‘Armageddon Time’ sparks important conversations about privilege
The coming of age film is a nuanced exploration of the way both lesser and better angels exist in all of us.
‘The English’ breaks through the myths of the American West
Helmed by a British director, the Amazon series is untroubled by cultural coercion to protect myths and faux history of the American West.
TV shows are catching up to a growing interest in therapy
Mental health is trending, and TV programming is catching up with varying degrees of seriousness and a seemingly shared message.
It’s time for the ‘female buddy’ genre to grow up
Netflix’s “Firefly Lane” honors friendship but leans into stereotypes.
Dating ethnic foods for Christmas
Our family of six sisters had a tradition as we dated in high school and college. If you brought a boy home for Christmas Eve dinner, you had to force him to bring along a traditional dish representing his ethnic heritage. This was how we learned to embrace exotically diverse non-Scandinavians, not to mention expand […]
A bad gifter
I give bad gifts. Size 5 shoes to size 11 feet. Yogurt makers to the lactose intolerant. Diaries to the discreet. Sheet music to the relentlessly tone deaf. It’s not that I am thoughtless—I’m thinking, I’m thinking, believe me. It’s just that I have this holiday weakness of idealizing my friends and family, sometimes to […]
Baking for nobody
I just baked 12 dozen Christmas cookies for no one. I do the baking every year; the “no one” part I’m still getting used to. When I ran a magazine, I’d make a batch of these each December week and bring them in on Mondays for the staff. A junior editor who became a senior […]
Christmas Jell-O
It just wouldn’t be Christmas without Jell-O.
The Christmas card from strangers
This December week, I received precisely one dozen Christmas cards.
All the Whos down in Whoville
There’s a difference between Going Green and Going Grinch.