The New Penn Station
A dialogue between two native New Yorkers, one of whom is seeing the Moynihan Train Hall for the first time. Plus recs: Ann Friedman on parasocial media, Carley Moseley on Colbert, and Sharon Lerner
I was in NYC for a show this week before taking a train up to Providence. The following is a verbatim text conversation between me and fellow native New Yorker
CHRIS: Bess, I am in Penn Station and I am shaken to my core
BESS: I know
CHRIS: What is this new NYC?
BESS: It’s Paris
CHRIS: I would eat here. I would eat in Penn Station.
BESS: You can! You can eat SUSHI!!
CHRIS: I honestly almost bought some but it was a step too far. I need time.
BESS: I don’t want to alarm you but it’s a beautiful destination.
CHRIS: I am already alarmed. It’s like if someone told me “actually we discovered arsenic is good for humans. We all take it as as supplement now.”
BESS: Penn Station is a little slice of paradise! Something I believe!
CHRIS: I hear the words and I see the reality and yet…
BESS: Prepare yourself for: the bathroom.
CHRIS: No. I won’t go. I’d have a full mental break. Which, actually, bring me back to the reality of a Penn Station I understand.
BESS: Go with a trained nurse. Your body, your choice, but know this: It took me two trips to Penn Station to walk into the bathroom (it’s in the ticketed area) and once I did… Let’s just say any other bathroom is a letdown. Nicest public bathroom in New York: Penn Station.
CHRIS: Bess, no. Please. We need you.
BESS: Best ambiance: Penn Station
CHRIS: Hold on. Come back.
BESS: Lovely place to wait and grab a bite to eat: Penn Station
CHRIS: Bess, you’re safe, we’re going to fix this.
BESS: If I were a billionaire, I might bar mitzvah my son in Penn Station.
CHRIS: Nooooooooooooo! Historically, this is the most anti-semitic sentence in the English language.
BESS: You’ll see. You’ll see. Nobody talks about this or you’d seem crazy. You can only talk about the new Penn Station with people who have seen new Penn Station.
END OF TEXTS
Pray for Bess. Pray for me. Pray for Penn Station.
My projects and upcoming events:
LIVE IN SAN FRANCISCO: Wrong Answers Only at The Independent - Sunday, June 30th at 7 p.m. Comedians Josh Sharp, Aparna Nancherla, Joanna Hausmann, and I try to understand the science of dark matter with Dr. Risa Wechsler. Details and tickets here
PODCAST: How to Be a Better Human (TED/PRX) - Nonette Royo is a human rights lawyer and environmental activist. She has been fighting for years to create a legal framework for indigenous people to own and control the land that they’ve lived on for generations. It’s a policy that isn’t just about justice, it’s also one of the most effective ways to fight climate change. Hear all about Royo’s inspiring work here (or wherever you get podcasts).
This week’s list
GREAT:
I’ve never met Ann Friedman in person but I’ve been reading her writing for years. I was at an event and I’m pretty sure I saw her once but I didn’t say anything. I wasn’t positive it was her but also, even it was her, it felt so odd to say “Hey! I read everything you write and I know a lot about you and I think you’re great but you know nothing about me. I’m a total stranger to you, but you feel like my friend!” Yet, that’s how so many of our relationships with writers work these days. We don’t just know their books or essays, we also know facts about their lives, their friends, their families. In her newsletter this week, Ann does a better job unpacking this state of affairs than anything else I’ve read on the topic. It’s all about questions that used to only apply to celebrities and movie stars but now apply to millions of the rest of us: The Parasocial Looking Glass
FUNNY:
I have recommended Carley Moseley’s comedy several times before, but I won’t stop because she’s the best and funniest. This week, she had a fantastic bit on Colbert where she talked about being very pregnant, what it feels like, and why Stephen Colbert should give her anything she asks for. She’s so charming and this is a hilarious segment. Carley Moseley on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
INTERESTING:
Sharon Lerner is an award-winning investigative reporter who has been chasing down stories for years about the environmental and health repercussions of PFAS chemicals. But her most recent piece for Pro Publica looks at an element of the story that I’ve always wondered about. How is it possible that scientists working on dangerous research at large corporations don’t sound the alarm? What does it take for a person to stay silent on an issue that’s putting millions of people at risk of death and disease? Lerner’s story is both straightforward and breathtaking. Toxic Gaslighting: How 3M Executives Convinced a Scientist the Forever Chemicals She Found in Human Blood Were Safe
BONUS FOR PAYING SUBSCRIBERS:
Paying subscribers make Bright Spots possible! Subscribers get access to special features as well as all posts in the archive. They also get my undying gratitude (which never dies). It’s never too late to join them!
That's it for this week. Thanks for reading! Please share Bright Spots with anyone you think might enjoy it.
I don’t want to alarm you, but it’s a beautiful destination,
Chris Duffy
This has been Bright Spots, a newsletter.
…wait, who are you?
I'm Chris Duffy, a comedian, TV writer, podcast host, and both a former fifth grade teacher and a former fifth grade student. I’m currently writing a nonfiction book about humor for Doubleday.
Wow, amazing article on PFAS/PFOS. Horrible to think of how the weight of it exceeds that of the Titanic. Can’t they stop making stuff with it already?