5-4-3-2-1: Dr Rachie, rent is a scam, & karma is a cat

#4 in my cultural-roundup-meets-personal-diary series

Nov 01, 2022

Whew, it’s been a while. But I’m back with the 5-4-3-2-1 after an unexpected hiatus. Since I last posted, Britain lost a queen and gained a king (not to mention, had two Prime Ministers resign and a third one instated), Biden forgave up to 20k per person in student loans (not nearly enough), Max Verstappen won the F1 World Championship (boo, this is a #TeamLewisHamilton safe space), and Taylor Swift dropped a new album (it’s me, hi, I’m the problem it’s me.)

In my own life, a lot has changed, too. Without further ado, here’s the latest installment of the 5-4-3-2-1, my personal-diary-meets-cultural-roundup from the last few months (!).

In the last few months…

5 major life events that happened (aka why I briefly ghosted you):

I graduated from my DPhil (PhD) in anthropology. This means you can now officially call me Dr Rachie. It also means that I’m no longer a student, and I’m having a mild identity crisis, etc etc. Of course, I had to take photos in my Lewis Hamilton hat.
Wearing *the* Oxford DPhil gown after my graduation ceremony.
And now that I’m qualified to be a proper academic, I’ve left academia. When I’m feeling dramatic, you might hear me say that I quit my job, but the truth is that I had an option to continue my postdoc at Oxford, and I chose to leave at the conclusion of my 12-month contract. Saying no was a proud moment. Mostly this means that I’m finally taking time to recover from the doctorate, and I’m also in one of those deep life-questioning phases.
Taking a post-PhD rest to prevent my villain era.
I went to Vienna on my Austrian passport for the first time. I recently gained Austrian citizenship through Jewish descent (my Jewish grandma was born in Vienna and fled to New York as a child, c. 1939). It was a fairly introspective trip (I have a complicated relationship with my Jewish heritage, but I suppose that’s part of what it means to be a repatriated European Jew-ish person), but we managed to sample some local delicacies (including rugelach from the Jewish bakery!) and enjoy some rooftop cinema (great location, mediocre film—the new West Side Story).
Chocolate rugelach from Bäckerei Ohel, Vienna.
I got Covid, presumably from flying. After spending three days in Vienna, my partner and I traveled to Budapest, where I promptly woke up with a terrible fever and aches. I spent our entire Budapest holiday recovering in my partner’s childhood bedroom, and I’m really not keen to repeat the experience. Consider this a reminder to get your booster!
We moved out of Oxford. We haven’t settled on a new place yet (it’s job-dependent), so we’re currently pet sitting and traveling around while we’re not tied to a flat or a job. We started out in London, now we’re in France, and in a few weeks, we’ll be in Surrey. Depending on my mood, you’ll either hear that I’m on the adventure of my life or that I’m completely lost and directionless.

4 things I’ve learned while staying in other people’s homes (aka damn, how did I not know about this before?):

Frozen paratha. Specifically, the Sahana paratha you can order for Tesco delivery (get the multipack). Put them on a pan, no oil or anything, and they’re good to go in minutes. They’re an easy (and tasty af) alternative to fresh bread or rice when you’re can’t be bothered.
An electric drying rack for clothes. How did I not know these existed? Our clothes never dry properly in the UK, barring the few weeks summer, so this revelation has been a godsend. No more mildewy t-shirts, thx.
Solar-powered jar lights. You know those cute mason jars you might put fairy lights or a candle in? Yeah, those, except solar powered. Admittedly, these might work better in the South of France—where we are now—than in England, but still.
An approach to communal cooking where the people (or person) who cook also do the cleaning. The idea is that when it’s your night off duty, you’re properly taken care of and able to spend the whole evening relaxing and being treated. It’s counterintuitive to my normal approach to sharing responsibilities, but you end up with more time to rest this way.

3 recommendations I’ve made to friends IRL:

Upstream (a docu podcast), especially the episode, ‘Fully automated luxury communism.’ It’s a conversation that assumes some knowledge/familiarity with political terminology, but I can’t remember the last time I felt so hopeful about creating other ways of living and organizing society. One idea that stuck with me is that utopia isn’t impossible; in fact, some version of it already exists. The problem is that it only exists for a small handful of people. So, how can we open that enclave so we can all experience that utopia—a place where time is ours, where there is an abundance of goods, and where we can all luxuriate in nature and in our relationships?
This baked gnocchi recipe with mushrooms and spinach, which went over well when we cooked for friends recently. Chuck everything on a pan, whip up some mustard-butter sauce, and you’re good to go!
Lewis Hamilton’s cover story for Vanity Fair (September issue). As someone who keeps my deepest desires close to my chest, I love that he’s not afraid to say what he wants, how badly he wants it, and to wear his sincerity on his sleeve. That kind of vulnerability and earnestness is a virtue, one I’m learning to lean into. Also, the photography alone is worth a click.
I can’t remember the least time I bought a hard copy of a magazine that wasn’t because I was bored at an airport!