Sarah Stodola

The Resorts of Slim Aarons, Then and Now They've proven more enduring than I expected

Revisiting the resorts of Slim Aarons
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She's been counted out before. Now, Lindsey Vonn is chasing one last Olympic dream. Lindsey Vonn was on the precipice of a cinematic comeback at the 2026 Winter Olympics. That is, until she crashed in a World Cup downhill race on Jan. 30, just a week before the Games.

I love the Olympics. Love it. (The way you love family, which is to say, despite all its flaws.) I’m doing quite a lot of reporting on the Winter Games starting this weekend, and first up got to interview Lindsey Vonn for this Yahoo News profile. So fun. www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/ar...

In Praise of the Second Prettiest Places My best travel tip going into 2026.

Regarding the 1.5 billion international travelers you're up against: You can't beat 'em, but don't join 'em. That's my travel advice for 2026.
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Is Travel Journalism Finally Taking Its Subject Seriously? Waking up from the dream vacation...

Is travel journalism finally taking its subject seriously?

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This Is Just the Internet Now The slop is winning.

“Beginning around November 2024, the internet experienced a slop tipping point, in which the quantity of AI-generated articles being published on the web surpassed the quantity of articles written by humans.”

www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...

Mayor Adams’ Dangerous Ballot Measures, and Why You Should Vote NO in November YouTube video by Village Preservation

As usual, the wording of the measures on the NYC ballot in November obscures their true intent.
youtu.be/G-2pDljCfeI?...

​​Trump Tried to Kill the Infrastructure Law. Now He’s Getting Credit for Its Projects.

Trump's claiming credit, not “getting” it. Biden didn’t get credit either, although he ushered the law in. I’m not sure there’s credit to be got from achievements in government that aren’t performative (and this largely explains why our govmt functions so poorly).

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/07/u...

The Federal Government Is Coming for Your Beach Vacation The place we go to forget all of our problems is becoming one of them.

From a lot of directions. flung.substack.com/p/the-federa...

Rethink - Rethink... summer holidays - BBC Sounds In an age of climate change and over-tourism, what's the future for our summer holidays?

Check me out in this feature on BBC Radio 4 looking at the changing nature of the summer holiday thanks to overtourism and climate change. www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Is Trump All In on Biden’s Transportation Agenda? A DOT press release shows that beyond the distracting claims and hyperbole, Trump's administration is piggy-backing on many of his predecessor's accomplishments.

When a recent press release from the Department of Transportation landed in my inbox, I read between the childish insults and flat-out fantasies to see that something really interesting is happening...

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Republicans want to ban pets from domestic violence shelters The budget proposal is the Trump administration's latest attack on services supporting abuse survivors.

Tucked inside the 1,200-page appendix to the White House’s budget request to Congress is a proposal to eliminate a grant program that provides domestic violence shelters with money to support survivors’ pets.

So yeah, Republicans want to ban survivors' pets from domestic violence shelters.

Republicans Trying to Control Indiana University Meet Little Resistance

My college decision sure would be different if I were making it today: www.nytimes.com/2025/06/05/u...

Next Stop: Rancho Cucamonga! As Brightline advances its $12 billion plan to link Southern California and Las Vegas with bullet trains, this LA suburb sees a shot at urban reinvention.

"There’s no precedent in the United States for this," said Matt Burris, [the] deputy city manager.

My latest reporting for Bloomberg CityLab on Rancho Cucamonga's transformation thanks to high-speed rail: www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...

How delightful for Rancho Cucamonga that they are taking up the chance to rebuild themselves for transit as the western terminus of the bullet train to Las Vegas. Great story by @sstodola.bsky.social ‬ www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...

Something Is Going on at Amtrak On the prospect of privatization and crony capitalism

I'm seeing some themes in the Trump Administration's dealings with Amtrak.

Space Tourism: Katy Perry Did It for the Gram What a short, strange press trip it's been.

Space tourism works just like all other tourism...

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This piece is filled with so much care in policy-making.

e.g. Collection trucks small enough to pass through ancient, narrow streets arrive before most are awake—except on glass collection day. They arrive later to avoid waking residents with the inevitable clatter of glass dumped from bins.

My experience with it in Italy has been truly eye-opening, not only in helping me understand what it actually takes to have robust recycling, but how doable it is once a community is committed to it.

How Italy got its citizens — and me — to adopt a rigorous recycling scheme Italy has become a global leader in recycling, in part by relying on households to do a lot of the work.

Learn household recycling in Italy and you'll understand why rates in the US are so low...
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After that 11-minute space travel junket I’m no longer convinced that the world’s problems would be solved if only women ruled it.

I think this far into the game, it’s fair to say I will never know how to spell “bureau.”

Headed to El Salvador to meet with government officials and discuss return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia YouTube video by Senator Chris Van Hollen

I’m about to board my flight to El Salvador, where I hope to meet with senior government officials to discuss the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.

I also hope to see Kilmar and check on his condition — and remind him that we won’t stop fighting until he’s home.

What Is a Billionaire's Triangle? Hint: It both doesn't exist and is taking over South Florida's shoreline.

It's got everything: tragedy, glamour, gaslighting, and even a few billionaires on the next island over.

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Harvard has set an example for other higher-ed institutions - rejecting an unlawful and ham-handed attempt to stifle academic freedom, while taking steps to make sure students can benefit from an environment of intellectual inquiry, rigorous debate and mutual respect. Let’s hope others follow suit.

London to Paris and Milan? New plans for long-distance trains from St Pancras The announcement is the latest to boost hopes of a major breakthrough in cross-Channel rail travel

A high-speed train from London to Milan is now in the works, as Europe continues its project to make rail the preferred mode of transportation over air travel.
www.standard.co.uk/news/transpo...

Opinion | The Rise and Fall of Elon Musk His belief that liberal democracy has failed and that technologists should lead can be traced to the unusual life of his grandfather.

This is astonishingly instructive.
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/04/o...

Also because they are a simple blunt instrument lacking in nuance, that he can get his head around.

He likes tariffs because he can impose them unilaterally.

I'm supporting today's day of action by @societyofauthors.bsky.social

#DotheWriteThing

We love the beach today because of this early 19th century painting And you can view it this spring at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

We didn't always love the beach. This painting helped change that.
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