Inside Salon
Since you asked: An update on Cary Tennis
Surgery went well, his doctors are pleased -- and he'll have a lot to share about patience when he returns
I’ve gotten a lot of email from readers asking how Cary Tennis is doing, recovering from his surgery for sacral chordoma. (Enterprising folks are using the feedback form on our cover to send good wishes or plead for updates.) Readers who want regular updates should be following Norma Tennis’s great blog here. Meanwhile, I spoke to Cary on Tuesday afternoon, and the good news is, the surgery went well, the doctors are happy, and he’s doing as well as — maybe even better than — expected.
The less good news is: Well, as he was told to expect, it’s a tough recovery. He still can’t sit, so he’s lying down and, occasionally, walking around. (He made it to the beach this week.) He also had a less-than-pleasant surprise when he was discharged on Christmas Day, even though he’d been told to expect weeks of rehabilitation at a local hospital. He’ll share the details, but it seems that’s what happens when you do better than expected in our health system. He and Norma coped, but it was a rough couple of days.
He’s thinking about everyone and wanting to start the column up again, but it’s tough for a man in his position — literally. I told him to think less about the column and more about his comfort, and we’ll make it possible for him to come back as soon as he can. In the meantime, he’s coping. “Every day I’m getting stronger and walking a little farther,” he told me. “But I just have to be patient. I realized that’s my job right now, being patient.” I told him I’d make a donation in his patience bank if such a thing were possible (not that I have much to spare, so I’ll work on that, too).
The best thing? ”I’ve really loved hearing from people, cards, letters, e-mail,” he said. So keep the good wishes coming, and we’ll forward anything you send to Salon. Hoping, for all our sakes, he’ll be back writing soon.
Joan Walsh is Salon's editor at large. More Joan Walsh.
Welcome to Salon Studio
Our new video platform takes Salon’s fearless journalism and cultural content to a new dimension
Salon broke new ground nearly two decades ago when we launched one of the first “online magazines.” At the time, nobody knew what to make of this scrappy new site — and most predicted it wouldn’t last long. Salon has not only lasted, but thrived. Today, we’re embarking on another experiment with our first-ever video platform.
We want to capture the spirit of risk and exploration that permeated Salon back in those “Wild West” days of the mid-1990s. Salon Studio will feature original and curated videos ranging from political satire to musical performances to explorations of sexuality. Some of the productions will be highly polished, some of them will be raw and gritty — but we don’t want any of it to be predictable.
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Salon Gets a Makeover
Salon has always believed in not just truth, but beauty. Our original design back in 1995 – a clean, art deco look created by Salon’s first art director, Mignon Khargie – immediately set Salon apart. Now Salon is once again separating itself from the cookie-cutter digital clutter that defines too much of the Web with a bold and striking new design.
We asked designer Kelly Frankeny to create a news tabloid as imagined by Coco Chanel. Frankeny — a globetrotting designer who is often dropping into beleaguered democracies in Africa and Latin America to work her wonders for embattled newspapers – responded to our challenge with a sophisticated and dynamic design. A brilliant and sassy blond Texan, she has created a new Salon as big as her personality. And yes, while invoking the brassy urgency of a news tabloid, the new design also conveys the elegance of the House of Chanel. Both Frankeny and the new Salon know how to use red lipstick and a simple black dress for maximum effect.
Continue Reading CloseOccupy heats up
Watch the video of Natasha Lennard’s interactive Q&A on the future of Occupy VIDEO
(Credit: Michael Coniaris) As winter thaws, the hot spots of the Occupy movement are seeing the first ripples of resurgence. From New York to Oakland, Calif., crowds are returning to the streets, but will the plan for a May 1 General Strike spark an American Spring or will the movement splinter and fade into Tea Party-like irrelevance? Watch the Salon webcast with Occupy correspondent Natasha Lennard to hear her thoughts on these issues:
To participate in upcoming Salon webcasts with staff and friends, join the Salon Core community.
Stop killing black kids
Watch the video of Quincy McCoy's interactive Q&A on the epidemic of violence against young black men VIDEO
Salon has covered the Trayvon Martin killing relentlessly, but none of our coverage has struck a nerve like the article “Is My Son the Next Trayvon?” by the chief operating officer of Salon Studio, Quincy McCoy. As a black man who escaped the rough neighborhoods of his youth to provide a better life for his child, Quincy’s article conveyed the constant anxiety suffered by all black parents — regardless of class.
Quincy recently hosted an online conversation on the epidemic of violence against young black men. Here is the full video of that discussion:
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Confronting cancer webcast
Full videos posted for Salon Core conversation on "coming out of the sickness closet" VIDEO
My oncologist says that whoever came up with the phrase “the gift of cancer” has the worst taste in gifts she’s ever heard of. But though it’s not exactly a set of car keys under the seat, cancer has, for the past year and a half, been the gift I’ve been given. And from an initial malignant diagnosis of melanoma through surgery through a Stage 4 rediagnosis through a last-ditch, Phase 1 clinical trial to a recovery that has stunned the research community, I’ve shared this adventure with the readers of Salon. And along the way, you’ve given so much in return. You’ve told me your own experiences with illness, with the healthcare system, with grief and frustration, and with the ways a shattering experience — either your own or that of someone you love — can turn life around. Sometimes even for the better. So it was a unique privilege to get to talk to a few of you recently for a Salon webcast, and answer your questions on life here in Cancer Town. For those of you who couldn’t make it live, videos of the full webcast are posted below.
Mary Elizabeth Williams is a staff writer for Salon and the author of "Gimme Shelter: My Three Years Searching for the American Dream." Follow her on Twitter: @embeedub. More Mary Elizabeth Williams.
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