the queen is in check

September!

I got an external keyboard for my laptop for Christmas and, since it’s September, I took it out of the box and tried it this week. Seems like a game changer!

At least until next week?

We’ve been playing chess, and the small bilinguals around these parts are in full force with their star-crossed linguistics. Since I have no idea how to play chess, after not having tried since never, it makes for a complicated learning curve. Last night, as I was trying to understand the abilities of the queen, and how she can engage in her relevant activities, one of them replied solemnly, “When my queen is in check, he can’t eat.”

Noted.

Dumpster Fires

Reading

The Work You Do, the Person You Are: The pleasure of being necessary to my parents was profound. I was not like the children in folktales: burdensome mouths to feed (Toni Morrison)

The #18 cheapest places to travel in 2023.

I officially cannot stop laughing (and not only because I have the humor level of small children who use their finger to write “poop” on dirty cars). Thanks, Cup of Jo!

How Anna May Wong became the first Chinese American movie star.

I’m on book #88 of 2023, reading The Continental Affair by Christine Mangen.

With gorgeous prose, European glamour, and an expansive wanderlust, Christine Mangan's The Continental Affair is a daring literary caper that is quick on its feet and delightfully surprising.

Meet Henri and Louise. Two strangers, traveling alone, on the train from Belgrade to Istanbul. Except this isn't the first time they have met.

It's the 1960s and Louise is running. From her past in England, from the owners of the money she has stolen―and from Henri, the person who has been sent to collect it. Across the Continent―from Granada to Paris, from Belgrade to Istanbul―Henri follows, desperate to leave behind his own troubles. The memories of his past life as a gendarme in Algeria that keep resurfacing. His inability to reconcile the growing responsibilities of his current criminal path with this former self.

But Henri soon realizes that Louise is no ordinary mark. As the train hurtles toward its final destination, Henri and Louise must decide what the future will hold―and whether it involves one another.

I loved her previous two books, Tangerine (which I re-read part of this year, before becoming distracted) and The Palace of the Drowned. ❤️

My husband watched this weird Icelandic movie, Lamb, without me. And I’m not sure I’m sad about it? Also, I’m finally watching Jury Duty on Amazon Prime (yes, it is living up to its hype) and I’m 1000% psyched to see A Murder at the End of the World on Hulu. Brand new, out now.

Startups, Etc.

Female Surgeons Get Better Results than Male Counterparts (retweeted heavily in the startup community, as expected)

The platform formerly known as X will start collecting the biometric data of its users. [insert guffaw]

Smiles

It’s only 119.99 on Etsy, so what the hell are you doing with your life?

In conclusion, I give thanks to The Economist podcast for the quote of (my) week.

If I were an aging dictator in a Francophone country, I might want to check the loyalty of my army.

With love,

Claire

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