Deb Amlen

Guess where we were today. (Hint: The answer is *not* “1942.”)

Two gallons of kimchi, tucked away for a good, long fermentation

Danger pods: Carolina reapers.

BIKELOX: A delicious snack packed in one’s kit bag during a long ride. Slight risk of botulism

I’m a bit more than halfway through Min Jin Lee’s “American Hagwon” and I never thought an audiobook would make me tear up, but here we are. Absolutely sensational. #Chapter45 www.nytimes.com/2026/09/29/b...

I had to take an extended break from them for a while, but I’ll just go ahead and say it: Solving crosswords just for fun is pretty rad.

BREAKING: There are *payphones* in the dugouts at MLB games. Are they caught in a time warp or something?

It’s always to a newspaper’s benefit to take advice from @johnmcintyre, but of the advice, this one above all: “Don’t fuck with the crossword.” johnemcintyre.blogspot.com/2026/10/its-...

OK, I’m calling it: I am just not a pumpkin spice person.

Today's Stet is live — five sentences, one wrong word each. Spot the slip and fix the copy. @debamlen.bsky.social Play today's puzzle here: mindloftdaily.com/stet

Reporting after a day at the Easton Garlic Festival, where we consumed garlic butter cookies, garlic cannoli, deep fried garlic w/garlic aioli, masala fries with garlic sauce, garlic bread with garlic ricotta dip, black garlic something, and many other things that, shockingly, involved garlic.

I spoke to @vulture.com about the nerdy pastime of "gridspotting," tracking down the provenance of crosswords in movies and TV shows.

Tamarind Carolina Reaper hot sauce. I had to taste this all the way through the process and now my pores hurt. I think I’m going to call this FAFO Sauce. Tamarind concentrate, water, apple cider vinegar, roasted onions/Reaper peppers, honey, pineapple, salt and regret.

I will tell you what: a string quartet and about 100 Queen fans can shake a church when “We Will Rock You” is played.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: It’s a string quartet.

Just checking: This is the stage set up for what is supposed to be a Queen tribute band concert. In a church (no problem), lots of candles (spiffy), classical music playing (ok), three chairs, and two music stands (wait, what?) A question for the crowd: Are we in the right place?

Practicing for the Olympic balance beam tryouts

Fine. I will put on a hoodie to go to dinner. But I don’t have to like it.

This warning from David Letterman to the media from just a year ago feels sadly too relevant today. He is right: You can't appease a tyrant.

Welcome to your Jenga condo in Hell

White House correspondents, D.C. bureau chiefs, and media execs: The German government expelled Dorothy Thompson from the country in August 1934. She's remembered and respected today for her important coverage and analysis over the next decade of the German regime. Be like Dorothy Thompson.

Two people with happy lox bellies. #loxfest

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Yeah, no. You don’t get to rewrite history now, Joe. You were a useful idiot and a useful idiot you shall always be

“Hello, police? She’s not giving me any of her snacks. Can you please talk some sense into her?” (Photo: Carly Amlen)

I'm in love.

PE WINDOW: The amount of time that needs to be spent feigning illness or cramps (uterus owners only) in the school bathroom in order to be excused from Phys Ed.

Annual reminder that I will not be giving up my flip flops or willingly putting on a sweater.

The Onion has created a machine that will kill everyone on Earth that is coincidentally running out of money and the only way to slow it down is if my staff and I take a six-week vacation to Cabo San Lucas.

I don’t know how many times I’ve killed off poor Percy, but the spam texts keep coming. Now they’re moving on to home repair

Your Sunday morning sermon, from me to Y'all. "Don't be a bigoted asswipe." - Mouthy 86:47

Yes, those certainly are pangrams, thank you for sharing.

Oh really? Who’s going to tell her?

youtube.com/shorts/_BbHJ...

Psst … It was never about wanting people to immigrate “the right way” www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

@mapquest.com , I love you. You work well, cut out all the BS of those other nav apps, and you let me have a rainbow unicorn as an icon 🩵

LANDLAWD: An expression of frustration directed at the person or persons who own your home.

Sanity check needed: Say aye if you knew the term “Debbie Downer” *before* 2004, when Rachel Dratch made her a character on SNL. I knew it as a child back in the late 15th C., but search indicates that Dratch’s character was the first instance. I feel like I’m being gaslit by the entire internet.

A new study from MIT (admittedly performed with some limitations) shows that users of ChatGPT or other AI systems show weakened brain neural connectivity among participants who used the AI to write an essay. The brain-only group’s connectivity was the strongest. www.media.mit.edu/projects/you...

I have written and signed an Executive Order renaming Lake Superior to Lake Obama. Thank you for your attention to this matter!

ADVILIDITY: Verification that the ibuprofen one is about to take is for real

HUNDECK: A special floor on a cruise ship reserved for Mongol warriors.

Dear lord, not just *any* 80 year old www.theguardian.com/film/2026/au...

It’s true that Dolly Parton was a country music icon. But far more importantly, she was a human decency, kindness, empathy & generosity icon. And we lose her at a time when those traits are more urgently needed than ever, especially in the USA. As we honour her remarkable life, honour those traits.

NAIRCUT: A liquid method of hair removal when you don’t own scissors or a razor.

ONIONTOTING: The act of tying an onion to one’s belt, which was the style at the time …