survey results! snacking gently! instantly and naturally gay!

 Hey friends,

Hope you’re all hanging in there. We're not going to get into it here, but the news is obviously terrible and scary, and I hope you're taking care of yourselves the best you can.

First up, thanks so much to everyone who filled out our big patreon survey! We’ve already received nearly 400 responses in the last two days, which tbh is a way higher participation rate than I expected. Thank you thank you!!

(Speaking of which, nearly 300 of you said that you read/skim the newsletter most or all of the time. I don’t get open rates or any kind of analytic data from Patreon, so this is truly shocking and deeply flattering to me! I will try to be mindful of the fact that hundreds of people do actually read this as I’m writing future newsletters — but no promises lol.)

I’ve been peeking at y’alls responses as they come in, but Jules and I won’t be diving deep into your feedback for at least another couple of days. So if you’d like to participate, you’ve still got time! I’m told that it’s genuinely a very fun survey?? Find it here.

In production news, we’ve got the new season lineup like 85% set, so now we get to do the best part: lots of research and lots of chatting. One thing I’m excited about for next season is the number of guests whose field of expertise is something that I know absolutely nothing about. Get ready to either learn a lot or be frustrated with how little I know, depending on your familiarity with [redacted] and [redacted], hehe.

And in personal news, I’m in Brooklyn for the next two weeks, so the season is coming together a little bit slower than it would if I was at home working all the time. But y’all keep telling me to sometimes not work, so I’m giving it a try! (There is some work involved, of course… in fact, this trip also = IRL collab time with Producer Jules, which is very exciting!)

Thanks for being so sweet and understanding as always. If you have any hot Brooklyn recs — especially Queer Things— please let me know.

OK, here’s the part where I share some links.

• I really appreciated this remembrance of June Knightly, the woman murdered at a Justice for Amir Locke protest in Portland last month.
• I’ve been listening to a bunch of podcasts about Ukraine for obvious reasons. I’ve especially appreciated Today Explained’s explainer (apt!) on the history of Ukraine, and Vice News Reports’s collection of audio diaries from everyday Ukrainians just trying to survive walking their dogs.
• One more podcast! I loved (Gender Reveal alum!) Sam Sanders’ interview with Johnny Knoxville, especially the part where Johnny describes Jackass as “instantly and naturally gay” and gives a moving shoutout to (Gender Reveal alum!) Niko Stratis’s article about how Jackass made her trans. (I’m paraphrasing Niko but only slightly.)
• Here is my favorite red panda snacking gently.
• I swear someone told me about this car the other week and today I stumbled across it in person!

Photo ID: A car with a NY license plate that says NOT CIS.

That’s it for this week. Here’s your Weekly Rhubarb.

Photo ID: Ruby’s little face peeking out from under a tan comforter.

Xo,
Yr resident gender detective