TLDR re. COVID VAXX: "Prepare for lots of headlines and mixed messages this week. In the meantime, if you’re under 65 and not high risk, *the window to get a Covid-19 vaccine is right now*—before the FDA label changes. Once it happens, access will be limited immediately (if it isn’t already)."

I need you to understand that if you heard a song you liked in the 80s, you couldn’t Shazam it. You couldn’t Google the lyrics. You had to sing it to the guy at Tower Records.

I interviewed Daniel Handler (aka Lemony Snicket) for my newsletter. We spoke about his approach to writing, the difference between working on a novel and a screenplay, and his favorite Jewish monster.

This made me laugh. And then I sat and thought about it. This is correct.

The phrase "sees but is not seen" signifies that God is omniscient but hidden and anchors a variety of charms, amulets, and recipes for Jewish invisibility magic that confused the eye of the hostile viewer. So "social invisibility" keep our heads down magic. Very relatable :) 1/5

'Now 97, Mr. Ozaki still dreams of those left behind... “In their last breaths, no one shouted for the long life of the Emperor,” said Mr. Ozaki, who lives in Kyoto with his son, also retired. “They called out for their mothers, whom they would never see again.” '

My new as-yet unidentified chronic illness has decided to let me have peace today and lemme just say It’s AMAZING to not have a migraine! It’s amazing to be able to see without weird flashing lights in my peripheral vision blinding me! I’m so happy to be writing again😭😭😭

I don’t want to have to scaffold reading, thinking, conversing, and writing like it’s a teaching see-saw that bops a learning thingamaboob to ride down the logical twisty slide into the goal post of a blue book but here we fucking are.

While a N95 respirator is better, even a plain mask is better than nothing to stop you coughing germs over others.

Extremely relevant thread. I would also add: ignorance is the enemy of good governance. It's also the enemy of mutual understanding within a given community that supports it - what we sometimes call "politics of kindness" (how I'd translate slogans like 優しい政治 or みんなのための政治).

The parties that push the MoF conspiracy theory are Reiwa, Sanseito, Kokumin and Hoshuto They’re what I call “the conspiracy parties” and they’ve all gained seats today As the article mentions, the MoF theory also intersects with anti-vax and anti-immigration theories, also salient this election

Men often wanted Joni Mitchell to be a wife, a muse, a siren, or a star. Instead they got a genius.

'Fireflies and Lighted House' - Kobayashi Kiyochika, ca. 1930s. #JapaneseArt #shinhanga

"i asked grok" "i asked chatgpt" yeah well i asked carl sagan and he said the greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance but the illusion of knowledge 🧪

Here’s nice blog post on the pulpy paperback covers for Jackson’s books: toomuchhorrorfiction.blogspot.com/2010/12/shir...

If anyone has gotten a Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction contract from after its acquisition by Must Read, Writer Beware would like to see it (anything shared with us is confidential). Contact us at [email protected]

I would like to go somewhere safe and comfy I can watch this typhoon roll in across the ocean…

Shirley, in Pulp💀

A Borges story about a guy who gets AI to summarize all the world’s information for him, and then summarize the summary, until the AI has the whole world summarized into a single word. He sits alone at his desk, staring at the word, repeating it endlessly, certain he is experiencing everything

Good piece by John Platt at The Revelator about flensing AI from searches. How and why. therevelator.org/how-to-get-a...

Re-up:

Seeing this photo make rounds as a “Shinto Kami.” No. This is a photo of two Jizo-sama from Tenryuji in Arashiyama, Kyoto. They’re definitely Buddhist, not Shinto. Due to Haibutsu Kishaku and local practices, a fair few of these roadside protectors were (semi) Shinto-ized, but this one was NOT.

Don't let the sunshine dampen your supernatural leanings - SPECTRES OF SUMMER will be here this August to keep the spookiness going whatever the weather, with a weekend of ghost story interviews and writing workshops! www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/spectres-o...

I've written a review article for Religion Compass that focuses on Catholicism since the 1860s. I'm thankful for the reviewer's help and the editors too! Title: Roman Catholicism and the History of Christianity in Modern Japan, and it is open access.

Seeing this photo make rounds as a “Shinto Kami.” No. This is a photo of two Jizo-sama from Tenryuji in Arashiyama, Kyoto. They’re definitely Buddhist, not Shinto. Due to Haibutsu Kishaku and local practices, a fair few of these roadside protectors were (semi) Shinto-ized, but this one was NOT.

Call! In September we will host "Providence, Propaganda, & Profit in the Early Modern English World" at UTokyo. Keynotes: @annlaurahughes.bsky.social, Shusaku Kanazawa, Keiko Kawawake, & Peter Lake. Deadline: 15 July! See politicaleconomyseminar.wordpress.com/2025/05/17/%... @kyamamoto.bsky.social

🌟THE STAR FESTIVAL🎋 chirr-chirr! insects also work their looms... stars of Tanabata しやんしやんと虫もはたおりて星迎 -Issa (小林一茶). Trans. David Lanoue. Tanabata (七夕), also known as 'Hoshi-matsuri' (星祭り the 'Star Festival'), celebrates the reunion of the stars Orihime and Hikoboshi on the 7th day of the 7th month.

The replacement of everything with generative AI is NOT inevitable, but it sure is if you all shrug and say "Well, it's inevitable" like your brain was washed in bad predictive SF for decades.

“A test of a people is how it behaves toward the old. It is easy to love children. Even tyrants and dictators make a point of being fond of children. But the affection & care for the old, the incurable, the helpless are the true gold mines of a culture.” — Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel

CFP: Thinking of the Children: Book Bans, Censorship and Literature for Young People An online conference hosted by the University of Münster 11-12 February 2026 Abstracts due 11:59pm on 31 August! Full CFP and to submit: indico.uni-muenster.de/event/3505/ Please share!

Nasal COVID Vax Shows Promise in Phase 1 Clinical Trial. Encouraging results from the first U.S. human trial of a nasal COVID vaccine (CVXGA) show it was well tolerated and triggered strong mucosal and systemic immunity. The highest dose group had significantly fewer symptomatic infections.

today's random theater photo: a 1925 production of The Dybbuk

It sucks that MURDER, SHE WROTE and THE X-FILES were on the air at the same time but we never got a crossover where Mulder and Scully investigate the astonishing number of murders that happen around Jessica Fletcher.

Long COVID Rates Higher in Women: Evidence Grows. A JAMA study of 12,200+ participants infected by COVID between 2021 and 2024 found women were 31%–44% more likely than men to develop long COVID, even after adjusting for clinical and demographic factors. Source: archive.md/8OPMy

Hey, #Philly, hey: the Philadelphia Ballet is doing an Evening of #Horror performance in October, including a Lizzie Borden-themed ballet. You're welcome. And yes, @dianawallachauthor.bsky.social is already aware. Also yes, I have tix for opening night. philadelphiaballet.org/25-26-season...

Very cool activity prepared by a student yesterday: the other students had to allocate quotes to Great Expectations and Mister Pip. Great fun!

PSA: If you get Covid in Japan, you can take Xocova, a Japan-made anti-Covid medicine that can reduce the disease's duration and severity. I'm taking it now. Xocova isn't easy to track down. I recommend calling your local public health/Covid agency to find a clinic that can prescribe it.

On Wednesday a coalition of experts in urban planning, architecture, etc. presented an open letter to Toshiko Abe, the minister of education, culture, sports, science and technology, asking the for the Jingu Gaien redevelopment project be reassessed. apnews.com/article/japa...

Kind of Chris Cornell vibes.... Really great stuff!

Shalom friends! Idol worship! Demons! Leeches?! What more could you ask for in a page of #Talmud? (Other than a contemporary woman’s perspective on these issues, but 3 out of 4 aren’t bad!) Welcome to #DafReactions Avodah Zarah 12: The Demon in the Water #dafyomi youtu.be/pLnU5jSuIxc

The boys of summer.

AI repeatedly answering questions about the Gothic with some regurgitation of EMOTIONAL EXCESS OH WOEZ THE DEATH AND ISOLATION feels like Gothic excess but the Planet Nudnik version. Where's Bugs Bunny to defeat the clones when you need him.

"I have no idea if anything ChatGPT told me was true, but it sounded cool, and was easy to read." Signed, an alleged historian.

In 1987, on the eve of the release of Studio Ghibli's Grave of the Fireflies, director Takahata Isao sat down for an interview with Nosaka Akiyuki, the author who penned the semi-autobiographical novel on which the film is based. A few highlights from their totally fascinating discussion:

BTW you can listen to Shirley herself read the story. Details herein:

There’s really nothing better than getting to teach not one but two classes on Shirley Jackson on the same day and have that day be Lottery Day! (I taught the “The Haunting of Hill House” and “The Smoking Room,” for anyone interested)

"Just read and share and subscribe" Rinse & repeat. This is how you get brainwashed with propaganda. By reading things from non-experts that seem to align with your suspicions or some conspiracy theory you repeatedly heard. The internet is now awash with mis/disinformation in this way. OPT OUT.

Making my TL better… Mute Mute Oh that’s another antisemitic conspiracy theory no thank you block block block Mute keyword foreverrrrr ::considers deleting all social media::

Upstairs neighbor is vacuuming for the 4th time today🙄