I need you to understand, you need to kill the concept of 'cringe' in your heart. Here's a modern day hero, Mr Fred Rogers, playing a piano that is no higher than his knee. And he his OWNING IT. And he is going to town. Cringe isn't bravery. Cringe is cowardise. Kill the cringe in your heart.

Why should we quit? They're the ones that suck.

I don't think they're going to run Vance. I think they're going to run someone very close to Tr*mp, like one of his kids, with the open understanding that it will still be Tr*mp making the decisions---and even still living in the White House, maybe, as a relative.

everyone loved the tech industry's free music and friendship machines of 20-30 years ago. it's unclear what could be causing people to feel the opposite about the industry's new racism and insanity machine

"She was survived by the son who visited once a month, and the one who couldn't be bothered to show up more than once a year." "She was survived by her brother, who didn't like her much."

"She was survived by her husband; they slept in separate bedrooms." "She was survived by her sister, whom she always referred to as 'that bitch'." "She was survived by a half-sibling she never found out about."

I just saw an obituary that said someone was survived by "her son [Name1], and her estranged son [Name2]." I guess I'm not sure why anyone would do it that way. "She was survived by her favorite child [Name1] and the one she never really vibed with [Name 2]."

Human Touch: www.swistle.com/2026/05/21/h...

I cannot FATHOM being the marketer who thinks this is the moment to ask us to give money to the Democratic party.

I feel like even the "everything's cream-colored and we used blatantly fake-gold accents" trend didn't last this long.

Paul's workplace is too ethical to give internships to employees' kids, and this is killing me. ..................I mean, I admire them so much.

I feel like even the "one single accent wall painted hunter or cranberry" trend didn't last this long.

I feel like even the country blue / geese / wallpaper border trend didn't last this long.

I am so, so, so tired of clicking into charming real estate listings to find grey fake-wood laminate flooring and all the walls/cabinets painted light gray. I realize the real estate industry does not need to market to me, personally, but when will everyone else be tired of it too.

I am tired of book titles that rhyme the protagonist's name.

Art class should never stop being a thing. Like if right after our lunch breaks we all got to go down to the basement, throw on a smock and make collages out of old magazines while somebody's slightly witchy aunt tells us how great we're doing, I feel like we'd all be in a better place

“I’m just so goddamn fed up with all this,” Gina Small, 29, said in a comment on the U.S. economy that one of her friends assumed was about the world’s ongoing humanitarian crises, another friend thought was about the weaponization of America’s military against its own people.

Carry-On Suitcase-Backpack: www.swistle.com/2026/05/14/c...

Busy, Busy Week: www.swistle.com/2026/05/12/b...

sorry I seem distracted just have to keep checking my phone to see if one of my freedoms is being arbitrarily taken away

how it feels to learn anything at all about anyone or anything in 2026:

Every time someone states what ought to be, people rush to the mentions to explain that it won't happen, and now I am talking to those people, and I want to be very clear: YOU are the reason it won't happen. Every time you say that you are taking energy away from "should" and reinforcing "is."

OR POSSIBLY: I was dreaming

It's like those rewards posters: the reward is given in exchange for information leading to the arrest of the perpetrator. Not for SAYING REALLY LOUD THAT THE PERPETRATOR SHOULD BE PUNISHED. No. Not for SAYING THAT SOMEONE SHOULD CATCH AND PUNISH THE PERPETRATOR. No. Only for actual useful action.

I have so many politicians I just LOVE. Just LOVE. And I will send them money as soon as they do ONE GOTTAM THING to save our democracy, and not ONE CENT before then

i am tired of having to listen to dumb assholes just because they have a lot of money

I heard a bird this morning that I don't think I have heard before. Unfortunately I fell back asleep after hearing it, so I am not 100% sure I am not misremembering/dreaming. It feels ridiculous to describe the bird-sound I remember, and hope someone will recognize it, BUT YOU HAVE AMAZED ME BEFORE

Tell the kids we use to go days, weeks even, without thinking about the president.

the arc of the moral universe might bend towards justice but it turns out there’s always a bunch of fuckheads around trying to bend it back

These are brand-new bottles of Pantene, and I can see in the backlight that I should have held them up to the drugstore lights before purchasing the conditioner:

TV Show Recommendations: www.swistle.com/2026/05/01/t...

Apparently there was a post about smoking? All I remember is that the issue was "Should people who want to do something harmful HAVE THEIR BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS RESTRICTED by being FORCED to do it somewhere it won't be AS harmful to others?"---and in those Sweet Summer Child times, we decided YES.

Time for an experiment! You know those cute little roadside stands with honors-system eggs or produce? Look, I know I live in "big scary Philadelphia oooh 👻" but I'm gonna try it. What's the worst that can happen? Thieves create habitat for native bees? Jokes on them! I wanted them to do that!

In high school I worked in a restaurant with a "smoking section." Which meant the whole place was the smoking section, but some tables didn't have ash trays. I came home after every shift and my hair/clothes REEKED of cigarette smoke. I don't like to think of what it did to my lungs.

Dear media, and I mean most of you: You simply must STOP treating him like a normal and serious President. You MUST stop. This is insanity. Dear Dems in Congress, and I mean most of you: You simply must STOP treating the GOP like a normal, ethical, good faith party. Stop. This is insanity.

Brand-New Costco Membership: www.swistle.com/2026/04/29/b...

IS THERE EVER GOING TO BE A SINGLE CONSEQUENCE FOR ANYONE, EVER????

I realize it's crazy, but I wonder if, going forward, we could set up consequences to deal with candidates who lie about their plans/intentions/beliefs. Like, after they are elected/appointed, and the lies become apparent. I'm wondering if at that point we could have ANY CONSEQUENCE AT ALL

Also I just saw a selfie like this taken to show someone's new tattoo, but the tattoo was text, so it showed it backwards. That is a real commitment to preferring your own reflection.

Lunch With Former Coworkers: www.swistle.com/2026/04/26/l...

I’m not a very nostalgic person, but one thing I definitely miss about the ‘90s is angry girls making music. It was a goldmine. Can we please get pissed-off young girls back into garages, please?

It is going to drive me crazy that we could have had things one way (good), but instead a bunch of asshats voted that we should have them another way (bad)

Paul is returned from a business trip and taunting the cat about who will sleep on his (Paul's) side of the bed tonight (i.e., not the cat)

There is never, ever, ever "one weird hack" or "one weird trick" or "one unexpected red flag" that is in ANY WAY worthy of its attempt to get you to watch the reel/video/whatever. Never. NEVER. And it takes like 5 minutes and another click to get to it. I can stop clicking on them now.

Back to the 7-Minute Strength Training Workout, Now With Even More Significant Modifications www.swistle.com/2026/04/23/b...

Re-watching Pretty in Pink, I thought "Wow, John Hughes was pretty much allowed to do whatever, I guess." Re-watching Say Anything, I thought, "GEN X WOMEN WERE DEFINED BY THIS"

This is adorable.

Slump www.swistle.com/2026/04/21/s...

Fuel company is refilling our tank and I shudder to think what this is going to cost. And also shudder to think how by autumn this price might seem like a bargain, and I might be so glad we filled up now.