A two-Bernie edition

"Of course I left out the Panhandle. And a lot of people do. But anyhow..."

The "5 States of Texas" monologue from the movie Bernie is a brilliant little bit of writing - and delivery, by actor Sonny Carl Davis - that nails every region of this godforsaken state. This past week, I finally understood his comment about the Panhandle, after spending a few days driving through it with my daughter. If there is a hell, I have seen its entrance—an interminable stretch of dust-choked desert that stretches as far as the eye can see with nary a hill, wind howling eternally through it. I've never been so thankful for the hills of Austin in my life. I'm sorry if you live there. Please move.

🎥 Emily the Criminal (Netflix)
Yes, I know this is 3 years old, but I can't watch everything. I have to leave the house periodically. It's quite good! Aubrey Plaza plays it straight for a change and delivers a great performance of a woman mired in student loan debt who turns to credit card scams to make some cash. There's a nice little love story in it too. I understood every decision she made in this. Solid watch.

📖 After World
Dystopian novels just get weirder and weirder. This one is narrated by machines (I think?) and jumps around its timeline constantly, which works most of the time. Until it doesn't. I enjoyed myself up to the ending that completely lost me. But it's an apocalypse we haven't seen yet, and the "list of actions we took to combat climate change" - in reverse order - will stay with you for quite a while.

My third thing is political. Not sorry at all! Did you know a French scientist was denied entry to the U.S. last week because agents searched his phone and found texts disparaging Trump? We should all be talking about that, frequently and often. I was, therefore, almost joyful to see that good ole Bernie Sanders continues to fight the good fight. He and AOC have been holding huge rallies on what they're calling The Fighting Oligarchy tour. Sign up for their newsletter to keep updated on where they show up. Bernie, come to Austin!

That's all I got today, friends. Stay vigilant. Fight the power. Touch some grass.

xoxo,
Carla