7.09 - what's up d.c.?
Welcome to Magnificent Intentions D.C.! Thanks so much for signing up and checking us out - and helping me come up with a more productive socially distanced hobby than rewatching The Office for the 50th time. The newsletter is split in three sections - a d.c. specific one (scroll right on by if that’s not of interest to you! But also, maybe reading about d.c. could entice you to move here, so just kidding, please do read this section), the best things I’ve read this week, and the best things I’ve watched this week.
So, without further ado, what’s new in washington d.c.?
Looking for an outdoor sweat session? Grab your mask and head to Audi Field in Navy Yard (where D.C. United normally plays). The stadium launched the Audi Field is Open initiative to host events on the field - including fitness classes and movie nights. This weekend’s classes are sold out, but look for evening classes next week by 202 Strong and Barre3 or a yoga class by District Flow on Saturday, July 18. Classes are $5.
Weekend (or weekday - you do you!) picnics are an especially fun COVIdtivity. D.C. has so many beautiful places to sit outside, from the Mall to the Georgetown Waterfront to one of the many [insert name here] Circles/Parks. Want to make your picnic a little more special? Grab a picnic box from local restaurants such as Officina at the Wharf (pasta salad, focaccia, crostinis), The Imperial in Adams Morgan (hummus, crudités, etc.), or Piccolina in CityCenter (pizza, cookies, wine). It might rain on Saturday, but Sunday is looking like prime picnic weather.
Live near Dupont? A museum just Southwest of Dupont Circle, The Heurich House, is opening up its Castle Garden on Tuesdays-Thursdays from 11 am to 5 pm. You can reserve a free pod for a group of up to 6 people and then hang out or even work remotely using their free WiFi.
Get ready for either taking or seeing some mask-wearing selfies with virtual cherry blossom backgrounds as Instagram hotspot and art + technology exhibition space ARTECHOUSE reopens today. Oddly enough, exhibition art galleries didn’t make the cut for Vox’s comprehensive list ranking the COVID-related riskiness of different summer activities, but the venue is limiting its capacity, requiring face masks, and taking additional precaution as it prepares for guests.
what are we reading?
Have you read those stories about city dwellers fleeing cities during COVID-19 for greener suburban pastures (examples one, two, three)? Despite the splashy stories, it turns out the exodus is likely less impactful than initially projected. A survey by D.C.-based Pew Research Center found that only three percent of individuals have moved (permanently or temporarily) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Unsurprisingly, younger Americans (those between the ages of 18 and 29) were the most likely to have moved - often because their college campus closed down. But, it sounds like the moves may not be permanent for most- of the 3% of movers, only 9% have rented or purchased a new home.
A group of D.C. nonprofits organized a fairly novel social support program - providing a monthly package of $1,100 in cash, as well as groceries and dry goods, to 500 families in one of D.C.’s poorest areas - Ward 8. These 500 families will receive the emergency assistance for five months, as well as benefits such as financial counseling and mental health resources. Giving cash directly to struggling individuals or families has gained steam in recent years - look at Universal Basic Income programs in Stockton as a recent example (ed. note - UBI programs vary drastically - this could be an entirely separate column on the nuances between #YangGang’s $1,000 a month pledge and other efforts)- given their ease of distribution and a growing understanding that people living in poverty deserve the right to choose for themselves what is most important or needed in their lives. If you want to read more on this movement, check out GiveDirectly, a rigorously evaluated aid organization that is moving the needle away from “in-kind” donations to direct cash giving. Urban Institute is evaluating D.C.’s effort, so stay tuned for findings on the effectiveness of D.C.’s program - but in the interim, read this promising quote by a program recipient: “‘Just to know I will have this is such a blessing,’ she said. ‘Not really having to worry about food and a place to live, the ability to have basic needs just to provide for my family. Financially stable — that’s where I want to be. That’s what I’m shooting for.’”
In-person board game nights with non-family members may be on the back burner, but if you’re in the mood for some board game-related drama, check out this NPR story on the “wild economy of tabletop board game funding.” Essentially, independent board games/tabletop games are increasingly directly funded by fans, giving fans increasing sway and direct access in deciding which games are produced. A board game about dungeons and I’m not really sure what else, Frosthaven, raised $13M - making it the third highest funded project on Kickstarter ever.
Quick links to other weekly #goodreads:
Peak Comfort TV - The triumph of brazenly uncomplicated entertainment - per Vulture, “In the past several months, with the terror of a global pandemic sending anxiety sky high and rendering TV one of the few safe entertainment outlets, the desire for comfort has become particularly noticeable.”
The Real Cost of Amazon - per Vox’s recode, “It’s like I’m risking my life for a dollar” — what the struggle Amazon workers face during the pandemic says about the future of work in America.
Thousands of U.S. judges who broke laws or oaths remained on the bench - per Reuter’s, “In the past dozen years, state and local judges have repeatedly escaped public accountability for misdeeds that have victimized thousands. Nine of 10 kept their jobs, a Reuters investigation found – including an Alabama judge who unlawfully jailed hundreds of poor people, many of them Black, over traffic fines.”
In Puerto Rico, an Epidemic of Domestic Violence Hides in Plain Sight - per Medium’s Gen, “After Hurricane Maria, the number of women killed by their partners doubled. Survivors say the government’s misguided response has put more lives in danger.”
what are we watching?
Search Party on HBOMax. Seriously. If you have access to HBOMax, stop reading this newsletter and go turn it on. Reza and I breezed through the third season (released a few weeks ago) in two nights. It’s a biting satire of self-obsessed millennials who, while trying to find themselves, manage to completely disrupt a search for a missing college classmate. It’s got all of the self-absorbed charm of a Schitt’s Creek or Arrested Development (Search Party star Alia Shawkat played Maeby) mixed in with the edge of your seat nail-biting favorite drama. The New Yorker analyzes the first season here or read why Vulture once called Search Party “one of the best shows of the year.”
Athlete A on Netflix. At 5’11”, gymnastics was never going to be my sport (not to mention how incredibly challenging the sport is at any height!). However, that’s never dulled my enthusiasm in watching the women’s gymnastics every summer Olympics and following Simone Biles’ newest gravity-defying tricks (check out this new dismount). At this point, the abuse by Larry Nassar and the mindblowing incompetence/negligence by USA Gymnastics is highly covered. If you haven’t read up on it, I’d recommend starting here to learn about Larry Nassar’s abuse and then going here to read about USA Gymnastic’s laughable settlement offer to his victims. Athlete A digs into the Indianapolis Star’s investigation (ed. note - support local journalism!!), centering the documentary around the first victim to report the abuse - Olympic contender Maggie Nichols. It’s a highly watchable, albeit extremely frustrating, documentary. If it piques your interest, or if you have HBOMax, I would also recommend watching At the Heart of Gold, a 2019 documentary on the same subject. I personally liked At the Heart of Gold more, but I highly recommend both films. If you’re still invested in learning more about horrific aspects of the elite gymnastics culture, read The New York Times interview of bubbly Olympian Laurie Hernandez recalling the emotional abuse she suffered at the hands of her coach that was “so twisted that I thought it couldn’t be real.”
Thanks for reading the inaugural edition of midc! If you enjoyed, please share with your friends. Or, if you have any thoughts or just want to say hey (seriously, social distancing is rough so this is a very genuine offer!), just respond to this email.
‘til next time -courtney