The Daily Valet. - 7/21/21, Wednesday
✔️ A Worker's Market
Wednesday, July 21st Edition
This newsletter has not been genetically modified.
Cory Ohlendorf, Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf
Today’s Big Story
A Worker’s Market?
A sharp rebound in hiring is widening opportunities and prompting employers to compete
You might’ve noticed all the “help wanted” signs everywhere. Workers have been leaving jobs in restaurants, bars and hotels at the highest rate in decades. Each month so far this year, around 5% of this massive workforce have called it quits. In May alone, that was 706,000 people.
And now, according to NPR, there are a staggering 1.2 million jobs unfilled in the service industry—right when customers are crushing through the doors, ready to eat, drink and finally socialize.
It turns out, working in the service industry during the coronavirus pandemic provided a wake-up call for a lot of people. And the difficulty in hiring has prompted a debate over the impact of generous federal unemployment benefits and the hospitality industry’s historically low wages.
To fill positions, major chains have been trumpeting higher wages: Chipotle, Olive Garden and McDonald’s are now promising entry-level pay between $11 and $17 an hour. Employers are paying people just to show up for interviews, adding signing bonuses and recruiting ever-younger workers on TikTok.
Something similar is happening all along the least-paid end of the labor market, reports the New York Times. Many employers have blamed expanded unemployment benefits for their troubles in filling gaping job vacancies. But employees have pivoted to new industries and launched their own businesses, even as millions of others were laid off because of the economic downturn.
And some of the changes brought about by the pandemic are creating new transition opportunities. The accelerated shift to online shopping may be a dire development for retail workers, but it is fueling demand for warehouse workers and delivery truck drivers.
↦ FYI: Recently, a restaurant in Massachusetts closed for a “Day of Kindness” after angry customers drove servers to tears.
Rethinking GMOs
Don’t fear them. The potential benefits have never been greater.
Genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, tend to have a poor reputation. Play a word association game with GMOs and people often think along the lines of gross mutations, unhealthy food, or simply danger.
But in reality, unless you're eating certified organic foods exclusively, you're probably consuming GMOs of some kind. In fact, nearly 94% of soybeans grown in the United States are genetically modified, as is more than 90% of all corn, canola and sugar beets—together covering roughly 170 million acres of cropland.
In recent years, many environmental groups have also quietly walked back their opposition as evidence has mounted that existing GMOs are both safe to eat and not inherently bad for the environment, reports Mic.
And some GMOs have been found to be even healthier than the standard run-of-the-mill fruits and vegetables. The indigo tomato, for example, was found to have twice the antioxidants and natural anti-inflammatory compounds of traditional tomatoes—while extending the life span of cancer-prone mice.
↦ FYI: GLP debunks 10 science-challenged ‘studies’ suggesting GMOs are harmful.
Museums Are Back
They’re better looking and smarter than ever
Frank Lloyd Wright's swirling, curling concrete Guggenheim Museum was one of the first museums to kick off the big dusty columns out front and embrace new and engaging architecture.
“In the past, museums were made to recall Greek temples and structures like the Pantheon in Rome,” one Harvard professor tells National Geographic. But these structures could be austere, intimidating, and overtly Eurocentric, so, says Del Real, “As society became more pluralistic, people began to demand different representations, and museum forms and imagery had to change.”
They have rounded up over a dozen of the world's most beautiful museums, which double as architectural marvels—from a building that tracks the sun to a donut-shaped cultural center.
And in Italy, a new data project could help curators understand which paintings and sculptures will be their biggest draws. Devices have been installed throughout exhibits that can calculate how long and how closely museum and gallery visitors observe a particular work of art. Yes, even when you're taking in culture, Big Brother is watching.
Bezos Goes to Space
And people had A LOT of thoughts ...
Jeff Bezos, the world's richest man, went to space and back Tuesday morning on an 11-minute, supersonic joy ride aboard the rocket and capsule system developed by his space company, Blue Origin.
Blue Origin opted for a traditional rocket design with boosters and a capsule that detached on landing. It reached an altitude of nearly 66 miles—about 10 miles higher than the Virgin Galactic flight last week.
After landing, Bezos thanked the people who let him do it. “I want to thank every Amazon employee, and every Amazon customer, because you guys paid for all this,” he said. No, really, he said that and lit up the internet.
Meanwhile, while the event served as an obvious ad for Blue Origin's space tourism business, InsideHook said it was also, unexpectedly, an ad for Rivian, the electric vehicle startup that Amazon has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in.
↦ Whoops: This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for evil supervillain kidnappers, and Jalopnik thinks they squandered it.
In Other News
Other Things We’re Talking About Today
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Bring Up the Rear
It’s time to get your ass in shape
There are vanity muscles and then there are functional muscles. One group gets all the attention, while the other does most of the real work. Big, round biceps and defined pecs? Vanity muscles. Strong quads or your entire core? Functional muscles.
ut there's one set of muscles that's a little of both—your glutes. That's right, your butt muscles. And they're often overlooked. Which leaves you with the sad, pancake-flat posterior of a middle-aged man. Look, booty training shouldn't just be for the ladies.
What you want is a rear view that's toned and strong, which not only makes you look better in your shorts, but will also help improve posture, movement and athletic performance. We spoke with celebrity trainer and strength and conditioning coach Michelle Lovitt—who has whipped such leading men as Jason Statham into shape—for some guidance and the exercises you need to know.
↦ Read: The three exercises to do and the necessary equipment to tone your glutes.
Staff Picks From Huckberry’s Annual Summer Sale
↑ Remember that one tee? The one you never took off because it was so damn comfortable? This shirt is that tee's upgrade ($36 / $30.98). A flattering fit and lightweight construction provide all the more reason to just live in this top all summer long.
↦ Want More? 6 of the best Huckberry summer sale picks
Today’s Deals
Expires 7/21
Expires 8/4
Ongoing Sale
↦ Want More? See all 35 sales
Morning Motto
Shortcuts are empty victories ...
↦ Follow: @terrapinstationers
That’s all for today...
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