Adrienne

“Working-class wages in the United States just about flatlined from 1979 to 2017. Over that thirty-seven years, the bottom 10 percent of earners saw a 4.1 percent rise in wages. Meanwhile, economic productivity rose 70 percent. Most of the reward for that productivity was scooped up by the top 5 percent of earners, who enjoyed a 69.3 percent rise in real wages. The top 0.1 percent increased their haul by over 343 percent.”
― Brian Alexander, The Hospital: Life, Death, and Dollars in a Small American Town

“The hiding moon lighting up a cataract of clouds.”
― Ross Gay, The Book of Delights: Essays

“Sepsis!” he says, befuddled. “Why would you have sepsis?” “I don’t know,” you say. “Because I have Google?”
― Kristin van Ogtrop, Did I Say That Out Loud?: Midlife Indignities and How to Survive Them

“Perhaps even more than he hated environmental laws, Menard hated labor unions. “The Manager’s income shall be automatically reduced by sixty percent (60%) of what it would have been if a union of any type is recognized within your particular operation during the term of this Agreement,” read an employment contract managers were required to sign. “If a union wins an election during this time, your income will automatically be reduced by sixty percent (60%).”
― Brian Alexander, The Hospital: Life, Death, and Dollars in a Small American Town