The Daily Valet. - 4/12/21, Monday

✔️ Do You Need (or Want) a Hug?

Monday, April 12th Edition

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor in Chief of Valet.

Let’s hug it out.

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf

Today’s edition is presented by

Today’s Big Story

Will Hugs Return?

The pandemic forced us to stop hugging and shaking hands. Do we want that interpersonal touching back?

For the past year, we’ve been advised by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to avoid physical contact with anyone not in our immediate household in order to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. For those living alone, that meant the absence of physical touch.

We didn’t shake hands with colleagues, refrained from hugging friends on socially-distanced hangouts, and definitely no kissing or random hook-ups.

Of course, as more Americans get vaccinated and are able to abide by the latest CDC guidelines, we may soon return to shaking hands and hugging. Perhaps even a kiss on the cheek. But should we?

According to a recent NBC poll, 32% of respondents were looking forward to hugging and shaking hands again. While nearly 57% said that they’d prefer if we continued keeping our distance.

Me personally? I’m a hugger. But I know not everyone is. And this break has taken the pressure off of forced interactions and that has allowed many the time to reevaluate boundaries around physical touch, experts say. One told USA Today that we should shift the culture “to be more accepting of what feels acceptable to both people who are engaged in the greeting.”

Now you don’t have to be a reckless, promiscuous hugger—I swear, I’m not—to miss it. Hugging is one of those ordinary comforts—like drinking indoors and the gym—that we took for granted until it was taken away.

It turns out, there’s a scientific reason behind why many of us crave physical touch: According to the BBC, you actually get a reduction in stress from being touched by someone meaningful to you. But just as we learned to keep our distance, hopefully we’ve learned that there’s nothing wrong with asking permission before going in for the hug.

↦ QUoted: “I don’t think we should ever shake hands ever again.” - Dr. Anthony Fauci

Hideki Matsuyama Won the Masters

The 29-year-old is the first Japanese man to slip into that green jacket

In Sunday's final round of the 85th Masters at Augusta National, Hideki Matsuyama became the first Japanese man to take the top prize at one of golf's majors, beating Will Zalatoris by one shot. The victory ended his and his country's long wait for that beloved green jacket.

Matsuyama had the weight of a golf-obsessed, yet championship-deprived country hovering over every shot. And just when it looked like he was about to run away with this Masters, he flirted with a meltdown—putting a shot in the water and watching his five-shot lead shrink to two on the back nine.

The victory completed the rise of a 29-year-old who burst onto the scene at this very course a decade ago and became one of the sport's bright young talents and one of Asia's all-time greats.

Interestingly, little is known about Matsuyama's personal life—and that's the way he likes it. The attention he's about to receive could be both a blessing and a curse. But it was no doubt moving, especially at a time like this. As golf writer Tom Coyne said Sunday, “Hideki's caddie offering a bow to the golf course is packed with more poetry and poignancy than I can handle right now.”

↦ Meanwhile: Golf style has never been cooler. Our own Scott Woolf tells us all about it.

Partner

Feeling sluggish? Make sure you're feeding your brain to boost your focus and concentration.

Digital Payments are Here to Stay

But could apps like PayPal and Venmo make financial inequality worse?

Seemingly overnight, the pandemic sped up our transition to digital payments. Pretty much every store or restaurant quickly started accepting digital payments to reduce contact. Even in industries like healthcare, there was a surge in telehealth visits which again required online payments.

The share of U.S. consumers using two or more digital payment methods jumped to nearly 60% in 2020 from 45% the previous year, a McKinsey survey found. Globally, the digital payments market is expected to hit $6.7 trillion by 2023, up from about $4 trillion in 2019.

A recent Nerdwallet survey found that nearly 4 in 5 Americans use mobile payment apps, including Venmo, Cash App, Apple Pay and PayPal. And that more than 20% of Americans are either unbanked or underbanked: meaning they don't have bank accounts or rely on services like payday loans.

The drawbacks for those people is that these payment apps come with their own headaches: there's little or no customer service, and the transaction data aren’t included in their creditworthiness assessments, which only further excludes them from traditional financial services.

↦ FYI: Millennials (ages 24-39) are the generation most likely to use mobile payment apps—94% use them, compared to 87% of Gen Zers (ages 18-23).

More Movie Delays

We’re gonna have to wait awhile longer to watch Tom Cruise run real fast

Paramount has delayed the release dates for several major films, including Top Gun: Maverick, Mission: Impossible 7 and Dungeons & Dragons. In total, 10 films had their release dates shuffled, with three of them starring Tom Cruise.

Soon afterward, Universal slotted The Forever Purge for July 2, moving up from its July 9 slot to become the lone Independence Day weekend release. Sony’s Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway, which had been set for July 2, moved up two weeks to June 18.

Disney recently revealed that six movies scheduled for 2021 had been delayed, with two getting pushed back into 2022. The six movies are Black Widow (moves to July 9), Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (September 3), Free Guy (August 13), The King’s Man (December 22), Deep Water (January 14, 2022) and Death on the Nile (February 11, 2022).

And while we're going to have to wait ... this past weekend proved that the movies are coming back. This past weekend, Godzilla vs Kong took in $13.3 million and easily became the highest-grossing film since the pandemic began last March.

In Other News

↦ Iran Says Its Foes Targeted Nuclear Plant to Derail Potential Talks With U.S.

↦ ‘The Best of DMX’ Projected to Enter Billboard 200 Top 10

↦ How One Distiller Is Recreating a Lost American Whiskey

Other Things We’re Talking About Today

The stuff on our radar

Kid Cudi’s Kurt Cobain tribute

Bronco dealerships

Partner

Need Some Brain Food?

These focus-enhancing protein bars have become my go-to snack

It's a bit of a double-edged sword: when we're working as hard as we can to stay on top of work deadlines and the countless other things that demand our time and attention, often the area we most neglect is proper nutrition. When that slips, you not only feel more sluggish and soft, your brain doesn’t fire quite the same way either.

Hunger dulls your focus. You've no doubt noticed that before lunch or when that late-afternoon slump hits. We were introduced to IQBAR a few months ago and have quickly come to rely on them. From late night work sessions, before a big meeting or after a workout, I don't know when exactly they get to work, but I know I feel much better after eating one.

Unlike most packaged foods that sneak in a lot of unnecessary fillers and sugars, IQBARs are packed with plant-based protein and formulated with clean ingredients that are rich in compounds shown to benefit the brain and body. What's more, they're vegan and keto-friendly, too. Personally, I appreciate the flavor combinations, from Lemon Blueberry and Banana Nut to Peanut Butter Chip. Try all seven delicious IQBAR flavors with their Sampler Pack for $14.99.

↦ Explore: IQBAR protein bars

What We’re Buying

We really like these minimalist archival sneakers. This version of adidas' Continental 80 kicks is even more pared-back and yet stays true to its on-court roots. They've got the perfect old school style, while sizing details printed at the back adds an unconventional finishing touch. And bonus, the rubber cup-soles add a springy stability to each step. Grab them while they're on sale.

↦ Get It: $105 / $65 by adidas