Television is but a series of TikTok clips
Thinking of a title is the hardest part but subtitles come easy
This whole newsletter malarky is definitely getting easier to put together after a few week’s practise. I am now thinking of making this soFt LauNch permanent so that if anything stumbles across it, it will be a special thing? (No one is going to stumble across it.)
(The title has no relation to the subject, but maybe it will in the future?)
When you say “no whip” but really it’s whip
As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, I went to Starbucks when I was in Napier, only because it was Sunday morning and literally nothing else seemed to be open.
Maybe because it was the only place in the area that was open, it was super busy. And so I had to wait ages to get my order. And while I waited for me effing grande latte, I noticed that literally everyone else was getting a Frappuccino.
And ok, it was a hot summer’s day, but not only that, the Starbucks counter seemed to be set up to emphasise Frappuccinos over hot coffees.
I would guess this is because a) Frappuccinos have a higher profit margin (I think?) and b) they are Starbucks’ point of difference in New Zealand. Notoriously Starbucks couldn’t compete with New Zealand and Australia’s well entrenched cafe culture, but no one else does Frappuccinos like Starbucks — especially when the cool kids on TikTok are casually sipping their Starbies.
I was also one of only two customers who consumed their beverage in the store. (Again, a hot summer’s day — why would you even be indoors?)
There was something weirdly bleak about the Starbucks decor. The chain still feels rooted in the ‘90s, with the cosy coffeehouse vibe. The better cafe in Napier I went to was in the old post office, with exposed concrete and high ceilings and a very cool vibe.
Starbucks felt like an under-decorated room with a scattering of worn furniture.
But then, if most people are treating it like a to-go milkbar and not even venturing into the seating area, what does it matter?
Black sand will always be there for you
I like this photo. I took it recently on the footbridge that goes over to the Raglan Domain. On the left is the estuary waters, muddy from the recent dramatic weather. On the right is Raglan’s legendary black sand.
I once read that the reason why Raglan hasn’t become and obnoxious vacation spot, full of high-rise apartments and juice bars is because the black sand is a lot less appealing than the white sands of Mount Maunganui or that intensely golden sand that you get up north.
Instead Raglan is contently goth af with its sand of coastal misery.
Paying respects to our elders, even if we are older than they
The Super Bowl halftime show, it was pretty good, yeah. Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, Mary J Blige, Eminem, 50 Cent (that may be in a certain order performed a medley of their hits, spanning from 1999 to 2015 (or maybe even 1992 if you count the snippet of the hook from “Nuthin’ nut a ‘G’ Thang”).
It’s also the moment when Generation X and elder Millennials realise that they are no longer the youth. That this formerly rebellious and edgy music that your parents disliked is now the music that today’s parents happily listen to, feeling young and cool for a few minutes.
I made this comment on YouTube and just discovered it now has over 800 likes. One of the comments is from a guy expressing his desire to hear “country and rock music”. Dude, just give it a year or two. Machine Gun Kelly will probably end up getting the gig in five years.
(Also, Kendrik’s bit was amazing, especially the glorious wave of good vibe unleashed with the jazzy harmonies that open “Alright”. He needs to release some new music, when it suits.)
Here is the video, an abysmal grey rectangle because the NFL don’t like embedding. Go on, click it and watch it.
At some point in the future I want to write about the time in recent history when Swedish people stopped using the Swedish word for “you”. It was wild.