I’ve been fascinated by iboga ever since first hearing about it through a friend of a friend back in 2023. I fell even deeper down the rabbit hole while researching our forthcoming book (Tripping Point: A Modern Guide to Psychedelics—look for it in 2027!), so was excited to see a first-person account of clinically administered ibogaine (the pure psychoactive compound derived from iboga) in The New York Times Magazine over the weekend.
A powerful hallucinogen made from the root bark of the Tabernanthe iboga shrub native to central Africa, iboga has been used for centuries in Bwiti spiritual ceremonies and rites of passage, though its ability to to help with addiction has been known to Western medicine since the ‘60s. Robert Draper’s report is appropriately measured considering the outlet, but no less compelling for it.
-VvP
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On the one hand, this is a recommendation for 9th Street Mending, an appointment-only bespoke repair shop specializing in vintage and denim. I was introduced to veteran designer-turned-expert mender Kim Giangiuli through a workshop she hosted at one of my perennial favorites, Atelier Thank You Have a Good Day. We were instructed to bring a pair of jeans for repair, on which we would learn how to color and weight-match the patch, as well as how to shape, place, pin, and ultimately stitch up the hole(s). It was a stunningly intensive process, in a way that was extremely satisfying and gave me a newfound understanding as to why my tailor charges what he does. But I also went home with a pair of jeans that were more comfortably, carefully, and beautifully stitched up than anything I’d ever paid anyone else to do. Giangiuli’s work is impeccable enough to garner a waitlist, and she specializes in vintage items and delicate pieces that probably justify an expert. But ultimately, this is a recommendation for learning the process yourself—ideally from Giangiuli if you can. (Sounds like there will be more workshops to come, so follow both 9th Street Mending and Thank You Have a Good Day to make sure you don’t miss them.)
-VvP
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I can’t recall if we’ve ever recommended an Iván Navarro show before, though I do know we’ve definitely put some of his work up on our Instagram over the years. No matter. This overview of Navarro’s art since 2004 at Templon’s New York outpost is well worth a visit for a brief but effective view of the Chilean artist’s luminescent and engaging works. While many of his pieces tend to feel like a vibe, especially when viewed online or through Instagram, seeing them up close and getting a better understanding of the often powerful political messages behind them is an experience on a different level. On through March 21st.
-DW
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We just got our restock of Strawberry Singles and I was compelled to place an order for myself. Their dense, chewy texture and juicy-sweet flavor makes them dangerously snackable, though at 1mg per Delight, there’s some margin for error. I keep them on my desk as an end-of-day treat (and/or motivation to finish whatever I’m procrastinating on and close up shop).
-VvP
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In case you missed it, Brooklyn’s Green-Wood Cemetery—where such luminaries as Leonard Bernstein and Jean-Michel Basquiat are laid to rest—recently announced it will become the first East Coast cemetery to offer human composting. In short, your unembalmed body goes into a pod with hay, straw, and alfalfa, and forty days later you’ve got 160 pounds of soil that’s used to feed the cemetery's trees. As someone who tries to be eco-friendly and has no real affinity for the status quo of burial, my first reaction was one of intrigue. Traditional burial has never really appealed to me, partly because of the wastefulness of it all, and partly because of the irrational claustrophobia I get when picturing the whole thing. A pod seems like a logical solution to the toxic practices of burial and the need to save space (Brooklyn, after all, is quite expensive). However, this long essay in Aeon last month complicates the feeling. The environmental claims made by green burial companies are essentially unsupported, and body decomposition turns out to be a small fraction of the total environmental impact surrounding a death anyway. Shockingly, the marketing may not be entirely accurate. And yet, the idea of giving family a living, breathing space to remember you and not simply a headstone remains compelling. In any event, this whole high praise write up should give you quite the thing to dwell on next time you hit a joint.
-DW
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