Friendmendations 3.16.20

Hello, everyone. This post usually goes out early on Monday morning, but things have gotten pretty scary here in New York and I had to take some time to be extremely anxious. A lot of people are losing their jobs as everything shuts down.

There is very little that I can do in the face of the metaphorical dozens of on-fire garbage cans surrounding us all and I feel a bit silly suggesting this, but I can comp paid subscriptions for anyone going through financial hardship now. Email me at friendmendations-at-gmail and I’ll gladly sign you up. Believe me, I am aware that that is not particularly helpful!!!! But it’s what I can offer at this time. Maybe you need some distractions.

With the theme of distraction in mind, all the links today will be on the fluffy side. If you want links that deal more directly with the crisis, Go Fug Yourself’s weekly roundup had some good ones. But in this space, we’re gonna talk cupcakes and Jonas Brothers.

JoBros to JoMen

Allie Jones’ piece “No One Cared About the Jonas Brothers Until They Became Wife Guys” is rude but correct. It’s a little cynical — I certainly think these crazy kids are all genuinely in love with their respective spouses — but overall she’s right and she should say it!

(I stan Joephie, for what it’s worth, though their age difference concerns me mildly. I will allow Nickyanka but have no problem with their age difference. I have no feelings towards Danevin, but I admire Danielle for gamely showing up for music videos when the other JoWives are actual professional actresses and she is a hairdresser from Jersey who probably didn’t anticipate this turn of events.)

An upcoming Elvissance

Here’s a Rolling Stone piece on the Elvis Presley estate’s strategy for making Elvis popular and cool again. These tactics include an animate Netflix show “where a cartoon Elvis goes undercover as a crime-busting government spy.”

Laugh, why don’t ya?

Stephen Colbert’s giggly conversation with his good friend of many decades, Steve Carell, is joyous and will make you laugh out loud (especially part two, which is here!)

Marvel, why don’t ya?

The Romain Gavras-directed video for Jamie xx’s “Gosh,” shot in a Chinese city that has replicas of the Eiffel Tower and the Champs Élysées, is brilliant and will make you feel a sense of awe (especially when you watch the behind-the-scenes video, which is here!)

And finally, cupcakes

It’s…. uh… St. Patrick’s Day this week. I feel like a lot of people will forget that.

When I was in college, the comforting, un-hip bar that theater kids loved had a tradition of selling cheap cupcakes on St. Paddy’s. They were SO GOOD, especially after a night of drinking. I once talked to a bartender about them and found out that the cupcakes were originally baked by an employee who had since left, but who still came back every year to make dozens and dozens of these festive treats for the day.

I don’t live there anymore, so I make these dark chocolate Guinness cupcakes myself. That recipe has a Bailey’s cream cheese icing, but the cupcakes at the bar had Bailey’s buttercream, so that’s what I make. I use unsalted butter but add a pinch of salt myself — this recipe is a good guideline, but taste as you go and adjust the amounts of Bailey’s that makes you happy. Throw in a lil’ vanilla extract if you want.

Okay, that’s all. Please be good to each other. Be safe. Read up on the news so you know how seriously you should take this, and then stop reading the news so you don’t spiral. This is a good thread of recipes that can be made from canned and frozen vegetables. This is a very good comic.