Weekend Reads: April Showers

Did you know Boston has a longstanding Syrian community that dates back as far as the mid 1800s? 🚨 History nerd alert🚨 The south end had a "little Syria" neighborhood that was lively and active until the inter-WW period when many moved to bigger homes in the burbs. That's why there's a Syrian grocery store next to the @formaggiosouthend just down the street from the abandoned Sahara Syrian restaurant. #boston

A post shared by Kaitlin McCafferty (@kzmccaff) on Apr 20, 2017 at 12:02pm PDT

GUYS IT  HAS BEEN A MONTH. I've been busy with school (yikes Statistics!), with work (spring always seems to be a madhouse), and generally just so much going on. Is it just me, or does April suck? (Possibly even more than the Yankees? ;))

Thank you, Man Repeller, for this sarcastic and amazing article that made me smile. And If I Were A Ballerina (via NYer) True confession: I got a Unicorn Frapuccino. (But I didn't like it.) This Elle article had me giggling about it. This Olive Garden date tweetstorm had me dying. The ending is perfect: Readers, I married him. :) (via Mashable) How to develop your wine skills (via COJ)

Jenna Lyons is leaving J Crew (via ManRepeller) Kirsten Gillibrand Is an Enthusiastic No, by Rebecca Traister (via NYMag) California Girls (via Vogue) Advice from an ex-Woman in the White House (via NYMag) The LA Times took a stand, and I love it. These necklaces are beautiful! Way to go, Dove (via AdWeek)

What Kabul, Afghanistan used to look like. "The Kabul in William Podlich's photographs is an almost unrecognizable place -- a bustling capital of nattily attired men and women, many wearing Western dress; modern cars; and green parks." A nighttime map of the world (via Kottke) How Biking can Save the World (via FastCo) A NY Waterfall road trip. Cool! (via Only in Your State)

Why do we love the music we heard as teenagers? (via Slate) Salon Etiquette (Violet Grey)  Ask your friend for help choosing your profile pic (via ManRepeller) Turning negative thinkers into positive ones. (via NYTs) Not sure why this made me tear up, but man, I hope all of my friends who are gay have experiences like this woman's when they come out to their parents. Though, now, I think it might be my friends giving that experience to their gay children. (via COJ)

A poem about science (via Brain Pickings) How to read a whole damn book every week (via GQ) A Golden Age of oral histories (via Kottke) Beautiful photographs of fog (via MyModernMet) The Banksy of grammar (via NPR) These little illustrations of convenience stores are so beautiful. (via Kottke)