I always felt brunch was coded upscale because it’s basically a slower more expensive breakfast. But it’s also a luxury attainable for a lot of people who can’t afford other luxuries in terms of time and cost. Why begrudge that, scolds?
And yes it would be nice if we weren’t suffering a fascist takeover where people who committed no crimes are literally being kidnapped by masked thugs and shipped off to foreign prisons without due process, and people who now are protesting could instead enjoy their weekends not thinking about politics. Being a scold who criticizes fellow protesters because you think they only protest when things get bad enough just tells us you’re no fun at parties which you’d probably take as a compliment because who can enjoy a beer and conversation when there’s so much suffering in the world and allies to alienate with your sense of moral superiority?
If someone can't appreciate sleeping in, then sauntering off to eat some birria short rib benedict with breakfast potatoes and a michelada, they have no soul.
Great piece, Stephen. I saw that picture of the lady with the sign about brunch, and thought, "Hell, yes! With President Harris, things wouldn't be perfect, but the president wouldn't be at war with her own country, and we all could enjoy normal things."
I've never thought of brunch as just a woman thing, but what do I know? I am just a 64 year old white woman who enjoys brunch every now and then.
On a deeper level, this is about finding joy in the midst of tragedy. Maybe that is humanity's biggest strength - being joyful even when things go to shit, and that is how we survive.
How can you enjoy brunch when bad things are happening somewhere in the world?!?! This is why I eat nothing but gruel and sleep on a granite slab and devote my energies to alienating people with my sense of superiority.
Assholes who hate women will consider brunch frivolous. Some people can't stand women enjoying themselves. As my roommate says, women often have the better snacks and if you don't like good food that sounds like a YOU problem.
People are too dumb to understand that the sign simply means we wouldn’t be warring. Brunch is a peaceful, happy thing. Also if Kamala were president, we would be able to afford brunch.
*“I must again stress that there is no shame in voting for the presidential candidate who you believe will let you eat brunch in peace.”*
I had no idea that a protest sign begat a War on Brunch. I saw this sign also here at the No Kings protest, and it elicited smiles and nods, and in fact when the protest was over, my pals and I gravitated toward a bistro on the market square and joyfully consumed beer and brunchy stuff, including quiche, the quintessential brunch food that’s also “coded as a feminine activity.” For some reason, it didn’t occur to us that we were luxuriating in white privileged woman behavior. We just thought we were celebrating a good day while one was available.
*“If your political ideology promotes sustained misery as a Platonic ideal, don’t expect much support from normal people.”*
👆This right here. As John Lennon put it: “If you go carryin’ pictures of Chairman Mao/You ain’t gonna make it with anyone anyhow.”
Thank you, Stephen. This is one of your very best. Also, I love the Portlandia clip! That series was hilarious.
At this point I tell my friends, the ones who didn't inflict the pricktator on us, to prioritize joy and then do their best to survive so that we can work to claw back power and freedom. Not all of us will after all, with the inevitable calamities you get from an ambitiously incompetent maladministration.
I hooked up with a friend one night, and the next day he took me out to brunch....his idea. Good food, great view while sitting outside overlooking the city of Denver. This is where we are, and for me, I do try to focus on the good things, and the joy.
"If your political ideology promotes sustained misery as a Platonic ideal, don’t expect much support from normal people." Yeah, they are creepy and weird.
I also think those males are deliberately misunderstanding or misstating in order to police females for speaking out. The idea that women would not want to put up with their creepy weirdness, would not want to be with them, would have the ability not just to speak up or speak out, but control their own lives and walk away from the patriarchy? Scares them so, so, so much. Who is going to tell them they are such special bois? Who's going to clean up after them and their messes? Hey--where are you going?!?
Right-wing MAGAnutds and incels are very good at finding SOMETHING wrong with anything a woman says (or writes on a sign.) It's what they do ... indeed, it seems to be what they live for.
Every month for almost five years, five gentlemen and I had "gay brunch" at Zell's. Because we ran our own businesses, we avoided weekend brunch lines (which were Portlandia stupid and after living my life standing on line in New York City, I vowed I would never, ever in Portland), but we definitely loved eating and caffeinating (again, we had our own businesses to run later that day) our way through a couple of hours solving world problems under Bush 2.0. Eventually, half of us moved away from Portland and our regular brunches went by the wayside, but they remain fondly remembered by all.
Thank you Stephen, well written. They don't quite understand why someone might try to find some happiness under the current nightmare of Trump. To me it is how to stay sane. We can do both, fight and be angry AND have brunch or my particular thing, watch a movie with friends. And if as many doomers believe the concentration camps are a short time away at least I had some delicious eggs benedict and a mimosa after a Saturday night watching Jumanji before it all goes away.
I always felt brunch was coded upscale because it’s basically a slower more expensive breakfast. But it’s also a luxury attainable for a lot of people who can’t afford other luxuries in terms of time and cost. Why begrudge that, scolds?
And yes it would be nice if we weren’t suffering a fascist takeover where people who committed no crimes are literally being kidnapped by masked thugs and shipped off to foreign prisons without due process, and people who now are protesting could instead enjoy their weekends not thinking about politics. Being a scold who criticizes fellow protesters because you think they only protest when things get bad enough just tells us you’re no fun at parties which you’d probably take as a compliment because who can enjoy a beer and conversation when there’s so much suffering in the world and allies to alienate with your sense of moral superiority?
If someone can't appreciate sleeping in, then sauntering off to eat some birria short rib benedict with breakfast potatoes and a michelada, they have no soul.
my kind of brunch! 🍻🌮
And for us 9 to 5ers, brunch on weekends is the only time brunch IS possible. Its the one time we can ape the luxuries of the luxury class...
I approve of the use of the 𝘴𝘶𝘣𝘫𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 in the cardboard sign.
Great piece, Stephen. I saw that picture of the lady with the sign about brunch, and thought, "Hell, yes! With President Harris, things wouldn't be perfect, but the president wouldn't be at war with her own country, and we all could enjoy normal things."
I've never thought of brunch as just a woman thing, but what do I know? I am just a 64 year old white woman who enjoys brunch every now and then.
On a deeper level, this is about finding joy in the midst of tragedy. Maybe that is humanity's biggest strength - being joyful even when things go to shit, and that is how we survive.
How can you enjoy brunch when bad things are happening somewhere in the world?!?! This is why I eat nothing but gruel and sleep on a granite slab and devote my energies to alienating people with my sense of superiority.
LOL!
These dour leftists haven't read their Emma Goldman. And forget why the socialist emblem is a rose.
Assholes who hate women will consider brunch frivolous. Some people can't stand women enjoying themselves. As my roommate says, women often have the better snacks and if you don't like good food that sounds like a YOU problem.
People are too dumb to understand that the sign simply means we wouldn’t be warring. Brunch is a peaceful, happy thing. Also if Kamala were president, we would be able to afford brunch.
*“I must again stress that there is no shame in voting for the presidential candidate who you believe will let you eat brunch in peace.”*
I had no idea that a protest sign begat a War on Brunch. I saw this sign also here at the No Kings protest, and it elicited smiles and nods, and in fact when the protest was over, my pals and I gravitated toward a bistro on the market square and joyfully consumed beer and brunchy stuff, including quiche, the quintessential brunch food that’s also “coded as a feminine activity.” For some reason, it didn’t occur to us that we were luxuriating in white privileged woman behavior. We just thought we were celebrating a good day while one was available.
*“If your political ideology promotes sustained misery as a Platonic ideal, don’t expect much support from normal people.”*
👆This right here. As John Lennon put it: “If you go carryin’ pictures of Chairman Mao/You ain’t gonna make it with anyone anyhow.”
Thank you, Stephen. This is one of your very best. Also, I love the Portlandia clip! That series was hilarious.
At this point I tell my friends, the ones who didn't inflict the pricktator on us, to prioritize joy and then do their best to survive so that we can work to claw back power and freedom. Not all of us will after all, with the inevitable calamities you get from an ambitiously incompetent maladministration.
Thanks for this great article.
I hooked up with a friend one night, and the next day he took me out to brunch....his idea. Good food, great view while sitting outside overlooking the city of Denver. This is where we are, and for me, I do try to focus on the good things, and the joy.
"If your political ideology promotes sustained misery as a Platonic ideal, don’t expect much support from normal people." Yeah, they are creepy and weird.
I also think those males are deliberately misunderstanding or misstating in order to police females for speaking out. The idea that women would not want to put up with their creepy weirdness, would not want to be with them, would have the ability not just to speak up or speak out, but control their own lives and walk away from the patriarchy? Scares them so, so, so much. Who is going to tell them they are such special bois? Who's going to clean up after them and their messes? Hey--where are you going?!?
Right-wing MAGAnutds and incels are very good at finding SOMETHING wrong with anything a woman says (or writes on a sign.) It's what they do ... indeed, it seems to be what they live for.
Every month for almost five years, five gentlemen and I had "gay brunch" at Zell's. Because we ran our own businesses, we avoided weekend brunch lines (which were Portlandia stupid and after living my life standing on line in New York City, I vowed I would never, ever in Portland), but we definitely loved eating and caffeinating (again, we had our own businesses to run later that day) our way through a couple of hours solving world problems under Bush 2.0. Eventually, half of us moved away from Portland and our regular brunches went by the wayside, but they remain fondly remembered by all.
Thank you Stephen, well written. They don't quite understand why someone might try to find some happiness under the current nightmare of Trump. To me it is how to stay sane. We can do both, fight and be angry AND have brunch or my particular thing, watch a movie with friends. And if as many doomers believe the concentration camps are a short time away at least I had some delicious eggs benedict and a mimosa after a Saturday night watching Jumanji before it all goes away.
There is so much YES in this. Thank you.