Making Waves by Gabriella Angotti-Jones

This marvelous piece from The New York Times, largely a photo essay with just enough elaborative commentary to heighten the power and poignancy of the images, touches on the small and mutually devoted culture of Black women surfers. As the angry guardians of whiteness race to make their bigotry the law of the land, I find it gratifying to know that there is a broad, giving cohort of people who are refusing to be told what worlds they can and can be a part of, and developing spaces that are nurturing and kind.

A Covid Crucible for New Doctors by Emma Goldberg

The colossal healthcare challenge of the past year is starting to fade into recalibrated memories, the whole situation made rosier for many by the eagerness to return to “normal” when we should all be demanding a return to “better.” Luckily, I think a fleet of skilled journalists will expend a lot of their words in reminding us all of the strife. Emma Goldberg’s new book, Life on the Line: Young Doctors Come of Age in a Pandemic, specifically focuses on individual who graduated from medical school and entered the healthcare professions in the midst of the devastation caused by COVID-19 and the bungled — sabotaged, really — public health response to it. This excerpt is published by The New York Times.

And from the occasional Outside Viewing subtopic, a recent segment from CBS Sunday Morning about the largely inconsequential debate about what location represents the geographic center of North America. This piece is a delight, delivering twist upon twist.