Of Memories, Monopoly, and Film Photography
Film Photography Flashback
— PHOTOGRAPHY
We live in an era that’s all about instant gratification, and digital photography is no exception. You can take a quick pic on your phone and upload it to Instagram or share it on WhatsApp within seconds. You can take a photo on your fancy camera and check the screen immediately to see whether you need to take another one. But do you remember the days of film cameras, when you wouldn’t know how a photograph turned out until you had the roll processed? I love my DSLR, but I miss the excitement of waiting for my photographs and seeing them all at once. What I don’t miss are disposable cameras.
Spanish Harlem Mona Lisa
— MUSIC
Things I didn't know about Smooth: (1) It almost didn't get recorded because Carlos Santana hated it at first. (2) Rob Thomas suggested George Michael or Jon Bon Jovi sing it. 😲
As soon we went to the studio and I heard this sound, it was like, “Oh, my God, this is on a whole other level of trueness.” It sounded true, all the way through. I knew this was very different. — Carlos Santana
Rolling Stone’s delightful Oral History of Smooth is full of interviews with everyone involved with the making of the song—from the music label reps to Rob Thomas and Carlos Santana themselves.
Blink Once For Yes
— COMMUNICATION
I majored in communication in college, and I’m still fascinated by it today. I learned many things about non-verbal communication, including that nodding your head means “no” for Bulgarians. This isn’t the stuff that’s taught in classrooms—hanging out with other international students taught me a lot about how the world communicates differently. If you find yourself in Portugal and enjoying a hearty meal, tug your earlobes (but don’t do it in Italy). Lifehack tells you why.
Gone But Not Forgotten
— PEOPLE
Writer Jodi Ettenberg’s grandfather passed away this year at the age of 100, and she wrote a eulogy to him that’s filled with stories from his long life—love at first sight, war, near-death experiences, food, laughter, happiness…
Not content to bowl, go to the gym (yes, the GYM), socialize, and participate in community programmes, he wanted to give back. That’s right, in his 80s he joined Meals on Wheels to serve the food, not to receive it.
“I’m going to visit the old people,” he’d tell my mum with a characteristic chortle.
I adore reading about the lives of non-famous people, the details that make their subjects human rather than presenting a highlight reel of their lives. Like how Jodi’s grandfather was in three different bowling leagues at 89 years old. Or how he loved Wendy’s chilli and always found an excuse to eat there. He was lucky to have Jodi to tell his story so beautifully.
Game Night
— BOARD GAMES / BOOKS
I’m willing to bet there’s more than one relationship that’s been destroyed by a cut-throat game of Monopoly. The board game has been a game night staple for generations, and the story of how the game was invented by unemployed salesman Charles Darrow during the Great Depression is as famous as the game itself. In her book The Monopolists, Mary Pilon raises the theory that Darrow didn’t invent the game at all—the real inventor was a stenographer named Lizzie Magie who created Monopoly three decades before Darrow took credit for it.
Maddie James is a musician IRL too.
— MUSIC
Lennon Stella, who sang country music as Maddie James on Nashville, now has a solo record deal with Columbia Records. At first listen, you might think Breakaway is a love song—
This cycle, fighting and makin’ up
I’m tired of tryin’ to hold on
— but it’s actually about her parents’ divorce. I love that she doesn’t sound formulaic or like a cookie-cutter clone of the music on today’s pop charts, and I can’t wait to hear her first album!
Look Up
— STREET ART
What would you say if I told you there was a neighbourhood in Paris that looks like this?
You’ll find the city’s characteristic architecture—the grey rooftops, wrought iron balconies, beige façades—in the 13th Arrondissement, but you’ll also find street art and murals aplenty (sanctioned and not).
On Boulevard Vincent-Auriol is this stunning mural by D*Face (Dean Stockton), part of Galerie Itinerrance’s Boulevard Paris 13 street art project. It’s an open-air museum featuring artists such as C215 (Christian Guémy), Conor Harrington, and Pantónio, among others, and a great reason to explore this underrated neighbourhood.
Feature photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
Mural photo by me
Thanks for reading! I’m Shivani, a writer & editor, caffeine addict, and runner who loves tacos and has no hand-eye co-ordination. You can find me on Twitter at @wordsbyshivani.
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