Greetings from LA

Queen Elizabeth II, Chef Reactions, Suzy Weiss

Good morning from Beverly Hills, land of spandex-clad ladies walking tiny dogs down Beverly Drive while yelling into their cellphones. But also? The palm trees arching at impossible angles, and the celestial blue of City Hall’s rotunda looking more Florentine than Angeleno. and a frankly very solid bagel with lox from Nate ‘n Al’s. I could not be happier, alas it’s a 36-hour stop before heading up to Portland, to report on the murder of Rachael Abraham, which I talk a little about here.

Sarah Hepola and I have a new episode of Smoke ‘Em If You Got ‘Em podcast up today, which includes a coda to Queen Elizabeth, who was alive yesterday when we taped but, hours later when we made the notes, had died. I realize people feel within their rights to express their dissatisfaction and sometimes hatred of the British monarchy and its history of colonialism. There was a time, in my early 20s and in love with a Native American, when I seethed over what part the Brits played in the genocide of this country’s Native population. But I fervently hope I would never have had it in me to express that rage at the moment of someone’s death, to consider whatever I had to say more important than offering people a moment of solace. There is opportunity, too, in not shivving people when they are down. Pollyanna, I know.

33. Go Ahead and Worry, Darling

A few more bits from the week you might dip into:

A new podcast called KILLED featured my story on serial killer John Wayne Gacy, how it came to be, and how it almost never saw the light of day.

I don’t spend much time on Tik Tok but I have absolutely fallen in love with Chef Reactions. Trust me.

@chefreactions#duet with @General ock bob L head L I N K in B I O 👀#chef #chefreactions #fyp

Tiktok failed to load.

Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser

The lengths to which some young people, and mostly young women, will go to to get attention from strangers online, attention that builds community and feels like love but whose cost is mobility and ability to thrive, is well and disturbingly documented by Suzy Weiss, in “Hurts So Good.” Let me know your thoughts.

I leave you with Boris Johnson explaining why Queen Elizabeth meant so much so many xx

Boris Johnson @BorisJohnson

She showed the world not just how to reign over a people, she showed the world how to give, how to love and how to serve. It was that indomitability, that humour, that work ethic, that sense of history which together made her Elizabeth the Great.