NEW: For years, the Phoenix nonprofit Keys to Change has run a mail room for thousands of homeless people. Now the U.S. Postal Service is cutting its $24,000 investment, leaving the organization to raise the extra money to keep it open.

Thank Gandalf It’s Friday

Thank Gandalf It’s Friday

I think I speak for everyone today when I say: Rest in Peace Haru Urara

Doing a "who's on first" thing where I say "what else did the director of Barbie do" and when they say "Little Women" I go "yeah I know what Barbies are"

Thank Gandalf It’s Friday

"It's not MSNBC anymore, Lemon. It's MS NOW. We bought the name off of a defunct multiple sclerosis awareness organization. It wasn't cheap, but we were able to save some money by selling Brian Williams to a Saudi prince who wanted to expand his harem."

As a DC resident I do feel that the city has been overrun by "violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals" and I would like them to leave the White House and stop destroying the federal government.

NEWS: President Trump is federalizing the Metropolitan Police Department, which means he will control it for up to 30 days. He is also deploying the D.C. National Guard, all to fight what he says is an increase in crime.

Thank Gandalf It’s Friday

by age 30 you should have: * strong opinions about birds * 12 different "when i get time" projects on indefinite hiatus * sandwich(es) you fruitlessly yearn to have again * a growing list of obituaries you're looking forward to reading * parasocial friendships with other people's pets

Thank Gandalf It’s Friday

please enjoy this unexpectedly wholesome penis worm story! defector.com/behold-a-sur...

Gandalf is not a big fan of all the thunder happening this evening @capitalweather.bsky.social

nothing more indulgent than eating a ripe peach on the way home from the farmers market

Thank Gandalf It’s Friday

my deep dark secret is that i actually love a heat wave

I did not edit this, this is the actual parade with the actual music being played. CINEMATIC

it's giving

Thank Gandalf It’s Friday

Thank Gandalf It’s Friday

cast diego luna as paul mccartney in a beatles biopic

an AMERICAN can for AMERICAN hams

letter of recommendation: playing charli xcx for a baby

anyway here's the email I sent to jim bankoff last week. i'm still heartbroken. I have been insanely, destructively angry for weeks, and I think I will be for a long time.

Thank Gandalf It’s Friday

In light of the DC raids we want to reshare our ICE watch 101 graphics. Reminder to verify, document, and then report to our hotline.

I sincerely believe any organization that picks up @ilechelm.bsky.social is in for a terrific surprise. Of all the editors I've worked with she's my favorite, partly bc she made the process collaborative and enjoyable, partly because she really made the final product/presentation so much better

I’m looking for a new job! A few weeks ago I was laid off from Atlas Obscura, along with a number of my colleagues. If you or anyone you know is in need of an editor or writer, I would appreciate any leads! In the meantime, here a few of my favorite things that I worked on during my time at AO.

If you'd like something of a break from the news...I have a new column up at Atlas Obscura, on the Lost Colony of Roanoke, and how we use unsolved mysteries to, in the words of historian Robert Arner, to transform "unacceptable facts into at least minimally acceptable fictions.”

logging on

"I never see you at the club" ok but I never see you at the farm toys gallery in The Museum of English Rural Life

ok but how am i supposed to fall asleep without watching one or two hundred 20 second videos

I just learned that the Borden Dairy mascot and the Elmer's Glue mascot, Elsie and Elmer, were actually MARRIED and shown together in 1950s advertisements. They had KIDS.

having a popular post in a buy nothing group is so deeply stressful

Did you know we added nearly 2,000 places to the Atlas last year? Check out 24 of our favorites now: www.atlasobscura.com/articles/fav...

Thank Gandalf It’s Friday

"New Year" is pretty optimistic framing. Should just be called Next Year. Happy next year

Fun with geography: Samoa (independent country) and American Samoa (U.S. territory) are only 40 miles apart but on opposite sides of the International Date Line, so for the next 21 hours, they're in different years.

i have the most ridiculous, cartoonish zit right in the middle of my forehead and i’m afraid it’s an omen for the coming year

every airport should be required to have a little games section. i would be so much happier if i could play a few rounds of skeeball right now.

It’s called A Complete Unknown but in real life Bob Dylan is very famous, that’s Hollywood for you

due to some unfortunate airline-induced circumstances, i will be in memphis for the next ~24 hours. anybody have recommendations foe things to do/see/eat here? (if you were going to recommend crying in the airport, i have already checked that particular box)

Thank Gandalf It’s Christmas

Every time you look up the history of some soft drink you get a story like this. Before WWII or so people must have just been walking around stoned out of their skulls

When Bruce Springsteen sings about suicide machines this is what I’m picturing

you know who should be inducted into the rock and roll hall of fame? Sisyphus

it should be illegal to give a child a whistle

this is where all the centaurs live