Pumpkin spice, email lists and Thing
Well, the grocery store is beginning to stock pumpkin spice almond creamer, so we must be nearing the end of summer. Then again, they’ve started rolling out similar products earlier and earlier in recent years.
I’ve updated half of my newspaper email lists. Most recently, I worked on lists for Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, and Missouri. When I’ve finished all 50 state lists, I’ll post them, as well as updated letter-writing guidance.
Anyway, let’s do (Cell) Culture Talk. Here’s what I’ve been watching and reading lately.
Movie — Licorice Pizza. This is a sweet film about young love in 1970s California. The lead actors have great chemistry and look like regular people, which is refreshing. Apparently, Leonardo DiCaprio’s father plays the waterbed salesman! I haven’t seen all of Paul Thomas Anderson’s movies, and for some, it’s been a while, but this might be my favorite of those I’m familiar with.
Book — Thing by Samuel Machado and Cynthia Sousa Machado with Steven M. Wise. The graphic nonfiction work tells the story of the Nonhuman Rights Projects’ attempt to win legal personhood for Happy, an elephant at the Bronx Zoo. The text is a little dry, however the illustrations are beautiful. It’s aimed at those unfamiliar with animal-rights arguments.
Book — Socialist Mayors in the United States by David R. Berman. As the subtitle makes clear, the text covers the history of left-wing municipal leaders from 1900-1920. I haven’t followed contemporary debates in the Democratic Socialists of America too closely, but it’s remarkable how similar they seem to those which took place within the Socialist Party of America. Of course, the former group doesn’t run candidates on its own ballot line.