McSweeney’s Internet Tendency has just published my 2nd piece about Pumpkin Spice Lattes. I’m well on my way to achieving a life goal: becoming the official McSweeney’s Pumpkin Spice Latte writer, and one of the great PSL Theorists of all time! I really do think PSLs are worth considering. They’ve been discussed to death for years but it seems there’s always something new or something more to say.
I see PSLs as a signifier more than a drink. Though technically a beverage, they exist in the realm of meaning, not nourishment, not even body. They’re akin to holiday decorations or umbrellas in tropical drinks, totally divorced from their conceptual intention, existing to express images and meanings more than flavor.
My current piece isn’t about any of that, though. It’s about demonic influence. It’s called I’ll Drink this Pumpkin Spice Latte Before Labor Day, but Only Because Demons are Making Me. I hope you enjoy!
