PicoBlog

As Yevgeny Prigozhin’s march on Moscow unfolded this weekend, I tweeted the following: A real-time crisis—like this possible coup in Russia—is exactly the moment when one needs verified accounts to filter out news from bullshit rumors. This is also exactly the moment to remember that @elonmusk has burned this once-useful information ecosystem to the ground. This generated considerable feedback on the birdsite, particularly from those folks who insist that the Ford Pinto they bought is super-safe are paying eight dollars a month for their blue checks.

Welcome to the palate cleanser, otherwise known as our little break between dinner party themes, where I get to write about whatever want. Last time, I wrote about the loneliness epidemic. You can read ithere. This time, I want to talk about a woman named Elsa Maxwell. She is a huge inspiration to me, and one of the reasons I took Ruined Table in the direction that I did - intricate and weirdly-themed dinner parties, as opposed to non sequiter, one-off recipes.

Everyone gets hooked on music in their own way. Some are grabbed by an artist's musicianship. For others, it's the beat that moves them. For others, it's the singer's charisma, or the group harmony vocals, or guitar solos. A small minority just wait for the drummer to self-immolate, which occurs more often in This is Spinal Tap than in real life, but I suppose it has happened. Hasn't it? For me, the songs matter more than all of the rest.

This is a longer letter than usual, but there are some things I need to share with you. Things I cannot be silent about any longer.  Dear Friend, There are many who would like you to believe faithfulness looks like more. Have more children. Vote more politicians of your political persuasion into congress to make decisions more aligned with your values. Give more money to your church or cause. Gather more people in the pews or the follower count on your Instagram.

What’s the secret to finding one’s way despite multiple challenges? For Peter Sterios, who founded the yoga mat company Manduka, the key is to soften and learn to let go. As we discuss, he’s had to do that repeatedly, from selling his business to picking up the pieces when his teacher dismissed him. For the previous two decades, Peter was a student of Shandor Remete, the charismatic creator of Shadow Yoga.

SPOILERS FOR SALTBURN AHEAD: I could very well start off this newsletter by writing an ode to Barry Keoghan’s penis in director Emerald Fennell’s second film, Saltburn. Not over its flaccid size, as impressed as I was, but for contributing to more equity in full frontal nudity. Penises are objectively so silly, especially when you see one flopping around during a tightly choreographed dance to Sophie Ellis-Baxtor’s “Murder on the Dancefloor.

In this Hope Drop, we welcome Emilia Javorsky, a biomedical scientist, physician, entrepreneur, and the current Director of the Futures Program at the Future of Life Institute. We explore Emilia's insights into AI's role in global challenges, her drive to balance optimism with realism, and her exploration into the uncharted territory of AI's interplay with biology.  Listen Here Emilia envisions a future where a wide range of human talent joins forces with artificial intelligence to tackle global challenges.

Before we start, I’m still running a special for people who want to sign up for paid subscriptions. I have some news coming next week for paid subscriber content, so if you’ve been considering it, then right now is your time to shine. Sign up here. If you spend enough time scrolling through Instagram, you hopefully can tell between the standard, boring influencer content, and the real stuff. For every five accounts featuring some overly stylized, too perfect, filtered to the uncanny valley and back person standing on a beach with some “Live.

Happy holidays, Gatekeepers! I write this from south Florida, where my family is celebrating my grandma’s birthday and I’m saying “hi, Baby” to her parakeet, Baby, every four minutes. Because what are the holidays for, if not time with birds? Anyway, I wanted to say thank you for the support this year. ICYMI, Gatekeepingis adding paid tiers, and I wouldn… ncG1vNJzZmifkamyrLHEqaCnn16owqO%2F05qapGaTpLpwvI6epKKkqWKurcDMmqVmp55iwamxjKCgpZyVmXqis8RmmKec