culture – Kassandra Komplex

When There’s a Voice

Published on February 21, 2021February 21, 2021 by kassandrakxLeave a comment

One of my pandemic accomplishments is the rather early completion of everything that Netflix (and the internet) has available in English. This forced me to explore French production, and I started with the series Call My Agent, or Dix Pour Cent. (Emily in Paris does not count as French TV even though they do speak French “Oh yes, I mean, oui” and have a cardboard Eiffel Tower as a backdrop.) I realised that not only does Dix Pour Cent keep me entertained, but I will be able to add another impressive entry on my list of sabbatical accomplishments: mastering an arsenal of French swearwords with zero effort on my part.

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February Odds And Ends

Published on February 7, 2021 by kassandrakx1 Comment

February has arrived and so it’s basically spring. I can tell, because my daily conversations with my barista have shifted from pre-sunrise, wintery grunts to half-excited exchanges on whether her bonsai tree is done hibernating or not yet.

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Live! Laugh! Love!

Published on January 27, 2021January 27, 2021 by kassandrakx2 Comments

A week ago we marvelled at the words “when the day comes we step out of the shade, aflame and unafraid“. Their author Amanda Gorman already stepped out aflame: as the latest model to have signed with IMG Models, as per the internet. I am not here to judge – the octogenarian author Joan Didion also did a spot of modelling as the face of Céline’s sunglasses in 2015. Times are tough for writers, and Gorman is very young, so she is wise to capitalise on her megawatt notoriety as much as she can. As the saying goes: poetry, but make it fashun.

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No Rain on Style Parade

Published on January 21, 2021January 25, 2021 by kassandrakxLeave a comment

Was it really just a couple of days ago that I complained about the momentary lack of sartorial entertainment? Oh well. Wednesday not only introduced to the world a slew of new style icons, but also brought back the lost art of laughing at regular political satire and memes. Also there was Bernie and yes, a new president was sworn in.

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Awards Season Reader

Published on January 18, 2021January 18, 2021 by kassandrakxLeave a comment

In normal times this would be when the rich and fabulous gather on far and away beaches to work on their tan for the awards season. Them, plus herds of paparazzi to immortalise the stars’ extraordinary moments. This year, alas, it’s only been Jennifer Lopez’ backside in Turks and Caicos that has perkily greeted me every morning as I open the internet.

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Women Who Walk

Published on January 11, 2021January 11, 2021 by kassandrakxLeave a comment

Depending a bit on where you live, it’s quite likely that the options for, well, doing anything except for corpsing on the couch are quite limited. There are, however, two things we can do even during this pestilence: walk, and read about walking (after you’ve exhausted your daily one hour outdoors exercise slot).

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