Welcome to the 93rd edition of Content Nausea. You can read No. 92 right here. Please let me know what you think. Thank you for being here. Here is the welcome blog.
Matt texted me last week and said the streets were asking for a new Content Nausea, so I started to write this in the front seat of a rental car on I-85 between Atlanta and Auburn, Ala., on Saturday and then again at my gate at Hartsfield-Jackson the next day. It got to where it needed to be eventually. Here’s a random assortment of thoughts from the past month or so. I’ll try to get back onto the normal routine, I guess, but we’ll see if that actually happens. I have a three-quarters done essay about Vin Scully that I haven’t touched in a month in my drafts. Maybe that will come soon.
Speaking of Hartsfield-Jackson, I confused my seat (D) for my gate (B) and ended up walking all the way from Terminal T to Terminal D before I surfaced and realized there were only American Airlines flights there, not Delta. I’m obviously a smart traveler, so I had plenty of time to spare and could walk back to Terminal B with no sweat off my back.
The detour, though, did yield something to me. In the tunnels between Terminals, ATL had a photo exhibit called “NEW OUTSIDE: Contemporary Landscapes.”
The Peter Essick photos were all aerial shots of construction sites, while the tones and isolation of Barbara Barberis’ photos connected with me. The Margeaux Walter photos were cool and invoked some feelings of isolation. It was all well done. The detour was worth it.
Two new releases I have been listening to a lot in the past few days: Expert In A Dying Field by The Beths and Four Songs by Blood Orange. Those are pleasant.
I took a good photo with my iPhone at work on Saturday:
I’ve had On the Impossible Past by The Menzingers on repeat for the past week or so, too. I’m not going to read into listening to an album where the opening lines are “I’ve been having a horrible time / Pulling myself together” too too much. Good album, though.
Auburn was probably one of the cooler environments I’ve ever been to for a football game. I walked around the town for a while before the game, and it just felt like a good place to be. It was hard to get a read on the in-stadium environment because of the press box setting in the corner, but it felt on par with Ohio State and probably a little bit below Iowa in terms of wildness. It was my first time in Alabama in a decade. Maybe I’ll be back.
A couple songs the Jordan-Hare Stadium PA played while we were on the field pregame: “The Great Escape” by Boys Like Girls; “Kids” by MGMT; “Welcome To The Black Parade” by My Chemical Romance.
Over Labor Day weekend, I impulsively drove to the Allentown Fair to see The Wonder Years for the second time this year. It was a powerhouse setlist with some deep cuts I wasn’t expecting to hear, so it hit hard in the best way. I did see a guy wearing an Unknown Pleasures shirt that said “610 Division” on it. Very well done.
Spotted in Chicago:
I was in a foul mood when I left State College for Baltimore on Friday, so I stopped at Rutter’s and bought a bottle of chocolate milk. After I drank it, I felt much better. Apparently, I’m 30. Also, I’ve been going through a big cheese puffs renaissance. The Simply Cheetos White Cheddar Puffs are delicious.
Speaking of Chicago, shout out to Kate for being a great host and taking me to the bar where you have to throw a shot glass made of ice at a bell. I hope your aim gets better in the future.
I snuck in some baseball to end the year with the Phillies in Philadelphia and Atlanta. Philly was great. Atlanta didn’t go well. I’m not sure how I felt about Truist Park. The “Battery” is a “cool” area around it, but it also took me an hour to get there from near the airport. It’s not in Atlanta. The stadium also prioritizes the suites over the concourse. If you’re behind home plate, you can’t see the field. There’s a little museum with Braves history, but it doesn’t feel like you’re in the baseball stadium anymore. It was kind of weird. Also, the gluten-free options were bad.
Tomorrow is the first day of autumn, which means it’s once again time for the famous vibes [fall] playlist. It’s back. Maybe next year I’ll rework some things, but I road tested it last week on a cool morning, and it still remains one of my crowning achievements.
Thank you for reading the 93rd edition of Content Nausea. It will get better. Thank you, and see you soon.
You bought us with zeros
You bought us with–ones!
We saw a small screen
But we never saw the–funds!
We're still bleeding
But we're still breathing–too!
You need our money
More than we need–you!
—D.G.