The Swipe Volume 2 Chapter 28
The Paralympics have been a complete lock on our telly screen this week, for good reason. Drama, tension, comedy, tragedy, triumph and defeat, all played out across the stadia of Paris thanks to Channel Four’s exemplary stewardship. It has been an incredible week, with Team GB blasting past their previous medal total. It’s been fascinating to see how the old guard, legends like David Weir and Laura Muir, have fallen back while exciting new names have stepped up to the podium. The banner has been passed. It is being held high. What a week. What a show. What a tournament.
Wherever you are, whenever you are, however you are, welcome to The Swipe.
Rob is reading…
This. Again. The Onion have published the same article, with very minor contextual changes, 37 times since 2014. J.D. Vance., the prospective Republican vice-presidential candidate, stated that mass shootings are ‘a fact of life’. The two words missing from that phrase? ‘In America’.
Rob is watching…
The Paralympics, still. Not even Quizzy Monday could lure us to change channel.
Rob is listening…
I’m really quite excited about the new David Gilmore album, Luck And Strange. The old prog rocker in me is bouncing up and down at the prospect, which isn’t helping my digestion one bit. Still, based on this rehearsal footage, we could be in for something very special.
Rob is eating…
The best tuna melt in the world, possibly.
Rob’s Low-Key Obsession Of The Week…
I think I need to sit quietly in a dark room for a bit.
Comics and food come together in one delicious melding of cultures. I have to be honest—by he time I finished reading this review of the manga Superman Vs. Meshi I was ready for a snack.
In a week where the folks behind Nanowrimo spectacularly failed to read the room, tacitly endorsing AI then doubling down by claiming criticism of said tools was both ableist and classist, I think it’s worth reading Ted Chiang’s take on the situation. Out of curiosity, I’ve tried using the occasional AI assistant—even WordPress have one built into the dashboard now. The results are inevitably lumpen, pedestrian and underwhelming. Ultimately, what’s the point? I write because I need to, because I want to, because it makes me happy. Pressing a button and publishing a low-rent version of myself utterly defeats the object of Excuses And Half Truths.
Moving on, to one of my happy places—Costco. Membership has its privileges, and we inevitably fill the car up on every trip we take to the big warehouse behind the SCL Stadium. It’s not a regular visit—when it’s just the two of you there’s only so much slabs of loo roll and big boxes of dishwasher tabs you can buy. I have an addiction to the Kirkland-brand Extra Fancy Nuts. Sure, we know we’re being manipulated into spending more than we should but it’s always fun to wander the aisles and contemplate that 95’ TV.
The Most Wonderful Place In The World
Should we ever make it back to New York, I worry I’ll be spending most of my time looking out for our next meal or snack. This NYT listicle on the city’s most iconic sandwiches is utterly drool-worthy of course, but better yet—it’s a great source for lunchtime ideas. Even if some of the treats on offer look like they’d collapse as soon as you take that first bite.
Any answers you have regarding this video will be answered by watching this video. And you really should watch this video.
I have no idea how accurate this colour test is, and the usual caveats about the type and calibration of the monitor on which you take it certainly apply. But it’s surprisingly consistent. TLC and I had markedly different results. Perception is a very personal phenomenon.
What happens to seemingly normal sensible people when they go on holiday? Why do they become such entitled idiots? Drew Magary for Outside Magazine has no easy answers but plenty of compelling evidence—including his own behaviour at Yellowstone National Park.
No Such Thing As A Good Tourist
Any set of rules claiming to hold the secret to a better life should be treated with a spoonful of suspicion. The writer’s life experiences are not yours. However, I thought Oliver Burkeman’s advice in The Guardian to be broad and open-ended enough to have some value. Just look on them as guidelines rather than rules.
I see the Oasis ticket sales went as well as expected—crashy websites, hours in queues and the blunt evil of late-stage capitalism in full effect as punters saw the price for their long-awaited purchases double at the checkout. Anyone bleating about how this sort of exploitation is simply market forces at work should be treated as a corporate shill and class traitor. It’s shocking that it’s taken so long for the government to get involved. I hope the whole corrupt practice is legislated out of existence and the Gallagher brothers viewed as greedy monsters who have no problem fleecing their fans for every last penny they can squeeze out of them. A deeply sleazy affair.
Last up, I hate to toot my own horn like Doctor Doom—
Ok, fine, my gaff, my rules. Art Stories starts at the John Majeski Gallery at Reading Musuem today until February next year. It’s an exhibition where local writers offer responses to items from the museum’s extensive collection. Look out for a picture called Blue Square, and enjoy the short piece alongside. You may recognise the name of the author.
Sod it, I always preferred Blur anyway.
See you in seven, fellow travellers.
