Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! One of the first non-troversies I remember being exposed to in the pre-internet pop cultural space was the chatter around Whitney Houston’s pre-tape of the national anthem at the 1991 Super Bowl. Looking back, I’m not quite

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! Why yes, I have heard of “stocks.” A few weeks back I got a sales call from a wealth management consultant (a made-up job?) about the concept of 401ks (a made-up thing!). I didn’t know it was a

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! Last night I was looking up rental cabins with no internet service in hopes of taking myself on a writing retreat where I didn’t check Twitter every 6 to 12 minutes. Technically I can write things whilst checking

This and that: Opening this one up to the whole list. Let’s chat! The matter at hand: Y’all. It was not easy. It was not the way that any of us wanted it to be. It was not the way many of us thought it would be. So

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! I’ve never been to an inauguration mostly because I don’t like to stand around in the cold. This is the same reason that I went to one (1) Rockefeller Christmas Tree Lighting when I was a freshman

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi!' First things first, look at these two adorable videos of people with very expressive cats. It has nothing to do with the subject of this newsletter but I think you need to see it. > [https://twitter.com/

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! Let me tell you about the special kind of monster that publishing a book turned me into. So, first: I’ve always loved books; I’ve always loved bookstores; my vision of Heaven is a Scholastic Book Fair where

Well, it’s the last day of 2020 and you know what that means: it’s time to put all of my energy into thinking about one of the least important questions in a superhero movie. I am hearing rumors that there were perhaps some things that happened in 2020

I’ve been thinking a lot about the radio host Delilah after listening to a podcast about her show’s profound effect. I don’t think I ever called into Delilah but, growing up in the 80s and 90s I definitely did my fair share of song requesting, mixtape making,

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! When I was 7, I met my second nemesis. I do not know my second nemesis’s name, I barely remember anything about her save for our one contentious encounter, but I will spend the rest of my life

This is the Wednesday discussion thread. Normally, it will only come to paid subscribers, but I’m opening it to everyone until the end of the year. Let’s chat! Look, I am not trying to get into the discourse around Die Hard vis-a-vis whether it is a Christmas movie

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! This week: Dionne Warwick is the online oracle of our year; Pole worker scandals; and taking Flight on NPR. Let me tell you: I am in a state. As most of you know, I left ELLE.com this week

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! This week: chaos at the sequin factory and a farewell to ELLE.com Subscribe now [https://letter.rericthomas.com/subscribe] Having spent many decades thinking about it, I have come to the conclusion that there is no piece of

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! This week: A shockingly not-shocking White House Christmas Look, I don’t have a problem with the gingerbread house industrial complex; I just have a couple of very pointed questions. I would like to be a congressperson for one

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! This week: a meeting that should have been an email that should have been an ascertainment [https://bit.ly/3fLA07W]. My mother tells this story about my father’s father (Adelita’s husband, for those of you who read

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! This week: We get the tree we deserve [https://bit.ly/3kUoV5I], and once again I am shocked by true historical events from recent history on The Crown [https://bit.ly/3fq3DvG]. A couple days ago, I was searching

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! This week: Trump v. reality. [https://bit.ly/3luvGfs] Sundays, I’ve discovered, are when the crows descend on my house. Perhaps this sounds foreboding. That’s because it is foreboding. Sunday morning crows show up bright and early

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! This week: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!! Also, the Moonlight [https://bit.ly/36ftLVH] election, Trump locks himself [https://bit.ly/3588aiy] in White House, and everybody’s talking about someone named The Count [https://bit.ly/3p3gV5s]. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- OH HELLO HOW ARE

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! This week: Mariah Carey [https://bit.ly/3kNmsdQ] is patron saint of Not Yet Season and the Kardashians [https://bit.ly/3jLUspM] at their most relatable. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- LOCATE A BALLOT DROPBOX [https://www.vote.org/dropbox-locator/]VOTER PROTECTION HOTLINES

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! This week: the Moon [https://bit.ly/3dUd4Tf]: what does it want from us and why?; Maxine and the meme [https://bit.ly/2HBoWh0]; Chris-course takes over Hollywood [https://bit.ly/3kun5Jl]; and the last trip to Lovecraft Country

Hi! It's R. Eric Thomas. From the internet? Hi! This week: the real monster [https://bit.ly/3je3awG] in Lovecraft Country and the real monster [https://bit.ly/2T2enG9] on the debate stage. David and I celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary this week with dinner at home and