Aimee Ortiz

Print hub is the best crew in the biz (and thanks to our presses for holding)

I should really stop listening to my running playlist while I can’t run

U.S. Is Trimming Back Its Collection of Consumer Price Data

The Bureau of Labor Statistics is cutting back its collection of data on consumer prices, raising questions about the reliability of federal economic statistics under President Trump. #EconSky
www.nytimes.com/2025/06/04/b...

The New York Sumo Club has grown steadily since its inception, even accounting for hiccups, Mr. Dolan said. The club has about 100 wrestlers, with around 20 regulars. When it first started, members met and grappled on the meadow in Prospect Park

Daniel Douglas, right, and Angelo Lizardi, left, face off during an open-weight division match. Lizardi, who is much smaller than Douglas, slammed into his chest as they fought for dominance at an amateur sumo tournament.

The community built by the club is an inclusive one, where “all body types, all gender expressions” are welcome, said Daniel Robert Douglas, the club’s vice president

At This N.Y.C. Sumo Club, ‘Everybody Gets Thrown’

This one is about the first amateur sumo club in NYC.

When Oscar Dolan realized there were no amateur clubs in the city, he begrudgingly started his own. That was three years ago. Earlier this month, the club held its first tournament.

But this about more than sumo. It’s about community

At the Gecko Gallery NYC there are New Caledonian giant geckos, psychedelic rock geckos, monkey-tailed skinks, giant leaf-tailed geckos, peacock day geckos, and even a tiny juvenile (although almost fully grown) carpet chameleon that can easily curl up on your fingertip — just to name a few

A Chinese crocodile lizard sits on a log above running water. The lizard is one of dozens of animals featured at The Gecko Gallery NYC

Geckos are diverse, funny little creatures. They’re also very old. One expert told me they’ve been around since before dinosaurs roamed the Earth.

Meet Dozens of Gecko Species at a Tiny Brooklyn Zoo

This one is about a tiny zoo that’s opening in Brooklyn.

Earlier this month I got a preview of The Gecko Gallery NYC where visitors will get a chance to hang with about 150 lizards in a roughly 400-square-foot room. It opens this weekend

A gloved hand over different traditional Chinese medicine herbs. The T.C.M. sector is one of many industries that could be upended by Trump’s trade war

Traditional Chinese medicine boomed over the last two decades. Most shops and practitioners are small, operating on slim margins. Trump’s tariffs threaten both that growth and consumers’ access to this type of health care

‘How Do I Survive?’: Tariffs Threaten U.S. Market for Traditional Chinese Medicine

This one is about traditional Chinese medicine shops, tariffs, and access to health care

Ben Affleck smoking a cigarette on a balcony. He has a pensive but pained existential look on his face.

Incredibly honored to have joined @jholman.bsky.social (the 🐐) on this important piece. Give it a read.

Why Consumers Are Cutting Back on Shopping and Embracing ‘No Buy 2025’ (Gift Article) Marketers followed consumers to social media and their phones. “Low Buy 2025” influencers are sharing tips for how to resist them.

This one is about overspending, overconsumption, shopping addiction, marketing, and consumers who are pushing back.

Should Tulips Replace Roses for Valentine’s Day? Florists Think So. (Gift Article) Roses have long been the flower of choice for the holiday, but some see an opening for the humble tulip.

This one is about roses, tulips, sustainability, and love (all kinds of it).

I know there’s a lot going on in the world, but there’s also some beauty. Come for the details on the tulip’s quiet war on roses, stay for the absolutely gorgeous photos 🌷

The night before a story runs: 😳🤢🤢🤢🥴🥴🥴😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫

How to Help Victims of the Fires in Los Angeles (Gift Article) Raging fires have left five people dead, destroyed or damaged thousands of homes and other buildings and consumed thousands of acres. Here’s how you can help the victims.

Southern California is burning. Here's how you can help:

✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽

Holiday Shopping, Up Close and Personal (Gift Article) The experience of interacting with small business owners at winter markets makes holiday shopping “a little bit more wholesome” for some visitors.

This one is about small businesses and holiday markets where shopping becomes “a little bit more wholesome.”

Some reeeeeeeeal Tuesday-before-Thanksgiving vibes going on at CNN today

Yelloh, Formerly Schwan’s Home Delivery, Closes (Gift Article) The frozen food delivery company, known for its yellow trucks, has closed after losing ground to its competitors and renaming itself Yelloh.

This one is about food, family, modernity and business. It's a love story packaged in a can of vanilla ice cream. It's the tale of a downfall that was decades in the making.

This one is about Yelloh, formerly Schwan's Home Delivery, and how it closed

Picture you took (no description) to bring some zen to the timeline

STUNNING

Say more about that vintage globe 👀 are there pics?

There’s plenty more, but I think I’ll stop here. Thank you for reading my stuff!

Tips are welcomed. Email in bio or you can DM. If you’ve got a story, let’s chat

In Central Park, Pets Are Remembered With a Secret Christmas Tree The tree, which has been decorated each year between Thanksgiving and Three Kings Day since the 1980s, is a chance for owners to publicly memorialize their pets.

This one is about a very special and very secret Christmas tree dedicated to all the good boys and good girls

Buzz, Chirp, Wee-Oo: Listen to the Cicadas Sing As some of the loudest singing insects on Earth are back to chirp at a volume similar to an airplane’s, Americans are rejoicing or covering their ears. Listen to some of the species.

This one is about cicada songs. You can listen to them here

The World Hasn’t Seen Cicadas Like This Since 1803 Brood XIX and Brood XIII will both emerge this spring. The last time these bugs showed up at the same time in the United States, Thomas Jefferson was president.

This one is about the cicada explosion that happened earlier this year. It’ll be another 221 years before these two broods meet again

Halloween’s Mutation: From Humble Holiday to Retail Monstrosity Americans once made their own costumes and candy. Now, the holiday has rapidly commercialized, transforming into an economic juggernaut.

This one is about Halloween’s long transformation from a pagan celebration into a hulking commercialized retail monstrosity

Dragons and Sharks on a Beach Near You: The Story of the Great Lego Spill Nearly five million Lego pieces plunged into the sea in 1997. The pieces are still showing up — on England’s coast, in Ireland, Belgium, France and possibly at the beach near you.

This one is about long lost Lego dragons and sharks. It’s also about plastic in the ocean