As the temperature drops from sweltering to very-slightly-bracing, parents complain that schools’ uniform policies forbid their little darlings to wear warm clothes.
…a secondary school principal explained that schools adhere to institutional guidelines and administrative routines when scheduling seasonal uniform changes.
The educator noted that because the temperature drop arrived abruptly and was expected to last only a few days, institutions with fixed schedules found it challenging to alter dates on short notice.
Nonetheless, the principal pointed out that schools could exercise discretionary flexibility. Most campuses operate an approximate two-week grace period during seasonal transitions.
In the event of an unexpected chill, management could advance that adjustment window, allowing students to wear adequate protective layers without breaching school rules.
Fortunately, no children froze to death yesterday. I never realized how administratively challenging it is to tell a bunch of kids they can wear a sweater if they want. (Reminds me of a little girl in Japan born with naturally curly hair who had to straighten her locks to conform to the school rules.)
Some mid-week reading…
For foodies – Saveur talks to Clarissa Wei, author of ‘Made in Taiwan’…
As Wei explains, the specific joy of Taiwanese cooking is how it demonstrates the nation’s resistance against cultural and culinary homogenization. “It’s my strong opinion,” Wei writes, “that the food of a place can tell a story far more vividly than any textbook, and the food of Taiwan tells a tale of a country that has been subjected to multiple colonial influences but remains vibrant in its self-expression.”
Rolling Stone bids good riddance to ‘the chariot of the dumbest gods’…
…how could we ask for a better emblem of this stupid, violent, get-rich-quick era of America? The Cybertruck was a vehicle designed to the specifications of one man, who made himself the richest person in the world through a savvy combination of government kickbacks, stock manipulation, and viral marketing stunts. They were designed to look like a futuristic war-vehicle, manufactured in Texas at an absurdly named building called the Gigafactory, and equipped with bullet-proof side panels and doors. The Cybertruck was a car built for the paranoid fantasies that have gripped so much of a country destabilized by generations of economic theft…
…They were also absolutely dogshit cars.


I savagely attacked Cybertruck in terms of pedestrian safety, but no denying it’s a pretty fucking cool truck if you live somewhere with massive roads. Especially driving itself.
Funnier Elon Derangement news this week came from Scott Galloway, who said he was so mad at Elon he shit in his own Tesla before selling it. First time I read the story, I thought he was selling it to Elon (which didn’t make sense as a transaction – why would Elon buy a secondhand Tesla? – but was the only possible way shitting in a car to get back at Elon could make sense). But no, he was selling it to some random stranger. And somehow he thought he was doing a noble thing. EDS fucks up your brain…