Author Topic: In the New Yorker...  (Read 1925145 times)

Offline Jeff Wrangler

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Re: In the New Yorker...
« Reply #250 on: March 24, 2011, 12:42:15 pm »
(I can't believe my last post on this thread was a month ago today.)

I'm now into the article in the March 4 issue about the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

I have just read about how upset and fearful some people were about the use of dihydrogen monoxide in the efforts to disperse the oil.

Dihydrogen monoxide is water. ...
"It is required of every man that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his fellow-men, and travel far and wide."--Charles Dickens.

Offline Front-Ranger

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Re: In the New Yorker...
« Reply #251 on: March 24, 2011, 12:52:17 pm »
That's funny, Jeff. You mean they used water to disperse the oil in the Gulf? Trying to visualize how that would work.

I went all the way back to January 24 to read "Books as Bombs" about the impact of Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique on mid-century American women. I often am inspired to go back to an earlier issue after I read a letter commenting about an article in a later issue. Thus, the piles of NYMs squirreled away in my dressing room.

But I was also very moved by the cover of this latest issue. At first it seems to be cherry blossoms, but when you look more closely, the blossoms are actually radioactive symbols. I was shocked to read that crisis plans for US nuclear industry cover not the disasters most likely to happen, but those that are "reasonable" to defend against. How short-sighted!
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Offline Jeff Wrangler

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Re: In the New Yorker...
« Reply #252 on: March 24, 2011, 02:19:02 pm »
That's funny, Jeff. You mean they used water to disperse the oil in the Gulf? Trying to visualize how that would work.

Dihydrogen monoxide was one of the components of the dispersant that was used.

One thing that I've learned from this article is that there are actually microorganisms in the ocean water that really do "eat" oil.

Quote
I went all the way back to January 24 to read "Books as Bombs" about the impact of Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique on mid-century American women. I often am inspired to go back to an earlier issue after I read a letter commenting about an article in a later issue. Thus, the piles of NYMs squirreled away in my dressing room.

I enjoyed that article about Betty Friedan and The Feminine Mystique, too.

Even if I fall weeks behind, I take every issue in order, and when I've finally finished one, I pass it on to a friend at work.
"It is required of every man that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his fellow-men, and travel far and wide."--Charles Dickens.

Offline Front-Ranger

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Re: In the New Yorker...
« Reply #253 on: March 24, 2011, 02:25:12 pm »
I have a different method. When a new issue arrives, I stop reading any old issues and start to devour the new one. Thus, I have quite a few half-read issues by my bed at any one time, but at least I am up to date on the latest news.
"chewing gum and duct tape"

Offline Jeff Wrangler

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Re: In the New Yorker...
« Reply #254 on: March 24, 2011, 02:29:40 pm »
I have a different method. When a new issue arrives, I stop reading any old issues and start to devour the new one. Thus, I have quite a few half-read issues by my bed at any one time, but at least I am up to date on the latest news.

I usually read the theater/TV/movie/book reviews as soon as an issue arrives, because those articles are generally comparatively short and can be read while I eat dinner. But then I go back and read the longer articles in each issue in the order in which the issues arrived.
"It is required of every man that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his fellow-men, and travel far and wide."--Charles Dickens.

Offline Front-Ranger

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Re: In the New Yorker...
« Reply #255 on: March 24, 2011, 04:05:48 pm »
I just renewed my subscription and am getting a free tote bag!! Yee-haw!!  :D
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Offline Jeff Wrangler

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Re: In the New Yorker...
« Reply #256 on: March 24, 2011, 09:14:59 pm »
I just renewed my subscription and am getting a free tote bag!! Yee-haw!!  :D

I've got two of them. Use them for hauling groceries. Not ideal for that.  :-\

I couldn't resist. After dinner this evening I "jumped ahead" to read Malcolm Gladwell's article about the book about Helena Rubinstein and the man who founded L'Oreal, whose name I've already forgotten (he was some French guy with a German name).
"It is required of every man that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his fellow-men, and travel far and wide."--Charles Dickens.

Offline serious crayons

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Re: In the New Yorker...
« Reply #257 on: March 24, 2011, 11:28:02 pm »
My method is, I look through every issue when it first comes. Then I set it aside in the piles of other magazines and stuff waiting to be read or attended to. When I have some free time to read, I randomly grab whatever issue is handy. I read the easy things -- the movie reviews and "Shouts and Murmurs" -- first, sometimes the contributors' notes and letters to the ed, plus whatever bylines I know I'll like (Sedaris, Lepore, Gladwell, Levy, Lane, etc.). If something else really grabs me, I might read it right away. Otherwise, the issue gets added to a towering slippery stack of magazines that just keeps getting bigger and bigger until I can't stand the clutter anymore. Then I go through the stack, trying to be ruthless but repeatedly getting sucked into actually opening each magazine, however old the issue is, and glancing through the table of contents. I try to force myself to throw it out no matter what, especially if it's from a previous year. But I find myself thinking, geez, I really should read that article about the oil spill, or Hillary Clinton's chances in the presidential election, or whatever, and rip it out. Then I have a stack of articles that I think I will read when I'm stuck waiting in line at the bank or something. Some of them, I do get to. But others  get tossed around the car or purse until they're so ragged and dirty I finally decide can't stand to have them around anymore. So, finally, I toss them.

That's the life cycle of a New Yorker article for me.



Offline Jeff Wrangler

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Re: In the New Yorker...
« Reply #258 on: March 25, 2011, 08:47:51 am »
That's the life cycle of a New Yorker article for me.

I'm so happy that I have someone to whom I can give my copies when I'm finished with them. Somehow I could never bear to put a New Yorker out for recycling.  :laugh:
"It is required of every man that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his fellow-men, and travel far and wide."--Charles Dickens.

Offline Front-Ranger

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Re: In the New Yorker...
« Reply #259 on: March 25, 2011, 11:06:22 am »
That would be hard for me to do as well. I tend to leave copies at the gym, in the doctors office or at the old folks home. Katherine, I understand your mixed feelings at looking at a pile of unread magazines. I used to spend most of my free time reading, but then I got interested in writing my own stuff, and now I have piles of unread magazines too. But that's a good thing! That means I'm spending less time reading and more time writing and...living!! I see those piled up magazines as insurance in case I become unemployed again or worse, laid up recovering from some illness or accident. So as far as I am concerned, they can stay there!
"chewing gum and duct tape"