The Knotty Death of the Necktie. Adam Gopnik explores the decline of neckties that began some 20 years ago and was accelerated by the rise of WFH thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Besides reflecting on the necktie’s cultural significance throughout history, Gopnik uses this article to discuss what fashion in general tells us about our culture and how we use style to signal our values and beliefs to other people. Make sure to also check out our 2021 article, where we asked some style experts whether the necktie is obsolete.
The Courage to Be Disliked: How to Free Yourself, Change Your Life, and Achieve Real Happiness by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga. I recently listened to this book on my morning walks and enjoyed it. The authors use a dialogue between a fictional philosopher and a student to explore the psychological theories of Alfred Adler. Some key takeaways I got from the book: all problems are interpersonal problems, and most of those interpersonal problems are the result of us or others trying to do other people’s “life tasks.” I liked this book because it was all about increasing one’s sense of agency in the world.
Beulah. This is a band I recently re-discovered and have been enjoying on car rides. Beulah got heavy rotation in my 5-disc CD player in my 1992 Smurf-blue Chevy Cavalier back in 2000. They’ve got a unique, upbeat indie sound that includes horns and stringed instruments. I’m a big fan of horns and stringed instruments in pop-rock music. Great band to listen to during the summer.
Greyson Sweater Polo from Marine Layer. Sweater polos are having a moment right now. They offer a laid-back but sophisticated shirt option for summer smart casual. And I’m really digging my recent acquisition of a particularly handsome entry in this sartorial category: the Greyson sweater polo from Marine Layer. I feel like Frank Sinatra in Palm Springs when I wear it.
Quote of the Week
In the presence of danger man often finds salvation in action. To dull emotion he must do something; to remain immobile, to stagnate in mind or body, is to surrender without terms. Whereas movement, work of any kind, helps to deliver him from those feelings which are traitors to his better nature. In the last war, the man in the observation balloon, with little to do but sit in the middle of a target, was more liable to break down than the observer in an aeroplane, while the observer was more vulnerable than the pilot. To sit still under bombardment in the trench was more testing than to fight in the open.
—Lord Moran
