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Way back in 2018, an acquaintance asked if I’d be willing to advise a couple who were thinking of moving to Italy. I agreed, and thus began four years of lengthy emails about weighing options, taking the leap, choosing where to live, getting an Italian driver’s license, and all the particulars of life in Italy. At times I felt like a cheerleader, at times like a counselor. Our exchanges were long and detailed and, I thought, honest.

Nancy Pelosi, at age 83, is running again for Congress. Mitch McConnell, at 81, has had two bouts of freezing in front of news cameras this summer. Dianne Feinstein, the California senator, 90, is having difficulty doing her job. At 80, Joe Biden is the oldest president the United States has ever had. Donald Trump, his likeliest rival in the 2024 election, is 77. Iowa senator Chuck Grassley is 89. The U.

You’ve probably heard by now that Netflix are releasing a historical documentary about Cleopatra, produced and narrated by Jada Pinkett Smith, in which the famous Egyptian ruler is portrayed by Adele James, a black English actor. The documentary engages with a long-running historical debate known as the Cleopatra Race Controversy by showing a woman in… ncG1vNJzZmicn6OurbDRqJmeqqSovK960q6ZrKyRmLhvr86mZqlnp52utXnCqKOoql2srrR5wqWcqKiRqb%2Biv4ysoqKm

As captured in the proverb “out of sight, out of mind”, our mental focus follows our visual focus.  The reason is fascinating (and a bit weird, too): Our eyes are actually a part of our brains – the only one located outside the skull, that is. Having the eyes outside our skull has two major purposes: First, they can tell the rest of the brain whether it’s day or night, which makes light the major synchronizer of our circadian rhythm.

We like to think of menstrual tracking as a modern technological innovation, but women throughout history and across cultures have always found innovative ways to track their cycles. Our fancy apps that remember everything about our reproductive cycles aren’t the only way to keep track. People with wombs have always wanted to know when they were fertile, when to expect their periods, and when to wonder if they were pregnant. The Ishango bone is an engraved baboon fibula believed to be roughly 20,000 years old.

This week, Pharrell unveiled his new collection as the Creative Director for Louis Vuitton’s menswear collection. He’s only the 2nd Black person in history to hold the position. The first one was Virgil Abloh. In short, this was a historic moment in fashion and Black culture. Pharrell’s ascent over the years has been astronomical. From being 1/2 of the Neptunes to becoming the symbol of counterculture in Hip-hop and even an ad agency owner, he’s one of Hip-hop’s greatest icons.

As you all know the Confederate monument in Arlington National Cemetery is scheduled to be removed before the end of the year. There is some discussion that this may occur as soon as December 18, but I have been unable to confirm this date. A group called Defend Arlington filed a lawsuit in an attempt to prevent the removal of the monument and today a group of Republican congressmen, led by Georgia’s Andrew Clyde, have written a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin demanding he halt the monument’s removal.

Growing up in eastern South Dakota, winters were harsh, dark, and long, often lasting until deep into April. Sometimes it would snow in May. While the first snow day was always a treat, by the time February rolled around, I was ready for winter to be over. At that time, I didn’t know the names of many background birds, but I could recognize a robin. I also knew, like every American schoolkid, to look out for the first robin of spring – seeing a robin meant that winter was at its end.

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