Sunday Smörgåsbord #050
Sacred Mayan sites, unsolved mysteries, and a really great hat. Plus: Sunday Smörg hits its half-century!
NB: [PW] signifies a paywall, though some providers allow you to read a set number of articles for free.
Hi friends, and welcome to the - gasp - fiftieth edition of Sunday Smörgåsbord.*
I started Scrambled Eggs as an outlet for my creativity, but also to capture the multitude of interests I have, so it was only right that the Sunday Smörgåsbord became the perfect analogy for a weekly round-up. A little bit of this, a little of that, a touch of the gourmet served alongside a guilty pleasure.
I can’t believe I’ve managed to keep a simple culture diary going (let alone a weekly Substack writing habit), but I think the secret is in the fact it’s always so fun for me to write. I hope you enjoy it too and are introduced to new entertainment, ideas or publications through it.
To celebrate hitting fifty editions, I’m offering 20% off paid membership to Scrambled Eggs. Whilst the Sunday Smörgåsbord will remain free, forever, the paid option allows you to access all my archives and the occasional paid-only posts.
If supporting me this way is a stretch right now, I’d love it if you could share or restack your favourite Sunday Smorgasbord (or other Scrambled Eggs article) with your network, to help me reach more readers.
And finally thank you again for being part of this little community - I am so thrilled to have you here.
Emma x
*I spent last weekend convinced I had mis-ordered my Smorgs, only to discover today I was right all along. Must be all the Deet I’m breathing in right now…
🍳 Recent servings, in case you missed them…
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📰 Features & Podcasts
‘UK tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch among missing in Sicily yacht sinking’, The Guardian. I’ve not been reading much news whilst away but I watched the events of the Bayesian shipwreck unfold in horror this past week, and I was genuinely shocked to see that those on board were Mike Lynch, his eighteen-year old daughter, Hannah, and others who had supported him during his twelve-year legal battle. I was so shocked because it only seemed like yesterday that I’d read this Times interview with Lynch about his hopes and dreams for his new life after twelve years spent fighting fraud charges in the USA - and when I checked the date today, it was indeed only written seven weeks ago. Even more eerily, his co-defendant was also killed in a road accident the same weekend: two millionaires killed in a billion-to-one-chance kind of incident.
‘Porticello, the quiet fishing village where yacht tragedy has awakened grief’, The Times [PW]. Finally on this topic, I found this article about the inhabitants of Porticello and their culture around fishing very moving. The number of people killed at sea is higher than you may think, and the number of waterspouts is rising, thanks to increasing sea temperatures. Every year the village holds a memorial service and procession dedicated to those who have been taken too soon by the sea.
‘What marketing can teach devs about API strategy’, Net API notes. And now for something entirely different. I wrote this summer series post for Matthew Reinbold’s summer series, one of the experts in our space. On the surface, t might not overlap much with the interests of this group, but really it’s about how to get buy-in for your ideas from others in your organisation, particularly with your Board members. If you do get chance to read it, I’d love to know what you think.
🎨 Arts, Culture & Entertainment
Right now I am on my annual summer holiday so inhaling as many novels as I possibly can (thank you to everyone who sent me recommendations on this Summer Reads post). I’ll do a round-up of all the books I read sometime in September.
Unsolved Mysteries, Series 4 (Netflix). The perfect show to watch on a long bus ride (or five), the latest series of this reboot came just at the right time. As regular readers of this column will know I am a sucker for a mystery, even going down the conspiracy theme rabbit hole at times for the sheer drama of them. Each episode covers a different mystery, each unsolved, although some of them seem closer to tying up than others. They can also be more darkly comic than you might expect, episode 3 on ‘The Severed Head’ had a rural policeman fixated on the Satanic Panic and a man who kept his dead dog in the freezer. On watching every episode I immediately google ‘[Episode Name] Reddit’ and to this day I have never been disappointed.
Murdle, G.T. Karber (Book). Continuing a theme… The Murdle puzzle books are a re-imagining of the classic logic puzzles I used to be bought as a kid to give my parents some much-needed peace on summer holidays in Bournemouth. Except back then the theme was more ‘Sally, Tom and Veejay are at the sweet shop’ over ‘Dr. Biggins has been murdered in a country house’. I’d fly through these as a kid, but thanks to the last fifteen years of smartphones my brain has basically disintegrated and I’m finding them suddenly 10x harder. At least it will keep me quieter for longer…
Deserving a spot in the arts section, I bought this epic cap at Chichén Itzá. I love it so much, mostly because it has the words ‘Maravilla del Mundo’ on the front (Wonder of the World). Here I am wearing it as I guzzle a Chelada so big I had to lift it with two hands. I may have hit peak tourist. Needless to say my partner’s teenagers are not fans.
📺 What have you seen lately that’s worth a read, watch or listen? Let me know in the comments.
🍹 Lifestyle
I’ve been lucky enough to come to the Yucatan Peninsula three times and yet I’d never made it to Chichén Itzá… until now! Ever since I read Barbara Kingsolver’s The Lacuna I’ve been fascinated with visiting this sacred Mayan site. It didn’t disappoint (and if you’ve not read the book, based on Kahlo’s time spent with Trotsky, you must). What I’ve never been able to determine is did Kahlo ever really go to Chichen Itzá? If you know please put me out my misery! Bucket list item truly ticked. And if that wasn’t enough, I also bought this great hat…
I’ve been loving lazy lunches of aguachile and totopos (tortilla chips), eating three in my first two days. Aguachile combines three of my favourite things together: prawns, lime juice, and red onion, along with avocado and plenty of coriander if you plump for the verde version (green). It’s so fresh, tangy and - yes, if like us you get too cocky and ask for medium spice, it can also clean your sinuses out good and proper. If you want to try making it at home, I found this authentic-looking recipe, just make sure you use good quality prawns. Oh my god just looking at that makes me want another one.
After a long day of travel we arrived in Caye Caulker yesterday afternoon and the vibe is a million miles away from Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula even after just a two-hour boat ride across the border. We truly feel like we are in the Caribbean now: there are no cars (and only two ATMs), the roads are essentially tracks in the sand, fresh lobsters are on the BBQ on every block, and the local drink is called the Panty Ripper (and yes, I’ve already had two). It’s a delicious mix of white coconut rum and pineapple juice, served on the rocks with a maraschino cherry and a splash of grenadine. One sip and I was nineteen again, drinking malibu and coke at Oceana nightclub.
The downside of ten days in the tropical heat is that we are covered in mosquito and sandfly bites to show for it. I think the main soundtrack to this part of the holiday might be the sound of each of us scratching our ankles maniacally. So thank God for insect repellant. As well as the usual Boots and Jungle Repellants, we’ve been testing these citronella bracelets to save slathering ourselves in Deet. Unfortunately, I don’t think they stop the sandflies. Any tips, please send in the comments, we still have another 7 days here!
💌 Substacks
‘A Nomad Life is not what you really want’ - Freedom Focus
I’ve read a few articles recently talking about the downsides to living a more nomadic life, and all have struck a chord, this one especially. In it Caterina writes about the tendency for both sides (nomads and non-nomads) to see the other side of the fence as a little greener - a really important view which I don’t think gets covered enough.
Having lived abroad (with some of that time spent more nomadically), I’ve definitely heard those comments of ‘you’re so lucky to do that’, which I always felt amusing, as though I agree privilege plays no small part - it’s also an active choice, which more people could choose. Equally I’ve felt the flip side of that choice - the one that came with a lot of mental load and the eventual desire for a living room, if nothing else!
That’s it for this week. I hope you find something in this list that sparks joy or curiosity.
If you’ve got any recommendations on articles, podcasts, Substacks or shows for me to dive into, please drop them in the comments. Until next time!
❤️ Thank you for reading. If you liked this post don’t forget to hit the heart to let me know and help others find my writing.
📮 And if you’re not yet subscribed, all editions of Sunday Smörgåsbord are free forever. Sign up for free and get next week’s in your inbox.
Thanks so much for mentioning my article, Emma! Also, I didn't know aguachile but something tells me it's gonna be my new obsession. It sounds heavenly! 🤤
You could write travel books! What a great piece. It made me want to go.