There are many exciting elements of the new Shabazz Palaces album, the most noteworthy of which is that Ishmael Butler’s son is now also a famous musician. That’s a theme running throughout The Don of Diamond Dreams, and one that’s particularly pronounced on “Fast Learner,” where Lil Tracy appears in the music video. Bafflingly, Tracy doesn’t contribute to the album beyond sharing his likeness, so let’s all cross our fingers that father and son are isolating together and making a sweet family album to be released in 2022.
My favorite thing to share right now is this map of where people have defected from New York City, derived from changes in residential trash volume across neighborhoods. Based on where household garbage has dropped the most, we can now quantify what we already knew: rich people have, by and large, peaced out. Waste volumes are extraordinarily low in the Upper Everything Sides, as well as in the East Village, and on the other side of that coin, trash has increased in less affluent neighborhoods where people are staying home. What do you know.
Wherever the super wealthy are isolating, they’re now having to make some tough decisions (besides how many corporate employees to lay off or furlough): do they quarantine with their household staff or learn to do their own chores for the first time? In this truly hilarious WSJ feature, we meet very fancy people who are learning to do basic tasks such as replacing vacuum bags, cooking eggs, and watering plants. It’s tough stuff, I know, but what’s yuckier, touching your own trash or sharing space with people who’ve done it for you?
Assuming you’re pounding your own pavement, here’s an affordable way to do so in comfort: Atoms* sneakers are shockingly comfy, thanks to some cushiony soles and the precise fit that comes with quarter-sizes. They also have stretch laces so you can slip them on and off, because let’s face it, you’re not trying to touch your feet. Get yours here.
*Headquartered in the Brooklyn Navy Yard!