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pdvarona.bsky.social
paola de varona
@pdvarona.bsky.social
560 followers 130 following 20 posts
senior editor, advice @ Slate. writing fiction and nonfiction around the web 🤠
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pdvarona.bsky.social
dare I say if her husband had delivered poorly written and basic sounding vows, but ones done without chatgpt’s help, it still would’ve equally pissed off this letter writer!
shanpalus.bsky.social Shannon Palus @shanpalus.bsky.social · Jun 4
hmmmm, i respect Paola and Hillary but—they are wrong here!! the correct advice in response to AI wedding vows is: divorce.
pdvarona.bsky.social paola de varona @pdvarona.bsky.social · Jun 4
As much as I loathe chatgpt I’m afraid the advice is right on this one, there are so many things we face that feel insurmountable in life and wedding vows is not the hill to die on: slate.com/advice/2025/...
June 4, 2025 at 2:31 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
As much as I loathe chatgpt I’m afraid the advice is right on this one, there are so many things we face that feel insurmountable in life and wedding vows is not the hill to die on: slate.com/advice/2025/...
Help! My Husband’s Best Man Made a Stunning Admission During His Wedding Speech. I Might Never Get Over It.
I barely got through the reception.
slate.com
June 4, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Reposted by paola de varona
shanpalus.bsky.social
Yes the advice here is mature and correct but I would definitely never forgive my husband if I learned he wrote his vows with ChatGPT? slate.com/advice/2025/...
slate.com
June 4, 2025 at 1:38 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
I moved! I wrote about starting over while the world falls apart, and how moving now feels much like the move I did five years at the height of the pandemic: open.substack.com/pub/waitingf...
I Finally Moved.
There is never a perfect time to start over.
open.substack.com
April 17, 2025 at 12:26 PM
Reposted by paola de varona
nitishpahwa.com
yesterday was a tough day for us. please send all love, support, and job opportunities to @methsaxon.bsky.social, @hashtagkatie.bsky.social, and @natalieshut.bsky.social, all of whom deserved so much better than this.
slateunion.bsky.social Slate Union @slateunion.bsky.social · Mar 11
On Monday morning, Slate was suddenly informed that six of its employees—including three editors, two of whom were members of the union—were being laid off, just months after four other staffers were also let go. The Slate Union's official statement reads as follows:
The Slate Union logo—the Slate S featuring upward fist and surrounded by pink and white stripes—is seen above a statement: We, the Slate Union, are united in our belief that management’s decision yesterday to lay off three editorial employees—along with three of our coworkers in other departments—was misguided, foolish, and cruel. The cuts are not these employees’ failures; they are the result of the failure of this company to follow its obligations to its workers. When you can’t find a way to make the most out of smart, talented journalists, that’s a failure of management—and Slate staffers are right to believe it’s incumbent upon management to find ways to solve that problem that don’t involve job losses. Otherwise, what are we investing in journalism for? What are we asking Slate Plus members to invest in us for? There are particular aspects of these layoffs that we in the union find particularly outrageous. Eliminating three editors with their hands on politics and business will put an unbearable strain on others in the department, at the precise moment when coverage of these two subjects is crucial to the magazine’s success. One of the laid-off editors had union-negotiated parental leave approaching—as did another union member who was laid off just months ago. Another one of the laid-off employees was about to go on a honeymoon, and yet another was about to meet the qualifications for their pension benefit. The affected worker will be paid out for their parental leave, but the timing of these departures appears to be designed to make other union members think twice before utilizing the leave they have the contractual right to take. Not to mention, that one of the laid-off editors was hired not even a year ago—after a protracted search—calls management’s strategy into question, to put it lightly. Slate has had two consecutive years of profitability. The fact that management views employees as chits to be discarded at any hint of trouble, instead of valuable people whose work makes our shop successful and profitable, is an enormous mistake. We insist that, in the upcoming contract negotiations, Slate commits to policies that treat layoffs not as a hair-trigger response to adversity but as an absolute last resort, one that will not be undertaken without consulting with the union and the employees in question. Simply paying out extra severance to a laid-off employee should no longer be a substitute for warnings about the state of our business and, more importantly, real attempts to save our staffers’ jobs. Anything short of this will demonstrate that Slate values the jobs of its executives more than its rank-and-file workers, and that good journalism by good journalists is no longer the north star of the magazine.
March 11, 2025 at 5:47 PM
Reposted by paola de varona
slateunion.bsky.social
On Monday morning, Slate was suddenly informed that six of its employees—including three editors, two of whom were members of the union—were being laid off, just months after four other staffers were also let go. The Slate Union's official statement reads as follows:
The Slate Union logo—the Slate S featuring upward fist and surrounded by pink and white stripes—is seen above a statement: We, the Slate Union, are united in our belief that management’s decision yesterday to lay off three editorial employees—along with three of our coworkers in other departments—was misguided, foolish, and cruel. The cuts are not these employees’ failures; they are the result of the failure of this company to follow its obligations to its workers. When you can’t find a way to make the most out of smart, talented journalists, that’s a failure of management—and Slate staffers are right to believe it’s incumbent upon management to find ways to solve that problem that don’t involve job losses. Otherwise, what are we investing in journalism for? What are we asking Slate Plus members to invest in us for? There are particular aspects of these layoffs that we in the union find particularly outrageous. Eliminating three editors with their hands on politics and business will put an unbearable strain on others in the department, at the precise moment when coverage of these two subjects is crucial to the magazine’s success. One of the laid-off editors had union-negotiated parental leave approaching—as did another union member who was laid off just months ago. Another one of the laid-off employees was about to go on a honeymoon, and yet another was about to meet the qualifications for their pension benefit. The affected worker will be paid out for their parental leave, but the timing of these departures appears to be designed to make other union members think twice before utilizing the leave they have the contractual right to take. Not to mention, that one of the laid-off editors was hired not even a year ago—after a protracted search—calls management’s strategy into question, to put it lightly. Slate has had two consecutive years of profitability. The fact that management views employees as chits to be discarded at any hint of trouble, instead of valuable people whose work makes our shop successful and profitable, is an enormous mistake. We insist that, in the upcoming contract negotiations, Slate commits to policies that treat layoffs not as a hair-trigger response to adversity but as an absolute last resort, one that will not be undertaken without consulting with the union and the employees in question. Simply paying out extra severance to a laid-off employee should no longer be a substitute for warnings about the state of our business and, more importantly, real attempts to save our staffers’ jobs. Anything short of this will demonstrate that Slate values the jobs of its executives more than its rank-and-file workers, and that good journalism by good journalists is no longer the north star of the magazine.
March 11, 2025 at 5:40 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
Trying to move states and change your life while everything is falling apart feels like sweeping the sidewalk during a hurricane
March 4, 2025 at 8:36 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
I wish I was capable of the cuban parent coping mechanism of “lo mas importante es que tienes salud, lo demas es segundario” but life’s injustices happen to enrage me
February 14, 2025 at 10:21 PM
Reposted by paola de varona
laurahelmuth.bsky.social
One of the first questions in our new GOOD JOB advice column comes from a park ranger who wants to know how their colleagues can support one another & serve their mission while the president tries to destroy them.
Come for the practical career advice, stay for the solidarity against fascism.
My Co-Worker Wears Very Tight Pants. I Suspect That It’s for a Nefarious Reason.
There is nothing left to the imagination.
slate.com
February 12, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Reposted by paola de varona
flowbert.bsky.social
If anyone is connected in the science editorial space and is looking for an associate editor focusing on microbiology or cell bio I’d love to chat! Currently on the market.
February 12, 2025 at 2:14 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
Today we launched a new advice column, Good Job, to answer all your burning questions about the one relationship that inspires much love/hate/indifference in us all: the one you have with your job slate.com/advice/2025/...
My Co-Worker Wears Very Tight Pants. I Suspect That It’s for a Nefarious Reason.
There is nothing left to the imagination.
slate.com
February 11, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Reposted by paola de varona
shanpalus.bsky.social
Something fun! Today we launched an advice column all about the workplace. @doreeshafrir.bsky.social and @laurahelmuth.bsky.social will be answering questions every week! slate.com/briefing/202...
Slate launches Good Job, a brand new advice column about the modern workplace.
Good Job, Slate's new advice column written by Doree Shafrir and Laura Helmuth, will cover the joys, complications, and confusions of the modern workplace.
slate.com
February 11, 2025 at 12:52 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
Reading your words in @slate.bsky.social’s Dear Prudence is fun! Seriously, we could all use some levity right now—no question about life, relationships, or family is too low-stakes: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Dear Prudence Question Submission Form
Please enter your question on manners, morals, and more for Dear Prudence. This form is anonymous. Please keep questions short (ideally no more than 150 words), and don‘t submit the same question to ...
docs.google.com
February 3, 2025 at 8:13 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
uh hey so what the fuck is happening
January 28, 2025 at 3:47 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
Slate advice is hiring an associate editor! Come work with me 🤠 jobs.lever.co/slate/4e9386...
Slate - Associate Editor, Advice
Slate is hiring an associate editor to help run our advice columns. We are looking for someone with high energy, creativity, a desire to engage with and grow our loyal readership, and most importantly...
jobs.lever.co
January 22, 2025 at 9:58 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
Really thoughtful advice from @stoya.bsky.social today to someone who once coerced their former partner—made me think about the what next? of it all once bad behavior is named and brought to light slate.com/advice/2025/...
I Was the Worst Kind of Man to My Ex. It Now Haunts My Dating Life.
I've become a completely different person.
slate.com
January 14, 2025 at 7:36 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
Send us your questions about your boss or an annoying co-worker 🥸 For a forthcoming @slate.bsky.social advice column, we want to help you navigate your social dynamics at work. Ask us! docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Work Advice Column Question Submission Form
Please enter your question below for Slate’s forthcoming work advice column. We’re especially interested in the social aspects of navigating the workplace—the knotty questions and dynamics that occur ...
docs.google.com
January 6, 2025 at 7:49 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
Finally got back the first bowls I made this fall!!! I love being very bad at something and doing it anyway there is nothing more satisfying
January 3, 2025 at 7:05 PM
Reposted by paola de varona
flowbert.bsky.social
How do bacteria experience nutrient stress in nature? In our new preprint, we study how cells respond to nutrient limitation under flow. We find that in flow, cells can grow on concentrations of glucose 1,000 times lower than in batch cell culture. (1/5)

#microsky
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
December 24, 2024 at 1:41 PM
Reposted by paola de varona
prisci.swifties.social
long live all the magic we made 💖🥹
December 9, 2024 at 1:11 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
The only thing you can glean from my spotify wrapped is that I like music that is exclusively about yearning
December 4, 2024 at 8:06 PM
Reposted by paola de varona
katierayford.bsky.social
In Oct 2023, a man opened fire at a bowling alley & bar in Maine. Right between the two locations, skipped over by the shooter, was Dalia Karim’s 7-Eleven

For @slate.bsky.social, Maine native Jaed Coffin chronicles what happened to the store that night—and the next year:
slate.com/business/202...
It Was One of 2023’s Most Unimaginable Crimes. The Year I Watched Unfold After Was Even Harder to Explain.
In a Maine town, one store was a lifeline—and right in the middle of the state's deadliest tragedy ever.
slate.com
December 4, 2024 at 2:21 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
I do have a soft spot for Dear Prudence Thanksgiving letters, and @shanpalus.bsky.social’s reply to this one is perfect: slate.com/advice/2024/...
Help! My Sister-in-Law Has Offered to Save the Family Thanksgiving. But Her One Condition Is Tearing the Family Apart.
Everyone has completely lost their minds.
slate.com
November 14, 2024 at 9:40 PM
pdvarona.bsky.social
A non-insignificant number of the posts on my feed are about birding which I just did for the first time this weekend so the algorithm is in my walls
November 13, 2024 at 4:47 AM