the times continue to be unprecedented
61 days into 2025
Since the year started, every breaking news update from NYT has made my stomach drop. I knew the second Trump presidency would be bad from the get-go, but the reality is more sobering than I could have imagined!
Listing the litany of grievances feels like screaming into a void when I know the people who agree with me will continue to agree and the people who celebrate Trump’s every word will continue to roll their eyes at whatever I say. Polarization as presented across media is real, and yet, I want to believe we’re capable of nuance and complexity. Unfortunately, nuance is not communicated when you write in ALL CAPS.
Where do I begin? The Gulf of America stunt, a move that tech companies were too willing to comply with.1 The terrifying rhetoric on Gaza, which has US weapons to credit for its current state. The attacks on trans athletes locally and internationally, plus attacks on military service members who happen to be transgender. It’s all about states’ rights until states protect trans folk! Congestion pricing in NYC is working but this man declared it dead because he is “king” so I guess we’re doomed to sit in downtown traffic while our democracy crumbles.2
When I was writing this paragraph, I received an alert about the again, unprecedented meeting with President Zelensky where Trump and Vance were upset Zelensky didn’t grovel in gratitude. On top of everything, this criminal pardoned fellow criminal Eric Adams, whomst I personally cannot wait to vote out this year.3
The grievances go on and on! The one issue I can reach across the aisle and give Trump credit for is his commitment to incandescent light bulbs. I also dislike LEDs and believe they need further development before a full society rollout! The New Light Is Bad article is one I think about at least once a week.
I’d take it even further and say that the brightness level of LED car headlights needs to be regulated so I don’t get blinded while driving, but you know regulation of car companies won’t be enforced with our un-elected co-president in charge…
It’s grim! The fear of the present and future is very real, and of the fight, flight, or freeze responses, my instinct is to freeze. I’m reading over the post below to find small, meaningful actions to move out of being frozen in place, and I hope you can too.
Annoyances.
Eventually, I need a product manager or user researcher at Spotify to subscribe to this newsletter and convert my annoyances to actual product feedback. My current gripe is Spotify’s “Made for you” feature.
Spotify has always had an algorithmic component to curation and those recommendations used to be good! I enjoyed the Discover Weekly and Daily Mixes, but I also appreciated going to the Spotify-curated playlists to hear something different. Now when I open up playlists made by Spotify, they’re mostly marked “Made for you,” and… they just play the same songs I’ve “liked” over and over and over again. It gets old!
I’m not the only person who’s noted this change. People who have time and budget for research have noted the shift in the platform, and it’s not for the better.
My current antidote? Search out playlists created by other users (aka, humans! or maybe AI informed by someone else’s tastes),4 and guess what? I’m hearing new songs again! There’s new artists to discover! Next step is quitting Spotify to join Bandcamp but let’s take baby steps to get there.
EnJOYments.
The MTA needs to encourage conductors to occasionally express their personalities audibly. While sitting on the 1 train the other day, I heard a pointed, “You’re welcome,” echo over the intercom, followed by, ”This is the conductor on this train… that person in the middle… don’t make me late for my dinner. I’m hungry.”
The way I looked at the other passengers and laughed in bewilderment? That’s human connection! The voice came back over the intercom to say, “Who’s ready for the Summer? Oh, y’all going to participate? I’m waiting for Spring, Summer is too hot…”
You know what, yes, let’s have crowd work on the commute.5 We’re sitting there anyway. One time on the R train, a voice warbled over the speakers, “Happy Sunday to you,” to the tune of Happy Birthday, then wished everyone a happy weekend when the train reached its final stop, which was strange but memorable! Maybe don’t hold a captive audience from Fidi to Harlem, but for some portion of the ride… add a little surprise performance!
The Oscars are upon us. Today, I will tune into Hulu, the Hung Up chat, and The New Yorker to see who will come out on top in this year’s strange lineup.
I’d give you my Oscars predictions, but those are boring because it’s really just predicting what other people will vote for. I’d prefer to tell you what would win if I was the sole voting member of the Academy.
Best Picture: Nickel Boys6
This film reminded me that movie-making can be an art form, not just a commercial endeavor. Nickel Boys stands out with its unique visual storytelling, and its ability to demonstrate chilling acts without revelling in violence. It can move slowly at times, but the juxtaposition of heartbreak and hope is masterfully executed and beautiful to witness.
Best Director: Anyone on this list except James Mangold (A Complete Unknown)
A Complete Unknown was not daring enough to award the Director! Look at who else is on this list. They took risks with the stories they told. You could argue that Audiard’s biggest risk was intentional ignorance, but Fargeat’s translation of aging to body horror, Corbet’s bet on keeping an audience engaged for a lengthy piece of historical fiction, and Baker’s commitment to casting lesser known talent were all risks that paid off.
Best Actor: Colman Domingo (Sing Sing)
I expect this award to go to Chalamet or Brody, who both delivered incredible performances, but I’d love to see Domingo on that stage! Sing Sing was one of my favorite films last year, and recognition of his performance would be well-deserved.
Best Actress: All of them <3
No strong opinions here actually, I would be delighted if any of these women took to the stage to accept their award. Gascón’s speech is the only one I’d be nervous about.7
Best Supporting Actor: Jeremy Strong (The Apprentice)
For reasons not totally clear to me, Kieran Culkin will likely win an Oscar for his performance in A Real Pain, a movie that was fine! My main gripe with this expected win is I’d much prefer to hear Jeremy Strong’s acceptance speech based on his response to the nomination.
Please note, I have not yet seen The Apprentice but I know in my heart Strong’s dramaturgic skills were on display. Award the eldest boy!
Best Supporting Actress: Felicity Jones (The Brutalist)
I support all these women but Jones’ performance was shocking, which is a compliment! She’s literally only in the latter half of the movie, but her impact spans the 200-minute run time. To be honest, she deserves a win after all the sh*t Star Wars misogynists put her through!
Original Screenplay: The Brutalist
The complexity and arch of this story is getting my vote! I’m grateful for Jesse Eisenberg’s press tour for A Real Pain though, and I wouldn’t be upset about a win for The Substance or Anora.
Adapted Screenplay: Nickel Boys or Sing Sing
Really difficult for me to choose a winner here, I’d need to expand the voting body so I wouldn’t feel wholly responsible for this decision. I actually think both these films have a decent chance of taking an Oscar home through this category, I’m just not sure which one! We’ll see if I’m proven wrong.
Makeup and Hairstyling: The Substance
I would like to see The Substance win an Oscar and I think this one is well deserved. The intentionality in the hair and makeup choices was integral to delivering the story, and the prosthetics? Give them an Oscar.
Animated Feature: Flow
I have not yet seen this movie but I’ve only heard wonderful things and look at the poster! It’s getting my vote!
Last thing, skiing is incredible? Tell me how you all keep up this hobby because I want to join the elite and make skiing part of my vacation activities. I have questions, let me know if you have answers…
What mountains do I need to go to? East Coast is lame is what I’m hearing?
What gear should I own vs rent? I’m looking for ski suits because that’s obvious, but is a helmet worth it? My neck pain says yes!
Do I look into season passes or keep with day passes? I think I’m too early in this hobby formation to commit to a season pass but I want to hear your perspective.
Where are the cheapest private lessons because now that I’ve had that experience… I want to repeat it!
How did Mapquest become the hero here???
The fact that Trump’s aide on congestion pricing is married to a parking garage owner… definitely not a conflict of interest!
The other day I searched “sardine” and this playlist popped up. A delightful listen!
Please note: I haven’t seen I’m Still Here yet so it’s not a contender for my vote. If I was an actual voting member, obviously I would have seen it so my vote was fully informed, a la Kirsten Dunst.