James' World 2

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Marie Holmes thought she was going to have a heart attack when she realized she’d won a $188-million Powerball jackpot. It was February 2015, and the 26-year-old single mother of four had recently quit jobs at Walmart and McDonald’s to care for one of her kids, who has cerebral palsy. She and her children had been living in a mobile home in North Carolina with her mother.

Holmes rarely played the lotto—only when there was cash to spare. This time, $15 and six numbers changed her life: 11, 13, 25, 39, and 52, with a Powerball of 19.

Holmes told a reporter with WECT, a local NBC affiliate, that she was “thankful that I can bless my kids with something I didn’t have.”

“Your whole life is about to change. How are you feeling about that?” the reporter asked Holmes in one of her first TV interviews.

“I’m ready for it,” Holmes answered. “I’m ready to embrace the change.”

Today, another fortunate soul has the chance to snag an eye-watering $1.02 billion Mega Millions reward and see their world permanently transformed overnight. It’s the third time in the game’s 20-year history that the prize is hitting ten figures.

But while some winners take a lump sum and ride off into the sunset, others seem to stick around in the headlines—for reasons that aren’t always so lucky.

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Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Getty/Reuters

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I’m not willing to admit how many years ago this was now, but when I turned 15, I became a vegetarian. Predictably, because I was a teenager, I was sanctimonious about it, chastising everyone around me for not caring about animals or the earth or whatever else I could think of that they should care about in my extremely informed opinion. Being vegetarian and caring about the world thank you very much was a very outsized part of my personality.

Back then, especially because I was 15 years old with little income and worldliness, I defaulted to what I thought were the best options for a vegetarian to eat. Namely, fake chicken nuggets and hot dogs, with the occasional chickpea dish thrown in for health. I didn’t know where to find these things — nor did I know there were any other places — besides my local Acme, a grocery chain in Philly that is basically fine. My hot dog choices back then were Smart Dogs and MorningStar Farms Veggie Dogs. And out of necessity, I loved them both.

Fast forward [redacted] number of years and the landscape for vegetarians has completely changed. The breadth and availability of products means that it feels easier than ever to forgo meat, even if the taste of meat is still your thing. Developments in mushroom-based meats, vegetarian burgers that “bleed,” and brands getting into plant-based products of all kinds means that the hot dog section of the freezer or fridge aisle is no longer a sad, lonely place where bossy teenagers get their kicks. For a number of years now, barbecues haven’t been the same.

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Nicole Miles/Eater

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If you are looking for a delicious appetizer, look no further than this delicious grilled halloumi! Quick and easy to prep and grill, this cheese has a wonderful creamy texture with just the right amount of saltiness.

What is Halloumi?

Halloumi is a non-melting cheese that is similar to Queso Para Frier, and in flavor is somewhere in between feta and mozzarella. It is made with a mixture of goat and sheep’s milk and is semi-hard and brined. It originates from Cyprus and is very popular in Lebanon, where my parents are from.

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According to its evangelists, pickleball is America’s fastest-growing sport (it depends on how you measure). According to Architectural Digest, it’s the perfect amenity for new luxury real estate development (it might be). According to your grandmother, it’s blowing up at her retirement home (it definitely is). The last few years are probably the first time you’ve ever heard of the sport if you have at all, and you may be wondering what is going on. 

Fear not, an avalanche of recent pickleball press can answer all of your questions. This year, The New York Times declared the sport “ready for prime time.” NPR bemoaned the mere 10,000 places to play across the country. Town and Country called it the “preferred sport of the one percent.” The New Yorker asked, “Can pickleball save America?”

Most of the recent articles on pickleball follow a predictable rubric, beginning by explaining how the game works: Players use composite or wooden paddles to whack a plastic ball back and forth over a short net until it bounces twice or out of bounds—like a game of ping-pong where you can stand on the table. Then, as if it follows naturally from the game’s simplicity, they trace the game’s meteoric rise in popularity, from invention in the ‘60s by a quirked-up Republican congressman to its rapid ascent to the mainstream over the last few years.

The only thing moving faster than this venture capital-backed gold rush are pickleball’s haters, of which there are many. No one wants to be told to like something, after all. To detractors like us, it’s a senior citizen’s idea of something youthful and hip—the Pete Buttigieg of sports, if you will. 

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Illustration by Michael Houtz

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