DOMAINS: The Sound of Silence

On winter nights, the white-noise app on my phone is tuned to Air Conditioner: a raspy, metallic whir that sounds like the mechanical noise that might echo deep inside the ductwork of a huge commercial building. (Among the app’s other offerings are Dishwasher Rinsing, Crowded Room and Vacuum Cleaner.) It lulls me to sleep nonetheless,…

Let the Fountain Pens Flow!

Image Scribble, scribble: the Pilot Metropolitan. Around 40 people had gathered on a recent weekday evening in SoHo at the Lamy store, a 600-square-foot ground-floor showcase of contemporary Germanic pen design. Packed around a table with notepads and test pens, the group, ethnically diverse but mostly men, lacked the slick appearance you expect of customers…

What We Look Like Now

One of the most satisfying memes of the last few years celebrates macaroni and cheese. Someone on social media will write “I made him mac and cheese …” or some such and share a revolting photo of a gelatinous dish of gray noodle slop. Then everyone will freak out and pile on. Sometimes the post…

noted: Is ‘Vintage’ Clothing Over?

Image Kim Kardashian West wore vintage Versace to opening night of “The Cher Show.” But can you tell from what era?CreditJenny Anderson/Getty Images for The Cher Show Resale sites have come a long way since the dawn of eBay. The ever-rising secondhand site Depop is entirely app-based, functioning as a cross between Instagram and a…