The great Lindy West — one of the voices that rises above the chatter of the crowd with essays that are to the point — has a piece at the Daily Dot that is a punch to the gut of misogynists and purported “nice guys” alike. The ironically clickbait-y title—”The One Basic Thing Men Still Don’t Seem to Understand About Women“—disguises a super-simple premise: “women are people.” That’s the thing that men often don’t understand. An excerpt:
There are no “but”s when it comes to women’s humanity. Not “but” you’re lonely, not “but” you’re horny, not “but” you’re nice, not “but” that’s how your grandparents met, not “but” she was naked in your bed. Women are people, and women just get to exist and set boundaries and say no. Always. Any time. Just like you.
End. Scene.
Have you ever wondered what 100 calories look like? Like, one Oreo? Two handfuls of almonds? A bag of baby carrots? Actually, no, says Mallory Ortberg at The Toast. This is what 100 calories looks like. Just in time for your pre-Thanksgiving fast.
Today is the 20th anniversary of Leon: the Professional, which not only was one of Natalie Portman’s first roles but was also, arguably, Luc Besson’s best film. In celebration, Uproxx has a piece about the 20 best hitmen/bad guy revenge-death scenes.
And while we’re on the subject of revenge: at BuzzFeed, Luke Bailey has an article listing 19 Intensely Annoying Customers Every Bartender Has Served. So, please. Don’t be that Guy/Girl. You may end up on that bartender’s shit list.
There’s a common misconception that Asian women who get double-eyelid surgery—known as blepharoplasty—are doing so primarily to look more “white” or “Western.” The truth, of course, is far more complicated. NPR has an excellent two-part series on the practice, the first about the history of blepharoplasty and the second about “The Many Stories Behind Double-Eyelid Surgery,” which details the plethora of reasons why Asian women get blepharoplasty. As is typical of discourse surrounding plastic surgery, it’s a complex issue that is too often reduced to racist/sexist explanations. This series illuminates the stories that are too commonly overlooked.
Hopefully you’re getting ready for Thanksgiving, which will be upon us in a mere nine days and which takes a lot of preparation if you’re serious about it. The New York Times has a fun interactive piece on the best Thanksgiving dishes from each of the fifty states. California, for example, has a recipe for sourdough stuffing with kale, dates and turkey sausage—which, as a California native, I’m sorry to say, definitely hits the California ethos right on the nose. Perhaps most exciting is New Mexico’s recipe for slow-cooked red turkey chile, which sounds like a delicious take on the traditional turkey dinner.
YES, PLEASE.