While much of the NBA world is quiet in late July, a report that the Brooklyn Nets rejected a trade overture from the Boston Celtics sparked a great deal of chatter this week. The reported deal would’ve sent Jaylen Brown to Brooklyn in a package for Kevin Durant, and speculation continues on all sides. On Tuesday, Celtics star Jayson Tatum made an appearance at the New York premiere of the “Point Gods” documentary, and he was predictably asked about the rumblings.
Jayson Tatum on rumors of #Celtics interest on Kevin Durant #Nets
Generally, Tatum deflected from sharing any sharp opinions, first saying, “I don’t make anything of it. I just play basketball.” Later in the conversation, he referred to Durant as “a great player,” reminding reporters that Tatum and Durant played together for Team USA, but Tatum was also consistent in expressing that he’s happy with the team he has in Boston.
“I love our team,” Tatum said. “I love the guys that we’ve got.”
On the report itself, Tatum said, “I don’t know if that report is true or not.” He also shared, in candid fashion, that he isn’t inclined to believe public reporting on its face.
“I don’t believe everything I see on TV,” Tatum indicated. “I done seen some sh*t about me that was a lie, so you never really know what’s true and what’s not true.”
It would’ve been more surprising if Tatum actually shared an opinion either way on a reported trade skeleton. Through that lens, nothing he shared was out of bounds by any measure, and it is true that he is not the decision-maker in place here. Still, it is always going to be noteworthy when a star comments publicly on trade stuff, even if his remarks can double as an extended deflection.
Have you ever watched something that instantly made you sweat? Yeah, that’s the response watching this heart-stopping video of a toddler falling out of a sixth floor window and being caught by a man chatting on his cellphone. The miraculous moment was caught on Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) in China and was uploaded to Twitter recently by China’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Zhao Lijian.
In the short clip you can see the man seemingly walking while talking on his cellphone when he notices what’s about to unfold. He quickly runs to the front of the building nearly falling when he attempts to stop and another person runs behind to help him. The two put their arms up and before you know it there’s a toddler landing safely in the man’s arms. In another angle you see the toddler dangling from the window before free-falling to the pair below. His quick action saved the little girl’s life.
According to China Daily, the man, who has now been identified as Shen Dong, said he heard a bang on the top of the apartment building before looking up and seeing the toddler. The bang he heard was the toddler hitting an advertisement sign and Shen was on the phone with the police before the girl moved again causing her to fall. After he caught the child, Shen drove the girl to the hospital where she was treated for minor injuries and released to her mother.
Shen told the outlet, “I’m also a father of two children and I don’t want to see any children get hurt.”
Talk about being in the right place at the right time. Shen was simply about to walk into the bank where he worked before the loud noise grabbed his attention. Pretty sure he has a good excuse for missing a day of work. Hopefully the little girl continues to have a speedy recovery.
We’re all accustomed to pinching on a photo to zoom in when looking at an image on our smartphones. But we realize there’s a limit to how far one can go before the picture becomes totally pixelated.
That’s why a new piece by Parisian artist Lucas Vaskange has fascinated millions of people on social media. One of his latest works seems to go on forever—the more you pinch, the more the world opens up to the viewer.
The piece of art starts outside of an artist’s desk then zooms in on a photo of the artist with what appears to be an apple. But as Vaskange continues to zoom into the photo, we see there are another seven layers to the piece.
The video has been seen more than 5 million times since it was posted on July 26.
u201cThe original video of my artwork here.nStay tuned, to discover more infinite stories!u201d
One of the most common questions about the piece is why doesn’t it become pixelated after a few zooms?
A Twitter user named Muzzammil Shariff pointed out that the artwork wasn’t made with pixels, but with vector technology. What’s the difference?
“While pixels are literal ‘blocks’ of an image simulating the points on your screen, vectors are points, lines, curves and polygons on an algebraic grid. These points, lines, curves, and basic polygons are called ‘primitives,’ and are the basic building blocks of vector art,” Eric Z. Goodnight explains at How-To Geek.
Vaskange’s work is blowing a lot of people’s minds because they’ve never seen a piece of vector art that went that deep before. It’s a brilliant use of new technology that’s sure to lead to countless more amazing works that will take people far beyond the second dimension.
Whether you think the internet has been a net positive or negative for the world, there’s no debating that it has changed nearly everything. The change has been so rapid and abrupt that humanity hasn’t really come to grips with this new reality. It’s like we’re constantly playing catch-up.
There was the first wave of the internet that completely wiped out physical media such as record stores and magazines. Then there was a revolution with social media that changed the way people interact and gave everyone a voice online.
Some point to Facebook’s addition of the “like” button in 2010 as the moment when social media became an addiction, with people chasing approval and dopamine hits. While others say that the addition of the “share” button the same year completely changed reality because it allowed bad ideas to take wing.
Now, nearly 30 years after the internet became available to the average person, there is a generation growing up that never knew what life was like before the ’net. But for the rest of us, there are still memories of a time when people went to Blockbuster video to get a movie, dialed people on rotary phones and found an intersection on a Thomas Guide map.
I’m not saying those times were better, just different.
A Reddit user by the name of Jenn was feeling nostalgic for the pre-internet days so they asked the online forum, “Video killed the radio star. What did the internet kill?” The question was a reference to The Buggles’ 1979 hit “Video Killed the Radio Star,” which was the first video ever played on MTV.
The post quickly went viral with more than 7,000 people chiming in with things that the internet relegated to the dustbin of history.
Here are 19 of the best responses to the question, “What did the internet kill?”
1.
“Newspapers. Magazines.” — Cuttlery
2.
“Blockbuster.” — sparkchaser
3.
“Encyclopedias.” — New_Television_9125
4.
“Not being able to remember that guy from that thing.” — Meffrey_Dewlocks
Volcano-ngh added:
“Not having to listen to my mom and my uncle list off names trying to remember the name of some actor in a 100-year-old movie for an hour with no resolution is pretty great.”
5.
“Maps. I have never used a tangible map since internet and phones.” — TheMaskedAdvice
6.
“Realistic expectations of success.” — NelsonsBuddy
Cerker added:
“With your former limited peer group, your were bound to be ‘the expert’ or ‘the best’ in at least something. And could provide valuable contributions due to this. Now? You can always compare yourself to the whole world. You always find tens of people so far above your level that you have no realistic means to come even close to it. It was always that way, but they weren’t that prominent in your life, always pointing out your mediocrity. I still struggle with it and it used to suck up all my motivation. Now I start to stop caring and just doing what provides my joy.”
7.
“The mail order catalogue. This was a huge means of buying goods, especially in rural areas or ordering niche items that normally aren’t stocked in stores.” — TheSeaMonkey
8.
“Attention span.” — LegacyRW
“I’ve actually just started working on this. Limiting my phone time and forcing myself back to reading, puzzles, projects that require concentration etc.” — catsinlittlehats
9.
“Broadcast television.” — katomka
10.
“My faith in humanity.” — cucake_bliss
Uhh_JustADude added:
“Before, you knew most people were kinda stupid. It’s just that back then, they never amounted to much and certainly weren’t as enabled or encouraged. People used to have shame and self-awareness and to publish some bullshit for the whole world to see, one had to get it past editors who actually worked for their jobs and had degrees in journalism, English, and literature.”
11.
“Record stores. Not all, but lots. We used to have 10 in my city in the 1990s, now we have 2.” — boxoffingernails
12.
“Movie phone.
You haven’t lived until you tried to spell the title of a movie on your keypad while declining the suggestions of the robot. ‘Did you mean..?’
‘_____ is also playing at…'” — brutcookie5
13.
“Mail, not E-mail but good old fashion letter mail. The only kinds of letters i get now are bills and other shit i don’t want.” — Lekenthereal
14.
“The Internet killed shame. Nothing is shameful anymore, it’s all just monetized and fed to people from TikTok and YouTube videos, to 4chan and Reddit subs, to the very incel-laden dark alleys of the web. Nothing killed personal shame like the internet. We get to see the worst of humanity at our fingertips 24/7.” — XmerianMonk
15.
“Teens’ self-esteem.” — inflewants
Interesseret added:
“This is pretty much the #1 on the list isn’t it. Man, the internet has done terrible things to young people’s self-image.”
16.
“4-1-1.” — AllFuzzedOut
Nihlism4U added:
“Omg yes! Also just lots of random phone numbers you could call to get pre-recorded info…time, temperature, there was one I used to call a lot for like…daily science facts or something? Don’t remember exactly, but I certainly used the phone as a lifeline to information as a kid in the ’80s and early ’90s.”
17.
“Democracy.” — ChopEee
“This is sadly very true. The Internet has allowed the dissemination of fringe ideology to a huge audience. YouTube and Facebook algorithms help push more of that content in front of people. Those who had a predilection to buy into conspiracy theories and other sorts of fringe thinking previously never had easy access to this kind of content. Sure, we would still have Fox News and the like, but that’s pretty mild compared to what’s available online.” — Pray44Mojo
18.
“The mall.” — dumberthenhelooks
19.
“The experience of actually going out and doing things yourself.” — Evening-Ad-9976
Donald Trump is reportedly itching to start his 2024 presidential campaign, at least in part to avoid criminal prosecution. If so, he may be in a race against time. His business is under investigation by the New York state attorney general office. It looks like Rupert Murdoch is breaking up with him. And then there’s the Jan. 6 hearings, which have provided plenty of damning evidence about his actions in the lead up to, during, and after the storming of the Capitol. Now he has something else to worry about.
As per The Washington Post, the Justice Department, which has been semi-quietly launching its own investigation into the riot, is reportedly expanding its scope to include the big guy himself:
Prosecutors who are questioning witnesses before a grand jury — including two top aides to Vice President Mike Pence — have asked in recent days about conversations with Trump, his lawyers, and others in his inner circle who sought to substitute Trump allies for certified electors from some states Joe Biden won, according to two people familiar with the matter. Both spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.
The prosecutors have asked hours of detailed questions about meetings Trump led in December 2020 and January 2021; his pressure campaign on Pence to overturn the election; and what instructions Trump gave his lawyers and advisers about fake electors and sending electors back to the states, the people said. Some of the questions focused directly on the extent of Trump’s involvement in the fake-elector effort led by his outside lawyers, including John Eastman and Rudy Giuliani, these people said.
What’s more, back in April, Justice Department investigators received phone records from key Trump officials, including former chief of staff Mark Meadows.
It’s already been known that the DoJ investigation was targeting some of Trump’s top cronies, including Rudy Giuliani and now-infamous lawyer John Eastman, who drafted plans for how Trump could circumvent the 2020 election.
On Tuesday, Attorney General Merrick Garland — who has come under fire for being too slow and/or reluctant to prosecute what may be criminal behavior by Trump and allies — gave an exclusive interview with NBC News’ Lester Holt, where he suggested he wouldn’t back down from prosecuting Trump if he had to.
“We intend to hold everyone, anyone who was criminally responsible for the events surrounding Jan. 6, for any attempt to interfere with the lawful transfer of power from one administration to another, accountable. That’s what we do. We don’t pay any attention to other issues with respect to that,” he told Holt.
When asked if he would change course if Trump formally launched a third campaign, Garland responded, “I’ll, say again, that we will hold accountable anyone who was criminally responsible for attempting to interfere with the transfer, legitimate, lawful transfer of power from one administration to the next.”
Whatever happens, better break out the popcorn now.
For the last two months, Martin Shkreli has been a free man, sort of. After serving four years of a seven year sentence for securities fraud, the “pharma bro” headed for life at a halfway house (after hitting up Cracker Barrel, of course). He’s already been busy. Despite being banned for life from the pharmaceutical industry, he announced on Monday that he was launching a pharma-adjacent company. And it’s already got authorities feeling suspicious.
As per The Daily Beast, two separate attorney generals’ offices have started looking into Druglike, Shkreli’s latest business venture. What is Druglike? As per its press release, it’s a “drug discovery project” that seeks to “remove barriers to early-stage drug discovery, increase innovation and allow a broader group of contributors to share the rewards.” A disclaimer on the press release stressed that it was “not a pharmaceutical company.” Still, the goal is to “disrupt the economics of the drug business.”
It’s all kind of vague at this point, but it’s already got authorities looking askance. Both the New York and North Carolina attorney generals’ offices are looking into the matter. A spokesperson for the latter — Josh Stein, who was one of the AGs who sued Shkreli — said the office as “concerned about this development and will be taking a closer look.”
Shkreli first came to infamy when he jacked up the price of an AIDS drug by at least 5000% overnight. He later followed that up by paying $2 million for a Wu-Tang Clan record, then taunted them online. Late last year, a former Bloomberg journalist revealed the truly surreal story about how she left her job and her husband for the still-jailed Shkreli, who cut her off the second he learned she was blabbing about their relationship to the press. But perhaps he’s just getting wound up.
Jetsetting across the world, adventuring through the jungle, and vacationing on a tropical island are all great. Wonderful, in fact. But sometimes, it’s the gems we find in our own hometowns that keep life interesting. Whether a new restaurant pops up, you discover an art exhibit in your neighborhood, or you play tourist and hit the cliché sites you’d never visited before, there is always something new to uncover in any city.
That’s why we asked the Uproxx travel team to give us the inside scoop on the places they call home when they aren’t touring around the world. Below, five of our travel writers are sharing details on the perfect summer’s day in their home cities. Read on for the best spots to play, eat, party, and stay in Santa Monica, Providence, Boulder, Berlin (Germany), and Portland (OR).
The last time I wrote about my home city of Portland, Oregon, it was for our 2021 Fall Experience Guide. But that piece wasn’t so much about what to do (though it did have some A+ reccomendations, so revisit it!) as why to visit. My thesis was this: Portland fell on hard times during the pandemic which exacerbated the city’s homelessness problem. Travelers should be part of the beloved city’s recovery.
I stand by that idea, though it certainly set off a firestorm. I’ve never gotten more feedback on a piece in my life and I write about guns!
Nearly a year later, I’m back in Portland for the summer and thrilled to report that the homeless situation — which is complicated, linked to large-scale local and national issues, and should never be looked at simply as a scourge of society rather than an outgrowth of larger systemic failures — has been mitigated somewhat. Travel Portland, the tourism board for the city, features an excellent breakdown of what is being done on their site. On the ground, there are still plenty of encampments but they aren’t as likely to obstruct traffic or create conflict with residents and tourists as they were in the summer of 2021 (this is my impression but from my vantage point the observation feels fairly obvious). I would imagine that much of this is due to the fact that the city has begun to break up encampments in residential areas but not in industrial areas, meaning if you want your encampment to be semi-permanent, it’s better to set up in a less populous area.
To be clear, even commenting on the homeless situation feels out of my depth and the scope of this piece… but it’s also something that travelers are sure to witness and develop feelings about — so ignoring it feels equally absurd. With that said, the short answer is that the homeless-tourist overlap is less present in the summer of 2022 than it was in the summer of 2021. Do with that whatever you will.
I wake up in Portland and get on the bike. I know that pedaling in Portland has been perfectly parodied by Portlandia, but it really is a biking city. Mostly because it’s so compact. A ride from NE 50th (where the city begins to thin to the east) to NW 30th (where it starts thinning to the west) would take 25 minutes max. You can’t get anywhere in LA in 25 minutes.
Portland has multiple bike rental shops, plus e-bike stations, and it might be the last city in America where e-scooters are still a thing. Walking is fine but nothing is as breezy as PDX by bike, so don’t hesitate to get one. Cars are considerate and know the rules of the road — unlike LA. (Note: the city is great for skating features but terrible for skating as a mode of transportation. Leave your skateboard at home unless you’re going to the famed Burnside Skate Park.)
Once I have wheels under me, I typically head to Crema on NE 28th, near the famed Laurelhurst Theater (where you can watch movies while eating pizza and drinking beer for just a few bucks). Crema is great but if it means going out of your way you don’t need to make extra effort to chase it down — there are so many wonderful hipster coffee shops in Portland (all staffed by people who have the “1820s whaling ship” tattoo starter kit) that finding them and comparing them is part of the fun. Here’s a very solid PDX cafe roundup by the team over at Eater.
After getting a coffee, it’s time to explore the city by bike. For me, that always means a trip to Powell’s Books and Music Millenium. If I’m on the east side of the Willamette River, I’ll shop and peruse along NE 28th or up and down Hawthorne Street. If I’m on the west side, I do NW 23rd or stroll around Pioneer Courthouse Square. If I want the outdoors instead of shopping, I’ll head to Mt. Tabor to the east or Forest Park to the west — both are well within the city limits.
In the afternoons, I encourage every visitor to Portland to get on the water. That might mean anything from chilling on the beach down at Oaks Bottom, next to a very-seedy-but-still-fun amusement park to renting a boat or waverunner to explore downtown. If you’re loving the bike life, you can actually cycle down the Springwater Corridor and hit multiple beaches along the river. Or bike along the waterfront on the opposite side of the river, stopping to rinse in a series of fountains and water features before parking your bike at the Tom McCall Waterfront Park for a proper dip.
My personal favorite water-based spot is currently Sauvie Island — widely known as the place where every Portlander gets their pumpkins and farm-fresh veggies. The beaches on the east side of the island face the very calm and clean Willamette channel. And these are proper beaches, too — white sand and water lapping on shore. There are no stones and you don’t feel like you have to wear shoes into the water in order to come back with all your toes. At the far end of the beach is what is most likely the coolest nude beach in America. Rather than being a place simply to celebrate the human body (also a great thing!), this is an actual scene — where the city’s sex-positive population goes to play and be free.
Where To Eat
Quaintrelle
Portland is an eater’s city. There’s just so much good food and so many different lanes. There’s a pizza scene, a farm-to-table scene, a robust Thai/ Vietnamese scene, a seafood scene, a Mexican scene, an ice cream scene, a fine dining scene, and about a million chefs with butchery charts tatted on their forearms making “stylized Pacific Northwest” fare — which basically means they have salmon on the menu and know that the chicken is indeed local. (Sorry for a second tattoo barb, that’s apparently how I categorize Portlanders.)
Across the board, this is one of the best food cities in America, so let’s get into the reccos:
My beloved Tasty & Sons is permanently closed but Tasty, in Lake Oswego, is a close relative and very worth the drive. Try the Pork Coppa lettuce wraps and the bucatini.
American Dream Pizza is my favorite pizza on the planet but that’s probably at least partly because I’ve been going there for 35 years. Still, give it a try — the crust is basically a twisted breadstick wrapped around a crunchy cracker, which is a pretty wonderful combo. If you’re more into the modern era of hipster-fied pizza with upmarket ingredients and a charred cornice, you really need to go to Ken’s Artisan Pizza, which basically invented that pizza subgenre on the west coast. There’s going to be a wait but this beloved pizzeria is well worth it.
There’s so much good Thai and Vietnamese food in Portland that you almost need to break it down into a few sections, but I personally love Paadee (across from Crema), where you’ll find a life-altering pork belly larb (laab) and the best pad see ew in town. As good as that is, nothing can compete with 2020 Uproxx Travel Hot List darling Eem. This bbq-Thai fusion restaurant has probably the best cocktail program in town and doesn’t accept reservations, so it’s very accessible. Go with friends, get two orders of the white curry with burnt ends (trust me on this), and then build the rest of your meal from there.
Portland food carts were a full-on thing… around 2010. These days they’re more like incubators for talent and places for new concepts to build a following. Counting on a cart to be open without checking beforehand is literally insane. Instead, just go to one of the many food cart pods and see what’s available. Currently, I really like Mole Mole! on Alberta. The cart serves stylized Mexican fare that’s more like what you’d get in Mexico City than the Oregon plate-lunch style Mexican food (though I love that food with a passion!). A nice perk is that you can take your plate next door to Baerlic Brewing to chill in their backyard beer garden away from the hum of traffic.
Finally, as a lover of fine dining and upmarket cusine where the plates are almost theatrical in nature, I have to give love to Quaintrelle. Chef Ryley Eckersley is trying to do so much at once and so brimming with imagination that it’s almost hard to track and can get a little scattered. But the journey is well worth your effort and his dishes are often transcendent. The crab larb on the fall 2021 tasting menu was one of the best dishes I tried all year and the oysters are the most creative in the city. If you like food-as-entertainment, this place is a hotbed for ideas. I recommend getting the chef’s tasting menu with a wine pairing and settling in for a wild, almost psychedelic ride. The thoughtful transformation of ingredients is a joy to behold.
Lastly, plenty of Portland ice cream shops have popped up to compete with Salt & Straw. I respect that — few cities love ice cream more — but none of them are as good as the OG. So go there without any FOMO about what you might be missing. If you like savory ice cream, the Sea Salt with Caramel Ribbons is my favorite ice cream in the country, and I’ve tried most of them.
Where To Party
Portland has a ton of bars but (like the coffee) it seems ridiculous not to just let you explore them on your own. I love The Doug Fir Lounge and City Bridge & Tunnel and Pacific Standard but there are just so many bars to choose from. Find a neighborhood you love or pick a quadrant of the city and wander.
Ready to really turn up? Portland has a few clubs I like a lot but in summer I vote festival all the way. Pickathon is back in August and if there’s a better, wilder party in the Rose City, I haven’t found it. (And I like to party. Tons.)
Where To Stay
Portland has so many hotels I love. This is at least partly because the city has incredibly high design standards paired with some great midcentury buildings. But my favorite hotel in the city is currently The Hotel Zags. In 20 years of travel writing never have a seen a property take the idea of amenities so far. They have bikes, skateboards, cameras, basketballs… You can literally take a bike and a Leica camera out as part of your stay — no extra fees! They even give you a memory card for free.
There’s also a game room and multiple indoor and outdoor lounges. Meaning that if you want a hotel where the party never stops, this is it. People congregate, there are live shows and events, and the energy is always high. It’s centrally located downtown and extremely affordable. The rooms aren’t going to overwhelm with their luxury but they’re stylized and well appointed. Plus the amenities literally smash that of the most pricey hotels in the city.
Bottom line? I really don’t know of a better hotel value in the United States right now than The Hotel Zags.
You can’t spend a summer day in Santa Monica, one of the city’s most iconic beach destinations, without spending some time outside in the sun. Start with a walk or a bike ride on the boardwalk from the Santa Monica Pier to Venice Beach and back. You’ll pass by street performers, artisan vendors, the famous Venice Beach Skate Park, beachside restaurants, boutique shops, and lively beachgoers. Rent a bike from Boardwalk Bike Rentals, and enjoy a leisurely ride to start your morning on the right foot (before it gets too hot).
Reward your exercise with some well-deserved relaxation in the sand. Snag a spot on Santa Monica Beach and post up with a blanket, snacks, a football or frisbee, and some cold drinks for the ultimate beach day. Warning: It does get crowded this time of year. It’s worth taking a decent walk down the beach (away from the pier) until you find somewhere less obstructed by beach umbrellas and kids taunting seagulls with their snacks. Slather on the SPF and spend a few hours kicking it by the water.
The Santa Monica Pier is an LA tourist attraction that’s actually worth the hype. Well, it’s at least worth checking out if you’ve never been before. From the carnival games to the roller coaster, sunset views, classic comfort food options, and the Ferris wheel that doubles as an LED light show at night, you’ll never get bored when spending an evening on the pier.
Where To Eat
Elephante
The better question is where not to eat?
There are endless dining experiences in Santa Monica that offer a diverse selection of cuisines. You’ll find fast food, high-class restaurants, Irish pubs, seaside seafood, and everything in between. If you’re looking for something that offers a trendy LA vibe, make a reservation at Elephante. This LA hotspot serves light coastal Italian cuisine and Mediterranean-inspired cocktails. The restaurant offers clear ocean views, so it’s an excellent spot to enjoy dinner while watching the sun go down over the horizon.
LA is known for its myriad tacos joints. So if you want a taste of the local fare in the heart of the action in Santa Monica, grab a table at Blue Plate Taco. The restaurant is all about a clean coastal approach to traditional Mexican food, serving a range of delicious tacos made with organic and sustainably farmed ingredients. Make sure to wash down your food with a house-made margarita, too.
Where To Party
Chloe Caldwell
Summer in Santa Monica feels like one long beach party, many thanks to the various day clubs and beachside bars. The quintessential Santa Monica bar for mingling over 2 p.m. tequila shots is The Bungalow. The environment here kind of feels like an elevated college party, which is why I’ve personally formed a love-hate relationship with this place. This popular day bar gets overcrowded by 3 p.m. on the weekends, so make sure to get there early or be prepared to stand in a 45-minute line.
The Santa Monica Whaler (sister to the famous Venice location!) is a new-ish bar that’s just steps from the beach in Santa Monica. It’s a bit more casual than The Bungalow, making it an ideal location for catching a game or grabbing post-beach drinks. You’ll also often find a live DJ at The Whaler that keeps the party going into the night.
If you’re staying in town for more than a day, you’ll want to stay at Santa Monica Proper Hotel. It’s a bit pricey, but its ultra-trendy rooftop restaurant, chic design concepts, and proximity to the heart of Santa Monica make it worth the splurge. It’s right down the street from The Bungalow, making it easy to stroll home safely for a nightcap and a comfortable snooze. The Santa Monica Proper also houses a spa for hangover recovery and a rooftop pool for the ultimate Instagram backdrop.
I didn’t grow up in Boulder, but, as they say — I got there as quickly as I could. From the iconic Flatirons to the quaint downtown and chill vibes, it has everything for the perfect summer’s day.
You can’t visit Boulder without hiking in the famed Flatirons. I recommend visitors hike a trail that starts at Chautauqua Park — my favorites are the Royal Arch Trail and 1st and 2nd Flatirons. After working up an appetite on the trail, stop by the Dining Hall for a glass of wine, a charcuterie plate, and a scoop of their homemade ice cream. Just be aware that parking can be difficult in the summer months – and is paid only on weekends and holidays. Skip the hassle by hopping on the city’s free Park to Park shuttle from Memorial to Labor Day.
If you want to beat the heat, head to the Boulder Creek which runs right through downtown. Here you can walk, picnic, wade, and tube down the cool waters. There are multiple gear rental spots nearby that can outfit you for an adventurous afternoon in the water.
Where To Eat
Rosetta Hall
Boulder has long been known for its outdoor recreation, but it is quickly becoming a spot for foodies. There always seem to be new restaurants popping up with fare from all over the world.
On a summer day, like any decent single woman in her 30s, I gravitate towards a rooftop restaurant and bar. And with views that take your breath away, Boulder has plenty. I love Rosetta Hall for its eclectic mix of rotating restaurants (pro tip: get coffee in the morning at the on-site coffee house and you’re likely to have the rooftop to yourself). Avanti Food and Beverage Hall is another favorite with Flatiron and Pearl Street views.
And if you’re feeling a little more upscale, I love to visit Corrida for tapas at happy hour and one of their famed tableside-made gin and tonics.
There is no better place to go out in Boulder than Pearl Street. It’s the main street through downtown, with loads of shops, restaurants, and bars. I love to walk down the street at night to enjoy street performers and people-watching before ducking into one of my favorite bars. Among those, I love The Kitchen Upstairs Cocktail Lounge for its laidback late-night vibe and License No. 1 at the Boulderado for an underground speakeasy experience — often with live music.
Where To Stay
St. Julien Hotel & Spa
If you’re staying in Boulder overnight –- and I highly suggest that you do — I always recommend the St. Julien Hotel & Spa. In fact, despite its very close proximity to my house, I have stayed here at least three times for a relaxing and luxurious staycation. It is perfectly situated just one block off Pearl St. downtown, making it accessible to walk to nearly everything I’ve recommended here.
The pool is dreamy, the happy hour is my favorite (try the truffle tots!), and the mountainside views are almost unreal.
Tempelhofer Feld is easily accessible via public transportation and offers you a chance to walk the landing strips of a defunct Nazi airport. The feld has been turned into a massive social area with garden colonies, beer gardens, dog runs, BBQ pits, baseball diamonds, soccer fields, and two huge runways of pavement to skate, roll, or surf on. The neighborhood just east of the park is full of bars and restaurants of every ilk. The best play is to grab some food and a few bottles of beer on the way into the feld and then find yourself a spot to watch the world go by with your crew.
Alternatively, you can hit up Tiergarten, which is much more like a classic cosmopolitan park with shady footpaths, stretching seas of green grass for lounging, old-school beer gardens, statues of old dead German generals, and nudist sections. The far west side of the park has two bustling beer gardens, Schleusenkrug and Cafe am Neuen See. Both serve beer to the masses with plenty of local and seasonal German fare (especially at Schleusenkrug). Both places will be brimming with locals after work on weekdays and all weekend long until the sun goes down. Then, Berliners tend to hit the bars before hitting the clubs a while later (often as the sun is coming up again).
Lastly, you can find an endless array of scenes on the actual streets of Berlin. Outdoor cafes that turn into bar scenes are all over the city. Moreover, “Spätis” are on almost every other block and sell cold beer and drinks for retail prices. A lot of them put picnic tables out in front of their storefronts for people to chill and drink all night long on the cheap. And I mean cheap. A very good Bavarian lager or pilsner will cost around $1.60 for a half-liter bottle.
This list could be endless. But I’ll give you two options:
One is Zollpackhof. This is quintessential Bavarian cuisine served in the city’s most iconic beer garden. You can get huge chunks of roast pork on the bone, scoops of zesty cheese with warm pretzels, whole roasted chickens, whole roasted fish, and so much more. It’s the true “German” experience right in the very middle of the city. Oh, and the beer is fantastic. They tap Augustiner from the wooden keg on the weekends and it’s divine.
A great place to get a sense of modern Berlin dining is Mr. Susan. The restaurant is Korean-at-heart with a dash of Berliner seasonality and a killer cocktail program. You should go for the kimchi alone, which is made in-house. It’s some of the best in Europe, period. The menu, of course, stretches beyond amazing kimchi to cover mostly seasonal dishes built around a Korean culinary backbone with a beautiful precision that never feels fussy or pretentious. The menu is very limited and very seasonal, so you’re likely to get something different each day you go. While the boozy shaved ice is a must-try in the summer, Mr. Susan’s spritz menu is where to start with innovative and super refreshing versions of the Italian classic that feels very Berlin and now.
Again, on those streets! Berlin is very party and sex forward. Finding both is pretty easy if you know where to look. Hit up Party News Berlin on IG to see what’s going on in the club scene. It won’t be a complete guide, but it’s a good place to start.
Generally, expect a night to go like this: Late dinner until ten or eleven, beer or cocktails somewhere local until two or three, hit a club around four or five, then just keep on goin’. Rinse, repeat (and maybe get some downtime in one of the parks mentioned above).
The scene in Berlin is fairly eccentric, so you’ll be able to find pretty much any niche you’re looking for. My advice, find a chill cocktail or beer bar and simply ask the bartender or server. They’ll always have more accurate and up-to-date recommendations than anything you can read here. Plus, if you strike up a conversation with a local, they might just take you on a wild ride with them through Berlin.
While I could call out some funky avant-garde boutique hotel where the lighting may drive you to insomnia, I’d rather go with a place that’s suited to Berlin’s style while still being affordable and comfortable.
The Hotel Indigo Berlin East Side Gallery is a boutique version of IHG hotels. The property has a great rooftop bar scene with live music, a great lobby with flea market chairs, and rooms that feel more “Berlin” than corporate with real local art. The beds are comfy, the bathrooms are well-fitted, and the whole vibe at night is geared toward hooking up and/or going out.
The location is also fantastic. You’re across the street from the East Side Berlin Wall gallery which is a mile-long section of the Berlin Wall that’s been turned into an outdoor art exhibit. A few steps down from there is one of Berlin’s most iconic bridges and two neighborhoods (Schlessi and Boxey locally) that are overloaded with bars and clubs and all the people that go along with those scenes.
WONGO OKON (@whereswongo) — PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND
Memorial Day Weekend is the unofficial start to summer in Rhode Island, one that gives the city’s residents almost a month to get their ducks in a row before the summer solstice arrives. Before you know it, the state’s many beaches are open for business, and with a plethora of seashores to choose from, you’ll find somewhere to lay your blanket and soak in the sun without having to drive too far. Westerly’s Misquamicut State Beach, Newport’s First Beach and Second Beach, and Narragansett’s Wheeler Beach and Town Beach. If you’re truly looking for some spontaneous fun, you can hop on the ferry and take a trip to Block Island where can spend more time on the beach, grab a moped and explore the island through a ride, and more.
If you’d rather keep things inland, Rhode Island’s state capital provides plenty of opportunities to play and de-stress after a long work week. On Friday nights, novice and advanced rollerskaters and rollerbladers can move and groove around under the city lights. Just a few minutes away is Free Play Bar Arcade which houses plenty of arcade games to enjoy for the inexpensive price of just $10.
The beautiful thing about Rhode Island is that it presents cities crowded with different cultures which allows for a vibrant platter of food to pick from. The Village Restaurant provides excellent authentic Nigerian food right in downtown Providence. Your craving for Peruvian and Bolivian cuisine can be cured with a visit to Los Andes on the north side of Providence while a trip downtown can offer an array of Latin cuisine when you stop by Terra Luna. Southern comfort foods can be found at Kin, Troop, Bucktown, Sommer’s Corner, and The Stack House and Fleming’s checks out as the steakhouse to try while in town. Rhode Island is known for its vast seafood and Providence’s Hemingway’s and Dune Brothers, as well as Warwick and Narragansett’s Iggy’s Doughboys and Chowderhouse, are sure to satisfy your needs. However, if you just desire the simple things, Nice Slice is where to go for pizza while Blake’s Tavern and Harry’s will both give you the right burger to enjoy. Lastly, a late-night trip to Thayer Avenue gives you plenty of options after midnight for a final meal before heading off to bed.
Rhode Island’s party scene is alive and well and this is especially the case in the summer. Stay Silent, an events and creative agency, puts on a collection of themed events on a monthly basis at their home base, Crib. They include Hookah Killed The Dancefloor, Luv U Better, and Sugarcane. Not to mention they’re also responsible for Day Trill, the biggest outdoor party in New England, which goes down twice a summer with the first occurring back in June and the second one set for August. Elsewhere, Afrobrunch is a hot commodity in Providence, and it’s been that way since the beginning of the year when it started using afrobeats to soundtrack your brunch experience. Troop is guaranteed to provide a different party every time you walk in while Salon reopened its doors this summer to bring back the basement function complete with a bar on two floors, granting you the opportunity to drink the night away. Other club and party options include Black Sheep, Nara Lounge & Restaurant, OURS, and many more.
Now that you know what to do when you make the trip to Rhode Island, it’s time to pick where you’ll stay during your time here. Picking a hotel in this state depends on whether you want to be inland or by the coast. If you desire the latter, Ocean House in Watch Hill and Newport’s The Vanderbilt, The Chanler, and Castle Hill are some great options to go with. If you’d rather reside inland, Providence’s Renaissance Downtown Hotel, Hilton, The Dean Hotel, Omni Hotel, and The Biltmore Hotel are also great options to pick from.
Indie music has grown to include so much. It’s not just music that is released on independent labels, but speaks to an aesthetic that deviates from the norm and follows its own weirdo heart. It can come in the form of rock music, pop, or folk. In a sense, it says as much about the people that are drawn to it as it does about the people that make it.
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Beach Bunny — Emotional Creature
Chicago quartet Beach Bunny have already proved their star power with the 2020 LP Honeymoon and the viral TikTok song “Cloud 9.” Now returning with their sophomore album Emotional Creature, the band have honed their catchy hooks and propulsive riffs to create 12 thoughtful and polished pop punk tracks.
Jack White — Entering Heaven Alive
It’s not often that we are gifted a great comeback record by a veteran rock star, and it’s even rarer to get two in the same year. But that’s exactly what Jack White has done in 2022 with April’s Fear Of The Dawn and his new LP Entering Heaven Alive. Contrasting the electric guitar-driven Fear Of The Dawn, Entering Heaven Alive is a rollicking effort combining tightly packed riffs and stripped-down, folksy tunes that show off White’s range as a musician.
Yellow Days — Apple Pie
UK artist Yellow Days has made a name for himself over the years with swirling melodies and soulful, funk-infused rhythms. Now, the R&B-inspired singer is back with Apple Pie, the second in his series of EPs he’s releasing over the course of this year. The five-track effort is a collection of honeyed, groove-driven songs meant to symbolize pleasure and indulgence.
Julia Jacklin — “Love, Try Not To Let Go”
Aussie indie favorite Julia Jacklin is continuing to preview her upcoming LP Pleasure, and it’s already looking like an album of the year contender thanks to the confessional, driving singles. “Love, Try Not To Let Go” is no different, with Jacklin’s lovely vocals melting over a racing rhythm as she sings of finding ways to ground herself.
Field Medic — “I Had A Dream That You Died”
Field Medic, the moniker of prolific and acclaimed musician Kevin Patrick Sullivan, returns with the track “I Had A Dream That You Died,” off his newly announced album ambitiously titled grow your hair long if you’re wanting to see something you can change. The song, like most of his other music, was recorded in a stream of consciousness with an acoustic guitar in hand and drum loop playing beside him. With candor and a sense of playfulness, Sullivan managed to create a catchy song that’s both funny and sentimental.
MorMor — “Far Apart”
Toronto artist MorMor first arrived on the scene with his genre-bending 2018 effort Heaven’s Only Wishful. Following another EP and 2020 single, the Canadian crooner makes a soulful and heart-tugging return with the dazzling track “Far Apart.” The tender tune offers space for MorMor to show off his impressive vocal range and swaggering lyrical delivery.
Enumclaw — “Cowboy Bebop”
PNW-based punk rock newcomers Enumclaw have positioned themselves as ones to watch with their punchy riffs and ’90s alt rock-inspired sound. Their latest single “Cowboy Bebop” previews their debut LP Save The Baby, which arrives in October, and carries grunge sensibilities as they move further on their journey to become the “best band since Oasis.”
Local Natives — “Desert Snow”
The last we heard from 2010’s indie pop icons Local Natives, they had just released the 2020 EP Sour Lemon. But that changed this week when the band shared a pair of two wistful singles. The song “Desert Snow” was inspired by a trip to the Joshua Tree desert, which can be heard through the breezy chords and warm, comforting melodies.
Catie Turner — “Step Mom”
We can all get a little petty when breakups don’t end amicably. But Catie Turner has the best recipe for revenge — dating her ex’s dad. The musician’s tongue-in-cheek track “Step Mom” is a witty, brazen, and hard-rocking anthem that perfectly encapsulates Turner’s confident and catchy songwriting.
Petey — “Big Bad!”
After dropping one of the best albums of 2021, musician-turned-TikTok comedian Petey is back with the standalone single “Big Bad!” The frenetic, surf rock-leaning track is fueled by a rapid-fire riff as Petey sings about when things don’t go your way.
Mamalarky — “Mythical Bonds”
Officially announcing their sophomore album Pocket Fantasy, Atlanta-based group Mamalarky show some love to their bandmates with the upbeat number “Mythical Bonds.” Featuring cascading, angular guitars and blissed-out lyrics, the song is a thoughtful ode to the laughter and connection shared with friends since, according to Mamalarky, “we need more songs about friendship.”
Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Over the weekend at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel unveiled their plans for the next few years. They went all the way into late 2025, detailing how the MCU would close out Phase 6. (For the record, we’re still in Phase 4, which concludes in November with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.) The biggest news is that there will be not one, but two more Avengers movies, released about half a year apart. And while it’s still unclear who will helm the second, the first one already has their man.
As per Entertainment Weekly, the fifth Avengers film, subtitled Kang Dynasty, will be helmed by Destin Daniel Cretton. You should know his work. He started out as an indie guy, responsible for the small dramas Short Term 12 and The Glass Castle (both starring future Captain Marvel Brie Larson), as well as Just Mercy (with Michael B. Jordan, and Larson in a smaller role). He then parlayed that into a little Marvel movie called Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Avengers: The Kang Dynasty is named after the time-traveling baddie Jonathan Majors plays in the forthcoming Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, which isn’t due in theaters till February. Loki also made reference to the character. As for its director, despite his indie bona fides, his big Marvel debut was singled out for its action, which was widely considered next-level in the super-franchise.
Put together, The Kang Dynasty and its follow-up, Avengers: Secret Wars, will close out the “Multiverse Saga,” which began with Black Widow, after Spider-Man: Far from Home closed out the “Infinity Saga.” And there’s still more where that came from.
For the last year-and-a-half, the Democratic Party has been in control of the executive and the legislative branches of government. Not that anyone could tell. Since Joe Biden took office, Roe v. Wade has been overturned, guns have become easier to carry in public, the line separating church and state has become even blurrier, and same-sex marriage is at risk. And that’s just what the Supreme Court did in two weeks in June. Through it all, Democratic leaders have acted as though everything is normal, as though all they have to do is stick by the rules their colleagues on the other side of the aisle have ignored. And some Democratic voters are getting fed up.
The Democratic Party’s Decorum is no longer acceptable ..
Henry Winkler took a break from dropping images of him beaming after catching trout to tend to the other extreme of his personality: the one that’s righteously angry about what’s happening to America. “The Democratic Party’s Decorum is no longer acceptable ..,” Winkler posted on Twitter on Tuesday.
Winkler’s Fonz’s tweet didn’t seem to be prompted by anything in particular. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court didn’t gut any more basic human rights, Joe Manchin and/or Kyrsten Sinema didn’t block any bills that would help the American people, and Mitch McConnell didn’t do anything Machiavellian (that we know of). It was likely more of an evergreen tweet, expressing frustration with party leaders who don’t seem to have any ideas nor a strong sense of urgency. They just tell people to vote, again, but harder next time. The erstwhile Fonz is not alone.
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| solo travel (@emilyventures)
