Hi friends,
By all accounts, it’s been a year.
I sincerely hope shadows of grief and loss have stayed far from your door in 2020, and that maybe, just maybe, you found a couple of moments you can look back on and be grateful for.
Here’s to a new year.
Auld Lang Syne - What does this phrase even mean?
Blob - Google’s “Blob Opera” is perfect fun for a five-minute time waster.
Consumers - When did we stop being called “individuals” and start being called “consumers?” A brief history of the word, and what it means for our future.
Difficult - The Flight Attendant and The Queen’s Gambit reject one-sided female characters and instead create complicated, nuanced roles that leading men have been playing for years.
Envy - How “Real Estate TV” became a cruel joke.
Frasier - From the “Turns out it’s pretty good” section of The Cut. And they’re right.
Grosjean - Formula One driver Romain Grosjean crashes during a race in Dubai. His car snaps in half and bursts into flames with him still inside. His only injury? Some burns on his fingers. An amazing video of the accident and escape. His follow-up interview is a must-see, too.
Happiness - Need help with your New Year’s resolutions? How about trying something that will actually make you happier?
Ice - Frozen cubes are a big deal. Take a look inside the business of a British ice manufacturer.
Jared - Did you know a guy named Jared signed the US Constitution? Even if it’s a biblical name, it just sounds more fitting for someone wearing a tank top.
Kilroy Was Here - If you aren’t familiar with this phrase, ask your grandparents. This is the Kilroy origin story.
Library - It’s an apartment in a library? Wait— a secret apartment above a New York Public library? Tell me more.
Mochi - It’s a thousand-year-old mochi shop in Japan. What’s not to love? (NYT, possible paywall)
National Parks - Enjoy nature in the new year. Here are the days US national parks are free in 2021.
Ouch - FastCompany has named Facebook “The worst brand of the year.”
Pantone - For the first time, there will be two “colors of the year.” And they’re nearly opposites.
Q & A - You know, Q is a hard letter. I decided to make “X” a wildcard letter, and I think I might use Q & A for this slot from now on. There are just so many good straightforward interviews (written and filmed). Here’s one of my favorites from the last year or so.
Rothko - One Rothko painting every day.
Step ladder - The movie version of me would have one of these on the wall of his loft in New York.
Typing - Move over, Mavis Beacon. Improve your typing with this fun little web app.
Uncontained - A couple is building a home out of shipping containers, and my wife and I watch their new episode on Youtube every week.
Voyager - Two Voyager satellites were launched more than 40 years ago, and they’re currently more than 11 billion miles from earth. Here’s a timeline of their accomplishments.
Watching - A reflection on bird watching with a 5-year-old. (NYT, possible paywall.)
X - Goodee is a new marketplace that sells homewares and clothing and fuels social impact.
Yule - I didn’t actually know what this word meant or its history until now.
Zion Throw - You can’t go wrong with a Pendleton blanket!
Thanks for reading!
A special thanks to Karyn for contributing links to this issue.
Have a suggestion for the next issue? Just send me an email! If you enjoyed this edition, go ahead and forward it to a friend. And to help others find and enjoy The A to Z, tap the heart at the top of the page.
See you next month.
-Brady