I’ve been out sick this week with COVID, and while David was holding down the work front, I was eating this soup. I found it in Molly Baz’s Cook This Book, which is worth picking up, especially for nascent or aspiring home cooks. Falling somewhere between an avgolemono and Korean dak juk, this nourishing and brothy rice porridge was very easy to make, even with a fever, and required only a handful of fresh ingredients. Despite eating it multiple times a day for multiple days in a row, I’m looking forward to making it again—maybe next time with the addition of a crispy garlic and shallot chile oil to drizzle on top. -VvP
|
|
Yeah, yeah, you’ve heard all about The Sphere (or technically just “Sphere”) before. Maybe you’ve seen some videos or photos or fake images or this clip from one of my favorite internet comedians (more on him later). Well, I’m here to tell you that absolutely none of that does it justice. Seeing a show, or more specifically, Dead & Company, in this desert dome was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. I’m not even a particularly big fan of this iteration of the Grateful Dead or even the Dead itself, but spending 4 hours in a perfectly tuned and visually stunning concert is truly a mind-altering experience (and that’s without mind-altering hallucinogens, of which many were available). I can’t promise it’s that way for every band—something tells me when The Eagles (or technically just “Eagles”) play, it may not be the same—but I strongly, strongly recommend you get yourself to Vegas at some point in the next few years before this new technological marvel begins its inevitable decay. Oh, and when you do, sit as close to dead center in the 300s or 400s as you can. -DW
|
|
As I mentioned earlier, Naumann (or @sklumper on Instagram), has quickly become one of my top internet posters. His viral Sphere video from a while back is just the tip of the iceberg of weird and quirky bits. Naumann is probably best known for his ongoing deadpan if-TikTok-existed-in-the-Middle-Ages content, which is as funny as it is hard to explain. There’s a level of good-naturedness that feels a bit rare these days in nearly all of Naumann’s comedy, and it’s nice to see when you see it. -DW
|
|
Yet another brand that doesn’t believe in definite articles, Fontainebleau Las Vegas has had a rough go of it. When they opened their doors after 20 years of fits and starts (and lawsuits and bankruptcies), the reviews were less than stellar. The funny thing is that the issues people generally have with Fontainebleau—the somewhat isolated location, the stillness, the lack of party atmosphere—is exactly what drew me to it. Maybe I’m boring, but being all the way at the end of the Strip and away from throngs of people carrying giant frozen daiquiris is a sell. Plus you’re two blocks from a dispensary. There’s no question that the place is quiet, especially during the week, but I quite liked feeling like I was on a cruise ship that left without 80% of its passengers. At one point I basically had their entire thermal pool spa to myself. For hours. At $120 a night (for now), I can’t think of another place where you can cosplay as wealthy for so little money. -DW
|
|
I devoured this brief essay by Isabel Cristo for The Paris Review on all the idiosyncratic thoughts and considerations that go into getting dressed. Please read it if you, too, “become a philosopher-king” while staring at your closet. -VvP
|
|
|
|
|