Collections for Your Pocket

Curated guides to the best of the web

Pocket’s Top Stories of September 2023

Why “microwave-safe” is a lie, the airlines coming for your miles, and how to be your own best health advocate in a doctor’s office.

How Schools Across the Country Are Thinking Outside the Classroom

From investing in inter-generational mentorships to leveraging joy to boost test scores, schools are finding new ways to better serve their students—and communities.

Why Everyone’s Talking About the Roman Empire

Breaking down the discourse around TikTok’s latest viral moment.

The Grown-Up’s Guide to Dealing With a (Grown-Up) Bully

Bullying doesn’t stop once you hit adulthood—it just happens more stealthily. Here’s how to respond when someone tries to make you feel small.

12 No-Fail Pumpkin Recipes That Aren’t Just Another Pie

From savory pumpkin hummus to pumpkin pecan polvorones, these fall-ready recipes are simple—without being basic.

The Juiciest, Most Gossipy Long Reads About—What Else?—Gossip

Exploring the origins of Page Six’s decades-long run, the forgotten gossip girl of the 1970s, and how the Hollywood strikes are fueling a new generation of hearsay.

Why Men Need Close Friendships—and How to Kick-Start Them

The loneliness epidemic has affected men the most. How can they pull themselves out—and together?

The Best Restaurant Ideas to Steal for Your Kitchen

The playlists, cocktails, and yes, recipes, to copy on your quest for the ultimate restaurant experience—at home.

How to Study More Effectively, No Matter What You’re Trying to Learn

The memorization hacks, note-taking skills, and mandatory brain breaks that will help you better retain information.

Does America Have a Gerontocracy Problem?

Exploring the politics of age and the fraught debate over what—if anything—should be done about Washington’s very old guard.

How to Get Through Your Day on No Sleep

So you had a terrible night’s sleep. Here’s a comprehensive guide to handling everything you can’t move and how to wriggle out of what you just can’t handle.

How to Cook Your Way Through Chaotic Weeks

The best meals and strategies for mastering the art of weeknight dinners.

Your Favorite Morning Drink Doesn’t Have to Be Coffee

Choose your own caffeine level adventure.

How to Survive Quitting Coffee

Skipping your morning caffeine fix doesn’t need to be as tough as you think it’ll be. Here’s advice to get through the (temporary) pain of it.

AI Keeps Getting Smarter. Who’s Training It?

Machine learning tools are built with massive amounts of human labor, including yours (and Stephen King’s).

How Nostalgia Conquered the Beauty World

Between the ultra-pink shades of Barbiemania and the ‘90s-inspired neutrals on makeup shelves everywhere, one thing is clear: what’s old is new again…and again, and again.

How to Lighten the Lunch-Packing Mental Load

Make-ahead ideas that don’t require hours of prep, a trick for preventing soggy sandwiches, and an argument for school lunch.

7 Ways to Enjoy Corn off the Cob

From sweet-heat chili corn pancakes to a miso butter corn and tomato pasta. Plus, your new favorite dessert.

These Laundry Hacks Will Make Your Life Easier

How to banish the gnarliest stains and gym clothes stink—plus, controversial takes on separating laundry and folding clothes.

What Are Our Accents Trying to Tell Us?

A tour of the stories our different voices tell.