Sami Reiss

New York

Writer at Snake Newsletter

Writer at Freelance

Writer at GQ

Super Health newsletter, Snake est. 2014, Sheer Drift the book

Articles

Frank Lloyd Wright jail? and Obs 114

2 weeks ago | snake.substack.com | Sami Reiss

Good evening. Snake is back: many pieces, many stories, much lore. I just got back from San Francisco… went to Swan’s Oyster Depot, which some say is the best restaurant in America, and which has the good crushed ice, and Pepsi but not Coke… what is wild about seafood is they all get the same stuff and don’t cook anything, but some are good and some aren’t. Kind of like that scene in Pulp Fiction with the soap.
Obs. 113: Sick-ass grails this week

3 weeks ago | snake.substack.com | Sami Reiss

Good evening. David Lynch’s items are on auction, going up in a week and change on Julien’s. I myself am looking at his Keurig machine. I haven’t had a bad cup of coffee in weeks. A bigger post is in the work but here is the lot to glaze over. There are some deals in there. Legit. More later. Anyways I bet Bruce Willis wins half the cool crap here.
나는 왜 고강도 운동과 모닝 루틴을 멈췄는가

1 month ago | gqkorea.co.kr | Sami Reiss

건강을 염려하는 사람들 사이에 새로운 개념이 떠올랐다. 스트레스 호르몬이라 불리는 ‘코르티솔’. 아침마다 높아지는 코르티솔을 낮추기 위해 명상과 마사지, 운동 등 모닝 루틴을 실천하고 부족한 신체 활동을 채우기 위해 고강도 운동을 실천한다. 미국에서 유행처럼 떠오른 코르티솔을 자세히 들여다보았다. 고강도 운동과 모닝 루틴을 멈추게 되었다. 나는 왜 코르티솔 수치를 걱정하지 않는가. 나는 높은 코르티솔을 막기 위해 일상을 완전히 바꿨다. 건강 을 염려하는 사람들 사이에서 새롭게 떠오른 공포 대상 때문이다. 그리고 나는 몇 가지를 깨달았다. 공황장애가 먼저였을까, 아니면 2시간짜리 모닝 루틴이 먼저였을까? 건강 담론 속에서 비교적 최근에 떠오른 새로운 공포 대상인 코르티솔은, 일부 사람들에게는 스트레스에 대한 단 하나의 화학적 설명이 되었다. 이 용어는 미국의 신경과학자 앤드류 후버먼 절반, 틱톡 트렌드 절반쯤 되는 느낌이다.
Observer 112: The return of the pill lamp to the marketplace

1 month ago | snake.substack.com | Sami Reiss

Welcome back to Snake, lots of auctions this week, premium vibes, all ending end of week too… let’s get to it. Murano floor lamp/sculpture for Thiery Mugler $650, Toio floor lamp (Castiglioni) $850, Venturi Chippendale chair $750, Breuer Cesca chairs 2 for $175, De Sede daybed $1,300.
Why I Don’t Stress About My Cortisol Levels

1 month ago | gq.com | Sami Reiss

What came first, cortisol panic or the two-hour morning routine? Cortisol, a newish bogeyman in the health discourse, has for some become the single, chemical explanation for stress. It’s one of those half–Andrew Huberman, half-TikTok trend terms: a once faintly known biomedical phrase that suddenly names what’s behind all our problems—and which is of course immediately self-diagnosable. Here are the facts. Cortisol is a steroid hormone released by the adrenal glands.
요즘 남자들은 왜 헬스장에서 청바지를 입을까?

1 month ago | gqkorea.co.kr | Sami Reiss

온갖 운동복 옵션이 넘쳐나는 시대에, 왜 누군가는 청바지를 입고 운동을 할까? 그리고 이 광경에 어떤 숨은 논리가 있는걸까? 거의 모든 헬스 마니아들이 결국 겪게 되는 특정한 굴욕이 있다. 무게를 묵직하게 들고, 단백질을 충분히 섭취하고, 적당한 기장 길이의 운동용 반바지를 입는 등 모든 정석을 따르던 헬스 광이 어느 순간 기록을 갱신하며 스쿼트 PR(개인 최고 기록)을 달성한다고 하자. 기분이 좋아진다. 그런데 고개를 돌려보니, 바로 옆 스쿼트 랙에서는 청바지를 입은 남자가 내 최고 무게로 가볍게 워밍업을 하고 있는 것이다. 혼란스러운 순간이다. 왜 숙련된 리프터는 운동용으로 설계되지 않은, 오히려 움직임을 방해할 수 있는 청바지를 선택할까? 왜 이 신화적인 존재 — 겨울에도 반바지만 입고 다니는 아이 같은 — 가 모든 헬스장에 존재하는 걸까? 그리고 온갖 최적화된 운동복이 쏟아지는 이 시대에 왜 아직도 사람들이 청바지를 입고 중량을 드는 걸까?
Observer 111: An obscure Loewy La Creuset piece, Pesce at the Johnson house & more

1 month ago | snake.substack.com | Sami Reiss

Shabbat Shalom y’all and forgive the late email (during Shebat yikes) I went deep on some real journalism earlier today:Read it. Thanks. But now, back to design. SNAKE is a reader-supported. To get it all, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Couple stories that came up that jumped out at me before I get to auctions and retail.
Off-topic: Why was the Patriots' team plane in Guantanamo? An investigation

1 month ago | snake.substack.com | Sami Reiss

Going off-topic here. I’ll send the furniture letter in a bit, later today, before Shabbat. Anyways check this crap out: Having worked in sports for a decade I keep up with deranged off-the-field stories and this one seems like the wildest one in years. I dug around and it got even crazier. It is this: The New England Patriots’ team plane has been going back and forth to Guantanamo Bay. Completely normal thing to be doing. Very normal.
A look at the Air Max "95" for Auction Observer 110

2 months ago | snake.substack.com | Sami Reiss

Hello and Shebat Salaam. Yesterday was sprint day. Housecleaning:Top auction mentioned ends today; rest Saturday and Sun/Mon. I went deep on the grocery system and Trader Joe’s in my other health newsletter:I am quoted (liberally) in Dan Nosowitz’s great, long look at Facebook Marketplace (and how helpful it is for occasional vintage steals) on Dwell. I discuss my health habits in and stuff I like for — thanks for having me! Ferrari finally podiumed. Can they sustain it?
Bootleg USM terlet is probably the ultimate test; there is a guy named Guido Zimmerman, thoughts on Salone-& Auction Observer 109

2 months ago | snake.substack.com | Sami Reiss

Howdy folks, medium to light week for auctions, everyone is either in Milan or preparing for Passover—some, indeed, are both. A few selected thoughts, however:Tariffs are on pause now again and one has to wonder if there’s any benefit or damage or any effect on folks who only buy vintage. I am sure there is in a long-tail way (butter was about to be $11) but the Chad economics here is that buying used things off non-retail websites.. not to go Thomas Friedman but means you are less affected.