,” said Phillips

"Hessy Levinsons Taft, who as an infant appeared on the cover of a Nazi magazine in Germany promoting her as the ideal Aryan baby..."

"... a distinction complicated by the fact that she was Jewish and had been exploited as part of a dangerous hoax, died on Jan. 1 at her home in San Francisco. She was 91.... As Latvians, her parents were protected from laws targeting Jews of German descent. Still, they were terrified that the Nazis would discover what had happened and execute them. They kept Hessy inside, rarely taking her out, even for walks...."

From "Hessy Levinsons Taft, Jewish Baby on Cover of Nazi Magazine, Dies at 91/Without her parents’ knowledge, her portrait was entered as a prank in a contest in 1935 to represent the ideal Aryan infant — and she won" (NYT).

Incredibly stupid NY Post headline: "Ghislaine Maxwell filmed bizarrely carrying umbrella on sunny day at Texas prison."

Text: "Ghislaine Maxwell was snapped going for a casual stroll while carrying an umbrella on a sunny day at the cushy Federal Prison Camp Bryan.... Maxwell accessorized with a large bottle and a black umbrella — a la Mary Poppins — which she carried overhead despite the seasonally balmy weather in an effort to shield the Sun or perhaps lower her profile...."

Yes, you eventually got there, so you knew before publishing exactly why she carried an umbrella. As you inanely put it: "in an effort to shield the Sun." Inane, because it's not to shield the sun. It's to shield oneself from the sun. An umbrella carried for sun protection can be called a "parasol." 

Does the reporter not know this? He's Shane Galvin: "Shane is an experienced writer with a proven track record. He has a Bachelor of Arts in English Language and Literature from The New School." How is English literature taught these days? Does one never encounter fictional characters who use parasols? There's nothing bizarre or nutty about protecting oneself from sunlight. I guarantee you that in Jane Austen novels nobody ever slathers on sunscreen.

I looked to see what else Shane Galvin had written. What is this "proven track record"? I find, from December 29, 2024: "I look like Luigi Mangione — and it got me a hot date with a model who slid into my DMs."

Yeesh. I'll move on. Just one more thing. I see Galvin capitalized "sun." That's wrong, but why is it wrong? We capitalize the names of the planets — Venus, Mars, etc. Is it because "sun" is like "planet," and not a name at all? What then is the proper noun for the sun? Other stars have names — Alpha Centauri, Sirius, Betelgeuse. If you're talking about our sun along with other stars, what name do you use?

What is the proper noun used as the name for our sun?

There isn't one!

Just capitalize "sun." Make it "Sun." Voila!

Oddly enough, it's Sol.

It's something else.

 

pollcode.com free polls

"To other Gen Zers, the stare may signal a cool detachment, showing that they understand the irony..."

"... especially when selfies are paired with absurd captions or filters. In sum, the Gen Z stare isn’t just a blank look—it’s an important signal. It pushes back against older norms of digital self-presentation, reflects changing attitudes toward visibility and authenticity, and may also be a subtle form of emotional boundary-setting in an age of constant exposure."

From "The Psychology Behind the Gen Z Stare/Have you seen the Gen Z stare? What's really behind it?" (Psychology Today).

There's something called the "aesthetic of resistance."

I'm seeing a lot about the Jeff Bezos wedding, but how do we know he's really getting married?

There are motivations to put on this big show that are separate from any reasons to enter a marriage in the legal sense.

Consider this: "The embarrassing truth Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez haven't revealed about their $20m 'wedding'" (Daily Mail)(reporting that a Venetian official supposedly said no registrar had been appointed for the ceremony).

And here's the NYT: "What to Know About the Wedding of Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez/The second marriage for both is taking place in Venice, Italy, under a shroud of secrecy and amid a swarm of speculation": "Italy has a variety of rules surrounding marriage rites, which can involve religious ceremonies, often performed in Roman Catholic churches. The Sánchez-Bezos wedding, however, will be nondenominational, likely of a ceremonial nature."

What I want to know about that couple is why, with all their money, they have, both of them, engineered their face into that post-human fright mask?

Why would the wedding be any less fake than the faces?

And here's Tina Brown: 

The Jeff Bezos-Lauren Sánchez (circa $56 million) Venice-sinking nuptials, tying up every tender on the Grand Canal (and 90 private jets expected), is the big beautiful buster bomb of high-net-worth exhibitionism. Now that the 55- year-old bride Sánchez has proved that landing the fourth richest man in the world requires the permanent display of breasts like genetically modified grapefruit and behemoth buttocks bursting from a leopard-print thong bikini, she’s exuberantly and unapologetically shown that the route to power and glory for women hasn't changed since the first Venetian Republic.

*** 

Sailin’ round the world in a dirty gondola/Oh, to be back in the land of Coca-Cola!

"Winners at the April tasting... included melt​ed snow that had been filtered through Peruvian volcanic rock, and deep-sea water that had been pumped up 80 miles off the coast of South Korea."

"There was water gathered from nets hung in a misty Tasmanian pine forest, and a Texas brand laced with lithium called Crazy Water.... Hotels are adding precisely designed water bars. Home wine cellars have become water cellars, where children are encouraged to select bottles with their parents. Water sommelier programs continue to grow. And of course, water influencers gather more and more followers...."

From "You’ve Heard of Fine Wine. Now Meet Fine Water. Bottled waters from small, pristine sources are attracting a lot of buzz, with tastings, sommeliers and even water cellars" (NYT).

It sounds like comedy, but it's really happening. As for that water pumped up from the "deep sea," it sounds salty, and it had me wondering if it's possible for unsalty water to somehow exist below the salt water. The NYT article doesn't impinge on the fantasy of the specialness of the water, but I believe these waters are processed, are they not? That deep-sea water must be desalinated and then a chosen mix of minerals is added, right? And "water gathered from nets"? Does that sound ethereal to you... or unclean? Why not water gathered from towels hung in a steamy bathroom?

"A picture of young successful happy people at a trendy cocktail party reads as right wing. A picture of a dad in flannel drinking a beer at Texas Roadhouse..."

"... also reads as right wing. Right wing is both cool, hip and metropolitan, and down to earth, older, mature, and working class. This is how you know that conservatism is culturally ascendant. We run the gamut. The only pictures that read as left wing are those of ugly, fat, mentally ill, dysfunctional, friend-less weirdos."

So says Matt Walsh, on X, looking at the "Cruel Kids" New York Magazine cover. 

 

That's one take. The other take is that the photo is cropped to make the event look all white. If you scroll down from that link above, you'll many tweets that should the wider view (and call attention to the text, "Have you noticed that the entire room is white?):

"Going to a party and thinking about what others are thinking about you is a pretty surefire way to have a terrible time."

"It’s such a reliable way to feel terrible that social psychologists in the ’70s and ’80s used to have people sit in front of a mirror and think about themselves when they wanted to study how negative moods affect behavior."

Said Nicholas Epley, a professor of behavioral science, quoted in "How to Get a Party Buzz Even When You’re Not Drinking/These tips for sober socializing may not have you dancing on tables, but they’ll help you have plenty of fun" (NYT).

Thinking about yourself while looking in a mirror is a pretty distorted form of thinking about yourself. And I'm not even sure what "they" means in "they wanted to study." Is it the "people" or the social psychologists? When I first read that, I thought the subjects — the "people" — were receiving therapy and being taught that they look worse when they're thinking about themselves. So quit focusing on yourself and you will do better in social settings. But then I saw "social" before "psychologists" and realized this isn't individual therapy. The "people" were subjects of a study, and they were looking in the mirror... why? To ensure that they were thinking about themselves? Or was it to produce "negative moods"? Doesn't seem like a well-designed study!

Anyway, do you go to parties and think about what other people are thinking about you? Are there any mirrors around? Are you able to dance without drinking?

ADDED: I'm having a very interesting discussion with Grok about mirrors. At this point, it's pretty much written a complete book for me. I'll just show you the cover:

"If someone on this committee then starts talking about somebody’s bleach blond, bad-built butch body, that would not be engaging in personalities, correct?"

Said Representative Jasmine Crockett, during a meeting of the House Oversight Committee, referring to Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, who had just said to her "I think your fake eyelashes are messing up what you’re reading."

I've seen the video, and now I'm reading the NYT article, "The Ugly Effect of Physical Insults/A recent congressional meeting devolved into a back-and-forth that reflects a changing norm in politics — one that rarely makes anybody look good."

I don't approve of the unprofessionalism, but if we're just comparing insults and taking into account that Crockett didn't start it, I want to say "bleach blond, bad-built butch body" is impressive — with 6 B's in a row and the unforgettable "butch body." And can we analyze the extent to which "bad-built butch body" violates the norms of progressive speech. It's not just body shaming, it's expressing contempt for a woman's failure to have a body in the stereotypical female form. That's transphobic (in the broad sense).

All the women Trump might pick for VP fit "the demeaning gendered stereotypes Trump basks in..."

"... whether it’s the steely, stilettoed vixen or the no-nonsense broad. Of the first sort, [Kristi] Noem and [Kari] Lake both look the part, which has always been top of mind to Trump, who told his female staffers to 'dress like women.' They’re impeccably groomed in the ready-for-TV mold of Ivanka Trump and Kellyanne Conway. Of the second type, there’s Mean Girl Marjorie Taylor Greene, a QAnon fantasist whose relationship to the truth rivals that of the election lawyer turned criminal Sidney Powell, and the forceful but unthreatening Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Yes, these are all distasteful stereotypes...."

Writes Pamela Paul, in "Please Let It Not Be a Woman" (NYT).

Why is it okay to articulate these stereotypes... and what's so bad about them? Anyone who hopes to be seen as a possible President must be steely and no-nonsense. What's "demeaning"? These adjectives only sound demeaning when attached to the nouns the New York Times writer chose: "vixen" and "broad." Those terms are used to divide the women into 2 groups based on looks. And Trump is supposed to be the sexist here? The writer is expressing contempt for women if they glam up and if they don't. And that's in a column expressing the hope that all the female options are rejected.

By the way, did you know that "vixen," referring to a human woman, originally meant a quarrelsome shrew? 

"It’s absolutely ludicrous that you have an officer with pink hair and nails longer than their fingers."

"We’re a police department not a hip hop department. Let’s go back to being police officers."

Said one Manhattan police officer, quoted in "NYPD to go ‘old school’ by banning facial hair and changing uniforms, new video reveals: ‘Bring back some traditions’" (NY Post).

Retired NYPD sergeant Joseph Giacalone, an adjunct professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said: "I was against all the beards.... It’s about a sense of pride.... This is absolutely a necessary aspect about showing a good front to the community because I think once the cops look good that comes with a modicum of respect because people perceive if you look like a slob they treat you like one."

The named person speaks in terms of looking "good" and the unnamed person speaks in terms of "hip hop" characteristics.

"There is a sense in which young people have forgotten what faces look like."

Says psychology professor Renee Engeln, quoted in "Why Does Gen Z Believe It’s ‘Aging Like Milk’? Some say they fear their generation is aging more quickly than others. But as Gen Z-ers enter their late 20s, it’s more likely that they are simply getting older" (NYT).

Gen Z grew up endlessly scrolling through idealized versions of their own faces and the faces of others, Professor Engeln said. They have encountered more imagery of people with anti-aging cosmetic procedures and fewer examples of faces that have naturally aged, she added....

Traipsing around Austin.

"Always get a kick out of fellow boomers declaring how much younger they look. Many even assign flattering ages: I'm 80 but look 65. Doubtful."

"My experience is yes, there can be considerable differences in how people age. But most people do look their age, it's just that you can look good or not so good at any given age over 50. Try to take care of yourself, stay current and lose the 'I look so much younger' bit."

That's a comment at the NYT article, "What’s Your ‘Biological Age’? New tests promise to tell you if you have the cells of a 30-year-old or a 60-year-old. Here’s what to know about them."

For some reason — vanity — the comments are sidetracked into the question how young you look. The article is about "tests for around $300 that [purport to] calculate your biological age by analyzing your blood or saliva and comparing changes in your epigenome to population averages."

Anyway... there's a difference between declaring how young you look and simply quietly admiring what you subjectively perceive as your relatively youthful appearance.

How is it possible to be a "lookalike" with a person who is "unrecognizable"?

I'm trying to read "Simon Cowell, 63, continues to look unrecognisable with his radically different facial features as he attends a Christmas Carol event with lookalike son Eric and fiancée Lauren Silverman" — in The Daily Mail.

"Have you seen how miserable and how miserable-looking a lot of the students are. They're deliberately uglifying themselves. You see them on TikTok..."

"They're out of shape. They're asexual. They're, like, rejecting the truth in beauty. They all look like rejects from a loony bin. I'd steer clear of college too."

Said Greg Gutfeld on "The Five" a few weeks ago, and it's become a much-used sound on TikTok. Videos collected here. You can scroll through them for yourself. I'll just select one to show you how young people are arguing back at Gutfeld:

"Simply, an Ivy League education can hide incompetence for a very, very long time."

2) Note that Gladwell has some data on good lawyers having a low LSAT.
And, of course,https://t.co/QnGPLVOTiQ

— Nassim Nicholas Taleb (@nntaleb) November 8, 2022

"Sorry, Harvard, but 'visual diversity'—having a campus that looks like a Benetton ad—isn't a compelling state interest."

Writes David Lat (at Substack).

In the UNC argument, Justice Thomas said this to Ryan Park: “I've heard the word ‘diversity’ quite a few times, and I don't have a clue what it means.”

Justice Thomas, I can explain to you exactly what “diversity” means to Harvard and UNC. Allow me to share a story....

For you edification and amusement, I've lined up 10 TikToks. Some people love them!

1. Very nice slow-motion photography.

2. This dinner makes itself.

3. AI shows "Simpsons" characters as real people.

4. You are ugly. He can help.

5. Mississippi John Hurt sings "That Lonesome Valley."

6. Buck Dancing, filmed in 1894.

7. An ocean is forming within Pakistan.

8. Teens are asked "How gay are you?"

9. An impression of a Gen Z person on their deathbed.

10. And let Ricky Gourmet help you with the overbearing heat of summer.

Here are 7 TikToks to amuse me — I mean you — on this Wednesday afternoon. Let me know what you like best.

1. Broadway Barbara has a new perfume.

2. The Martha and Mary story in the manner of the Kardashians.

3. Drunk-calling the police.

4. The secret life hack for thrifting at Goodwill.

5. Your friend who refuses to talk shit. 

6. Is this suggestion that he has a long face correct?  

7. The dulcet tones of the goat.